Updated for Patch 3.14
The Best Crafty Guides by Odealo
Estimated budget: low
Guide notes |
September 19, 2020 -Updated for Patch 3.12 Major changes: -None; this still remains Top Tier Starter build January 20, 2021 -Updated for Patch 3.13 April 18, 2021 -Updated for Patch 3.14 |
Toxic Rain is one of the skills introduced in Patch 3.4. It is a Chaos/AoE Bow attack that shots several arrows in the air that fall dawn rapidly creating Spore Pods. Arrows deal damage when they hit enemies, Spores deal damage over time to nearby enemies, and after a short delay, they explode dealing Chas Damage in a small area. With Pathfinder's Ascendancy, your Poison deals greatly increased Damage and spread to nearby enemies, making it a deadly weapon even without any expensive items. Quill Rain which was one of the core items for this build has been nerfed in Patch 3.5, but Toxic Rain Pathfinder still remains a very good pick for a League Starter build. You can play this build with pretty much any set of random rares, and if players could kill Uber Elder with a level 5 weapon, you know that something is truly overpowered.
Toxic Rain received reasonable buffs recently it's among the best Starter builds to play in Echoes of the Atlas Expansion and Ritual League.
You can also check our other Path of Exile builds at Odealo's Crafty Guides - Full List
This is a typical Ranged build that relies on taking down your opponents from a distance as it shows limited defensive capabilities. It is based on high DoT damage dealt by Toxic Rain's clouds, which stacks and deals massive damage to enemies affected by several clouds. Primarily this build was oriented on stacking Poison with Toxic Rain, however, it appears that the Damage over Time effect is much more viable in terms of dealing with mid and high-Tier Map Bosses. This build provides decent defenses based on Life (over 5,000 with our low-budget items listed) and a high chance of Dodge Spells and Attacks.
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PROS |
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CONS |
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Your primary objective should be getting Quill Rain after you reach level 5. Even a 4-linked one will do for most of the campaign. You should start your adventure with Caustic Arrow as it has no level requirement, and then add Toxic Rain at level 12. Caustic Arrow is best to be used initially to summon the Mirage Archer for some extra DoT, and then attacking enemies with Toxic Rain while it's up. Other than that, just focus on defensive gear and you should be more than fine throughout the entire process.
Suggested leveling Gem setups:
Caustic Arrow setup | |
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Caustic Arrow - very efficient leveling skill when combined with Mirage Archer Support Gem. |
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Mirage Archer Support - Mirage Archer uses the supported skill with slightly reduced Attack Speed and Damage |
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Void Manipulation Support - increases Chaos Damage |
Toxic Rain setup | |
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Toxic Rain - Toxic Rain is the primary skill in this build. You can start using it after you reach level 12 |
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Void Manipulation Support - listed here mainly because of low-level requirements. After you reach level 31 you should replace it with Added Chaos Damage Support |
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Vicious Projectiles Support - grants very high bonus Chaos DoT to supported Projectile-based skills |
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Deadly Ailments Support - greatly increases your Poison Damage |
Utility Gems | |
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Herald of Agony - increases your Chance to Poison and Poison damage |
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Summon Lightnin Golem - grants increased Attack Speed, which helps you stack more Toxic Rain clouds |
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Dash - recommended Movement Skill used in this build |
Bandits:
We recommend killing all the Bandits for two additional Passive Points
Leveling Skill Trees:
34 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Finesse 2) Aspect of the Eagle 3) Method to the Madness 4) Master Fletcher
65 Points Skill Tree
Priorities: 1) Hunter's Gambit 2) Blood Siphon 3) Growth and Decay 4) Atrophy
Recommended leveling items:
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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 |
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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 |
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+(20-30) to Dexterity +(20-30) to Strength +100 to Accuracy Rating 30% increased Projectile Speed 10% increased Movement Speed 30% increased Projectile Damage |
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+15 to Dexterity +15 to Intelligence (100-150)% increased Evasion Rating 15% increased Movement Speed (5-10)% of Damage taken gained as Mana over 4 seconds when Hit 10% increased Movement Speed for you and nearby Allies |
Final Skill Tree:
115 Points Final Skill Tree
115 Points Path of Building(PoB) link
Ascendancy points:
Preferably in that order:
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 Garukhan +5% chance to Evade Attacks if you've taken a Savage Hit recently
[DPS] Toxic Rain | |
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Toxic Rain - primary Attack Skill in this build. You focus to increase the Damage over Time effect and ignore the on-hit damage it deals |
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Void Manipulation Support - increases Chaos Damage dealt by Supported Skills |
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Vicious Projectiles Support |
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Swift Affliction Support - greatly increases DoT damage dealt by Supported Skills |
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Empower Support - increases the level of your Toxic Rain and its' base DoT DPS. You can further increase Empower's level by socketing it in the Crafted Bow that we recommend to get if you want to push this build to its limits |
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Mirage Archer Support - creates a Spectral Archer on your back which will use Toxic Rain with reduced Attack Speed even while you are moving |
[UTILITY] Wither Spell Totem | |
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Wither - a duration Spell that applies a debuff on enemies increasing Chaos Damage they take |
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Spell Totem Support - allows you to summon a Totem that will cast Wither |
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Faster Casting Support |
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Multiple Totems Support - allows you to summon more Wither Totems to apply the debuff faster |
[UTILITY] Golem/Immortal Call | |
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Cast when Damage Taken Support - will automatically resummon your Golem. Use a level 11 Gem to make the casts more frequent |
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Summon Lightning Golem - increases your Attack and Cast Speed. Use a level 13 Summon Lightnin Golem Gem |
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Immortal Call - grants a very strong damage reduction bonuses for a short duration. Use it also on level 13 so that it's triggered by CWDT Gem |
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Increased Duration Support |
[UTILITY] Blood Rage | |
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Blood Rage - increases your Attack Speed and generates Frenzy Charges for more Damage |
[UTILITY] Auras | |
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Flesh and Stone - makes nearby enemies blinded and reduces the damage you take from enemies further ahead when you use it in the Sand Stance |
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Malevolence - increases your DoT multiplier making it the best Aura for this build |
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Enlighten Support - reduces Mana Reservation Cost of Supported Auras |
[MOBILITY] Dash | |
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Dash - movement skill which can be used with Bows and will be faster than Blink Arrow because of your low Attack Speed in this build |
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Second Wind Support - increases the number of Charges your Dash has and reduces its cooldown |
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Below you will find all the recommended gear for this build. All the items are easy to obtain and should be relatively cheap. Also, this build is perfect for beginners and solo self-found mode. None of the items are mandatory and can be easily replaced by Rares.
Using this opportunity, we would like to invite you to visit our PoE Marketplace where you can buy cheap PoE Currency with real cash from other Path of Exile players.
Our recommended items will:
Stat priorities on items:
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50% reduced Damage when on Low Life +(50-70) to Dexterity 10% increased Attack Speed 25% increased Global Critical Strike Chance (100-130)% increased Evasion Rating +(80-100) to maximum Life 150% increased Global Evasion Rating when on Low Life |
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Min. requirements: 90 maximum Life 30% Fire Resistance 30% Lightning Resistance 30% Cold Resistance |
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Helmet enchantment: Toxic Rain fires 1 additional Arrow Toxic Arrow deals 40% increased Damage |
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(120-150)% increased Evasion and Energy Shield +(50-70) to maximum Life +(9-12)% to all Elemental Resistances (40-50)% increased Area of Effect (40-50)% increased Area Damage Extra gore |
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Min. requirements: +1 Level to Socketed Gems +2 Level to Socketed Support Gems Chaos Damage over Time Multiplier Optional affixes: Attack Speed Chaos Damage |
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Min. requirements: 90 maximum Life 90% Total Elemental Resistances Optional affixes: Area of Effect |
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Min. requirements: 80 maximum Life 35 Intelligence 25% increased Movement Speed Optional affixes: Elemental Resistances You have Tailwind if you have dealt a Critical Strike Recently Chance to gain Elusive on Critical Strike |
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Boot enchantment: 16% increased Attack and Cast Speed if you've Killed Recently |
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Min. requirements: 120 maximum Life 25% Fire Resistance 25% Lightning Resistance 25% Cold Resistance |
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Min. requirements: 70 maximum Life 10% Chaos Damage over Time Multiplier Optional affixes: Attributes Chaos Damage Elemental Resistances |
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Recommended Anointments: Hardened Scars - best defensive Utility but requires you to get Enduring Hybrid Flask Potency of Will - longer Toxic Rain duration which means higher DPS |
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Min. requirements: 60 maximum Life Non-Channelling Skills have -8 to Total Mana Cost Optional affixes: Attributes Elemental Resistances |
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Min. requirements: 60 maximum Life Chaos Damage over Time Multiplier Optional affixes: Elemental Resistances |
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Recommended affixes: increased maximum Life increased Chaos Damage over Time Multiplier Optional affixes: Chaos Damage/Damage over Time/Area Damage |
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Recommended affixes: maximum Life Chance to gain Onslaught on kill for 4 seconds Optional affixes: Increased Damage if you have killed recently |
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(4-6)% increased maximum Energy Shield (4-6)% increased maximum Life (4-6)% increased maximum Mana <Two or Three random aura modifiers> Recommended Aura modifier: +(18-22)% to Damage over Time Multiplier while affected by Malevolence |
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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 |
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Other suggested Flasks:
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If you have any other build requests, please leave that in the comments below.
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