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_{Porting this from my thread in the official forum: http://us.battle.net/d3/en/forum/topic/16953975977}

The melee Tal Rasha spec for Greater Rifts is incredibly fun to play. It leans more on the defensive side, but that doesn't mean it lacks DPS. It will not deal as much effective DPS as the range setup, which means its GR limit will be lower, but it is more consistent when you're running GRs all the way up into the 50s.

At the time of this post, I've personally cleared GR51 in a single try, GR52 in a single try, GR53 in a single try, and currently on my third GR54 try using this setup.

SKILLS & GEAR

ACTIVES:

LMB: Electrocute - Arc Lightning: This is the required signature spell for this Arcane Dynamo-based spec. Since you'll almost always be at melee range, Arc Lightning is preferred for its superior coverage and damage. It can be replaced by Flame Blade to further buff Mammoth Hydra damage, but Dynamo ramp up will be slower as Electrocute has a speed coefficient of 2 vs. Spectral Blade's 1. You will then have to give up a different skill slot to cover lightning damage. Kiza covers this particular Flame Blade setup in another thread: http://us.battle.net/d3/en/forum/topic/16953845641

RMB: Teleport - Calamity: No exceptions. Calamity is the rune to use. You need this to set up or maintain crowd control in order to benefit from APD, your lifeline. It is also the main source of arcane damage for your Tal Rasha stacks.

1: Hydra - Mammoth Hydra: Your main source of DPS.

2: Blizzard - Frozen Solid: When you cannot lock down enough targets with Calamity and Halo of Arlyse alone, Frozen Solid is a great way to hold down enemies at range until you get into a better position. This is also your way to gain cold Tal Rasha stacks.

3: Magic Weapon - Force Weapon: I usually fall on Force Weapon, but this is an open slot. You can use Bone Chill to work with Halo of Arlyse, which will more or less give you insane uptime on the 33% debuff. Slow Time is another great substitute. If you're running a different element for a signature spell (e.g. Flame Blade), a lightning spell like Supermassive works well here.

4: Ice Armor - Crystallize: Need this to get the most out of Halo of Arlyse and to make up some raw toughness lost from dropping Energy Armor.

PASSIVES:

Arcane Dynamo: The main passive. You use this to buff up Hydras and let them loose.

Elemental Exposure: Self explanatory when working with four elements.

Illusionist: Mandatory for keeping Teleport up.

Unstable Anomaly: Necessary unless you enjoy taking long walks or staring at your corpse.

KEY ITEMS:

Halo of Arlyse
Ancient Parthan Defenders
Serpent's Sparker
Tal Rasha 6-piece - Helm, Chest, Belt, Pants, Amulet, Source

A note on the Tal Rasha source. Those found prior to 2.2 have the ability to roll Hydra bonus damage on them. As of Patch 2.2, the new Tal Rasha sources always come with Meteor bonus damage. It's a fixed roll, meaning you cannot touch them in any way. As a result, the remaining primary stats cannot be enchanted to a skill bonus. The preference in this Hydra-oriented setup would be to have Hydra bonus. However, Meteor bonus from the new source is still fine.

Alternate Item Combos:

Unity - Recommended item for dealing with excessive range damage (Ice Armor/Halo only prevents melee); requires immortal follower token (e.g. http://us.battle.net/d3/en/item/enchanting-favor ) and a second Unity on the follower

Stone of Jordan - If you're not going to run Unity, you can try Stone of Jordan for elite DPS as this setup sorely lacks it.

Ring of Royal Grandeur + Firebird - Trading away damage reduction from Unity, you can switch out a Tal Rasha piece with Firebird and run the 2-piece bonus for a free cheat death. Shoulders + source (Firebird's Eye) are good choices, the source is especially nice if you cannot obtain a Hydra Tal source.

Nilfur's Boast - Best way to get more DPS out of your free Meteors. Greatly aids in Rift Guardian kill time.

Firebird's Pinions + Firebird's Tarsi - Shoulder options are highly lacking and Unstable Anomaly is the only way you can cheat death. Having the 2-piece Firebird bonus can save you a lot of headaches. This would be the choice if you are willing to sacrifice Nilfur's Boast, but unwilling to give up a ring slot for Ring of Royal Grandeur.

Pauldrons of the Skeleton King - As said, shoulder options are highly lacking. If Nilfur's Boast is selected, these shoulders can sometimes give you that extra cheat death opportunity.

My preferred setup:
Helm: Tal Rasha's Guise of Wisdom
Shoulder: Pauldrons of the Skeleton King
Chest: Tal Rasha's Relentless Pursuit
Belt: Tal Rasha's Brace
Gloves: Tasker and Theo
Bracers: Ancient Parthan Defenders
Pants: Tal Rasha's Stride
Boots: Nilfur's Boast
Ring 1: Halo of Arlyse
Ring 2: Unity
Amulet: Tal Rasha's Allegiance
Weapon: Serpent's Sparker
Off-hand: Tal Rasha's Unwavering Glare

GEMS:

Main:
Zei's Stone of Vengeance - Dynamically updates all DoT damage the further you are away from the affected target. For Hydra damage, this is based on where the Hydra is located relative to the target.

Bane of the Trapped - Bonus damage triggers as long as the target is under crowd control (you don't necessarily have to be the one doing the CC).

Secondary:
Esoteric Alteration - Crazy added defense prevents ranged enemies from picking you off when you don't have APD's bonus active (physical projectiles can still wreck you, though). This gem allows you to take even more damage to the face.

Pain Enhancer - Works incredibly well with Mammoth Hydra (which can proc the gem's effects). As you would often be surrounding by enemies, the increased attack speed can further boost Hydra's DPS. If you're running a Flame Blade variant, this gem can be considered your go-to choice. Beware of potential frame rate drops if you're hitting too many targets.

Gem of Efficacious Toxin - Some extra debuffs. Not the greatest choice for gems in this particular setup.

Bane of the Powerful - Since this setup sorely lacks elite damage, this gem can make up a good chunk of it. Personally this is probably my last choice for a gem.

Follower Spec (Templar):

http://us.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/follower#0101 Just pick heals (Heal, Guardian) and crowd control (Intimidate, Charge).

Follower Main Gear:
Eun-Jang-Do - RIP Thunderfury. First thing, this setup is already on crowd control, so no need for a Thunderfury to help aid Bane of the Trapped. Eun-Jang-Do? Save it for those fleeing elites or a dying Rift Guardian.

Freeze of Deflection - Extra CC opportunities

Enchanting Favor - Used in combination with a second Unity in order to grant permanent 50% bonus mitigation

Follower Optional Gear:
Oculus Ring - More APS for the follower means more CC.

Bul-Kathos's Wedding Band - If you're not running both Unity and Oculus Ring, BK Wedding Band is a suitable DPS option for your Templar.

Ess of Johan - More CC, great for helping set up targets; can sometimes get you killed if the Templar pulls mobs in onto you, but usually that won't happen in this setup.

GAMEPLAY

Unlike Apocalypse Firebird in 2.1.2 and prior, the melee Tal Rasha wizard is incredibly durable and can push out a lot of damage without needing to herd things around all over the map. Some herding may be necessary when mob numbers dwindle, as the APD bonus is dependent on how many targets you manage to stun.

Play style is somewhat frantic, but in a way, elegant. Personally, it reminds me of the old CM wizard in classic D3. Mobs are more often than not locked down. You have a lot of synergy happening simultaneously:

1. Calamity can set up a fight, trigger an early Star Pact Meteor from Tal Rasha 2-piece, add an arcane Tal stack, and trigger APD to help you tank incoming range attacks.

2. Incoming range attacks against your APD fueled toughness usually isn't enough to kill you, but can deal enough damage to trigger Halo of Arlyse, which in return continue to trigger APD. In addition, it can trigger Illusionist to allow you to recast Calamity. Rinse and repeat.

3. Frozen Solid also contributes to APD's bonus if you freeze targets within 25 yards. It's also your weapon to lock down more high-threat ranged enemies when Calamity is unavailable. The cold damage that enemies walk through, but do not freeze, can trigger Comet from Tal's 2-piece, which will then guarantee a freeze on impact.

4. In a situation where incoming damage is too much, Esoteric Alteration's secondary effect kicks in to give you the time to reposition and re-engage additional targets for more APD bonus reduction. During this time, it's relatively simple to heal up through globes from slain enemies, the Templar's healing spells, or your own potion.

And let's not forget the signature spells, Arcane Dynamo, and the secondary effect of Zei's (chance to stun on hit). Since Arc Lightning scales with attack speed, as does Hydra, the faster you attack, the more you can trigger Zei's for more stun for APD, the faster your Dynamo ramps up.

This all sounds nice and dandy, and to be honest, yes, the spec is much easier to play than Firebird's. While you can do the same with Firebird, the 6-piece Tal bonus is a much stronger option. However, like with all high Greater Rift attempts, you have to constantly make decisions. From the last 101 thread:

All serious GR attempts follow a system similar to driving on the road. It involves repeating three phases over and over and over again:

Phase 1: Scanning
Phase 2: Predicting
Phase 3: Reacting

In Phase 1, you will be scanning your surroundings. In terms of GRs, you will be constantly checking the minimap and your character's immediate vicinity for enemies and patterns. In addition, checking on the progress bar for how much time you have remaining is important. You have to factor in the time it'll take you to down the RG. As soon as you get an idea of what type of tileset you're in (e.g. Caverns tileset, Keeps tileset, Sewers tileset, etc.) and what mob combination populates the Rift level, you move on to Phase 2.

In Phase 2, you will be predicting the best and worst outcomes for the current Rift level. Based on the mob types and the level tileset, you have to decide whether to attempt to engage the enemies you encounter or skip them. For low density levels in long, intricate map layouts (e.g. levels that resemble Act II's Sirocco Caverns), you may have to decide to speed through it to get to the next level rather than waste time picking off the occasional enemy. Depending on how any of these levels roll, you move on to Phase 3.

In Phase 3, you react to situations based on your predictions in Phase 2. This is where players adapt. Sometimes things will go as planned (mob composition is exactly what you expected), sometimes not (encounter mob types you did not expect, hit a dead end, etc.).

The melee Tal Rasha spec requires you to play aggressively. The more you idle, the more likely you'll get smashed in the face. You have to try to stun enemies as often as possible, as many enemies as possible. The more you do so, the tankier you are, the more forgiving mistakes are (but don't let this be an excuse to make dumb mistakes like walking into Demonic Forges or a line of bees). Since you'll always be in the middle of heavy combat, you have to keep an eye out on everything happening outside your freeze and stun range. Projectiles coming from the side of your screen, incoming elite affixes, etc. can also cause major issues if you leave them around. Try to address them as soon as you see them (or at least set up a plan) so you can hold down as many enemies and kill them off at the same time.

Example scenario: You see a group of Lacuni Huntresses and Lacuni Slashers in the northwest. As you're moving, you plan to lock down the Huntresses before they can leap and throw their projectiles. The Slashers should pose no problem as your Halo can negate their attacks. However, if you fail to stun the Huntresses, they may spread out and start bombarding you with ranged attacks.

Best case scenario, you lock down and kill off the Lacuni before they can react, but in the case where a few jump out, you have to make decisions. Do you know if you can stand your ground and tank the hits? Lacuni Huntresses will leap, throw their projectiles, and leap back onto you. If you can withstand their ranged attacks without fear, they'll come back to you and you'll be able to lock them down. Now combine these Lacuni with other types of enemies of all threat levels. Morlu Incinerators? Savage Beasts? You have to grow extremely familiar with what enemies can pose a threat to you even if you have APD's bonus and Tal's 4-piece bonuses active.

For example, as an Apocalypse Firebird wizard, enemies like Corrupted Angels and Winged Assassins were pretty much the bane of your existence. However, these mobs are food for a melee Tal Rasha wizard. As both are melee enemies and relatively easy to kill when they're standing still, they can't do anything to you. Conversely, enemies like Grotesques and Succubi don't pose too many problems for a Firebird wizard that's constantly moving around, but for a melee Tal wizard that specializes in clamping down in one spot and DPSing everything from one small area, physical attacks like Grotesque explosions and the Succubus's Blood Star that sneaks through the cracks can bypass Esoteric's reduction and potentially catch you during APD's downtime.

This is why it's so important for you to always aim for the largest clusters of mobs and bring whatever enemies you're fighting with you. It's a form of herding. You fight and kill off what you need to, but straggling enemies that can still contribute good progress should come along with you to combine with packs up ahead. While this habit isn't limited to a melee Tal spec (it's pretty much a basic practice for any successful GR run, solo or group), it's especially important because of APD's reliance on the number of stunned targets.

When all the engines are running, you'll Teleport into a huge cluster of mobs and start cycling through your Tal Rasha stacks and buffing up your Hydras to DPS everything down while you repeat the crowd control to maintain APD's bonus. When the enemy numbers dwindle, you lead them off toward the next cluster of mobs and repeat the process until you face the Rift Guardian.

TIPS & TRICKS

1. Cycling through the Tal Rasha stacks isn't an issue at all in this spec. As everything is available at all times—other than Calamity, which still has high uptime due to Illusionist—you can ramp from zero to four in very little time. I generally always have Arc Lightning going to be at full Arcane Dynamo stacks. I cast or reposition Hydra when I can to always have the fire Tal stack. Repeating Frozen Storm and Calamity as means to maintain APD's bonus naturally also give the remaining stacks.

2. Always prioritize locking down ranged enemies if you are unable to get past them. Melee enemies will eventually get into range, but ranged mobs can be devastating, tend to run away or keep a distance from you.

3. Focus on killing high progress to health ratio enemies. It's a rule to follow for all Greater Rift attempts, but it doesn't hurt to mention it here. Don't bother picking off the last little spider or Bile Crawler. Kill off the goatmen, the Disentombed Hulks and Fallen Hounds first and look for more to kill elsewhere. Then again, see #2 - don't neglect the dangerous ranged mobs if you cannot get away from them.

4. When fighting a Rift Guardian, try to kite it to narrow corridors or corners with doors so your Templar can block it, allowing you to move into blind spots outside aggro range. This will allow you to place your Hydra at max distance to get the most out of Zei's. You don't have to hit things with your spells for Tal's stacks to kick in or for Arcane Dynamo to ramp up. It'll help if you land the spells to trigger the 2-piece Meteors, but if you're fighting a really dangerous physical RG like Bloodmaw or Perdition, or a ranged RG like the Choker or Agnidox, it may be in your best interest to focus on staying alive and allowing your Hydras to do their thing. Dead DPS = zero DPS.

5. If you find a Power Pylon, don't grab it right away. Take a look at your surroundings to see if the mob composition offers fast and easy progress. Also take note of the map you're on. If it seems like the map will be a massive one and the enemies are manageable, skip them and the Pylon so you can come back later when the RG is close to spawning. This is another tip that's not limited to this particular spec. Just a good habit to keep.