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Mikel Skiles
Fallout 76 Skyline Valley is set to be released in a few days in June. It will be added as part of Expeditions: Atlantic City and will bring a lot of new content to the game, including some new weapons and armor. These new pieces of gear have some amazing properties that will enhance your gaming experience.
This guide will detail all the new Fallout 76 Items introduced in Fallout 76 Skyline Valley update. Come with me!
The first new weapon in the update is Ticket To Revenge, a Railway Rifle with twice the bullet capacity of the standard version. While the standard Railway Rifle is powerful, it is often hampered by its limited ammunition capacity. If you don’t have Quad effect equipped, it’s difficult to deal with maximum damage.
Railway Rifle with Ticket To Revenge changes this situation. It can hold 20 Spikes at a time with base damage of 223. Compared to the standard Railway Rifle, it can greatly reduce the frequency of reloading.
Ticket To Revenge’s legendary effects are V.A.T.S Enhanced, Lucky, and Bloodied. Bloodied will increase your damage as your character’s health decreases, while the V.A.T.S Enhanced will increase your chance of hitting the target. Lucky can help you maintain AP.
Overall, Ticket To Revenge is a pleasant alternative for players who want to try Bloodied builds but don’t need those expensive Bloodied weapons.
V63 Shock Baton is also relatively simple to obtain. You only need to complete Housekeeping for Higher quest. This melee weapon in Fallout 76 has powerful anti-armor properties and can also apply electric shock effects to enemies.
Besides Armor Penetration and 50% Limb Damage to enemies, V63 Shock Baton also has an AP cost of 30 and a medium swing speed.
Shattered Ground is an Automatic Assault Rifle in Fallout 76 that you can obtain by completing Double-Cross Wires quest. It not only has high damage and a fast rate of fire but also supports your own customization into a single-shot or Automatic Rifle.
If you want to have this weapon with Demolitionist perk, you can maximize the potential of this weapon. The most notable effects of Shattered Ground are Junkie’s, Explosive, and 90% Reduced Weight.
V63 Zweihander is an electrical two-handed weapon that you can obtain by completing Eye of Storm. Non-automatic two-handed weapons are not popular in Fallout 76 because of their limitations. However, V63 Zweihander is a special case, with powerful Power Attack Damage, Defender’s, and Executioner’s effects.
The advantage of this weapon is that it has a very high energy damage. With the right method, its damage will increase.
After talking about the new weapons in Fallout 76 Skyline Valley expansion, let’s take a look at the new armors.
Both the outfit and hat are crafted at an armor workbench after learning the respective plans called Vault 63 security outfit burnt and Plan: Vault 63 security helmet burnt, which are given as rewards for completing the event Dangerous Pastimes.
Crafted at an armor workbench after learning the respective plan called Plan: Lost burnt Vault jumpsuit, which is given as a reward for completing Calm Before quest .
You can pair this coat with a Lost Burnt Vault suit. However, note that the lab coat is different for female and male characters. The outfit also comes with an optional pair of scientist goggles.
Both the outfit and hat are crafted at an armor workbench after learning the respective plans called Plan: Cultist monarch outfit and Plan: Cultist monarch mask, which are given as rewards for completing Oldest Trick in Book quest. Also note that Alex Guerra is wearing a non-playable version, so don’t confuse them.
It is a one-piece suit designed to mold to the body shape of the user. It is made up of various biometric sensors integrated into the suit, connecting with the Vault’s system. The iconic yellow strip on the front is made of gold foil, not dyed material, and in the suit acts as a heat sink and antenna for the integrated biometric sensors.
There are still some unknown variables waiting for players to explore in this Fallout 76 Skyline Valley expansion. There is a lot of new content to look forward to in the update, and new players should not feel intimidated.
Besides some new items, the southern part of the map has been opened, allowing players to roam the rolling hills of Shenandoah. In addition, there are some new enemies, new NPCs, and recent activities waiting. Let us look forward to this update together!
Welcome all gamers! As you prepare for the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, which launches on June 21 this year, there are countless Dexterity-based weapons to choose from in Elden Ring, each with unique abilities and advantages. Here are my thoughts on which weapons you should focus on and upgrade to maximize your potential. Let's take a closer look!
First on our list is the Uchigatana. The Samurai is one of the most popular starting classes in Elden Ring. This katana moveset is quick, and the Ash of War: Unsheathe deals an enormous stagger to enemies. If you fancy power stancing, you can even pick up a second Uchi in the Deathtouched Catacombs in Limgrave.
The twist on the Uchi I'm going to recommend is that you go straight to Redmane Castle very early and grab the Red-Hot Whetblade. One of the deadliest starting setups is getting the Ash of War in the Ainsel River and infusing your Uchigatana with the Flame Art.
You could then grab the Flame-Shrouding Cracked Tear from the easier of the 2 minor Erdtree Avatars, put some levels into Faith, buff with Flame, Grant Me Strength, and completely annihilate most of the game. Picking up the Fire Scorpion Charm in Mt. Gelmir will further add to the devastation you can inflict.
If you're running a more Dexterity-centric build, then lightning or keen-infused Uchi will give you very high AR. Running lightning lets you stack more buffs effectively. You can use the Lightning-Shrouding Cracked Tear, Lightning Scorpion Charm, and Golden Vow to multiply your damage.
Next, we have the Nagakiba, another katana and quite similar to the Uchigatana, but with one key difference: its length and consequently, its reach. This moveset also has a thrusting attack on the charged heavy, making it more versatile.
There are 2 common ways to play the Nagakiba: one is making it cold-infused, and the other is lightning-infused. With the cold infusion, you can get a Frostbite buildup paired with your natural Bleed on the Nagakiba. With the lightning infusion, you get a really high AR that scales well with Dexterity.
For an Ash of War, you can use a quick, multi-hit one like the Spinning Slash. The Ash of War: Spinnng Slash paired with Frostbite and Bleed can deal devastating damage, and the AoE of the attack is great. You can also use your Elden Ring Runes to purchase some other buffs to make the game smoother.
Nagakiba's reach is ideal for dealing with dragons, and it simplifies most dragon fights by letting you just poke them in the head until they die. Because using shorter weapons can be a bit annoying, as you'll often miss the hitbox of the dragon.
You can get the Nagakiba off Bloody Finger Hunter Yura right at the beginning of the game in Limgrave, or you can follow his quest line until you get to Altus Plateau and get it from him when he's not doing so well at the Second Church of Marika.
The next one on the list is the Bolt of Gransax, which is the first Somber weapon today. You can get this spear when you visit the Leyndell, Royal Capital. It sits on top of the giant version of itself. You can access the area right after defeating Godfrey.
Being a Somber weapon means it's much easier to upgrade, especially if it's an alt weapon for your run. It works best on a high Dexterity build because lightning damage scales so well with Dexterity.
As a spear, this moveset is great for keeping distance, and the light attacks come out so quickly you can usually react and roll intuitively after attacking. The lightning damage gets boosted by all our buffs and the Lightning Scorpion Charm, with extra boosts when fighting on water, like against the twin Gargoyles.
The Ash of War is not interchangeable, being a Somber weapon, but it's excellent to have some ranged attacks like Lightning Spear in your pocket. Paired with the Shard of Alexander, this can really pack a punch. Not to mention it has a satisfying animation. As a spear, it's great for power stancing. I recommend the Cross-Naginata spear as its partner for Bleed buildup.
Next, we're talking quick attacks and Scarlet Rot buildup with the Antspur Rapier. You can find the Antspur to the west of the Shaded Castle after you kill the NPC Invader Maleigh Marais. The Antspur has a rapier moveset, which is really fun because of the quick recovery, allowing you to get more hits in and still dodge.
The weapon has a natural Scarlet Rot buildup, so it works great on bosses with large health pools like the Fire Giant or Dragonlord Placidusax. Although Placidusax has large resistance to all status buildup, you will eventually proc with enough hits. You can use the Ash of War: Repeating Thrust to further improve the Scarlet Rot buildup.
You can experiment with different infusions to add Bleed, Frost, or Poison. For instance, if you infuse this weapon with Poison, you can have Poison and Scarlet Rot buildup, and then you can buff with the likes of Bloodflame Blade to enhance the Bleed buildup as well.
Finally, the best Dexterity weapon I recommend on this list is the Flamberge. The Flamberge is a greatsword, so naturally, you might think it's for strength builds, but that's not the case. That's what's so fantastic about these games. You just need to hit the required stats to wield the weapon, and then you can infuse the weapon to suit your build.
The setup I recommend is keen-infused with that Dexterity scaling, while still allowing you to have weapon buffs. You can grab the Ash of War: Chilling Mist from the ruins just outside of Ranni's Rise tower in northwest Liurnia. When starting a boss fight, you can buff Flamberge with Bloodflame Blade.
Bloodflame Blade will add Bleed buildup to your weapon, but for weapons that already have a natural Bleed buildup like the Flamberge, it just goes crazy. This setup makes enemies proc blood loss so quickly, and then hitting the Ash of War to proc Frostbite rapidly can be unreal and devastating.
Those are the 5 overpowered weapons ideal for Dexterity builds in the Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree DLC. Which one catches your eye? Give them a try to see which suits your play style best.
Do you want to make big money to buy new oddities and powers? Then these CAMP places in Fallout 76 will be your best choice.
There are various places to set up camps, and each CAMP is very suitable for players. Some locations are great for building on flat terrain, but others are great for generating extra Caps. Getting the income Cap in Fallout 76 can be a struggle for lower-level players. Therefore, this opportunity to get Fallout 76 Bottle Caps as capped as possible is crucial. Likewise, where players place their Camps will determine the number of visitors they receive.
Caps in Fallout 76 are crafted from the player’s CAMP, so factors such as which items are sold and how much they are sold for are closely related. In fact, location is what attracts players the most. Next, I will introduce those high-quality CAMP locations for your reference to quickly obtain Caps.
As players speed towards CAMP, if they cannot easily find the vending machine, they will give up and leave. Many new players tend to place vending machines on the top floor of their CAMP or at the back of their base in an attempt to attract players to visit their CAMP. This is a terrible idea.
If players want to actively browse other people’s CAMP designs, maybe they will do so. But the most feasible way is to place two or three vending machines near the player base. If possible, players should use lights and arrows to make their vending machines more noticeable. If the vending machine is easily found by players, the more likely they are to spend Caps.
Another thing players should do is check to see if their CAMP is active on the menu. If players hover over CAMP icon on the map, they can see if their CAMP is visible to other players. If you can’t see it, then CAMP will not attract many tourists.
Vault 76 is a popular location for building CAMPS. Therefore, new players are constantly joining the game. While they don’t have a particularly large number of Caps, if they see something they can buy if they want to save up, they may end up coming back. In addition, even though Vault 76 is a free fast travel location, players are more willing to pay to travel to closer campsites.
Since a large number of players like to build near Vault 76, there is a high probability that other players will visit the area and they can quickly look multiple CAMPS as well.
The Wayward is not far from Vault 76. This is one of the places where new players are dispatched directly after leaving Vault. Wayward is where many of Wastelanders’ major storylines take place, so players of all levels will have to travel to Wastelanders frequently. So, if you see a CAMP near Wastelanders, they are likely to check it out.
Wayward is also Smiley’s long-lost hometown. He sells gold bars to players in exchange for Caps. Because of this, high-level players head to Wayward every week so they can hoard gold bars.
The location of Rusty Pick is in Ash Heap region. This is where the vendor Murmrgh lives. Murmrgh sells legendary weapons, armor, and legendary modules to players. When players want to craft or purchase legendary items, Rusty Pick has naturally become the most sought-after place.
Some players who like to sell Legendary Items place Rusty Picks outside the camp to increase sales. At the same time, this is also a free fast travel location to attract more players to the location. There are not many enemies around Rusty Pick, which also means that CAMPS is not likely to be attacked.
Fallout 76 has several seasonal events held in fixed locations. For example, Fasnacht Event is held in Helvetia and the Mothman Equinox event is held in Point Pleasant. These activities take place every hour on the hour. Therefore, most players online travel to the event every hour.
Placing CAMPs near seasonal events is a great idea for making a lot of extra Caps, as players tend to browse them carefully before and after completing seasonal events.
West Tek Research Center is the best place in Fallout 76 for quick upgrades and improvements. Players can earn constant XP by “running West Tek” (clearing buildings repeatedly). Of course, this upgrade is mainly done by high-level players. High level players usually have a lot of Cap. But if a player is grinding XP at West Tek and sees a CAMP next to it, there’s a good chance they’ll want to stop by and check it out.
Although it doesn’t have as many visitors as before, players are generally more willing to give up some hard-to-obtain Caps.
Whitespring Golf Club is popular for many reasons. Because there are free and fast travel points nearby, and there are also many flat and clean lands. It’s close to Whitespring Refuge and Mall, so it’s a place that players frequent. There is a lot of traffic, so it has become a popular building location among players.
Players will often find themselves needing to travel to Whitespring. Whether it’s performing tasks, selling items, or using Whitespring Mall’s workbench to create crafts.
Many merchants set up shop at Whitespring Station. The most popular vendor robot is located at Whitespring Station. Therefore, players will often head to Whitespring Station to unload their spare grenades and some aid items.
On a typical server, there are usually two CAMPS near Whitespring Station. And, as mentioned in the first entry, if there are many CAMPS nearby, more players will be attracted to it.
This location is commonly used by advanced players. Drop Site V9 is located near Fissure Prime Site. When it is attacked by Nuke, the Scorched Earth event will be activated. Gamers will fight against one of the game’s bosses, the Scorchbeast Queen. This is a very popular activity among players. Whenever bosses are activated, most players in the game lobby will join in the activity.
By placing a CAMP north of Drop Site V9, players can usually avoid being within the blast radius of an incoming Nuke. This event is so popular that if players have CAMPS placed nearby, there’s bound to be a ton of visitors coming in every time someone launches a Nuke on the Fissure Prime Site.
The above is a detailed introduction to the nine best places to place CAMP, which will help players of all levels quickly obtain Caps in the game and enhance the gaming experience.
In today's discussion, we'll delve into the Spectre build guide for the Path of Exile 3.24. I must advise against starting with the Spectre build guide on a low budget or as a league starter. However, in the Necropolis League, we now have access to the Moon Dancer Spectres which can enable you to embark on this build right from the start.
Once you can obtain 4 spectres, that is when you can start fully playing this build. To get 4 spectres, you need the Death Attunement node on the skill tree, as well as having a Level 25 Raise Spectre gem. This can be achieved by having a Level 21 Raise Spectre gem along with a plus level of Raise Spectre from either your Bones of Ullr or unique boots.
There is an option of getting a Replica Dragonfang's Flight that gives up the spectres to Level 3 extra. However, using the exclusive Perquil's Toe does more damage, requires very little POE Currency on gear, and is a great deal on the skill tree.
For the low-budget approach, we are going to be going in with the Ascendancy node of Mistress of Sacrifice. This is because of the low-budget build we'll be using Bone Offering to give ourselves and our minions block chances.
We'll also be running Commander of Darkness for resistances to us and our minions, Mindless Aggression for damage and life, as well as Bone Barrier to provide ourselves with some leech. I would recommend not specking into the leech nodes and simply having the generic leech, so it has less strength to it than it should be.
We are going for the tempering as Enduring Bond mods. We're going for Spiritual Command or Sovereignty, as well as the Redemption and Righteous Army on the left-hand side, Gravepact in the bottom, and then we're just picking up Blocking nodes and resistance notes. In the former Sanctuary, we're also picking up Eldritch Battery.
Eldritch Battery allows you to use the Divine Blessing setup. The problem with the Divine Blessing is that it's going to cost a lot of energy shield. Because of this, it's something you will take when your gear is supplying enough energy shield for this to work. The other auras we'll be running are Generosity Wrath, Petrified Blood, and Determination.
Petrified Blood, you don't have to be on low life all the time. You can use a life flask to get full HP. The purpose of this is to create a state of over-leeching. As our minions will leech consistently to us, we will always be covering ourselves from the damage that's coming in.
We'll have a Conductivity curse, a Frostblink, Convocation, Faster Attacks with Shield Charge, and an Animate Guardian in a separate link, which you don't really need to use if you don't want to or feel comfortable with it because the medium budget cannot use an Animate Guardian.
The weapon will be a generic trigger weapon for Bone Offering, and Desecrates will have a Feeding Frenzy setup for Stone Golem and Raise Zombie, which will not only act as buffing for our minions through making the enemy take elemental damage to the Elemental Army and giving them damage buffs to our minions through Feeding Frenzy, but also act as meat shields to cover you and make you safer.
Links for the spectres are very straightforward as well. We'll have Raise Spectre, Minion Damage, Spell Echo, Returning Projectiles, Pierce, and Faster Projectiles for single Target switch gems. You would then remove the Returning Projectile for Slower Projectile.
As far as the pantheon is concerned, for the low budget, we’re going to be running the Brine King for freeze immunity and the Arakaali for the ignite reduction of duration. Outside of that, we can utilize the unique jewel Unending Hunger, which will perform well for clear speed.
The goal for the low budget build is to prioritize getting block sorted and having life and resistance capped, along with sorting your attributes through your gear. For example, Perquil’s Toe provides a lot of dexterity, but you’ll need additional dexterity, which can be obtained through other gear pieces.
The weapon will be a trigger, preferably +2, but +1 is the cheaper option, with a minion damage modifier, and the shield should have life, with a level of minion skills. The helmet should have life and +1 level of minion skills if possible.
In later stages, the chest piece will be a Delve modifier chest, granting an extra spectre to go from 4 to 5 spectres. Before that, in the low budget setup, aim for a corrupted 6-link with life, resistances, or attributes.
Gloves will focus on life and resistances. Look for energy shield bases to ensure coverage of the energy shield. In a great low-budget state, the high-budget version will use Elder Influenced boots to obtain that level of spectre per kill. Double Bone Rings with minion damage and attack speed are beneficial. Additionally, prioritize attributes like light for the darkness and throne.
For jewels, focus on life combined with minion damage after using a minion skill recently, or consider flat lightning damage. Rumi’s Concoction is a recommended approach, and consider using a jewel that provides effects like taunt or blind.
If you're familiar with WoW Season of Discovery, you likely understand that efficiently completing all your prequests and consistently engaging in dungeons will swiftly propel you to level 50.
However, for those who seek a more immersive experience, this guide offers comprehensive coverage of optimal questing zones, alongside valuable advice, recommended levels, and strategic routes tailored to enhance your journey during Season of Discovery Phase 3.
Before delving into the details, it's essential to grasp 5 key points:
Firstly, Season of Discovery presents an array of engaging content, including new runes and PVE experiences such as Nightmare Incursions in Ashenvale, Duskwood, Hinterlands, and Feralas. These events not only provide valuable experience and reputation but also offer unique items like the Anguish of Dream and the Nightmare Siphon to aid in your leveling journey.
Secondly, during the questing process towards level 50, there are often periods of slower progression. Engaging in dungeons like Uldaman, Zul'Farrak, and Maraudon can mitigate these lulls. It's advisable to undertake each of these dungeons at least once due to the multitude of quests available, providing substantial experience and introducing fresh content.
Thirdly, certain recommended zones may experience overcrowding, prompting the need for rerouting. Many of these zones encompass broad level ranges, allowing for flexibility in exploration.
Fourthly, it's important to note that undertaking quests marked as "green" provides comparable base experience to those labeled "yellow" or "orange" as long as you remain within five levels of their suggested level range.
Lastly, this guide serves as a comprehensive overview rather than a definitive roadmap to the fastest route to level 50. It aims to offer guidance on worthwhile zones and content areas to explore throughout your journey.
Stranglethorn Vale proves to be an exceptional questing zone for Phase 3, as well as an ideal area for those in their early 40s.
Renowned for its dense population of hostile creatures and abundance of kill quests, it offers a fertile ground for efficient leveling. Most initial quests in this zone lead to subsequent higher-level tasks, enhancing its appeal as a starting point for adventurers seeking optimization.
Before delving into Stranglethorn Vale, it's advisable to collect quests between Grom'gol and Booty Bay. Many of these quests overlap in various areas, allowing for simultaneous completion and streamlined progression.
Additionally, quests such as "Up to Snuff" and "Bloody Bone Necklaces," forming part of separate quest chains, need not be rushed during the first attempt. These chains often circle back to the same areas, simplifying future completion.
Should challenges arise, whether due to player-versus-player encounters or overcrowding, Dustwallow Marsh presents a viable alternative for smoother questing.
However, I recommend venturing into Scarlet Monastery Cathedral until reaching level 41 or 42, offering a strategic advantage over competing adventurers.
At approximately level 41 or 42, our journey leads us to the Badlands.
This region remains beneficial for leveling until around level 45, offering straightforward starting quests that yield ample experience. However, the primary allure lies in its connection to Uldaman, housing numerous dungeon quests to undertake.
Among these quests are "Solutions of Doom," situated in the southern Badlands at coordinates 51,76; "Power Stones," located at the heart of the region at 42,52; and "Platinum Disc," obtainable upon completing the dungeon itself. These quests provide adventurers with rewarding challenges and opportunities for progression.
For Horde players, it's advisable to remain in the Badlands until reaching approximately level 42 to 43, before transitioning to the Swamp of Sorrows.
This area offers promising opportunities for leveling, although caution is warranted due to the scattered yet dense population of hostile creatures.
Particular attention should be paid to the higher-level mobs near the Pools of Tears, especially with the presence of the new raid, Sunken Temple (also known as The Temple of Atal'Hakkar). Additionally, a formidable elite dragon roams the vicinity of the Eastern pool, necessitating vigilance.
Moreover, herbalists seeking Blindweed should take note that the Swamp of Sorrows is one of the few regions where this valuable resource can be harvested. Its scarcity makes it a lucrative commodity, especially as Phase 3 approaches.
Our next destination is Dustwallow Marsh. It serves as a suitable area for early leveling, spanning from levels 35 to 45. However, the optimal level range within this zone typically falls around level 42.
Of particular note is the presence of a quest named "Tiara of the Deep," which constitutes one of the dungeon quests for Zul'Farrak. This quest can be obtained in the southern section of the zone. Dustwallow Marsh offers a mix of quests catering to varying levels, though many of them are part of quest chains, which may not be the most efficient for leveling.
Personally, I tend to venture into Dustwallow Marsh during periods of quest scarcity in other zones or when facing challenges such as player-versus-player encounters in hotspots like STV.
Around levels 44 to 45, it's time to venture into Tanaris.
Tanaris stands out as one of my preferred zones for questing in the mid-40s and is home to the entrance of one of the finest dungeons available in this level range: Zul'Farrak. To fully engage with this dungeon, it's essential to gather numerous Zul'Farrak quests from Gadgetzan.
These quests encompass "Troll Temper" from Trenton Lighthammer, situated at coordinates 51,28; "Scarab Shells" from Tran'rek, located at 51,26; and "Divino-Matic Rod" from Chief Engineer Bilgewhizzle, positioned at 52,28.
Additionally, adventurers can acquire several quests from other zones, including "The Tiara of the Deep" from Dustwallow Marsh around 46,57, and "Gahz'rilla" from Thousand Needles at 77,78. However, it's crucial to note that completing "Gahz'rilla" necessitates obtaining a Mallet through a Hinterlands questline, so it's advisable to delay pursuing this quest. Finally, "The Prophecy of Mosh'aru" awaits discovery in the eastern section of Tanaris, known as Steamwheedle Port.
Between levels 45 to 46, Feralas emerges as the next optimal destination.
Prior to embarking on your journey to Feralas, ensure that you acquire the quest "Screecher Spirits" from Steamwheedle Port in Tanaris, as discussed earlier. Navigating this zone may pose challenges due to frequent changes in elevation, as well as the presence of numerous bodies of water and steep hills. Additionally, Feralas serves as the habitat for higher-level Nightmare Incursions, offering exciting opportunities for participation.
While exploring Feralas, be mindful of the high density of hostile mobs, which can be encountered throughout the area. However, it's crucial to exercise caution around the northern region, particularly the level 60 dungeon area known as Dire Maul. This area is teeming with elites that can pose significant challenges, making it advisable to steer clear of this vicinity.
Around levels 46 to 47, it's advisable to journey to the Hinterlands.
This zone boasts numerous kill quests and dense mob populations. Notably, it is renowned for housing the challenging Jintha'Alor elite quest lines, requiring group coordination for completion.
Although Horde players will find more quests available compared to Alliance counterparts, the Hinterlands offers viable content for both factions. I strongly endorse undertaking these quests, as they provide a rewarding and immersive experience akin to navigating an outdoor dungeon. Ensure you assemble a full group, including a tank and a healer, as you'll encounter numerous higher-level elites. Allocate a minimum of 45 minutes for this endeavor to account for its duration.
Completing this run will yield nearly a full level's worth of experience through grinding and quest turn-ins. Additionally, it grants access to the Sacred Mallet, enabling the summoning of a secret boss named Gahz'rilla within a dungeon. Furthermore, adventurers may encounter the quest "The Ancient Egg" during this run, which was previously a prerequisite for Sunken Temple.
However, its relevance may have diminished since the dungeon transitioned into a raid.
Finally, if you've reached this stage, you're on the right track, as by levels 48 to 49, you can conclude your leveling journey in Searing Gorge.
These quests can pose some challenges, so I recommend tackling them with one or two companions to ensure safety. The area is dense with both mobs and quests, and occasionally, the respawn timers may catch you off guard, especially in the depths of caves or mountains. Exercise caution.
Additionally, at this level range, I suggest undertaking some runs in Maraudon. This dungeon offers a plethora of rewarding quests and presents an enjoyable experience with valuable gear. It features two distinct wings that can be completed independently, denoted by orange and purple colors, respectively. You can obtain several quests for Maraudon in Desolace, such as "The Pariah's Instructions" located at Centaur Pariah (50,86), and "Twisted Evils" starting at Willow (62,39).
Furthermore, within the dungeon itself, you'll encounter two additional quests. "Legends of Maraudon" unfolds into three separate quests during a single run, offering significant experience gains, while the "Seed of Life" is obtained from the final boss, Princess Theradras.
There are also 3 distinct quests available for both Alliance and Horde factions, but they originate from different locations. These quests are named Shadow Shard Fragments, Vyletongue Corruption, and Corruption of the Earth and Seed.
If you intend to prepare in advance for these quests, Stranglethorn Vale (STV) is an excellent zone to begin prequesting. Ensure you visit each of the eight zones to unlock their flight paths before embarking on your journey. Additionally, resist the urge to rush through content solely to reach the maximum level. Classic emphasizes the journey of leveling, offering numerous opportunities for exploration and discovery along the way.
In this guide, I’ll be sharing one of my favorite POE 3.24 League starter builds, Explosive Trap Trickster. In Necropolis League, I enhanced this build and added the features we needed most, namely leveling, gear progression, and crafting sections. This build is enough to help you destroy everything early in the league! Without further ado, let’s get started.
First, I’ll show you the skill, Explosive Trap. You will throw traps and these traps will explode many times. All explosions can hit the same enemy, which is where our DPS comes from and how many traps we have.
When you view POB, you can set the number of explosions that hit the target. As always, I set it to an average blast since most enemies have a small hit range.
Now for the buffs of this build. We can automatically cast Warcry through Enduring Cry and the new Call to Arms Support. So we don’t have to press any extra buttons when mapping or fighting enemy bosses.
In addition, Enduring Cry will solve a big problem in the build, which is recovery. Warcry will give you a lot of life regen in a short period and will give you Endurance Charges. Because we are using Immortal Call as our guard skill. The uptime of the guard skill will be much greater than 1 second, which is an excellent combination.
Some players may have noticed that in this patch, they removed the reduced mana cost mods from jewels. But this isn’t a big issue for me since we’re only using one mod, so I think this build will still be good.
I know everyone is talking about Explosive Trap of Shrapnel. This patch they increased gem damage to reduce the area of effect of the explosions. This reduces the overlap of explosions, meaning less damage than before.
From my testing so far, the base Explosive Trap and Explosive Trap of Shrapnel do almost the same damage if we talk about single target damage. However, I think it’s better to clear with Shrapnel, which you can use to kill map bosses. But when you want to challenge Ubers or harder content, you need the basic Explosive Trap.
There is also a personal issue with Explosive Trap of Shrapnel, namely that you have to farm the lab for it. I think this is not a good plan because it all depends on RNG and maybe you won’t see what you want for 3 hours. But of course, if you enjoy growing gems, then go for it!
Also, there are two issues with this build. The first is mana. Our traps are very expensive in mana, so we’ll need to use Mana Flasks until the mana costs of our rings and amulets are reduced.
If you are lucky enough, or you have a little extra POE Currency, you can buy Praxis. It will easily solve your mana problem until you get the gear.
The second problem is that when you open POB, you will see that our build does not have any physical reduction. But it doesn’t matter, because we have more than 70% chance of avoiding enemy attacks, and we have enough energy shield and life pool to withstand bigger hits.
I played this build last league and completed my Atlas, defeating all endgame bosses without armor on my character. Keep in mind that you’ll get additional physical damage reduction from Endurance Charges thanks to the new support gem and Enduring Cry.
Next, let’s walk through how to navigate in my version of Path of Building.
Passive trees are the most important to a good leveling experience. You can see at the bottom, click this button and get a drop-down menu and select the current level for the corresponding tree.
First, grab a Trap Wheel here in the level 22 tree instead of going to Written in Blood. In the next one, you can choose what to pick first, but I recommend going with Snowforged and Elemental Mastery here. This is also your first lab time.
When you do the second lab, on the level 55 tree. Most of the time, you get mastery because you get Polymath Ascendancy node. The different types of masteries you assign will do more damage. So that’s why I chose a lot of masteries this time. Here again is a single small node that will be counted on the next tree.
On level 69 of the tree, you will complete the third lab and complete the campaign. I want to draw your attention to the fact that there is a node here that gives +10 Strength. Besides, if you feel you’re lacking damage, you can also get extra Curse nodes and add a second Curse to the build.
You may also want to ask some FAQs, such as the pros and cons of this build, and learn more about Transfigured Gems, mana issues, and how to solve them.
Here, I would like to talk more about leveling. As you probably know, I don’t like using other skills to level up other than my main one, so that’s why I’m not using Rolling Magma or other methods to level up here. I know this isn’t the most efficient way to complete a campaign, but for me it’s a more enjoyable experience.
I also try to include weapon progression here, what gear you can use early on, or how I did it. Even in the early stages of the league, these weapons should be cheap. Of course, this is my personal preference, but if you have something better in your pocket, I wouldn’t stop you!
Another thing that is in outrageous demand is the crafting part. You can learn how to craft items with this build with a very high success rate. Don’t forget to always double or even triple check before embarking on expensive crafting methods.
After this part is completed, only the gem part is left, which also contains the drop-down menu next to the skill set. Click on the appropriate level your character has and try using gems. Don’t worry if you can’t find the 4-link at the moment, you will find it later.
At level 38+, this is where Herald of Ash fits in. But you cannot use this Herald unless you have one of the reservation wheels found in the level 48 tree. So please keep this in mind.
Maybe you’re curious about Bandit and Pantheon. For Bandit, Alira is a good choice. She’s great for the early and mid game because of her mana regen, resistance and crit multi.
When it comes to Pantheon, Soul of Solaris must not be missed. If you haven’t been hit recently, you can upgrade this to take 8% less elemental damage. Also, this will give you a bit of movement speed and physical damage reduction.
Overall, Explosive Trap Trickster is one of my favorite skill and Asdendancy combinations. Trickster Asdendancy is very flexible, so you can easily re-spec other skills if you wish. Regardless, I hope you’ll find this league starter useful.
Hi, builders! I have a smooth Wave of Conviction Elementalist that offers fast clearing and strong survivability, and can also transition into other endgame Elementalist builds for the Path of Exile 3.24 Necropolis League. I can’t wait to show you of build!
This build delivers buttery-smooth cleanup and shreds through everything in a flash. This is definitely more of a map buster and I have set this up to be very tanky. During the early stages of the game, you might feel vulnerable as you prepare yourself. It’s difficult to get suppression early on with an Elementalist.
However, in the endgame, it can actually have 40,000 points of armor before the flask, which is great. It should be able to do all the normal bosses and get you 4 Watchstones. But if you’re looking for an insane boss killer, this is not the build for you. This is just for blasting maps fast, and it’ll be a lot of fun.
It’s relatively simple to play this build. While clearing, we can actually use an Obliteration Imbued Wand so you get a good wipe out. Then we have Vaal Flameblast. We’re only using Vaal Flameblast for when there’s something really tanky or facing a boss.
When you are fighting a boss, you want to make sure that you have your Arcanist Brand down, and what that does is flammability, Elemental weakness, and Flame Surge, giving you considerable damage.
Now, on bosses in particular, we really want to take advantage of the tremendous damage we’re getting from Vaal Flameblast. That’s why we’re using this through Arcanist Brand, so the Arcanist Brand will keep cursing things and it doesn’t really count as you casting a curse spell because you’re casting Arcanist Brand. Because of that, you can basically make the Vaal Flameblast Ignite last forever.
Next up, we can go to skills. At the early stage, we can start with Rolling Magma. This is very standard for a lot of builds. And then you can have Frostblink, Flame Wall and Holy Flame Totem. With Flame Wall, you want to make the projectile go through that. Anything that goes through the Flame Wall gets more damage.
At Level 28, we switch to a very standard Armageddon Brand with the Cremation setup. So, that means that for clearing, you’re mostly using Armageddon Brand. For bosses, you’re throwing down Cremation, which you need to desecrate first to make corpses.
The gear can be very easily and quickly to set up. The focus is on life and resistance, triggering a longing to challenge suppression. You’re also going to need some dexterity in gear, but life and suppression are what you’re looking for, and early on, just focus on getting resist capped. Choose the gear that best suits you based on how much POE Currency you have.
We have a separate setup for clearing and that is because Obliteration will feel so good while clearing. On an Elementalist, all damage can ignite. That includes your chaos damage, so those explosions will be exploding and igniting.
But if you’re doing like Uber Elders or something, then you can switch out to a weapon like this for even more single target. One thing that might be a little frustrating in this build is that since we don't cast very often, we really need some critical chance. That’s why you can get a crit chance on the scepter.
You can roll crit chance on a flask, and that is to keep Elemental Overload uptime. There will be like a little diamond on the skill, so it’ll be a diamond on the Vaal Flameblast or a diamond on the Wave of Conviction, and that means that it’s on for that skill.
Now, for some extra defense, we can use the Energized Armor. What it does is these nodes have energy shield on them and it basically turns that into armor. You will have 57,000 armor with a good Granite Flask, so that’s actually pretty substantial.
If you’re feeling that you are very tanky and maybe you want a bit more damage, what you can do, especially for softcore players, is you can get rid of Bastion of Elements but you can take Shaper of Storms instead, and what that will do is that’ll give really high damage shocks so they’ll take on a lot of monsters 50% more damage.
Later on, we have a little more advanced gear. This is when you’re like moving towards Tier 16s and you’re starting to get suppression capped. The Pig-faced Bascinet helmet is crafted with the Essence of Horror and that gives you that socketed gems deal 30% more damage.
You may want to try to use the new Veiled Orb. However, we don’t know what kind of rarity or cost is going to be around that. So, you will use Essence of Horror on a helmet until you have. Then you’re doing suffixes cannot be changed in a Veiled Orb, and just hope you hit the +2 AOE gems. This is where we put our Vaal Flameblast. It basically makes it a pseudo 5 and a half link.
Obviously, we want the physical damage taken as fire because we don’t have as much armor, and this will actually make our armor more potent. Other than that, lots of Armor Innovation gear. The bases are the best in the slot ones, like Full Dragonscale.
With Jade Amulet, you can get +1 Fire gem levels would be huge or +2. That’s what we’re going to look at later, but damage over time multiplier is great. We can opt for Amethyst Rings early on for chaos. In the endgame, it’s getting a bit more advanced and you can target towards, especially like Eldritch implicit modifier with +2 amulet.
Especially you do want to focus on chaos resistance because later you do want to replace the Amethyst Rings with Unset Rings so that you can get the Divine Blessing support gem and Haste. But, in the early game, it’s going to be hard to chaos resistance cap without Amethyst Rings.
The new Necropolis expansion in the Path of Exile is upcoming! A recent announcement from GGG has disclosed that the majority of its features will not be integrated into the core. So, in this guide, we delve into the Unique items exclusive to Affliction that will now become part of the core drop pool in Path of Exile 3.24.
We have got a large number of information from the GGG Affiction post, for the only part of Affliction which is actually going core in POE 3.24 - the Necropolis League. That’s the Wildwood exclusive Unique items.
In order to prepare for the new journey in Path of Exile, it is also necessary to store some POE Currency in advance.
A lot of players anticipated the inclusion of the That Which Was Taken Crimson Jewel in the core game, but it seems that's not the case. Unless it's introduced in a different manner, like as a drop from a new boss, we might have to wait until the March 21st reveal to confirm. Based solely on this post, it appears That Which Was Taken won't be part of the core game.
However, 6 other Unique items are going core. 3 were exclusively found by enemies in the Wildwood. Those are the Trickster’s Smile Unique helmet, the Nametaker Unique sword, and the Flawed Refuge Unique shield.
The other 3 were exclusive drops from the King in the Mists boss fight. Those are the Pragmatism Unique body armor, the Untouched Soul Unique amulet, and the Burden of Shadows Unique staff.
This addition to the core game is quite intriguing - The Flawed Refuge shield highlighting its potential power in the right setup. Unique items like this one go unnoticed until someone discovers a strong use case, catapulting it into the spotlight.
A notable combo involves pairing the Flawed Refuge shield with Divine Flesh, allowing players to mitigate elemental penetration on 90% of incoming damage. If I happen to find this shield in SSF during the Necropolis league, I might explore building around it since I missed out on obtaining it during the Affliction league.
It will be fascinating to see the rarity tier assigned to this Unique item when it enters the core game. Given its potential usefulness, I anticipate it won't be overly rare, but only time will tell.
The next I want to diacuss is the Pragmatism Unique body armor. This one can be so powerful when it’s used in a smart way. I know that in the Affliction League, there were a bunch of builds using this with the new Bodyswap of Sacrifice gem to explode the Dark Marionette specters.
They were using this body armor to gain a bunch of gem levels for the Raise Spectre gem so that the Dark Marionette had a lot more maximum life. But the Dark Marionette specters will no longer be obtainable in Necropolis.
Another Unique item is the Burden of Shadows staff, purportedly the rarest drop from the King in the Mists encounter. Despite playing through the league, I didn't personally witness this staff drop, nor did I encounter many builds utilizing it.
As a two-handed weapon, the Burden of Shadows staff faces stiff competition from well-crafted weapons and shields. Its utility and effectiveness may be questioned, especially considering its drawbacks. However, once it enters the Unique core drop pool, and assuming it's not excessively rare like Tier 1 or Tier 0, players might delve into experimentation with it.
The potential of the Burden of Shadows staff could increase if Blood Magic receives buffs in upcoming leagues. This could prompt players to reassess its viability and explore new synergies, potentially unlocking hidden strengths that were previously overlooked.
I’m very happy to see the Untouched Soul amulet go core. This is a really fun one that enables a bunch of life stacking builds. And I think in the future, we’ll see a lot more builds making use of this one as well. Perhaps for some mana stacking or even accuracy stacking.
Moving on, let's discuss the Trickster’s Smile. The Trickster’s Smile, in particular, leaves me uncertain. Its functionality seems quite limited and cumbersome, occupying a crucial helmet slot. I anticipate it won't find widespread use due to its niche nature and awkward mechanics.
Regarding the Nametaker, it boasts a formidable 200% critical strike multiplier and 100% instant leech when striking Unique enemies, thanks to their 20 enemy power. While it may not currently rival other options, I anticipate it may find its niche in future builds, showcasing the unpredictable nature of Unique items transitioning into the core game.
The experiences with the Nametaker in the early stages of the Affliction League didn't provide much clarity. Despite attempting various theory crafted setups and experimenting with dual-wielding mechanics, I struggled to discern its effectiveness or potential applications in practical gameplay scenarios.
Indeed, the introduction of Unique items often brings about unforeseen synergies and strategies. These items may initially go unnoticed, lying dormant until new mechanics or interactions arise, suddenly thrusting them into the spotlight.
I'm sure many POE players are eagerly await to see the tier assignments for these Affliction Uniques. Only time will tell how these Affliction Uniques will be classified.
When delving into mutations and seeking thrilling PVE experiences in the New World, my preferred choice is the Rapier Bleed build.
Enhancing its potential further elevates the overall performance, enabling players to push the boundaries and extract maximum efficiency. This optimization particularly caters to those striving for high-scoring runs. Without delay, let's delve into the intricacies of this formidable build.
Rapier: The most important part of this build is the Rapier. Without a doubt, the best Rapier for this is the finisher as it provides a huge amount of damage to bleeding targets for the last perk on it.
Keenly Empowered is the best option as it greatly increases bleed damage and is incomparable to any other perk, the skill tree for Swordsman should be like this, the main ability is still the same.
Ice Gauntlet: To optimize our build, allocate points across the skill tree to bolster both our primary Rapier damage and secondary Ice Gauntlet prowess. When wielding the Ice Gauntlet alongside the Rapier, passive skills synergize to augment our overall damage output.
There exist 2 distinct builds tailored for different purposes. The first emphasizes Pylon Burst in conjunction with Ice Storm, amplifying AOE damage against clustered enemies. The second prioritizes maximizing Gauntlet damage potential, particularly beneficial in high mob density environments such as dungeons. This build necessitates investment in Ice Spikes, Ice Storm, and Pylon Burst.
For the latter build, selecting Keenly Empowered allows for seamless weapon swapping without losing the effect, facilitating optimal damage output with Ice Spikes. Vicious Ice Spike and Keenly Empowered emerge as the optimal choices. As for crowd control, Void Gauntlet users, typically healers, can provide crowd control support, while spear or great axe users employing Vines can also assist.
Musket: The Musket serves as another valuable weapon choice, proving its usefulness in various dungeon scenarios. Its long-range capabilities enable players to pull enemies from a distance, although it's important to note that its scaling parallels that of the Rapier, relying on both Intelligence and Dexterity for damage output.
Given our heavy investment in New World Coins in Intelligence and Dexterity, our Musket can deliver substantial damage. As for its skill tree, a quick reference to the one displayed on your screen suffices. To maximize damage, initiate with a sticky bomb shot followed by a Powder Burn shot, then swiftly dodge to trigger a passive skill for instant reload.
Furthermore, the Musket can serve as a primary damage dealer in certain situations, providing both survivability and added safety. For instance, it proves effective against the final bosses in dungeons like Depths or Dynasty. Since this is an ability, that’s why I recommend going with the Vicious.
Since we took a fast look over the weapons, let’s go over the armor perks and check what is necessary to get the best gear possible.
The Nimble Coat is our best pick from the armor artifacts because of the extra cooldown. There is currently no better option for the Rapier Bleed build. For the last perk on it, I always go with Flurry, as it will give me the necessary life and invulnerability in tough situations. The other perks which we want to have are the 4 refreshing, so we can guarantee the maximum cooldown reduction.
We also want to have as many as possible Enchanted Ward and heal perk, and everything else can be justly considered as a bonus. This is not always possible and not everyone has that much of resources to invest into a PvE build.
For jewelries, after extended testing, I found out that the flurry increases the duration of all previous bleeds and not only on itself. Therefore, you can actually hit the maximum of 20 seconds just by finishing your 3 combo bleed with a Flurry. With that in mind, we can already look to replace the Blood Letting from the ring with something more useful.
The best ring I use in this build is the Soulpollen, which would be a party for the extra stamina Thrust damage so we can gain that extra 7% of Empower and Leeching, so we can make sure that we maintain the full HP. So our diamond on the weapon will be in use.
For amulet, I choose the Waterlogged Amulet. I still consider health and Elemental protection, depending on the type of the mutation, to be the most important 2 perks. For the third one, you can choose from Refreshing, Empower or even Divine, but I personally like to go with refreshing as it will give me another open slot for defensive perk on the armor.
For earring, you can easily go with Endless Thirst and choose for last perk either Refreshing Toast or Refreshing. However, if you are missing this artifact. You can just aim for a normal earring that contains Refreshing, Toast Refreshing, and Empowering Toast Hearthrune.
Going forward into the build, we cannot pass another damage source, and this is our Heartrune. Even after many nerves, I still believe that detonate is one of the best choices for Rapier Bleed players because while charging and using the Heartrune, you can still do damage with your Rapier.
This is not the case with some other runes such as Vines, Fire Storm, Cannon and others, and therefore I always go with the brutal Heartrune of detonate. Keep in mind that with this variation of the rune, you will deal extra percentages of damage, but during the time of charging, you will have your armor values reduced by 50% because of the attributes.
I'd like to delve into another crucial aspect of the build: the attributes we'll be focusing on. My preference is to allocate 25 points to Focus for the additional cooldown reduction, 350 points into Intelligence to benefit from the various passives provided by Intelligence, and the remaining points into Dexterity. This distribution ensures that our secondary weapon also maximizes its damage potential, yielding even better results.
It's worth noting that investing only 5 points into the Constitution carries significant risk. For newcomers to the build or the game, I recommend starting with a higher value, such as 50 or 100. With time and experience, you can gradually reduce the Constitution level to achieve the desired balance.
Are you interested in the concept of having multiple builds but find the process of swapping out your gear and skills too cumbersome? In this guide, I'll demonstrate how to utilize the Alpha Gear addon to seamlessly switch gear, skills, and appearance with just the push of a button. This addon provides greater control over your builds and enhances optimization in the Elder Scrolls Online.
With Alpha Gear, you can effortlessly adjust your gear and skills between encounters, enhancing your performance in various roles such as DPS, healing, tanking, and thieving. Let's grab enough ESO Gold and explore Alpha Gear and its capabilities for managing multiple builds in the Elder Scrolls Online.
As a default feature, Alpha Gear enables users to store gear and skills in various configurations.
Subsequently, users can allocate a gear configuration and two skill configurations to a specific build. Additionally, outfit assignment is possible for each build. Hotkeys can then be designated for each configuration, facilitating the instantaneous application of the associated gear, skills, and outfit upon activation.
Some individuals may inquire about the similarity between Alpha Gear and ESO's Armory system. While there are parallels, the vanilla Armory system permits the preservation and interchange of builds, albeit with some limitations. Access to the Armory station or an Armory assistant is required, and navigating through the dialogue swiftly, especially in group dungeons, can pose challenges.
Notably, Alpha Gear surpasses these restrictions by offering unrestricted build creation, allowing users to generate numerous configurations according to their preferences.
Let's begin by delving into the settings.
Firstly, in the profile and builds section, I opt for a streamlined interface by disabling "Show Build Buttons" and "Show Equipped Build". While we'll configure hotkeys for our builds, if you prefer manual swapping via clicking, ensure "Show Build Buttons" remains enabled. As for the remaining settings, I leave them unchanged.
Moving on to the gear section, I deactivate all three options. I find additional interface icons unnecessary, and since I utilize the Auto Recharge (and repair) addon to mend my gear with repair kits, I prefer not to incur expenses on automatic repairs at stores.
Concerning weapons, I also disable both options. The weapon charge icon isn't essential for me, and my weapons already undergo automatic recharging. However, if you're not utilizing the Auto Recharge (and repair) addon, Alpha Gear can manage this task for you.
Regarding the equipment panel, I maintain the default user interface settings. Personally, I prefer to disable "Show UI Button" as I assign a hotkey for opening the window. Nonetheless, if you prefer using buttons for navigation rather than hotkeys, it's advisable to retain this option enabled. Additionally, the UI button is relatively small and blends well with the default interface, making it inconspicuous in my view.
So, those are the settings, but we need to configure keybindings.
I prefer to set up keybindings, or at least that's what I'd recommend. By default, Alpha Gear doesn't have any keybindings assigned, but I suggest adding some.
Personally, I utilize the "T" key to toggle the interface, and then I assign the numpad keys for each of my builds. If you prefer not to set up keybindings for each build, you can keep the UI button or build buttons enabled and simply click to swap.
Additionally, if you intend to use it, make sure to enable the Style Manager in Alpha Gear 2 Integrations.
Now that Alpha Gear is installed and we've configured the basic settings to our liking, let's begin creating some builds.
For this character, I aim to develop three straightforward builds. One for swift traversal around town and the Overworld, one focused on maximizing AOE DPS for handling trash pulls and dungeons, and another tailored for optimal DPS during boss encounters. In both DPS builds, I intend to utilize five pieces of the Order's Wrath set. However, in the around-town build, I'll make space for the Ring of the Wild Hunt and adjust the sets accordingly. Though this entails carrying extra gear, the flexibility to switch builds seamlessly justifies the minor inconvenience.
To initiate a new build, it's necessary to equip all desired gear and skills. For instance, I'll equip the Order's Wrath set, five pieces of Swamp Raiders, and the two-piece Veiled monster set for the AOE-focused build. Using Alpha Gear, I'll right-click on the Gear bar to save the current gear set and repeat the process for the skill bars.
Alpha Gear facilitates the independent saving of gear sets and skill bars, allowing for effortless customization when creating new builds. After saving a gear set and skill bars, proceed to edit a build slot by selecting the gear set and assigning a name. Additionally, options for outfit or Alpha style customization are available, offering versatility in appearance customization.
Following this, let's adjust gear and skills for the second build. I'll maintain the Order's Wrath set and incorporate Sheer Venom as the second five-piece set, along with Arena weapons in lieu of another monster set. Once adjustments are made, save the updated gear set and skill sets, and create a new build accordingly. With both DPS builds established, switching between them during dungeon runs becomes effortless, optimizing performance for different encounters.
Moving on, let's establish the third build, tailored for enhanced movement speed during urban traversal. This build typically complements Legerdemain focus sets, ideal for thieving activities within towns. Incorporating Night's Silence and Night's Tear sets, along with the Ring of the Wild Hunt, enhances speed while Armor of the Trainee provides additional health and armor. Skills can be tailored for combat or enhanced movement as desired.
Similar to previous steps, save the gear set and skill sets and allocate them to the third build slot. Now, an optimized build is available for daily tasks, pickpocketing endeavors, or swift point-to-point travel.
Initially, Alpha Gear does not include functionality for saving Champion Point loadouts. However, an extension called Champion Point Slots addresses this limitation.
While I've found the Champion Point Slots extension somewhat challenging to navigate, I rarely find the need to switch combat Champion Skills on the fly. Nevertheless, I highly recommend utilizing the Jack of all Trades addon developed by Cyber on ESO.
Jack of all Trades simplifies the process by automatically adjusting your green craft Champion Skills based on your current activity. This eliminates the need to create additional builds or manually swap craft skills.
I mention this addon because it complements Alpha Gear effectively. Particularly, it ensures your character remains optimized outside of combat, especially as you attain higher champion levels and unlock multiple slottable Champion Skills from the craft constellation. Unlike combat skills, I prefer having craft Champion Skills adjusted according to my activities, whether it involves thieving, crafting, gathering, or fishing, given their significant impact.
Now that you're familiar with Alpha Gear, your possibilities are virtually limitless.
I've personally saved 8 builds on my Warden. These include my Falinest Scout solo build, which adeptly combines speed and damage to swiftly defeat overworld mobs and facilitate travel.
There's also my Dark Ranger AOE poison build, optimized for clearing both trash mobs and dungeons.
Additionally, I have a Marksman build centered around the Relicin set, specifically tailored for maximizing single-target damage output.
Another build focuses on solo survivability, finely tuned for conquering Veteran Maelstrom Arenas.
My Battleground Warden PVP build is designed for intense player versus player combat.
Similar to the around-town build we previously discussed, there's also my Turbo Rogue build.
Additionally, there's my Forest Guardian tank build, equipped with 64 points in stamina and suitable tank gear and skills, making even this Bosmer proficient in tanking various content. For quick random normal dungeon runs, I utilize this build with great efficiency.
Lastly, there's my stamina healer build, which boldly combines stamina-based healing with group buffs, enabling effective healing in challenging situations.
Alpha Gear is particularly useful for experimenting with new builds since it allows you to save your work in progress, ensuring you don't lose track of the skills or gear you were using. While this approach may not suit everyone, especially newer players who are still refining their first build, it's only a matter of time before you find yourself considering whether one set might outperform another, or perhaps you're drawn to trying out a more thematic build or simply craving speed at times.
It's worth noting that there are alternative addons offering similar functionality. Although I recently made the switch from Dressing Room to Alpha Gear, Wizard's Wardrobe is another viable option. All three operate in a comparable manner, allowing for exploration of various options. My preference for Alpha Gear over Dressing Room stems from the latter's apparent lack of updates. While Dressing Room functions adequately in its current state, there's uncertainty about its future compatibility, unlike Alpha Gear, which continues to receive regular updates and maintenance, making it a safer recommendation.
Greetings and welcome to our introductory guide on Skull and Bones. Whether you are a newcomer or embarking on your journey in Skull and Bones, you are in the appropriate location.
Within this guide, we will comprehensively explore all the fundamental elements necessary to commence your adventure, ranging from essential ship components to valuable trading strategies.
Before delving further, it's worth noting that some readers may not be familiar with Skull and Bones and may be curious about its premise.
Skull and Bones is an action-adventure pirate game developed by Ubisoft Singapore. In it, players navigate the treacherous waters of piracy, forging their own path to ascend from obscurity to the pinnacle of pirate dominance.
Initially, upon embarking on your pirate journey and assuming command of your humble vessel, the Dauntless, following the game's introductory sequence, you'll gain the freedom to navigate around The Exeter Shipwreck.
This colossal wreck, marooned upon the rocky shores, presents a trove of salvageable materials including broken planks, salvaged metal, and weathered nails. While not particularly remarkable, these resources hold practical value. Upon reaching Sainte Anne, it's advisable to store them in your Warehouse for future utilization.
Now, let's delve into one of the game's focal points: ships.
At the outset of your pirate escapade, you'll find yourself aboard the Dauntless, an exceedingly modest vessel with limited offensive capabilities and customization options. Equipped solely with spears, this vessel lacks versatility. However, it boasts an endless supply of spears—a small consolation.
As you progress through the game's narrative, you'll embark on the journey of crafting a superior vessel. This entails exploring various ship options, such as cannons and furnishings. Take your time familiarizing yourself with shipbuilding, ensuring all available cannons are equipped to enhance your maritime combat prowess. Additionally, don't overlook the significance of furnishing your ship, as it can bolster specific statistics.
Furthermore, prioritize equipping ship armor, which provides a foundational armor statistic along with damage mitigation against specific threats like fire damage.
In addition to combat considerations, managing your ship's cargo is crucial. You can allocate cargo storage between your vessel and the Warehouse, with each ship offering a finite storage capacity. To avoid inventory congestion, carry only essential supplies such as food, repair kits, and cannonballs during voyages.
Reserve the Warehouse for bulkier crafting materials like planks and metal. It's advisable to conduct this inventory management routine upon docking at a den or outpost to prevent missed opportunities due to storage limitations while at sea.
When it comes to acquiring loot, it's important to remember: avoid sinking enemy ships.
I understand the temptation to unleash all your firepower and revel in the spectacle of ships ablaze, but in Skull and Bones, there's a more lucrative approach.
As an alternative, consider boarding enemy vessels once their health reaches a certain threshold. Boarding offers a guaranteed method to secure additional loot without risking any loss to the depths of the sea.
Boarding ships may present some challenges, particularly if your vessel is sailing at high speeds, causing you to bypass your targets. However, perseverance pays off. When you're not engaged in plundering and destroying adversaries, I recommend prioritizing the discovery of fast travel points.
Skull and Bones boasts an expansive map, and unfavorable winds can significantly prolong voyages across its expanse. Unlocking fast travel points streamlines your travels, albeit at the cost of a nominal fee in silver with each use.
In addition to the ship-related aspects we've discussed, it's important to monitor your vessel's stamina bar. Yes, your ship possesses a stamina bar, which is where food becomes crucial.
As you navigate the seas, your stamina depletes gradually. The swifter your journey, the quicker your stamina diminishes. To address this, consuming collected food items becomes necessary. However, there are strategies to optimize food utilization. Take the coconut, for instance. Even in its raw state, it restores a modest 10% of your stamina over 30 minutes.
Yet, grilling the coconut enhances its effectiveness. After grilling, you'll obtain a surprising outcome: a Grilled Coconut, providing a 30% stamina regeneration rate.
As a final food-related tip, I strongly recommend assigning any food items to your quick slot. This facilitates stamina replenishment with a simple click, ideal for moments when you're occupied with sailing or battling at sea.
Now, let's delve into the practice of scouting other vessels. While navigating, you'll notice the availability of a spyglass. This tool allows for closer observation of neighboring ships, enabling a rudimentary assessment of their capabilities and potential threats.
Analyzing factors such as the vessel's size, firepower, and perceived threat level can prove invaluable, preventing hasty engagements that may lead to unfavorable outcomes. Furthermore, this scouting method aids in identifying valuable cargo aboard rival ships, allowing for strategic decision-making regarding which vessels to engage or avoid.
Let's delve deeper into the significance of resources. Understanding their role is paramount as they are integral to crafting, quest fulfillment, and silver acquisition.
Resources serve as the foundation for crafting armor, weapons, and tools. Accumulating these Skull and Bones Items enables the creation of stronger equipment, enhancing your effectiveness at sea.
Moreover, resources are essential for completing quests, which often involve gathering specific materials and delivering them to NPCs. By fulfilling these objectives, you not only earn rewards but also increase your Infamy, bolstering your reputation in the pirate world.
As an additional perk, upon reaching Sainte Anne, proceed directly to the mailbox where you'll find a message from an anonymous Son of Liberty.
Along with a few other items, you'll receive 5 repair kits, which can prove instrumental in ensuring your ship's survival during intense battles. Remember to periodically check the mailbox as you level up for further rewards.
Now, let's explore how to maximize your gaming experience.
Skull and Bones places a strong emphasis on multiplayer gameplay. Based on personal experience, engaging with friends or fellow players in the world significantly enhances the enjoyment of the game.
Beyond the added fun, teaming up can mitigate the challenges of high-level contracts and allows for the sharing of loot among all party members.
When it comes to contracts, they serve as an excellent method for accruing experience, or as termed in Skull and Bones, Infamy. Accumulating Infamy is crucial as it unlocks various items, including weapons, ships, and other valuable resources.
Lastly, prioritize completing the main questline. While it may be tempting to wander and explore the vast seas initially, advancing through the John Scurlock story offers the swiftest route to boosting your Infamy rank and obtaining new ship designs.
In this guide, I want to talk about everything I do to maximize leveling speed, and what you can apply with the new 100% XP bonus. Including how to maximize the world buff Sleeping Bag, how to maximize your enchantments, your gear, and how to take advantage of large open world quest changes.
If you follow this guide, you will be able to easily level up from level 1 to level 40 in 2 hours. So we’ll start by discussing everything you need to do to increase your leveling speed.
Let’s get into an optimal buff strategy. In Season of Discovery Phase 2, buffs are a huge game-changer.
We have three main buffs: Spark of Inspiration, Boon of Blackfathom, and Darkmoon Faire.
Spark of Inspiration and Boon of Blackfathom will actually only drop during peak hours, so you have to make sure to plan accordingly. I think BFD Buff is the most valuable. So I usually put my Hunters in Thunder Bluff to get the buff more often. Darkmoon Faire 10% Buff is also reliable, but can only be obtained once every four hours.
Overall, my goal is to go from level 1 to level 20. Above level 20, I selectively decide when to buff based on the area. For example, I usually use buffs in places like Ashenvale. Also, Thousand Needles is one of my top choices, as I know I tend to be safer in Horde area.
Next, let’s get into optimal rune strategies. This is truly the most important part of the upgrade guide. You must have at least three major runes that you are really sure of to increase your level to 40.
For my Hunter, I chose Master Marksman, Flanking Strike and Beast Mastery. Once you identify the three main runes you want to carry with you, you need to plan when to get them on your route.
After all the runes are sorted, we have to discuss the best gear strategy. The first thing I did with my gear was head to the auction house and I got the full 12 slot bag to store all my quest items in Waylaid Supplies. I also bought the best gear I could find for different levels.
As a Hunter, I just go for maximum agility gear, and I also get new bows every few levels. Overall, I recommend checking Auction House every six to eight levels.
Then, for Enchant, you can get powerful enchants, like +5 Agility Gloves, all the way up to level 40. This feels great on the way to the level cap. Of course, don’t forget some less obvious enchants, such as Scopes on the bow to increase damage.
For consumables, my chief priority is just Elixir of Agility that is a must for my Hunter. But you can go out and get Defensive Potions, Elixir of Ogre’s Strength, and Engineering Dense Dynamite. Everything you get increases your kill time and leveling speed.
The most important consumable you can get is from Sleeping Bag quest line. Student Fodder you get will give you 20% of Rested XP bar, but they do have a 30 minute cooldown.
Most people would recommend saving them until level 38. But honestly, basically every hour between level 35 and 40, you get a huge mental boost. So I’ll pop one in and it really helps me get to the top level all the time.
Don’t forget the agility potions, they can be helpful if you don’t have Aspect of the Cheetah.
Finally, let’s talk about our leveling tips.
I recommend completing the missions with friends to keep things fun and fresh. And you’ll both get a Rested XP bar until level 22, and then split it up from there.
One of the best reasons I level with friends is that I probably won’t be very strong until I get at least three runes. Having a partner to level with me really speeds up leveling. Then, when I became an unstoppable killing machine, I could also get back to solo leveling.
Another early leveling tip I have is to use Rank Sentinel to make sure you don’t mess up skill ranks. I’ve had some wrong ranks of abilities for a long time, but if you have this add-on, you’ll never let that happen.
I definitely recommend completing Sleeping Bag quest line at level 14 when you head to the historic areas. Most servers have someone who can summon you to each Sleeping Bag location for about 15 WOW Classic SOD Gold, which will save you almost an hour of travel time.
Sleeping Bag itself should be used during rest periods. Once you’re exhausted, just jump in for 3 minutes. You can simply jump in for 1 minute to refresh it though, so never let the buff wear off.
Once you reach level 22 or so, you can use Rested XP bar. We have three different options when it comes to applying this XP buff.
Option one is the one I chose. It’s pre-questing. you’ll probably get ganked about 30 times. But starting on Tuesday, completing quests does provide more gold. Also, Waylaid Supplies dropped by mobs are very profitable for me, especially when I start killing mobs at level 34 to 40. I usually get 12 gold boxes, which also gives me 3,400 XP.
The second option is to lock yourself in a dungeon, starting with Shadowfang Keep around level 22, and then either Stockade or Razorfen Kraul, depending on Alliance or Horde.
You will also need to have your BFD removed every 3 days. You originally earn 23,000 XP per clear, but this will be doubled on Tuesday, essentially maxing out every time you raid. The most important thing is that you have a high chance of getting the relevant Pre-BiS Gear.
The third option is to do quests while mixing SM spam at levels 22 to 40. Surprisingly, the gap between open world leveling and questing isn’t as big as I thought. The real benefit of doing this is that you’re a level or two ahead on the quest route and you can get everything done faster. In most cases, you can earn more XP per hour.
So I’m just saying quests and dungeons are not far off in XP. For example, I’ve been hit by Horde a lot more than other areas, mainly Hillsbrad Foothills and Stranglethorn Vale. So next time my quest route sends me to these two areas, I’ll replace them with dungeons.
So now you should have a pretty good idea of how to deal with all the new mission changes coming, and how to maximize your leveling speed and profits.
I’m wondering which upgrade method you prefer after the big changes to Waylaid Supplies and the 100% XP bonus. Do you still prefer dungeon leveling in those mind-numbing dungeons for 20 hours straight, or maybe you’re starting to get a kick out of some open world leveling?