Storm Mage Lich Build Guide

This Storm Mage Lich Build Guide for the Witch Class uses a variety of Minions, Spells and Curses to deal with enemies. You can follow it from the start of the campaign and continue all the way into the endgame.

The general gameplay of the build in the campaign is to summon Raging Spirits by casting Flame Wall and Ember Fusillade. Then, use the Minion command skill provided by Skeletal Sniper to deal damage in a wide area and corrode the armor of your enemies. You also cast Flammability to increase your Minion's damage. Unearth is cast on enemy corpses to spawn an army of temporary Minions that explode when they reach low life through Minion Instability. You also buff your army of Minions with Pain Offering to increase their damage.

After the campaign and when you have decent gear, you rely more on Skeletal Storm Mages for all damage and stop using Raging Spirits, Flame Wall, Ember Fusillade and Skeletal Sniper.

For defenses, the build relies on stacking energy shield, energy shield recovery and block chance. You also rely on Eternal Life which combines with Soulless Form and Heavy Buffer for 15% less damage taken.

This build doesn't require any Unique items to function. But the build does benefit from common Uniques such as Enfolding Dawn and Sunsplinter.

Note: If you find Exalted Orbs or Chaos Orbs during the Campaign, use them to buy Enfolding Dawn.

• Take Necromantic Conduit to give your Minions Unholy Might, a buff that grants 30% of all damage as extra Chaos. Your Presence has a base radius of 4m, so stay near your Minions to ensure they get the buff.
  The downside is that you now need to deal with losing 5% maximum mana per second. This is mitigated by Open Mind early on and later Soulless Form.

• Soulless Form is taken to deal with the mana degeneration from Necromantic Conduit. It also makes it so that 10% of damage taken passes your energy shield and hits your life instead.

• Eternal Life is a very powerful defensive mechanic which makes you immune to poison and bleeding as long as you have energy shield. It also gives you 15% less damage taken when combined with Soulless Form and Heavy Buffer.

• Crystalline Phylactery gives you an extra jewel socket and increases the effects of that jewel by 100%.

• As you enter the Atlas of Worlds and begin mapping, your first goal is to cap your resistances and meet Attribute requirements.
• You want a sceptre, helmet and amulet with the modifier +# Level of all Minion Skills to increase your Minions damage.
• A Stoic Sceptre is a good alternative to using a Rattling Sceptre.
• You want a Chiming Staff in your second weapon set so that you are able to pre-cast Sigil of Power before a boss fight when you have Skeletal Storm Mages.
• You also want a body armour, amulet and sceptre with % Increased Spirit and +# to Spirit to be able to summon more Minions.
• You want as much energy shield as possible on your body armour, boots, helmet, gloves and amulet to make yourself tankier.
• You want a shield with as high block chance as possible (40%+) or use the Unique shield Sunsplinter with +3 to Level of all Lightning Skills for more damage if you can get 101 Dexterity.

Note: You can use Soul Core of Zantipi to reduce the Dexterity requirement down to 81.

• In the late Endgame, you want to transition into using Ventor's Gamble to gain Spirit from your rings or Levinstone for an extra gem level to your mages.
• Use a Primate Talisman or a Owl Talisman for your sceptre.