I am considering starting an Arcanist based spellslinger build, but am wondering about choices for builds, at the moment mostly about what second mastery to pick.
For leveling purposes I consider focusing on Panetti’s Replicating Missiles, Olexra’s Flash Freeze and Iskandra’s Elemental Exchange. Heavy elemental damage.
For second mastery I have considered the Demolitionist, there is some synergy in terms of using elemental damage, but I don’t feel it really complements the Arcanist in terms of pure caster at least, it doesn’t add anything new.
The occultist might be a good choice for the pets, Raven at least with its heal and passive buffs. The pets deal mostly elemental damage so synergize with an elemental arcanist. Also Curse of Frailty sounds a good match for the elemental resistance debuff.
Or just going pure Arcanist with no second mastery at all?
Any suggestions? Base game masteries only, I don’t have the expansions for now.
OFF and CT will carry you early game, while AAR + Devastation later. Dont mind PRM, its single target dmg is merr. Demo base game is the best synergy with Arcanist, it supports both aether and elemental dmg for Arcanist.
Demo has something on Aether damage? I don’t see it.
Hellfire Mines reduce Aether resistance by quite something 
then you wouldn’t be a spellslinger anymore, or atleast you’d have to make a player-pet hybrid, which can be rough if when don’t have experience with pets
Warlock does make a good caster tho, so you can make a real spellcaster Warlock, elemental or chaos
Demo is good on the fire side of things
Shaman is good for lightning or cold caster
personally i would not recommend Panetti, atleast not if you don’t have the expansions, you will be missing out on the items that makes it a tolerable levelling skill
good arcanist spells are Trozan, Albrecht’s Aether Ray or Devastation, Callidor’s Tempest i’d probably recommend before Panetti if you don’t have expansions, tho it still wants pairing with something else
in the other masteries you have stuff like
Doom Bolt in Occultist, chaos by default, can be turned into Lightning tho
Wind Devils and Storm Totem in Shaman
Blackwater Cocktail in Demolitionist for fire or chaos
or Stun Jacks for lightning
*Canister Bomb and Grenado is good for fire (or lightning) too, but some doesn’t think they have that “spell” feel