Righteous Fire Totem
Hierophant
Starter Build for Patch 3.2

The Best Crafty Guides by Odealo

Estimated budget: medium (5-20 Exalted Orbs)

Righteous Fire Totem deals insane area damage, has very low item requirements and is one of the most suitable spells for a League starter build. With the Hierophant's Ascendancy class changes in Patch 3.2, it becomes the most suitable class for this (and pretty much any other) Totem build. RF Totem Hierophant Build relies on very high Righteous Fire Degeneration Damage and great defenses thanks to high Life, Mind over Matter passive and permanent curse immunity. The build also provides good mobility with Tier 1 mobility skill - Shield Charge.

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

1. Gameplay

Righteous Fire is a spell that applies a debuff to its' caster that deals a very high Burning Damage to anyone in radius including the caster. Because of the self-damage, the spell can be only played by characters with very high Fire Resistance and Life Regeneration, or it has to be supported by a Spell Totem Gem. This build revolves around the second option, which makes it much more easier to play, as the degeneration damage is dealt to your Totems instead. We suggest using the Hierophant class for this build as it allows you to summon a total of 4 Totems. Hierophant class also provides extra defenses by boosting your MoM passive, and by granting amazing Endurance charge generation mechanics.

2. Build's PROS & CONS

3. Leveling tips

Leveling with Totems is very easy. As a spell, they deal very high damage so you can focus on improving your Life, Elemental Resistances and on staying alive. There is also a number of low-level unique items that provide very high burning damage boost and help you get through the early levels.

Suggested leveling Gem setups:

Searing Bond Totem setup
	Searing Bond - spawns a Totem, that shoots a beam of fire towards you and your other Totems. It deals very high damage per second to monsters that stay in the beam
	Burning Damage Support - mandatory Support Gem for this spell
	Elemental Focus Support - provides additional DPS

Flame totem setup
	Flame Totem - the first Totem spell that you can use in Path of Exile. It shoots fire projectile which benefits from your spell and fire damage bonuses
	Faster Casting Support - makes your Flame Totem cast spells at a faster rate
	Greater Multiple Projectiles Support - grants you increases AoE damage, helpful when leveling

RF Spell totem setup
	Spell Totem Support - spawns a Totem that will cast supported skills (RF in this case)
	Righteous Fire - the core DPS spell of this build
	Burning Damage Support - mandatory Support Gem for this setup. RF's damage is considered burning and will not benefit from spell damage at all

Bandits:

Kill all bandits for additional 2 passive points.

Leveling skill Trees:

33 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Sanctity 2) Elementalist 3) Ancestral Bond 4) Holy Fire 5) Amplify 6) Devotion

67 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Totemic Mastery 2) Constitution 3) Elemental Overload 4) Explosive Impact 5) Shamanistic Fury

Recommended leveling items:

Ashcaller - one of the best leveling wands for Searing Bond/RF Totem build
(18-22)% increased Spell Damage Adds (10-14) to (18-22) Fire Damage Adds (4-6) to (7-9) Fire Damage to Spells (40-50)% increased Burning Damage (16-22)% chance to Ignite 10% chance to Trigger Level 8 Summon Raging Spirit on Kill

Pyre - grants extremely high burning damage bonus. It is also inexpensive and provides decent Resistances
+(20-30)% to Cold Resistance +(25-35)% to Fire Resistance (60-80)% increased Burning Damage 40% of Cold Damage Converted to Fire Damage 10% increased Light Radius Ignited Enemies you hit are destroyed on Kill

Goldrim - one of the best leveling helmets. If you can afford and get one early on it will most likely stay with you until mapping phase. Grants amazing elemental resistances
+(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)

Wanderlust - a nice pair of leveling boots that provide increased movement speed
+5 to Dexterity (20-40)% increased Mana Regeneration Rate +(10-20) to maximum Energy Shield 20% increased Movement Speed Cannot be Frozen

4. Final Skill Tree, Ascendancy Points and, Pantheon

Final Skill Tree:

115 Points Final Skill Tree
115 Points Path of Building link

Ascendancy points:

1. Pursuit of Faith
2. Conviction of Power
3. Divine Guidance
4. Ritual of Awakening

Pantheon:

Major God: Soul of 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 Gruthkul - 1% additional Physical Damage Reduction for each Hit you've taken Recently up to a maximum of 5%

5. Final Gems links

[DPS] RF Spell Totem
	Righteous Fire - it's your core DPS spell which is cast by your Spell Totems. Righteous Fire is not a typical spell as it does not benefit from spell damage bonuses, and "on hit" effects Righteous Fire benefits from: Increased fire damage Increased area damage Increased burning damage Increased elemental damage Increased damage over time
	Burning Damage Support - increases burning damage
	Elemental Focus Support - increases elemental damage, but makes it unable to inflict status ailments (RF's burning is NOT considered Ignite, so it's irrelevant here)
	Increased Area of Effect Support
	Efficacy Support - Efficacy and Swift Affliction are the only two Support Gems that can affect RF's damage over time effect
	Swift Affliction Support
	Spell Totem Support - the extra 7th link is provided by the Soul Mantle unique body armour. This spell spaws the Totem that cast your RF

[MOBILITY] Shield Charge 3L setup
	Shield Charge - your main mobility skill
	Faster Attacks Support - grants additional speed to your Shield Charge
	Fortify Support - grants a good damage reduction buff as long as you make melee hits with the Shield Charge attack

[CURSE] Orb of Storms 4L setup
	Orb of Storms - used to apply your curses and proc Elemental Equilibrium passive bonus
	Curse on Hit Support - will make Orb of Storms apply your supported curses
	Flammability - recommended DPS curse option
	Temporal Chains - your second curse, used to slow enemies so that they can't reach you too fast, and so that they stay longer in the range of your RF Totem

[UTILITY] Golem/Decoy Totem setup
	[1L]Summon Stone Golem - stone golem grants increased Life regeneration
	[2L]Increased Area of Effect Support - increases the radius from which enemies are taunted by your Decoy Totem
	[2L]Decoy Totem - summons a Totem that will taunt nearby enemies to attack it. Provides good defensive utility

[DPS] Searing Bond 4L setup
	Searing Bond - Searing Bond allows you to summon 1 additional Totem that shoots beams of fire in your and your other Totems direction. This spells provides decent additional DPS
	Burning Damage Support
	Elemental Focus Support
	Swift Affliction Support

[DPS] Scorching Ray 4L setup
	Scorching Ray - a channeling spell that will apply a debuff to monsters, lowering their fire resistance. Should be used to replace RF in the core Spell Totem setup in end-game boss fights to maximum single-target DPS
	Burning Damage Support
	Efficacy Support - Efficacy increases damage over time and the duration of Scorching Ray's debuff
	Elemental Focus Support

5. Gear Setup

Below you will find all the recommended gear for the RF Totem Hierophant. As we have stated before, it is a rather budget friendly build which does not require any specific unique items. While Soul Mantle and Atziri's Reflection is the best combination for this build and will outclass any other gear options, all the uniques listed can be replaced with Life/Res rares. Rare gear will usually provide more defensive stats, but lack extra damage.

If you would like to reach the full potential of this build but lack currency, we would like to invite you to visit our PoE Market where you can Buy, Sell and Trade Path of Exile Currency and Items.

Our recommended items will:

1. Cap your resistances
2. Grant sufficient Life for mapping
3. Give you more than enough damage to enjoy the game
4. Save you at least a couple of hours of planning your build

(Helmet) Hrimnor's Resolve - good and inexpensive helmet option. Provides great damage buff and decent defensive stats

(30-40)% increased Fire Damage (100-120)% increased Armour +(50-70) to maximum Life +30% to Cold Resistance Cannot be Chilled or Frozen if you have used a Fire Skill Recently Optional: Increased Righteous Fire Damage enchantment

(Helmet) Rare Life/Res. helmet - simply go for the highest Life/Res. combination you can afford

Min. requirements: 80 maximum Life 25% Fire Resistance 25% Lightning Resistance 25% Cold Resistance Optional: Increased Righteous Fire Damage enchantment

(Weapon) Rare Sceptre - it is very important that it does not have added flat Fire Damage to Spells - otherwise your RF will proc Elemental Equilibrium and grant monsters increased Elemental Resistance to Fire Damage

Min. requirements: 80% increased Burning Damage Optional affixes: Elemental Resistances Attributes increased Attack Speed

(Weapon) Doryani's Catalyst - pretty much the best in slot weapons (except for Tier 1 rolled rare Sceptres). Very solid option for this build

32% increased Elemental Damage Socketed Gems are Supported by level 20 Elemental Proliferation Adds (65-85) to (100-160) Physical Damage (11-15)% increased Attack Speed (6-10)% increased Cast Speed (30-40)% increased Global Critical Strike Chance 0.2% of Elemental Damage Leeched as Life (80-100)% increased Elemental Damage

(Shield) Atziri's Reflection - the new Fated unique. An upgraded version of the Atziri's Mirror. It renders you immune to curses, which completely nullifies the downside of using Soul Mantle. This shield is extremely expensive though

3% reduced Movement Speed (Hidden) 6% increased Movement Speed +52 to Intelligence 197% increased Evasion Rating +187 to maximum Energy Shield +23% to all Elemental Resistances Curse Reflection Unaffected by Curses 16% increased Effect of your Curses

(Shield) Lioneye's Remorse - good and inexpensive shield that grants a lot of defensive bonuses

3% reduced Movement Speed (Hidden) +(20-30) to maximum Life (200-250)% increased Armour 20% increased Stun and Block Recovery +(160-180) to maximum Life 5% reduced Movement Speed -25 Physical Damage taken from Projectile Attacks +5% Chance to Block

(Shield) Trolltimber Spire - another decent option if you aren't wearing the Soul Mantle

3% reduced Movement Speed (Hidden) +(20-30) to maximum Life (130-150)% increased Armour +(40-60) to maximum Life 0.5% of Life Regenerated per second 15% increased Area of Effect for Skills used by Totems 0.5% of Damage dealt by your Totems is Leeched to you as Life

(Body Armour) Rare Life/Res. body armour - the budget-friendly option until you can afford Soul Mantle. 4 Sockets should be enough for low tier maps and efficient currency farming

Min. requirements: 80 maximum Life 15% Fire Resistance 15% Lightning Resistance 15% Cold Resistance Optional affixes: Attributes

(Body Armour) Soul Mantle - the best in slot armour for this build. Provides the 7th link for your Righteous Fire setup, grants 1 additional Totem and increases Totem Life by 50% (RF damage is based on your Totems max. Life)

3% reduced Movement Speed (Hidden) (120-150)% increased Evasion and Energy Shield +(50-70) to maximum Life +(9-12)% to all Elemental Resistances 20% increased Area of Effect of Area Skills (40-50)% increased Area Damage Extra gore

(Body Armour) Carcass Jack - grants extra Area damage, decent Life and resistances. However its' price and lack of availability early in the league might be off-putting

3% reduced Movement Speed (Hidden) (120-150)% increased Evasion and Energy Shield +(50-70) to maximum Life +(9-12)% to all Elemental Resistances 20% increased Area of Effect of Area Skills (40-50)% increased Area Damage Extra gore

(Belt) Rare Life/Res. belt - grab one with the highest defensive stats

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

(Boots) Rare Life/Res. boots - high (20%+) Movement speed bonus is also recommended. We cut costs by taking dual-res pair (you could even aim for the highest possible Lightning resistance and Life, and get away with the Fire/Cold resistances that you will get on 2x Pyre rings)

Min. requirements: 70 maximum Life 30% Fire Resistance 30% Lightning Resistance 25% increased Movement Speed Optional affixes: Attributes Chaos Resistance

(Gloves) Rare Life/Res. gloves -  again, high Life/res combination (and low price) is what we are looking for

Min. requirements: 75 maximum Life 15% Fire Resistance 15% Cold Resistance 15% Lightning Resistance Optional affixes: increased Attack Speed Mana

(Amulet) Rare Life/%Fire/Res. amulet - you might not need the additional Lightning resistance here, just verify your previous gear if you need it

Min. requirements: 75 maximum Life 10% increased Fire Damage Optional affixes: Elemental Resistances Attributes Mana

(Amulet) Ngamahu Tiki - not a bad amulet option for this build. Grants amazing Fire damage bonus and some defensive stats

(2-4) Life Regenerated per second (50-70)% increased Fire Damage You gain 100 Evasion Rating when on Low Life +(30-50) to maximum Life +(20-30)% to Fire Resistance 1% of Life Regenerated per second while on Low Life

(Rings) 2x Rare Life/Res. Rings - just aim for high defensive stats. Opal Rings with increased Elemental Damage will be the best in slot options

Min. requirements: 65 maximum Life 10% increased Fire Damage 15% Fire Resistance 15% Cold Resistance 15% Lightning Resistance Optional affixes: increased Elemental Damage Attributes Mana

(Jewels) Rare Life/Damage jewels - aim for high defensive stats. Increases to damage should be adjusted to your current budget

Recommended affixes: % increased maximum Life % increased Generic/Elemental/Fire/Burning Damage Optional affixes: % increased Maximum Mana

(Flask) Witchfire Brew - increases your damage over time

3% increased Totem Life per 10 Strength Allocated in Radius Totems cannot be Stunned

(Flask) Rumi's Concoction - a good defensive Flasks. It's not a block build so you should not prioritize it in this build

+3000 to Armour (14-20)% Chance to Block during Flask effect (6-10)% Chance to Block Spells during Flask effect

Other suggested Flasks: Cautious Divine Life Flask of Grounding (grants shock immunity and removes shock on use) Cautious Divine Life Flask of Staunching (immunity to bleeding) Experimenter's Quicksilver Flask of Heat (increased movement speed and immunity to freeze and chill effects)

We are looking forward to your feedback and suggestions for our next build.

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