Build for my homies #2 - Shattering/Splitting Steel Gladiator

Avoid taking the Crit Nodes until the very End. Once you start picking up the crit nodes, you'll see some big spikes in damages (but at like 10% crit)

Help Alira

(#) the # indicates what level you can pick up these skill gems (after completing required story quest)

Level with
(1)Splitting Steel – (1)Onslaught - (1)Chance to Bleed Support – (31-Library)Impale support – (38) Brutality

Using Steel skills will provide you with 2 skills. 1 Will be the actual steel skill. And the other will be Call of Steel. The steel skill uses a Shard (kind of like ammo) mechanic and Call of steel is like a way of "reloading" your shards. However, when you "reload" you'll call all the impales you've inflicted on nearby enemies back to you, dealing reflected damage and filling up your shards.

I found that keeping Onslaught is super smooth until you get your Ahn's Heritage Shield. The skill and early passive tree provides lots of damage. You find you won't need to replace Onslaught for damage untill you get Onslaught from Ahn's Heritage.

When you hit level 12, you can get Shattering steel. Shattering Steel will be your end game skill, but you don't need to use it right away. Keep leveling both Splitting steel and Shattering steel switching back and forth throughout the leveling. Play with which ever feels nice. I tend to use shattering steel when I haven't had a weapon upgrade in a while. Then switch back to splitting steel when I get a weapon upgrade.

Splitting steel is super strong to clear with, and scales well with stronger weapons.

(12)Shattering Steel (Divergent Shattering Steel if Possible)– (1)Chance to bleed Support – (31)Impale support – (38)Brutality – (18)Vicious Projectiles – (18)Damage on Full Life Support


Outside of Heist League, Try and get the Divergent Shattering Steel. This will give you 1 additional project at Quality 20.

(16)Flesh and Stone + (8)Maim Support - This skill provide 2 different auras where only 1 can be active at a time. Sand Stance is used for clearing (and defensive), while Blood Stand helps with DPS by making the enemies take increased physical damage. You'll have activate the skill to switch back and forth between the two stance (it's and instant cast)
The stance you'll be in is important after picking up your First acendancy point.


(10)Clarity - Only level this gem as you need, it'll reserve more mana the higher the level. Clarity provides help to some of your mana sustain until you can get some mana leech from items.

(38)Cast when Damage Taken – (drop)Vaal Molten Shell – (34)Summon chaos golem (lvl1)

(Pick a CWDT level you're comfortable with and level molten to the max it can be supported. Chaos golem can remain level 1 since it doesn't gain benefits as it levels up)
You can buy molten shell skill gems and use Vaal orbs to try and corrupt it into a vaal molten shell

(12)Leap Slam – (4)Ancestral Protector – (31)Fortify – (18)Culling Strike
(Drop fortify if you get the Shattering Steel fortiy Enchant)

(16)Herald of Purity (More Physical Damage and Minions as Decoy)

(16)Blood Rage (attack speed and frenzy charges on kill) - This can be dropped once you get your very last Acendancy, since those Acendancy points will provide you with Frenzy

(4)War Banner (for accuracy aim for 97%+ accuracy)

(10)Precision (Drop Precision if you can pick up accuracy elsewhere like Gloves/Rings/Amulet fostering or wasp nest)

Be careful of leveling up the precision gem, it'll reserve a lot of your mana.

High block chance (64% block chance)

Passive 45% reduce physical damage (Higher if you have iron reflex from the Unique Weapon Grelwood Shank)

77% to all Elemental Resistance

Life sustain from annoiting the passive notable "Hematophagy"

AND the life saver CWDT Molten Shell (High amount of armor via Ahn's Heritage will provide molten shell ~1300 effective HP when active. And you also have a panic Button VAAL Molten shell when you know you'll take a big hit or need some space to recover life)

Lord of Steel


Fragility x 2

Gives you lots of base armor and good life, +2 Max Elemental resist, AND ONSLAUGHT (Be sure to have the two unique jewels "Fragility" socketed in your tree for all the benefits)

Once you get Onslaught from this Shield, you can drop the Onslaught support gem for Vicious projectile

5 Link Rare chest with Life and resist
6 Link Rare Chest until you can get the very end game Chest below

End Game Chest:


This chest is super expensive, and deserves to be expensive. It'll help you get over the wall you'll hit at T14 maps. 5-Link will kill T-16 bosses at an okay rate, but the clear is still really good. That last 6-link slot will give you a huge damage boost for the T-16 bosses.

This chest gives you basically permanent max frenzy and power charges

Note: If you get this Chest, You'll need to have Aspect of the Cat crafted (suffix) somewhere. The accessories (belt, rings, amulets) are good spots, but you can put it on any rare gear.

Leveling Gloves


End Game Gloves

Rare boots with move speed, life and resists

Leveling

Rare with life and resist
I liked Rustic Sash for the increased global physical damage.

One ring = Rare rings with life and resist

One Ring = Curse Enemies with Vulnerability on Hit + Life + Accuracy + resist
I was able to clear end game with 20% effective curse.

Rare amulet with Life, Resist, Mana leech,

This is a really good spot to get Physical damage leeched as Mana. Once you get leech here, you can drop your leveling gloves if you were using it for mana leech

Rare Armour Based Helmet with life resist

Luxury = Get the helm enchant "Shattering Steel grants Fortify on hitting enemies at close range"
If you get this Enchant, drop the fortify support gem

While Leveling

Rare swords with the following stats
High priority = 1.50 + attack per second
High priority = increased physical / flat physical
Bonus = accuracy, mana leech


End Game Sword


End game Chase Sword

Adjust Flasks to your preference. I went with:
Life Flask With Staunching
Sulphur Flask
Diamond Flask
Jade Flask
Quicksilver Flask

try and get the suffixes: Of Heat(Freeze Immune), Of Warding (Curse Immune), Of Iron Skin (Increase Armour), of Adrenaline(increase movement speed).

-You'll Notice huge speed boost when you get your first acendancy point. depending on your attack speed, you might notice it disrupting your rhythm of attacking and using call of steel.

-When you get your 3rd Acendancy point, try to have 100% chance to bleed at that time. You'll find yourself clearing packs very smoothly

-When you pick up the Crimson Dance Key stone, You'll notice a drop in Bleed DPS PER Bleed. But you can stack Bleed up to 8 times which is an overall damage increase.

-Shattering Steel is better End game with this build because it provides 100% more Damage with Hits AND Ailments per shards consumed. The Gladiator scales bleed damage well.


-Upgrades that will help you overcome walls