Important Tree Nodes

The best ascendancy order is Unflinching, Undeniable, Unrelenting, and Unbreakable. Make sure and pick up all of the nearby Accuracy Mastery clusters because this is an accuracy stacking build. The Attack Mastery is also important to make your non-vaal strike skills target one additional nearby enemy. In Standard you should use Honoured Tattoo of the Pa for Melee Hits Fortify but in league you can take the Fortify Mastery on the tree instead. The increased physical damage nodes don't significantly increase your damage with Lightning Strike because Lightning Strike is primarily an elemental attack. This is a melee build so make sure and take plenty of the nearby life percent nodes on the tree for survival.

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Defensive Layers

The Unflinching ascendancy generates Endurance charges, increases your maximum Endurance charges by one, and gives a chance to make you gain up to your maximum Endurance charges when you gain an Endurance charge. The Unrelenting ascendancy increases the physical damage reduction of Endurance charges, reduces your elemental damage taken when at maximum Endurance charges, and gives 4% increased chaos resistance per Endurance charge. The Unbreakable ascendancy is also defensive and doubles the armour on your equipped body armour and reduces your damage taken from elemental damage. This build also has the strong defensive advantage of being able to use a shield.

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Gems

 

Weapon (3-link)

Summon Ice Golem

Minion Life Support

Culling Strike Support

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Shield (3-Link)

Ancestral Protector

Vaal Ancestral Warchief

Flame Dash

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Armour (6-link)

Lightning Strike (Lightning Strike of Arcing can optionally be used for large groups of enemies)

Awakened Added Cold Damage Support

Awakened Elemental Damage With Attacks Support

Additional Accuracy Support

Faster Attack Support

Trinity Support

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Helmet (4-link)

Grace

Precision

Herald of Ice

Enlighten Support

 

Gloves (4-link)

Molten Shell Support

Empower Support

Enduring Cry

Call To Arms

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Boots (4-link)

Wave of Conviction (keep at a low level)

Cast When Damage Taken Support (keep at level one to trigger more often)

Awakened Added Lightning Damage Support

Power Charge On Critical Support

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Reservation Skills

Grace is the best defensive aura for this build and gives very high evasion. Precision is the best offensive aura and should be used to increase your accuracy and critical strike chance. Herald of Ice increases your clear speed and gives cold damage which improves your Resonance with Trinity Support. Herald of Ice can be used once you have a level 4 Enlighten Support to reduce the mana reservation cost of your skills.

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Gem Notes​​​

1. Molten Shell is an excellent guard skill when you have high armor and The Brass Dome body armor alone gives more than 8000 armour when combined with the Unbreakable ascendancy.

2. Lightning Strike of Arcing is weaker for single target but can be used for clearing large groups of enemies. You should target weaker enemies nearby difficult enemies to get the increased damage from chaining on the tougher enemies.

3. Vaal Ancestral Warchief and Ancestral Protector should be used together on difficult enemies to increase your damage with Maim Support and give increased melee damage and increased attack speed buffs.

4. Enduring Cry is used to provide a large 2200 life heal over one second, generates Endurance charges, gives an extra 2% increased physical damage reduction per charge, and gives 2% increased elemental resistances per charge. Enduring Cry should also be linked to Call To Arms to make Enduring Cry instantly casts on cooldown.

5. Wave of Conviction applies -15% to lightning resistance to enemies when linked to Added Lightning Damage Support.

6. Awakened Added Cold Damage Support should be used over Awakened Added Lightning Damage Support to gain Resonance with Trinity Support which gives elemental resistance penetration and increased elemental damage.

7. Summon Ice Golem gives increased accuracy and critical strike chance, replenishes 2% life on Culling Strike, kills enemies at 10% life with Culling Strike Support, and provides an additional target for enemies to attack.

8. If you would like to try out an alternate Lightning Strike build that is weaker defensively but does more damage once ramped up you can also check out the Lightning Strike Berserker guide here Lightning Strike Berserker Guide.

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Equipment

 

Weapon

Rare One Handed Sword

Look for a fast weapon with above 2 attacks per second that has added lightning damage, added cold damage, added fire damage, and accuracy. Using a sword allows you to pick up the Sword Masteries that give increased critical strike chance, increased critical strike multiplier, accuracy, and Frenzy charges in the Marauder tree. You should also add 1% increased attack speed per 8% quality at the Horticrafting Station.

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Shield

Accuracy Attack Speed Shield

Look for tier one accuracy, attack speed, life, life percent, increased chance to block, and spell suppression.

 

Armour

The Brass Dome

The Brass Dome can give more than 4000 armour, makes you take no extra damage from critical strikes, and gives 5% to all maximum elemental resistances at the cost of strength not increasing your life. The armour on your body armour will be doubled by the Unbreakable ascendancy. The very high armour on The Brass Dome also greatly increases your Molten Shell's shield.

 

Helmet

Obscurantis

Gives up to 80 life, 1000 accuracy, and 1% increased projectile attack damage per 200 accuracy for stacking accuracy. You can also go for a +2 to socketed aura gems or +2 to socketed aoe gems corruption once you have enough currency.

 

Belt

Stygian Vise

Look for high life, life percent, resistances, elemental damage with attack skills, and an abyssal socket. You should also use 20 Fertile Catalysts to increase the its life bonus.

Abyss Jewel

Look for an abyss jewel with high life, very high accuracy, global critical strike multiplier, and/or added elemental damage.

 

Gloves

Oskarm with Elemental Weakness Corruption 

Oskarm has up to 40% increased accuracy, 2% increased attack critical strike chance per 200 accuracy, 50 life, 12% spell suppression, and level 10 Assassin's Mark on hit which triggers on rare and unique enemies. It's important to get an Oskarm with Elemental Weakness on hit corruption to lower the elemental resistances of enemies.

 

Boots

Rare Stormrider Boots

Stormrider Boots have a 1-6 added attack lightning damage per 200 accuracy implicit and can have high life, resistances, and Onslaught on kill. It is also possible to get Tailwind and Elusive on these boots but these modifiers can be extremely expensive.

 

Amulet

Rare Amulet

Look for high life, attributes, accuracy, elemental damage with attack skills, resistances, and optionally reduced mana cost. You should use 20 Abrasive Catalysts on your amulet to increase the accuracy and elemental damage with attack skills.

Carnage Heart

The budget option gives 56 to all attributes, 20% to all elemental resistances, 2% life leech, 50% increased recovery from life leech, and 40% increased damage while leeching. You can also use 20 Intrinsic Catalysts on the amulet to increase its attribute bonus or 20 Prismatic Catalysts to increase its elemental resistances.

 

Rings

Rare Elemental Damage Rings

Look for high life, resistances, increased elemental damage with attack skills, accuracy, and crafted reduced mana cost. You should use 20 Fertile Catalysts on both of your rings to increase their life bonuses and their reduced mana costs.

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Tattoo (New)

Tattoo of the Ramako Archer (now available in 3.24 league play)

Replaces 10 dexterity nodes on the tree with 5% increased global accuracy rating.

Honoured Tattoo of the Pa (this legacy tattoo is only available in standard)

This tattoo can replace a 30 strength node on the tree to give Melee Hits Fortify which replaces the Fortification Mastery.

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Utility Flasks

Bottled Faith

Gives 40% increased damage, 150% increased critical strike chance, and 10% increased damage to enemies on consecrated ground. You should use Instilling Orbs on the flask until you automatically use the flask when you hit a rare or unique enemy.

Rumi's Concoction (legacy is better)

Gives 1500 armour, 12% chance to block attacks, and 6% chance to block spells. Legacy Rumi's Concoction has much higher block chances. You should use Instilling Orbs on the flask until you can automatically use the flask when it has full charges.

Diamond Flask

Gain 100% increased critical strike chance. Look to roll Bleeding and Corrupted Blood immunity during effect and use Instilling Orbs on the flask until you automatically use the flask whenever you are Bleeding.

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Anointment

You should anoint your amulet with Whispers of Doom which allows you to use two curses so you can use both Elemental Weakness and Assassin's Mark from the recommended gloves at Cassia using three Golden Oils.

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Enchants (Standard Only)

Helm: Lightning Strike Fires 2 Additional Projectiles (the legacy enchantment gives 3 additional projectiles)

Gloves: Commandment of Fury

Feet: 16% Increased Attack Speed if you've Killed Recently

Belt: 30% Increased Accuracy Rating While You Have Onslaught​

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Bandits

Alira is almost always the best bandit to help in Act 2 because she gives 15% to all elemental resistances, 20% increased critical strike multiplier, and 5 mana regeneration per second which are all very beneficial.

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Pantheon

Soul of Solaris is the best major Pantheon power and gives 6% reduced physical damage taken when only one enemy is present, a 20% chance to take 50% less area damage, 8% reduced elemental damage taken if you haven't been hit recently, take no extra damage from critical strikes if you've been hit with a critical strike recently, and a 50% chance to avoid elemental ailments from critical strikes. Soul of Ryslatha is the best minor power and gives 60% increased life recovery from flasks at low life, life flask charges every 3 seconds if you haven't used a life flask recently, and enemies you hit have 50% reduced life regeneration.

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Leveling Gear

 

Weapon

The Blood Thorn

A high damage level one two hand weapon with a 30% chance to block that curses enemies with Vulnerability when you block.

Limbsplit

Gives high physical damage for its level, level one Gore Shockwave if you have over 150 strength, +1 to socketed strength gems, and Culling Strike which kills enemies at 10% life.

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Armour

Tabula Rasa

A level one strong offensive chest armour that has 6 white linked sockets. You can link any combination of six gems together inside of Tabula Rasa which allows you to deal much higher damage at an earlier level. You can also get a Tabula Rasa with a high increased damage corruption which also requires level one for fairly cheap from the trade site.

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Helmet

Goldrim

A great level one resistance helmet with up to 40% to all elemental resistances and 10% increased rarity of items found.

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Gloves

Lochtonial Caress

These gloves require level one and give 15% increased attack speed, 15% increased cast speed, and a 15% chance to gain an Endurance, Power, or Frenzy Charge on kill.

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Boots

Wondertrap

Wondertrap boots can be used at level nine and give up to 30 strength, 30 dexterity, 30 intelligence, and 25% movement speed. 

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Amulet

Tear of Purity

A level five amulet that has up to 20 to all attributes, 10 to all elemental resistances, 30 intelligence, 40 to life, and level 10 Purity of Elements. The Purity of Elements aura increases your elemental resistances for a 50% mana reservation cost. 

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Rings

Perandus Signets

You can use two Perandus Signets at level one that each give up to 65 mana, 65% mana regeneration, 2% increased intelligence for each unique item equipped, and 2% increased experience.

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Flasks

Quicksilver Flask

This flask can be used at level four and gives 40% increased movement speed which helps speed up the leveling process. This flask can also have increased attack speed or movement speed as a second modifier. You should use Instilling Orbs until you automatically use the flask whenever it has full charges.

Silver Flask

This flask gives Onslaught which gives increased attack speed, cast speed, and movement speed as early as level 27 and can have increased attack speed or movement speed as a second modifier. You should use Instilling Orbs on the flask until you automatically use the flask whenever it has full charges.

Bottled Faith (use a Sulphur Flask for 40% increased damage if you can't afford Bottled Faith)

This endgame flask requires level 27 and gives 40% increased damage, creates consecrated ground, increases enemies damage taken by 10% on consecrated ground, and gives 150% increased critical strike chance against enemies on consecrated ground.

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Leveling Gems

Ground Slam is the best starting melee skill to use at level one and you can add in Ancestral Protector for more damage and attack speed at level four. At level 12 you should switch to Lightning Strike which is your endgame skill. Make sure to pick up a Steelskin gem once you've reached level four and have 16 strength for a defensive guard skill. Dash requires level four and should also be used as your travel skill at early levels.

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Upgrades

You can upgrade your weapon to Quecholli at level 22, to Stormheart at level 28, to Daresso's Passion at level 43, and finally to your endgame weapon. Carnage Heart is the budget amulet for this build and can be equipped as early as level 20. You can also greatly benefit from using two unique Praxis rings at level 22 to reduce the mana costs of all skills by up to 16. The items in the leveling section above last until the midgame where better items will become available.

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And that's all for the Lightning Strike Guide! For more on Path of Exile you can view the endgame guide here Endgame Guide.

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