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Tal Rasha Frozen Orb Wizard Guide

Last Updated: January 10th 2024

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Introduction

Tal Rasha Frozen Orb Solo Push
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The Tal Rasha's Elements Set is probably the most iconic Wizard set in the Diablo franchise, originating from Diablo II where it was the Sorceress set. Over the years, Tal Rasha's Elements dictated the META multiple times. First in Season 3 with Mammoth Hydra using Pain Enhancer to get an obscene amount of Flame Blades stacks, uncapped back then. It returned in Season 6 with Vyr's Amazing Arcana (4) Bonus during the glory days of the Archon Twister zET META.

One of the most popular and useful one these days besides Energy Twister is Arcane Orb Frozen Orb. Season 22 brought this build into the spotlight for Wizard players once again, able to play once again the iconic Frozen Orb from Diablo II.

It’s quick, impactful and the explosions are very satisfying when played correctly. Very few builds incorporate the fantasy of a spell-slinging Wizard as well as this one. It's also possible to play this build as a LoD variant, which frees up skill slots and allows lots of utility choices.

While it’s not the best in fast content such as Nephalem Rifts, it can be quite successful in Greater Rifts push on the Tal Rasha's Elements leaderboard. The basic idea is to trap enemies and stack them up by using of Black Hole and unleash devastating icy explosions onto them from the right distance.

Iconic Frozen Orb ✔
Rewards Good Gameplay ✔
Not Channeling Playstyle ✔
Fun and Satisfying Explosions ✔

❌ Needs Setup Time
❌ Struggles to Kill Elites
❌ Vulnerable to Crowd Control

❌ Difficult to Execute Perfectly

Core Setup

Core Item Build

Items

  • Tal Rasha's Elements provides us with a 8,000% separate global damage multiplier but requires us to juggle four abilities with four different elements Arcane, Cold, Lightning and Fire.
  • Unstable Scepter is our core weapon, providing a 450% separate damage multiplier and a second explosion for Frozen Orbs, nearly doubling our total damage.
  • Triumvirate grants us a stacking 400% damage buff for a total 1,200% separate damage multiplier to Frozen Orb when using Signature Spells.
  • Wizardspike was buffed in Season 22 to grant another 350% separate damage multiplier on top of a 25% chance to cast an extra Frozen Orb when attacking.
  • Aquila Cuirass grants us a welcomed 50% damage reduction for Greater Rift push.
  • Halo of Karini is a core Wizard defensive item, providing us with a tremendous 80% damage reduction at the cost of using Storm Armor.
  • Ring of Royal Grandeur allows us to complement our Tal Rasha's Elements Set with Captain Crimson's Trimmings.

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 Sliver of Terror for the massive damage buff from our abilities on cooldown. For the Rank 3 power take the Ring of Fire to unleash a devastating AoE blast for big leaderboard pushes!
    • Weapons: We want to use Essence of Anguish for the Movement Speed and Cooldown Reduction. For the Rank 3 power take the 50% increased Poison Damage, which actually applies to all damage done! Hint: Make sure to get a Poison Damage Range on your Weapon so it can proc the shard automatically.
  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 either % Damage or Cold Damage to boost our character's power the furthest.
  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 Critical Hit Chance and Damage, Area Damage as well as Cold Damage and Arcane Orb Damage. The remaining options go to Attack Speed or Damage Range (Rings) and Defense or Resource Cost Reduction whenever you can fit it in. It is required to get Arcane Power on Critical Hit (APoC) on your Off-Hand in order to keep shooting Frozen Orbs, especially for Rift Guardian fights.

Assembling the Build

Item Stat Priorities

Gems

Skills

Passives

Paragon Points

Altar of Rites

Follower

Gameplay

Hardcore

Variants

Nephalem Rifts
GR Solo Speeds
GR Solo Push
Echoing Nightmare
Tal Frozen Orb Solo T16

Concept
In T16 we don’t need a lot of damage and also won’t care about throwing Frozen Orb from the right distance. The damage is good enough to destroy enemies with just the shards.

We swap our items to replace Convention of Elements with Squirt's Necklace and replace Black Hole by Energy Twister with Ranslor's Folly, which allow for a smoother fast-paced playstyle.

Gameplay
Be fast, use your Teleport to move around quickly, cast an Energy Twister on large pulls and Elites, then throw your Frozen Orbs from far away and move on. It is not the smoothest T16 build, but it does the job.

Setups
In solo if you dislike Ranslor's Folly, you can equip back Aughild's Authority and drop Energy Twister Gale Force to use Black Hole Blazar or even Explosive Blast Chain Reaction.

When farming Nephalem Rifts in groups, rotate out Captain Crimson's Trimmings for Sage's Journey and swap to Cain's Destiny for the Rift Guardian. You also need to cube Avarice Band instead of Squirt's Necklace and Nemesis Bracers instead of Goldwrap. If you feel too squishy, you can swap out Ranslor's Folly for Nemesis Bracers and use Black Hole Blazar instead of Energy Twister Gale Force, which allows you to keep Goldwrap in the cube.

Tal Frozen Orb Speeds

Concept
In Speed Greater Rifts we try to combine a great mixture of damage, toughness and utility. Ultimately the build plays similarly as in solo pushing, but is more fast-paced. Bane of the Stricken is not necessary, so we can take Bane of the Powerful instead.

Gameplay
We swap our items to replace Convention of Elements with Squirt's Necklace and replace Black Hole by Energy Twister with Ranslor's Folly, which allow for a smoother fast-paced playstyle.

Focus on Elite Packs and big pulls of monsters, cast an Energy Twister on top of Elites if there is one, and nuke them from a safe distance before moving onto the next one.

Setups
If you feel too squishy, you can use Esoteric Alteration instead of Bane of the Powerful. You can also swap Pauldrons of the Skeleton King and Ranslor's Folly for Aughild's Authority, and use Black Hole Blazar instead of Energy Twister Gale Force. The resulting gameplay is slower due to the Black Hole Cooldown but you gain some damage and damage reduction in the process!

Tal Frozen Orb Push

Concept
We stack up as much damage as possible and take advantage of Teleport for mobility as well as Black Hole Absolute Zero to stack up enemies just before our damage nuke.

Gameplay

  • Make large pulls of monsters using your Signature Spells.
  • Before your Convention of Elements Cold cycle, use Black Hole to trap and stack them up.
  • After casting Teleport to position yourself 40 yards away from monsters, obliterate them with your Frozen Orbs.

Playing around Black Hole and maintaining the right distance are your most important tasks as most of your damage comes from Area Damage procs and the explosion of Frozen Orb. Shards do almost nothing on higher Greater Rift Tiers. Tal Rasha's Elements stacks should be maintained pretty smoothly with this build.

Setups
If you feel too squishy, swap Magic Missile Conflagrate for Magic Weapon Deflection which should help a bit at the cost of some damage since you'll only play with 3 Tal Rasha's Elements stacks. If this is not enough, you can instead equip Unity by dropping Convention of Elements. You'll lose a few tiers worth of damage but you will definitely be tanky enough.

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 with Bane of the Powerful since we are fighting hordes of enemies.
  • Reroll Area Damage to Average Damage as we do not need to make huge pulls.

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.

Unfortunately Frozen Orb is not the best fit for this activity. Before your Convention of Elements Cold cycle, use Black Hole to gain a damage buff. Use Shock Pulse Piercing Orb and Magic Missile Conflagrate to pull enemies from distance and maintain your Triumvirate and Tal Rasha's Elements stacks. Position yourself exactly 40 yards away from the center of the pull using Teleport to cast Frozen Orb. This will maximize the value of Zei’s Stone of Vengeance and most importantly unleash the final explosion of Frozen Orb directly on top of the enemies, dealing devastating damage.

Video Guide

Mechanics

Tal Rashas Elements

Arcane Orb Frozen Orb

Wizardspike

Black Hole Absolute Zero

Elemental Exposure

Summary

  • Put together the core items and acquire the full Tal Rasha's Elements set.
  • Keep up your Storm Armor for Halo of Karini buff at all times.
  • Don't forget to use your abilities to keep up your four Tal Rasha's Elements stacks.
  • Activate your Triumvirate bonus by using your Signature Spells regularly.
  • Pull enemies together with Black Hole to stack them tightly and prevent them from moving.
  • Position yourself at the right distance to explode Arcane Orb Frozen Orb directly on top of the enemies.
  • Play around the Convention of Elements cycle to maximize your damage.

I hope you enjoyed this guide! Frozen Orb is one of the core Wizard skills, and Tal Rasha Elements the most iconic Wizard set in Diablo. It can be very fun and rewarding setting up the correct pulls and destroying them with your icy explosions. Good luck!

Credits

Written by Chewingnom with insights from LouLou.

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