Kinetic Blast of Clustering
Necromancer/Aul Build

Updated for Patch 3.27

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Necromancer's Corpse Pact increases your Attack and Cast Speed by 200%, given that you met its condition. Taking advantage of it is a core element of the build. It requires consuming at least 50 Corpses a second, which we can do by quickly spawning them with Desecrate and consuming with Volatile Dead of Seething. These Skills are linked with Spellslinger, so that they are Cast automatically each time you Attack with any Wand Attack. The Attack Speed that's needed here comes from Corpse Pact itself. Casting them manually would be way too slow.

For the Wand Attack, select Kinetic Blast of Clustering. It fires one Projectile, and all the modifiers for additional Projectiles apply to the number of Explosions occurring on impact instead (get the Runegraft of Refraction for free damage). More importantly, it scales with Mana and Spell Damage. Mana adds Flat Physical Damage, and Spell Damage (only increases to Spell Damage) is twice as effective on it, despite it being an Attack, not a Spell. Physical Damage is Converted to Chaos with Overwhelming Malice. This Skill pairs well with the Whispers of Infinity Amulet that adds Chaos Damage to Attacks, the more Maximum Mana you have.

This funnels you into a Mana-stacking and semi-Intelligence-stacking archetype. With the aforementioned Amulet, we can allocate Chaos Inoculation and Reserve all Mana, so the only resource to keep an eye on is Energy Shield. Pick up Ghost Reaver Keystone and any kind of Leech for all the sustain that is needed. With mostly Rare gear, you can easily achieve around 10k Energy Shield. That's already good enough defense, but it can be improved with Block Chance and Spell Suppression. Attack and Spell Block Chance is sourced from Bone Offering and Mistress of Sacrifice. Combine it with Tempest Shield, some additional passives, and a regular Shield. Suppression comes from items and Invetarate notable. You're also immune to all action-speed-reducing effects with Precursor's Remorse (Aul Bloodline) and Boots with empty sockets.

1. Gameplay

The build uses two buttons - one for KB and one for Shield Charge. Spellslinger slings Spells for you - these are Tornado, Bone Offering, and Volatile Dead with Desecrate. Assassin's Mark is automated with Mark on Hit. Your Mana-reserving Skills are Tempest Shield, level-1 Clarity, and Precision.

2. Build's PROS & CONS

3. Leveling tips

You can start with Kinetic Blast of Clustering from the start if you have leveling gear with Mana. If not, Kinetic Bolt. You'll deal Elemental damage at first, so include Flame Wall and Holy Flame Totem. Rush to get Wand Clusters and start accumulating Intelligence and Mana to transition into KB of Clustering as soon as possible.

Bandits:

An additional Passive Skill Point seems like the best option for this build, but Alira will be better at the start, especially as your Suffixes are designated for Attributes as well as Resistances.

4. Final Skill Tree, Ascendancy Points, and Pantheon

Final Skill Tree:

107 Points Final Skill Tree (doesn't include Cluster or Unique Jewels)
122 Points Path of Building (PoB) link

Ascendancy points:

Preferably in that order:

1. Plaguebringer
2. Corpse Pact
3. Mistress of Sacrifice
4. Huntleader or Precursor's Release

Pantheon:

Major God: Soul of the Brine King: You cannot be Stunned if you've been Stunned or Blocked a Stunning Hit in the past 2 seconds

Minor God: Soul of Abberath: 60% less Duration of Ignite on You; 10% increased Movement Speed while on Burning Ground, Unaffected by Burning Ground

5. Final Gems links

[DPS] Kinetic Blast setup
	Kinetic Blast of Clustering - A Wand Attack. This version deals added Physical Damage based on your Maximum Mana. It is later Converted to Chaos.
	Returning Projectiles Support - Projectiles Return back to you for additional explosions at your location.
	Void Manipulation Support - You deal only Chaos Damage. Void Manipulation grants more Chaos Damage.
	Damage on Full Life Support - Your Life is fixed at 1 with Chaos Inoculation, which is Maximum.
	Sacred Wisps Support - Summons Wisps, which are quite similar to Mirage Archers in their function. They trigger more Projectiles and more explosions.
	Increased Critical Damage Support - You need a high Crit Chance to benefit from increased Critical Damage, but it's the best-in-slot Gem if you meet this condition.

[UTILITY] Mark setup
	Assassin's Mark - Crit Chance and Multiplier against marked enemy.
	Mark on Hit Support - Mark is Triggered automatically against Unique and Rare enemies.

[UTILITY] Spellslinger setup
	Spellslinger - Linked Spells are Triggered whenever you Attack with a Wand. They Reserve Mana.
	Tornado - Your Projectiles can interact with Tornado, which results in a much better clear speed and damage, as they Fork from it.
	Bone Offering - With Mistress of Sacrifice, it grants tons to Spell and Attack Block Chance.

[UTILITY] second Spellslinger setup
	Spellslinger - Second setup to consume Corpses and fuel Corpse Pact.
	Volatile Dead of Seething - Dark Green Volatile Dead consumes the most Corpses per cast out of any skill in the game.
	Desecrate - Spawns Corpses to be consumed.
	Spell Cascade Support - Volatile Dead and Desecrate casts thrice. Desecrate still has the limit of 10 Corpses being present at a time.

[MOBILITY] Shield Charge setup
	Shield Charge - A boost to your mobility, if you plan to travel in a straight line.
	Faster Attacks Support - Faster charging with Shield Charge.

[UTILITY] Tempest Shield setup
	Tempest Shield - Added Spell Block Chance, making it easier to cap it at 75%. Makes you Shock-resistant, too.

[UTILITY] Precision
	Precision - Precision adds Accuracy and increases Crit Chance. These two Auras Reserve almost no Mana.

[UTILITY] Clarity
	Clarity - It's here for the Watcher's Eye mod for more ES. You don't need Mana Regeneration at all, so keep it at level 1.

5. Gear Setup

You will not wear a lot of Uniques, but Jewelry Uniques are often better than Rares. Whispers of Infinity is mandatory as it more than doubles your damage. Unique Rings can get you more Mana than Rare ones. Mana is a crucial source of damage for the KB of Clustering. On top of Mana, you want lots of Energy Shield (you have Chaos Inoculation), so Intelligence is fitting too, if you can spare a Suffix for it. It adds Mana and increases Maximum ES. You still have to get enough Strength, Dexterity, and cap Resistances. Your type of Damage is Chaos converted from Physical mixed with regular Chaos Damage. It is Converted with a notable from a Cluster Jewel. Your damage relies heavily on Critical Strike Chance and Multiplier. Chaos Penetration is hard to find, but you will Anoint it and get it on a Wand. To survive, look for Spell Suppression. Block Chance and Recovery (Leech) are covered by Skill Tree, but you may find some ES on Hit and additional Block Chance on Rare Cobalt Jewels. Accuracy should not be needed with the Intelligence-to-Accuracy Mastery, but if you need more, it's on the Helmet and Gloves.

(Helmet) Rare Helmet - Get a Helmet with as much Mana and Energy Shield as you can afford (Intelligence will improve it further), and a Suffix for Resistance or Spell Suppression. For the Eldritch mods, get Physical Damage Taken as Chaos and increased damage per Power Charge.

Min. requirements: +300 to Energy Shield 40% total Elemental Resistance Maximum Mana Optional affixes: Intelligence chance to Suppress Spell Damage

(Helmet) Crown of the Inward Eye - Inward Eye Crown increases your ES, Mana, Spell Damage, and Damage in general. It's very efficient, but not as good as an expensive Rare.

333% increased Armour and Energy Shield (9-21)% increased maximum Life, Mana and Global Energy Shield Transfiguration of Soul Transfiguration of Body Transfiguration of Mind

(Body Armour) Rare Body Armour - Body Armour should have high Energy Shield with Resistances. For the Eldritch mods, get Physical Damage Taken as Chaos with increased Physical Damage or Crit Multiplier for Attacks.

Min. requirements: +1000 to Energy Shield 40% total Elemental Resistance Optional affixes: Intelligence Maximum Mana chance to Suppress Spell Damage

(Weapon) Rare Wand - Flat damage comes from the Gem itself, which sources it from Mana, so on a Wand, focus on Attack Speed, Crit modifiers, Mana, and Chaos Penetration. Increased Spell Damage would be great, but that's a Caster modifier.

Min. requirements: 12% increased Attack Speed +100 to maximum Mana Optional affixes: Global Critical Strike Multiplier increased Critical Strike Chance increased Spell Damage (crafted) Grants # Life per Enemy Hit Attacks with this Weapon Penetrate #% Chaos Resistances (Hunter/Veiled/crafted)

(Off-hand) Rare Shield - Intelligence-Shields can roll increased Spell Damage and Mana. Block Chance, ES, and Spell Suppression are the best defensive mods.

Min. requirements: +40% Elemental Resistances 100% increased Spell Damage Optional affixes: high Attack and Spell Block Chance high Energy Shield chance to deal Double Damage chance to Suppress Spell Damage

(Gloves) Rare Gloves - On Gloves, you'll need Mana, Intelligence, Suppression, and some Resistances. For the Eldritch mods, seek Rage on Hit and either Life Leech from Chaos Damage or Spell Suppression.

Min. requirements: +150 to Energy Shield 40% total Elemental Resistance Maximum Mana Optional affixes: Intelligence Dexterity increased Attack Speed chance to Suppress Spell Damage

(Boots) Rare Boots - Boots will supply you with Movement Speed, Energy Shield, and some type of Resistance. For the Eldritch mods, get Physical Damage as Extra Chaos and increased Effect of Bone Offering. Action Speed is fine as well.

Min. requirements: +120 to Energy Shield +40% to Elemental Resistances +30% increased Movement Speed Optional affixes: Intelligence Resistance Maximum Mana (crafted) chance to Suppress Spell Damage

(Belt) Rare Belt - You want a Belt with Mana and Energy Shield. For Suffixes - Resistances. Crusader's Stygian Vise or Crystal Belt is the best due to the Implicit and additional mods in the pool.

Min. requirements: +40 to Energy Shield +80% to Total Elemental Resistances +60 to maximum Mana Optional affixes: Strength increased maximum Energy Shield (Crusader Prefix) increased Spell Damage during any Flask Effect (Crusader Suffix)

(Amulet) Whispers of Infinity - Whispers of Infinity adds lots of Chaos Damage to Attacks per Maximum Mana. There is no better Amulet for this build.

(10-15)% faster start of Energy Shield Recharge (5-10) to (20-25) Added Attack Chaos Damage per 100 Maximum Mana +(50-100) to maximum Energy Shield (60-40)% reduced maximum Mana Skills Cost Energy Shield instead of Mana or Life

Recommended Anointments: Force of Darkness

(Ring) Rare Rings - Ring is for Attributes and Mana, in bulk. Resistances are a great addition. There is no point in looking for anything else.

Min. requirements: Attributes +60 to maximum Mana Optional affixes: Resistances

(Ring) Shavronne's Revelation - Put it in the right slot. It will grant you a lot of Mana and some ES Regeneration, but that's less important. The recovery issue is covered with Leech from the Skill Tree.

+(15-25) to maximum Energy Shield +(60-75) to Intelligence Right ring slot: You cannot Regenerate Mana Right ring slot: Regenerate 6% of Energy Shield per second Right ring slot: +250 to maximum Mana Left ring slot: You cannot Recharge or Regenerate Energy Shield Left ring slot: Regenerate 40 Mana per Second Left ring slot: +250 to maximum Energy Shield

(Ring) Foulborn Kikazaru - Foulborn Kikazaru may grant you Mana per Level. At level 100, it grants 200 Mana, and that's on top of other bonuses.

+(20-30)% to Lightning Resistance +(10-15) to all Attributes (20-40)% increased Mana Regeneration Rate 60% reduced Effect of Curses on you +2 to Maximum Mana per Level

(Jewel) Healthy Mind - Healthy Mind will increase your Mana if you socket it near allocated Life nodes, near Cruel Preparation Cluster.

(15-20)% increased maximum Mana Increases and Reductions to Life in Radius are Transformed to apply to Mana at 200% of their value

(Jewel) Rare Jewels - On Jewels, try to get Mana, Energy Shield, and Attributes or Resistances and Block Chance missing.

Recommended affixes: increased Maximum Energy Shield increased Maximum Mana Attributes Resistances Chance to Block Attack Damage

(Jewel) Watcher's Eye - You're sporting Clarity and Precision. You want the Maximum Mana as extra ES, which is a Clarity mod. Precision has the Crit Multiplier or Attack Speed.

(4-6)% increased maximum Energy Shield (4-6)% increased maximum Life (4-6)% increased maximum Mana <Two or Three random aura modifiers>

(Jewel) Large Cluster Jewel - 8-nodes Chaos Damage Cluster Jewel with notables listed below is a must-have. Be sure to have Overwhelming Malice and Dark Ideation in here.

Recommended affixes: 1 Added Passive Skill is Dark Ideation 1 Added Passive Skill is Overwhelming Malice 1 Added Passive Skill is Unholy Grace 1 Added Passive Skill is Grim Oath

(Flask) Rumi's Concoction - Rumi's Concoction grants Block Chance that will be needed. To recharge it faster, you may look for "Gain a Flask Charge when you deal a Critical Strike while affected by Precision" on your Watcher's Eye, or get a good Belt and allocate Careful Conservationist.

+1500 to Armour +(8-12)% Chance to Block Attack Damage during Effect +(4-6)% Chance to Block Spell Damage during Effect

Other suggested Flasks and Tinctures: Silver Flask with reduced Effect of Curses on you Quicksilver Flask with increased Movement Speed Quartz Flask with immunity to Freeze or Corrupted Blood Diamond Flask with increased Critical Strike Chance Sulphur Flask

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.