Hail of Arrows Marksman Guide
Last Updated:April 17, 2025|Changelog
The Hail of Arrows Marksman unleashes Hail of Arrows to cover the screen with a deadly Elemental Damage Over Time rain and watch enemies die inside of it! This tactical Marksman build controls the battlefield with its huge AoE while staying out of range of enemies. The gameplay is slower and not as flashy as other builds from this Mastery, but it's extremely rewarding when executed properly. The build, created in the Last Epoch Beta by Tunk, remains a strong Marksman choice.
This build utilizes the Rogue's Shadows as a core mechanic and has a clear Skill rotation that you need to learn and execute. Create Shadows with Smoke Bomb to consume them with Dark Quiver's Umbral Resolution Node and buff the Damage of your next Hail of Arrows. This Marksman also has good control and utility thanks to Smoke Bomb and Decoy.
While the build does not require any Unique to function, it greatly benefits from items like Dragonsong, Phase Point, Brewmaster's Buckle, Fiery Dragon Shoes, Nihilis, Red Ring of Atlaria and Ravenous Void.
Overall, Hail of Arrows Marksman is a very well-rounded build. If you are looking for a ranged build with a tactical, safe and rotation based playstyle, this build is perfect for you!
This build guide assumes you have a Level 70 Character.
Reach Level 70 with our Rogue Leveling Guide.
Check our Tier Lists to know how this build performs in the current patch.
If you are looking for a different playstyle, check all our Build Guides!
Skills
Hail of Arrows
Hail of Arrows is your Damage Skill. The deadly Elemental Damage Over Time rain it leaves on the ground does insane Damage, has a huge AoE and long Duration. Be sure to buff it with your other abilities and aim to force enemies into it while they chase you. Convert it to Fire to gain access to the Arsonist Damage Multiplier. Use your other Skills to apply a single Ignite to benefit from it.
- Max Shift's Deadly Ambush and Elusive Nodes over Molting if you don't need its Cleanse.
- You can spec Escape Tactics in Smoke Bomb if you prefer an additional Backflip when using it.
Skills showcase extra Skill Points in case you find +Level of Skills that may not be included in the Planners.
Passives
- Thief's Quiver is crucial for sustain.
- Elemental Arrows and Elemental Barrage fit the playstyle of the build perfectly. Combining both Nodes with Coated Blades is crucial for scaling the Damage of the build. Coated Blades increases the Mana cost of your Hail of Arrows substantially, don't allocate points in it if you can't sustain Mana early on.
- Grab Master Archer to increase your Hail of Arrows area.
Take fewer points in Coated Blades and Mana Warp if you can't sustain Mana.
Make sure to complete the Campaign to get all your Passive Points.
Gameplay
Skill Usage/Rotation
- Start the rotation with Smoke Bomb and let it create Shadows.
- Immediately follow with Dark Quiver to start summoning Black Arrows.
- Grab a Black Arrow from the ground when Smoke Bomb has created at least 2 Shadows.
- Use Shift to generate a 3rd Shadow (3 max) and to buff your next Hail of Arrows.
- Aim and fire Hail of Arrows. Thanks to Umbral Resolution, it consumes all 3 existing Shadows, granting it insane Damage multipliers.
- Repeat the rotation once Hail of Arrows expires and your Mana has recovered.
Bossing
- Take advantage of Hail of Arrows's duration and focus on avoiding Boss mechanics while it's active.
- Use Decoy to distract the Boss. Take advantage of this window to reposition and perform the DPS rotation.
- Shift can save you from incoming damage. Time it against dangerous telegraphed Boss attacks.
- Make sure you always have at least one Silver Shroud active. Since Silver Shrouds last 10 seconds each, you can time Smoke Bomb and Covering Fire apart to make sure you always have one Silver Shroud active, or quickly recover them if they proc. If you do this properly you can always have this protection against Hits that can be Dodged, including some major Boss mechanics!
- Be careful and patient when performing the combo. Enemies can punish you hard if you screw up.
- You might not need the full combo to clear trash mobs while mapping. Performing the rotation with less than 3 Shadows is faster, figure out how much damage you need and don't wait for unnecessary Shadows.
- The total amount of active Shadows appears on a dedicated tracker on your buff bar. Keep track of how many Shadows are active at a time easily with just a quick glance at the indicator.
- Shift on top of a Black Arrow from Dark Quiver to speed up the DPS rotation.
- Place Decoy on choke points to funnel enemies into your deadly rain.
Gear, Idols & Blessings
- Dragonsong is your first priority for the +2 Fire Skills it provides. Craft it into a Legendary with Bow Fire Damage for a huge boost to your DPS.
- Phase Point provides an additional Damage Multiplier. This Item has great synergy with the build.
- This setup is very Unique heavy, so it's good to include the ones that shine even without Legendary Potential. Use Brewmaster's Buckle and Nihilis as soon as you get them.
- Aim for Exalted Level of Hail of Arrows and Increased Hail of Arrows Duration to invest more Points into Hail of Arrows and to increase your DPS significantly.
- Get Legendary Fiery Dragon Shoes with Exalted Movement Speed for the base stats it provides.
- Finish your Idol set up. Prioritize well rolled Increased duration with Hail of Arrows Prefixes.
- Red Ring of Atlaria is usable even if you don't meet the threshold of 180 total Attributes. Combine this Ring with Ravenous Void and Core of the Mountain to significantly increase your tankiness.
- Use Twisted Heart of Uhkeiros until you manage to get a Legendary Shattered Worlds. Good luck with the chase!
Learn the basics for crafting gear with our Beginner Crafting Guide.
Make sure to complete the Campaign to get all your Idol Slots.
Build Scaling
Offensive Stats
- Flat Fire Bow Damage
- Dexterity
- % Increased Fire Damage
- % Increased Fire Damage Over Time
- % Increased Bow Damage
- Fire Penetration
- Increased duration with Hail of Arrows
Defensive Stats
- Health
- Armor
- Dodge
- Endurance
- Glancing Blow Chance
- Leech
Scaling Tips
- Ignitee: Apply this Ailment to benefit from Arsonist. This justifies Hail of Arrows Fire conversion.
- Shadows & Dark Quiver: The Umbral Resolution Node is the core interaction that causes Hail of Arrows to deal massive Damage when following the DPS rotation described in this guide. Consume up to 3 Shadows for More Damage.
- Coated Blades: Increases the Mana cost of Hail of Arrows but grants it another huge Damage Multiplier Source. Don't allocate all points in it if you can't sustain Mana early on.
- Increased duration with Hail of Arrows: The longer Hail of Arrows lasts, the more Damage it deals. Additionally, the extra duration helps with the Mana sustain of the build as you don't need to perform the DPS rotation as often.
- Shift: This setup buffs your next Hail of Arrows Damage with Deadly Ambush and Braskula's Hesitation.
- Silver Shroud: As long as you have one up, the next Hit you take is Dodged instead. You get them from Smoke Bomb and the Covering Fire Passive.
- Dusk Shroud: Each grants 5% Glancing Blow Chance and 50 flat Dodge. Smoke Bomb provides them while standing inside of its fog. You take 35% less damage from Hits with Glancing Blows.
- Evasion: The Damage Reduction while moving is great while escaping from threats.
- Aurora's Time Glass: This powerful Unique can save you from dangerous situations. Make sure its internal cooldown is ready before you engage your enemies.
- Red Ring of Atlaria: Grants Damage Reduction when you have at least 180 total Attributes.
- Ravenous Void: Grants Damage Reduction.
Our Damage Explained Article covers all you need to know to scale Damage.
Learn all you need to know to scale Defense with our Defense Explained Article.
Loot Filter
Loot Filters are critical in Last Epoch. Making sure you highlight all the related valuable Item Bases, Affixes, Uniques and Idols is necessary to ensure your character's progression. Click on the Generate Loot Filter button down below then use the Paste Clipboard Contents button in-game to import it!
Here is the Endgame Loot Filter for this build:
Learn how to load and make Filters with our Loot Filter Guide.
Video Guide
COMING SOON!
Summary
Overall the Hail of Arrows Marksman is a very complete build that performs well in endgame. It rewards tactical, rotation based gameplay and it's super safe!
- Create Shadows with Smoke Bomb and Shift to consume them with the Umbral Resolution Node inside Dark Quiver and buff the Damage from your next Hail of Arrows.
- Be careful and patient when performing the DPS combo. Enemies can punish you hard if you screw up.
- Stay far away from your enemies!
- Use Decoy to distract and group your enemies. Take advantage of this to reposition and DPS.
- Shift can save you from incoming Damage. Time it perfectly for the Damage Immunity!
Credits
Written by Volca.
Content Reviewed by Lizard_IRL.