A cheap, tankly, fast Vortex Occultist Build for PoE player, and can do most of map mods.

 

Quick Jump

 

Pros & Cons

  • + Cheap
  • + Good map clear
  • + Tanky
  • + Immune to Stun, Chill and Freeze
  • + Can do most of map mods (only expcetion is No Life/ES Regen and Elemental Reflect mods)
  • - Using Flame Dash is not the best movement skill but the Quicksilver Flask helps on that.
  • - Some endgame items can be more expensive cause Cold Damage Over time builds are a bit hyped.
  • - Less recovery rate map mod is not so good.

 

Skill Tree

Ascendancy: Wicked Ward - Vile Bastion - Void Beacon - Frigid Wake

Bandits: Kill All 

Pantheon

The Pantheon List

  • Major God: Soul of Arakaali.
  • Minor God: Soul of Abberath

Passive Tree

POB: https://pastebin.com/9xvYNGXn


 

 

 

 

 

Gems Setup

WEAPON: Frost Bomb + Vaal Righteous Fire + Increased Duration

BODY ARMOUR: Vortex + Efficacy + Controlled Destruction + Elemental Focus + Hypothermia + Swift Affliction

BOOTS: Cast When Damage Taken + Storm Brand + Increased Critical Strikes Support + Frostbite or Enfeeble

Storm Brand level 8. CWDT level 1 Increased Critical Strike level 20 and Enfeeble/Frostbite level 5.

HELMET: Vaal Cold Snap + Efficacy + Bonechill Support + Controlled Destruction

GLOVES: Malevolence Aura + Clarity + Enlighten + Discipline

SHIELD: Flame Dash + Faster Casting + Arcane Surge(Level 7)

 

Gear

Move the mouse on the bold poe equipment to see needed mod

Cheap For Leveling

Spine of the First Claimant, Fossilised Spirit Shield, Vaal Regalia, Rime Gaze, Bated Breath, Sorcerer Boots, Moonstone Ring, Two-Stone Ring, Arcanist Gloves

Endgame

For a more detailed selection of gear, please refer to the PoB Link. The gear selected in the PoB is not mandatory if it is not stated. It is recommended that the player check the affix of the gear and make a better choice.

Unique Jewels

#% Faster Start of Energy Shield Recharge while affected by Discipline

Watcher's Eye

5% increased maximum Energy Shield
5% increased maximum Life
6% increased maximum Mana
35% faster start of Energy Shield Recharge while affected by Discipline
104.7 Life Regenerated per Second while affected by Vitality

Conqueror's Efficiency

3% reduced Mana Cost of Skills
4% increased Skill Effect Duration
2% reduced Mana Reserved

Stats you should look for in a jewel

  • #% to Cold Damage Over Time Multiplier
  • #% Faster Start of Energy Shield Recharge
  • #% Increased Maximum Energy Shield
  • #% Increased Energy Shield Recharge Rate
  • #% Increased Cold Damage
  • #% Increased Spell Damage
  • #% Increased Area Damage

 

Leveling Guide

The leveling of this build can be a bit complicated because you gotta start using life then you'll be Hybrid (Life + ES) and finally you'll get CI (Chaos Inoculation). If you like to start using the build skills as soon as possible you can start using Freezing Pulse + Arcane Surge and Added Cold Damage (a bit later) until level 12 and then you can use Arctic Breath (That will not be used at the end but you can use that just for now to see how Cold Damage over Time works). Level 16 you can use Cold Snap (Buy the Vaal Cold Snap).

In the act 2 you can get Herald of Thunder and Herald of Ice if you're confortable with 50% of mana reservation.
For the Cold Snap and Arctic Breath you'll get Controlled Destruction and Elemental Focus. If you have a tabula you can use both skills on it and link Concentrated Effect, Added Cold Damage or Faster Casting

In the act 3, at level 28 you'll get Vortex and replace Arctic Breath. You will also get Hypothermia, Efficacy and Swift Affliction.

If you're using 4 links at this point you should use:

1. Vortex + Efficacy + Controlled Destruction + Elemental Focus or Hyporthermia.

The gem you didn't use above (Elemental Focus or Hypothermia) will be your 5th link and Swift Affliction is your 6th link on Vortex.

2. Cold Snap + Efficacy + Controlled Destructiont or Hypothermia.

In the act 4 you'll swap Controlled Destruction for Bonechill.

After that just go through the acts and follow the gem setups shown in the Skill Gems section.

 

Additional Info - Gear, Gems and Tree Options show
One of the problems you may have is about the Mana Sustain. If you're using a Shaper Amulet with 22 Discipline then you can use Clarity Aura on gloves instead Discipline but thats not enough for the sustain. You'll need some Mana Regeneration in your Rings or Shield (something like 50% should be enough).
In case you don't have a Shaper Amulet with 22 Discipline on it you should use Clarity (level 10) instead Culling Strike in your Cast When Damage Taken setup or you can use an Unset Ring with a blue socket and use clarity on it.
About the Helmet, Rime Gaze is the best for damage but If you're looking for something "better" or similar thinking on damage you can get a Rare crafted using Fossils. And for that you should use Frigid + Dense and try to get High ES and Nearby Enemies have -9% to Cold Resistance. With that you would lose some damage but wouldn't have 50% reduced Energy Shield Recharge Rate what is pretty good and probably gain some Energy Shield. By the way, if you get a Helmet like this, you can craft gloves using Essence of Delirium trygin to get some ES and an open prefix for crafting +1 to AoE gems and use Cold Snap on that.
Another option to boost your DPS is picking Elemental Equilibrium and self casting Storm Brand or Orb of Storms. I think the best option for that is by using Malachai's Artifice and socketing Storm Brand or Orb of Storms on it. I'm not pretty sure if picking Elemental Equilibrium on passive tree works as good as on ring but seems like it does.
ES Leech is useless for this build. DoT can't Leech!