This is a question that i am asking myself. I see a lot of people say it is better to experience builds by yourself.
What makes me often hesitate about this is a character builds is a long time investment, especially if you want to reach the end of torment.
On one hand i understand why experincing should be fun. On the other hand, i am reading commentaries from famous build makers that completing the current torment content with the expansion freshly requires very good builds with specific items, and that a very small number of builds will bring you to the end of the campaign, and that an even smaller number of builds are valid for Gladiator Crucible soloing.
So this means that some builds may bring a player sot the end of normal/elite but that then he may be stuck when starting torment. I know we can reset skills,stats and devotion and all, i admit i am still confused by statistics even though i read what they do in theory.
I have not reached torment expansion yet(i have chosen to create a news character when i got the expansion, instead of pursuing with my conjurer, since the pokémon build was doomed). But i read statements that is has extremly hard content like the immolation(some people say they are waiting for the area to be removed from game).
My question is what freedom can you allow yourself with builds, if the torment content in its current form requires top notch decisions?
You don’t have to copy other people build to reach end game content. You need to have a good knowledge of game mechanics and take this in consideration when building your characters. And don’t be afraid to “fail” a build, since this will teach you a lesson and respec is really quick and cheap.
I make my build up as I go along. Without farming they usually have no issue reaching Ultimate, but they start struggling there (lack of gear from no farming and self-found).
I might get inspiration from some build at that point (has not happened yet, but I do not rule it out), esp. for devotions, which I find a pain with their prerequisites and UI, which is why I neglect them more than I should (and it starts to show by Ultimate…)
Depends on the build and available gear. I have plenty of builds I’ve done with maxed masteries that can clear the game just fine (I don’t crucible, so there’s that.)
However, I do agree that maxing both masteries leaves less growth in each skill. But with AoM (and the extra levels/points) it’s easier, and especially with the new gear available, there’s plenty of bonus points to be found. Plus, I’ve rarely seen a situation where I would survive with a skill maxed instead of a point or two under. Usually my survival is more dependent on my choice of skills, along with devotions and defensive stats. That and just not being a tard. which i seem to excel at for some reason.
OP: I recommend optimize to the point of survival necessity, experience from that point on. if you want to experience as much as possible, pick an idea of a build from the various build threads, then just kick in and go on your own, referencing the guides as you go along, accumulating gear. The downside to many guides is that they are end game based, which means that leveling (90% of the game) is up to you. so have fun, and keep in mind what you are looking for with that build.
It’s not that difficult to use a jack of all trades build and farm Elite for legendaries and high level epics. With the introduction of AoM, it’s laughably easy to hit very high levels upon reaching Elite and since certain bosses scale with the player, they can easily be farmed for constant upgrades (RNG willing).
