Molten strike of the Zenith Leveling guide

/ onemanaleft
alot of people in the last video requested this so here it is, despite my not typically doing leveling related vids
Main links: Sunder - melee phys, added fire or brutality, ruthless
Leap slam, faster attacks, rage 3 link
1 aura link, ill probably go blood and sand + determ or purity of elements and vitality prec
enduring cry + molten shell link + inc duration
can run a frostblink for longer gap jump or body blocking
Brief overview of skill tree progression and some skill choices
pobb.in/IHJv3_...

[@Kaaosification]

Oh my days we actually got a leveling / early game guide from Connor I would not have expected this

[@adrienandivero9145]

Took the day yesterday to try and figure out something, only for this to be released. You can have a look at Woolie's approach which is very noob friendly Jugg Sunder guide.

[@GigaChadJecht]

Wat about ur nights not just days

[@Stiffler621]

Got a Conner guide before GTA 6

[@LookItsAMirage]

@@adrienandivero9145 Alk also released a video with like 5 trees and there aren't many better melee players out there.

[@prestonjohnson1185]

Wheres the links for pob

[@Xebtria]

love the intro. 100% agree. usually I know what I am doing (I think 😅) but I am open for new stuff so I will look forward to your suggestions and see if I adapt it fully or just some parts of it. one never stops learning :)

[@brandonwalker5011]

The shift key allows you to make letters capitalized as they should be following a period or sentence break.

[@hanzanator]

Not going to lie, you are quickly becoming one of my favorite content creators. You actually explain things and the why, I've learned a lot watching you. I watch/follow build and leveling guides so I don't have to study things because I have kids, single dad etc. the usual excuses on why I don't know as much with this game. But just watching the last few videos of you, and a few others, actually helped me get a good understanding of the tree and the game. As a result, I'm actually spending less time leveling because I'm not constantly going back and forth with a leveling guide to find out my "next step". Who knew, actually learning the game instead of following guides, makes you faster (and better) at the game... Crazy concept. TLDR; Thanks for the awesome videos

[@unfair_dinkum]

The thing I like the most about your build explanations is that you're great at pointing out the 'why' behind the decisions, and you're basically a talking poe ninja heat map - it is super helpful hearing stuff like "everyone ever takes this start" because it teaches me HOW to build around a core set of passives, as opposed to what I've seen other content creators do and prescribe the trees (which I also appreciate some people find more helpful, but not me and presumably other followers of yours).

[@gazza9260]

There was a lot of request for lving trees, but since Conner answered to my comment specifically saying he will do one i would like to take full credit and says this happened solely thank to me. XD Btw thanks for the video !

[@atul2425]

2:15 standard marauderer starting 10ish points 2:40 beeline art of gladiator 3:00 butchery and two hand node 3:10 Kinetic Impact two hand node 3:20 Two Hand Mastery rare/unique 4:00 Weird path downwards towards bastion breaker+wrecking ball 4:10 Max phys dmg mastery. 3% 3x dmg mastery. 4:35 Martial experience two hand wheel. could get earlier (?) 4:50 Unstoppable first ascendance (jugg) 5:50 Spirit of War for once u start to get more dmaage and high mana cost (mana reservation mana mastery) 6:35 GROUND SLAM LVL 1 to 12. Sunder at lvl 12. Maybe switch boneshatter after 'Gravicious' 7:15 if Sunder. go undeniable second ascendancy From here, just fill in by looking at the PoB. Take a lot of the early game nodes whenever u feel like u need them. not strict. Mostly for me but I hope it helps anyone else who is also bad at acts.

[@canerbuilds3437]

that intro must be engraved into every leveling guide ever recorded in human history

[@--pussypatroll--]

Yea this guy is top notch. He's the ONLY PoE person I follow // listen to.

[@liangdar9675]

Love the intro. The poe community needed that.

[@Deep_Sheep]

With regard to your hesitance to make levelling videos; I believe in the vast majority of cases that your content appeals to more experienced players. You can be assured that very few of your viewers will get stuck as a result of your levelling suggestions, and if they do they are unlikely to blame you. As always, love your content and your passion for the game. I hope you get the recognition you deserve!

[@unfair_dinkum]

Really well put. Levelling guides for non-beginners is probably pretty niche since creators expect experienced players to be capable on their own, which isn't the case where scaling to the moon is sought after, and Connor fills this niche really well imo.

[@neruneri]

@@unfair_dinkum Yeah I'm in the category where I can absolutely deal with

[@Ducttapefiend101]

Mhmm. Even before the crafting bench in your hideout was available right from Act 1 I had gotten to the point with the game where I could probably level any skill through the campaign in roughly 10-12 hours, but the day the bench was usable in Act 1 it became a complete no-brainer. I usually go a little slower on my first clear of a league like Connor, particularly if the league mechanic is fun. I've zoom leveled alts with carry uniques obviously, but also like Connor I tend to only do 1 or 2 characters per league unless it really gets it's hooks in me. You really nailed it though, people with a few thousand hours are the ones to stumble across Conner and love his shenanigans.

[@fredwin]

As someone with thousands of hours but whom doesn't play every single league, the reason I appreciate a leveling tab is just to save time navigating and re-learning the tree every patch.

[@TheSprigman]

After doing some experimentation in Craft of Exile - it appears that making an early game starting sword might be simplified by using a Fractured Reaver Sword (Cold, Fight, or Lightning) - and then using Fossil crafts to make a serviceable early game weapon. I was able to produce swords similar in overall DPS to your 6-10 div character from the last video in ~100c using T2 Fracture Fire Damage and then using Metallic/Serrated Resonators. This is achieved by getting all 3 elementals in the prefix and adding suffixes by crafting bench, or getting 2 elementals with an open prefixes w/ decent suffixes. I was surprised how cheap this approach was comparatively. Something to consider since the Woe crafting is on average twice as expensive in my simulations for similar DPS. Unless Woe are particularly cheap or fossils are expensive this could be a valid route of progression that could save a few of us hundreds of chaos. Thanks for the guide!

[@pablosanchomfm]

"Just shut the fuck up..." Conner just became my favorite POE content creator.

[@adalos1953]

Tested this from scratch up through early maps (leveled with sunder) and the zenith swap was pretty rough. I still plan to do it but I probably will hold off on making the switch until around red maps when I have more flexibility on the skill tree and access to better gear. Granted, things might feel a bit different with the 3.25 changes, especially since currently we don't have access to the mana leach node which required an alternative solution for this test run (tried lifetap (122 life per attack), clarity (didn't have enough INT to level it enough to be impactful), and ultimately used a thief's torment ring for big mana on hit). Hopefully this won't be necessary with the Spirit of War node, but I think people are underestimating mana management for 3.25. Side note, it took me forever running Uber Labs to finally get zenith so build that into your plans as it might take a while, especially if you are doing it on Merc Lab. Alternatively, make sure you have a good understanding of what other gems are in demand so you could potentially sell what you do get and buy zenith. I didn't want to pay 30d for it on standard so I just bit the bullet and farmed it myself. Did a sub-8 hour run on standard, which is pretty good for me since I'm not a racer by any means and I spent too much time worrying about upgrading my weapon and re-referencing gem setups and what not since I never play melee. Sunder plows through campaign, but is pretty sht on bosses.

[@ConnerConverse]

updated some gem links in PoB

[@hristohristov7943]

Show how you craft the sword.

[@tomgilet8343]

@@hristohristov7943 he did in a previous video (last chapter i think)

[@jeffreyfinney251]

@@hristohristov7943 fractured base. Elemental will probably be the cheapest route throw a couple spell damage essences. Craft attack speed done

[@CrescentMoonEmpire]

5:12 "Really the first time you'll see any significant chaos damage is R. Kelly in act 7." 😂

[@ScubaSkeet]

I caught that too haha

[@DrDoomie]

Thanks Conner! Ive been playing a couple years now and decided this league is my first to try melee, so between this and the zenith build it should be more than enough for me to get going. Really appreciate it man!

[@dumble6066]

Thanks for the video, never levelled with a Marauder but I'm really excited to try this build. ❤

[@Dudeabides422]

It’s usually ass, but this will be class 😎

[@Winning113]

Thank you for doing this man. I wanted to run this after your previous videos but wasn't confident enough to league start it without some guidance. Really appreciate you

[@matsiv5707]

It's the time of the league cycle where Conner releases bangers after bangers

[@dominikbade9674]

would love if you could make a short video about the transition into molten strike ( what items are a must to have so it actualy feels good )

[@jbaris]

Yo, I would like this too!

[@martinkostov75]

Thank you ! For the first time I am actually playing the storyline and i like how my character is progressing. I tried playing POE two seasons ago without looking at guides, it was a mistake. Could not finish the acts, got my ass handed to me. This time I got hooked on this one and it seems simpler for a new player, or it is just me 😂. Anyway, thank you again for your time and passion it is contagious!

[@green9090]

This is really helpful, thank you for posting it! Using an omen of fortune for Rakiata's is such a genius move. One option you didn't mention that I've been considering is to grab Blood Magic early. I think that will be comfy with the melee mana cost changes. You can still run vitality and precision with life reservation, they're flat so it's cheap. In act 4 you can pick up eternal blessing and throw on determination or purity of elements or haste with that. Once you have damage you should spec out and grab mana leech instead, but early on I think mana costs are going to make melee very clunky and Blood Magic will be a big value pickup for any melee build that paths near it. Really looking forward to league starting this, the build looks insane!

[@devlin1991]

Shield Charge dodged the mana increase nerf, I'm considering using that to level now.

[@thatbrentguy9531]

Thank you so much! as someone who plays melee but projectile and ele damage being out of my wheel house this was extremely helpful in ramping zenith to the in between stages.

[@funkmaster54]

Tells the community to shut the fuck up in the first 2 mins of the video. Liked, commented and subscribed.

[@tiredCasualDude]

First of all I want to thank you, that you heard me(and others apparently) and did lvling video. And I’m happy, that my friend once shared with me one of your videos. Since then you’re in my subscription list. Great content man.

[@Cantstop991]

Thanks for the guide Conner. One question, I know you want a good APS before swapping to Zenith but is there anything else you wanna be sure to have before swap? Or will > 4.5ish APS and a ~800 eDPS weapon be enough to make the swap.

[@ConnerConverse]

That's enough to swap

[@pnnplays2390]

Where does the final build get ailment immunity? Or is it just ignored?

[@florenta9188]

Please tell me: in the video at 01:49 it is shown that there are pobs for 6-10 div budget, 10-20 div budget, and so on. Where can I find them? In the video description there is only one pob for leveling on the Sander. And respec to the Molten strike of the Zenith only in 89-91 level?

[@guitarsolos89]

I've done a few practice runs with Sunder, and all I can recommend now with the mana nerfs is: Buy Lapis amulet ASAP and slot in Clarity early. It makes a HUGE difference.

[@jonathaneriksson9273]

At what level do you keep the clarity at?

[@zentjahzhm]

sunder got almost x2 damage effect. did you test how that feels or old sunder?

[@thertcll]

​@@jonathaneriksson9273that's something you would immediately be able to feel yourself while playing.

[@makujinn5045]

​@@zentjahzhm how he could possibly test it??

[@stonedleo]

​@@makujinn5045dude thinks hes talking to one of the devs lol

[@G.m1nwo0]

I'll leveling with other leveling experience i had before with marauder. Farm a little and swap builds asap!!! I'm hyped to try your build. Your video was super well done and showed us what the build is capable of! Great work!

[@pathfinderjellyfish3387]

Thank you very much for this! Wanted to play it after your last video but was nervous about levelling

[@TraxisOnTheLines]

I love that intro expectation - if you know what you're doing, leave us alone and go do it. If you want help, be here to accept the help.

[@Khultivate]

You are on your way to pohx greatness lol. Thanks for the guide! Keep up the guides, us noobs appreciate them

[@TheKingofTheVoid]

"Attack Projectiles Return to you" rune enchant confirmed for two-handed swords specifically. Molten strike of the Zenith LOGIN

[@adalos1953]

hotttt

[@JWG311]

I am a new player, thanks for this video! Loved the other video about this build and the logic behind it, so I wanted to try it and was curious how to progress it leveling. Great stuff, thanks!

[@shampoo768]

Thanks so much for this leveling guide. I'm a returning player who doesn't know much so this was very helpful

[@thaares]

Are you planning to update pob for this build and end game build as the league starts

[@VoiDukkha]

any chance you could mount your mic differently, such that it doesnt perfectly pick up every table vibration? e.g. 1:17

[@Deakore]

Even though I know mostly what I'm doing with leveling, still appreciated your thought process on how you plan to progress early thank you for the video

[@peewee9037]

I’ve been playing for years but this is the first time I’m not going to follow a build guide to the point, and first time melee, this kind of generic starting guide is perfect. Still not sure what to do exactly but I will start some generic 2h sunder + leap slam leveling. Sort of interested to not go elemental but instead 3 automated cry’s plus one or two manual and the exerting support on slam.

[@tripleraze321]

Man the effective dps per second on this build is insane. Going to farm some currency and then make this build on my second character.

[@runfonkey]

Apologies for being dense but could you provide some notes on transitioning to clusters? Which nodes would you drop first? How hard is it to get three three notables? Great video!!! Thanks.

[@ConnerConverse]

Once you get to like mid 80s look for your first large to start filling points and some 3 stat jewels, you mainly just want 8 passives with martial mastery but any you can get with martial/martial are insanely good. There's some craftofexile combos that are like 80c on leaguestart but that might be like early 90s budget for a 3 notable

[@jakpotgaming1026]

Thanks man only just seen your content this will be my second league and this is the most legit of all the league builds ive seen so far keep up the good work ❤

[@Adrostos]

Yo Conner, a lot of people appreciate your uploads- myself included. Please keep it up!

[@stefanrautenbach6550]

Asked for this in prevois vid and you made guide. Awsome thanks

[@BL1P]

Thanks very much for this, Ive been playing for years (2016) but I always need a leveling guide. So thank you very much !

[@devlin1991]

Much appreciated Conner. I made something similar today trying to figure out act 1 to 4 without relying on Molten strike. Shield Crush until you get returning proj and GMP works really well. I pathed down to the 40% damage no crit keystone and point blank. You can get those two just as you swap to Molten Strike with Lead Sprinkler at 40ish then get a huge power spike. Until then you just rely on Shield Crushes nice scaling and the rage nodes and big beefy notables.

[@UnitedViva]

Can you link the pob please :) ?

[@JohnWick-df7wc]

can you share your pob

[@JoeBezk]

Youre literally the one he told to stfu lol.. just sayin

[@UnitedViva]

@@JoeBezk How it is bad to ask for a bit different approach pob? Go visit a doctor

[@whitedemon4915]

Good luck getting Lead Sprinkler at 40ish, it's a T3 unique with 8-10c price at leaguestart.

[@eldombro7049]

Thanks for your take in leveling, much appreciated how you describe the approach to leveling. Have a nice league start, God Speed!

[@eNz0movs]

Is there a downside of switching to normal molten strike in maps instead of zenith version before you get attack speed for zenith to feel comfy?

[@jarodsinger6453]

Conner, what atlas strategy would you recommend (aside from delve) with the variations of this build? I have not run an endgame molten strike so I am curious which mechanics to avoid.

[@dali1384]

Conner, you are my favourite POE YT creator, thank you for all these INSANE OP BROKEN builds you provide us! I love you man

[@MirageMancer]

Thank you I needed this because I'm so lost at what to league start.

[@TheKingofTheVoid]

Two points into cloth and chain instead of Allira seems pretty good. its like 1 point gives 16% all elemental resists, and the other point gives 36% increased armor and evasion. Can use your bandit choice for more move speed.

[@ConnerConverse]

yea 36% for 1 point value is probably worth but that assumes you've pathed over to golems blood which i likely wont do till like 60-65

[@brettzeigerbacher2314]

Bandits are 1 point now. The other one comes from a different quest. So it's a harder choice

[@horaculus9190]

@@brettzeigerbacher2314 WAIT really

[@jeffberg7490]

Yes, a solid choice!

[@Gogoblin]

Thank you for the video. I would like to ask if the removal of Chaos Resistance from Unrelenting and the change of Unbreakable to apply 8% of armor to elemental damage in the 3.25 update have a significant impact on this build?

[@DaBossBayBae]

Awesome video! Appreciate the time and all the effort. In regards to lab choices, you went unstoppable for normal and undeniable for cruel. What do you take for merc lab and later for uber lab? I see the zenith pob respecs unstoppable and you go unbreakable/unflinching/unrelenting.

[@TheKingofTheVoid]

exactly what I was waiting for. Before I even finish watching, I'm guessing you level via Sunder.

[@kreagan8481]

Do you think this build work fine on blight ravaged maps ? i'm afraid that some monsters hit the pump.. maybe the mjolner build better for that ?

[@Retnuh1974]

I have not played POE in years and I am going to attempt to play this. Thank you for this!!!

[@amdudley83]

I yolo’ed it and swapped to it when I got the gem on my first lab run. Not a great one to level with but I hate fucking with respec. It’s really fun to see those huge chunks you take out of bosses during the campaign, but it was rough level. I’m super pumped to see the top end of this thing.

[@mikearrow8767]

I like the STFU. Nicely said. Wish I watched more content creators with some balls to say what's up. Love this build because when I max out a build I usually stop playing. This one will keep me a going through the league for a while.

[@stan141]

Thanks a lot for the leveling guide What gems would you recommend for a 6-link leveling with sunder? What other gems should I take? I'm really bad at build crafting myself, especially for melee builds (I've played minions and TR before) and I don't have that much knowledge, so an advice on all gems would be really appreciated!

[@TheKingofTheVoid]

Go to poe ninja builds, sort by sunder only. It'll list the most popular support gems. This works for basically any skill. Hard to go wrong

[@rodrigolilge3533]

Thanks for the build connor, it's great to see something really fun to play in this league. I was excited about the melee buff but your build has made me want to get out of standard and play in a league again. Any tips on how to craft these clusters efficiently? not the synthesized ones of course. Cherrs mate

[@9ambler99]

Where does the build get its sustain from? You said life gain on hit but I can't see that anywhere. Sry If I missed it.

[@MaikuYT]

great guide, thanks Connor. I'll be following this somewhat similar only change im doing is taking undeniable ascendancy first with unwavering stance on tree for 1 point then pathing down to precise technique. damage shouldnt be a problem with or without it anyways but i just like to faceroll my campaign.

[@adamruck]

So since we are using leap and blink to get around movement speed doesn't really help that much correct? If that's the case then to me undeniable seems better than unstoppable as the first ascendancy node.

[@Krigify3252]

Thanks again for the video! Quick question: Is there a way to gain fortification after unspeccing the Steadfast wheel? EDIT: Found the Fortify in Leap Slam, I guess it's enough then. :D

[@Hikabusha]

Homie putting out quality content with concise and simple explanation.

[@contrakt666]

nice build will try this , but i dont understand how u make like 4-9d on day 2 ?

[@Jarot_TV]

10-20 div on day 1, pretty ez with sanctum

[@Jarot_TV]

btw if you need the first chaos to start playing your build to get some uniques, you can do demolitions starting at lvl 60 at heist, BTW dont kill kitava if you going sanctum early cuz you have 30 elemental ress more if you dont kill kitava by the cost of 2 passive skill points you dont get for finish the "story" , so you can start doing lvl 70 sanctums, just lvl up to 68-70 with act 9-10 or heist while getting chaos to buy cheap uniques for your build

[@herbv3449]

first 2 minutes is so true, love you for that dude. Thanks for putting out some awesome content!

[@TheCHAOGames]

Thank you for a leveling guide, was hesitant to play the build, but not anymore!

[@xingdongjiang1303]

Question here, for multistrike with Molen strike of zenith, will the repeats attack counts into 1 attack for zenith?

[@martindiablo3329]

have question wich medium cluster aer you used to ??

[@jeepguy6887]

thanks for doing this for us "noobs" I know its not your jam but its a great help to have an idea about how to get to your other build. Really appreciated.

[@primebg9853]

There is a creator that made update on your build and he is doing it with trauma and zenith. Does trauma support work with the projectile scaling of the zenith?

[@denver6861]

is pob actually does not contain leveling progression or am I doing something wrong?

[@keskidi]

Quick question, do the omen of fortune keep the base sockets/links/quality after the chance orb ?

[@camiloberrios7583]

Definely will go with MS Zenith after this explanation. Thanks a lot!

[@driiifter]

Lol the only Exerting I'm doing is Intimidating Cry with the new Overexertion Support, so just one button. (My build only presses one button to begin with if you don't count defense, maybe 2 or 3 on bosses.). All my damage early on comes from supports, I only take 2 damage nodes on the tree as Slayer. Also there's no reason for me not to use Vengeful Cry. I learned 2 things from this video: this man is humble and spare some points for Rage on Hit wheel.

[@Kabaneritv]

What content do you expect to farm on the league starter version of this build? Side note do you think it can fair well in simis?

[@Zabo44]

Can you make cheaper transition gear from sunder to zenith? Right now, market is just too crazy to, this budget gear is like 20+ d. even elemental sword alone is like 20d

[@t9xlive106]

This seriously. Unsure how I can transition when the gear I gotta buy is silly expensive

[@boiledfrogs1]

hi great guide trying it this league, just one question when u say ur changing to molten strike do u mean the transfig version directly or u go regular gem and then transfig?

[@AhmedYomran]

How to transition from sunder to molten strike?

[@cable2590]

If returning projectiles works enchant on melee weapons as some people are speculating/hoping, would your build change up at all?

[@AlexandreBackes]

I am going molten strike from level 1, and rush to precise technique and point blank, and accuracy for normal lab for the 40% more damage... Will it b fine?

[@TheSprigman]

Fine? Absolutely. You're better off with Sunder/Bonezone with the tree he made. If you're going to be playing Strike skill make sure you invest in some strike nodes earlier.

[@CaptainJabka]

Thanks for a video, but I have a question. | When we should change to a Molten strike of the Zenith, when we bought all unique items from 6d POB or we may rush to the Molten strike of the Zenith to get it from the lab? Generally, what are the requirements for the Molten strike of the Zenith to spec for it?

[@zentjahzhm]

Crown of eyes with a spell damage (woe essenced) + ele dmg 2 hander

[@andrewww4100]

What’s the point of using divine shield note? It’s for some kinda over time degens? May be I missed something…

[@ConnerConverse]

its very good recovery in situations where you're surroudned and counters degens a bit

[@liangdar9675]

What's your opinion on blood magic to solve mana and just getting one big aura mit eternal blessing and reserving something like vitality and precision on your life?

[@oupis1983]

I will try your build this league. Can you advise me on which atlas to focus on?

[@cchance]

Any chance you've got a loot filter we can use to watch for items and whats good for the build for leveling and when we go to final cutover

[@SmexyPancake]

Thanks a lot for the videos man, im gonna use this. Good luck with league start!

[@adamhu5983]

Hey Cornor, great video. One question, how do you craft those large cluster jewels?

[@dumbinternetbird]

Shuddering fossils or harvest reforge speed. You can use 2 notable clusters with martial/martial through the 80s and early 90s cause you won't have the points anyways

[@nothingface5919]

After seeing that new Overexertion gem made me kinda wanna try automating some warcries while leveling... Will it be good? No idea. But it sounds Kinda fun to mess with.

[@assassinassassin1408]

Hello Conor, im going to be league started your build because molten strike was my favourite build back in delve league but can u please tell ue how to make currency with this gear, like give us what atlas you would run and which mechanics

[@tmjones212]

If this isn't working for us (let's say b/c I'm garbage) what's the play? Do we just play Boneshatter?

[@Theflammingnight]

how do you maintain rage in the early stages of the build? like in maps?

[@Nobody-hc1rw]

We don't need to spam regrets no? Gold :D What do you mean with an OK flat ele roll? Fractured i assume? Otherwise i don't get what you mean with 'then you just woe essence'.

[@austorious]

just wondering why are you running precision with resolute in the pob?

[@fredwin]

Resolute is a huge DPS boost while you're leveling and can't get precision or more accuracy. You skip or spec out of it.

[@leimad13]

Good stuff! I usually level with just a minor difference, for starting nodes I go with damage not life. 40% increased damage and 5% attack speed.

[@adalos1953]

Same. Especially now with gold respecs, having the extra dmg early is worth it.

[@ChargerrTV]

Can you do a transition PoB so we can see what we need and what our passives look like to swap to Zenith

[@anonymoose2210]

Awesome! This will be my 2nd league and im excited to play something crazy strong!! Ty for blessing us with this one button invincible juggernaut

[@LovelyCooK]

That’s a wild build to pick for a second league

[@jarededwards7018]

@@LovelyCooK lol yeah a stat stacker as a 2nd ever build aint the best idea, but power to you if you can pull it off

[@Kabaneritv]

Not one button and its not the standard easy league starter. By all means give it a go, have fun, and learn the game. But level your expectations.

[@spencerlivermore2933]

Do you have a guide on how to make the cluster jewels?