This build not only looks incredibly fun, but your enthusiasm and excitement for the build is infectious (in a good way, not in a spreading-Blight-in-Hossberg-Wetlands kind of way). I also love your level by level build spreadsheet. Subscribed!
Update: I recently reached Level 20, and the build is starting to come online. It is AWESOME! This is my first time playing a Mage in DAV, and I love the way this build plays. Voidblade and Thunderous End are just... *Chef's Kiss*. I'm looking forward to seeing how the build develops over the coming levels.
Thanks much for the build and explanation. Also, massive thank you for the progression sheet, really useful reference while playing/leveling. Hoping you get around to a fun warrior and a bow rogue.
I'm at level 37 now with just about all the gear you've recommended maxed out but I'm having a hard time keeping my health up. I have a bunch of advantages but I just lose tons of health when I use my abilities and it doesn't seem like the Garb of Kinship is really helping to boost me up that much. I'm using popping potions left and right or relying on Bellara to automatically heal me.
I like it when games let me become a spell slinging god. Balance makes mages less fun and the lead up to unlocking specializations and gear is challenge enough. When it comes online as you say, it feels empowering.
I already used this build 2 weeks ago and it's just fierce. Most enemies melt away immediately and the ones that remain are history shortly afterwards. Will use the build itself on Nightmare as well. The first time I used it, I was only one step below.
Mage builds are simply the most broken mid/late game. Where warrior and Rouge start to plateau mid/late game the gear you get massively enhances mages to beyond broken levels. I would say going up to the ice abilities right away before level 20 is great for more survivability and control on the battlefield keeping you alive a lot longer. Then you can respec into this build once your level 20 and start carrying fights, mage builds get so broken that companions litterly become irrelevant late game. My favorite build is definitely necro for mage though cause the self sustain and insane damage that is outputted completely trivializes the game so much that nightmare just becomes a joke. Love the videos man, glad to see someone putting out different build options other then the basic “OP Builds” for the game allowing a lot more unique gameplay
I actually haven’t even watched any other build videos so I have no idea what’s OP out there but this is probably my most basic one yet because I assume the Maw + Kinship combo is probably everywhere on endgame builds. I think not watching other people helps makes most of mine more unique though.
@@Red_Gael yeah Maw is staple in all mage builds not a necessity in rouge or warrior builds. Only warrior build it’s needed on is the neurotic build since its plays with draining your life for more power spike. But warriors and rogues focus more heavily on affliction or raw damage builds with less ability uses
I dont know which rogue build you were playing but rogues are literally invulnerable in late game. You are perma in skill casting every single boss fight without once actually being able to be hit. Rogues definitely dont plateau
It is worth mentioning that Lucanis has a trinket called Antivan Blade Kit that makes it so each affliction on an enemy reduces their Defense by 10% and once upgraded each affliction also reduces enemy resistances by the same amount. For the record, Arcane Bomb counts as an affliction so you can easily have 4 afflictions going which reduces defense and resistances by 40%.
The thing is, by the time you have his build online, you will not Arcane Bomb at all. You WILL have an ungodly amount of Afflicions on everyone, though.
@@MehmetN There is a perk in the Spellblade tree called Arcane Strike that makes Strike abilities apply Arcane Bomb. You're not looking to detonate it, you just want it there as an Affliction for Degrade and Antivan Blade Kit.
Will definitely try that build out. I watched several videos where different "oh so very much insane over the top" builds were presented, but lots of those either focus on necrotic. IMHO the most useless, as the majority of opponents (be it bosses or Darkspawn or Darkspawn bosses 😛) are resistant / immune to necrotic. I am currently using an Evoker Ice Mage build spiked with fire. Love to freeze enemies in place, but the ice itself does not do enough damage. So next time I play, first step is repeccing into fire and lightning.
I'm around level 45 but with this build my mana recharge is good but I can't sustain my health. The damage I take from the rings seems to be more than what I get back. I have the Garb of Kinship on legendary but the rest are blue or green. Any tips? I tend to start with arcane shot and then go into meteor if they're grouped up or voide blade if they're close. But I generally can't seem to sustain myself, especially in Dragon/solo boss fights.
Great video super detailed. I must be missing something. Have exact gear, skills and combos during gameplay and keep losing too much health from casting. I must be stacking advantages incorrectly but can’t figure out how. Any help would be appreciated.
@@tineshboopathy9819 yea the Death Caller build & footage is already complete, just need to edit, kind of a hilarious specialization just evaporating everything with the beam
I feel the "maw" ring is made for Necrotic Mage build. Because of the constant leach of health as you beam enemies and spread necrotic everywhere. It can become infinite spamming.
I just started my third play through as mage so this came just in time but I am thinking of going evoker so I hope u make a build on the evoker specialization nice video bruh
Last Resort stacks up to 10x for 200% damage boost at the cost of resistances and parrying / dodging. However, if you're spamming abilities, you won't take damage during the animation. Might be a good alternative to Warden's Signet.
Did you try out ice blast? Once i got all the stuff for this build like a week or so ago, i found ice blast to be the best single target skill i had and it easily hit damage cap almost every cast. It helps that it can be enchanted with 75% crit damage as well though.
@@CouchGuy19 yes I’ll probably make a variation with that in the future for fun, it’s pretty much a horse a piece between the two variations, I just like Fire more, not only in this game but I just like Fire builds in general
I learned by accident how powerful ice blast is & it's now 1 of my favorite abilities. I tend to play in a way that has "flair" rather than "use this for numbers on screen" & Ice blast is imo superior to many of the other skills in nightmare. It's nutty how much damage it does to a high dragon weak point.
Love the video and build just curious of the equipment you are using, wondering what would compliment this build to fully complete it any help would be appreciated.
Neve with Wicked calling card keepsake is broken. 300 damage instead of chilled and Double damage on frozen enemies. I use Frost nova,Entropic sphere and Corrupt ground. I really like my sphere. It's so big it blind me when I use it.😂
I'm a little confused - the build requires you start with a detonation, but neither of your companions apply sundered, which is the only affliction you can detonate, so having both Bellara and Davrin in your team wouldn't work.
that enchanted athame will deal 2x dmg with double mana cost, so basically the dmg output is same as using one ability 2x? with enchanted athame: 1 meteor 8k, 2 mana without enchanted athame: 1 meteor 4k, 1 mana (can be spammed)
Yea I recently started using it on my Champion. The healing you get once you max it out is especially useful, as it’s the only warrior subclass that has no way to heal itself without equipment.
@ I know that the wardens sell it, there’s one in the siege of you know where (either just outside of or in the library), the black emporium sells one, and I think that’s it. I think it starts at blue. I am not aware of any additional locations.
This build works exactly the same with a lightning focus. It's a very nice build. The gear is mostly the same for the lightning focus since mage's gambit switches elements. The weakness to fire is fine but don't forget you have companions that can remove lightning resist from enemies. This game simply allows for a satisfying power fantasy so "best" build is completely subjective to playstyle.
25 levels to finally get going? my warrior with a takedown/fire sword build is doing fantastic by level 10 and just gets better from there. then when you get the stagger/takedown unique ring your god
Anyone know the Enchanted Athame locations? I've got 1) Wardens Fort on Rivain coast 2) Lords of Fortune merchant 3) Haunting: Shadows of Fortune boss 4) ???? 5) ???? The loot locations are driving me crazy, there's no way to know if you miss something.
PSA: For anyone wondering, upgrading the weapon Enchanted Anathame to Legendary will make you unable to spam your abilities. It's better to keep your Anathame at purple instead. The +50 mana cost is the death of spamming the abilities. Otherwise you can spam all 3 abilities indefinitely which melts enemies and gives 100% invulnerability during ability cast.
@@tristan4893 I am using the Legendary Athame in the video and spamming abilities lol you just need to make sure you have fully upgraded Caraste and Amulet first and use Arcane Shot because it generates the most mana back.
Great Video, run a similiar build and am wrecking it. I think it needs to be expressed that 3 things are "Required". This build comes online at Level 20 Maw of the Black City Ring Blast Efficiency Skill under the Spell blade specialization (use Emeric with Bell Tolls before that for mana regen) Amulet that is epic (purple) All-Mothers Copse or Crows Perch Medallion (need to use strike abilities instead of blast, All-mothers is better) Can also use Researchers coat, Scorch Staff, Timeworn mage knife To offset the Maw ring. Also physical resist and Armour helps. Besides the "Required" items, use the best items for Defenses, resists, Damage.
Great build as always but I am left wondering whether there is a build that offers low frustration during the game's early stages or fares strongly before mid levels. Thanks again this looks great!
It’s hard for mage because mana regen is super slow early and their weapons attacks are booty so I really don’t know how to offset it. I will say I grabbed the tempest ability early on in my original playthrough and that spell felt super good but still not really enough to save the early game unfortunately.
I think a good idea is to lean more into ice, when you have frost nova and ice blast on cooldown plus one ability of your choice using mana - from my experience on nightmare. While enemies are frozen you can use your ability to regen mana quickly. For the bosses I recommend freeze them with frost nova and Neve's ability cycling back and forth while spending mana on ranged attack hitting the weakspot with approppriate weakness. I managed to beat one of ogre lvl 25 guardians at level 14 on nightmare.
Go back to all of the champion locations and look for a small accessory box, it will still be there. The one you’re most likely missing is the one in the Hossberg Wetlands, that’s the one I originally missed.
been playing the build and love it! any tips on getting legendary carastes double-hat? I'm at epic and can't seem to find the last one. I've bought the one from the black emporion, opened every marked chest on the map, checked vendors, done all the side quests, no idea where it's hiding...
I can say from experience that while evokes staff isn't as strong, it is still really good. With the right passives and gear, light staff attacks actually do good damage, and they lower cooldowns, so you have a semi-skill spam build with solid basic attacks thrown in.
There are some things that wasnt showed in the video guide of the build. the section where you started with Bellara,you didnt show all the gears like you did with Rook. and same with Darvin. Whats gear pieces needed for Bellara and Darvin (not just the 2 first pieces you showed)?
I think I missed the first drop of the Garb of Kinship at the Siege of Weisshaupt quest. Is there a way to go back to that location? And if not, would you still use it on purple? I feel like you need the gold for the healing because of the Maw of the Black City right? Or can you reccomend something instead?
Good build content! I am wondering if there's a version of this kind of character without the maw and kinship and copse combo. The idea of the fire spellblade appeals but I think I'm gonna self ban the use of at least some of those items in combination, if not all. No shade on people using them, I just want to actually feel threatened and be able to die haha. Any ideas how you might do it slightly differently without them? No worries if that's too much work to explain since it's literally changing the whole idea.
@@Vizieroframbling I have been not making builds with this combo because it is so broken, I’ll probably do 2-3 more with the combo on the channel because it would be a disservice not to put the absolute best builds on the channel but I will be making something without it for every specialization because it is ridiculous and might be nerfed, I also do not like using it because of how easy it is but it was fun seeing such big numbers lol
@ I’ve only played all rogue specs, deathcaller and spellblade so far. I don’t really have a favorite yet but I will say my least favorite is for sure Veil Ranger.
Almost exactly what i used for my playthrough, except i did Evoker and Area spells instead of Blast and Last Resort instead of Maw. Entropic Sphere would just crit everything on screen, applying every affliction while i chain cast meteors. I think i could detonate with Davrin every ten seconds? Didnt even have to move in most fights, Sphere is just that goofy
This might be a dumb question, but when you say to detonate first thing, is that using our ability or using both companions combo to detonate themselves? Like Bellara applied weakened then Davrin detonate weakened?
This build looks fun but I feel like I'm missing something. How are you detonating enemies with Belarra and Davrin as your companions? Who is applying Sunder to get a detonation?
@@MonkeyPriest Bellara and Davrin detonate off of eachother which is all we need if we really need shocking weapons, this build kills so fast that detonations are pretty much useless besides just as a vehicle to get shocking weapons for more damage. Like I said in the video you can use any companions you would like it really doesn’t matter lol they are just 2 of my 3 favorite.
@@Red_Gael Thanks for the reply! I'm still learning the game so I didn't realize those two could detonate for each other. I look forward to trying this one after I get some of the gear
Why invest a point in wall of fire, if it's not goint on your ability bar? It doesn't appear to open up any other nodes. Is it a situational thing where sometimes you want it in a fight?
I am sure this build is awesome. My issue is that it's so interdependent on something else and it chains that way. So if you're missing anything. It seems like it falls apart. You cannot use "Maw" if you don't get "XYZ" because then you slowly die. Then certain weapons and orbs and lucky to find them to make them legendary etc. Do you have any build that is solid but not so dependent on stuff.
@@Swecan76 I mean I will always show my builds at or near their maximum efficiency if I can but this build (and most of my builds) would work fine if you literally didn’t use a single piece of equipment I provided. It would really just go from “completely overpowered” to “good”, just try it out honestly you would be surprised, for example the Athame is COMPLETE overkill, it just makes your damage go from 10/10 to 12/10 and if your not using the Athame then the Caraste also isn’t as necessary and so on…
This build is honestly fine without the hat, you just won’t be able to infinitely cast but you will still just delete things faster than really anything else, if you don’t use enchanted athame you can probably still infinitely cast at a slight dps loss.
What is the trick to make mana come back so fast? Maybe it’s item dependent and I’m just too early in the game, but I’m trying to figure out the key synergies in this game. For now I feel like I spend too much time waiting on cooldown (I’m still level 27 for reference).
Mostly the amulet which you get by killing the champions and looting the accessory box that drops from them, so as long as you can kill the champions you can get it going. After that using Arcane Shot often because it regenerates more mana than the other spells from hitting more.
@ Thanks for your reply! Turns out I had the amulet and didn’t know; but I’m trying to figure out how to upgrade it, as only the last perk restores mana.
If both are just epic you can still use this build pretty good, it’s when the Athame becomes legendary when you also want the Double-Hat legendary to offset the increased mana cost. Slightly less damage but still would destroy everything. I know I got one Athame from LoF vendor and another from the hauntings questline. I also read one is acquired during Taashs final quest. For the hat I think I found a few in docktown.
@@Red_Gael Maybe I am still in the mid Act 2? I got all of those already from LoF, Haunting Questlines, Dock Town, etc.. Anyhow, with only epic pieces the build works like a charm! I can kill the lv50 blighted dragon while I am just level 38. It's that powerful. Thanks for sharing!
@@QucumberBranfordyou probably already have it, or are just strong enough anyway but for anyone else who might want to know I found all carastes double hats, 2 are bought at stores in minrathous, 1 in a chest in the sewers and the last on neves final quest area
without being able to see I can’t be sure, it’s very critical for this build that you have legendary carastes hat before using legendary athame for one, if you do not have legendary carastes put down the athame for now. Secondly third tier of amulet is crucial for mana. Lastly just make sure you’re using arcane shot every few spells because it generates the most mana out of all the spells due to it hitting multiple times.
Once you get Garb of Kinship legendary and Maw of the Black City you can start using this build and annihilating everything without the other pieces. I personally found Garb of Kinship legendary very early on. The rest is just there to maximize damage. It will still feel powerful even before this though when you get the passive that makes your blast abilities cheaper.
@ I just hit 30 and haven’t been too focused on build/gear yet. I feel stuck with Harding/Lucian since the 3 of us have detonation synergy. This build you’re showing seems very fun. I’m halfway through the game (just got Emm/Taash) and focusing on side quests atm. I’ll have to try and hunt that gear. Thanks for the response
@@ryanrazeYea I personally like Harding over Bellara until you can advance her kit. Detonations are really good early on, especially when you’re tragically under-leveled and incredibly stubborn. I don’t care that the ogre is level 25 and I’m a level 12 rogue that deals primarily necrotic damage. If I have to fight it for a half hour, I will! And I did!
Point of Clarification: You have Providence listed twice on the spreadsheet at Levels 30 and 56. Am I correct that the Level 30 ability is DEADLY Providence, and the Level 56 ability is Providence?
Actually, now that I've reached this spot, I think that you actually meant Arcane Strike, which doesn't appear anywhere else in the build. Please confirm.
@@constantinvaldor2281I know it’s a little confusing but in this game they have multiple passives that do the same thing with the same name so it is actually 2 different Providences, one of them in the control tree and the other in the sustain tree
@@Grandtemplar305 all of the abilities after quickened have like a 2 second cooldown which is usually back after the last spell’s animation is done, not infinite but pretty much as close as it gets
Yea I only know where the 3 already mentioned in the comment section are, fortunately this build still curbstomps without it, you’ll just do a lil less damage.
Wish I could be more helpful but I really do not know where loot is at in this game, I did find one from the Grey Warden shop and another from the black emporium but the other two, no idea.
OK doing a modified version of this build on hardest possible difficulty and I feels like this is an insult to the enemies. Unless you don't forget to weave your abilities, you cannot be beaten. It IS possible to fugg up, don't get me wrong, but that's on me when I do and it's sooooo rare...
@ thanks but, unfortunately I missed it and it’s not at any of the vendors or black emporium. That’s okay I am nearing the end of second play through. I think I will be trying your cold mage build next.
@@VirtualGurruu buildcrafting for the best builds in this game is pretty easy, it usually just consists of finding 3 abilities with the same type (in this case blast), getting passives that go with them, giving them the amulet that goes with them, then throwing on garb of kinship, maw of the black city and whatever else happens to pair up nicely
I played similar build a little, but it seems a bit brain-dead and unfun for me. I prefer evoker to this one. If you use Blackmaw, ring enchantment for bleed, magisters gambit and one of the Neves trinkets you can apply shock, bleed and chill simultaneously, plus your enemies are perma frozen.
Bro i made a new glasscannon rogue control build Perma agression and highest melee dps. I wanna show it to people but cba doing a video Interested bro?
This build not only looks incredibly fun, but your enthusiasm and excitement for the build is infectious (in a good way, not in a spreading-Blight-in-Hossberg-Wetlands kind of way). I also love your level by level build spreadsheet. Subscribed!
Update: I recently reached Level 20, and the build is starting to come online. It is AWESOME! This is my first time playing a Mage in DAV, and I love the way this build plays. Voidblade and Thunderous End are just... *Chef's Kiss*. I'm looking forward to seeing how the build develops over the coming levels.
Thanks much for the build and explanation. Also, massive thank you for the progression sheet, really useful reference while playing/leveling. Hoping you get around to a fun warrior and a bow rogue.
I have a precision bow rogue coming out tomorrow but I personally preferred playing the Saboteur rogue bow build already on the channel
Thanks for putting this build together. It made combat very satisfying and enjoyable in my playthrough.
Thank you so much for this build - this is exactly what I have been looking for. And extra thanks for the detailed spreadsheet!
Love your builds! They are making sure I make multiple playthroughs
Facts 😂💯
THANK YOU! I just started mage for the first time on nightmare and it was so much harder than warrior, this is awesome!
What was your warrior class/specialization?
@ reaper!! such an OP build
Awesome video. Thanks for breaking EVERYTHING down. It's super helpful!!
I'm at level 37 now with just about all the gear you've recommended maxed out but I'm having a hard time keeping my health up. I have a bunch of advantages but I just lose tons of health when I use my abilities and it doesn't seem like the Garb of Kinship is really helping to boost me up that much. I'm using popping potions left and right or relying on Bellara to automatically heal me.
Wow congratulations on the great build and the perfect explanation!!!
That Divinity music edit in the beginning!
Thanks much for this build and the great explanation for its functionality
Literally the best build in entire game. So overpowered lol
I like it when games let me become a spell slinging god. Balance makes mages less fun and the lead up to unlocking specializations and gear is challenge enough. When it comes online as you say, it feels empowering.
omg amazing build! thank you so much! I’m only level 31 and it’s so op
Oh nice, that Divinity Original Sin music is my phone ringtone haha
Thank you for this build! It actually feels like i'm cheating playing with this one 🙈
I already used this build 2 weeks ago and it's just fierce. Most enemies melt away immediately and the ones that remain are history shortly afterwards. Will use the build itself on Nightmare as well. The first time I used it, I was only one step below.
Mage builds are simply the most broken mid/late game. Where warrior and Rouge start to plateau mid/late game the gear you get massively enhances mages to beyond broken levels. I would say going up to the ice abilities right away before level 20 is great for more survivability and control on the battlefield keeping you alive a lot longer. Then you can respec into this build once your level 20 and start carrying fights, mage builds get so broken that companions litterly become irrelevant late game. My favorite build is definitely necro for mage though cause the self sustain and insane damage that is outputted completely trivializes the game so much that nightmare just becomes a joke. Love the videos man, glad to see someone putting out different build options other then the basic “OP Builds” for the game allowing a lot more unique gameplay
I actually haven’t even watched any other build videos so I have no idea what’s OP out there but this is probably my most basic one yet because I assume the Maw + Kinship combo is probably everywhere on endgame builds. I think not watching other people helps makes most of mine more unique though.
@@Red_Gael yeah Maw is staple in all mage builds not a necessity in rouge or warrior builds. Only warrior build it’s needed on is the neurotic build since its plays with draining your life for more power spike. But warriors and rogues focus more heavily on affliction or raw damage builds with less ability uses
@@Drekulviin that is fair warrior is the weakest of the 3 but I like it cause gives the game more of a challenge
I dont know which rogue build you were playing but rogues are literally invulnerable in late game. You are perma in skill casting every single boss fight without once actually being able to be hit. Rogues definitely dont plateau
Exploding daggers and turret spam rogue builds have higher damage than mages and the same survivability. Not as fun though.
Best. Build. Video. Ever
SUBSCRIBED
Just finished the game with this build. It is so OP it's insane. It's worth the struggle until you get all the gear pieces.
It is worth mentioning that Lucanis has a trinket called Antivan Blade Kit that makes it so each affliction on an enemy reduces their Defense by 10% and once upgraded each affliction also reduces enemy resistances by the same amount. For the record, Arcane Bomb counts as an affliction so you can easily have 4 afflictions going which reduces defense and resistances by 40%.
The thing is, by the time you have his build online, you will not Arcane Bomb at all. You WILL have an ungodly amount of Afflicions on everyone, though.
@@MehmetN There is a perk in the Spellblade tree called Arcane Strike that makes Strike abilities apply Arcane Bomb. You're not looking to detonate it, you just want it there as an Affliction for Degrade and Antivan Blade Kit.
@@TheNorseCrow Oooooh thanks! New to Mages, missed that. mazing info!
Will definitely try that build out. I watched several videos where different "oh so very much insane over the top" builds were presented, but lots of those either focus on necrotic. IMHO the most useless, as the majority of opponents (be it bosses or Darkspawn or Darkspawn bosses 😛) are resistant / immune to necrotic.
I am currently using an Evoker Ice Mage build spiked with fire. Love to freeze enemies in place, but the ice itself does not do enough damage.
So next time I play, first step is repeccing into fire and lightning.
Yes necrotic damage is dookie in this game so even when playing necrotic builds I try to build away from it, Fire is king.
Here I am melting Nightmare enemies, including Darkspawn, with a Necrotic focused Duelist.
I'm around level 45 but with this build my mana recharge is good but I can't sustain my health. The damage I take from the rings seems to be more than what I get back. I have the Garb of Kinship on legendary but the rest are blue or green. Any tips? I tend to start with arcane shot and then go into meteor if they're grouped up or voide blade if they're close. But I generally can't seem to sustain myself, especially in Dragon/solo boss fights.
The most op build and the best. I call him scorch-style spell blade caster. Ovations from Uchiha Sasuke😂
I just made a 2nd save making a ice build... NOW I SEE THIS! OMG I WANNA DO THIS ONE TOO 😭
Great video super detailed. I must be missing something. Have exact gear, skills and combos during gameplay and keep losing too much health from casting. I must be stacking advantages incorrectly but can’t figure out how. Any help would be appreciated.
Looking forward to the Death Caller build. Death Caller has good sustain & if you use a Fire or Lightning staff, Darkspawn will not be a problem.
@@tineshboopathy9819 yea the Death Caller build & footage is already complete, just need to edit, kind of a hilarious specialization just evaporating everything with the beam
Great video! Subscribed
I feel the "maw" ring is made for Necrotic Mage build. Because of the constant leach of health as you beam enemies and spread necrotic everywhere. It can become infinite spamming.
I just started my third play through as mage so this came just in time but I am thinking of going evoker so I hope u make a build on the evoker specialization nice video bruh
Last Resort stacks up to 10x for 200% damage boost at the cost of resistances and parrying / dodging. However, if you're spamming abilities, you won't take damage during the animation. Might be a good alternative to Warden's Signet.
The problem with it is that you can’t combine it with Maw of the Black City because the lack of resistance makes you kill yourself really fast.
Did you try out ice blast? Once i got all the stuff for this build like a week or so ago, i found ice blast to be the best single target skill i had and it easily hit damage cap almost every cast. It helps that it can be enchanted with 75% crit damage as well though.
@@CouchGuy19 yes I’ll probably make a variation with that in the future for fun, it’s pretty much a horse a piece between the two variations, I just like Fire more, not only in this game but I just like Fire builds in general
I learned by accident how powerful ice blast is & it's now 1 of my favorite abilities. I tend to play in a way that has "flair" rather than "use this for numbers on screen" & Ice blast is imo superior to many of the other skills in nightmare. It's nutty how much damage it does to a high dragon weak point.
@@Red_Gael I love fire as wekk, but arcane shot doesn't "feel" like a fire ability to me.
Love the video and build just curious of the equipment you are using, wondering what would compliment this build to fully complete it any help would be appreciated.
Neve with Wicked calling card keepsake is broken. 300 damage instead of chilled and Double damage on frozen enemies. I use Frost nova,Entropic sphere and Corrupt ground. I really like my sphere. It's so big it blind me when I use it.😂
I'm a little confused - the build requires you start with a detonation, but neither of your companions apply sundered, which is the only affliction you can detonate, so having both Bellara and Davrin in your team wouldn't work.
@@IRDippy Bellara-Enfeebling Shot + Davrin-Death from Above = detonation. You do not need to be the detonator.
that enchanted athame will deal 2x dmg with double mana cost, so basically the dmg output is same as using one ability 2x?
with enchanted athame: 1 meteor 8k, 2 mana
without enchanted athame: 1 meteor 4k, 1 mana (can be spammed)
Garb of Kinship straight up breaks the game for any build tbh because of how many advantages you can stack up, I wore this on my duelist rogue as well
I basically dismiss any build I see that doesn't include Advantage stacking. It's really the most important tactic to exploit, at least on Nightmare.
Yea I recently started using it on my Champion. The healing you get once you max it out is especially useful, as it’s the only warrior subclass that has no way to heal itself without equipment.
Where does it drop?
@ I know that
the wardens sell it,
there’s one in the siege of you know where (either just outside of or in the library),
the black emporium sells one,
and I think that’s it. I think it starts at blue. I am not aware of any additional locations.
I think I might be missing something, but why take Wall of Fire if our spells are more or less set?
Each ability node provides a +15% ability damage passive
Awesome build will definitely be trying this. Just wondering if you have something for evoker ?
hell yeah Exodia reference
This build works exactly the same with a lightning focus. It's a very nice build. The gear is mostly the same for the lightning focus since mage's gambit switches elements. The weakness to fire is fine but don't forget you have companions that can remove lightning resist from enemies. This game simply allows for a satisfying power fantasy so "best" build is completely subjective to playstyle.
Awesome build 👍🏻
What about Frost nova Evoker ? Does it deal similar damage or is it weaker ?
I will be posting an evoker on Saturday, it’s pretty much just as insane, maybe a lil weaker
@@Red_Gael alright cool
thanks 👍🏻
25 levels to finally get going? my warrior with a takedown/fire sword build is doing fantastic by level 10 and just gets better from there. then when you get the stagger/takedown unique ring your god
Yup, that's just the mage life, by far the strongest after level 30, not even close but warriors and rogues are superior for the first 30.
Anyone know the Enchanted Athame locations? I've got
1) Wardens Fort on Rivain coast
2) Lords of Fortune merchant
3) Haunting: Shadows of Fortune boss
4) ????
5) ????
The loot locations are driving me crazy, there's no way to know if you miss something.
Dude that’s what I’m saying I’m looking for the last 2 as well and can’t find them for the life of me . Don’t know if I missed them or what .
IIRC one of them is in Weisshaupt and the other is from one of Taash’s personal quests
PSA: For anyone wondering, upgrading the weapon Enchanted Anathame to Legendary will make you unable to spam your abilities. It's better to keep your Anathame at purple instead. The +50 mana cost is the death of spamming the abilities. Otherwise you can spam all 3 abilities indefinitely which melts enemies and gives 100% invulnerability during ability cast.
@@tristan4893 I am using the Legendary Athame in the video and spamming abilities lol you just need to make sure you have fully upgraded Caraste and Amulet first and use Arcane Shot because it generates the most mana back.
Omg lol nightmare 😂 I’m not that good. But I’ll try this
Great Video, run a similiar build and am wrecking it. I think it needs to be expressed that 3 things are "Required". This build comes online at Level 20
Maw of the Black City Ring
Blast Efficiency Skill under the Spell blade specialization (use Emeric with Bell Tolls before that for mana regen)
Amulet that is epic (purple) All-Mothers Copse or Crows Perch Medallion (need to use strike abilities instead of blast, All-mothers is better)
Can also use Researchers coat, Scorch Staff, Timeworn mage knife To offset the Maw ring. Also physical resist and Armour helps.
Besides the "Required" items, use the best items for Defenses, resists, Damage.
Great build as always but I am left wondering whether there is a build that offers low frustration during the game's early stages or fares strongly before mid levels. Thanks again this looks great!
It’s hard for mage because mana regen is super slow early and their weapons attacks are booty so I really don’t know how to offset it. I will say I grabbed the tempest ability early on in my original playthrough and that spell felt super good but still not really enough to save the early game unfortunately.
I think a good idea is to lean more into ice, when you have frost nova and ice blast on cooldown plus one ability of your choice using mana - from my experience on nightmare. While enemies are frozen you can use your ability to regen mana quickly. For the bosses I recommend freeze them with frost nova and Neve's ability cycling back and forth while spending mana on ranged attack hitting the weakspot with approppriate weakness. I managed to beat one of ogre lvl 25 guardians at level 14 on nightmare.
Some cons - GoK and MoBC is must have in this build and maybe that Shadow Dragon's hat. Without these gear this build doesn't work.
Missing two all mother's copse after defeating 4 champions. Dunno what went wrong. Any idea where can I get a third one?
Go back to all of the champion locations and look for a small accessory box, it will still be there. The one you’re most likely missing is the one in the Hossberg Wetlands, that’s the one I originally missed.
Any tips on how to build around the damage you take from the maw? Build is awesome but im talking way too much damage from it right now.
Dos music is amazing
been playing the build and love it! any tips on getting legendary carastes double-hat? I'm at epic and can't seem to find the last one. I've bought the one from the black emporion, opened every marked chest on the map, checked vendors, done all the side quests, no idea where it's hiding...
2 in stores in minrathous, 1 in sewers, last in Davrins final quest
TThe only hing I hae about his build is if I somehow refine it I won't be able to prove it due to the max damage UI limit :D
The best build is a bold claim 😈
Thank you so much for this. Will you be making more mage builds ? Can I request an evoker staff build ?
@@JosABDale I will be making at least one build for every specialization, mage ones will all be up next
Thanks for the reply..... I eagerly await your take on an evoker
Also, maybe you could show the full final skill tree as well in the video.
I can say from experience that while evokes staff isn't as strong, it is still really good. With the right passives and gear, light staff attacks actually do good damage, and they lower cooldowns, so you have a semi-skill spam build with solid basic attacks thrown in.
@@JosABDale 15:14 I always do put the skill tree in, it looks a little gibberish at first but it makes it a little easier to follow
There are some things that wasnt showed in the video guide of the build. the section where you started with Bellara,you didnt show all the gears like you did with Rook. and same with Darvin. Whats gear pieces needed for Bellara and Darvin (not just the 2 first pieces you showed)?
I think I missed the first drop of the Garb of Kinship at the Siege of Weisshaupt quest. Is there a way to go back to that location? And if not, would you still use it on purple? I feel like you need the gold for the healing because of the Maw of the Black City right? Or can you reccomend something instead?
@@rvdo1727 researcher coat would probably work fine, just less damage but it doesn’t really matter with how fast you kill anyway
my only problem is how do I minimize the amount of health I’m losing besides having Bellara as a ‘healer’
Good build content! I am wondering if there's a version of this kind of character without the maw and kinship and copse combo. The idea of the fire spellblade appeals but I think I'm gonna self ban the use of at least some of those items in combination, if not all. No shade on people using them, I just want to actually feel threatened and be able to die haha. Any ideas how you might do it slightly differently without them? No worries if that's too much work to explain since it's literally changing the whole idea.
@@Vizieroframbling I have been not making builds with this combo because it is so broken, I’ll probably do 2-3 more with the combo on the channel because it would be a disservice not to put the absolute best builds on the channel but I will be making something without it for every specialization because it is ridiculous and might be nerfed, I also do not like using it because of how easy it is but it was fun seeing such big numbers lol
@@Red_Gael Ya I totally get why you'd put this up. Just curious what class/spec you had most fun with?
@ I’ve only played all rogue specs, deathcaller and spellblade so far. I don’t really have a favorite yet but I will say my least favorite is for sure Veil Ranger.
@@Red_Gael oooh interesting. What didn't you like about veil ranger?
do you fully upgrade Enchanted Athame? It's legendary makes your spells cost more.
Yes it also gives a bunch of damage, this build can handle the extra mana costs pretty easily so it’s just alot more damage.
I love the build, but I'm confused as to why Deterioration is listed twice. Isn't there only one? Or am I missing something?
okay, but detonate HOW? what do you recommend? I'm here for the playstyle brother, how do YOU detonate?
Where do you get the final upgrade for garb of kinship? Sitting at purple after buying the one in the black emporium...
There is one in the siege of weisshaupt mission, that’s the one people most commonly miss
Ahhh! Is there any other drop for it?
Almost exactly what i used for my playthrough, except i did Evoker and Area spells instead of Blast and Last Resort instead of Maw. Entropic Sphere would just crit everything on screen, applying every affliction while i chain cast meteors. I think i could detonate with Davrin every ten seconds?
Didnt even have to move in most fights, Sphere is just that goofy
This might be a dumb question, but when you say to detonate first thing, is that using our ability or using both companions combo to detonate themselves? Like Bellara applied weakened then Davrin detonate weakened?
@@davidgoldenmortgagepro I use Bellara and Davrin to detonate off of eachother, you do not need to do the detonation yourself
@ , thanks! BTW, thanks for the specialization rankings video. I’ll be doing my 2nd play through as a champion warrior.
This build looks fun but I feel like I'm missing something. How are you detonating enemies with Belarra and Davrin as your companions? Who is applying Sunder to get a detonation?
That’s what I was thinking. Great build that I just switched to. But I like to use Harding and Taash since they combine skills well.
@@MonkeyPriest Bellara and Davrin detonate off of eachother which is all we need if we really need shocking weapons, this build kills so fast that detonations are pretty much useless besides just as a vehicle to get shocking weapons for more damage. Like I said in the video you can use any companions you would like it really doesn’t matter lol they are just 2 of my 3 favorite.
@@Red_Gael Thanks for the reply! I'm still learning the game so I didn't realize those two could detonate for each other. I look forward to trying this one after I get some of the gear
Why invest a point in wall of fire, if it's not goint on your ability bar? It doesn't appear to open up any other nodes. Is it a situational thing where sometimes you want it in a fight?
@@jonpollard5592 every ability has a hidden passive that boosts your ability damage by 15% so it’s best to gather all of the abilities you can
I am sure this build is awesome. My issue is that it's so interdependent on something else and it chains that way. So if you're missing anything. It seems like it falls apart.
You cannot use "Maw" if you don't get "XYZ" because then you slowly die. Then certain weapons and orbs and lucky to find them to make them legendary etc.
Do you have any build that is solid but not so dependent on stuff.
@@Swecan76 I mean I will always show my builds at or near their maximum efficiency if I can but this build (and most of my builds) would work fine if you literally didn’t use a single piece of equipment I provided. It would really just go from “completely overpowered” to “good”, just try it out honestly you would be surprised, for example the Athame is COMPLETE overkill, it just makes your damage go from 10/10 to 12/10 and if your not using the Athame then the Caraste also isn’t as necessary and so on…
I can't really use that hat because I only have a green version, no idea where other locations are for it and I've nearly finished my mage run
This build is honestly fine without the hat, you just won’t be able to infinitely cast but you will still just delete things faster than really anything else, if you don’t use enchanted athame you can probably still infinitely cast at a slight dps loss.
I know English very badly and missed the information. How to heal without using Garb of kinship in the early-mid game?
Is there a vitaar that can replace Carastes Double-Hat?
Edit: There is and it’s called the Pennant of Resistance. Same stats just a Vitaar.
What’s the skill tree suppose to look like at level 50??
15:13
What is the trick to make mana come back so fast?
Maybe it’s item dependent and I’m just too early in the game, but I’m trying to figure out the key synergies in this game. For now I feel like I spend too much time waiting on cooldown (I’m still level 27 for reference).
Mostly the amulet which you get by killing the champions and looting the accessory box that drops from them, so as long as you can kill the champions you can get it going. After that using Arcane Shot often because it regenerates more mana than the other spells from hitting more.
@ Thanks for your reply!
Turns out I had the amulet and didn’t know; but I’m trying to figure out how to upgrade it, as only the last perk restores mana.
What enchantments do you have on your skills?
If I dont use the maw ring, do you think Focus of the Veil is a good alternative
It would definitely be fine, The Last Resort would be another decent option but that's also a little OP
I’m having a major issue generating mana- any idea what I’m doing wrong??
Why couldnt you get the legendary belt?
@@jakstheoneandonly I just didn’t find it, I didn’t try particularly hard though because I was already invincible lol
@ probably missed it in treviso market!
Does anyone know how to get the final upgrade for the Double hat and the last 2 upgrades for the All Mothers Copse?
Double Hat is from one of Davrins quests in Arlathan Forest and All Mothers Copse drops from accessory boxes after you kill each Champion Ogre
I cant find the last Enchanted Athame and the Carastes Double-Hat anywhere. Are they a quest reward? I got both Epic already
If both are just epic you can still use this build pretty good, it’s when the Athame becomes legendary when you also want the Double-Hat legendary to offset the increased mana cost. Slightly less damage but still would destroy everything. I know I got one Athame from LoF vendor and another from the hauntings questline. I also read one is acquired during Taashs final quest. For the hat I think I found a few in docktown.
@@Red_Gael Maybe I am still in the mid Act 2? I got all of those already from LoF, Haunting Questlines, Dock Town, etc.. Anyhow, with only epic pieces the build works like a charm! I can kill the lv50 blighted dragon while I am just level 38. It's that powerful. Thanks for sharing!
@@QucumberBranfordyou probably already have it, or are just strong enough anyway but for anyone else who might want to know I found all carastes double hats, 2 are bought at stores in minrathous, 1 in a chest in the sewers and the last on neves final quest area
@@Red_Gael, Found the last piece of the hat. It's at Davrin's quest where you feed the halla in Arlathan Forest.
What for it suggests to take wall of fire at lvl 49 for this build?
Every ability node passively gives you an extra 15% ability damage
Spreadsheet is all well and good but you really should have had a diagram of your final skill tree dude, just saying.
15:14 i assume this is basically what you are asking for? Its a pain in the butt to make and look at but its pretty much the best I could come up with
Where does the garb of kinship drop?
Tried the build. I’m at level 40 but still struggled with mana. What am I doing wrong?
without being able to see I can’t be sure, it’s very critical for this build that you have legendary carastes hat before using legendary athame for one, if you do not have legendary carastes put down the athame for now. Secondly third tier of amulet is crucial for mana. Lastly just make sure you’re using arcane shot every few spells because it generates the most mana out of all the spells due to it hitting multiple times.
Thanks for your reply! I think I need to work on getting more gear to legendary. Also I don’t think I have the amulet. I’ll work on that
I see you say up until 25 just do whatever is interesting, at level 30; can this build really start to come online?
Once you get Garb of Kinship legendary and Maw of the Black City you can start using this build and annihilating everything without the other pieces. I personally found Garb of Kinship legendary very early on. The rest is just there to maximize damage. It will still feel powerful even before this though when you get the passive that makes your blast abilities cheaper.
@ I just hit 30 and haven’t been too focused on build/gear yet. I feel stuck with Harding/Lucian since the 3 of us have detonation synergy. This build you’re showing seems very fun. I’m halfway through the game (just got Emm/Taash) and focusing on side quests atm. I’ll have to try and hunt that gear.
Thanks for the response
@@ryanrazeYea I personally like Harding over Bellara until you can advance her kit. Detonations are really good early on, especially when you’re tragically under-leveled and incredibly stubborn.
I don’t care that the ogre is level 25 and I’m a level 12 rogue that deals primarily necrotic damage. If I have to fight it for a half hour, I will! And I did!
Point of Clarification: You have Providence listed twice on the spreadsheet at Levels 30 and 56. Am I correct that the Level 30 ability is DEADLY Providence, and the Level 56 ability is Providence?
Actually, now that I've reached this spot, I think that you actually meant Arcane Strike, which doesn't appear anywhere else in the build. Please confirm.
@@constantinvaldor2281I know it’s a little confusing but in this game they have multiple passives that do the same thing with the same name so it is actually 2 different Providences, one of them in the control tree and the other in the sustain tree
@@Red_Gael Thanks for taking the time to reply.
Does that dash have a cool down or is it infinite?
@@Grandtemplar305 all of the abilities after quickened have like a 2 second cooldown which is usually back after the last spell’s animation is done, not infinite but pretty much as close as it gets
nice!
Does anyone know where to get all the upgrades for Garb of Kinship? I have it up to rare.
I legit think im locked out of legendary enchanted athame, idk where my last upgrade is...
Yea I only know where the 3 already mentioned in the comment section are, fortunately this build still curbstomps without it, you’ll just do a lil less damage.
I'm struggling to get garb of kinship to legendary. Can't find the last piece for the life of me
Wish I could be more helpful but I really do not know where loot is at in this game, I did find one from the Grey Warden shop and another from the black emporium but the other two, no idea.
OK doing a modified version of this build on hardest possible difficulty and I feels like this is an insult to the enemies. Unless you don't forget to weave your abilities, you cannot be beaten. It IS possible to fugg up, don't get me wrong, but that's on me when I do and it's sooooo rare...
And by ""modified" I mean a version that reqires less skill. Which is my speacialty as an old person with neurological issues.
Hey everyone, where is the vivify rune location please.
It’s near the end of Weisshaupt, if you missed it I believe it goes to the black emporium, at least that’s what I’ve heard but not sure
@ thanks but, unfortunately I missed it and it’s not at any of the vendors or black emporium. That’s okay I am nearing the end of second play through. I think I will be trying your cold mage build next.
How long it take u think of this build
@@VirtualGurruu buildcrafting for the best builds in this game is pretty easy, it usually just consists of finding 3 abilities with the same type (in this case blast), getting passives that go with them, giving them the amulet that goes with them, then throwing on garb of kinship, maw of the black city and whatever else happens to pair up nicely
Just started a two handed bleed reaper build and I feel so weak compared to my tempest spellblade from my first playthrough. Spellblade is so broken
Mage in general is broken but the early game being so bad kind of evens them out, I think nightmare runs on them are kind of equal due to that.
I played similar build a little, but it seems a bit brain-dead and unfun for me. I prefer evoker to this one. If you use Blackmaw, ring enchantment for bleed, magisters gambit and one of the Neves trinkets you can apply shock, bleed and chill simultaneously, plus your enemies are perma frozen.
Yea anything with maw is pretty un interactive imo it just breaks the game
Bro i made a new glasscannon rogue control build
Perma agression and highest melee dps.
I wanna show it to people but cba doing a video
Interested bro?
How did you get that outfit ?
@@mcell101 lords of fortunes store, have to be level 4
@Red_Gael thx allot been looking for that
Man early game mage is such a slog. I’m really struggling to push through.
Temp for roast