Ice Trap
Shadow/Saboteur

Updated for Patch 3.6

The Best Crafty Guides by Odealo

Estimated budget: medium

Saboteur is one of the most popular Ascendencies in Path of Exile for quite some time now. It is both extremely powerful end-game class, as well as, works exceptionally well as a League Starter. With the recent changes to Ice Traps in Patch 3.6, this is our top recommendation for the upcoming Synthesis League. While it may not be the best Trap overall, it surely is something most people didn't play already, making it a very interesting choice. Ice Traps damage was nearly doubled in Patch 3.6 which should give it insane burst damage.

You can find our other Path of Exile builds right over here Odealo's Crafty Guides - Full List

1. Gameplay

As a Trapper, you throw Traps that trigger when approached; which basically makes it feel like regular self-casted Spells when you throw them directly at your enemies. While the mechanic itself may not feel extremely convenient to play, it is more than rewarding. Traps allow you to dish out insane burst DPS in the end-game as you can plant them all shortly before the fights begin, for example in between Shaper and Atziri's phases. The only real issue for this build is Mana Management, as you have to spam your Traps as a Shadow class which does not normally utilize Intelligence and Mana Passive Skills. The build is based on high Critical Strike Chance & Multiplier and Spell Damage because Ice Trap has the "Spell" tag. For the defenses, you should easily reach about 4,500 Life, so with the Dodge Chance and Saboteur's blind, it feels like a very tough build as well. 

0:06 Tier 16 Maze of the Minotaur 0:41 Tier 16 Forge of the Phoenix 1:24 Tier 16 Lair of the Hydra 1:55 Shaper This video was recorded on a level 91 Saboteur on Standard League. Budget was approximately 14 Exalted Orbs

2. Build's PROS & CONS

3. Leveling tips

Leveling as a Trapper is very easy. Traps deal an insane amount of damage starting from early levels, and you can get Deerstalker boots which grant very high bonus Movement Speed, Trap Throwing Speed, and allow a second five-linked setup right after you reach level 22. It's crucial that you invest in some Mana/Mana Regeneration gear like Praxis Rings or Atziri's Foible amulet, as this most likely be your biggest issue during leveling. You can also omit Crit. Chance and Multiplier on lower levels, as most of the Passives and items that will make it efficient, will be available for you at higher levels. 

Suggested leveling Gem setups:

Fire Trap
	Fire Trap - grants decent Fire Damage to enemies in an area. This is the first Trap available in Path of Exile
	Multiple Traps Support - makes you throw two additional Traps with each cast

Ice Trap
	Ice Trap - the primary Trap used in this build. You can socket it when you reach level 28
	Controlled Destruction Support - greatly increases Spell Damage at the cost of reduces Critical Strike
	Trap and Mine Damage Support - grants high DPS bonuses to both Traps and Mines
	Multiple Traps Support

Utility Gems
	Stone Golem - increases your Life Regeneration which is a very useful defensive bonus
	Clarity - grants increased Mana Regeneration Rate
	Herald of Ice  - grants added Cold Damage to your Spells and also causes AoE explosions for better clear speed

Bandits:

We recommend helping Alira for increased Crit. Multiplier and Elemental Resistances

Leveling Skill Trees:

35 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Trickery 2) Blood Siphon 3) Blood Drinker 4) Clever Construction 5) High Explosives

61 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Master Sapper 2) Acrobatics 3) Doomcast 4) Snowforged

Recommended leveling items:

Lifesprig - grants decent Spell Damage bonus and you can equip it as a level 1 character
(8-12)% increased Spell Damage +1 to Level of Socketed Spell Gems (20-28)% increased Spell Damage (5-8)% increased Cast Speed +(15-20) to maximum Life +(15-20) to maximum Mana Regenerate (6-8) Life over 1 second when you Cast a Spell

Praxis - high Mana cost of Traps makes this Ring one of the best choices for the leveling phase
+(20-25) to maximum Mana +(30-60) to maximum Mana (3-6) Mana Regenerated per second -(8-4) to Mana Cost of Skills 8% of Damage taken gained as Mana over 4 seconds when Hit

Deerstalker - very good pair of Boots for Trappers. They allow you to use a powerful five-linked setup with another Spell of your choice and greatly increase your Movement Speed and Trap Throwing Speed
Socketed Gems are Supported by Level 11 Trap (160-200)% increased Evasion Rating +(35-45) to maximum Life (14-18)% increased Trap Throwing Speed 15% increased Movement Speed 15% increased Movement Speed for 9 seconds on Throwing a Trap

Goldrim - one of the best leveling helmets in Path of Exile
+(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)

4. Final Skill tree, Ascendancy Points, and Pantheon

Final Skill Tree:

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

Ascendancy points:

Preferably in that order:

1. Perfect Crime
2. Chain Reaction
3. Pyromaniac
4. Born in the Shadows

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%

5. Final Gems links

[DPS] Ice Trap
	Ice Trap - your main Spell. It throws a Trap that when triggered deals massive AoE damage
	Mine and Trap Damage support
	Controlled Destruction Support
	Cluster Traps Support - increases the maximum number of Traps that you can throw
	Cold Penetration Support - makes supported Spells ignore some of the monster's resistance to Cold Damage
	Concentrated Effect Support - grants increased Area Damage and the cost of reducing the radius

[DPS] Cold Snap Trap (in Shaper Gloves with Trap Support)
	Cold Snap - deals high Cold Damage over Time and applies an extremely powerful Chill effect which further increases your Damage against your targets with the Bonechill Support Gem
	Mine and Trap Damage support
	Bonechill Support - greatly increases the effectiveness of Chill and the damage against affected enemies based on the Chill effect
	Hypothermia Support - increases the damage of supported skills against Chilled enemies, and increases the effectiveness of Chill applied by supported skills

[UTILITY] Enfeeble/Immortal Call setup
	Cast when Damage Taken Support - auto-casts supported Spells after a certain amount of damage is taken. Keep this Gem at level 5
	Immortal Call - grants brief immunity to Physical Damage. Keep it at level 7
	Increased Duration Support - increases the duration of supported Spells
	Enfeeble - recommended Curse for this build. It grants high defensive utility and will be auto-cast by the CwDT Gem if you do not upgrade it above level 8

[MOBILITY] Flame Dash
	Flame Dash - mobility Spell which can be used for this build. In this setup, it will also grant Arcane Surge buff for increased Spell Damage and Mana Regeneration Rate
	Faster Casting Support - increases the Cast Speed of Flame Dash (and its Mana cost)
	Arcane Surge Support - grants the Arcane Surge buff after you spend the specified amount of Mana on supported Spell. If kept at level 7, it will trigger with every cast of Flame Dash
	Frost Bomb - AoE Spell which applies Cold Exposure to affected enemies (reducing their Cold Resistance)

[UTILITY] Portal
	Portal - creates a town portal when cast. Optional, but since we have an empty socket it's a decent pick

[UTILITY] Lightning Golem
	Summon Lightning Golem - grants increased Attack and Cast Speed
	Cast when Damage Taken Support

[UTILITY] Herald of Ice
	Herald of Ice - grants added Cold Damage to Spells and causes AoE explosions
	Onslaught Support - Herald's of Ice explosions will have a chance to grant Onslaught buff which increases your Attack, Cast, and Movement Speed

[UTILITY] Zealotry
	Zealotry - a new Aura which grants increased Spell Critical Strike Chance and Spell Damage. Also gives you a chance to create Consecrated Ground when you Hit a Rare of Unique enemy

5. Gear Setup

Below you will find all the recommended gear for this Ice Trapper build. There are several Unique and Shaper/Elder items with powerful affixes that makes this build truly shine so we recommend getting all the items listed. Overall this build shouldn't cost a lot, but the new Veiled, Master-crafted and Synthesised items may make this build even better, so we encourage you to experiment with it. 

At this point, we would love to invite you to visit our PoE Currency Marketplace where you can buy cheap PoE Currency. All offers on Odealo are user-posted, and you are buying Orbs and Unique items from regular players for real cash.

We can guarantee that the items listed by us will:

1. Cap your resistances 
2. Give you enough DPS and Life to start mapping successfully

(Helmet) Rare Helmet - very solid option. If you have a very high budget to allocate in this build, you can try getting a Helmet with Delve property that reduces Cold Resistance of nearby enemies

Min. requirements: 80 maximum Life 30% Fire Resistance 30% Cold Resistance 30 Strength Optional affixes: Nearby enemies have reduced Cold Resistance (Delve) Added Cold Damage to Spells (Shaper)

Helmet enchantment: 40% increased Ice Trap Damage Ice Trap Damage Penetrates 10% Cold Resistance

(Body Armour) Tinkerskin - mandatory item for this build. It grants insane bonuses for Trapper characters and Life/Energy Shield recover whenever your Traps are triggered

3% reduced Movement Speed (Hidden) (140-170)% increased Evasion and Energy Shield +(60-90) to maximum Life (10-15)% increased Cooldown Recovery Speed for throwing Traps 15% chance to gain a Frenzy Charge when your Trap is triggered by an Enemy 30% chance to gain Phasing for 4 seconds when your Trap is triggered by an Enemy Recover 100 Life when your Trap is triggered by an Enemy Recover 50 Energy Shield when your Trap is triggered by an Enemy

(Weapon) Rare Dagger - the best option for this build. If you want a better weapon, just increase the recommended stats below

Min. requirements: 60% Spell Damage 100% Critical Strike Chance for Spells 20% Critical Strike Multiplier Optional affixes: Added Cold Damage to Spells

(Shield) Rare Shield - aim for high DPS stats and maximum bonus Life

Min. requirements: 60% Spell Damage 90% Critical Strike Chance for Spells 90 maximum Life Optional affixes: Elemental Resistances

(Boots) Rare Boots

Min. requirements: 70 maximum Life 30 Strength 25% increased Movement Speed 35% Fire Resistance 35% Lightning Resistance

Boot enchantment: Adds 45 to 68 Cold Damage if you've been Hit Recently 10% Chance to Dodge Attack Hits if you've taken a Critical Strike Recently

(Belt) Rare Stygian Vise

Min. requirements: 80 maximum Life 25% Fire Resistance 25% Cold Resistance 25% Lightning Resistance

(Amulet) Rare Amulet - Rare Amulet is a decent pick for this slot

Min. requirements: 60 maximum Life 25% Global Critical Strike Chance 25% Global Critical Strike Multiplier 20% Cold/Spell Damage Optional affixes: Elemental Resistances Attributes

(Amulet) The Pandemonius - the best in the slot. It grants insane defensive bonuses and additional Cold Damage and Penetration

+(20-30) to Dexterity (20-30)% increased Cold Damage +(35-40)% to Cold Resistance Chill Enemy for 1 second when Hit, reducing their Action Speed by 30% Blind Chilled Enemies on Hit Damage Penetrates 20% Cold Resistance against Chilled Enemies

(Ring) Rare Rings

Min. requirements: 70 maximum Life 15% Spell/Cold Damage Optional affixes: Elemental Resistances Attributes maximum Mana increased Mana Regeneration Rate Critical Strike Chance

(Gloves) Rare Shaper Gloves - this is very important to get a Shaper Pair which will make you throw additional Trap when using skills that throw them

Min. requirements: 75 maximum Life 30% Lightning Resistance Socketed Gems are Supported by level # Trap Skills which Throw Traps throw up to 1 additional Trap

Glove enchantment: Commandment of Frost

(Jewel) Abyss Jewel - you can alter between regular Jewels and Abyss Jewels depending on your current equipment. It's good to always calculate the differences in DPS in Path of Building

Recommended affixes: maximum Life added Cold Damage to Spells added Cold Damage to Spells while holding a Shield Optional affixes: increased Critical Strike Multiplier

(Jewels) Rare Jewels

Recommended affixes: increased maximum Life increased Trap/Cold/Area/Spell Damage Optional affixes: increased Critical Strike Multiplier (preferably Multiplier with Elemental Skills which can roll higher values)

(Flask) The Wise Oak - if you build your character correctly this will grant additional Cold Damage Penetration

+35% to all Elemental Resistances During Flask Effect, 10% reduced Damage taken of each Element for which your Uncapped Elemental Resistance is lowest During Flask Effect, Damage Penetrates (10-15)% Resistance of each Element for which your Uncapped Elemental Resistance is highest

(Flask) Bottled Faith - new Flask introduced in Patch 3.6. It increases the effectiveness of Consecrated Ground and the damage taken by affected enemies

Creates Consecrated Ground on Use36% increased Duration Consecrated Ground created by this Flask has Tripled Radius +2% to Critical Strike Chance against Enemies on Consecrated Ground during Effect Enemies on Consecrated Ground you create during Effect take 10% increased damage

Other suggested Flasks: Bubbling Divine Life Flask of Heat (Freeze and Chill immunity) Ample Basalt Flask of Staunching (Physical Damage reduction and Bleeding immunity) Ample Diamond Flask of Warding (Curse immunity)

We hope you end up building a character you will be truly satisfied with after reading this guide. Let us know if you have any feedback and suggestions regarding this build. If so, leave those in the comments below. We will appreciate everything that leads us to improve our guides.

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