*** Updated 6-03-2025, see bottom of post ***
Over the last couple of seasons there have been buffs to the Virulent aspect:
- It now works on bosses.
- It has (x)increased damage to enemies affected by Rabies.
- It was changed from a Utility to an Offensive aspect.
I wanted to see how far I could push it.
Paragon: 248
Mode: hardcore, solo self found
Highest Pit-clear: 73 with 1 minute left
Glyphs: 75
Masterworked: everything 12/12
Skills: Shred (left), Rabies (right), hurricane, blood howl, wolves & cyclone armour.
Raging shred causes enemies to take (x)150% increased poison damage. Hurricane is for Stormshifter’s aspect (+5 shapeshifting skills). Innate Blood Howl is for the (x)25% damage bonus while in werewolf form + to activate Vigilance and Backlash. Cyclone armour is just for survival.
Boards: Starter (Keeper), Inner beast (Fang & Claw), Lust for carnage (Undaunted), Heightened malice (Tracker), Ancestral guidance (Werewolf).
Witchcraft gems: Moonlight ward (+15% damage reduction +2,5% max resistance), Elder sigil (x)25% wrath damage, Vulture talon (dots tick 50% faster).
Gear: Harlequin crest, Mad Wolf’s glee, Doombringer.
Aspects: Conceited, Concussive strikes, Stormshifter’s, Virulent (amulet), Unsatiated, Creeping death and Edgemaster’s.
Witchcraft powers: The cycle, Twilight warding, Shaken Soul, Aura specialization, Aura of Siphoning & Decay augmentation.
Total ranks to Rabies: 26 (including Stormshifter’s aspect).
How does it play?
With unsatiated aspect I never run out of spirit. So I can keep shredding. I toggle left, right. Rabies has a cooldown of 3.18 seconds, but Virulent aspect reduces it with 1.5 seconds for every affected enemy and triples it on Elites. This means Rabies doesn’t have a cooldown either.
Rabies quickly spreads on T3 and melts opponents. On T4 its a different story. Taking down a fugitive head will take 2-3 minutes. If a barbarian or necro runs by and oneshots the same boss, then the point is taken.
I like that Raging shred combines with Rabies. It increases the damage taken from Rabies so its useful to burst down elites. The combination feels natural and makes for good gameplay.
I like that i’m being able to do the bossladder on T3 instead of T2. Thats an improvement over past season.
Feedback:
- The inherent +40% damage over time on staffs is too low compared to the +114,8% vulnerable damage on polearms. Damage over time is the most specific +damage source in the game, where vulnerable works with all skills and on all mobs. If you have a reliable way to apply vulnerable, then its vastly superior to +damage over time. I use the Shaken Soul witchpower.
- Same goes for gems: the +54% vulnerable damage does more damage and increases also the damage from Shred, compared to the very limited +48% damage over time.
- I stopped using Changelings debt cause it only works on crowdcontrolled enemies. Its pointless on bosses cause they can’t be crowdcontrolled. Having this affix in the game doesn’t make sense.
- Damage over time functions completly different then other damage sources and even other parties guides have limited understanding how it exactly works. This season Companion’s damage is brought more into line with other damage. I think the same treatment should be given to damage over time. Currently it feels like a relic from the past, when poisoned was a condition needed to apply more damage instead of a real damage source that can hold its own. It should scale on attackspeed, be able to crit and overpower.
- Im still not sure if Rabies stacks with itself. It feels it doesn’t stack. With +26 ranks in Rabies and zero cooldown I expected more from it. Especially since this season should be about werewolf and poison as mentioned in the Campfire chat.
- As key passive I use Lupine’s ferocity. This is because I use shred in my rotation and Mad Wolf’s Glee improves this key passive. If I just wanted to make my damage over time more powerful, then Bestial Rampage makes more sense. Adding a bear skill into the rotation would also improve survivability. In my opinion Lupine Ferocity should have something added to make it the go-to key passive for damage over time.
+Damage when fortified as the superior stat
Compared to other +damage sources this feels like the superior stat for tempering. The only trick is to always be fortified. The Bolster spirit boon gives 50% of max life as fortify when using a defensive. Having a lot of life and Twilight Warding makes that I’m pretty much always fortified and shielded. The wolves are also a good way to top off fortify.
Season journey
I’m 6/10 at Destroyer. Roots ablaze, Blood stained hoard, with sand to spare and Hell’s fury are all problematic for a build that lacks damage on T4.
Having to abandon a build where I put a lot of time into it, in favour of a new build just to be able to complete the season journey, doesn’t feel good. T4 has gone from aspirational to mandatory.
The theme of the season is great. I enjoy using the witchpowers. They look nice and add a lot of survivability. Normally I tend to loose several characters over a season. This season I only lost a character in the first 3 days.
General concern
Currently it feels like the only way forward is overpowered crits. Its all about stacking multiple damage sources and then a guaranteed overpower paired with certain gems.
Its a style of gameplay that eventually eats everything and leaves nothing. A dead end.
In the long term it would make more sense if overpower cant critical hit. Then it would be a true alternative for crit builds. Now a overpowered crit is always superior to a non-overpowered crit. The result is that all builds will gravitate towards the same, overpowered crits.
Room for improvement
I havent got Ahavarion. I think that might be able to pull me through a pitlevel 75. I’m missing one rune to craft it.
Found a decent Fists of fate today. This might be an upgrade, have to test it.
I might also dial back some +damage over time in favour of more +vulnerability damage.
I haven’t given up yet on the build for the season journey.
Update 06-03-2025
Just lost my character on Beast in the Ice T3. Shouldn’t have taken the risk and do it on T2, but no risk, no fun.
I completed the season journey with the above build. That’s what I’m most proud of.
I found every mythic in the game and tried many things to push further. Highest pitclear is 83 and my glyphs were 85/86. Ahavarion was key. I found a 2 GA one. Having a conduit proc made all the difference.
For the remainder of the season Ill try out a different build. Its a chance to try out something different. I can only smile with what I achieved with this build.