Build-Making Basics: The Passive Skill Tree [Path of Exile]

[@SocialDownclimber]

Badger please please PLEASE do something on how builds should feel when you play them, and how to tell when your build needs work. Recognising that you need to change your build and challenge your own assumptions is the most important part of making your own builds! Many people have covered the "how to change your build" angle but I don't know anybody who has addressed the "when to change your build" in a YT vid.

[@joshuahensley9395]

I would suggest a final video would be you making a build Or showing us you using the concepts in the videos as you walk us through your thought process of one of the builds you did make

[@JayCoxFilms]

Sounds like a great series! Maybe down the line you could talk a bit about Banner Skills, what they do and if it's actually worth micromanaging the stages and placing the banner or to just strap it to your back and "forget about it" ... anyway, loving your content, as allways

[@NowLiveWithVlad]

I really needed this , I’ve been playing Poe for almost 7 years now and still a noob, I’m always following guides and making builds that don’t really align with my play style, so I usually struggle getting to red maps let alone killing an end game boss

[@gratz7054]

superb material. Seems to be new series :P

[@raven_uwuy]

Would like to see damage scaling, being crit, dots , impale , etc. :) Good video!

[@damorpl]

It was really good to hear about 3% damage increase per node. I never knew when is enough

[@Hehulk]

Looking forward to the episode on jewels

[@maggotking2952]

This video was amazingly helpful. I've wanted to get into path of exile for a long time. But there is just so much to take in. This video helped put things into perspective. Thanks for the information.

[@kevinncr5079]

Great stuff for a new player like me, thank you!

[@timothybristlin7626]

Yo thank you so much ive been trying to get more info and there arent many really good guides!

[@mr_wisdoom]

This is going to be such a great series. It's exactly what Path of Exile needs - a "Make Your Own Build" for dummies lol. I'm looking forward to learning this, it could really breath more life into the game

[@katemoon8082]

Need to learn this completely new and want to try and play and learn

[@dcrxz8717]

This is awesome Badger. I would love to see item consideration when building. I know in some cases it comes later after the build is complete. But sometimes you do consider it, I think. I'm not sure. I'm a newb that's why I'm here. :-) Looking forward to the next episodes. Cool stuff man.

[@zekekaszycki2968]

Just saying I loved your old badger intro. the waving badger was great

[@MrDeothor]

that's EXACTLY what i was looking for. More, please!

[@L1St3n3R]

YES! Thanks for this series, Jesus Chris, finally! MOAR PLEASE

[@leonsmuk4461]

I would have loved to know if there are any hard and fast rules to how much "% inc life from tree" or "% inc es from tree" I should take if I want to play life/es based characters. How much EHP should I at least have against various damage types? Are there thresholds to this like "x" life against Physical damage is squishy/moderate/tanky? Can I link a specific tree to a specific loadout of gems/gear (*in PoB) when I want to compare full phys version of some skill to an elemental conversion version of the same skill or do I have to make an entirely new build for that? Should damage be a metric that I should meet a threshold of in order to decide if a build will be "T16 viable" or something like that or is that a lost cause due to the insane amount of variables that go into the damage calculation?

[@leimad13]

Generally you would aim at minimum 150% life for right side of the tree (EV based) and around 200% for left side (AR based). Increased life and ES is not all though, your items will give you life and ES as well, I'd say 5k life and 7k ES feels good to enjoy up to hard content. Your other defences matter a lot here too, EHP is just that, a fat pool to soak in the damage. High resistances, AR, EV, Dodge, Blind, Endurance charges, Damage reduction, life/ES regen etc all play huge part here. For example, a character with 70% phys reduction can laugh at that type of damage (Juggernaut lets say) but with the same life elemental damage may be a problem. To compare builds/gems/skills Path Of Building is the best. It provides enormous and comprehensive data on every aspect of your character. Damage can be metric, sure. Say someone with 1mil damage and good defences can clear T16 ok but someone with 10mil 4k life can clear the map way faster and by doing so safer. Kill stuff before it gets a chance to look at you sort of deal. Some build rely on stupidly high damage to down bosses almost instantly therefore not risking long phases and damage coming from boss. Install path of building mate, it will make your life much easier! Good luck exile!

[@garhong9125]

The main thing to realize is that it's different for different types of characters. Someone who is ranged with other defense layers (i.e. dodge, block, Mind Over Matter, etc.) can be "tanky" with like 4k life. Someone who is melee who is mostly just running fortify and leech can be "squishy" with 7k life. The first question to answer when making a build is "Do you mostly die to large single hits when you make a mistake" or "Do you tend to get shredded by a bunch of tiny hits on a regular basis." The former tends to be the nimble ranged guy while the latter is more often the melee range guy (note you don't need to be playing a melee skill to need to be in melee range to deal damage). Additionally, how good you are with a build makes a huge difference. For example, I play totems a lot. When I first started, I needed around 4k life and MoM to feel safe. But as I play it more, I find I can comfortably do just as well or better with 3k or less because I get better at not getting hit. As you can see, the main problem with answering the "how much life/ES do I need" question is due to differing skill levels. You and I are not the same skill (you might be better OR worse) and therefore you and I will not feel comfortable on the same threshold. What I did was to first play a build that focuses on being tanky (10k eHP, overcapped res, etc.) and just use it to learn boss fight mechanics. Fights will take a while yes but the boss also has a hard time killing you if built right so you can just make a ton of mistakes while learning (you also see the relative damage each boss mechanic does). Once I felt like I knew the mechanics and could mostly avoid getting hit, then I would move on to trying to make DPS chars that weren't nearly as tanky.

[@frost638]

thank ou badger for making this video, it was really helpful and informative. as a new plaer these videos are very helpful for me.

[@ronald3602]

Awesome series I think, My biggest problem in build making is setting up items, I never know what I should make and how nuts I should set them so I always plan the path but never set up items except for uniques, any chance you can do an episode on that?

[@MitchellJames_Snowl]

Thank you so much. That was a great explanation that i needed. I'm getting frustrated here, not knowing what to pick or picking and later regretting it, etc. I started a Shadow and i'm not sure where to start.

[@lairizzle]

Badger, I feel like you wrote the piece in the background and it might be the best part of the video.

[@ThisisBadger]

Depends on which one! (I wrote them all)

[@lairizzle]

@@ThisisBadger 1:00, I realized after typing they switch between segments but this is a beautiful composition. Are these available anywhere?

[@faaeen]

Good job on the video editing, I can imagine a lot of effort going into this video :)

[@Demahiyuri]

Looking forward to this series!

[@Avel_runner]

Preach's footage is on point lol

[@velomeister]

this is just what I need to enjoy the game again

[@syrphilipgulmatico5352]

Ive recently jumped back to poe and i want to make my own build and do ssf thanks for this vid. Havent played since 2019 and om overwhelmed 😅

[@Izuroth]

Realy looking forward to this! One of my questions is: How much dmg and ehp should a build have at lvl 80-90? It´s sometimes hard to say/see. And much harder if you load up some Builds and see ludacris dmg numbers, that a not nolife-PoE player hardly will ever see.

[@thneuburger8977]

hi, i think this question can only be answered, if you know for example the league you want to play with your character. If you want to play hardcore,you should consider getting more ehp/tankiness than in softcore leagues. with the damage it is the same story. If you have ti kill the boss in 2seconds, cause you otherwise get killed, take more damage nodes. it is always relative if you ask me. i know, Not really helpful, but that ist my approach.

[@darrellsongy309]

Super nice video with great information for all starting players and some great info for long time players. Keep it going please. On the topic of rebranding....were you going for a Mr. Rodgers look cause you nailed if you were. Just poking fun. Thanks for your time in putting this together.

[@chriareed6109]

Really enjoyed !

[@assassingao]

This was incredibly helpful. Thank you!

[@johnmark390]

Amazing guide thank you sir

[@amadousy2986]

Great content! Thanks!

[@julesjoniot9388]

Nice introduction. I think you never speak about cluster jewel (maybe in a futur vid) but they appear a lot in the video. Might be a bit underwhelming for a new player. Cool video nonetheless I'm looking forward to the next one.

[@g.waits4gainz205]

cheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeers quite the journey this year cant wait for more. too bad ill disappear from this gmae for 6 weeks in november for osrs l3 but itll be soooooooo nice to have 3.16 and 3.17 to enjoy this winter WOOT

[@davep5788]

One thing you didn't cover was the tree comparison in PoB. I find very handy to quickly see next step pathing or how many regrets tree changes will require.

[@ParanormalerDachs]

love it! need it!

[@cuongcatchy7656]

omg, thank you bro!

[@wotwot6868]

Ruthless SSF in-depth decision making please

[@jeffhess8241]

I’m new to Poe both overwhelmed and mesmerized by the possibilities. Just started a pathfinder and opted in to caustic arrow because it one shots everything for some reason ever since i socketed it lol. I definitely picked up a lot more damage nodes than I should have. Now in act 6/7 seems like you want more utility/sustain/defense nodes and definitely all res. Seems like most skills in this game do decent damage without heavy investment of damage nodes? 🤷‍♂️. I’m still a noob so I don’t know Jack shit tbh

[@poncio2632]

Might be a bit more advanced, but I'd love a guide about defenses, not just making a list of the different types like other guides out there, but also show how to layer them properly and maybe give some examples or even flexible templates.

[@Chronor007]

The best dmg upgrades based on build archetypes. PS: Probably make sure to cover defenses last since next patch will probably change them drasticly.

[@DerNesor]

Me: learns you can shoot an enemy with left click Step 2: just enter the attribute you are looking for in this searchbar Me typing: h e l p

[@MrHAR1B0]

Can I use regret on intelligence an keep my jewel socket active without the skill tree being connected?

[@jcv703]

What if I chose wrong is there a way to redeem all the points or like reset it?

[@化粧惑星]

What is difference between total dps and combined dps in pob? Usually i just look at total dps but sometimes combined dps can be much higher or lower.

[@Joao.caires]

Sooooo good

[@chiaro2299]

What's the name of the song playing at 10-12 mins?

[@化粧惑星]

This league I have been playing POB instead of POE.

[@alialun1605]

Yep, you should have probably waited for the rework lol.

[@perjakobsen9825]

So... If I understand you correctly, you should not just choose a skill and gear at random and see if it works?! Mind, blown ;-P

[@Sloth81194]

Man, I fucked up soo many build, glass cannon, tank whit no damage , squishy and no damage, i fucked up soo many times and sometime i still fuck up my build

[@etk5129]

always get scion life wheel lads

[@timeless_1337]

whoa whoa whoa... I think this video kind of buried the lead.... Where is this 'poop' node?!

[@garf412]

didnt knwo about divine on the Timeless jewel.. huh...

[@procha92]

P O O P

[@kelo8685]

People take offensive nodes?

[@Udhoi]

Subbed!

[@MrReallogs]

ah yes the good old poop noteable :P

[@gentrydv8]

S5

[@magscat493]

For softcore, just search damage and get all of those. We dont need defences, game provides 6 portals, we use all 6 portals.

[@Faraonqa]

Truth is, no one has any clue what to do

[@heagow]

Here to offer my like and comment for the youtube algorithm god

[@ballisticus1]

Gems: which ones quality matters most, which ones levels matters most, which ones should/shouldn't be corrupted, etc

[@neotower420]

I just started a build blind, figured since I'm using a bow I should naturally get bow mastery.. Then saw every build online for rangers doesnt even use that node... fuck me

[@willianlussin8981]

One thing that always bug my mind is, like Two handed nodes vs specific weapon nodes What is better? Lets say a two handed axe, should i get two handed or axe nodes?

[@Nathanaelelliott]

Thank you for this content.

[@dik4316]

That's not ergo, that's id est.

[@hodorgaming_2056]

cool :)

[@Blecco]

Thanks this is already helping a lot. I'm working with two builds that both focus better on one aspect of the same one I'm running (survivability or damage) and trying to balance them is quite hard. I was wondering about if I was getting enough bang for my buck with some reaching and some of this simple rules are already helping figuring it out. Def subbed for more of this.