Hello there! - I think this is actually my 1st post here, but I would like to share a fun build with you all that I have been playing around with recently. I have dubbed it my "Something in the Water" build, and I feel like its a pretty cool concept that makes great use of the underrated item - http://us.battle.net/d3/en/item/the-grin-reaper
And as some may be wondering, there is a ton of room to play around with things like runes used, passives and other items that would help to bolster the creativity and gameplay of the spec. There are some specific items - like the VD Mask - that are required for the playstyle but they can even be mixed and matched. I have tried a Physical version, Poison w/ Zombie Piranhas and a Cold version w/ Frozen Piranhas - which has crazy CC potential.
So I'm going to jump right into it and let you know how it all really works as it is fairly simple. The Grin Reaper is really the backbone of the spec and really shines in both AoE and Single Target action - The spell rotation really depends on the situation but I like to start off with a good Grasp of the Dead followed by - Piranhas - Spirit Walk (into mobs, but not always necessary) - Horrify - Corpse Spiders - Rain of Toads (or Addling) spam - Repeat.
Now of course you don't have to play it that way and sometimes I would even recommend that you play it by ear as this game has no real set 'rotation' most of the time, but as you play it you will get a nice feel for it as the learning curve is quite simple. Soon enough your screen will be filled with Groping Eels, our most favorite Fetishes, a nice group of Zombie Dogs - or Garg Dog w/ Tall Man's - you and 2 deadly Mimics that love to run a muck! I wish I had the ability to make a nice vid to show off some of the cool things that the spec provides but I encourage people to test it themselves and with friends!
Some may ask "well is this viable T5-6? I heard Grin Reaper is A**!" and I can assure you that it is which makes it all the better. Most WDs are either Jade or Pet so I'm simply offering another set to try out when you just wanna try something different. Now the spec is really build upon casting Piranhas with the Bogadile rune, and once you get it rolling.... there are Crocs all over just waiting to CHOMP down on enemies!
- Pros and Cons of the Spec -
As I just mentioned, the spec was really designed to have Bogadiles everywhere as the Mimics will be casting basically all of your spells and doing full damage - truly 100% of it iirc - with the recent buff to this VD Mask. Its all just really fun to see and play when all is said and done. but to break it down here is what you will get:
Pros - I like to stack Cooldown reduction to maximize the uptime of Piranhas and Grasp as well as Horrify and Spirit Walk. Great CC and uptime on mobs with Crocs all over, Tons of Fetish procs. Hefty survivability and CC thorough Horrify and the frightening Aspects rune (100% extra armor for 8 sec. plus mobs feared in place). Nice DoT with things like eels, Rain of Toads, Spiders and the like which are all duplicated by your Mimics. I have even seen mobs get 'comboed' from Croc to Croc to Croc depending on where they land - its a bit troll but totally lol - which leads me to the cons of the spec.
Cons - Mana can be an issue but by running the Widowmakers rune on Corpse Spiders you can really get the mana pumping back into your WD - and maybe even a little resource cost reduction through paragon points. The real main issue with the spec that causes the most issues is the same thing that makes it so cool to see, and that is the Bogadile Rune. As you all probably know, that huge dude like to CHOMP and SWALLOW mobs - which can be great at times for CC on mobs, but it WILL eat things that you don't want it to eat and of course with the worst timing i.e. cursed chests, any timed event, eating GOBLINS, which is probably the worst offense but can be remedied a bit by stacking physical damage.
This leads to the other elements being viable options by stacking said elements and avoiding the chomp issue. And this was actually kind of mentioned in a post found here: http://us.battle.net/d3/en/forum/topic/12329703322
** Now I will say this... I have thought of a solution to the chomping issue that I would believe would solve the problem once and for all and I would have it look something like this:
Piranhas - Bogadile
Cost: 250 Mana
Cooldown: 8 seconds
Summons a pool of deadly piranhas that deals 400% weapon damage as Poison over 8 seconds. Affected enemies will also take 15% increased damage.
A giant bogadile emerges from the pool of water and bites a monster dealing 1100% weapon damage as Physical and stunning enemies hit for 1 sec.
I don't think that it would be broken or bad to have it act as such especially when considering the issues that are presented with the way the spell works currently. It would still provide the needed CC yet would not interfere with DPS - since it basically does do that now - and would still be awesome to see and play with. The physy spec would be a lot stronger and the build even more viable. As you can see if you check my profile I have to go with Frozen Piranhas just to avoid issues at times but still like I said before, stacking physy damage can really help to alleviate the problem as well and add a nice DPS boost.
So I think I'll cut it all right here because I'm already curious to see what others think of the build and what variations people may come up with. Please chime in if you'd like, ask question or even give suggestions on what may make the build even more fun for WD's all over to play!
i really love this build, having done this a month or so ago, i used it pretty much as you describe, and its pretty good, its not fantastic like killing t6 on farm like jade currently is, due to that abusive mechanic (in my opinion) but its got a lot going for it, and great alternative to just pets or jade.
the best thing about this build is that its flexible, as long as you have the helm, the sky is the limit almost as to what you can put on your bars, or your gear, i had fun experimenting on what works and what doesnt or just seeing the cool effects i could get with the mimics. This spec is pretty fun visually, its fairly easy to play and its fast.
If they will fix the big croc as you said, this spec would be a lot better, i agree its annoying when you cast put big croc, and it eats things u didnt want it to, but it still looks badass. It also is amazing on single target, on elites, if you get a few big croc slams, with +physical damage build he hits really hard!
I think blizzard has dug themselves a hole with the jade build, because pretty much its either jade for high end clearing or pets, problem is the damage from jade is rediculous and only reason that makes it viable, because now u can 2 hit elites, no other spec in the game can do that,
and if they ever nerf it, they would need a new build to do just as much or almost as much, no other wd build comes close, so basically its all or nothing, but that also leaves us who play other builds doing "pretty ok damage" but knowing we will never reach the numbers that jade does, in 1 button.
This build, if they were to buff bog like make 3k damage, make some huge strides in dps, and other changes, could be fine in t6 and GR's, but i just dont see that happening, they seem to only like having 2-3 builds per class, some only have 2 or even 1
and blizzard seems fine with that, for some reason, has made no effort to fix it or support changes, simple fixes that would make the game 10x better for everyone....but enough of my rant....
This looks interesting. I am getting quite bored with my pet build, and have yet to get my jade boots. Unfortunately, the community tends to drive a BIS mentality, so if you are running something different than the BIS gear/Spec you are considered a substandard player and thus a liability to a group. It is clear when you sit in various communities, and see requests for specific specs, not specific classes, as people are more focused on clearing rifts in 4 mins, instead of having fun clearing them. Just my 2 cents!
this mentality is just gaming in general these days, it happens a lot in wow too, they gotta have a certain Ilvl or certain dps to measure your performance before they let you in group, or if you arent doing good enough dps in a raid, they kick you out.
Its been like that for so long, and i dont like it either. We dont play games so much anymore for the fun and thrill but we play to win, there's to many elitists and people who think they are entitled, and unfortunately the games we have today are setup and built around winning, the rewards and gameplay says play to win get your team, do your best and only the best can be on your team etc.
You add in casual players and new players, to a base of a game loaded with those types of people and the sad fact is the majority is dictated by the minority, when everyone should just be focusing on having fun. Gaming before the internet was the best era, you didnt have the social aspect except for your friends, you played together, in person, you enjoyed those awesome rpgs game staying up all night playing Final Fantasy 3
These days, those kids who were playing back then, have grown up, and become responsible, with families, kids, and cant play like they used to (like myself) so i have to deal with being a casual or not playing 10+ hours a day like i used to, and being told i am not good enough by an addon in a game i enjoy playing.
Thus is life, we are being replaced forever more with a new generation of kids, but at least we can say that we had the best generation, and the best games, they can go enjoy thier GTA 6, Halo 5's...i'll be sitting right here, playing my NES emulator, with Super Mario 3.
One question about your passive, why do you run with the Midnight Feasts and Zombie Handler when you dont run with Zombie dogs and or Gangatuan? that dosnt make any sense to me
TBH right now I run midnight to have a strong hitting Zombie Dog as I run with a TMF and he makes quite the tank. And as for ZH, I'm lacking in HP atm which I am hoping to address soon and ZH gives me 20% extra for the time being. I'd gladly switch out for something like Gruesome Feast or even Grave Injustice. As I tighten my gearing options a little I should have no issue changing that out for something a lot stronger - but ty for asking!
Do the mimics cast Summon Zombie dogs/benefit from Homunculus giving you more than the usual number of dogs/gard dogs? I Like the mask in terms of CC and fun... but to me it always seemed a good deal slower than my sycophants/garg/gruesomfeast/graveinjustice/vodoo/thigofthedeep build.http://eu.battle.net/d3/en/profile/SuperArthas-2215/hero/30880582
Also the Croc is nice and fun but in the end it will slow you down. piranhado'd mobs ar also cc'ed and won't do any harm but remain accessible and are bundled up for soul harvest/umbral shock/paragon AOE effects.
Well the mimics won't cast something like Summon Zombie Dogs but the Mojo does work with passives and TMF. And as for Piranhas I agree that things like Piranhado can be better to have at this time, as to avoid chomp issues. I wanted to focus on physy damage and have Crocs all over - esp. with things like Grave Injustice its so crazy! - but the spec, as someone else mentioned in their post, would be a lot better if they would consider changing Bodadile to not swallow enemies. That's also why the spec is great with the GR Mask - there are just so many variations possible, but this one focuses mainly on Crocs and Hard physical hits, some really good synergy between spells and good coverage.
ahh make sense just cant see your Zombie dog on your armory may not be updated
Probably because the ZD comes from the offhand - I don't actually use the skill. So the offhand let's me have an extra spot for another spell without losing out on the TMF dog, which also benefits from my physy damage.
ahh make sense just cant see your Zombie dog on your armory may not be updated
Probably because the ZD comes from the offhand - I don't actually use the skill. So the offhand let's me have an extra spot for another spell without losing out on the TMF dog, which also benefits from my physy damage.
ahh maybe i should open my eyes next time
Btw just tryed the basics of the spells swapped alittle around to and i love it, especially the Graps of the Dead i dont know why i never used that it make huge AOE dmg, and spawns insane mount of sychophants
Well there are actually many reasons I use GotD in this build:
Solid CC, like 880% weapon dmg as physy, EELS!! (For the water theme), plus the extra damage from this bad boy here: http://us.battle.net/d3/en/item/deadly-rebirth - and the proc is always up with good CDR. The synergy is awesome b/c guess what... Mimics proc leg affixes too! So Rain of Corpses all around!
One more question Why do you use Corpse spiders together with Plague of Toads?
Spiders are used for 2 reasons - Physy damage (and the incoming buff to CS will be sweet!) and Mana regen through Widowmakers. Constantly casting GotD and Pirahnas can be a mana issue esp at a high CDR. It works as a perfect generator and nice as a spell that still does damage on the move i.e. Firebomb Pyrogiest. I'm running Addling Toads atm too for CC and extra damage from confused minions working for me - BWAHAHAHA!!
Here is a quick overview of the talents used in the spec: http://us.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/witch-doctor#WbZlXU!WRdV!bbZaYa
And as some may be wondering, there is a ton of room to play around with things like runes used, passives and other items that would help to bolster the creativity and gameplay of the spec. There are some specific items - like the VD Mask - that are required for the playstyle but they can even be mixed and matched. I have tried a Physical version, Poison w/ Zombie Piranhas and a Cold version w/ Frozen Piranhas - which has crazy CC potential.
Here is a quick overview of my character if you would like to see what I am using in terms of gear: http://us.battle.net/d3/en/profile/Rockman-1573/hero/21630942
So I'm going to jump right into it and let you know how it all really works as it is fairly simple. The Grin Reaper is really the backbone of the spec and really shines in both AoE and Single Target action - The spell rotation really depends on the situation but I like to start off with a good Grasp of the Dead followed by - Piranhas - Spirit Walk (into mobs, but not always necessary) - Horrify - Corpse Spiders - Rain of Toads (or Addling) spam - Repeat.
Now of course you don't have to play it that way and sometimes I would even recommend that you play it by ear as this game has no real set 'rotation' most of the time, but as you play it you will get a nice feel for it as the learning curve is quite simple. Soon enough your screen will be filled with Groping Eels, our most favorite Fetishes, a nice group of Zombie Dogs - or Garg Dog w/ Tall Man's - you and 2 deadly Mimics that love to run a muck! I wish I had the ability to make a nice vid to show off some of the cool things that the spec provides but I encourage people to test it themselves and with friends!
Some may ask "well is this viable T5-6? I heard Grin Reaper is A**!" and I can assure you that it is which makes it all the better. Most WDs are either Jade or Pet so I'm simply offering another set to try out when you just wanna try something different. Now the spec is really build upon casting Piranhas with the Bogadile rune, and once you get it rolling.... there are Crocs all over just waiting to CHOMP down on enemies!
- Pros and Cons of the Spec -
As I just mentioned, the spec was really designed to have Bogadiles everywhere as the Mimics will be casting basically all of your spells and doing full damage - truly 100% of it iirc - with the recent buff to this VD Mask. Its all just really fun to see and play when all is said and done. but to break it down here is what you will get:
Pros - I like to stack Cooldown reduction to maximize the uptime of Piranhas and Grasp as well as Horrify and Spirit Walk. Great CC and uptime on mobs with Crocs all over, Tons of Fetish procs. Hefty survivability and CC thorough Horrify and the frightening Aspects rune (100% extra armor for 8 sec. plus mobs feared in place). Nice DoT with things like eels, Rain of Toads, Spiders and the like which are all duplicated by your Mimics. I have even seen mobs get 'comboed' from Croc to Croc to Croc depending on where they land - its a bit troll but totally lol - which leads me to the cons of the spec.
Cons - Mana can be an issue but by running the Widowmakers rune on Corpse Spiders you can really get the mana pumping back into your WD - and maybe even a little resource cost reduction through paragon points. The real main issue with the spec that causes the most issues is the same thing that makes it so cool to see, and that is the Bogadile Rune. As you all probably know, that huge dude like to CHOMP and SWALLOW mobs - which can be great at times for CC on mobs, but it WILL eat things that you don't want it to eat and of course with the worst timing i.e. cursed chests, any timed event, eating GOBLINS, which is probably the worst offense but can be remedied a bit by stacking physical damage.
This leads to the other elements being viable options by stacking said elements and avoiding the chomp issue. And this was actually kind of mentioned in a post found here: http://us.battle.net/d3/en/forum/topic/12329703322
** Now I will say this... I have thought of a solution to the chomping issue that I would believe would solve the problem once and for all and I would have it look something like this:
Piranhas - Bogadile
Cost: 250 Mana
Cooldown: 8 seconds
Summons a pool of deadly piranhas that deals 400% weapon damage as Poison over 8 seconds. Affected enemies will also take 15% increased damage.
A giant bogadile emerges from the pool of water and bites a monster dealing 1100% weapon damage as Physical and stunning enemies hit for 1 sec.
I don't think that it would be broken or bad to have it act as such especially when considering the issues that are presented with the way the spell works currently. It would still provide the needed CC yet would not interfere with DPS - since it basically does do that now - and would still be awesome to see and play with. The physy spec would be a lot stronger and the build even more viable. As you can see if you check my profile I have to go with Frozen Piranhas just to avoid issues at times but still like I said before, stacking physy damage can really help to alleviate the problem as well and add a nice DPS boost.
**Plus it would be nice for things that proc off of stuns i.e. http://us.battle.net/d3/en/item/haunt-of-vaxo
So I think I'll cut it all right here because I'm already curious to see what others think of the build and what variations people may come up with. Please chime in if you'd like, ask question or even give suggestions on what may make the build even more fun for WD's all over to play!
the best thing about this build is that its flexible, as long as you have the helm, the sky is the limit almost as to what you can put on your bars, or your gear, i had fun experimenting on what works and what doesnt or just seeing the cool effects i could get with the mimics. This spec is pretty fun visually, its fairly easy to play and its fast.
If they will fix the big croc as you said, this spec would be a lot better, i agree its annoying when you cast put big croc, and it eats things u didnt want it to, but it still looks badass. It also is amazing on single target, on elites, if you get a few big croc slams, with +physical damage build he hits really hard!
I think blizzard has dug themselves a hole with the jade build, because pretty much its either jade for high end clearing or pets, problem is the damage from jade is rediculous and only reason that makes it viable, because now u can 2 hit elites, no other spec in the game can do that,
and if they ever nerf it, they would need a new build to do just as much or almost as much, no other wd build comes close, so basically its all or nothing, but that also leaves us who play other builds doing "pretty ok damage" but knowing we will never reach the numbers that jade does, in 1 button.
This build, if they were to buff bog like make 3k damage, make some huge strides in dps, and other changes, could be fine in t6 and GR's, but i just dont see that happening, they seem to only like having 2-3 builds per class, some only have 2 or even 1
and blizzard seems fine with that, for some reason, has made no effort to fix it or support changes, simple fixes that would make the game 10x better for everyone....but enough of my rant....
good build, *thumbs up*
Its been like that for so long, and i dont like it either. We dont play games so much anymore for the fun and thrill but we play to win, there's to many elitists and people who think they are entitled, and unfortunately the games we have today are setup and built around winning, the rewards and gameplay says play to win get your team, do your best and only the best can be on your team etc.
You add in casual players and new players, to a base of a game loaded with those types of people and the sad fact is the majority is dictated by the minority, when everyone should just be focusing on having fun. Gaming before the internet was the best era, you didnt have the social aspect except for your friends, you played together, in person, you enjoyed those awesome rpgs game staying up all night playing Final Fantasy 3
These days, those kids who were playing back then, have grown up, and become responsible, with families, kids, and cant play like they used to (like myself) so i have to deal with being a casual or not playing 10+ hours a day like i used to, and being told i am not good enough by an addon in a game i enjoy playing.
Thus is life, we are being replaced forever more with a new generation of kids, but at least we can say that we had the best generation, and the best games, they can go enjoy thier GTA 6, Halo 5's...i'll be sitting right here, playing my NES emulator, with Super Mario 3.
** P.S.http://us.battle.net/d3/en/forum/topic/13140803953?page=1 - a very nice place to get more information on the GR Mask, its mechanics and what the mimics actually cast!
Probably because the ZD comes from the offhand - I don't actually use the skill. So the offhand let's me have an extra spot for another spell without losing out on the TMF dog, which also benefits from my physy damage.
nice guide.
Solid CC, like 880% weapon dmg as physy, EELS!! (For the water theme), plus the extra damage from this bad boy here: http://us.battle.net/d3/en/item/deadly-rebirth - and the proc is always up with good CDR. The synergy is awesome b/c guess what... Mimics proc leg affixes too! So Rain of Corpses all around!