Ahn's Might Cleave
Juggernaut Starter Build

Updated for Patch 3.6

The Best Crafty Guides by Odealo

Estimated budget: low

Juggernaut is one of the best and most popular classes since the Ascendancy classes changes in Patch 3.2. Juggernaut provides insane defenses, with high Life, Endurance Charge generation, and Stun and Slow immunity. On top of that, Juggernaut provides amazing DPS, making it extremely solid and well-balanced class. This build, based on the Ahn's Might swords, is perfect for a League starter build. It provides good defenses and offenses, with no expensive items requirements. Ahn's Might swords which are the only required Unique Items in this build, shouldn't cost more than few Chaos Orbs and can be easily replaced by any high Physical DPS unique or rare weapons during the leveling phase. 

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1. Gameplay

This is a classic melee build, which allows to facetank any Boss with proper gear investments. You will be running on full Endurance Charges, and with the Fortify buff at all times, making you able to strictly focus on dealing DPS with your Cleave attack skill. Cleave has high base damage while dual-wielding, grants the Fortify buff, thanks to the Threshold jewel, and provides decent AoE. 

0:06 Tier 14 Palace 0:34 Tier 14 Plaza 0:58 Tier 15 Desert Spring 1:19 Tier 15 Sunken City 1:51 Tier 16 Lair of the Hydra This video was recorded on a level 85 Juggernaut wearing Loreweave and Rat's Nest

2. Build's PROS & CONS

3. Leveling tips

Leveling as Marauder smooth and easy. You do not need to alter your Skill Tree in any way, so you can save up some currency on Passives refunds. Just upgrade your weapons when you are feeling the current content is challenging, and try to equip the highest Life/Res. gear you find yourself. There should be no need to spend of your gathered currency during leveling, except for maybe buying weapons every 15 levels or so.

Suggested leveling Gem setups:

Cleave setup
	Cleave - available as soon as you complete the Enemy at the Gate quest. Provides decent AoE and since it's your end-game attack gem, we suggest leveling it up as early as possible
	Added Fire Damage Support - great buff to your DPS, scaling well with Physical Damage bonuses
	Ruthless Support - will cause every third hit to deal increased damage. This support gem is found in the first area of the game
	Melee Physical Damage Support - increases Cleave's Physical DPS

Whirling Blades setup
	Whirling Blades - your main mobility skill. Can only be used with Swords and Daggers
	Faster Attacks Support

Utility Gems
	Ancestral Warchief - spawns a Totem, which while active will increases your damage. It also deals a moderate amount of damage itself
	Vulnerability - recommended Curse for this build (has to be cast manually)
	Herald of Ash - provides better AoE
	Flame Golem - for the leveling phase, while you are not reliant on Crit. Chance, we suggest using Flame or Stone Golem

Bandits:

You can either help Oak for increased Physical Damage mitigation or kill all the Bandits for two additional Passive Points

Leveling Skill Trees:

31 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Warrior's Blood 2) Born to Fight 3) Blade Master 4) Razor's Edge

56 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Master of the Arena 2) Art of the Gladiator 3) Dervish 4) Twin Terrors 5) Thick Skin

Recommended leveling items:

Blackheart - a great Phys. DPS leveling ring. Available as soon as level one
Adds 1 to 4 Physical Damage to Attacks 5% increased Physical Damage Adds 1 to 3 Chaos Damage to Attacks +(20-30) to maximum Life (2-4) Life Regenerated per second 10% chance to Cause Monsters to Flee

Belt of the Deceiver - powerful belt, which also happens to be the recommended item for your end-game setup
(25-35) to Strength (15-25)% increased Physical Damage You take 30% reduced Extra Damage from Critical Strikes +(30-40) to maximum Life +(10-15)% to all Elemental Resistances Nearby Enemies are Intimidated

4. Final Skill tree, Ascendancy Points, and Pantheon

Final Skill Tree:

115 Points Final Skill Tree
115 Points Path of Building(PoB) link

Ascendancy points:

Preferably in that order:

1. Undeniable
2. Unstoppable
3. Unflinching
4. Unyielding

Pantheon:

Major God - there are two viable choices, whether you are clearing Maps or want to challenge end-game Bosses

For clearing maps:

Soul of Lunaris 1% additional Physical Damage Reduction for each nearby Enemy, up to 8%; 1% increased Movement Speed for each nearby Enemy, up to 8%

For single target bosses:

Soul of Solaris 6% Physical Damage Reduction if there is only one nearby Enemy; 20% chance to take 50%  less Area Damage from Hits

Minor God: Soul of Gruthkul 1% additional Physical Damage Reduction for each Hit you've taken Recently up to a maximum of 5%

5. Final Gems links

[DPS] Cleave setup
	Cleave - your primary DPS skill. It grants high base damage when dual-wielding and decent AoE
	Melee Physical Damage Support - one of the most important support Gems for any Melee setup
	Multistrike Support - makes supported attack repeat two additional times with greatly increased Attack Speed
	Ruthless Support - your every third hit will deal significantly increased damage
	Concentrated Effect Support - increases the DPS of Cleave at the cost of reduced radius
	Maim Support - increases your Physical Damage and Maim enemies on Hit

[UTILITY] Hatred & Herald of Ash
	Hatred - grants a very high DPS boost based on your Physical DPS
	Herald of Ash - grants decent DPS bonus and provides better AoE

[UTILITY] Golem
	Summon Ice Golem - increases your Accuracy Rating and Critical Hit Chance

[UTILITY] Vengeance setup
	Vengeance - this counter-attack skill really shines in this build, while at the same time, it generates Power Charges
	Increased Critical Strikes Support - increases Critical Strike Chance for better Power Charge generation (and increased damage)
	Power Charge on Critical Support - allows Vengeance to generate Power Charges
	Culling Strike Support - increase the damage of Vengeance and culls enemies at low life

[UTILITY] Ancestral Warchief setup
	Ancestral Warchief - summons a Totem which increases your Melee Damage, and deals damage on its' own
	Melee Physical Damage Support
	Concentrated Effect Support
	Maim Support - makes supported attacks maim enemies, increasing Physical Damage they take, and slowing them

[CURSE] Vulnerability, Enduring Cry
	Vulnerability - recommended Curse for this build
	Enduring Warcry - grants increased Life Regeneration per second, and generates Endurance Charges
	Increased Duration Support - increases the duration of supported skills
	Blood Magic Support

[MOBILITY] Whirling Blades setup
	Whirling Blades - your mobility skill
	Faster Attacks Support
	Blood Magic Support

5. Gear Setup

Ahn's Might Juggernaut is a budget-friendly build with no expensive gear requirements. All of the items can be random rares, with Ahn's Might being the end-game weapons for this build. Since you can run all the time at maximum Frenzy Charges when dual-wielding them, and using the Pacifism unique corrupted jewel.

We are also delighted to invite you to visit our Path of Exile marketplace, where you can buy PoE Currency that may help you complete this build.

Our recommended items will:

1. Cap your resistances 
2. Give you enough DPS/Life to start mapping successfully
3. Save you at least a couple of hours since it's already planned out for you

(Helmet) Starkonja’s Head - one of the best choices for this build (excluding extremely expensive gear). Provides very high defensive utility, and increased Attack Speed and Critical Strike Chance

50% reduced Damage when on Low Life +(50-70) to Dexterity 10% increased Attack Speed 25% increased Global Critical Strike Chance (100-130)% increased Evasion Rating +(80-100) to maximum Life 150% increased Global Evasion Rating when on Low Life

(Helmet) Rare Helmet - another solid option which should provide high bonus Armour for extra defenses

Min. requirements: 90 maximum Life 26% Fire Resistance 24% Lightning Resistance 24% Cold Resistance

Helmet enchantments: 40% increased Cleave Damage 15% increased Cleave Attack Speed

(Body Armour) Rare Body Armour - with high Armour for increased defenses

Min. requirements: 90 maximum Life 30% Fire Resistance 30% Lightning Resistance 30% Cold Resistance Optional affixes: high Armour

(Body Armour) Belly of the Beast - always a solid pick for any Life build. It's usually rather expensive

Armour: (685 to 812) (150-200)% increased Armour (30-40)% increased maximum Life +(10-15)% to all Elemental Resistances 50% increased Flask Life Recovery rate Extra gore

(Body Armour) Loreweave - another great choice for Body Armour slot. It grants all the required stats and increases your maximum Elemental Resistances

5% reduced Movement Speed (Hidden) Has 6 Sockets Adds (4-10) to (14-36) Physical Damage to Attacks +(8-24) to all Attributes (20-60)% increased Global Critical Strike Chance +(15-50) to maximum Energy Shield +(20-60) to maximum Life +(20-50) to maximum Mana (6-30)% increased Rarity of Items found (15-50)% increased Elemental Damage Your Maximum Resistances are (76-80)%

(Weapon) Ahn's Might - this build's core weapons. Can be replaced with any high DPS swords while leveling or farming currency to buy those

40% increased Accuracy Rating Adds (80-115) to (150-205) Physical Damage (15-25)% increased Critical Strike Chance -1 to Maximum Frenzy Charges 10% increased Area of Effect +100 Strength Requirement +50% Global Critical Strike Multiplier while you have no Frenzy Charges +(400-500) to Accuracy Rating while at Maximum Frenzy Charges

(Boots) Rare Boots - recommended pick for this build,a get pair with the highest maximum Life bonus you can afford

Min. requirements: 80 maximum Life 20% increased Movement Speed 25% Fire Resistance 25% Lightning Resistance 25% Cold Resistance

(Boots) Kaom’s Roots - a great alternative. They may be cheaper, however, you will have to resign from your Curse/Enduring Warcry setup

Has no Sockets Cannot be Knocked Back +(150-200) to maximum Life You cannot be slowed to below base speed Unwavering Stance

Boots enchantment: 16% increased Attack and Cast Speed if you've Killed Recently

(Belt) Rare Belt - rare belt can provide high defensive utility, but will surely be more expensive. Also, getting one with additional Endurance Charge will be nearly impossible while on a tight budget

Min. requirements: 70 maximum Life 35% Fire Resistance 35% Lightning Resistance 35% Cold Resistance Optional affixes: increased Physical Damage

(Belt) Belt of the Deceiver - the best pick for this build. It shouldn't also cost much to get one with +1 to maximum Endurance Charges

(25-35) to Strength (15-25)% increased Physical Damage You take 30% reduced Extra Damage from Critical Strikes +(30-40) to maximum Life +(10-15)% to all Elemental Resistances Nearby Enemies are Intimidated Optional: +1 to maximum Endurance Charges

(Amulet) Rare Amulet

Min. requirements: 60 maximum Life 15% All Elemental Resistances Adds min. 7 Physical Damage to Attacks Optional affixes: Critical Strike Chance & Multiplier Accuracy Rating Attributes

(Ring) Rare Rings - with Steel Rings being the best in slot

Min. requirements: 60 maximum Life 15% All Elemental Resistances Adds min. 12 Physical Damage to Attacks Optional affixes: Attack Speed Critical Strike Chance & Multiplier Accuracy Rating

(Gloves) Rare Gloves - increased Attack Speed is a nice addition here

Min. requirements: 70 maximum Life 25% Fire resistance 25% Lightning resistance 25% Cold resistance Optional affixes: increased Attack Speed

(Gloves) Maligaro's Virtuosity - another decent option, if you get to cap your resistances with your other gear

+(20-30) to Dexterity 5% increased Attack Speed 50% increased Global Critical Strike Chance +(20-30)% to Global Critical Strike Multiplier (60-80)% increased Evasion Rating

Gloves enchantment: Commandment of Blades Commandment of Light

(Jewels) Pacifism - required to run at "maximum" Frenzy Charges at all times

-1 to Maximum Frenzy Charges Corrupted

(Jewels) Overwhelming Odds - Cleave's Threshold jewel. Grants Fortify buff on Hit and increases your AoE. Just one Overwhelming Odds is required

(10-15)% increased Global Physical Damage With at least 40 Strength in Radius, Cleave grants Fortify on Hit With at least 40 Strength in Radius, Cleave has 3% increased Area of Effect per Nearby Enemy

(Jewels) Rare Jewels - this should provide bonus Life and damage

Recommended affixes: increased maximum Life increased Melee/Physical/Area Damage Optional affixes: increased Attack Speed increased Critical Strike Chance & Multiplier

(Flask) Atziri's Promise - very solid and inexpensive Flask. Provides increased DPS and Life Leech

2% of Chaos Damage Leeched as Life during Flask effect Gain (15-20)% of Physical Damage as Extra Chaos Damage during effect Gain (10-15)% of Elemental Damage as Extra Chaos Damage during effect

(Flask) Lion's Roar - grants increased Melee Damage and Armour

+3000 to Armour Adds Knockback to Melee Attacks during Flask effect 75% chance to cause Enemies to Flee on use (20-25)% more Melee Physical Damage during effect Knocks Back Enemies in an Area when you use a Flask

Other suggested Flasks: Bubbling Divine Life Flask of Staunching (Bleeding immunity) Experimenter's Diamond Flask of Warding (Curse immunity) Ample Silver Flask of Heat (Freeze immunity)

If you have any other build requests, please leave that in the comments below.

Pictures used in this article are the intellectual property of Grinding Gear Games.