Unleashing the Storm: A Path of Exile Guide to a Lightning Spell that Summons 3 Minions to Shoot Lightning
The Spark and the Servants: Designing the Skill
Stormcaller’s Fury: The Core Spell
The world of Wraeclast is a harsh mistress, a playground for the ambitious, and a graveyard for the unwary. In Path of Exile, crafting the perfect build is not just a pursuit; it’s a necessity. For those who crave the electrifying thrill of lightning, the power of minions, and the satisfaction of seeing chaos unfold, a build centered around a lightning spell that summons minions to unleash bolts of crackling energy holds immense appeal. Imagine: a searing blast of lightning followed by the relentless barrage of summoned creatures, each one a miniature storm, amplifying your power and dominating the battlefield. This guide delves into the potential of such a build, exploring the exciting possibilities of combining lightning spells with the raw power of summoned allies.
Summoning the Stormborn Guardians
The core of this build hinges on a hypothetical (or perhaps future!) skill: a devastating lightning spell that not only deals direct damage but also calls forth three loyal minions. Let’s call this spell “Stormcaller’s Fury”. Stormcaller’s Fury, as the primary lightning spell, would be a spell with a significant area of effect. Imagine a concussive blast of pure energy, arcing out to strike multiple enemies simultaneously. The base damage would be respectable, serving as a strong initial strike to soften up foes or outright destroy weaker enemies. Crucially, upon casting Stormcaller’s Fury, three “Stormborn Guardians” would be summoned to fight alongside you. These guardians would be small, spectral figures, emanating crackling lightning energy.
Guardian Behavior and Attacks
These guardians wouldn’t merely be decorative; they’d be the key to our damage output. Their primary function would be to automatically target enemies within a moderate range and unleash their own bolts of lightning. The guardians’ attacks would likely be a form of chain lightning, bouncing between enemies, further extending our area of effect, and making the build incredibly effective for clearing large packs of monsters. They would also be able to cast their lightning strikes quite quickly.
Skill Support Gems and Balancing
The summoning of the Stormborn Guardians could be triggered upon each cast of Stormcaller’s Fury. The mana cost should be balanced to ensure the build isn’t unsustainable. Some form of a cooldown would be necessary to prevent an overwhelming number of minions. The skill would also benefit from various support gems to improve efficiency and power. Gems that amplify damage, such as Added Lightning Damage and Lightning Penetration Support, would be obvious choices. Also useful would be increased area of effect support to increase the spell’s reach, and faster casting support to speed up spellcasting. The build would also benefit from minion-specific gems, such as Minion Damage Support and, if applicable, gems that boost minion life and resistances.
Mapping the Power: The Passive Skill Tree
Choosing Your Ascendancy Class
The passive skill tree is the backbone of any successful Path of Exile build. This build, with its dual focus on lightning damage and minions, requires a strategic allocation of passive points. The Necromancer, Elementalist, and even the Inquisitor ascendancy classes would be well-suited to this build, each offering unique strengths. Let’s consider a Necromancer approach. The Necromancer’s Ascendancy notables would be particularly potent. “Commander of Darkness” grants a substantial buff to minion damage and attack speed. “Mistress of Sacrifice” adds a way to further improve minion damage. “Unnatural Strength” would allow the Stormborn Guardians to grow stronger with increased health.
Essential Passive Skill Clusters
Key passive clusters and notables that would be absolutely essential: Lightning Damage Clusters: Focus on maximizing lightning damage. Look for nodes that grant increased lightning damage, increased spell damage, and increased critical strike chance if you’re aiming for a crit build. The “Breath of Lightning” cluster is excellent. Minion-Specific Clusters: Focus on clusters that boost minion damage and minion life. The “Gravepact” wheel would be an excellent choice, especially since the build will already deal lightning damage. These also provide increased resistances. Life and Energy Shield: Prioritize maximum life and energy shield. Mana Regeneration/Mana Reduction: Ensure your mana pool can sustain the constant casting of Stormcaller’s Fury.
Tree Navigation and Building Strategy
The journey through the passive tree should be a carefully planned route. Try to use efficient pathing. Prioritize the Lightning Damage and Minion nodes, and always pick up notable passives.
Crafting the Arsenal: Itemization for Lightning and Minions
Weapon Choices
Your gear choices will have a profound impact on the success of this build. Itemization needs to focus on both Lightning damage and minion-related stats. Weapons: Consider wands, scepters, or a staff. A wand or scepter would allow you to dual-wield, further amplifying your spell damage. Look for affixes that grant: Increased lightning damage, Increased spell damage, Increased cast speed, Increased critical strike chance (if crit-focused), + to levels of lightning spells
Armor Recommendations
Armor: Your chest armor should prioritize survivability and potential minion support. Chest Armor: Consider crafting a rare chest armor with maximum life and elemental resistances. Helmets: Helmets can provide a substantial boost to minion damage. Look for unique helmets with affixes such as “Minions deal increased damage.” Also, the unique helmet “Bone Helmet” is a great choice. Gloves and Boots: Focus on life, resistances, and movement speed for boots. Gloves could also add to your minion damage.
Jewelry and Flasks
Jewelry: Rings, amulets, and a belt are crucial for rounding out your stats. Amulet: Choose an amulet with high life and, ideally, a useful anointment. Rings: Look for rings with life, resistances, and damage. The unique ring, “Call of the Brotherhood” can be helpful. Belt: A leather belt or stygian vise with life, resistances, and increased damage or mana is a solid choice. Flasks: Life Flasks: Essential for survivability. Mana Flask: Crucial for sustaining spell casting. Utility Flasks: Consider flasks that grant increased speed, elemental resistance, or curse immunity.
Unique Item Considerations and Balancing
Unique Items: Unique items can provide massive benefits to the build. Experiment and try different options. When creating this build, remember that the stats need to be balanced. While damage is essential, prioritizing life and resistances will help you survive challenging encounters. Always aim for capped resistances to avoid getting one-shotted.
The Tempest’s Dance: Gameplay and Tactics
Casting Mechanics
The core gameplay of this build is about striking a balance between dealing lightning damage and using minions. Casting Rotation: Spam Stormcaller’s Fury to create minions. While the spell has a cooldown, this build will be about maintaining a constant stream of minions. Positioning: Stay at a moderate distance from enemies to let the minions do most of the work.
Resource Management and Effectiveness
Resource Management: Manage your mana effectively, using mana flasks when necessary. Consider investing in mana regeneration on your passive tree and/or on gear. Clear Speed: This build will likely shine in clearing maps. The combination of Stormcaller’s Fury and the lightning damage of the Stormborn Guardians is excellent for eliminating hordes of monsters. Boss Fights: For boss encounters, the build will need to adapt. Focus on maintaining the three guardians. The minion damage will be vital. Focus on utilizing your direct lightning attacks. Defensive Considerations: Life, Energy Shield, and resistances will be your best friends here.
Strategies for Success
This build is a blast to play. With a good balance of damage, health, and positioning, you can conquer almost anything.
The Balancing Act: Pros and Cons
Advantages of the Build
Like all builds in Path of Exile, this lightning spell and minion build comes with its own set of strengths and weaknesses. Strengths: High Damage Potential: With optimized gear and skill tree, this build can deal massive lightning damage. Excellent Clear Speed: The combination of Stormcaller’s Fury and the Stormborn Guardians makes short work of most packs of monsters. Good Survivability: The ability to position yourself safely and let the minions do the work greatly improves survivability. Scale-able: Because the minions are mostly damage based, the build is capable of being improved with more powerful gear.
Potential Drawbacks
Weaknesses: Gear Dependence: The build can be demanding, especially if you don’t have enough defenses. Minion Reliance: If you depend on the minions, it can be hard to take down bosses. Minion builds can be less responsive sometimes: You have to control the position of the minions Potential Boss Difficulty: Boss encounters might require a specific strategy.
Conclusion: Harnessing the Lightning and Commanding the Storm
The potential of a lightning spell that summons three minions to shoot lightning is undeniable. It’s a build that can offer a thrilling and effective playstyle, combining the visceral impact of lightning with the strategic element of minion management. While the build is hypothetical, the principles of lightning damage, minion damage, and defensive stats are essential for any successful build.
Encouragement to Experiment
If the concepts explored in this guide pique your interest, then consider crafting such a build. Experiment with different gear, passive skills, and support gems to refine your own personalized storm of lightning. Remember that Path of Exile thrives on experimentation. Don’t be afraid to try new things. The possibilities are endless. Consider starting with the Necromancer Ascendancy, as the minion nodes will make you unstoppable. Embrace the power of lightning, command your minions, and unleash the storm upon Wraeclast!
