Reap DoT
Elementalist Build

Created for Patch 3.27

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The Physical Damage over Time archetype consists of many Skills used all at once, since each unique DoT can affect the same enemy at the same time, but each of them fulfils a specific role. The vast majority of your Single-target Damage comes from Reap and its Vaal version due to the Blood Charge bonuses. The Clear Speed is covered by Corrupting Fever, which grants you a Buff that inflicts up to 10 stacks of Corrupting Blood on Enemies you Hit. The best way to spread it is the Kinetic Blast. The Exsanguinate is the middleground that deals a decent amount of Damage to multiple Enemies, but doesn't excel at either side. The Corrupting Blood costs a lot of Life to activate, but you can refresh its duration by spending Life. You can do it by manually casting Reap every few seconds, or automate the Exsanguinate to trigger alongside your Attacks with Spellslinger or Poet's Pen. 

The Elementalist Ascendency is not an intuitive pick for the Physical-themed Build, but turns out to be an excellent choice for this archetype. The Golems are simply insanely valuable, as they provide tons of increases to your Damage, DoT Multiplier, Speed, and even defense. The Life Regeneration granted by Stone Golem is especially important, as it allows you to easily sustain casting your Skills despite their massive Life Costs. Shaper of Storm allows you to Shock Enemies, making Enemies vulnerable to all kinds of Damage. The remaining Notables are defense-focused and very flexible. With the Shaper of Winter, you will greatly slow down, making it easier to dodge their attacks. The Bastion of Elements absorbs incoming Elemental Damage, while the Shaper of Flames weakens Enemy Physical Damage once you Ignite them with your Hits. 

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1. Gameplay

Activate Corrupting Fever and use Kinetic Blast to apply it to Enemies. Against tougher Enemies, use Exsanguinate, Reap, and Vaal Reap, and try to keep up their stacks. It is DoT Build, but the Duration is quite low, leading to an active and engaging gameplay. 

2. Build's PROS & CONS

3. Leveling tips

The Life Costs can be problematic to sustain at first. You can use the Cold DoT Skills to level up, since they are easier to scale and faster to unlock. You can switch to Physical DoTs once you finish your first Trial and unlock Golems, or after finishing the Campaign. 

Bandits:

Kill all three bandits to get one additional Passive Skill Point or kill Alira to help with Gearing. 

Leveling Skill Trees:
37 Points Passive Tree
Pick up bonuses for generic Spell Damage and the relevant Notables for your Skill of choice. There are no bonuses for Physical Skills at first. After completing the first Ascendency Trial, allocate the Liege of the Primordial Notable. 

71 Points Passive Tree
Continue to allocate Damage over time and Elemental Notables. You should also pick a few Life and Aura Notables along the way. 

4. Final Skill Tree, Ascendancy Points, and Pantheon

Final Skill Tree:

106 Points Final Passive Tree (doesn't include Cluster or Unique Jewels)
121 Points Path of Building (PoB) link

Ascendancy points:

Preferably in that order:

1. Liege of the Primordial 
2. Shaper of Storm
3. Shaper of Winter
4. Shaper of Flames

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; 100% chance to Avoid being Frozen

Minor God: Soul of Ralakesh: 25% reduced Physical Damage over Time taken while moving, Moving while Bleeding doesn't cause you to take extra Damage

5. Final Gems links

[DPS] Reap and Corrupting Fever Setup
	Reap - conjures a scythe that applies a Physical Debuff on Hit, and generates a Blood Charge that greatly improves its Damage. Killing Enemies consumes Charges. The Vaal Reap raises the limit of Charges and grants the maximum amount upon use.
	Corrupting Fever - grants a short Buff that can be refreshed by spending Life. It causes you to apply Corrupting Blood on Enemies with any of your Hits.
	Brutality Support
	Swift Affliction Support
	Efficacy Support
	Empower Support

[DPS] Exsanguinate Fever Setup
	Exsanguinate - fires tendrils that apply Physical DoT. The Transfigured version deals slightly more Damage at the cost of AoE coverage. The Debuff stacks up to 3 times.
	Spellslinger - Reserves Mana to trigger the linked Spell when you perform a Wand Attack. It will automatically refresh the Corrupting Fever Buff.
	Brutality Support
	Controlled Destruction Support

[UTILITY] Kinetic Blast Setup
	Kinetic Blast - fires a Projectile that explodes into multiple small explosions upon collision with an Enemy. Use it to quickly apply Corrupting Fever.
	Greater Multiple Projectiles Support
	Returning Projectiles Support
	Fork Support

[UTILITY] Golems Setup
	Summon Flame Golem - greatly increases your Damage and Area of Effect.
	Summon Stone Golem - grants tons of Life Regeneration and improves your Energy Shield.
	Summon Lightning Golem - improves your Attack and Cast Speed, making it easier to upkeep all your DoTs.
	Summon Chaos Golem - offers a massive amount of DoT Multiplier and Chaos Resistance.

[UTILITY] Aura Setup
	Malevolence - an offensive Aura that greatly boosts your DoT Multiplier and prolongs the Duration of your Skills.
	Tempest Shield - makes you immune to Shock and improves your Spells Block Chance.
	Pride - slowly ramps up the Physical Damage taken by nearby Enemies.

[UTILITY] Curse Setup
	Vulnerability - an offensive Curse that causes Enemies to take more Physical Damage from all sources.

[UTILITY] Movement Setup
	Shield Charge - a fast charge towards the targeted location. It scales with your Movement and Attack Speed.
	Faster Attacks Support
	Frostblink - use this instant blink to avoid danger or traverse through terrain gaps on demand.

6. Gear Setup

There are plenty of Unique Items you can use in this Setup, but they are not mandatory for functionality. The Cold Iron Point is a notable boost for your Damage, but you would need to use a different Skill to spread the Corrupting Fever. On the other hand, the Poet's Pen provides excellent AoE Coverage, but your DPS will be much lower, as this Wand provides mediocre offensive bonuses. On the Rare Items you should seek increases to Physical Spell Damage, Gem Levels, and DoT Multiplier. You will allocate the Spiritual Aid Notable, allowing you to benefit from increases to Minion Damage as well. Your Defence relies primarily on maximum Life, further supplemented by Energy Shield and Block. This Setup requires a lot of Strength and Dexterity; you will have to get lots of them on your Gear, or you can opt for the Timeless Jewel that removes Attribute Requirements instead.

(Weapon) Rare Weapon - a good Rare Wand provides the most amount of Damage. You will need additional Gem Levels, DoT Multiplier, and increases to Spell or Minion Damage.

Min. requirements: 80% increased Spell/Minion Damage +1 to Level of all Physical Spell Skill Gems +20% to Physical Damage over Time Multiplier Optional affixes: +#% to Damage over Time Multiplier +1 to Level of all Spell Skill Gems

(Weapon) The Poet's Pen - with this Wand, you can automate the Exsanguinate Setup without the Spellslinger. Your Damage against Bosses will be much lower, as this Weapon doesn't provide any useful bonuses for Reap.

+1 to Level of Socketed Skill Gems per 25 Player Levels Trigger a Socketed Spell when you Attack with this Weapon, with a 0.25 second Cooldown Adds 3 to 5 Physical Damage to Attacks with this Weapon per 3 Player Levels (8-12)% increased Attack Speed

(Weapon) Cold Iron Point - on the other hand, this Dagger provides tons of Damage for a very cheap price, but it can't spread Corrupting Fever efficiently. The middleground between those two Setups at low budget is weapon swapping against Bosses.

+3 to Level of all Physical Spell Skill Gems Deal no Elemental Damage

(Off-hand) Rare Shield - to fit in all Auras and Spellslinger Setup, you will need a Shaper-influenced Shield with Reservation Cost Reduction for Socketed Gems. It can also provide Gem Levels, Damage, Block, and Recovery.

Min. requirements: +1 to Level of all Physical Spell Skill Gems  Socketed Gems have 30% increased Reservation Efficiency 40% Chance to Block  Optional affixes: Recover #% of Energy Shield when you Block +# to maximum Life #% increased Spell/Minion Damage % total Elemental Resistance

(Helmet) Rare Helmet - look for a high amount of maximum Life, Energy Shield, and Resistances. It can also improve your Reservation Efficiency, or shift incoming Physical Damage to Elemental.

Min. requirements: +100 to maximum Life +200 to Energy Shield 40% total Elemental Resistance Optional affixes: #% of Physical Damage from Hits taken as Elemental Damage (Eater Influence)  #% increased Cast Speed (Exarch Influence) Chaos Resistance

(Body Armour) Doppelgänger Guise - this Armour provides up to 40% Physical Damage Reduction, and provides a decent Regeneration boost if you get Hit. Always stay in the Sane stance.

Grants Level 20 Unhinge Skill (40-60)% more Critical Strike Chance while Insane Enemies Killed by your Hits are destroyed while Insane (40-30)% less Physical and Chaos Damage Taken while Sane Regenerate 10% Life over one second when Hit while Sane

(Belt) Rare Belt - the Belt can greatly boost your maximum Life, especially if you include the Hunter Influence. It should also grant you Resistances or Regenerate your Energy Shield.

Min. requirements: +100 to maximum Life 40% total Elemental Resistance Optional affixes: #% increased maximum Life (Hunter) Regenerate 150 Energy Shield per second while a Rare or Unique Enemy is Nearby Flask Charges Chaos Resistance

(Jewel) Abyss Jewel - the Abyssal Jewel can be quite useful to improve your maximum Life, increase your Damage or Shock Effect, and provide utility such as Blinding enemies on Hit or increasing your Reservation Efficiency.

Min. requirements: +30 to maximum Life Optional affixes: % total Elemental Resistance % increased Damage over Time while holding a Shield % chance to Blind Enemies on Hit with Attacks % increased Effect of Lightning Ailments

(Gloves) Rare Gloves - use Essence of Delirium to add a special Modifier that boosts DoT of the Socketed Gem, and use it for the Exsanguinate Setup. Other than that, aim for Life and Resistances.

Min. requirements: +100 to maximum Life Socketed Gems deal 30% more Damage over Time (Essence of Delirium) 40% total Elemental Resistance Optional affixes: Chaos Resistance Minions deal (10-20)% increased Damage +#% to Physical Damage over Time Multiplier (Exarch)

(Boots) Rare Boots - your Boots quite simply boost your Life, Movement Speed, and Resistances. You can also get Onslaugh Buff for faster Movement or Ailment Avoidance.

Min. requirements: +100 to maximum Life 40% total Elemental Resistance +30% increased Movement Speed Optional affixes: Chaos Resistance #% increased Action Speed (Exarch Influence) #% chance to gain Onslaught for 4 seconds on Kill #% reduced Effect of Chill and Shock on you

(Amulet) Rare Amulet - use a Rare Amulet to boost the Gem levels of all your damaging Spells. It should also provide a Damage over Time Multiplier, or increase the Effect of your Shocks.

Min. requirements: +20% to Damage over Time Multiplier +1 to Level of all Physical Skill Gems Optional affixes: +#% to Physical Damage over Time Multiplier (Hunter Influence) +1 to Level of all Skill Gems # to maximum Life % increased Effect of Non-Damaging Ailments

(Ring) Mark of Submission - you will need an extra Socket to fit in all the Gems. This Ring can apply a level 21 Curse, which is twice as strong as the level 1 applied by the Modifier on Rare Rings.

Has 1 Socket Curse Enemies with Socketed Hex Curse Gem on Hit

(Ring) Rare Ring - a Bone Ring can improve your Damage and boost the survivability of your Golems. It should also provide the usual defensive modifiers. You can also use the Essence of Delirium to improve your DoT Multiplier.

Min. requirements: +80 to maximum Life 40% total Elemental Resistance Optional affixes: Minions have #% increased maximum Life Minions deal #% increased Damage +(12-15)% to Damage over Time Multiplier (Essence of Delirium) Non-Channelling Skills have -(7-6) to Total Mana Cost

(Jewel) Primordial Eminence - by increasing the Buff Effect of your Golems, you will greatly boost your Damage, Movement, and Defense at the same time. Try to fill those in every empty Socket.

Golems have (16-20)% increased Attack and Cast Speed 30% increased Effect of Buffs granted by your Golems Golems have +(800-1000) to Armour Primordial

(Jewel) Rare Jewels - you can use Rare Jewels to get the lacking Block Chance or Resistances, while also getting some Life and DoT Multiplier. It can also be used to prevent Corrupted Blood on you.

Min. requirements: 7% increased maximum Life +8% to Physical Damage over Time Multiplier Optional affixes: +#% Chance to Block Spell/Attack Damage while holding a Shield +#% to Elemental Resistance Corrupted Blood cannot be inflicted on you

(Jewel) Large Cluster Jewels - your goal is to allocate only the Primordial Bond Notable at the lowest Passive Cost. Combine it with Raze and Pillage, Renewal, or Rotten Claws, and avoid the remaining Notables.

Min. requirements: 1 Added Passive Skill is Primordial Bond Optional affixes: 1 Added Passive Skill is Raze and Pillage 1 Added Passive Skill is Renewal 1 Added Passive Skill is Rotten Claws

(Jewel) Elegant Hubris - use the Caspiro Keystone to remove Attribute Requirements and get Eternal Resiliance for Endurance Charge generation. You can also include Slum Lord or Gemling Training for Damage or Eternal Fervour for Frenzy Charges.

Commissioned (2000-160000) coins to commemorate Caspiro Passives in radius are Conquered by the Eternal Empire Historic

(Jewel) Foulborn Stormshroud - the Foulborn version of this Jewel can greatly amplify the effect of your guaranteed Shock, boosting your Damage significantly.

10% increased Shock Duration on Enemies (15-50)% increased Effect of Shock

(Jewel) Foulborn Witchbane - the mutated version of this Jewel can grant a very strong Explosion modifier to further improve your Clear Speed.

+10 to Intelligence Cursed Enemies you or your Minions Kill have a (10-15)% chance to Explode, dealing a quarter of their maximum Life as Chaos Damage

(Jewel) Watcher's Eye - this Jewel can grant you plenty of Damage through Pride and Malevolence Aura modifiers. The Malevolence is more potent, but also more expensive.

Recommended modifiers:  (40-60)% increased Physical Damage while using Pride +(18-22)% to Damage over Time Multiplier while affected by Malevolence

(Flask) Cinderswallow Urn - this Flask can be a good source of Onslaught and make your Life Recovery insanely strong during Mapping, but it is not that great against Bosses.

+(10-20) to Maximum Charges Recharges 5 Charges when you Consume an Ignited corpse Enemies Ignited by you during Effect take (7-10)% increased Damage Recover (1-3)% of Life when you Kill an Enemy during Effect

Suggested Flasks: Life Flask with Bleeding Removal modifier Quicksilver Flask with Movement Speed modifier Jade Flask with increased Evasion Rating modifier Quartz Flask with Curse Effect Reduction modifier

If you have any other build requests please leave that in the comments below. We are always open to suggestions and constructive feedback.

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