[3.14] F1rstborn's Hexblast Scion | 1EX budget included | All content | Fast and Versatile.
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Hello Exiles. With the changes to Elementalist in 3.13 I, like seemingly everyone else, fell in love with ignite. I played Fireball, Armageddon brand, Penance brand, Brand Surge and Burning Arrow before being reminded by a viewer that Hexblast was a thing. That Character, "FFSevenIgnition" in my profile, was a lot of fun to play, but it lacked defenses and the use of primordial items limited damage and mana regeneration potential. Two things which this Scion version makes up for, without losing too much as compromise. Ladies and Gentlemen of the congregation, I present Doom.
In this guide, we will take a look at the general version of the character from leveling through end game and highlight some of the variants that can be used for specific tasks. As is tradition, feel free to leave any questions and comments here, Youtube or join me as I no-life the league launch and attempt to make some currency: Twitch!
Pros and Cons
+0 screen clutter. Very simple skill design and clarity allows you to focus on the fight. +Texture streaming proof. I cannot stress this enough, texture streaming cannot **** this up because he blast barely has a texture to see. +A tier mapping with potential for S-tier with an item adjustment. See: Map God. +All content viable on a modest budget. +League start viable. +Eats Ultimatum for Breakfast -Can run all map mods with adjustment, but some not as smooth (ailment chance reduction, hexproof, no regen) -Not a 1 button build. 2 buttons is 100% more than my typical MO, utility requires an extra couple as well. -Scaling can get expensive as time goes on. Clusters, Ignite speed and Watcher's Eye are pretty pricey (thanks a lot burning arrow)
TL/DR POB and Vid NAO!!
My current POB. Still evolving: https://pastebin.com/haGiMcY9
[Make sure to use community fork] Videos: Coming This week
Questions and Answers
What do you do with Hexproof???
Quit. Just kidding. This is a major drawback of this build but it isn't as hopeless as some would have you think. While I won't be caught dead running a hexproof map, if you have a pack of hexproof monsters (denoted by grey curses above their heads) just lead them over to some other mobs and nuke them. The damage applied will spread from the others via ignite proliferation. In addition, once you have crossed the ~2M DPS mark, trash will die even to an unhexed ignite.
I have 1EX what do?
This build is minimally viable at this stage so worry not. Total value here is 85C [League week 3], leaving you room for gems and staying under 1ex. Despite that, it still pumps out 1.4M Sirus DPS at level 72.
Do you have leveling Tips?
Note:Leveling Trees are included in PoB drop down. Leveling gems are included in POB notes. This was my second character of the league after starting as a ball lightning ascendant for early bossing. As such, I leveled with the "Tabula Speed" set up mentioned in the notes of PoB.
What is the play style like?
1. Cast flammability. Vixen's Entrapment will cast all of your supplemental curses.
2. After 1 second has passed (enough for Doomsday to max Doom) cast Hexblast 3. Immediately re-apply flammability for maximum damage. 4. Repeat from step 2 if ignite has expired and the boss is still alive.
What about Indigon?
Wouldn't be a MOM build without someone asking: "Can Indigon work with this build. Spoiler: It can. Will be updating this version at a later date as an optional fully boss focused variant.
Character Customizations
Curse Selection
Once we Vixen's Entrapment and the "Whispers of Doom" notable, we gain access to two additional auto-casting curses. Flammability will remain our self-casted curse due to it's alternate quality version giving us additional doom. Despair: This is the most damaging curse option for us. It curses enemies to take increased damage over time. Given the balance of the damage equation, this is effectively "more damage". Elemental Weakness: This is the runner up damage curse, and would be your second option if going full damage. Cursed enemies will have decreased resistances, stacking with flammability. Enfeeble: This curse reduces enemy accuracy and causes enemies to deal less damage with hits that manage to land. This is the most defensive curse you can select. Temporal Chains: This is an all around great curse. It lessens enemy action speed. Keeping pesky mobs from reaching you, hitting slower and casting slower. It has the added benefit of lengthening the ignite duration. While this doesn't increase DPS, it allows for more time to move between Hexblasts.
Secondary Ascendancy
Hierophant is mandatory for the build. It gives a healthy chunk of mana, 8% MOM and arcane surge effect; increasing spell damage, cast speed and mana regeneration. This is essentially why we choose Ascendant to begin with. With that said, the secondary ascendancy is versatile and I have used a handful of the options.
Pathfinder
This ascendancy gives us movement speed and life recovery on flask usage, which isn't too big. However, this was my first ascendancy because, with well placed flask usage, it can nearly sustain utility flasks during a boss fight on it's own. It also guarantees your mana flask has 100% uptime. These seem small, but if extra defense is your goal this is your go to.
Chieftain
This ascendancy increases our fire damage and provides a chance to cover rare or unique enemies in ash. This debuff increases fire damage taken (read: 20% more damage). It also gives life regeneration, but given our use of agnostic, this is negligible. In conjunction with our void sphere, we can basically guarantee the uptime of the ash debuff on bosses, making this the go to if extra damage against bosses is the goal.
Elementalist
This is my choice for ascendancy. The extra exposure is great for bossing. In addition, since hexblast can shock, we have ~10% chance to have enemies take 10% more damage. Lastly this provides elemental reflect immunity. This was huge for early bossing (atziri) and map running. The latter of which is a perk I enjoy too much to choose one of the others.
Necromancer
This is an experimental ascendancy and can be seen in the "Bonus Block" trees in the POB. We would swap links around to have an arcanist brand>bone offering>Desecrate set up. Then we would retract skill points from the Acrobatics nodes and place a point in Mysticism via Intuitive Leap. The end result is a 9% drop in EHP but a gain of 18 skill points. These can be used for cluster jewels, life nodes or mana nodes. I have not tried this one yet, but will do so and report back soon.
Speed Mapping & Delve Variant
In this variant, we will swap out a Berek's Respite for our Essence Worm. We will not use Supreme Ego or Elemental Equilibrium. The former has no use without an aura, the later will cut our damage now due to the added fire damage from Berek's Respite. The end result is a cut of damage by 40% [from 5.2M to 3.25M sDPS in the mid range build]. For that you will gain multi-screen clearing Ignites, similar to Essence Drain/Contagion.
Detailed Gearing Section
Helmet
Required Stats: Life>Mana>Resists
Luxury: Crown of the Inward Eye Arcane Cloak spends an additional 15% mana[enchant]
Amulet
Required Stats:Life>Mana>Resits
Luxury: Atziri's Foible with Burning Brutality enchanted. Ultra Luxury: 20% quality on foible
Weapons
Starting Sceptres: 100+ Mana with a combination of Fire damage, Damage over time Multiplier, Burning Damage, Fire Damage over time multiplier
Ignites you inflict deal damage X% faster [Hunter Mod] Ultra Luxury: Ignites you inflict deal damage 20% faster [Synthesized Implicit].
Body Armour
Yes, a 6-link is required. Besides the typical scaling granted from an additional support gem, Archmage scales with the mana multiplier. Damage on a 5-link will be dog water.
Tabula Rasa Luxury: Junk 6-Link with: Mana>Life>Resists Ultra Luxury: 6-Link Cloak of Defiance
Ring 2
Mana>Life>Resists>Dexterity
Luxury: Damage Taken Recouped as Mana Ultra Luxury: Hexes inflicted by you have +5 to maximum doom [Essence of Delirium]
Gloves
While I'm including the base gear as a rare. The build will not feel pretty without Vixen's. Luckily, these things were 2C on the first night of a new league.
Maximum life>Resists>Strength for Kaom's Luxury: Vixen's Entrapment Ultra Luxury: Corruption for extra level to socketed gems.
Belt
Mana>Life>Resists>
Luxury: Stygian Vise for access to an abyss jewel Ultra Luxury: Mana Recovery Rate
Abyss Jewel
Mana>Life>Resists
Boots
Movement>Mana>Life>Resists
Luxury: Omeyocan Boots Ultra Luxury: Mana Regeneration if you've cast a spell recently[enchant]
Annointments
Map Clear focus: Hex Master.
Damage focus: Burning Brutality.
Flask choices
1. Enduring Mana flask. We do need help keeping our mana topped off. Use Einhar to craft Staunching here so the bleed doesn't give you an extra portal trip.
2. Quartz Flask. Dodge and Spell dodge to compliment our set up. 3. Granite Flask. This will give ~20% physical damage reduction with "of iron" suffix 4. Quicksilver Flask. Duh. 5. Atziri's Promise. Chaos Resistance and ~10% ignite DPS.
Cluster Jewels
The typical Ignite clusters are expensive, expensive but I have some options for ya!
1. Damage over Time Multiplier Base: Brewed for Potency and Wasting Affliction. Very cheap base, Potency is a heavily weighted mod as well. This helps our mana situation and adds a large chunk of damage. 2. Curse Effect Base: Evil Eye and Lord of Drought. Decently cheap base, Eye is heavily weighted. More damage and more defense. 3. Just sell a kidney and get a Fire Damage over time Base with Blowback and Wasting Affliction. Your ignites won't last long, but they will be hotter than the sun. Besides, you have two kidneys anyway.
Gem Links
Damage 6L
(Divergent)Hexblast>Archmage>(Anamolous)Combustion>Ignite Proliferation(Awakened)Burning Damage>(Awakened)Deadly Ailments
Note: If you opt for fan the flames or the Berek's Respite set up, switch Ignite Proliferation for (Awakened)Swift Affliction
4 link Totem Set Up
Scorching RayF>Faster Casting>Spell Totem>Multiple Totems
This applies exposure without hitting so as not to gimp Elemental Equilibrium. Neither the Multiple totem or faster casting supports are mandatory, feel free to use these slots for something else.
4 link Utility Sphere
Void Sphere>Increased Critical Strikes>Culling Strike>Second Wind
I cannot sing the praises of this skill high enough. It hinders, culls, destroys corpses and procs Elemental Overload all on it's own.
3 link Supplemental Curses
Despair>Elemental WeaknessEnhance>Temporal Chains
This is another choice left up to you. Despair is a must, but your other curse can be Elemental Weakness, Enfeeble or Temporal Chains.
3 link Arcane Cloak
Arcane Cloak>Arcane Surge>Second Wind.
Your standard arcane cloak/surge Damage buffing, defensive layer applying, mana regen inducing 3-link set up.
3 link Flammability
(Anomalous)Flammability>Sigil of Power>Enhance.
Anomalous Flammability is your first skill gem upgrade. The extra doom greatly increases our damage potential here. Level 4 Enhance in conjunction with Malicious Intent on the tree will add another damage break point with Doom.
Essence Worm
(Divergent)Malevolence
Straight forward damage buff
Ascendancy | Bandits | Map Mods
1. Take passive skill point towards Templar. 2. Take Hierophant Ascendancy, move towards your conditional Ascendancy. 3. Take Conditional Ascendancy (see above). 4. Take Remaining additional passive skill points. Bandits: Kill Them All Map Mods to Avoid: %Chance to avoid elemental ailments. General clear will be largely unaffected, but the boss has potential to take an eternity. No/ %reduced regeneration. You can do it, but it will not be a comfortable experience. Hexproof. Discussed in detail above. Again, can be be done, but not suggested.
Pantheon
Major: Soul of the Brine King. Stun lock sucks.
Minor: Soul of Abberath. Just 1 less thing to worry about.
My Current Gear
Change log
5/1/2021 - Guide Published
Last edited by f1rstborn on May 5, 2021, 12:36:34 AM Last bumped on Jun 23, 2021, 8:58:13 PM
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Reserved. But likely un-needed.
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Might try as my first non-Templar build lol.
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Hello. Nice build.
What are the defences? Is it Hc viable? Anyways good guide. Thanks for the work. | |
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This looks really fun, and I'm leveling a Scion with it.
I got a question: How do we make use of Elemental Equilibrium? Is it activated from the lightning damage from Archmage Support? Last edited by Jotshi on May 9, 2021, 10:03:50 AM
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" Correct. The lightning damage procs EE. We have to make sure not to have added fire to spells anywhere. | |
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Hi,
By chance did you craft your scepters? If so could you do a guide to show what you did? Thank you. |
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Hello, f1rstborn, and thank you for another interesting build! I've kept an eye on what you cook up since you made the best build I've ever played (original spinny girl). I particularly love that you favor a big mana pool and Agnostic/Archmage/Arcane Cloak, since the archetype solves a lot of problems with the spellcaster archetype.
Anyway, I've made one of these ascendants now and just got to level 80. Seems to be performing pretty well; just need more currency and playtime so I can keep scaling in the obvious places like wands, and jewel, and gems. I see you haven't posted much on here recently and am hoping you haven't abandoned the build. Do you still think it has more potential, and do you have any updates/improvements you've come across? Also, how much does the burning damage scale with increased damage of the initial hit? Is it worth it to work RF into the build? I know our main DPS comes from burning, which isn't technically spell damage, but I assume more damage on the initial hit means at least some kind of increase to base burning damage, right? |
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" Hi! I did not give up on the build and recorded all end game footage for it already. I had to take a step back from guide crafting this league, but I will be updating them all for 3.15. To answer your questions, scaling the initial hit, while useful is impractical. Burning Speed>burn damage=fire damage=elemental damage. The only case it makes a big difference, is adding additional doom for our hexblast to consume. In most cases this is a sizeable damage increase without much investment. | |
" Both were done with Lucent + scorched fossil spam. Note: Though ignite says "faster" it is not a speed modifier so lucent doesn't block it. This one requires a hunter mod and is a bit tough to hit. |
