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Firebird Flame Blades Wizard Guide

Last Updated: January 10th 2024

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Introduction

Firebird Flame Blades Solo Push
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Firebird's Finery has been one of the weakest and most clunky sets in the game for quite some time, having to juggle between three Fire abilities to benefit from its set bonuses. Comically enough, the strongest Firebird build iterations have been using non-Fire abilities! Yet, Firebird's Finery had its glory days of dominating the META as a Trash Killer from Season 12 to 15 using Meteor Star Pact alongside channeling multipliers like Deathwish.

Patch 2.7.0 and Season 23, however, brought us a complete rework of this set. Firebird's Finery always had a strong fantasy around the Phoenix theme with the (2) Bonus "rising from the ashes" cheat death and the Fire element with an Ignite DoT.

But this new rework created a specific playstyle based around channeling Disintegrate to Ignite monsters and build Combustion stacks with the (4) Bonus. These stacks are then used to buff our Ignite DoT when hitting monsters with another Fire ability, on top of reducing our Teleport Cooldown.

While self-cast Flame Blades was completely overshadowed by Mirror Images in Season 23 and Season 24, the nerf to them in Season 25 brought this build into the light as a serious competitor for the best Firebird setup, especially with Soul Shards! In Season 27, Sanctified Items introduced a slightly stronger variant of this build with Sanctified Magic Missile that you can find here!

This, however, comes at the price of not being able to benefit from the best way to scale our damage in density: Area Damage does not work with the Ignite DoT! As a result, we stack Attack Speed to maximize our hit count and the resulting Ignite DoT ticks. To get as many (6) Bonus Ignite procs as possible, this iteration utilizes Spectral Blade Flame Blades in combination with Fragment of Destiny and The Shame of Delsere to reach insane Attack Speed Breakpoints. This guide will explain everything there is to know for you to master this unique melee Wizard!

High DPS ✔
Melee Playstyle ✔
Fast Paced Gameplay ✔
Easy to Get Starter Gear ✔

❌ Hardcap DPS
❌ Sensitive to Breakpoints
❌ Scales Poorly with Density
Vulnerable to Crowd Control

Core Setup

Core Item Build

Items

  • The Firebird's Finery set provides 80% damage reduction to our character as well as a 5,000% damage multiplier and the central Ignite DoT mechanic.
  • Orb of Infinite Depth grants us a massive 80% damage reduction and a 40% separate damage multiplier upon using Explosive Blast.
  • Fragment of Destiny for its 50% separate Attack Speed multiplier to Spectral Blade, our main Ignite DoT proc ability. The Hydra effect is irrelevant.
  • The Shame of Delsere for yet another 50% separate Attack Speed multiplier to Spectral Blade!
  • Ring of Royal Grandeur allows us to complement Firebird's Finery with other sets such as Aughild's Authority and Captain Crimson's Trimmings.
  • Captain Crimson's Trimmings provides us with 20% Cooldown Reduction and grants us damage and toughness based on our CDR and RCR.
  • Jewelry Slots offer several options: Endless Walk and Convention of Elements are commonly used in push meanwhile the combination of Squirt's Necklace and Focus & Restraint can be used at higher paragon or for speed runs for more damage.

Season 30 Soul Shards

Soul Shards are powerful socketable items that initially dropped during Season 25 but they are returning for Season 30! There are 4 available for Weapons based on the Lesser Evils, with another 3 for Helmets based on the Prime Evils. They drop at Rank 0 and be upgraded three times with the brand new Hellforge Embers to unlock additional powers, or be used in the Kanai's Cube as Augments. Here's how they progress:

  • Rank 0: Soul Shards begin with a unique static Legendary Power. Creates a Rank 50 Augment.
  • Rank 1: Gives all powers from the normal gems. Creates a Rank 75 Augment.
  • Rank 2: Grants one additional powerful stat. Creates a Rank 100 Augment.
  • Rank 3: Unlocks 1 of 3 bonus Legendary Powers unique to that Soul Shard. Creates a Rank 125 Augment.

Warning: Leoric's Crown and Broken Crown do not work with Soul Shards!

Read our Soul Shards Guide written by Chewingnom for full details on how they work. What you should prioritize on them for Solo Pushing is the following:

  1. The Correct Soul Shard & Rank 3 Power
    The best shards for Solo Pushing are:
    • Helmets: We want to use Shard of Hatred for the massive 100% damage buff when surrounded by a lot of monsters. For the Rank 3 power, take the additional damage per stack for a tremendous 150% damage buff in density!
    • Weapons: We want to use Remnant of Pain for the 100% Critical Hit Chance to incapacitated enemies. For the Rank 3 power take the additional Attack Speed to further power up your character!
  2. The Rank 2 Stat
    The stats that come from the second upgrade are not equal. Here's what we're looking for on them:
    • Helmets: We want either Main Stat for damage or Melee/Ranged Damage Reduction to survive. Avoid Armor and All Resistance as their stat ranges are far too low compared to the other options.
    • Weapons: We want Fire Damage to boost our character's power the furthest, although % Damage, Attack Speed and Critical Hit Chance are not too far behind.
  3. The Stat Ranges on the Rank 1 and 2 Powers
    This is just icing on the cake because the ranges will not make or break your build. Still, look for the Soul Shards with the best stat ranges, especially on the offensive stats.

For the other game modes, other Soul Shards can be used. Check the Variants below to see what's used there.

What about extra Soul Shards? Either salvage them for gems, or upgrade and use them in Kanai's Cube for Augments.

Global Stat Priorities

You want to stack damage stats wherever possible, especially Attack Speed, Critical Hit Chance and Damage as well as Fire Damage. Area Damage is completely useless in this build (and actively avoided in groups including in Paragon Points).

Flame Blades Attack Speed Breakpoints

Since this build only deals damage with Firebird's Finery (6) Bonus Ignite procs, Attack Speed is our most important stat by a long shot. Due to Fragment of Destiny and The Shame of Delsere granting us two 50% separate Attack Speed multipliers, we can reach the Spectral Blade Flame Blades 11 FPA Breakpoint with 52% Attack Speed. This requires us to get perfect Attack Speed on both Rings, Weapon and Gloves on top of Paragon Points, Gogok of Swiftness (or at least 5 bleeding targets with Pain Enhancer) and the 6% from the Enchantress' Focused Mind.

In regard to toughness, like most Wizard setups, we take advantage in some variants of Galvanizing Ward and Magic Weapon Deflection to generate Shields based on our HP pool. This means Vitality and Life % are very important as they double dip into Shields. This is why we aim for around 1 million HP in Greater Rift Solo Push. The next priority would be Armor wherever it is possible, mainly in Chest and Pants sockets using Flawless Royal Ruby if you feel too squishy.

Cooldown Reduction is only useful to ease up our Orb of Infinite Depth buff refresh through Explosive Blast Chain Reaction but we still want it for Captain Crimson's Trimmings (3) Bonus. Crowd Control Reduction is an incredibly valuable secondary Affix to roll on both Rings, Amulet and Helmet as we are very sensitive to Hard Crowd Control effects and mitigating these will ease up our gameplay significantly. Make sure to get the Primary Affixes locked in before attempting to get CCR though.

Assembling the Build

Item Stat Priorities

Gems

Skills

Passives

Paragon Points

Altar of Rites

Follower

Gameplay

Hardcore

Variants

Nephalem Rifts
GR Solo Speeds
GR Group Speeds
GR Solo Push
GR Group RGK
Echoing Nightmare
Firebird Explosive Blast T16

Concept
Like usual we utilize Boon of the Hoarder with Goldwrap and Avarice Band (on follower) to become invincible and instantly vacuum the juicy Progression Orbs from Elites.

However, as Flame Blades is clunky for T16 Nephalem Rifts, we are going to use Explosive Blast Chain Reaction in conjunction with Cooldown Reduction and Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac to kill monsters.

Gameplay
Immediately cast Disintegrate to build Combustion stacks. Another good trick is to numlock Explosive Blast. Meanwhile Teleport is a good mobility skill, its animation time and minimum 0.5 second cooldown are the reasons why we will move faster by running around using the Movement Speed buffs of Boon of the Hoarder, Echoing Fury, Rechel's Ring of Larceny (which can proc due to Echoing Fury Fear on Hit) and Illusionist.

Move from Elite to Elite and use Teleport only to keep up the Illusionist Movement Speed buff and to jump on Elites quickly. Then cast Disintegrate on top of your character to proc an Energy Twister from Etched Sigil that sucks all the monsters in while you Ignite them and Explosive Blast Chain Reaction is doing the work.

Setups
Early in a season, if you lack damage, remove Echoing Fury to equip In-Geom and cube Orb of Infinite Depth. If you don't like the Ranslor's Folly playstyle, you can swap them with Warzechian Armguards and equip Orb of Infinite Depth while keeping both Echoing Fury and In-Geom.

In groups, replace Warzechian Armguards with Nemesis Bracers and Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac with Avarice Band. Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac is mainly used to help us kill the first Elite pack to get our In-Geom proc so losing it should not impact you in parties as your teammates can help you kill the first Elite. If you are comfortable enough with your damage, use Sage's Journey instead of Captain Crimson's Trimmings. On the Rift Guardian, you can swap to Cain's Destiny while keeping your Firebird's Finery (6) Bonus if you rotate out Etched Sigil for Firebird's Eye.

Firebird Flame Blades Greater Rift Speeds

Concept
Our main damaging ability is going to be Flame Blades from now on. We take Focus & Restraint and replace Boon of the Hoarder with Gogok of Swiftness for additional Attack Speed, Dodge and Cooldown Reduction granting us damage due to Captain Crimson's Trimmings (3) Bonus.

Gameplay
Your biggest enemy will be Hard Crowd Control Effects since you have no way of mitigating these except for Crowd Control Reduction on your Amulet, Helmet and Rings. For a step-by-step gameplay description on how you should sequence your skills, check out the "Gameplay" section above.

Setups
If incoming damage is an issue, swap out Bane of the Powerful for Esoteric Alteration instead. You can also replace Teleport Wormhole with Safe Passage for an additional 25% damage reduction. If you're comfortable with both your damage and toughness, go for Invigorating Gemstone instead of Bane of the Powerful for the Crowd Control Immunity.

It is also possible to replace Aughild's Authority with The Furnace and Ranslor's Folly, and removing Black Hole for Energy Twister Wicked Wind for pixelpulling.

Select Build Version

Standard Setup
Firebird Flame Blades Greater Rift Speeds

Concept
In Group Speeds the basic setup is exactly the same you use in Solo Speeds with the exception of replacing Dominance with Elemental Exposure for more damage. The setup revolves around two Flame Blades Wizards supported by a zBarb pulling Elites and grouping monsters together so you can hit many targets at once, with a zDH tremendously buffing your damage output.

Gameplay
The gameplay stays the same as in Solo Speeds: rush to Elites and big pulls of monsters, kill them and move onto the next pull quickly. Luckily you won't have to care about Crowd Control Effects since the zBarb is providing you with Ignore Pain Mob Rule.

Setups
As there are two Flame Blades Wizards in the party, the Wizard with the least damage should replace Evocation (or Elemental Exposure if you're playing Reverse Archon) with Conflagration to apply a 6% Critical Hit Chance debuff on monsters.



Select Build Version

Endless Walk Setup
Firebird Flame Blades Solo Push

Concept
The setup is pretty much the same than the Speeds setup except we use Endless Walk and Convention of Elements.

Gameplay
As usual, Hard Crowd Control Effects when you're actively spamming Flame Blades to deal damage are going to be your worst enemy since you have no way of mitigating these except for Crowd Control Reduction. For a step-by-step gameplay description on how you should sequence your skills, check out the "Gameplay" section above.

Setups
If you feel comfortable, replace Gogok of Swiftness with Pain Enhancer which makes you lose 30% Dodge but allows you to potentially make better damage bursts through additional Attack Speed Breakpoints.


Firebird Reverse Archon Flame Blades RGK

Concept
You're an Elite sniper during the Greater Rift and the Rift Guardian Killer. Hence why you stack as much Attack Speed and Elite Damage as possible.

Gameplay
You're not stacking Cooldown Reduction in order to keep a high Flame Blades Attack Speed Breakpoint. This means you have a 45 second cooldown on Archon and can damage twice every 3 Convention of Elements cycles, going into Archon at the start of your Cold cycle. The Trashkiller will feed you Archon stacks for you to use when you're out of Archon. A crucial point is to time your last Archon to finish when the Rift Guardian spawns so you have stacks from the last monsters killed and you won't waste any time on the Rift Guardian.

Setups
If you feel too squishy or can't reliably keep Squirt's Necklace on the Rift Guardian, switch Lacuni Prowlers for Ashnagarr's Blood Bracer to double your shields at the cost of a Flame Blades Attack Speed Breakpoint. Swapping out Elemental Exposure to take either Unwavering Will or Blur is also possible.

Echoing Nightmare Setup

Concept
For more information, check out our full Echoing Nightmare Guide and take a look at our Echoing Nightmare Build Tier List and our META post for the best builds and strategies! This build is bad for this game mode. Typically we utilize a Greater Rift pushing build with a few tweaks.

Changes

  • Swap Bane of the Stricken for Bane of the Powerful since we are fighting hordes of enemies.

Gameplay

  1. Click Speed Pylon instantly to boost your mobility and dodge Green Meteors.
  2. Around Wave 90, click Channeling Pylon and Power Pylon.
  3. After Wave 100, use Conduit Pylon.
  4. At Wave 122, stop attacking and run to the corner to let the timer run out.

The only thing to do is to Teleport around and bodypull enemies together using Disintegrate while keeping your Orb of Infinite Depth stacks up at all times. A few seconds before your Fire Convention of Elements cycle starts, channel Disintegrate to get your Combustion stacks to 50 and make sure all monsters are ignited, cast Black Hole Spellsteal to get a huge additive damage buff for 5 seconds then spam Flame Blades to kill monsters!

Video Guide

Mechanics

Firebirds Finery

Wizard Shields

The Shame of Delsere & Fragment of Destiny

Elemental Exposure

In-Depth Season 27 Firebird Sanctified Magic Missile Build Overview

Summary

  • Put together the core items and acquire the full Firebird's Finery set.
  • Channel Disintegrate at the start of every Rift for damage reduction and infinite Teleports.
  • Enjoy this very fast paced Wizard melee playstyle!
  • Hard Crowd Control Effects are now your worst nightmare!

Good luck!

Credits

Written by Chewingnom.

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