[3.4 HC Chi/Slay] Totems of Agony: Ele Hit totems+Herald of Agony 6k-7k+ life gain/second [videos]

interesting build, how do you think it fairs against other totem builds for HC leaguestarter and its proficiency at endgame? i have been meaning to try a totem build but do not know which one would be the best leaguestarter for me in 3.5.

Personally, I have enjoyed playing it very much. It won't have the clearspeed of a straight hiero totem build, but (imo) it's durability more than makes up for that if you are playing hc. I plan to use either this or my jugg variation as my league start.
-O

NEW SUPPORT--MULTIPLE TOTEMS!!!

I have literally never been this excited about a new support gem. It buffs the hell out of this build. Allows dropping skirmish completely for a better quiver while maintaining virtually the same dps for the ele hit version (10% less) with even better coverage for faster clear. OR it's a clean 80% MORE damage buff (at lvl 1) to the totem part of a toxic rain totem variation (that otherwise uses only 1 totem). Either way, pure buff to an already solid build.

-O

is that a new confirmed gem?

and out of curiosity, what do you mean by better coverage?

which gem would you recommend replacing for this new one?

Very nice guide, well put together. Thinking about starting Betrayal with it in HC. You mention a toxic rain version as well which sounds kind of fun (will chieftan leech work with TR??)- which do you prefer and do you have a pob for the TR version by chance?

Re: new gem
Apparently it is confirmed, as POE posted it to their facebook page. Better coverage--just that 3 totems instead of two can hit a wider area faster, for better clear speed for white/blue mobs.

Re: what to replace?
I would sub it in for damage on full life.

Re:Toxic Rain version
See the guide to the juggernaut totems of agony variant in the marauder forum. I got a little over excited and just copy pasted in both places.

The toxic rain variant isn't as good with scion, since it does not take real advantage of the leech, as it's mostly DOT. It is a solid variant with jugg, as it improves both offense and defense, by slowing all enemies on the screen. The jugg version traded the totem leech for more or less permanent uptime 7 end charges. Its stronger against physical and hence lab, but not as strong against ele, where the extra leech is superior defense. The TR version also comes at the expense of some clearspeed compared to the ele hit version. The choice is really a matter of taste--I have enjoyed play throughs with both.

All that said I think the scion version with ele hit was probably the most fun to play

-O

Makes more sense now, thanks for quick reply!

thanks for posting the build. I found your Jugg variation and went over here to see the Scion version.

1. Could I ask what would be the main differences between the two? I am having difficulties deciding between this and the Jugg one.

2. I also noticed that you are using the ele hit totems for high-end bosses in the Scion videos while you mentioned that the ele hit totems would be a distraction in the Jugg version. Why the change?

Fair questions:

Scion version advantages:
1. Totem overleech--this provides a consistent life gain as long as you have totems down, that builds quickly to 20% of max life/second and stays there.
2. Easy Access to a few extra attack speed nodes/jewel slot

Jugg version advantages:
1. Souped up Endurance charges/immortal call--Jugg maintains 7 buffed endurance charges most of the time, which typically regenerate during the 3-4 second immortal call that procs every 500-600 damage or so. In practice, this means that the Jugg will hardly ever die to physical hit damage (even with 0 armor, as I run it with the gluttony belt) unless it is 1 shot, which is very difficult through 7 endurance charges (in the video you can see the jugg version tank a few slams from Shaper/Elder).
2. Unstoppable--no effect from chilled/temp chains/Elder slow etc.


The difference between the #1 advantages is what lead me to try to use the totems in the Scion boss fights but not bother with them for the Jugg. They aren't contributing a ton of damage as compared to a top end boss's health, but they do enough to keep the totem overleech component of the Scion sustain going.

The Jugg doesn't get that defensive benefit from the totems, so they are less important for his high end boss fights. Also, I am new enough to doing uber elder that I still find trying to do anything except dodge and shoot more than I can handle (and as you can see in the video, I barely manage that--the fact that the fight goes as well as it does says more about the build than my play skill) I suspect this might not be true with lots of extra practice, but there it is.

Choosing between the two:
is sort of like choosing a favorite child.

The biggest advantage of the scion version is that in chaotic situations, the scion can move around and continue to enjoy the passive leech from the totems in a way that the jugg can't. This may make the scion feel better for some players. And in fact, before I had really spent a lot of time playing the jugg, I preferred the scion for this reason--it made the whole game feel like it flowed easier.

But at the very highest end of the game, particularly Shaper and Uber-elder (and after a lot more time spent practicing with barrage as my never-empty "instant-flask"), I feel like the Jugg version wins out for durability over the scion. Those buffed endurance charges layered over an 8.5-9k life pool are strong.

Hope that helps,

-O

Thank you for the in depth responses whihh help me to understand the differences better :]

I think I would go for the jugg version. I do love being tanky.

Hows the build looking like for 3.5?