Quill Rain
Poison Assassin build

Updated for Patch 3.5

The Best Crafty Guides by Odealo

Estimated budget: high

This Quill Rain Poison Assassin is a very strong build, which can reach over one million DPS. Poison can stack multiple times from each hit out of the nearly 100 arrows you can shoot every second. On top of that, thanks to Assassin Ascendancy class, every stack of Poison applied to enemies increases the Poisons' duration by 5%. Combining it with Vile Toxins Support Gem allows scaling the Poison damage to extreme height, allowing this build to clear all the Path of Exile's content.  

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

1. Gameplay

This Poison Assassin build is based on applying hundreds of Poison stacks on your target. The Poison damage is multiplied to the extent where everything dies within seconds. This is accomplished by utilizing the Quill Rain's insane Attack Speed bonus, and very high number of projectiles shoot by Barrage and Tornado Shot skills. While Tornado Shot shoots significantly more arrows, they are spread out. When fighting Bosses, it's the Barrage attack skill that will have more arrows hit your target every second. Regarding defenses, this build is Life-based, with high Evasion and Dodge Chance. On top of that, it's advised to use the Arctic Armour Aura for additional Physical Damage mitigation. 

2. Build's PROS & CONS

3. Leveling

Leveling with a Ranged/Poison is very easy. You can shoot arrows from range, avoiding unnecessary danger, and applying powerful Poison which will finish off the monsters. While your end-game character relies on very high Attack Speed and stacking multiple Poisons, during the leveling phase, high Physical Damage of your weapon will be more important.  

Suggested leveling Gem setups:

Split Arrow setup
	Split Arrow - one of the first accessible bow skills in Path of Exile. They provide good Physical DPS and decent AoE
	Physical Projectile Attack Damage Support - increases the damage of your projectiles, and the damage they deal with Poison
	Lesser Poison Support - grants a chance to Poison on hit, and increases Chaos damage dealt by supported skills
	Faster Attacks Support - increases Attack Speed of supported skills

Blink Arrow setup
	Blink Arrow - your primary mobility skill
	Faster Attacks Support

Utility Gems
	Despair - recommended Curse for this build
	Clarity - increases your Mana Regeneration rate
	Stone Golem - Stone Golem increases your Life Regenerated per second

Bandits:

Kill all the Bandits for two additional Passives Points

Leveling Skill Trees:

35 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Blood Siphon 2) Fangs of the Viper 3) Fatal Toxins 4) Toxic Strikes

54 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Deadly Draw 2) Heavy Draw 3) Growth and Decay 4) Thick Skin

Recommended leveling items:

Blackheart - one of the best Phys. DPS leveling ring. You can get it starting at level 1, and it can be fairly powerful until you swap them for the Voidheart rings
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

Voidheart - the upgraded version of the Blackheart ring
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 Melee Attacks have (30-50)% chance to cause Bleeding Melee Attacks have (20-40)% chance to Poison on Hit

Meginord's Girdle - a very powerful belt. It greatly increases your DPS and is reasonably robust even in the late-game
+(25-35) to Strength Adds 5 to 15 Physical Damage to Attacks +25 to Strength 10% increased maximum Life +(10-20)% to Cold Resistance 25% increased Flask Life Recovery rate

Silverbranch - the first unique bow that you can use in Path of Exile
+1 to Level of Socketed Bow Gems (80-100)% increased Physical Damage 10% increased Attack Speed +30 to Accuracy Rating +10 Mana gained on Kill

4. Final Skill tree, Ascendancy Points, and Pantheon

Final Skill Tree:

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

Ascendancy points:

Preferably in that order:

1. Noxious Strike
2. Toxic Delivery
3. Opportunistic
4. Ambush and Assassinate

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] Tornado Shot setup (mapping and AoE, should be socketed in your Bow)
	Tornado Shot - Tornado Shot shoots very high amount of arrows and should be used when grinding maps and dealing with spread out enemies
	Greater Multiple Projectiles Support - increases the number of supported skills' projectiles
	Lesser Poison Support - increases the chance to Poison on Hit, and adds Chaos Damage to supported attacks
	Added Chaos Damage Support
	Deadly Ailments Support - dramatically increases your Poison Damage
	Unbound Ailments Support - increased your Damage over Time

[DPS] Barrage setup (single-target DPS, should be socketed in Dendrobate)
	Barrage - after charging the attack for a brief moment, shoots multiple arrows in a concise time. The best single-target DPS bow skill in PoE
	Mirage Archer Support - summons a Minion that uses the supported attack skill. The Minion attacks even when you are moving/running away, and adds quite a bit of Poison stacks
	Unbound Ailments Support
	Greater Multiple Projectiles Support
	Added Chaos Damage Support
	Deadly Ailments Support
	Lesser Poison Support - a level 10 of this Gem is provided by the unique Dendrobate Body Armour

[AURAS] Despair, Purity of Elements, Arctic Armour
	[2 Links]Despair - recommended Curse for this build. It is supposed to be linked with Blasphemy Support gem and work as an Aura. It should be used as an Aura only with Impresence amulet equipped, which makes it reserve no Mana
	[2 Links]Blasphemy Support - makes supported Curse work as an Aura around your character
	Arctic Armour - provides Physical and Fire Damage mitigation
	Purity of Elements - helps you can resistances, and makes item planning much easier for this build

[UTILITY GEMS]
	[1 Link]Blink Arrow - used for mobility. With Quill Rain equipped it's no longer necessary to support it with Faster Attacks
	[1 Link]Blood Rage - increases your Attack Speed for the duration
	[1 Link]Lightning Golem - increases your Attack Speed
	[1 Link]Vaal Haste - a Vaal Aura that increases your Attack, Cast, and Movement Speed for a brief duration

[UTILITY] Wither Spell Totem
	Wither - increases Chaos Damage dealt to enemies affected by Wither
	Spell Totem Support - will summon a Totem that casts Wither

[UTILITY] Immortal Call
	Cast when Damage Taken Support - will auto-cast supported spells after a certain amount of damage is taken by your character. Keep this gem at level 1
	Immortal Call - grants brief Physical Immunity. Will be auto-cast if you keep it at maximum level 3

5. Gear Setup

This is one of the most powerful DPS-wise builds we have made so far. Properly geared characters will be able to kill all Bosses in Path of Exile with ease. However, this may require two fully 6-linked items. This requirement may be out of reach for the more casual players.

If you would still like to try this build out, we would like to invite you to visit our Path of Exile marketplace where you can buy PoE Currency with real cash from other PoE players.

Our recommended items will:

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

(Helmet) Starkonja's Head - the best in slot helmet for this build. Provides amazing defensive bonuses, and increases Attack Speed

15% increased Attack Speed (60-75)% increased Global Critical Strike Chance 150% increased Evasion Rating (20-25)% increased Rarity of Items found 10% increased Movement Speed 10% reduced Character Size

(Helmet) Devoto's Devotion - another decent helmet option. Used mainly for the increased Attack and Movement Speed

10% reduced Global Physical Damage +(50-65) to Dexterity 16% increased Attack Speed (150-200)% increased Armour and Evasion +(15-25)% to Chaos Resistance 20% increased Movement Speed Mercury Footprints

Helmet Enchantments: Barrage fires an additional Projectile Tornado Shot fires 2 additional secondary Projectiles

(Weapon) Quill Rain - a build-defining item. It provides the highest Attack Speed bonus in Path of Exile, making it the best choice for stacking massive amounts of Poison

100% increased Physical Damage +(10-20) to Dexterity 100% increased Attack Speed +(25-50) to Accuracy Rating +2 Mana gained for each Enemy hit by Attacks (50-100)% increased Projectile Speed 40% less Damage

(Quiver) Maloney's Nightfall  - provides an insane damage bonus to Hits against blinded enemies. This build requires

(25-35)% increased Stun Duration on Enemies 10% increased Attack Speed +(50-70) to maximum Life +(12-16)% to Chaos Resistance Adds (8-10) to (14-16) Physical Damage to Bow Attacks 25% chance to create a Smoke Cloud when Hit (40-60)% increased Damage with Hits and Ailments against Blinded Enemies

(Body Armour) Dendrobate - mandatory item for this build. It provides a free 7th link and more than doubles your Poison damage

3% reduced Movement Speed (Hidden) Socketed Gems are Supported by Level 10 Lesser Poison (130-150)% increased Evasion and Energy Shield +40 to maximum Energy Shield +(15-25)% to all Elemental Resistances (75-100)% increased Damage with Poison if you have at least 300 Dexterity (15-25)% increased Poison Duration if you have at least 150 Intelligence

(Boots) Atziri's Step - this builds defenses rely on high Evasion Rating and Dodge Chance. This is the best pair of boots for this build

180% increased Evasion Rating +(55-75) to maximum Life 30% increased Movement Speed (14-16)% chance to Dodge Spell Damage

(Boots) Rare Life/Res. boots - if you struggle to cap your resistances, this might be the proper slot to help you out. Though Atziri's Step will surely be a cheaper option

Min. requirements: 60 maximum Life 25% increased Movement Speed 30% Fire Resistance 30% Lightning Resistance 30% Cold Resistance

Boots Enchantments: 16% increased Attack and Cast Speed if you've Killed Recently 10% Chance to Dodge if you've taken a Critical Strike Recently

(Belt) Rare Life/Res. belt - simply aim for the highest defensive stats you can afford

Min. requirements: 100 maximum Life 30% Fire Resistance 30% Lightning Resistance 30% Cold Resistance

(Amulet) Impresence (Chaos) - the best in slot amulet for this build. Allows to use Despair as a "free" Aura

+(10-16) to all Attributes (30-40)% increased Damage over Time Adds (17-19) to (23-29) Chaos Damage +(50-70) to maximum Life +(17-23)% to Chaos Resistance 100% reduced Despair Mana Reservation Gain Maddening Presence for 10 seconds when you Kill a Rare or Unique Enemy

(Amulet) Rare Attack Speed/Life amulet - can be used until you can afford the Impresence amulet.

Min. requirements: 70 maximum Life 6% increased Attack Speed Optional affixes: added Physical Damage to Attacks increased Evasion Rating Elemental Resistances Attributes

(Ring) Thief's Torment - pretty much a mandatory item for this build. With the number of attacks per second, the Life and Mana recovery Thief's Torment provides, it is extremely hard to replace. Increased Item Quantity is a nice addition too

+(8-10)% to all Elemental Resistances (10-16)% increased Quantity of Items found Can't use other Rings +(16-24)% to all Elemental Resistances 50% reduced Effect of Curses on You +(40-60) Life gained for each Enemy hit by your Attacks +30 Mana gained for each Enemy hit by your Attacks

(Gloves) Rare Life/Res. gloves - preferably with increased Attack Speed

Min. requirements: 70 maximum Life 20% Fire Resistance 20% Cold Resistance 20% Lightning Resistance Optional affixes: increased Attack Speed

Gloves Enchantment: Commandment of Blades

(Jewels) Abyss Jewels - with mandatory chance to Blind on hit (if you are using the recommended quiver this is a must-have)

Recommended affixes: maximum Life chance to blind on Hit chance to gain Onslaught for 4 seconds on Kill Optional affixes: added Physical Damage to Attacks/Bow Attacks added Chaos Damage to Attacks/Bow Attacks

(Flask) Atziri's Promise - provides amazing DPS buff and Life Leech. It is a very cheap and powerful Flask

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) Dying Sun - provides amazing DPS buff with the increased number of projectiles

+50% to Fire Resistance +6% to maximum Fire Resistance (-10-10)% increased Charges used (15-25)% increased Area of Effect during Flask Effect Skills fire 2 additional Projectiles during Flask Effect

(Flask) Coralito's Signature - grants insane DPS buff during Flask effect

Your Critical Strike Chance is Lucky Take 30 Chaos Damage per Second during Flask effect 25% chance to Poison on Hit during Flask effect Your Critical Strikes do not deal extra Damage during Flask effect (50-75)% increased Duration of Poisons you inflict during Flask effect Grants Perfect Agony during Flask effect

(Flask) Witchfire's Brew - provides very high DoT bonus during the Flask's effect. Also creates the Smoke Cloud, which Blinds enemies

100% increased Evasion Rating Creates a Smoke Cloud on Use 50% increased Charges used (25-40)% increased Damage Over Time during Flask Effect Grants Level 21 Despair Curse Aura during Flask Effect

Other suggested Flasks: Seething Divine Life Flask of Staunching (Bleeding 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.