Build Info & Playstyle

Poison Spark Occultist Endgame Build Info & Playstyle.

Build Info

Lightning to Chaos Conversion

The Phantasmal Spark Poison Occultist relies on scaling gem quality to 50%. Phantasmal Spark's alternate quality converts a portion of Spark's Lightning Damage into Chaos Damage, thus making it able to Poison. This is achieved thanks to the Ashes of the Stars Unique Amulet, which rolls up to 30% to Quality of all Skill Gems. It is essential for the build to get 30% on this roll as otherwise you do not have 100% of Lightning Damage Converted to Chaos, resulting in a massive loss of total damage. Poison damage also relies on Poison Chance to inflict it's damaging ailment. 100% Chance to Poison is achieved by equipping Divergent Herald of Agony which thankfully is also scaled by Ashes of the Stars.

Spark Mechanics

A single Phantasmal Spark can hit an enemy once every 0.66 seconds. Keep in mind this is per cast, not per projectile. Without any increase in duration, a single cast can hit an enemy thrice with the base duration of 2 seconds.  Spark projectiles bounce off of terrain obstructions and edges for as long as they persist. If a spark projectile strikes a mob, it is absorbed unless it can pierce. That is why projectile speed, increased duration and pierce can result in significant increases in real DPS.

Defensive Layers

Ailment Avoidance

Through itemization you achieve 100% Ailment Avoidance. This keeps you safe from ailments such as Shock, Chill, Freeze and Ignite as well as all alternative ailments. Eldritch Altars and certain rare monsters reflect non-damaging ailments you inflict. Therefore, it is important to itemize for this as they can drastically increase the damage you take from all sources or slow your character's action speed substantially.

Spell Suppression

Suppression halve all incoming Spell damage, making it an extremely valuable defensive layer. Spell suppression cap is easy to achieve thanks to passive tree clusters granting a large sum of it. The rest is itemized for in order to ensure you are at 100% or more. If you do fall short of 100% you can always make use of the Suppression mastery: Chance to Suppress Spell Damage is Lucky as a temporary Band-Aid.

Armour

Armour mitigates incoming Physical damage from hits. It is granted and increased by wearing a Skin of the Lords and a Granite Flask. Determination grants a more multiplier as well as a large amount of flat Armour. Molten Shell grants a buff that is amplified by your base Armour which absorbs incoming damage in a set duration when triggered by Cast when Damage Taken Support.

Evasion

Evasion increases the Poison Spark Occultist's chance to evade incoming attacks. It is granted by wearing a Skin of the Lords and a Jade Flask. Additionally Gracegrants a more multiplier as well as a large amount of flat evasion.

Energy Shield & Mind over Matter

Energy Shield is an additional hit point pool which is granted by the gear worn by your character and scaled by the Global Defences mod on the Skin of the Lords. Since it is much easier to recover Energy Shield than Mana, this build elects to convert it into Mana thanks to the Eldritch Battery keystone granted by the The Devouring Diadem Helmet. The cost of this being, you lose the effective hit points granted by it. However Mind Over Matter lets you regain the Energy Shield as a portion of damage is taken from Mana before Life when it is allocated.

Recovery

The Devouring Diadem Feast of Flesh mechanic grants you a massive portion of both your Life and Energy shield back every 5 seconds so long as there are corpses nearby making sure you remain healthy as you are mapping.

The Ghost Dance keystone generates Ghost Shroud stacks up to a maximum of 3. When you are hit Ghost Shroud triggers a recovery mechanism granting you 3% of your total Evasion rating as Energy Shield.

The modifier granted by the unique Watcher's Eye jewel provides Life gained per every enemy hit while affected by vitality. This ensures that you remain topped up while mapping and bossing thanks to the multi hitting capabilities of Spark and the large amount of projectiles you fire.

Pantheon & Bandits

Mapping

While mapping ensure all your Aura's are active. Shield charge from pack to pack and cast Spark to clear out the screen of any monsters. Cast Haste whenever it is down to provide you with an additional boost in movement and Cast Speed.

Map Modifiers to Avoid

The following modifiers are to be avoided if possible:

• Players have #% reduced effect of Non-Curse Auras from Skills
• Players have #% less Armour

Bossing

Ensure all your Aura's are active before starting the encounter. Use Flame Dash to dodge boss abilities as it provides you with a safer way to traverse distances. When entering a boss arena, if possible before engaging it cast spark until the entire arena is filled with your projectiles. Move forward to activate the boss and proceed with dodging abilities while casting spark whenever possible to re-apply your poison damage on the target. Make sure to re-cast Haste whenever it is down to grant you more Cast Speed.

Farming Strategies

As a mapping focused character you should focus on the mechanics listed below depending on what level of content your character is currently capable of completing. Clicking the League Mechanics below takes you to either a full Explanation Guide or a detailed Currency Farming Guide based around maximizing your profits from that mechanic or content.