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Updated for Patch 3.5
The Best Crafty Guides by Odealo
Estimated budget: medium
| Guide notes |
| December 24, 2018 -Build created |
In Patch 3.5 many Cold skills got reworked and also Cast on Critical Gem's cooldown was lowered 0.5s to 0.15s, letting it proc up to 7 times per second! This change made Cast on Critical Strike based builds one of the strongest in the game. This build is focused mainly on triggering Glacial Cascade and Ice Nova with Cyclone, but it fits all kind of Cold spells really well, so if you prefer to play Cold Snap or Vortex, you don't need to change anything except the desired Spell Gems. The only required, and the most expensive item in this build is Cospri's Malice, the rest is focused on stacking as much Critical Strike Chance and Multiplier as possible.
You can also find our other Path of Exile builds right over here: Odealo's Crafty Guides - Full List
Gameplay is pretty straightforward - you Cyclone into packs of monsters and trigger all your socketed Cold Spells. The more monsters, the more spell casts per second. It's one of the most satisfying and fastest map-clearing builds in the game, thanks to cold explosions and ice projectiles flying all over the screen. Getting high Attack Speed is critical versus Bosses, as you increase te number of Hits per second, and trigger your Spells more frequently.
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This build feels really good, when you have all gear required for it and leveling Cast on Critical strike might be hard, that's why we recommend using Frost Blades for leveling, until you hit level 68, when you can wear all the required unique items. During leveling focus on upgrading your weapon to the highest Elemental/Physical DPS you can find.
Suggested leveling Gem setups:
| Frost Blades setup | |
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Frost Blades - your primary DPS source. We are using it for the entire leveling process |
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Added Cold Damage Support - a lot of additional Cold damage |
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Ancestral Call Support - it will hit two additional nearby enemies with Frost Blades, which helps a lot with clearing packs |
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Elemental Damage with Attacks Support - increases Elemental Damage |
| Utility Gems | |
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Ancestral Warchief - great totem, that deals a lot of damage against Single targets but also increases Melee Damage |
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Herald of Ash - grants increased Burning Damage and causes slain monsters to Ignite nearby monsters for a percentage of the overkill damage |
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Herald of Ice - additional Cold Damage and Ice Explosions that shatters whole packs of monsters |
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Whirling Blades - your primary mobility skill |
Bandits:
We recommend killing all the Bandits for two additional Passives Points or helping Alira if you prefer additional Mana Regeneration and making it easier to cap Elemental Resistances
Leveling Skill Trees:
31 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Will of Blades 2) Blood Drinker 3) Revenge of the Hunted
64 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Written in Blood 2) Phase Acrobatics 3) Heartseeker 4) Winter Spirit 5) Finesse
Recommended leveling items:
 Wake of Destruction - definitely best-leveling boots for attack based builds, provides a lot of flat Lightning damage to attacks |
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| Adds 1 to 120 Lightning Damage to Attacks (20-60)% increased Armour and Energy Shield +(10-20) Life gained on Kill 10% chance to Cause Monsters to Flee 15% increased Movement Speed |
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 Karui Charge- amazing amulet, that increases Attack Speed and Damage for your Frost Blades and your Movement Speed, making leveling faster and smoother |
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| +(20-30) to Dexterity +(20-30) to Strength (5-10)% increased Attack Speed +100 to Accuracy Rating 30% increased Projectile Speed 10% increased Movement Speed 30% increased Projectile Damage |
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 Goldrim - amazing leveling Helmet which covers up all your needs for Elemental Resistances during early levels |
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| +(30-50) to Evasion Rating 10% increased Rarity of Items found +(30-40)% to all Elemental Resistances Reflects 4 Physical Damage to Melee Attackers Level Requirement reduced by 100 (Hidden) |
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 Belt of the Deceiver - all Resistances and additional Life are amazing during leveling, on top of that we have little DPS boost |
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| (15-25)% increased Global 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 |
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 Redbeak - perfect sword for early game, that you can use it since level 1 |
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| 100% increased Damage when on Low Life 50% increased Physical Damage Adds 2 to 6 Physical Damage 10% increased Attack Speed +(20-30) to maximum Life +2 Life gained for each Enemy hit by Attacks |
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 The Tempestuous Steel - this will be perfect for full conversion to Elemental Damage leveling build because all attacks with this weapon Penetrate enemies Resistances |
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| Adds (5-8) to (15-20) Physical Damage (8-14)% increased Attack Speed Hits can't be Evaded Attacks with this Weapon Penetrate 30% Elemental Resistances Gain 15% of Physical Attack Damage as Extra Lightning Damage Gain 15% of Physical Attack Damage as Extra Fire Damage |
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| +(20-30) to Strength Adds (5-7) to (13-15) Cold Damage to Spells and Attacks +(40-50) to Evasion Rating +(20-30)% to Cold Resistance 50% of Physical Damage Converted to Cold Damage Reflects 10 Cold Damage to Melee Attackers |
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Final Skill Tree:
114 Points Skill Tree
114 Points Path of Building (PoB) link
Ascendancy points:
Preferably in that order:
Pantheon:
Major God: 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%
Minor God: Soul of Gruthkul 1% additional Physical Damage Reduction for each Hit you've taken Recently up to a maximum of 5%
| [DPS] Cyclone (Body Armour) |
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Cyclone - this is our main skill gem, that will cast linked Sells and Spells socketed into Cospri's Malice on Critical Strikes |
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Ice Nova - this is our main Damage dealing spell. It has great both single target and AoE damage |
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Hypothermia Support - since we are dealing mainly Cold Damage this will grant the best Damage multiplier from all gems. It also increases the chance to Freeze enemies |
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Cast on Critical Strike Support - the most important gem in this setup. It will cast linked spells on Critical Strikes dealt by Cyclone |
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Concentrated Effect Support - insane DPS boost at the exchange of lower AoE |
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Cold Penetration Support - this gem will let our Ice Nova penetrate through enemies' Cold Resistance |
| [DPS] Glacial Cascade and Ice Nova setup (Cospri's Malice) |
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Glacial Cascade - one of the best spells in terms of single target thanks to Glacial Cascade mechanic, which tick many times through its movement, dealing damage many times to the same target |
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Ice Nova- more Ice Novas, because this one is cast separately from chest's one |
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Concentrated Effect Support |
| [MOBILITY] Leap Slam setup (Shield) |
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Leap Slam - your primary movement skill |
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Faster Attacks Support - increases Attack and Movement speed of Leap Slam |
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Fortify Support - after hitting an enemy with Leap Slam you gain Fortify buff, reducing incoming damage |
| [AURA/CURSE] Herald of Ice and Warlord's Mark setup (Gloves) |
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Herald of Ice - provides additional Cold Damage and huge Ice explosions, making your clear speed insanely fast |
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Onslaught Support - after killing enemies with Herald of Ice explosions you will gain Onslaught Buff, making you Attack, Cast and Move faster |
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Blasphemy Support - with Blasphemy linked to Curse you can use it as an Aura, that will automatically curse nearby enemies |
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Warlord's Mark - this Curse grants Life and Mana Leech against Cursed enemies |
| [UTILITY] Immortal Call (Boots) |
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Cast when Damage Taken Support - will auto-cast Immortal Call after a certain amount of damage is taken. Keep this Gem at level 1 |
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Immortal Call - grants brief Physical Damage immunity. Keep this Gem at level 3 |
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Molten Shell - provides additional armor and explode after preventing a bit of damage. Keep this Gem at level 10 |
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Increased Duration Support - increases the duration of Immortal Call and Molten Shell |
| [AURA/UTILITY] Golem and Buffs Setup (Helmet) |
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Summon Lightning Golem - grants increased Attack and Cast Speed |
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Blood Rage - grants Life Leech and Frenzy Charges generation, which increases Attack, Cast and Movement Speed |
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Vaal Haste - use it only against Bosses, it will increase your Attack Speed by huge amounts |
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Arctic Armour - reduces Fire and Physical Damage Taken |
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Below you will find all the recommended and required items for this build. As usual, all required stats are listed (items are also included in the PoB link). This is a rather inexpensive build, which should not cost more than a few Exalted Orbs, but you can increase it's power immensely by investing into more powerful uniques.
At this point, we would love to invite you to visit our Path of Exile Marketplace where you can buy cheap PoE Currency in case you are unable to complete your build.
Our recommended items will:
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Stat priorities on items:
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 (Helmet) Rat's Nest - this is the only option for this build - highest Attack Speed and Critical Strike Chance on the helmet is the way to go |
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15% increased Attack Speed |
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| Helmet enchantments: Ice Nova deals 40% increased Damage |
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 (Weapon) Cospri's Malice - mandatory item for this build, which is based on this weapon. Try to get highest Attack Speed and flat Cold Damage to Spells as possible |
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| No Physical Damage Adds (80-100) to (160-200) Cold Damage Adds (40-60) to (90-110) Cold Damage to Spells (8-14)% increased Attack Speed +257 Intelligence Requirement 60% increased Critical Strike Chance against Chilled Enemies Trigger a Socketed Cold Spell on Melee Critical Strike |
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 (Weapon) Lycosidae - mandatory item for this build, because it fixes all your Accuracy problems, making you hit with every attack |
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| +(120-160) to Armour +(30-40) to maximum Life Your hits can't be Evaded +(3-5)% Chance to Block Adds 250 to 300 Cold Damage to Counterattacks |
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 (Body Armour) Tabula Rasa - is cheap and can provide additional levels to socketed. Great choice if you can not afford 6-link Queen of the Forest |
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| 3% reduced Movement Speed (Hidden) Item has no level requirement and Energy Shield (Hidden) Item has 6 White Sockets and is fully linked (Hidden) |
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| Corrupted modifiers: +2 levels of Socketed AoE Gems +1 level of Socketed Gems increased Damage |
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 Buy cheap Unique Items on Odealo |
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 (Body Armour) Queen of the Forest - definitely best in a slot in terms of Life, Resistance and most important Movement Speed |
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| (200-240)% increased Evasion Rating +(60-70) to maximum Life +(6-10)% to Fire Resistance +(26-40)% to Cold Resistance +(11-25)% to Lightning Resistance 25% reduced Movement Speed 1% increased Movement Speed per 600 Evasion Rating, up to 75% -(50-40) Physical Damage taken when Hit by Animals |
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 (Body Armour) Carcass Jack - optional armor, if you prefer more Damage. Carcass Jack offers not only Life and Resistances, but on top of that larger Area of Effect and Damage for both Ice Nova and Glacial Cascade |
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| (120-150)% increased Evasion and Energy Shield +(50-70) to maximum Life +(9-12)% to all Elemental Resistances (40-50)% increased Area of Effect (40-50)% increased Area Damage Extra gore |
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 (Boots) Rare Boots |
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| Min. requirements: 60 maximum Life 29% Fire Resistance 29% Cold Resistance 29% Lightning Resistance 25% increased Movement Speed Optional affixes: maximum Mana |
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| Boot enchantment: Damage Penetrates 10% of Enemy Elemental Resistances if you haven't Killed Recently |
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 (Belt) Rare Belt |
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Min. requirements: |
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 (Belt) Rare Stygian Vise - with the same stat as the regular belt. Will grant Abyss socket and allow you to use one more jewel |
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| Min. requirements: 70 maximum Life 29% Fire Resistance 29% Cold Resistance 29% Lightning Resistance Optional affixes: Strength or Dexterity for meeting attributes requirements |
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| Buy Cheap PoE Currency |
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 (Amulet) The Pandemonius - a nice alternative to endgame Critical Rare Amulet. This one provides more damage and Cold Resistance Penetration |
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| (20-30)% increased Cold Damage +(35-40)% to Cold Resistance Chill Enemy for 1 second when Hit, slowing them by 30% Blind Chilled Enemies on Hit Damage Penetrates 20% Cold Resistance against Chilled Enemies |
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 (Amulet) Rare Amulet |
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| Min. requirements: 50 maximum Life 20% Critical Strike Chance 20% Critical Strike Multiplier 10% to all Elemental Resistances Optional affixes: Attack Speed |
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 (Ring) Rare Diamond Rings - Diamond Rings are mandatory because we are aiming at maximum Critical Strike for proccing Cast on Critical Strike Spells |
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Min. requirements: |
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 (Ring) Gifts from Above - if you can afford to lose some Resistances, it's also a viable option, providing a ton of Critical Strike Chance and Damage increase |
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| (20-30)% increased Global Critical Strike Chance Trigger Level 10 Consecrate when you deal a Critical Strike (30-35)% increased Global Critical Strike Chance (10-15)% increased Light Radius (40-50)% increased Rarity of Items Dropped by Enemies killed with a Critical Strike 50% increased Damage while on Consecrated Ground +5% Chance to Block Attack Damage while on Consecrated Ground |
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 (Gloves) Rare Gloves - preferably Fingerless Silk Gloves but all types are viable |
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| Min. requirements: 60 maximum Life 30% Fire Resistance 30% Cold Resistance 30% Lightning Resistance Optional affixes: Maximum Mana Attack Speed |
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| Glove enchantment: Commandment of Frost |
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 (Jewels) Rare Jewels - all jewels should provide extra Life and at least one Damage amplification mod |
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| Recommended affixes: increased maximum Life increased Critical Strike Chance/Critical Strike Multiplier Optional affixes: increased Attack Speed increased Cold Damage increased Spell Damage |
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 (Jewels) Abyss Jewels - priority is maximum Life and flat damage to spells |
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| Recommended affixes: maximum Life added Elemental Damage to Spells Optional affixes: increased Critical Strike Multiplier |
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Other suggested Flasks:
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If you have any other build requests please leave that in the comments below. You might also want to join the discussion on our Facebook fan page.
Pictures used in this article are the intellectual property of Grinding Gear Games.
Hrimmsorrow - great gloves, providing additional Damage and Physical Conversion to Cold, which scales with Elemental/Cold Damage nodes on the skill tree