Welcome to Patch 3.22 Trial of the Ancestors! In this guide, we'll delve into the exciting Manabond Hierophant budget build designed to make the most out of the Manabond skill. This build has been a blast to play on stream, and it's perfect for those looking to tackle challenging content while staying within a modest budget. Whether you're following along or experimenting with your own variations, this build offers flexibility, impressive damage potential, and the ability to clear content efficiently.

 

• Overview of Manabond
• Path of Building
• Leveling
• Ascendancy
• Gear
• Gear Cont
• Flasks
• Jewels
• Skills
• Final Thoughts:

 

 

↖ Overview of Manabond

Manabond is a unique skill that scales off your unreserved Mana. The skill's size and added damage are influenced by your total Mana pool. The larger your unreserved Mana and the higher the missing Mana, the more potent Manabond becomes. It's important to note that while this build emphasizes a large Mana pool, it isn't an Archmage build. Instead, we're focusing on maximizing the power of Manabond through a Manaindigan playstyle.

 

↖ Path of Building

This budget build follows a simple progression path, not included in this guide, leading you to your initial setup. The guide will provide notes on skill tree nodes, gear recommendations, and tips to enhance your build. We suggest leveling up to around level 80 before transitioning into this setup. While there are no strict requirements, aiming for at least level 90 will significantly improve your experience.

 

Budget PoB Link: https://pobb.in/Qu0lPNEvh4wq

 

↖ Leveling

When leveling a Hierophant character for this build, you have a few options to consider. Two of the most effective choices are the Hollow Palm technique and the Righteous Fire (RF) setup. Additionally, the Spark build can also be considered if you prefer that playstyle. Here's a breakdown of each option:

 

Hollow Palm Technique	This is the fastest leveling technique. It involves using the Hollow Palm keystone along with Iron Rings and other gear that increases attributes to capitalize on the bonus damage from Hollow Palm. Look up guides on YouTube or forums for detailed leveling guides specifically tailored to the Hollow Palm technique.
Righteous Fire (RF) Leveling	RF is a tested build for leveling. It's a self-damage-over-time spell that scales with your maximum life and energy shield, which can be powerful in the early game. To level with RF, you can refer to guides by players like Fox for detailed instructions.
Spark Leveling	Spark can also be a strong leveling skill. It's a projectile spell that can bounce off walls and enemies, providing solid clearing potential. Look up guides like "Anime Princess's Spark Guide" for a detailed guide on leveling with Spark.

 

For the main build, it's recommended to reach at least level 80 before attempting it. While there's no strict requirement, aiming for level 90 or even 85 is advised for a smoother experience. Trying to play the build as soon as you get to Maps might feel like you need more time to level and gear up.

 

↖ Ascendancy

The choice of Hierophant for your Templar character is based on several key reasons. The Hierophant ascendancy provides various benefits that synergize well with the intended playstyle of this build. Here's a breakdown of your chosen ascendancy and why it's preferable:

 

• Arcane Blessing: Grants always-on Arcane Surge and additional damage. This helps with consistent damage output and provides a nice damage boost.
• Conviction of Power: Provides free Power Charges and Endurance Charges. While Power Charges may not be useful at the moment due to Elemental Overload, they'll become more valuable later on.
• Divine Guidance: It offers significant extra Mana, which is crucial for sustaining your skills. This also synergizes with the Transfiguration of Mind node, allowing you to scale spell damage based on increased Mana.
• Sanctuary of Thought: It provides more Mana and makes Mana Bond even more effective. This is essential for keeping your Mana consistently unreserved, enabling the Hierophant playstyle.

 

Choosing Hierophant over other options like Scion is beneficial due to your end-game plans involving Flesh and Flame and Righteous Providence. Hierophant's Ascendancy nodes provide you with the tools needed to scale strength, intelligence, and critical strike chance, aligning well with your build's goals.

 

↖ Gear

In this gear guide, we'll break down the recommended gear choices for your Mjolnir build, focusing on maximizing strength and Mana while ensuring a good balance between offense and defense.

 

Amulet - Astramentis:

• Best low-budget amulet for this build.
• It provides high attributes, helping you reach the required dexterity and strength.
• Boosts attributes even further as attributes scale well with the build.

 

Helmet - Indigon:

• Grants spell damage based on recently spent Mana.
• The key item for boosting your damage output.
• Aim for the enchantment that fits your playstyle: either life regen or reduced Warcry duration.

 

Chest Plate - Ivory Tower:

• Offers a substantial energy shield and valuable base intelligence.
• It enables you to reserve all life without needing Chaos Inoculation.
• Recolor with Tainted Chromatic Orbs to achieve desired socket colors.

 

Gloves - Shaper's Touch:

• These gloves synergize perfectly with the build.
• Provides accuracy, intelligence, strength, and increased evasion rating.
• Look for despair on hit or Elemental Weakness on hit for added utility.

 

Prism Guardian:

• Great for reserving auras on life.
• It enables you to fit multiple auras, including Grace, Clarity, and Discipline.
• Essential for maximizing your aura setup.

 

Boots, Rings, and Belt:

• Prioritize items with strength, Mana, and intelligence bonuses.
• Strength helps you meet requirements, while Mana boosts your damage.
• Look for resistances to cap them and ensure survivability.
• Intelligence scaling is valuable due to Shaper's Touch and for extra Mana.

 

Mjolnir:

• The core item that allows linked skills to trigger without mana cost.
• Use Mana Bonds in Mjolnir for free casts and to bypass the increased mana cost from Endurance Charges.
• This enables you to frequently cast Mjolnir-triggered skills without worrying about Mana.

 

↖ Gear Cont

Here's a continuation of the gear guide, focusing on reserving life and maximizing benefits from specific items:

 

Prism Guardian:

• Reserve auras on life with this shield.
• Fit Grace and Discipline for increased evasion and energy shield, respectively.
• Consider adding Clarity for Mana sustain.

 

Helmet Enchant - Indigon:

• Choose between life regen or reduced Warcry duration enchant.
• Life regen adds to your sustain, while reduced Warcry duration enhances speed.

 

Ivory Tower:

• A crucial part of the build is providing a significant energy shield.
• Use Tainted Chromatic Orbs to recolor sockets as needed.

 

Shaper's Touch:

• Unique gloves that synergize perfectly with the build.
• Prioritize despair on hit or Elemental Weakness on hit for added utility.

 

Other Gear Slots:

• Focus on items with strength, Mana, and intelligence bonuses.
• Manage resistances and look for intelligence scaling for increased benefits.

 

Mjolnir:

• Use Mana Bonds inside Mjolnir for free skill triggers.
• This synergizes well with the build's focus on mana and strength scaling.

 

Remember that as you progress and gather more resources, you can invest in higher-tier items with even better bonuses. The gear guide outlined here provides a solid foundation for your Mjolnir build, emphasizing strength, Mana, and intelligence scaling to maximize both offense and defense.

 

↖ Flasks

In this build, the flask setup is designed to provide you with essential defensive and utility bonuses. Here's a breakdown of the recommended flask choices:

• Ruby/Sapphire Flask: These flasks provide extra Elemental Hit Points (EHP), with Ruby Flask offering fire resistance and Sapphire Flask offering cold resistance.
• Jade Flask: With a significant amount of percent Energy Shield (ES) and the Grace aura, this flask grants a considerable amount of evasion rating, enhancing your overall survivability.
• Granite Flask: While Granite Flask provides added armor, you have the option to swap it for a Quicksilver Flask if you prioritize movement speed for mobility.
• Corroding Elixir: This unique flask is crucial for the build's synergy with Ivory Tower and Mana Bonds. It redirects chaos damage away from your life and mana pool, preventing random deaths due to low Mana and low life.
• Three-charge Utility Flask: Aim for a flask that grants three charges when you're hit by an enemy. Since you'll be in close combat frequently, this prefix provides you with consistent flask charges.

 

As for suffixes, you can consider bonuses that complement your build. Examples include percent armor and percent evasion rating for added defense, or movement speed to enhance mobility.

 

↖ Jewels

Cluster jewels are a significant component of your build, providing amplified bonuses through Split Personality and synergizing with your passive tree. Here are the key points for jewel choices:

• Lightning Cluster Jewels: Look for lightning-themed cluster jewels with the Leading Idea and Storm Drinker notables. Avoid adding a third notable, as your pathing is optimized for maximum effectiveness with Split Personality.
• Stats to Look For: Prioritize intelligence and accuracy rating on these jewels. Since you need to reach the accuracy cap for Cyclone, these stats will help you achieve that. These jewels should ideally have eight passives.
• Yellow Jewels: ES and Mana percent jewels should be added to your gear. These jewels enhance your EHP and provide additional DPS due to their stats. You can also consider resistance, attributes, or strength if needed.
• Healthy Mind Jewel: Place this jewel at the top of the passive tree to convert a life node into a mana node. This greatly boosts your mana pool and enhances the value of certain nodes.
• Watcher's Eye: This unique jewel can provide you with a substantial boost to both maximum Mana and energy shield while affected by Clarity. This particular combination is affordable and offers significant ES and mana increases.

 

Remember to focus on finding jewels that align with your build's needs, enhancing both defense and offense while working synergistically with your passive tree and other gear choices.

 

↖ Skills

In this section, we'll cover the skills and the synergies that make up the core of the build. This build revolves around utilizing Mjölner, a unique item that triggers socketed lightning spells upon hitting, and various other mechanics to maximize damage and survivability.

 

Mana Bond Setup:

• Use Mjölner with socketed spells: Awakened Control Destruction and Awakened Lightning Penetration. These provide increased damage and penetration for your lightning spells.
• Mana Bond: Essential for sustaining your Mana. Aim for a 21/20 quality Mana Leech gem to help maintain Mana and scale your damage. This gem offers increased damage for each 200 Mana spent recently.

 

Cyclone Setup:

Cyclone will trigger Mjölner, allowing you to cast your lightning spells.

• Anomalous Mana Leech: Provides 10 increased damage per 200 Mana spent recently, synergizing with the Mana Bond setup.
• Cast While Channeling Support (Level 5 Awakened): This enables your lightning spells to trigger while channeling Cyclone.

Use Arc for clearing maps and Shock Nova for increased single-target damage.

 

Arcane Cloak Setup:

• Arcane Cloak (Enhanced with Divergent Arcane Cloak): Converts Mana into a shield, taking 75% of damage and offering increased damage.
• Increased Duration Support: Lengthens the duration of the shield.
• Arcane Surge Support: Provides consistent Arcane Surge buff, further increasing your damage.

 

Wrath and Solitude:

Use Wrath for increased lightning damage.

• Eternal Blessing: Allows you to have one Aura reserved on Energy Shield, which doesn't affect this build due to your Auras being reserved on life.

 

↖ Final Thoughts:

This build offers a unique playstyle and a balance between damage and survivability. Its relatively low budget makes it an attractive choice for players looking for a powerful yet affordable build. By maximizing synergies between skills, items, and mechanics, you can achieve impressive clear speed and strong single-target damage.

 

The core mechanics include the following:

• Using Mana Bond and Anomalous Mana Leech for both damage scaling and Mana sustain.
• Utilizing Mjölner to trigger lightning spells, supported by Cyclone and Cast While Channeling Support.
• Arcane Cloak as a defensive layer and burst damage tool.
• Eternal Blessing to reserve one Aura on Energy Shield, allowing you to run both Wrath and Solitude.

 

This guide serves as a foundation for the build's basic setup. As you progress, you can invest more into the build to enhance its performance. Consider exploring advanced setups, such as the 50-100 divine investment or a super high-end end-game setup, as mentioned in the guide. Adapt the build to your playstyle and preferences, and don't hesitate to seek advice or share your experiences with the community.

 

Remember, while this guide provides a solid direction, the Path of Exile metagame may evolve over time. Stay updated with game changes and community discussions to keep refining your build. Good luck, and enjoy your journey with this powerful lightning-based build!