This isn’t a leveling guide. This is for after you’ve reached level 70 through your own play or having had a power level. There’re several leveling guides on YouTube and what not if that’s what you’re looking for.
For a more in-depth guide about what your build should look like when completed see this thread by DiEoxiDe here.
Here, I’ll be laying out some substitute items you can use while you’re hunting the standard items for the Shadow Set.
You can get a Karlei’s Point or Lord Greenstone’s Fan incredibly easy through the cube so I’m going to assume you probably have one or the other equipped and the other might be in the cube.
Shadow is one of the easier sets to build toward but in the beginning, you still might have trouble getting a specific item. Or something might be out of grasp for a bit.
Off-hands
Shields and Quivers
You might have trouble getting a Holy Point Shot with good stats, so equipping another quiver that you’ve crafted or looted might be necessary at first or might be looking for some extra defense if you don’t have a Dawn.
Emimei’s Duffel
It gives a boost to bola’s and can be combined with Leonine’s in the cube for an ability to pull mobs together for an Impale throw or unleashing a Fan of Knives.
Archfiend Arrows
And easy to craft quiver is good. One with guaranteed Increased Elite Damage and crit chance is even better.
Hallowed Protector or Wall of Man Shield
Don’t knock it. In the early game, a shield comes in real handy when you’re constantly in melee range. A shield can mimic Fortress Ballista with its block chance and stats like Reduce damage from elites. Additionally, you can transmog your dagger into a spear and go all Game of Thrones Unsullied on the demon hordes. Not bad for a fantasy trope. Wall of Man even comes with a legendary power that’ll give you a 10% defense boost 30% of the time.
Additionally, you might have come across a Storm Shield and its higher block chance and reduced incoming melee damage is a great boon in the early game.
Shields can also come with a reduce elite damage affix. Really helpful in the early game.
Looking good: Check
Practical: Check
That’s a pretty good start. Of course, you’ll probably replace this with an HPS as soon as you can, but in the meantime, there’s nothing wrong with having a little fun with the gearing process.
Jewelry
Maybe you’re having trouble with getting an Endless Walk Set or Bastions of Will or Elusive Ring.
Good replacements in the early game are…
Justice Lantern
Especially if you’re going with a shield. You get an increased Block Chance and a defense boost of up to 55% of your block chance. Not bad to start with.
Obsidian Ring of the Zodiac
A guaranteed attack speed roll is pretty good, add to that guaranteed crit chance and cooldown or resource reduction and getting good uptime on Vengence is well within reach. Having one of the Soul Shards that reduce cooldowns as one of their effects will help this even more.
If it’s one of the Jewelry sets, you’re having trouble getting perhaps you’ve received an Elusive Ring with its up to 60% damage reduction when using Vault, Shadow Power, or Smoke Screen or Convention of Elements with damage multiplier that equates to 50% improved damage. Definitely equip them if you have them. Combined with Squirt’s and Molten Wildebeast’s Gizzard and you should have pretty good uptime on your Squirt’s, especially with Elusive. Even just a little shield will be pretty powerful with an Elusive Ring in the Early Game.
Belts
There’re three options here.
Captain Crimson’s
If you can assemble a Captain Crimson’s through the belt and pants or boots with Ring of Royal Grandeur, go for it. Gives you pretty good resource reduction for vaulting, a defense boost and a damage boost, all crucial in the early game. It can really help your shield if you’re leveling a Gizzard because you got it before a Bane of the Trapped or Zei’s.
Hunter’s Wrath
If you’re running with an Emimei’s because you haven’t got an HPS yet, the extra damage and attack speed of your bolas is very handy.
Chain of Shadow
Free vaults when I use Impale, you say? Why yes, I will have one of those. lol
Bracers
Strong Arm Bracers
Extra Damage when I vault with Rattling Roll. Awesome Sauce.
Lacuni Prowlers
Free guaranteed attack speed roll is very useful with the Shadow Set. Daggers are a bit faster than Bows and Two-Handed Crossbows but slower than 1 handed crossbows so stacking increased attack speed can be helpful in the early game and even some in the late game.
Wraps of Clarity
Defense boost when I use a Primary. Hell, I’ll take it especially if I don’t have a Holy Point Shot yet and am running around with an Emimei’s.
Aughild’s
Though using Aughild’s isn’t the best option early, if you’re planning to be using Aughild’s later in the season, crafting some early in the season isn’t a waste of time. Aughild’s defense boost against white creatures and elites is great for Shadow. And the damage increase to elites is a stat you’re looking for when using Shadow because it’s so good against single targets.
Cube Options
Visage of Gunes
If you’ve got a Dawn, the having the defense of Vengeance Dark Heart while using Vengeance Seethe is very useful when you’re struggling with keeping Hatred up.
Aquila
If you’ve got no trouble keeping hatred up, this item in the cube is a great defense boost.
Illusionary Boots
Not the best option, they can be helpful in situations where you’re trapped by waller or surrounded by enemies and using vault isn’t an option because you don’t have Chain of Shadows or vault not being on your bar.
Fortress Ballista
The 30% Life Shield is a straight buff to your defense that you get for just attacking. If using a Squirt’s Necklace, Fortress Ballista can help keep the necklace’s buff up and is really useful if you haven’t got a Dawn yet.
Blood Shard Spending Strategy
You’ll probably want to start out with Quiver’s for that necessary HPS. Once you get one with the right Elemental Damage, you can move on for the time being.
Then, if you’re choosing not to go with Crimson’s you’ll want a Chain of Shadows. Or even if you are going with CC3, a CoS in the cube is a get if you’re forgoing Aquila. So, belts it is.
Periodically you’ll be crafting rare daggers upgrading them in the cube. So hopefully it won’t take long to get a really good ancient Karlei’s or even a Primal.
You’ll probably be going jewelry next. Some say it isn’t worth it to gamble jewelry but getting a handful of rares through Kadala and upgrading either rings or amulets in the cube should net either Bastions of Will, Endless Walk, or one of the rings or amulets I mentioned in the Jewelry Section.
All in all, even without the standard build, you should be doing GR 80’s, 90’s or even 100’s with the new Shadow Set almost right out of the gate and you’ll be well on your way to get the standard set up pretty early. But perhaps, you’re one of those fellas that enjoy messing around with the gearing process and prolonging it a bit because something looks cool or fills some sort of fantasy you indulge in, like me.
Point is, Have fun with it! And as always, Happy Hunting!
This has been a message from your friendly neighborhood Verdantian Death Dancer.