I think the Rune choice on Ray of Frost is more down to preferance. In solo play what you say sounds strong, however in group play I think Snow Blast is definitely better. Also Black Ice isn't going to help you kill Elites quicker unless you pull them with a pack.
Tested this build with the Shard of Hate fix and it still works fine, procs often.
Hello everyone, thought I would share my build that I am having good success with. The major difference to current builds going about is that it doesn't require the skill "Arcane Orb" at all, Mirrorball off-hand and imo, really is a great all round build.
Black Hole - You can pick any rune you prefare here, Absolute Zero 10 seconds buff is awesome and in Co-op games you can get some insane stacks, so would highly recommend this rune.
Magic Weapon - Optional rune choice here, I use Electrify because of Elemental Exposure passive and Tal Rasha's 4pc set bonus, Force Weapon could easily work here.
Conflagration - This passive slot you can pick what you wish, if I was starting a new difficulty I would take Blur for example, its just a really nice buff for co-op & nice dps boost when you have enough Toughness!
Gear:
There is one item that are required for this build to work. That item is Light of Grace.
Attack Speed + Life on Hit play a major role in this build, you will need some.
Three futher items that would make this build even better are, Frostburn, Stone of Jordan & Ice Climbers. I don't have these items, which is why they are not "must" have, however I think with these items this build would be ready for Torment VI.
Build in Action: http://youtu.be/EbtQeRStZ0w
Elite pulls, Goblin & double Elite pack pull at end. Watch to see if I Goblin fail again or bite off more than I can chew with the double Elite pull.
Conclusion:
I really enjoy this build, as you can see from the video I am not squishy. I can take hits from affixes/monsters and heal myself enough to survive.
When playing Co-op I buff my party with 25% damage & 6% Critical Hit Chance, this would be a 30% damage buff if my weapon had rolled its damage as Arcane. Should add that if a group member is using Cold based skills they gain a further 15% damage buff.
This build really is a good all rounder. Good damage output from ranged and melee distance. Buffs for group members and at times can be tanky when needed.
Edit: This build still works fine post SoH nerf, however I wouldn't say it is must have for this build to work so have removed it from the gear list.
I play Arcane, however I keep nice Lighting/Fire & Cold gear I find just incase I fancy a change one day. For a Cold build, which one would be the better? SoH proc is really nice but Azurewrath has nice stats & freeze chance. I would obviously re-roll the Attack Speed on Azurewrath to a Socket if I were to use it.
Hi Cassanova, Just pass by to say that your build works well for me. I using it as a Tank wizard. Like what you show in the video, I can withstand hordes of monster including Elite one. By doing that, my teammates can finish them off easily. Although i dont have the legendary which you had mention, i using Coven's Criterion (lv70) instead.
Hey SoulQ, glad you have found the build usful! Good news its working for you without a Moonlight Ward, still recommend you get one though.
Here is another run with the build, slightly tweaked. No shield this time, there is a goblin fail and I manage to pull 2 packs again, watch to see what happens.
I run a variant of this build (this build with Mirrorball), and I have to say Unwavering Will is mostly useless. As a melee, you have to move a lot to make your dps happen. This build makes white mobs die so fast you don't even have the time to take advantage of it, and elites will make you move around to dodge all kinds of affixes, or simply the elite moving. I would love for this passive to be of any use, but sadly I think it is a ranged wizard passive.
About Elemental Exposure, I don't think this build benefits from it, I personally stacked as much arcane skills as I could because if I dropped Prismatic Armor or Deflection, I would be too squishy to handle Torment V. For a lower Torment, I guess it's fine if you're geared enough.
I personally run this build when I'm dealing with boss fights, and Rift Guardians. Makes things melt. I have Gesture of Orpheus so I don't need Illusionist to reposition the Time Warp. A build like this would be cool for your setup. Switch Conflagration for Elemental Exposure if you think 10% damage is worth 6% crit.
Thanks for the feedback, I know all about Illuisonist etc and was trying to make the build slightly different from whats out there.
Unwavering build has it moments of being useless but also extremtly effective, you can ofcourse change it if you wish.
Had some really postive comments back about it, cheers.
Gearing: Moonlight Ward is a must, I still use my level 60 version, Attack Speed + Life on Hit its very nice also. If you can get your hands on a well rolled Blind Faith I would highly recommend it also, again still using my level 60 version.
I have 0 Arcane Power on Crit, I think the build would run better with 1 piece of gear with it. This is because I have to watch my AP to time Black Hole and sometimes I just don't have the resources to use it when I want.
Build in Action:http://youtu.be/OrIPiuXl4yU
Due to Unwavering Will, always try and judge if you can stand still and take a hit because chances are you are better off doing so.
Reality: The build has room for change depending on your gear, If I had a weapon that was cold damage I don't think I would be using Frost Armour for an example.
I do sometimes die with this build yes, although as you seen I can also take on 2 packs at the same time occasionally.
Bosses like The Butcher, I can't kill, this build does more damage when you have more monsters around you so struggles in single target DPS races.
Plus note this is quite a sick build in co-op, I grouped with a Barbarian friend last night and we were destroying packs. 20% damage to party due to Elemental Exposure & you could increase this 10% more by taking Cold Blooded. If you think the group is struggling due to Affixes you can easily change the Black Hole rune also.
Anyway hope this helps some people out and have good results with it like I am, happy slaying folks!
Tested this build with the Shard of Hate fix and it still works fine, procs often.
I posted a build based around this combo, I agree that it is indeed a powerful combination.
In comparison to fire, I personally find this all round to be stronger but maybe that's just personnel preference.
My Hero:
http://eu.battle.net/d3/en/profile/casa-2931/hero/13792
The Build:
http://us.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/wizard#bZNjSO!ReSW!acZaac
Black Hole - You can pick any rune you prefare here, Absolute Zero 10 seconds buff is awesome and in Co-op games you can get some insane stacks, so would highly recommend this rune.
Magic Weapon - Optional rune choice here, I use Electrify because of Elemental Exposure passive and Tal Rasha's 4pc set bonus, Force Weapon could easily work here.
Conflagration - This passive slot you can pick what you wish, if I was starting a new difficulty I would take Blur for example, its just a really nice buff for co-op & nice dps boost when you have enough Toughness!
Gear:
There is one item that are required for this build to work. That item is Light of Grace.
Attack Speed + Life on Hit play a major role in this build, you will need some.
Three futher items that would make this build even better are, Frostburn, Stone of Jordan & Ice Climbers. I don't have these items, which is why they are not "must" have, however I think with these items this build would be ready for Torment VI.
Build in Action:
http://youtu.be/EbtQeRStZ0w
Elite pulls, Goblin & double Elite pack pull at end. Watch to see if I Goblin fail again or bite off more than I can chew with the double Elite pull.
Conclusion:
I really enjoy this build, as you can see from the video I am not squishy. I can take hits from affixes/monsters and heal myself enough to survive.
When playing Co-op I buff my party with 25% damage & 6% Critical Hit Chance, this would be a 30% damage buff if my weapon had rolled its damage as Arcane. Should add that if a group member is using Cold based skills they gain a further 15% damage buff.
This build really is a good all rounder. Good damage output from ranged and melee distance. Buffs for group members and at times can be tanky when needed.
Edit: This build still works fine post SoH nerf, however I wouldn't say it is must have for this build to work so have removed it from the gear list.
I play Arcane, however I keep nice Lighting/Fire & Cold gear I find just incase I fancy a change one day. For a Cold build, which one would be the better? SoH proc is really nice but Azurewrath has nice stats & freeze chance. I would obviously re-roll the Attack Speed on Azurewrath to a Socket if I were to use it.
http://youtu.be/LMPC5KGNufs
"Your shields heal for 25% of their remaining amount when they expire."
This is include when they get refreshed? aka Spectral Blade or Deflection shields? Otherwise this set bonus is quite... rubbish?
Unwavering build has it moments of being useless but also extremtly effective, you can ofcourse change it if you wish.
Had some really postive comments back about it, cheers.
The Build: http://eu.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/wizard#WNcfjS!ZRiS!YcZcaa
"Black Hole - Spell Steal" is an open slot, you could use a different rune or Archon for example if you wish.
Gearing: Moonlight Ward is a must, I still use my level 60 version, Attack Speed + Life on Hit its very nice also. If you can get your hands on a well rolled Blind Faith I would highly recommend it also, again still using my level 60 version.
I have 0 Arcane Power on Crit, I think the build would run better with 1 piece of gear with it. This is because I have to watch my AP to time Black Hole and sometimes I just don't have the resources to use it when I want.
Build in Action: http://youtu.be/OrIPiuXl4yU
Due to Unwavering Will, always try and judge if you can stand still and take a hit because chances are you are better off doing so.
Edit:
No shield version: http://youtu.be/LMPC5KGNufs
Reality: The build has room for change depending on your gear, If I had a weapon that was cold damage I don't think I would be using Frost Armour for an example.
I do sometimes die with this build yes, although as you seen I can also take on 2 packs at the same time occasionally.
Bosses like The Butcher, I can't kill, this build does more damage when you have more monsters around you so struggles in single target DPS races.
Plus note this is quite a sick build in co-op, I grouped with a Barbarian friend last night and we were destroying packs. 20% damage to party due to Elemental Exposure & you could increase this 10% more by taking Cold Blooded. If you think the group is struggling due to Affixes you can easily change the Black Hole rune also.
Anyway hope this helps some people out and have good results with it like I am, happy slaying folks!