Icicle Mine Saboteur

Mine builds have become less prominent than they used to be, and for a wide variety of reasons. Path of Exile: Blight, however, has changed that. With a few significant tweaks, this particular play style is back and better than ever. A good example of this is the Icicle Mine Saboteur. Yes, it hurts as much as it sounds.

Passive Skill Tree: https://tinyurl.com/y362o5zb

Skill Gems

Core Skill: Icicle Mine with Swift Assembly, Hypothermia, Increased Critical Strikes, Added Cold Damage, and Increased Critical Strikes support.

Utility: Detonate Mines with Spell Totem and Faster Casting support; Bear Trap; Summon Skitterbots.

Movement: Smoked Mine and Increased Duration support; Flame Dash.

Mana Conservation: Vaal Clarity with Increased Duration support.

Debuffs: Enfeeble with Blasphemy Support gem.

Gear

Weapon:

• any Shaper-based Rare wand for “Damage Penetrates % elemental resistance bonus
• Tremor Rod (Unique) for a chance to block attack damage while wielding a staff, +2 levels to socketed gems, Blastchain Mine support for socketed gems, increased spell damage, reduced enemy stun threshold, and mines can be detonated again

Shield: Any Rare shield with bonuses to elemental resistances, maximum life, and spell damage.

Helmet: Any Rare helmet with bonuses to life (base value and percentage via Pristine Fossil) and elemental resistances.

Body Armor:

• Tabula Rasa
• Any Rare body armor with bonuses to Elemental Resistances, Life (base value and percentage via Pristine Fossil), and Spell Critical Strike Chance

Gloves: Any Rare gloves with bonuses to elemental resistances and Life (base value and percentage via Pristine Fossil)

Boots:

• Kaom’s Roots – cannot be knocked back, grants Unwavering Stance, +150-200 Life
• Atziri’s Step – increased evasion, life, and movement speed; chance to dodge spells
• Any Rare boots with bonuses to elemental resistance and life (base value and percentage via Pristine Fossil)

Belt: Leather Belt or Stygian Vise with bonuses to elemental resistance, life, flask duration and charges gained, flask charge usage reduction, elemental damage (via Prismatic Fossil) and cold damage (Frigid Fossil).

 Accessories:

• Ventor’s Gamble (Unique ring) for 6-15% increased rarity of items found
• Any Rare opal ring with bonuses to elemental resistances, life, dexterity and/or strength, and chaos resistance

Jewels:

• Any Rare jewels with bonuses to life, increased damage, area damage, spell damage, mine damage, spell damage while holding shield/dual-wielding, and cold damage

Flasks:

• Atziri’s Promise (Unique) for bonus damage and chaos resistance
• Divine Life Flask of Staunching for life recovery and bleeding immunity/removal
• The Wise Oak (Unique) for increased cold penetration for every cold resistance you have
• Lavianga’s Spirit (Unique) for mana recovery and spells having no mana cost during flask effect
• For the last slot, choose any of the five:
  • Jade Flask – for 3000 evasion rating
  • Quartz Flask – to dodge attacks and spells
  • Stibnite Flask – creates smoke cloud on use, grants 100% evasion rating
  • Quicksilver Flask – for increased movement speed
  • Basalt Flask – for 15% physical damage reduction and 20% physical damage reflection

Without a doubt, mine-based saboteurs have made a successful comeback. If the Icicle Mine Saboteur can’t convince you that it has, then perhaps nothing can.