Build Intro:
Aether-Flavored Fire Strike? A caster moonlighting as a gunner? Just the sort of intriguing details which puts me in the mood for a bit of theorycrafting.
Pros & Cons
PROS
- Above average crowd clear speed
- Respectable default weapon attack damage
- Maxed out / close to maxed out attack speed & casting speed
- Fast rate of attacks ensure great sustainability in the form of life steal
- High Mobility
CONS
- Not as damaging when compared to masteries that are more dedicated to ranged weapons
- Requires a fair bit of kiting and piloting to shine
- Has a rather aggressive playstyle for a build with suboptimal defensive stats
Leveling
From levels 1 - 94, I used this pre-existing guide as a point of reference (And to clarify, I did indeed play on hardcore): DW Firestrike Purifier: A build diary from Normal to 170 Glad
Before proceeding, note that I distribute my skill points at each level up using the following ratios:
- Level 2 to 50- 1 Arcanist / 2 Demo
- Level 51 to 90- 1 Arcanist / 1 Demo
Here is a sample of my skill tree at level 80 - 90 ish: Sorcerer, Level 100 (GD 1.1.9.7) - Grim Dawn Build Calculator
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Prioritize investing points into the Fire Strike line before anything else. DO NOT start to put a single point into the Arcanist tree until you are done
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Max out Flame Touch and begin placing points into the Arcanist Tree from now on. Aim for Level 15 Arcanist Mastery and make sure to follow the ratios above for point distribution
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Focus on Blast Shield & Thermite Mine, while leveling up the Arcanist Tree. For the Arcanist, you want to get Mirror of Ereoctos first, move on to Maiven’s Sphere then gradually pump Overload
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Move onto Hellfire Mine next. For the Arcanist, if you are done with Overload, then start to increase your Inner Focus steadily
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After that, place points into Vindictive Flames. For the Arcanist, you can just focus on maxing out the Mastery bar if you are done with Inner Focus
From this point on, place points wherever you desire. I recommend building up Maiven’s Sphere and Reckless Power until you hit Level 94
Gear wise, equip whatever fire damage pistols / 2 handed ranged weapon you can find and remember to check the vendors while offloading your inventory. Prioritize resistances on every other armor piece. Note that if you choose to level with a 2 handed ranged weapon, then you can pick Searing Might as a modifier in the Fire Strike Line.
The Relics I used to enable dual wielding are Gunslinger’s Talisman, Marauder’s Talisman & Plunderer’s Talisman
For devotions, I used the following path while leveling:
- Green Crossroad
- Spider
- Red Crossroad
- Mantis
- Hydra
- Solael’s Witchblade (Bind Eldritch Fire to Fire Strike)
- Blue Crossroad
- Sailor’s Guide
- Refund Blue Crossroad at Spirit Guide
- Behemoth (Bind Giant’s Blood to Flame Touched)
- Ghoul (4 Nodes only, Bind Ghoulish Hunger to Vindictive Flame)
- Revenant (4 Nodes only just for ADCTH)
- Fiend (4 Nodes only for +Fire and Chaos Damage)
- Magi (Bind Fissure to Thermite Mine)
- Refund Green Crossroad at Spirit Guide
- Ulzuin’s Flame (5 Nodes only towards the right path)
Just remember to respec your skill points and devotions at level 94 if needed and follow the rest of this guide.
Build
Sorcerer, Level 100 (GD 1.1.9.6) - Grim Dawn Build Calculator : Final Build
Attribute points- Physique /85 Cunning /22 Spirit /0
You’d be forgiven for thinking that this is a pure 2 handed ranged auto attack build, but the truth is that it really isn’t as Callidor’s Tempest is one half of the build’s offensive setup next to Fire Strike
While the damage might not reach close to the numbers which a Purifier can deal out, it is still a very considerable amount as that this build operates with attack and cast speeds that are close to maximum capacity. Not only does this mean that it is pretty easy to deal more consistent damage during the tiniest of openings, but it also means that the character is a life steal Machine- Both Fire Strike and Callidor’s Tempest have “% Weapon Damage” Attributes (For those who don’t know, Life Steal only works if an ability has % Weapon Damage for the most part)
So to get to the point, Fire Strike is best used against Faraway hostiles / Bosses and Callidor’s Tempest comes into play when your character is being rushed by mobs. When played aggressively, the sorceress will more than likely top up her health at a quick rate. The only considerations are named enemies who can outpace your life leeching. As such, it is vital to keep kiting / teleporting backwards when confronting certain foes or hanging around more defensive obstructions to create distance for ranged engagements. While playing, it is always a good idea to be aware of your cooldowns for blast shield & Mirror of Ereoctes - Go full defensive (that means keep moving around) if any of them have triggered and only continue your attacks once both of them are off cooldown.
For the purpose of comparison, another build which resembles mine the closest is [1.1.2.5] Aether Fire Strike Defiler (c) (sr) . Have a look at it and make any adjustments to suit your liking. Personally, I felt that building around the Dreadscorcher rifle was easier with a sorcerer…or at least that was due to the fact that my gear selection was meant for casters in the first place.
Devotions
1.Green Crossroads
2.Spider
3.Blue Crossroads
4.Lizard
5.Widow (Bind to Fire Strike)
6.Red Crossroads
7.Jackal
8.Ghoul (Bind to Blast Shield)
9.Kraken
10.Sailor’s Guide
11.Eel
12.Spear of the Heavens (Bind to Reckless Power)
13.Purple Crossroads
14.Empty Throne
15.Hydra
16.Refund Green, Blue & Purple Crossroads
17.Behemoth (4 Nodes Only, Bind to Iskandra’s Elemental Exchange)
Final Words:
Overall, a pretty fun build to play but it isn’t that close to being top tier. If I were to rank it, the build would likely fall along the ranges of C- to B ; It’s not meh, but it ain’t great either, just good. I really did like the idea of a fragile looking sorcerer who can play a mean ranged game and handle herself well when things start getting into her personal space. The only minor nitpick I had was that the Fire Strike projectile did not turn green to reflect the damage type conversion, Because I seem to remember that the Drain Essence Skill does change color if a certain set was equiped.