Fellow Exiles, I’m back with my low-budget version of Explosive Arrow Ballista Elementalist. This build is possible for both Solo Self Found and Hardcore POE.

Overview

Explosive Arrow produced by each fuse of Ballista Totem produces an extremely powerful ignition. This allows the build to deal massive damage to a single target. It takes very little manual skill to smash some of the toughest bosses in the game. The overall play style is simple and consistent, with very little reliance on Flask for damage output.

Defensively, the build is quite durable, with its ability to engage safely from a distance. That, coupled with the ease of dealing damage over time, makes it capable of handling most content with ease. It has high spell suppression, and combined with Grace and Haste, can convert physical damage into elemental damage.

With a significant layer of defense, this should be feasible in hardcore games. And equipping unique POE items is also optional, making it suitable for Solo Self Found as well.

Also, there will be 2 versions of this build, one for the league start and another for the endgame Uber version. You can improvise or swap at will based on POE Currency you accumulate during the league.

Core Mechanism

Now let’s start looking at the core mechanics. We will use Explosive Arrow for clearing and bosses. It applies intense ignition based on the number of arrows or fuses on the target enemy. This requires you to have a faster attack speed, a moderate skill effect duration, and expand the total number of Ballistas that can be used.

We should note that because we use Elemental Equilibrium keystone. Therefore, we cannot use any external modifiers in the build settings to flatten fire damage.

Ascendancy

Normally, fire damage is only ignited when you land a critical hit or there is an opportunity to ignite in your build. However, our first Ascendancy node, Shaper of Flames, gives us a 100% chance of igniting.

Through our second Ascendancy node, Mastermind of Discord, we can do Multiple Exposures. This reduces the enemy’s resistance by 50%. Combined with our Flammability Curse, it will significantly reduce the monster’s fire resistance.

With the help of our third Ascendancy Heart of Destruction, we gained massive AOE during mapping and increased the damage of single target bosses by 30%.

And Mastermind of Discord and Heart of Destruction are by far the best options for building elemental fire damage. Once you clear out the last Uber, you gain a massive layer of defense that works similarly to Ward.

Primal Aegis combined with our Spell Suppression, will give you a smoother map experience among monster hordes.

Also Read: A Full Guide To Vengeance Cold Conversion Build In POE 3.22 League

General Gameplay

During general gameplay, this build often keeps moving in Flame Dash. Avoid turning back too quickly to cause death effects and delayed attacks. Meanwhile, we need to keep a safe distance as much as possible, and can even shoot off-screen to eliminate threats ahead.

We apply Flammability and Flame Surge through Arcanist Brand, while occasionally maintaining Frenzy Charge through Frenzy skill. I would suggest that you can use a gem setup like this as a caster to level up your build.

Although you can use Burning Arrow to level up or switch after unlocking the library for a smooth experience. But I recommend that most players complete these actions first before switching directly to as many core endgame items as possible. This is our progress in upgrading the skill tree.

Skill Gem

For skill gems, I will start with our 6-Link. Explosive Arrow slots directly into our main hand weapon. Explosive Arrow can be associated with Ballista Totem Support, Ignite Proliferation, Lesser Multiple Projectiles, Burning Damage, and Unbound Ailments.

For a single target, you can switch from Lesser Multiple Projectiles to Swift Affliction Support. But getting this Color of Socket can be a difficult thing. I recommend using Crafting Bench to get 3 colors.

If you are stuck with the remaining 3 Green Sockets, I recommend using Swift Affliction Support instead of Unbound Ailments or Burning Damage. When you accumulate enough Divine Orb, you can upgrade it to Awakened Support.

Our halo setup includes Grace and Haste and supports level 8 Clarity Support. If you want to sacrifice an entire layer of defense for damage, you can swap Grace for Malevolence.

Gear Selection

It’s finally time to explain the gear of this build. Let’s start with our bow.

If you switch to Explosive Arrow early, you can run these affordable Uniques first, which can take you through historic missions. Ideally, look for a rare bow with high attack speed, gem level, and damage multiplier over time before upgrading.

You can use cheap unique items like Skirmish, which gives you an extra Ballista Totem best suited for a single target, or any rare quiver. This increases attack speed and causes damage multiplier mods.

Our helm is a rare item that focuses on health, resistance, chance to suppress spell damage, and crafted physical damage as elemental damage. You can get it from Eater of Worlds.

You can also use cheaper alternatives such as Eye of Malice or Elevore. Eye of Malice can further reduce the monster’s resistance. And Elevore is a great low-budget gear choice for a defensive core build setup.

Our body armor can be any rare item with modifiers like health, resistance, and spell suppression. If you have Gravicius mod unlocked, this mod treats physical damage as elemental damage.

If this is your league starter, you can use the rare boot, Storm Stride, which has movement speed, health, spell suppression, and resistances. Once you enter the league, your best choice of boots will always be Legacy of Fury, which drops from Maven. Because this is very effective against bosses and clears.

Explosive Arrow Ballista Elementalist build offers a fast-paced, dynamic play style. You can clear the map quickly and take on bosses effectively by choosing gear carefully, understanding breakpoints, and optimizing your skill tree. Experiment, tweak and customize the build to suit your play style for an exciting POE gaming experience.