Lightning Spear Amazon Build Guide
The Lightning Spear Amazon offers the best map clear of any skill in Path of Exile 2. When it consumes a Frenzy Charge, the primary projectile of Lightning Spear splits into secondary projectiles on impact. These arcs of lightning automatically target nearby enemies, chaining through packs effortlessly. As monsters die, they explode thanks to Herald of Ice, resulting in a fast, smooth, and highly satisfying clear that also boasts strong single-target damage.
Due to its reliance on Frenzy Charges, Lightning Spear remains weak until you unlock Combat Frenzy and can equip a Call of the Brotherhood. For this reason, it's not recommended to incorporate it into your build until you've completed the second Trial of Chaos and progressed into Cruel Difficulty. Until then, Glacial Bolt serves as a strong alternative, offering excellent single-target damage and remaining a key component of your rotation even in the endgame.
Early on, you play a Life + Evasion build, taking advantage of its defensive capabilities to safely progress through maps. As you advance, you transition to a hybrid Life/Energy Shield + Evasion setup, gaining a larger effective health pool and making better use of defensive auras like Ghost Dance.
Lightning Spear requires the Call of the Brotherhood unique ring to function properly. It also benefits greatly from additional uniques such as Tangletongue and Lycosidae.
You do not need specific resistances on any item, just get the required total resistances amongst all gear combined. You need to cap your Resistances at 75% unless otherwise specified in the guide!
Path of Exile 2 is currently in early access, this means rapid development including frequent changes to builds as there are balance fixes and we learn more. Pin this page to be notified of any updates.
Skills
- From level 1 to 21, use Lightning Arrow as your primary clear skill. Drop Lightning Rod and Flame Wall early to enhance your single-target damage in Act 1 and early Act 2.
- Use a low-level Uncut Skill Gem to engrave Flame Wall; and keeping the Intelligence requirement low is essential.
- Place Lightning Rods into the ground, then target enemies with Lightning Arrow to maximize damage output.
- Look for a crossbow, as by level 31 you can incorporate Glacial Bolt into your setup—especially once you have Artillery Ballista to easily destroy Ice Crystals.
- Your Artillery Ballistas also help clear Icy Crystals against freeze-immune or highly resistant enemies. Make sure to place at least one Ballista every screen or so to deal with outliers that might otherwise get knocked back without triggering the Ice Crystal explosions.
- Artillery Ballista is also useful against bosses with buggy hitboxes—those that aren’t technically “on the ground” and won’t trigger Icy Crystal spawns.
Lightning Spear has a few requirements that must be met before it can become your primary way of dealing with enemies. Fortunately, the passive skill tree supports both early and late-game playstyles with the same passives, making the transition entirely gear-dependent. In the endgame, you specialize in both weapon types, taking full advantage of the weapon swap mechanic.
To swap to Lightning Spear, you must have:
- Your second Ascendancy notable: Penetrate.
- A spear with a high Accuracy Rating roll.
- Combat Frenzy.
- Call of the Brotherhood.
Do not make the swap until you have all of these, as Glacial Bolt and Artillery Ballista are much better suited to handling the challenges of the campaign.
Once you acquire your third Ascendancy notable, Elemental Infusion, the build truly begins to shine, as your Frenzy Charges further empower your attacks.
- Herald of Ice explodes frozen enemies, chaining through packs with its explosions. Supporting it with Lightning Infusion allows you to trigger Innervate, granting a damage boost.
- Cast on Freeze aids with Frenzy Charge generation by auto-casting Sniper's Mark on enemies, granting charges on kill. Once you have at least 150 total Spirit and have equipped Tangletongue, you can swap to Cast on Critical instead, for more consistent Frenzy Charge generation on bosses.
- Ghost Dance becomes a strong addition once you've acquired a high Energy Shield helmet and have specced into Subterfuge Mask. It restores Energy Shield based on your Evasion Rating, helping to mitigate frequent small hits.
- Precision and Cannibalism can be used to support one of your Auras. Keep in mind that running them requires an additional 10–15 Spirit. If you’re short on Spirit, it’s fine to leave them out. Spirit is a top-priority stat—look to stack it on your Body Armour and Amulet.
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Gem Engraving Priority
Skill Rotation
- Use Sniper's Mark to generate Frenzy Charges on hit with attacks—this significantly empowers your next Storm Lance.
- As you gain more Spirit, you can automate this process using Cast on Freeze or Cast on Critical.
- Stand close to the boss and manually cast Storm Lance directly on top of your character to plant four spears in place. Proper mouse placement is crucial—if your cursor isn’t directly over your character, the spears scatter in random directions due to the Salvo support.
- Then, use Glacial Bolt to swap to your offhand crossbow and fire directly at the boss. The lightning from Storm Lance arcs through the walls it creates, detonating them and dealing massive damage.
- As soon as you gain a Frenzy Charge, cast an empowered Storm Lance, then continue firing Glacial Bolt until the lance expires. Repeat this process for sustained damage.
- Use Lightning Spear once per screen (or when entering new areas).
- Allow Volt to charge up to 20+ stacks by moving continuously for improved clear speed.
- Position yourself adjacent to tanky Rare enemies and plant Storm Lance directly on top of them.
- Equip a Sapphire with "2% Mana Gained on Kill" to completely solve mana sustain during clearing!
- Drop Hypothermia on the boss spawn point before the fight begins
- Set up two Artillery Ballistas to maintain constant pressure
- Land Glacial Bolt precisely on enemies - hitting in front of them can create blocking Ice Crystals
- Adjust your position if enemies shift or crystals get in your way
- Use Glacial Bolt to explode enemies.
- Occasionally place an Artillery Ballista to detonate leftover Ice Crystals or eliminate Freeze-immune enemies.
- Aim carefully—poor positioning can disrupt your movement or block your path with Ice Crystals.
- Use Thunderous Leap to bypass Ice Crystals or tricky terrain when needed.
- Equip a Sapphire with "2% Mana Gained on Kill" to maintain full mana sustain while clearing.
Skill Leveling Priority
Ascendancy
Learn how to complete the Trial of the Sekhemas and Trial of Chaos to earn your first 2 Ascensions with our Ascension Guide!
- Critical Strike - Maximizes your Critical Hit Chance when scaling Accuracy on gear. For best results, engage at close range to ensure full Accuracy utilization.
- Penetrate - Makes local weapon Accuracy Rating also provide substantial Added Physical Damage. This both boosts your DPS and simplifies weapon acquisition by valuing Accuracy rolls.
- Elemental Infusion - Enhances projectile attacks (including Lightning Spear and Storm Lance) with elemental damage matching consumed charges. This enables on-hit effects while also significantly increasing damage output.
- Predatory Instinct - Provides crucial single-target damage for all boss encounters, from Map Bosses to endgame Pinnacle fights.
Passives
Click the arrows to open the full tree in a new tab.
- For the attribute nodes take enough Intelligence and Dexterity to meet gear, skill gem and support gem requirements, then use the rest on Strength for more life.
- You can use your Gold at the Hooded one or Doryani to respec and change your Attributes if a new skill or gear upgrade leaves you unable to use your skills/items.
- Leveling Tree - During the campaign, you play Lightning Arrow + Lightning Rod. Early on, all you care about is %increased Attack & Elemental Damage, followed by some Accuracy & Attack Speed nodes.
- Respec the starting area into Accuracy once you have your first Ascendancy and get Critical Strike.
- Critical Hit Chance and Critical Damage Bonus aren't all that useful during campaign, but play a huge role later on.
- Use a Sapphire with 2% mana gained on Kill to fix your Mana while clearing completely!
- To swap to Lightning Spear, your main priority is to get enough Spirit to use Herald of Ice, Combat Frenzy and Cast on Freeze. To do this, you need +50 Spirit from either your Amulet or your Body Armour.
- You can get a massive amount of damage and utility from jewels with the following stats:
- % increased Critical Damage Bonus
- % increased Critical Damage Bonus with Spears
- % increased Elemental Damage
- % increased Cold Damage
- % increased Critical Hit Chance
- Damage Penetrates #% Cold Resistance
- % increased Energy Shield
- % increased Freeze Buildup
In Path of Exile 2, you can allocate up to 24 points on your Passive Tree that change depending on your currently equipped weapon. These are not additional points, moreso points that you can split in half depending on the situation.
The Maxroll Passive Tree Planner supports this feature. In the second Passive Tree called "Energy Shield + Weapon Swap".
If you're unsure how to use this system in-game, check out this guide.
Stat Priorities
Offensive Scaling
- Your weapons are where all your base damage is coming from, make sure to prioritise these local modifiers:
- + to Accuracy Rating
- % increased Physical Damage
- + to Critical Damage Bonus
- # to Fire, Cold, Lightning and Physical damage to Attacks
- % increased Critical Damage Bonus
- +# to Level of all Projectile Gems
- % increased Attack Speed
- Gain % Damage as extra Fire, Cold, Lightning Damage
- #% increased damage
- +# to Dexterity
- % increased Chance to Shock
- % increased Freeze Buildup
Defensive Scaling
- Sufficient +#% to Fire, Cold, Lightning and Chaos Resistance to cap your Resistances
- +# to Maximum Life
- Evasion Rating is your main defensive layer thus incoming damage feels spiky
- Energy Shield for Ghost Dance
- Chills and Freezes provide additional safety
- If you are still struggling check out our Survival Guide for additional useful information!
If you're struggling to survive, or want to learn more about damage and defenses in Path of Exile 2 check out these additional resources:
Gearing
Defences:
- Prioritize Life and Resistances on all gear pieces
- Use Runes to temporarily fix Attribute/Resistance gaps
Weapon:
Bows (Levels 1-30):
- Continuously upgrade your bow (check vendors/trade/crafting)
- Look for highest total damage (physical + elemental)
- Socket Storm Runes in empty slots
Crossbows (Level 31+):
- Prepare transition by sourcing crossbows in advance
- Upgrade every ~10 levels (vendor/trade/identified)
Transition to Lightning Spear:
- Cruel difficulty with these available:
- Call of the Brotherhood
- High damage/accuracy spear
- Enough Spirit to reserve:
- Combat Frenzy
- Cast on Freeze
- Consider these affordable uniques if available:
- Tangletongue
- Lycosidae
- Note: Price/availability varies by league stage
Defences:
- Cap all elemental resistances (75%+)
- Meet all attribute requirements
- Prioritize maximum Evasion on:
- Helmet
- Body Armour
- Gloves
- Boots (see movement speed exception below)
Core Build Requirements:
- +50 Spirit (Amulet or Body Armour) for:
- Cast on Freeze (Frenzy sustain)
- Combat Frenzy
- Herald of Ice (clear speed)
Gear Priorities:
- Boots: Maximum Movement Speed (top priority stat)
- Jewelry: Sapphire with 2% Mana on Kill
- Shield: Lycosidae ASAP for:
- + Crit Hit Chance
- + Attack Speed
- + Accuracy
Key Notes:
- Movement speed outweighs other boot stats
- Balance resistances when adding Lycosidae
- Check trade for affordable upgrades
Tangletongue stands out as an exceptional unique weapon that delivers tremendous value when you achieve maximum Critical Strike Chance. Its powerful "Forks Critical Strikes" modifier works by:
- Performing two separate Critical Strike Chance rolls per attack
- Doubling your Critical Damage Bonus when both rolls succeed
- Synergizing perfectly with your existing critical investment
While this creates massive damage potential, it does introduce gearing challenges by reducing your base damage. Compensate for this by focusing on these key upgrades:
Priority Upgrades:
- Optimized Tangletongue:
- +15% Critical Hit Rating roll
- Two sockets (corrupted version)
- Enables adding an extra Greater Vision Rune
- Synergizes with Penetrate for bonus Physical Damage
- Gloves/Ring Slots:
- Gloves & Ring with "Added Damage to Attacks"
- Spirit Requirement:
- Minimum 50 Spirit from Body Armour
- Ensures proper skill functionality
Defences:
- Equip Subterfuge Mask (requires high ES helmet)
- Combine with hybrid Evasion/ES gear
- Utilize Ghost Dance for mitigation
Spirit Requirements:
- 80+ Total Spirit (Body Armour + Amulet combined)
- Enables upgrading to Cast on Critical for:
- Better Frenzy Charge uptime
- Improved single-target performance
Jewel Stat Priorities:
- % Increased Critical Damage Bonus
- % Increased Critical Damage Bonus with Spears
- Damage Penetrates #% Cold Resistance
- % Increased Elemental/Cold Damage
- % Increased Critical Hit Chance
- % Increased Energy Shield
- % Increased Freeze Buildup
- Time-lost Jewels (Excellent for enhancing critical strike nodes near jewel sockets):
- Increased Notable Effect
- Large Radius
Key Notes:
- Re-spec into Endgame Passive Tree
- Every gear piece should maximize useful affixes
- Balance damage scaling with defensive layers
- Damage modifiers remain valuable but defenses take priority
FAQ
Although not recommended, you can level with Lightning Spear and Storm Lance as soon as you gain access to Sniper's Mark and Cull The Weak to gain Frenzy Charges. If you want to do this, make sure you have some appropriate twink gear to help with your progression.
Due its reliance on Frenzy Charges Lightning Spear is weak until Combat Frenzy is unlocked and you can equip a Call of the Brotherhood and have enough Spirit to use all your Auras. For this reason it is not advised to incorporate it into your build until you have at least finished the second Trial of Chaos and have progressed into Cruel Difficulty. Glacial Bolt is a great skill you can use until then that has amazing single target, which continues to be a key part of our single target rotation, even in endgame.
Both Lightning Spear and Storm Lance provide massive bonuses when consuming a Frenzy Charge. These skills are balanced around their enhanced variants, making them bad when not consuming. To further exacerbate the issue Elemental Infusion is only granted when you consume a charge, making your uncharged attacks even weaker. This is why it is difficult to level with these skills, and why Spirit is so important in endgame as frenzy charge generation can be automated thanks to Cast on Critical and Combat Frenzy.
For your spear you want to get a Tangletongue corrupted with two sockets and a minimum of +15% to Critical Hit Chance, however before you can afford this the following rules also apply to Spears:
Weapon Prefixes dictate how much dps your weapon has. You can get a total of 3 prefixes which increase the base Physical/Cold/Fire/Lightning Damage on your Weapon.
However, with Amazon, it gets a little more intricate, because of Penetrate.
If you take Penetrate, the base Accuracy you get on your Weapon gets added as global physical damage. However, it also occupies a slot of the listed modifiers on top, so in order to be worth it, make sure you get around 500+ Accuracy.
Example: 500 Accuracy + 2xGreater Vision Rune = 700 Accuracy total on Weapon with 1.6 Attack Speed.
--> Penetrate damage = 700x0.25 = 175 Global Physical Damage
--> 175x 1.6 = 280 = DPS added to the Weapon by accuracy.
Don't dismiss suffixes though, as + to Critical Damage Bonus is a multiplier to all the other %increased critical strike bonus you get on the passive tree. Attack Speed is also decent, do note though that it doesn't help your damage per hit and can therefore make it awkward to destroy your Ice Crystals.
You use Glacial Bolt in an offhand Crossbow to greatly increase your single target damage while waiting for your Storm Lance spears to elapse their duration, unleashing their final damage burst.
- Use Sniper's Mark. It grants a frenzy charge on hit with an attack, this greatly empowers your next Storm Lance.
- Once you gain more spirit you can automate this process thanks to Cast on Freeze and Cast on Critical.
- Stand in close proximity of the boss and click Storm Lance right on top of your character to plant 4 on top of yourself. Note that mouse positioning is very crucial when clicking this skill as if your mouse is not directly on top of your character, your spears fires in random directions around your character due to Salvo support.
- Click Glacial Bolt to swap to your offhand crossbow and shoot directly at the boss - Storm Lance lightning arcs through the walls created, exploding them dealing a ton of damage.
- As soon as you gain a Frenzy Charge throw an empowered Storm Lance and shoot Glacial Bolt until the lance has expired and repeat the process.
You get these as you level up your character. For links:
- 3 support gems = Character level 40
- 4 support gems = Character level 65
- 5 support gems = Character level 90
The most important breakpoints for gem levels are:
- Level 17 gem = Character level 72
- Level 18 gem = Character level 78
- Level 19 gem = Character level 84
- Level 20 gem = Character level 90
Gem Quality Prio:
- Combat Frenzy
- Glacial Bolt
- Lightning Spear
- Storm Lance
- Cast on Critical (Top prio if lacking +- 10 Spirit)
- Cast on Freeze
Make sure to double check that you have done all of your side quests granting spirit from the campaign, and to itemise for an extra +50-80 Spirit depending on your current progression stage.
Once you enter higher tier Maps, defenses become relevant. This is where you need to get Ghost Dance into the build. Here are 3 options on how to achieve this:
- Get 50 Spirit total from a Solar Amulet implicit + the + to Spirit mod itself. This can give you up to 65 Spirit if perfectly rolled.
- Get 50 Spirit from your Body Armour alone, which is hard to roll
- Get 50 Spirit from your Body Armour + Solar Amulet Implicit. (Midgame)
In endgame, you need Spirit on both an Amulet and Body Armour for a total of +80 Spirit Minimum. Keep in mind the more you have the better as there are many useful supports you can use for additional Spirit Cost.
The build can be pretty heavy on the attributes if you level everything. If you can't get the attribute requirements just leave them lower level until you can (you definitely want to work towards getting the attributes to level up all high-priority skills though.
NOTE: These bonuses are minor, if you picked something different for the Venom Draught, don't worry too much!
Video
Summary
- Lightning Spear is your main skill. Its projectiles split + chain automatically on impact when consuming a Frenzy Charge.
- Throw it once per screen and let Volt charge up while moving.
- Throw spears → keep moving → everything dies.
- Projectiles auto-target enemies after hitting walls/terrain, requiring minimal aiming.
- Scales beautifully into endgame.
- Melts bosses with proper positioning.
- Use Critical Strike to cap crit chance (stack Accuracy on gear)
- Herald of Ice causes satisfying explosions
Credits
Written by: Crouching_Tuna
Content Reviewed by: Tenkiei
Language Reviewed by: Tenkiei