Lore: “In his seclusion, Trozan studied the stars and learned to harness their unbelievable power, despite all risks involved in taming such raw energies.” The mythical Trozan was said to be a natural; wild and unwilling to conform to the doctrines of the Imperial Arcanists. When the Imperials finally surrounded his mountaintop refuge, Trozan humbled them using an unknown technique to bring down the very sky upon them.
DISCLAIMER
DISCLAIMER
Trozan Sky Shard Druid is one of the strongest casters in the entire game and my personal favourite build. Special thanks to @GSAsylum for showing to me how to transform forum post to a guide ( I shamelessly just change some brackets on the format he sends to me), @mad_lee and @grey-maybe for their endgame versions of the build and Grim Dawn community for their support so I can keep improving!
INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
Trozan Sky Shard Druid is a mid to close range rotation caster, this build counts on high life regen , life pool and cooldown management to sustain. Playstyle is very dynamic , involves repositioning and aiming so you can spread destruction with various storms and blizzards
PROS AND CONS
PROS AND CONS
PROS:
- Very easy to build
- Very hard to kill
- Very cheap setup
- Solid burst damage
- Crit damage machine
- Celestial Killer
- Very cool visuals (all this storms and freeze effects , very satisfying)
- Flexible class ( you can respec to a lot of different builds later on if change your mind)
CONS
- A bit squishy before level 35
- TSS Druid requires patience cause scales with levels and Devotion map
- Arcanist cooldowns are hard to master
DEVOTIONS PATH
Pink Crossroad
Jackal
Remove Pink Crossroad
Green Crossroad
Scholar’s Light
Blue Crossroad
Lizard
Remove Green Crossroad
Behemoth (attach this to Arcane Will )
Purple Crossroad
Empty Throne
Yellow Crossroad
Lion
Harvestman’s Scythe
Rhowan’s Crown
Remove Purple, Yellow and Blue Crossroad
Bard’s Harp (Maivens)
Yellow Crossroad
Blue Crossroad
Remove Lizard
Hyrian , Guardian of Celestial Gates ( Star pact)
Chariot
Remove Empty Throne
Remove Jackal
Remove Lion
Murmur , Mistress of Rumors ( TSS)
Remove Scholar’s Light
Widow
Green Crossroad
Remove Blue Crossroad
Ultos (5 points , skip Chaos res node)
DEVOTIONS PATH
Pink Crossroad
Jackal
Remove Pink Crossroad
Green Crossroad
Scholar’s Light
Blue Crossroad
Lizard
Remove Green Crossroad
Behemoth (attach this to Arcane Will )
Purple Crossroad
Empty Throne
Yellow Crossroad
Lion
Harvestman’s Scythe
Rhowan’s Crown
Remove Purple, Yellow and Blue Crossroad
Bard’s Harp (Maivens)
Yellow Crossroad
Blue Crossroad
Remove Lizard
Hyrian , Guardian of Celestial Gates ( Star pact)
Chariot
Remove Empty Throne
Remove Jackal
Remove Lion
Murmur , Mistress of Rumors ( TSS)
Remove Scholar’s Light
Widow
Green Crossroad
Remove Blue Crossroad
Ultos (5 points , skip Chaos res node)
LEVELING
Faction and Blacksmith choices (CLICK ME)
- Vigil vs Kymon - Vigil is better on cold heavy setups so thats the choice
- Outcast - hostile with them
- Barrowholm - I want to kill Ravager so I stick with them
- Cults - I prioritize Solael cause their weapon augments, also Charging Bull compliments this build very well
- Angrim - better endgame crafting bonuses
- Equilibrium relic as a first pick
Attribute points: (CLICK ME)
1:1 Physique/Spirit up until 750 Physique(gear included ) than I switch to full Spirit dump for damage and energy regen
[PROGRESS STEP BY STEP (CLICK ME)]
Level 1-15
We cant start as TSS ( Trozan Sky Shard) Druid so I picked Callidor’s tempest as my starting skill cause anyways I plan to use Nova component as a filler cast , in this way one stone two birds so I can start build muscle memory of the playstyle. First boss drops a nice off hand that convert Callidor’s to fire.Nothing special to this bracket , around level 13 i start shoping for medal so I can fill my empty slots ( I switch off magic items at this point - no value). After I unlock my blacksmith I craft two Wardstones for my amulet and medal so I can start building some resistances and movement speed ( use or craft components , thats part of the customisation). Jump to The Cavern in Foggy bank for one of the best leveling amulets in the game for Iskandra buff user Putrid Necklace.
Level 15-20
In this bracket I progress slowly doing my shrines and questing, casters scales very well with skill tree and devotion tree. Most important for this bracket is to fill all empty slots with rare items, I track my first shoulderguards as well Isaac Spaulders this can be found west from Foggy bank rift if you cross the river (grim tools map is your friend). Don’t forget to finish your Sith Primal Ring quest this ring is amazing for SSF or beginner start… Playstyle is very simple I just spam Callidors for nuke. When I reach Undeground Transit I like to do few runs for building crystal and scraps numbers also getting few levels before Krieg is never a bad thing. Recently I play very casual and enjoy the game by building wealth and grind a bit more than usual. Keep your Milton Casque if you have bad Aether res so you can facetank Krieg ( he doesnt deal enough damage to burst you down ). Another side note is make deal with Direini you will need him later for reputation grind and is always more fun to kill him as Cronley’s Ascendant
Note:Before level 35 items you use or damage type can be any , thats why I try to keep grim tools links with target farmable items or items that are easy to get
First Crating and Component Session:
- 2x Antivenom Salve - Boots + Belt
*Weapon and off hand - I wait for now cause at level 25 we switch to actual build - Scaled Hide - Shoulders (this component is better on Torso cause that’s most hitted part)
- 2x Silk Swatch - Pants and Torso
- Helm - If you don’t have Ectoplasm at this point use w/e you have (don’t left empty comp slots)
- 2x Corpse Dust/Frozen Heart - Rings
- 2x Wardstones - Medal + Amulet
Note:This is standart comp setup at level 20, this setup provides vital sustain tools
Trozan Sky Shard + Amber Nova Switch
Level 25-35
We move forward to FG expansion just to do the first quest I want to unlock Charging bull movement augment for my medal, my cult of choice is Solael for multiple reasons - they are closer to the rift, their augments exist in the final setup and Charging Bull is my fav. I repair the bridge and its time to deal with Cronley and his goons, first and very important thing to do is to save Steven Skinner family - he gives you an amazing ring in return. Second important thing to do is to be nice to Isaah Reddan (pick top dialogue option after you take the quest from his ex business partner).This bracket involves two key items for early Trozan Druids - Rolderathis Tome and Spectral Bludgeon . Rolderathis is behind the Detonation site in Flooded Passage Act 1 , he is very durable against cold so I prefer to be around level 30 when face him for easier kill , Spectral Bludgeon can be farmed in the Spined Cove ( boss there have a chance to wear one of the three spectral weapons). Road to level 35 is a bit tricky cause we are kinda squishy so I approach the enemies with care. Cronley is easy just remove his barrier with your Null skill (thats why I pick it that eraly so I can remove auras and dangerous buffs on the enemies). Voldrak is something different thats one of the most dangerous bosses in the campaign , he can roll some crazy weapons keep distance and avoid every slam ( he raises both his hands over the head and bonk ). You can max out Maivens Sphere early for better sustain , Homestead is easy and Pine Barrens also , most important in this bracket is to get 2x Gollus rings cause we stack life regen as a main form of sustain on top of our passives cooldowns. Level 35 is very important milestone for every class in Grim Dawn, you unlock DC and Rovers faction gear. You have to spend some time killing Cronley’s gang members and some Undeads to reach Respected status with both faction but trust me every minute spend worth it.
Shopping List:
- Devil’s Cuirass - hands down amazing armor (500+ life, OA/DA and pierce + chaos res)
- Devil’s Shoulderguard - OA/DA, physical, aether and pierce res
- Rhowari Handguards - amazing gloves (%damage,casting speed, ele res and flat stats)
- Rhowari Footpads - amazing boots (triple res, 200+ life and movement speed)
- Blueprint for Runestone (Rovers) - hands down best leveling helm component
Level 35-50 Faction Gear
First thing I want to mention , cause might be confusing for most of you we is I continued my work on Shanam tree and just the last 4 levels of this bracket I finish my Arcanist tree so I can unlock Star pact ( Shaman provides more RR and more sustain overall in this bracket).This is the point when I am ready to step into Blood Grove but before that I grab some tri-res Homestead boots to cover Chaos resistance as much as possible also I use Vitality res comps in my rings ( Blood Grove is very heavy on Vit and Chaos damage). This bracket offers probably the best Druid helm and thats Fleshwarped Casque , what makes this helm special is the fact it offers 6% OA/DA to Iskandras which being a % stat will scale with every level or stat invested to our build , also tons of life,stats,res and +3 Overload ( which is directly OA and Aether res boost). Blood Grove is very reach area on quests , so be sure you finishing everything here its nice EXP boost , cause Druid get stronger and stronger every level. Before I hit level 40 I start grinding Cronley Hideout for reputation cause they sell and amazing medal for TSS Druid Devil’s Badge of Frost (I know I have different medal but i totally forgot about this godly medal). Nothing usualy at this point is dangerous enough to kill us we run high absorption ,armor and life regen caster , we have some energy issues spaming Novas and TSS but that will be fixed soon. Path to Loghorrean should be easy enough and he himself also like big training dummy , after you deal with him you have to switch to FG for the leveling weapon so you can be proper light/cold hybrid annd this is Segarius’ Sacred Blade since from now on Wind Devils are our secondary source of damage thisis huge boost to us. Stick to Solael like I mentioned earlier their weapon components are our main goal for level 90+
Note: Dont rush the game this bracket is very important work on your reputations and phase slowly , Druid need some space to scale properly .
After shopping and reputation is done its time to get new pants, be sure you stock some dynamites cause we go back to act 1 and open Hidden Path quest ,just few steps east from Hevil’s corpse there is hidden path with detonation site (be sure your poison res are 60-80 ideal cause this is very acid/poison heavy area), here we face Guardian of Dreeg and this rat will drop this amazing Jeans
Level 50-60
This bracket is mostly finishing the campaign in Normal , but we have to be sure we reached Respected with Vigil for the 1 to Arcanist belt craft ( a bit expensive craft so craft 3 and pick the best one ). Forgotten Gods and Malmouth dont offer much for us apart from saving Hyram in Malmouth , he is very important vendor cause he sells all class specific relics apart from Faction vendor ones ( Vendeta , Endurance, Mortality etc) we are after Haunt ( huge upgrade on every class that main Arcanist) . You have to refresh his stock by teleport to different outdoor location wait for 6-7 sec and jump next to him again. Granted skill on this relic is also great Devotion procer and debuff that spread like curse - use it.
NOTE: When you attach a granted skill to a Devotion be sure you regulary check it cause if unequip Amber or Haunt , Constellation loses the attachment!
After you are done with Normal time to jump to Elite , main goal here is to grab the easy shrines and be close to level 70 as possible.
Level 60-70 Elite Jump
We have few very important goals here:
- Farming The Cavern for good Putrid Necklace
- Grab Slith Venom augment for easy Poison/Bleed res ( you can do that even earlier)
- Hard Questing for EXP , we want to be close to 70 for Ultimate transition
- Reaching Homestead and get Revered with them
I dont do anything special just questing and progressing , after I reach Gollus its basicaly a grind fest to upgrade all of my MIs and hit level 70. I hit this locations:
- Royal Hive - Gollus rings ( I look for regen , res , stats and life any affixes work)
- The Cavern in Foggy Bank - good Putrid Necklace
- Rotting Corpseland , Prospector’s Trail - I hunt these Orc captains for the Fleshwarped Casque
- Craft next tier Death’s Belt for more armor and better affix ( after all this Aetherials kills should be Honoured with Vigil for the blueprint)
- Rolderathis tomb in Underground Passage for better off hand (most important stat is Cooldown reduction try to get 17-19% )
- Dreeg Guardian secret location ( we look againfor res , life or stats)
- Weapon I left for last cause I farmed this in Normal and I dont want to swap difficulties every run so I jump to Tomb of Eldritch Sun in Normal
At some point during the grind you will hit Honoured with Coven , jump back to Normal and buy Coven Arcane Vestments + Coven Arcane Mantle and 2x Stardust augments from the honoured tab ( amazing early augmrents tons of damage and life)
Level 70-80
Time for Ultimate after all the grind and preparation we are ready to spread destruction on the screen . Gear that we get usually should carry us till late 80s , but if you want to try your luck and get some upgrades feel free to. I finish if not all than most of the quests , cause EXP build at this point is very hard and we start to get levels not so often. Again my personal advice is chill and enjoy the game dont rush , just feel the progression and development of your toon
NOTE: At level 70 grind for good Fleshwarped Casque this is plate armor piece with high Physique req so I stop upgrading this at this point I dont want more than 750 Physique on my Druid cause this will cut good portion of the damage , you can see in my cheap setup link I use low level base actually by the armor rating!
Level 80-90
This bracket is mostly Reputation grind and cistomisation , augments offers huge boost to res and offensive stats , especially Skyshard Powder ( hands down one of the best offensive augments in the entire game). You can hit few totems when close to 90 level cause some of the endgame gear is Epics like Eastern set 2x combo , this is my personal SSF totem route Totems Farming Route for Beginners. My personal locations to grind reputations are:
- Galakros detonation site at Malmouth Sewers - Black Legion + Malmouth rep , also tons of crystals for crafting ( always try to get anything on top when brain dead grinding)
- Royal Hive - Homestead + Coven , also Gollus rings + Ancients hearts very good map overall
- Cronley’s Hideout - Devil’s Crossing rep + dynamites and scrap
- Tomb of Eldritch Sun - Cults rep + our leveling weapon and some Eldritch Essences can drop as well
Level 90-100
Took me 21 hours and 39 mins completely SSF to reach level 100 Last bracket is mostly min maxing before facing pre-endgame farm like Totems ,Dungeons and SR pushing
NOTE: I didnt killed Ulgrim btw , he is fine!
Good reminder by @tqFan about Eastern set , you can transmute dupes from the set to another part of the set , also you can transmute another epic set to Eastern set ( by RNG though , also this offers a alternative way to re-roll for stats)
FINAL SETUP
FINAL SETUP
Cheap Beginner setup level 100
This is my beginner setup for people that cant afford 8 h grinding per day and people that just pick up the game recently. There is no crazy items, everything is guaranteed with a little bit of play time , all of the gear augments slots are technically empty I use some Solael for life + DA , but you can use any to close res gap or other gaps
NOTE: My setup runs some Freeze resistance issues so I use Hoarfrost Ointment when run SR 26-27 (this is very cheap pharmacy to craft and serve well until endgame gear)
Endgame setup by @mad_lee
Again very cheap full Cold damage setup, no crazy greens apart from Gollus rings which are actually not a crazy rolls . Epics are absolutely common drop from totems
Endgame setup by by @grey-maybe this is cold/lightning hybrid very solid spec again not hard items to get a little bit more expensives due to prob set crafting and some RNG to get Veilkeeper item from the SR
FARMING
FARMING
I would leave a link to my personal farming strats and what I do as a SSF player (I use completely fresh save folder for all of my runs ), I do a lot of farming tests when simulating begginer starts
FAQ
FAQ
RS noob, you told us hybrids are bad in Grim Dawn and now you drop hybrid leveling build?
I realise leveling as a hybrid is much more easier than pure cold ( I have like 6 TSS Druids and I level all of them the same way before 1.2 ) , after I work on some itemisation and basically stealing Grey devotion map I saw better results
That DA looks extremely low ?
Like @mad_lee said long time ago " There is no legit way to bump up DA on a Druid without sacrificing all the firepower". Build sustain by positioning , life regen and fast rotating curcuit breakers ( also Arcane will got massive buff during 1.2 so)
How much time final setup would take as a beginner?
1-100 took me like 22 h according to the picture I post took me another 2-3 h grind to reach the point of farming SR 26-27 on a good time stamp. This time was without me skiping or speed running, was abolutelly casual playthrough
VIDEOS
VIDEOS
