[3.16][HC][ON BREAK] Caustic Arrow Raider, DoT Focused | Tanky | 6k+ Health | All Content | In-depth

Hey !

Really Nice guide, I enjoy it a lot so far (lvl53 and tabula)

I have noticed something I d like to share.
I took a shrine at a moment (the one with speed and projectile speed) and the degen was amazing.
Here my question : if we focus a bit in projectile speed, because it apply directly to CA, does it affect it like a big boost ? So it should be an other way to increase the clouds ?

thanks for updating ^.^ I only play because of your build, so tell Chris he owes you something pretty hehe.

"

DankawSL wrote:

Another minor update, based on my experiences with new league:

* Syndicate members can be REALLY deadly, it think we all experienced that one already. I've "frozen" my progress at the end of act 3 because they simply took too much time to deal with, as CA is not a great boss killer early on. (i "unlocked" the progress after picking up phase acro)

* With all the new crafting options, the progress through storyline is faster than it has ever been. I've killed Kitava below 9 hours, including ~1 hour lost playing around with syndicate.

* The damage is visibly higher this patch. So much that damage penalty from GMP is barely noticable in maps (except bosses ofc). You need 5-link bow / Tabula for that tho.

* I recommend getting very early Phase Acro. With how dangerous syndicate is, you REALLY need that extra avoidance.

Besides that, i already have minor improvements to the guide in mind. There's also going to be really small improvement to the levelling passive tree, levels 56+. Might do them during a break sometime soon.

Hi, been a lot of fun playing your CA build. Thank you. The new build for beginners is great as it's easy to get into and progress. However with this Betrayal League, there are some Immortal Syndicate characters that are impossible to kill (for now), especially one who's high elemental & chaos resistances.

I would follow the transport trying to kill him but he would regen back to full health & CA seemed to have little to no effect on him, until I picked up Despair, which brought his life to a quarter before he regen back to full health again. That's quite a sentence, i know, but i'm out of my wits trying to figure out how to take him down.

Currently at Level 35, almost done with Sarn & about to take the first ascendancy.

December 9th, 2018
Equipment:
* Loreweave added as an optional body armour

Levelling and Progression:
* CA levelling passive trees / estimated levels were adjusted, again. Levels 55 and above.
* If you're at these levels and don't know what to do anymore, here are previous levelling trees:
Crafting Section:
* +3 CA Bow, +3 Staff and +3 Elder Bow crafting updated to reflect newest crafting options.
* These sections still require minor clear up. I've tried to provide info once i knew the possibilities.
* Best bases for CA bows updated. Best base is highest AS base OR Maraketh bow.

=======================================

Important update. Poedb released the list of all new mods and their power is... quite nuts in some cases. Damage is everywhere. I'll do a bigger update later on. Let's get to the important part now...

Remember how i said +3 7-link Elder bows are absolute end game piece of gear when you don't have anything else to upgrade? That's not true anymore, the cost is now halved and there's RELIABLE way of creating one like that.

The key here is you're creating +1 7-link bow with 40% Non-ailment Chaos DoT multiplier, the damage is basically the same as the old version (and stronger in case of Toxic Rain). You can use 14-18% quality craft to increase odds of linking the bow, further reducing the cost. Along with perfect fossil, that's easy 40%+ quality.

Lastly, the beginning of the league never goes well for me. Disconnect claimed my life once again.
I didn't lose much. Managed to get enough chaos to secure most important items of the build. Will be back at level 80 in few hours, most likely.

"

dibdib2 wrote:

Spoiler

Hey !

Really Nice guide, I enjoy it a lot so far (lvl53 and tabula)

I have noticed something I d like to share.
I took a shrine at a moment (the one with speed and projectile speed) and the degen was amazing.
Here my question : if we focus a bit in projectile speed, because it apply directly to CA, does it affect it like a big boost ? So it should be an other way to increase the clouds ?

Projectile speed doesn't increase the damage output directly, simply makes the arrow fly faster and killing enemies faster as a result. Same goes to attack speed, but it doesn't actually increase the damage output. Good to have stat, but not necessary at all.

"

thanks for updating ^.^ I only play because of your build, so tell Chris he owes you something pretty hehe.

That's a compliment i haven't heard yet, thank you!

"

biaXamseng wrote:

Spoiler

Hi, been a lot of fun playing your CA build. Thank you. The new build for beginners is great as it's easy to get into and progress. However with this Betrayal League, there are some Immortal Syndicate characters that are impossible to kill (for now), especially one who's high elemental & chaos resistances.

I would follow the transport trying to kill him but he would regen back to full health & CA seemed to have little to no effect on him, until I picked up Despair, which brought his life to a quarter before he regen back to full health again. That's quite a sentence, i know, but i'm out of my wits trying to figure out how to take him down.

Currently at Level 35, almost done with Sarn & about to take the first ascendancy.

Many, many syndicate member are very mobile, so it's hard to constantly apply degen in some cases. That's true especially early on when you're not fast enough. The exile you're talking about most likely had a buff that consumed corpses to heal up, or was healed from fortification totems.

That being said, syndicate is not a joke. I think everyone agrees. Easiest way to fix you problem would be facing him in low level zone and imprison him - which will reduce his rank and remove his items.

"

Projectile speed doesn't increase the damage output directly, simply makes the arrow fly faster and killing enemies faster as a result. Same goes to attack speed, but it doesn't actually increase the damage output. Good to have stat, but not necessary at all.

I try again with same buff shrine (attack speed, speed and projectile speed) and I still dont understand how the degen can be so much faster with that buff. The difference is hudge. What can explain it?

Thx for uptade i will have a look in craft session

Another small update, i've been thinking a lot today during my time of facerolling maps. Here are some conclusions i've been thinking about recently:

* With introduction of 40% Non-ailment chaos DoT multiplier craft, elder bow crafting has lost a lot of value. Normal bows can achieve nearly the same amount of dps (~7/8th) for close to no cost. There's almost no point to using them. Honestly, at this point i would only craft one for +1 arrow.

* This patch gave so much damage to CA that support gems are optional at this point. You can use anything you want and still feel good about it. I'm currently doing yellow maps using normal +2 6-link bow with crafted attack speed. I also use GMP, and i still have no issues with killing nearly everything instantly (except bosses).

* I think i'll switch primary ascendancy from phasing to onslaught. Build feels so much better with it and it's defensive/speed ability is especially important this league. Not confirmed yet.

* Loreweave + physical damage reduction stacking might be way to go now end game. That or stacking spell dodge to counter elemental damage. Regardless, Kintsugi still feels great as standalone body armour and is MUCH cheaper.


I still have more random thoughts, but i don't wanna make essays here - time could be spent better elsewhere. There's so many more changes i gotta do, but it's so early in the league i don't want to commit to it just yet. Would take me whole day or so.

I think that's the last post of this type for now. I've tested league start part and end game didn't change much (other than nearly doubling the damage for non-elder bow users).

love the build. Very detailed and defiantly the most detailed ive seen. Ill post questions here as I progress, thanks. and keep it up!

"

DankawSL wrote:

Another small update, i've been thinking a lot today during my time of facerolling maps. Here are some conclusions i've been thinking about recently:

* With introduction of 40% Non-ailment chaos DoT multiplier craft, elder bow crafting has lost a lot of value. Normal bows can achieve nearly the same amount of dps (~7/8th) for close to no cost. There's almost no point to using them. Honestly, at this point i would only craft one for +1 arrow.

* This patch gave so much damage to CA that support gems are optional at this point. You can use anything you want and still feel good about it. I'm currently doing yellow maps using normal +2 6-link bow with crafted attack speed. I also use GMP, and i still have no issues with killing nearly everything instantly (except bosses).

* I think i'll switch primary ascendancy from phasing to onslaught. Build feels so much better with it and it's defensive/speed ability is especially important this league. Not confirmed yet.

* Loreweave + physical damage reduction stacking might be way to go now end game. That or stacking spell dodge to counter elemental damage. Regardless, Kintsugi still feels great as standalone body armour and is MUCH cheaper.


I still have more random thoughts, but i don't wanna make essays here - time could be spent better elsewhere. There's so many more changes i gotta do, but it's so early in the league i don't want to commit to it just yet. Would take me whole day or so.

I think that's the last post of this type for now. I've tested league start part and end game didn't change much (other than nearly doubling the damage for non-elder bow users).

Music to my impoverished ears since i'm playing SSF. After getting Swift Affliction, i'm breezing through Act 5 with 4L CA, coupled with Holy Relic + Stone Golem combo (thanks, HardSave!). Now with 4L gears, i've also set up Wither totem for that extra bit of help with bosses & IS gangbangers.

Great job, DankawSL!

loving the build, up to around level 65 and having a blast. very glad to see your last update about the bows because I have had absolutely no luck finding a 6 link bow but am 1 card short of being able to get tabula. my best bow is a 4 link with +2 to gems.

would it be more damage to switch to a 6 link in tabula and craft a different bow for attack speed and / or +1 arrow? if so, what else should I try to find or craft on it?

many thanks for all the work you have put into this guide

So for 3.5 you would go with the fossil craft method for a bow correct?

IE: Ilvl 64-75 6L base thicket or maraketh. Then the three fossils until +3 gem bow and slap the chaos multi on it. Ta-da. In your experience how many fossils slams do you end up taking to hit +2 or +3 gems? Obviously it is random...just curious :)

I'm playing a ca/tr trickster and was looking to make a bow so I can actually do some damage and came across this guide. Good info! Thanks :)