Hi all,
I've been using this build up through Torment 1, and I wanted to share it as a low level/entry build, as well as ask for some feedback from the community on possible improvements. I apologize in advance if this build (or one very like it) has been submitted before, I did not see one, but I don't go on the forums very often so I could very well have missed it.
The key to this build is using high mana cost spells to do high DPS even without amazing gear, and keeping your mana up through passives and a few runes. Here is why I selected the abilities I did.
Primary: Spirit Barrage is amazing single target DPS, and has a great rune for mana regen that makes it effectively much cheaper than most skills with similar DPS. It also has some incredible hidden utility, as it is not a normal missile spell. This allows it to fire over walls and other obstacles, ignore missile reflect, and be unaffected by missile dampening.
When your mana regen gets high enough, you can swap The Spirit Is Willing for Well of Souls, which is a nice little DPS boost.
Secondary: Acid Cloud. I love Acid Cloud with the Acid Rain rune for much of the reasons I love Spirit Barrage. The damage is very high, as is the damage per mana. It is unaffected by waller, missile dampening, or missile reflect. The AoE is very large, and the pools it leaves on the ground are very helpful with Cursed Chests etc, as you can cover almost an entire screen with goo if you spam a lot. I use the Acid Rain rune for the massive AoE, however you can also use Slow Burn for the longer puddles if you are on a higher torment and things die slower.
Piranhas: This spells is incredible, like the other spells, it is high in mana cost, but very very worth it. The damage alone is very nice, and with Grave Injustice you can have 2-3 pools up very often, and it also amplifies damage done by 15%, awesome for both solo and group play. I use Frozen Piranhas for the incredible snare, very very useful against packs that run around too much, or try to claw your face off. Slow them on the way in, and then run right through it and make them cross the death pool again to get to you.
Spirit Walk: I cannot imagine a WD build without this lifesaver. Near total immunity (they never seem to break it early, not sure why), breaks CC, boosts speed, and has some great runes. Early on I recommend Honored Guest, if you get higher level gear (such as Zuni's or other high regen items), you could swap this out for either Jaunt or Healing Journey. Do not underestimate the use of this skill offensively as well, when your cooldowns are up, using this can allow you to totally ignore Arcane Enchanted and other abilities to just burn a pack down.
For my last two skill slots, I use Fetish Army and Big Bad Voodoo. I am going to address these together, as I always use them at the same time. These two skills combined make for some incredible DPS, the Voodoo buffs your Fetishes, and the fetishes protect you so that you can stand in Voodoo and do max DPS. When farming T1, I generally hit both these as soon as I engage an elite, and blow it away before they wear off. Generally, Grave Injustice will get these ready before the next champion pack, especially when fighting illusionist monsters.
For runes, I use Army of Daggers for more blockers/damage, and Slam Dance for the amazing damage boost and the utility in group play. Wizards get very excited when you give them 20% IAS and 30% more damage.
The passives for this build are almost all mana focused.
Grave Injustice gives you a nice little boost to HP and Mana, as well as being crucial for the CD reduction.
Rush of Essence makes both Spirit Walk and Spirit Barrage give 100 mana back over 10s, which will really help you sustain the high cost of this build.
Blood Ritual gives a nice discount to mana cost, and with 400-500k, the 1% regen comes to 4-5k per second, which is useful as well.
Spirit Vessel is great for the "Get out of Jail Free" aspect, but it also reduces the CD of spirit walk by 2s, which can be very useful for those times when you really want that immunity but aren't killing enough monsters for GI to help you.
I spend my paragon points in Increased Mana, Crit Chance, All Resist, and Reduced Costs. Your mileage may vary of course.
For gear, try to get mana regen and max mana, this build really shines when you always have the mana to use the high damage skills, and getting 120+ mana per second is very very helpful. More max mana is also useful, as both Grave Injustice and Honored Guest give you a % of your max mana back.
I have been using this build to farm Rifts and Bounties on t1, and it works very well, I would love to hear feedback or any suggestions for improving the build.
Thanks for your time all, I know it's quite the wall of text, and have a great day!
0
I've been using this build up through Torment 1, and I wanted to share it as a low level/entry build, as well as ask for some feedback from the community on possible improvements. I apologize in advance if this build (or one very like it) has been submitted before, I did not see one, but I don't go on the forums very often so I could very well have missed it.
The build can be found here: http://us.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/witch-doctor#gRlPUQ!Tfec!aacbZb
The key to this build is using high mana cost spells to do high DPS even without amazing gear, and keeping your mana up through passives and a few runes. Here is why I selected the abilities I did.
Primary: Spirit Barrage is amazing single target DPS, and has a great rune for mana regen that makes it effectively much cheaper than most skills with similar DPS. It also has some incredible hidden utility, as it is not a normal missile spell. This allows it to fire over walls and other obstacles, ignore missile reflect, and be unaffected by missile dampening.
When your mana regen gets high enough, you can swap The Spirit Is Willing for Well of Souls, which is a nice little DPS boost.
Secondary: Acid Cloud. I love Acid Cloud with the Acid Rain rune for much of the reasons I love Spirit Barrage. The damage is very high, as is the damage per mana. It is unaffected by waller, missile dampening, or missile reflect. The AoE is very large, and the pools it leaves on the ground are very helpful with Cursed Chests etc, as you can cover almost an entire screen with goo if you spam a lot. I use the Acid Rain rune for the massive AoE, however you can also use Slow Burn for the longer puddles if you are on a higher torment and things die slower.
Piranhas: This spells is incredible, like the other spells, it is high in mana cost, but very very worth it. The damage alone is very nice, and with Grave Injustice you can have 2-3 pools up very often, and it also amplifies damage done by 15%, awesome for both solo and group play. I use Frozen Piranhas for the incredible snare, very very useful against packs that run around too much, or try to claw your face off. Slow them on the way in, and then run right through it and make them cross the death pool again to get to you.
Spirit Walk: I cannot imagine a WD build without this lifesaver. Near total immunity (they never seem to break it early, not sure why), breaks CC, boosts speed, and has some great runes. Early on I recommend Honored Guest, if you get higher level gear (such as Zuni's or other high regen items), you could swap this out for either Jaunt or Healing Journey. Do not underestimate the use of this skill offensively as well, when your cooldowns are up, using this can allow you to totally ignore Arcane Enchanted and other abilities to just burn a pack down.
For my last two skill slots, I use Fetish Army and Big Bad Voodoo. I am going to address these together, as I always use them at the same time. These two skills combined make for some incredible DPS, the Voodoo buffs your Fetishes, and the fetishes protect you so that you can stand in Voodoo and do max DPS. When farming T1, I generally hit both these as soon as I engage an elite, and blow it away before they wear off. Generally, Grave Injustice will get these ready before the next champion pack, especially when fighting illusionist monsters.
For runes, I use Army of Daggers for more blockers/damage, and Slam Dance for the amazing damage boost and the utility in group play. Wizards get very excited when you give them 20% IAS and 30% more damage.
The passives for this build are almost all mana focused.
Grave Injustice gives you a nice little boost to HP and Mana, as well as being crucial for the CD reduction.
Rush of Essence makes both Spirit Walk and Spirit Barrage give 100 mana back over 10s, which will really help you sustain the high cost of this build.
Blood Ritual gives a nice discount to mana cost, and with 400-500k, the 1% regen comes to 4-5k per second, which is useful as well.
Spirit Vessel is great for the "Get out of Jail Free" aspect, but it also reduces the CD of spirit walk by 2s, which can be very useful for those times when you really want that immunity but aren't killing enough monsters for GI to help you.
I spend my paragon points in Increased Mana, Crit Chance, All Resist, and Reduced Costs. Your mileage may vary of course.
For gear, try to get mana regen and max mana, this build really shines when you always have the mana to use the high damage skills, and getting 120+ mana per second is very very helpful. More max mana is also useful, as both Grave Injustice and Honored Guest give you a % of your max mana back.
I have been using this build to farm Rifts and Bounties on t1, and it works very well, I would love to hear feedback or any suggestions for improving the build.
Thanks for your time all, I know it's quite the wall of text, and have a great day!
-Baelscar