[Guide] MOTE6 Earthquake

Barbarian
519

Nah, Elite% is a pain in the butt to get, a very low probability roll, so I’d rather not roll it off again. And besides, elites (and especially bosses) can definitely dish out the punishment. Someday, that chest will be gg… I just might not ever get to that point. If I wanted to use it now, I should have rolled +XP to Missile Reduction.

I’m satisfied enough with my current chest- Str + Vit + EQ% + Phys Resist is a good lineup, and a perfect chest at my current paragon would probably be a primal with those stats + Melee Reduction.

520

With all the buffs the devs have been dishing out recently, I think being able to farm up to 5k paragons should be less of an issue for dedicated players like yourself. I’m sure there’s soon (ie with this next ptr) going to be some kind of speed meta that will allow very high and fast clears superior to rats or birds. So putting on that gg chest piece may be a reality at some point.

But I digress. I should get going on my own Leap push I’ve been wanting, but I keep going back to my Bird. I like that build way too much to put it down, ha.

521

Well, the only thing that really gains me much paragon is pushing, because I don’t farm XP…

I have a few rules I follow:

  1. 100% SSF only. Even for wretched bounties. I haven’t deviated from this one even a single time in the last 6 years or so.
  2. No farming XP. I instituted this one some time in 2018, I think, and have completely stuck to it ever since.
  3. No builds stronger than MOTE for leveling up gems, getting paragon, whatever. The only exception to this was when Frenzy was stronger than MOTE. Since Free asked me to write the guide to that build, I really couldn’t not play it. Of course, it’s now no stronger than Leapquake.

Do it! You’re going to push with Phys, right?

522

Those are some rigid rules! Respect for sticking to them.

I’ll definitely be pushing with Phys. I think I tested a 115 at the beginning of the season and found my toughness lacking iirc. Damage could stand to be a little bit higher too. Haven’t touched it since. I think I may have to get going on it not to disappoint the resident Leap guru, haha.

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523

Whaaaaat? I level up gems with my zbarb. lol

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524

So, I know I already answered this question a while back, but here’s some info that might be of interest.

I looked back through the videos of all the “push” GRs I’ve recorded over the past few years. All of these, AFAIK, were the highest Leapquake clear at that paragon level, at the time they were completed. So, y’know, pretty hard. The maps for those were:

122: Festering - Battlefield
123: Battlefield - Firstborn - Festering - Arreat
124: Festering - Cave - Festering
126: Festering - Moors
133: Spire - Festering
134: Festering - Battlefield
135: Festering - Cave - Moors
136: Festering - Festering
137: Festering - Cathedral

These 9 rifts contained a total of 22 separate levels, and 11 of those were Festering. 7/9 first floors were Festering. And not a single one of these rifts didn’t have a Festering somewhere.

{{Edit: Much later addition:
138: Battlefield - Desert
139: Festering (single floor)}}

{{2nd Edit, still later:
140: Cemetery (single floor)}}

So, to kind of re-answer your question, it obviously helps a ton to get a Festering for your level 1. This is a bit of a small sample size, so maybe I can’t make a totally sweeping statement about the value of different maps, but it sure kind of looks like even Battlefield is less good, on average, than Festering.

For clarity, I thought I’d also mention that I generally will play any rift that opens into: Festering, Battlefield, Spire, Desert, Moors, Hell Rift, and some that open into Pandemonium Fortress or Cathedral.

{{Later Edit: after the patch adding new maps to the pool, it is generally agreed that the single best map is Fields of Misery. After that are Festering, Battlefield, and Cemetery. }}

3 Likes
525

Still no pin?!?

Why the h. can’t this get a place we’re it belongs?
Spending time in the wizard section this forum is a dream, the effort all these people put in to help others is easy to miss just reading through. A shame this guide isn’t pinned.

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526

So battlefields will be similar to a non 4 corner fester. They are usually a waste of time when you are truly pushing the limits. When you are pushing an average level GR a lot more maps come into play. I want to say every single one of my clears since switching to core had a 4 corner fester. My 143 had two even though I spawned the boss almost immediately on the second one. It is the large open areas that can not be found on any other map. It is even more important for rend since we pull mobs almost till the game breaks. I died twice in my 145 attempt from lag before I started recording.

I would take your research one step farther. How many of those festers are 4 corner?

527

Do you ever pause the game to let it catch up when there is lag for solo pushing? I have heard that this helps.

528

Yes but if you are late in pausing the game it will still register all the damage as if you are not paused. What happens is you pause it and you see the game paused on your end but it is not paused on the server side. So in that small gap you take a bunch of damage since you are not spinning or doing anything. Sometimes even band of might will fall off. 145 is the hardest I’ve pushed so I need to start moving out of the pile then pause as 145 does hurt even at 7500 paragon. Even more so if BOM is down.

529

Pro-slam is blowing up on the PTR. With the wpns MOTE is going to be goofy.

3 Likes
530

Yep!

A good question. Let’s take a look…

122 is 1/1 4 corner
123 is 0/1 4 corner
124 is 0/2 4 corner (unsure about the second one, just collected a bit of progression and then went back a level to power pylon)
126 is 0/1 4 corner
133 is 0/1 4 corner
134 is 0/1 4 corner
135 is 1/1 4 corner
136 is 1/2 4 corner
137 is 1/1 4 corner

So, a mix, with a higher ratio of 4-corners recently. I dunno, my hardest push so far is still probably my 126 I think (pre Tribes buff and pre follower buff). I think we’d have to look at the additional maps, mobs, pylons, and RGs in order to prove or disprove the “4 corner is a lot better” thesis.

I mean, I think it’s pretty clear that 4 corner is better, but, for Leapquake at least, it’s unclear whether it’s ~30% better or just like ~5% better than a decently laid out but not 4 corner Festering.

531

What I like is that ethereals allows you to equip everything for Mote Earthquake + Seismic Slam to play both together in one build.

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532

Correct for leapquake the importance of a 4 corner fester is not anywhere near how much rend values them. For me in 145 I need rank 1 zombie trash and 4 corner 100%

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533

there was a 128 pro slam clear on PTR, they used the grandfather with the seismic slam 2Her wpn, cubed the EQ wpn, wore the SS bracers

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534

Pshh, that Chinese player did 150 with just a little more paragon than you. You should be ploughing 145’s that have nothing but caves and spear-chuckers leading to Vesalius or Ember.

:wink:

Yeah, can probably play a composite that uses Fjord Cutter, FotVP, Tribes, GoG, Zodiac- and just casts EQ via TS, cooled down by SS proccing Zodiac.

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535

Ive been messing around with a hybrid pro slam EQ and its really not terrible. Much more engaging play style. That extra bonus helps a lot.

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536

Pro-Slam is a blast. I really hope it crushes in Seasons.

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537

Yep, one of the most fun for sure. They really need to uncap BoD. It would bring slam and leapquake much closer.

538

When i get home from work im going to try and fit ground stomp with the belt into the hybrid pro slam. You dont need the fury of the ancients shoulders with kredes flame on your follower, plus earthen might restores all your fury. Then maybe ditch battle cry for a interesting avalanche rune.
I like having endless walk also. Much more consistent damage then squirts. Plus spamming SS gives you tremendous healing.