[3.13] Archmage Blade Vortex Hierophant | 20k EHP 40m DPS | Depth 2000 Delve Tank

hey i really loved this build but i have some problems, i reached to 8k mana and im using 5linked pledge, the problem is my mana not enough for second use, vortex wants 10k mana and gets unactive, i only can use 5 blades and 10 blades for 1 or 2 seconds. i tried to unlink some supp gems from pledge but it really downs the damage :( what should i do to fix this, thanks

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mahakaly2 wrote:

hey i really loved this build but i have some problems, i reached to 8k mana and im using 5linked pledge, the problem is my mana not enough for second use, vortex wants 10k mana and gets unactive, i only can use 5 blades and 10 blades for 1 or 2 seconds. i tried to unlink some supp gems from pledge but it really downs the damage :( what should i do to fix this, thanks

Looks like you simply aren't following the correct timing as described in the Offence section in the guide. If you do it correctly you should never run out of mana. You have to wait 4+ secs precisely after each cast of BV before u cast it again.

It looks like you're a new player? This really isn't the most straightforward build to play as a newcomer, there are simpler builds out there.

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RudyBaby wrote:

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mahakaly2 wrote:

hey i really loved this build but i have some problems, i reached to 8k mana and im using 5linked pledge, the problem is my mana not enough for second use, vortex wants 10k mana and gets unactive, i only can use 5 blades and 10 blades for 1 or 2 seconds. i tried to unlink some supp gems from pledge but it really downs the damage :( what should i do to fix this, thanks

Looks like you simply aren't following the correct timing as described in the Offence section in the guide. If you do it correctly you should never run out of mana. You have to wait 4+ secs precisely after each cast of BV before u cast it again.

It looks like you're a new player? This really isn't the most straightforward build to play as a newcomer, there are simpler builds out there.

yo, yeah im new but i like this build and i've tried some others but noone cant get me this far in atlas tbh :D timing is really hard for now but i think i have other problems too, im tried to compare your beginner build and mine in PoB, lot of difference between damage, in pob seems like my indigon not workin :s
https://pastebin.com/8AKZS3PQ my builds pob, i'll be thankfull if u check it. thanks

Not an expert here.
The pledge really needs linking. Its the min. req. according to page 1.
You can divine higher spell damage on your pledge of hands and higher mana on your cloak.
You really need 60% increased mana cost on Indigon (see intial mana cost remark).
You don't have life on ring or boots.
Get a stygian vise to get more life/mana in total.
Not all jewel sockets in the tree are used.
Download the mercure trade program and set the sound notification to 4.0 seconds for the timing.
Me, i have to press the blade vortex key for like a complete second. Otherwise I just have 8 blades instead of 10.
The first time you press the key, it's limited to 5/6, next time it's 8/10.
Why do you have MoM in your tree? That's not in any of the pob's on page 1.
Look for flat mana/life + crit multi in the jewels on trade. They are cheaper than increased mana/life and have a similar effect.

oh nvm, just read i have to wait 4 secs between recasts

Rudy, thanks for the awesome build, I'm having a lot of fun with it spending the money that I'd accumulated in Heist!

So it's been a while since I did archmage and was looking at modern uses of the support and came across this build - let me give reference to what I did back in Delirium:

https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/2806283

It seems like a distant cousin to this build in that it's abusing the same mechanics, but it embraces the chaos a bit more rather than trying to turn things into a static rotation - you stack inc duration effects and use long duration spells to maximize the amount of archmage damage you get per click. Importantly - all + damage effects outside of Archmage/Indigon are basically irrelevant because they're just so tiny in comparison (I eventually gave up on scaling crit because it just wasn't needed and I could use the passive points and stat slots to better scale my defense). This is most directly expressed by using your 6l body armour as a pseudo 3x4 link with the supports being Archmage, Inc Dur, and Unleash. Being able to stack more Indigon stacks more than makes up for the loss of damage supports.

So anyway, I guess let me get to the point - I feel like a lot more work and math has gone into this build than I ever did in mine, so I come here asking for discussion/reflection rather than trying to claim my build is better - is my chaotic expression of Archmage irrelevant these days? would it be better to have 4x4-link primary spells and take more advantage of Indigon? Or is it just better to invest wholly into BV or Cremation and use that alone?

I looked at your build. While the general idea is the same, you rely on Indigon maintaining a generally high manacost most of the time without being too rigorous about it. Without looking at gameplay and without doing math, lets say you maintain an average manacost of 30-70% on your available mana most of the time, which is indeed a ton of dmg.

This build however, achieves close to the maximum theoretical efficiency from the archmage-indigon combo. With ~9.5k available mana, it maintains a manacost that is 98% of free mana with 90%+ uptime. So its extremely hard to beat that performance. Also helps that as a staff user, the build has enough skillpoints left to invest into either high crit multi or high block.

Thanks for the response, I think I'm going to mess with Archmage for the coming Flashback event and see where it takes me. I might still fiddle with my nonsense build anyway, but I think this is a more stable and solid build to start with before I dive off the deep end regardless, and will give me a good bench mark that I can compare to and see if it really is worth it these days. Thanks~

edit:
Just gonna edit this post here.

Now a couple days into the Flashback event, I just put together indigon + CoD and can already say that my build I posted above died when they killed the Archmage + Brand Recall shenanigans.

I think it can briefly outdamage this build, but the amount of effort and timing required to get there is huge and ultimately, this build just doesn't really need to be doing more damage to begin with so it's not worth the effort for minimal payoff.

The one bit that I think can be helped is that you can buy an earlier Indigon and use a 4-link Armageddon Brand to bridge the gap while you're still putting together your 6l Pledge of Hands like I am currently doing. It gives a bit of range, but as you mature into a real setup, this build is just hands down better.

It's been fun going back down memory-meme-lane, but now I guess I'll just embrace the future and transition more fully into this build and run out the rest of the event.

@RudyBaby - Thanks for the great guide!

Do you think its worth losing clarity and presicion for Supreme Ego?