How do the shadow clones work again?

General Discussion
1

Too long ago and I don’t remember… Can we have a refresher on exactly how the clones work? The more details the better!

I vaguely remember that there is some scaling with legendary items, that they could clear T16 essentially by themselves (I remember accidentally entering a T16 neph with my zdps setup and ended up supporting for the clone for fun with a decent 3-4min clear). But they don’t really grow in power past a certain point and are essentially useless at higher GRs. But where is that point? can they clear GR90? Higher?? I also remember that there was some controversy about cc and aggro, how did that end up? Do they ever cc? Do they take aggro? Do I need to treat them like the follower when pulling mobs?

2

AFAIK, after GR130 they really became weak. Maxroll guide says GR125 is kinda the breakpoint, but they supposedly depend on your/our power:

Shadow Clone Mechanics

Here is a short overview of the Shadow Clone Mechanics:

  • Clones spawn for 1 minute from shrines
  • They scale with your sheet damage
  • They deal more damage with more legendaries equipped
  • They usually one-shot stuff easily on T6 (even at level 1)
  • In parties they scale with the person who clicked the shrine
  • Only party members within 2-3 screens will get a clone
  • They spawn with a pre-selected set of abilities
  • Every class has three different sets of abilities that can be chosen
  • There is no timer or indicator for when they are active
  • They stay behind when you change floors
  • They die when you die (or the person who clicked the pylon in parties)

Endgame Impact

Clones are useful for the following things:

  • Fast 1 to 70 leveling
  • Speedfarming lower Tiers up to Greater Rift 110
  • Oneshotting T16 Rift Guardians while you wear Cain’s Destiny set and watch
  • Destroying Elites and Rift Guardians up to Greater Rift 125
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3

One bonus thing the clones do is kill you / your team-mates, depending on what class you are or have in your party, i.e. if you (or a team-mate) are a Demon Hunter, one of the Shadow Clone attack types is Impale. If you’re using Nemesis Bracers (or whoever in the party clicked the pylon is) it will spawn clones and an elite pack. If the elite pack is dervishes, and the DH’s clones start throwing Impales at them, the reflected Impale projectiles will happily kill players. If you’re playing on Hardcore, this mechanic will absolutely end your hero.

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4

Thanks both. Anyone knows if they apply cc or take aggro?