3.14 Wintertide Brand Occultist

Damage over time builds are not for everyone. Those that want have a penchant for these builds, however, are going to love the Wintertide Brand Occultist. Aside from it dealing huge damage over time, it also deals cold damage, giving it a mean, cold streak.

Pros and Cons of the Wintertide Brand Occultist Build

Pros:

• Can kill bosses
• Affordable gear
• Needed Uniques are not in-demand
• High health and chance to block

Cons:

• Damage over time not for everyone
• Reliant on Uniques

Here’s the Passive Skill Tree.

Skill Gem Links for Wintertide Brand Occultist

• Core Skill: Wintertide Brand with Efficacy, Hypothermia, Swift Affliction, and two Awakened support gems: Controlled Destruction and Elemental Focus
• DPS Boost: Vortex with Controlled Destruction, Arcane Surge, and Bonechill support gems
• Trigger Wand: Orb of Storms, Frost Bomb, and Frostbite
• Auras: Discipline, Malevolence, and Vaal Righteous Fire
• Movement and Utility:
  • Flame Dash with Second Wind support gem; Vaal Cold Snap and Increased Area of Effect support gem
  • Immortal Call with Cast When Damage Taken and Increased Duration support gems; Summon Chaos Golem

Gear

• Weapon: Any Rare wand with increased  spell damage, +1 to level of cold skill gems, cast speed, and modifier that triggers socketed skill gems.
• Shield: Aegis Aurora (Unique) for increased armor, energy shield, and elemental resistances, chance to block, and replenishes energy shield by 2% of armor when blocking
• Head: Memory Vault (Unique) for increased maximum energy shield, mana, mana regen, fire resistance, and gain armor equal to reserved mana
• Body: Incandescent Heart (Unique) for increased armor, energy shield, life, elemental damage as extra chaos damage, and increased light radius
• Gloves: Rare Sorcerer Gloves with increased energy shield and elemental resistances
• Belt: Bated Breath (Unique) for increased energy shield, energy shield recharge rate, intelligence, and damage.
• Boots: Rainbowstride (Unique) for chance to block spell damage, increased energy shield, mana, elemental resistances, and +25% movement speed
• Accessories:
  • Rare Amulet with increased attributes, elemental resistances, and energy shield
  • Mark of the Shaper (Unique) for increased energy shield, life, increased spell damage, chance to summon level 20 Volatile Anomaly, and extra lightning damage to spells; Rare Elder Ring with increased elemental resistances
• Jewels:
  • Rare Jewels with increased cast speed, cold damage over time and damage over time, and energy shield
  • Large Cluster Jewels with increased cold damage, jewel sockets, and Deep Chill or alternatives such as Cold-Blooded Killer or Blizzard Caller
  • Medium Cluster Jewels with with increased cold damage, jewel sockets, and either Brand Loyalty or Grand Design
• Flasks:
  • Chemist’s Silver Flask of Staunching for Onslaught and bleeding immunity/recovery
  • Experimenter’s Quartz Flask of Iron Skin for attack and spell dodge and damage reduction
  • Rumi’s Concoction for +3000 Armor and chance to block spells and attacks
  • Enduring Eternal Mana Flask of Warding for mana recovery and curse immunity/recovery
  • Chemist’s/Alchemist’s Quicksilver Flask of Adrenaline for increased movement speed

The Wintertide Brand Occultist may not be one of the most popular builds, but it is very much effective. As such, it is without a doubt, worth trying.