Intro & build description
Volatile Dead is a great build for people who love a mix of spellcaster and summoner playstyle with a splash of wander in there. All you have to do is attack with your wand and the spells are going to cast automatically, offering really chill gameplay. This build is cheap to start, therefore great as a league starter.
Build Pros
- Cheap to start out and scales really well with currency invested
- Very safe playstyle
- Good clearspeed
- High energy shield
Build Cons
- Final build uses a lot of uniques
Passive tree(s) and Path of Building
[3.12] Skill Tree [3.13] Skill Tree Path of BuildingBandits
Bandits Quest Choice |
Kill all bandits |
Ascendancy skill points
Labyrinths | Skill point choice |
---|---|
Labyrinth 1 | Plaguebringer |
Labyrinth 2 | Corpse Pact |
Labyrinth 3 | Commander of Darkness |
Endgame Labyrinth | Mistress of Sacrifice |

Skill gem setup
Helm
Vaal Righteous Fire
Spell Cascade Support
Spellslinger
Desecrate
Body Armor
Detonate Dead
Volatile Dead
Awakened Elemental Focus Support
Spellslinger
Concentrated Effect Support
Awakened Spell Cascade Support
Gloves
Frenzy
Barrage Support
Combustion Support
Power Charge On Critical Support
Boots
Herald of Ash
Blood Magic (Linked only to Herald of Ash)
Flame Dash
Arcane Surge - LVL5 (Linked only to Flame Dash)
2h Weapon
None
1h Weapon
Flammability
Bone Offering
Wave of Conviction
Offhand weapon / shield
Discipline
Anger
Zealotry
Build uniques / Example rare gear
Tip: Click on the item to view it on PoE Wiki or to view similar rare items in poe.tradeHelmet
Crown of The Inward EyeVersatile, relatively cheap item that works on most builds.
It’s great offensively due to transfiguration of mind and soul, as well as defensively due to global energy shield increase.
To make 6-link work, your helmet needs reduced Spellslinger mana reservation enchantment. Until you get that, instead of Detonade Dead, use another support gem for Volatile dead.
Body Armour
Shavronne's WrappingsSince this is a low life build, Shavronne’s Wrappings is one of the core items. Get it as soon as you can.
Note: transition into low life only when you have Prism Guardian, Shavronne’s Wrappings and all the reduced mana reservation nodes on the skill tree.
Gloves
Rare Energy Shield glovesLook for rare energy shield gloves with as high energy shield as you can find, ideally 140+.
Elemental resistances and dexterity are also great mods to have on your gloves.
Boots
Rare Boots with Hunter InfluenceThe ideal boots would have 30% increased movement speed, Tailwind when you have dealt critical strike recently and some energy shield.
Boots like that will probably be around few ex, so before that just go with regular ES boots that don’t have the Tailwind mod from hunter influence.
Left Ring
Rare RingLook for rare Moonstone ring with at least 40 energy shield, 50 mana and high resistances.
If you can afford it, you could go for Moonstone Ring with Crusader influence and craft it, while looking for %increased energy shield mod together with aforementioned mods.
Right Ring
Circle of AnguishLook for Circle of Anguish with Herald of Ash buff effect and reduced mana reservation.
Amulet
Presence of ChayulaPresence of Chayula is an awesome defensive amulet for the build. While expensive at the beginning, it drops in price sharply week or 2 into new league.
It’s not essential for build to work, so before you can get one, use rare amulet with at least 40 energy shield, %increased energy shield and 25%+ global critical multiplier.
Important note: To activate Herald of Ash in addition to other auras, you need to anoint Charisma notable.
Belt
Rare Crystal Belt with Shaper InfluenceLook for rare Crystal Belt with Shaper Influence and at least 80 item level. Base belt like that will probably go for 1EX+, so it’s an endgame upgrade.
Craft the belt using Dense fossils and look for following mods:
x% increased Energy Shield from Body Armour and at least 40 energy shield.
Until you can afford a belt like that, use regular Crystal Belt with high energy shield and resistances. You can also craft reduced cooldown recovery speed or increased damage on it.
1Hand Weapon
Rare Imbued WandMain stats to look for are adds #-# fire damage, fire damage to spells, +1 to level of all fire skill gems. You could also craft Gain % of Elemental Damage as extra Chaos Damage on the wand.
Offhand
Prism GuardianThis shield is one of the mandatory items of the build, allowing us to use more auras than usual. It’s pretty cheap, so get it when you transition into low life.
If you have more currency, you can buy a corrupted one with +2 to socketed aura gems corruption.
Jewel
Jewel SetupThis build uses several unique jewels.
1.) Transcendent Flesh – not a cheap one, but works really well for the build. It’s not a priority item, but more of a luxury. When you get it, put it in a socket under Faith and Steel.
2.) Energy From Within – great jewel for energy shield builds. Get it after you transition into low life and put it the socket near Melding.
3.) Optional – Watcher’s Eye with mods that affect any of the auras you are using.
4.) Optional – you could also use Inspired Learning for some extra buffs from Heists and maps. Put it in socket near Instability and allocate 4 notables (Instability and Blast radius are good choices).
On rare jewel look for:
%increased maximum energy shield,
global critical strike multiplier, critical strike multiplier with fire skills.
Flask
Flask SetupFlask setup:
1.) The Wise Oak (Make sure your fire resistance is the highest)
2.) Rumi’s Concoction
3.) Quicksilver Flask with freeze removal
4.) Diamond Flask with bleed removal
5.) Bottled Faith (Only if you can afford it) / Basalt Flask with Curse removal or Atziri’s Promise
Hi I cant make the skills in the 6L work they reserve to much mana. What am I missing?
I have all the nodes from the skill tree
The helm enchantment with reduced spellslinger mana reservation is when you can use the 6-link with 2 skills. Until then, an extra support gem for Volatile Dead is enough for T16s and bossing.