Path of Exile Witch Builds: A Comprehensive Guide to Mastery
Path of Exile, the action-packed RPG developed by Grinding Gear Games, has long been a favorite among gamers who love deep character customization and challenging gameplay. Among the various classes available, the Witch stands out as a versatile and powerful choice, capable of wielding the forces of chaos, fire, and lightning with devastating effect. In this guide, we’ll delve into the best Path of Exile Witch builds, helping you unlock the full potential of this iconic class.
Understanding the Witch Class
The Witch is a spellcaster class that excels in dealing elemental damage and manipulating the battlefield. With access to a wide range of skills, including curses, hexes, and area-of-effect spells, the Witch offers a high degree of flexibility. Whether you prefer to deal massive bursts of damage or summon an army of minions to do your bidding, there’s a Witch build tailored to your playstyle.
Top Witch Builds for Path of Exile
1. Elementalist (Elemental Damage)
The Elementalist build is a classic choice for Witch players, focusing on dealing massive elemental damage. By harnessing the power of fire, cold, and lightning, this build is capable of melting enemies in seconds. Key skills include Fireball, Freezing Pulse, and Arc, which can be combined with Elemental Proliferation to spread elemental effects across the battlefield.
Recommended Skills: Fireball, Freezing Pulse, Arc
Key Items: Theatre of Blood (for increased elemental damage), Dying Breath (for enhanced cold damage)
Passive Tree Focus: Elemental Damage, Critical Strike Chance, and Energy Shield
2. Occultist (Summoner/Minion Build)
For players who enjoy a more hands-off approach, the Occultist build is a fantastic option. This build focuses on summoning and empowering minions to do the heavy lifting. With skills like Summon Raging Spirit, Summon Phantasm Support, and Carrion Golems, you can create an army of minions that will overwhelm your enemies.
Recommended Skills: Summon Raging Spirit, Summon Phantasm Support, Carrion Golems
Key Items: Fenumus Ring (for minion damage), The Baron (for increased minion life)
Passive Tree Focus: Minion Damage, Minion Life, and Minion Speed
3. Necromancer (Death and Rebirth)
The Necromancer build is all about mastering the forces of death and rebirth. This build revolves around Summon Skeletons, Summon Spectre, and Curses to control and annihilate your enemies. With the right gear and passive tree allocation, this build can be both tanky and highly effective in clearing content.
Recommended Skills: Summon Skeletons, Summon Spectre, Desecrate
Key Items: The Flow of Life (for increased life recovery), Death’s Oath (for enhanced minion damage)
Passive Tree Focus: Minion Damage, Minion Life, and Chaos Resistance
4. Hierophant (Totem and Aura Build)
The Hierophant build is perfect for players who enjoy a more strategic, spellcaster-focused playstyle. By using totems and auras, this build can deal significant damage while maintaining a safe distance from enemies. Skills like Ball Lightning, Arc, and Conductivity are staples of this build.
Recommended Skills: Ball Lightning, Arc, Conductivity
Key Items: The Ivory Tower (for increased spell damage), The Searing Exarch (for enhanced totem damage)
Passive Tree Focus: Spell Damage, Critical Strike Chance, and Totem Damage
Tips for Success with Witch Builds
Experiment with Different Skills: Path of Exile is all about experimentation. Don’t be afraid to try out new skills and see how they fit into your build.
Pay Attention to Gear: The right gear can make or break a build. Focus on items that enhance your chosen playstyle, whether it’s elemental damage, minion effectiveness, or spellcasting speed.
Master the Passive Tree: The passive tree in Path of Exile is vast and complex. Take the time to plan your tree carefully, ensuring you’re maximizing your damage output or survivability.
Case Study: Elementalist Build
Let’s take a closer look at the Elementalist build to illustrate how these builds can dominate the game. With a focus on fire and lightning damage, this build is capable of clearing entire screens of enemies with a single cast of Arc. By combining Elemental Proliferation with Fireball, you can