Archmage Arc
Inquisitor Build

Updated for Patch 3.19

The Best Crafty Guides by Odealo

The past changes in the game haven't been kind to Archmage Support Gem - it used to be much more popular, but right now most builds struggle to achieve any meaningful damage with it. It's a Support Gem that you can link to any Hit-based non-Arcane non-Vaal Spell you cast yourself, and it will add Lightning Damage based on how much Unreserved Mana you have, and how much Mana the Skill costs. It limits the choice of viable build you can base on this Gem already - we've decided to link it to the Arc Spell, but that hardly matters as the Ascendancy we've chosen is Inquisitor with Inevitable Judgement. Other Ascendancy Keystones here are Sanctuary, Pious Path, Righteous Providence, and Divine Guidance gained via a pair of Forbidden Jewels. It's a foundation of a 100%-Critical Strike Chance build that always penetrates Elemental Resistances. With Mind Over Matter and bonuses from the unique Helmet the character is very durable (as long as you have Mana), half of the damage is taken from Mana first, and then has to go through over 5000 of combined Life and ES.

The character is able to gather around 10 000 Mana by allocating a lot of Mana nodes on a passive skill tree, equipping Mindspiral, Replica Kaom's Heart, Skyforth, Atziri's Foible, and two Jewels - Clear Mind and Healthy Mind. You have to have all of your Mana not reserved to reap the immense benefits granted by Archmage Support - because of that we recommend using Essence Worm and having one Aura off charge. We've picked Zealotry for Critical Strike bonuses, but it is possible to achieve 100% Critical Strike Chance without it - you can then go for a defensive Aura like Purity of Elements or Determination and get additional benefits from Sublime Vision, as the ones for Zealotry are nearly useless in this build. To increase the Mana cost of Arc, link it with as many Support Gems as are applicable - each Support Gem has its Cost & Reservation Multiplier. The Body Armour we've mentioned earlier has no links at all, but you can still create a 12-link setup using Bitterdream and The Squire - that can increase the Mana Cost to over 6000, resulting in around 10mil DPS.

You can also check our other Path of Exile builds right over here Odealo's Crafty Guides - Full List

1. Gameplay

Arc costs over half of your Mana Pool and the Mana Regeneration is around 1000 per second - that's 10%. To not run out of Mana during mapping anoint your Amulet with Mind Drinker to get the 2% of Maximum Mana on Kill, or get Blood Sacrifice Jewel (probably a bad idea). During boss fights, hit them with a fully-charged Spell, empty Mana Flask, and Hit them a few more times. That should be enough for the map bosses, but for the pinnacle ones you might want to invest in more reliable Mana regeneration sources such as Mana Flask replenishing or Mana Regeneration. Remember - you cannot Leech Mana with Mindspiral Helmet on. For a Guard Spell use Arcane Cloak linked with Arcane Surge Support. To generate Power Charges use Vortex (it's an instant Spell you can cast as you move) linked with Power Charge on Critical. It will also slow down and even kill enemies. As for the Curse - use Assassin's Mark. Frost Shield, Sigil of Power, and Ice Golem can also be included, you can cast them manually or automatically via Cast when Damage Taken.

2. Build's PROS & CONS

3. Leveling tips

You can start as a generic Spell Caster dealing Lightning Damage with Arc - getting through all ten acts should be quick and easy with this Spell. Start with the Lightning and Elemental Damage nodes on your passive skill tree, there are a lot of them near your starting location. Use the unique or rare items with similar qualities - Mana won't be important until much later on. At level 70, the time you start with tier-1 maps, you will be able to equip all Unique Items, and if you have them ready switch to the Mana-based build presented here.

Suggested leveling Gem setups:

Arc setup
	Arc - Use Arc from the start - it's a great leveling Spell that can carry you with just the right Gems, Passives, and Items.
	Arcane Surge Support - Use it in the main setup at first, it grants Damage and Mana Regeneration Rate.
	Power Charge On Critical Support - Increases Critical Strike Chance and generates Power Charges for even more Critical Strike Chance.
	Elemental Focus Support - More Spell Damage in exchange for the inability to cause Ailments with Arc.
	Increased Critical Strikes Support - It simply Increases Critical Strike Chance.
	Inspiration Support - Increases Critical Strike Chance, Elemental Damage, and reduces the Mana Cost of Skills.

Mana Reservation setup
	Clarity - Regenerates your Mana at a steady pace.
	Purity of Elements - Grants a lot of Elemental Resistances and protects you from any Elemental Ailment.

Utility Gems
	Conductivity - Lowers Lightning Resistance of your enemies. After allocating Inevitable Judgement and gathering enough Critical Strike Chance replace it with  Assassin's Mark.
	Flame Dash - A simple movement Spell you can use to teleport.

Bandits:

You should kill all three Bandits for two additional Skill Points, but Helping Alira might be a very good idea too - it grants Resistances, Critical Strike Multiplier, and Mana Regeneration, all needed.

Leveling Skill Trees:

24 Points Skill Tree
Start Elemental and Spell Damage with some Maximum Life too.

62 Points Skill Tree
Get more Maximum Life, Lightning Damage, Cast Speed, Maximum Power Charges, and some Jewel Sockets.

Recommended leveling items:

Le Heup of All - Use this Ring for Attributes, Damage, and Resistances.

Adds 1 to 4 Physical Damage to Attacks +(10-30) to all Attributes (10-30)% increased Damage (10-30)% increased Rarity of Items found +(10-30)% to all Elemental Resistances

Goldrim - Offers a lot of Elemental Resistances and can be worn at level 1.

+(30-50) to Evasion Rating 10% increased Rarity of Items found +(30-40)% to all Elemental Resistances Reflects 4 Physical Damage to Melee Attackers Level Requirement reduced by 100 (Hidden)

Praxis - One of the best leveling Rings for most Spell-casters due to its Mana-related qualities.

+(20-30) to maximum Mana +(30-60) to maximum Mana Regenerate (3-6) Mana per second -(8-4) to Total Mana Cost of Skills 8% of Damage taken Recouped as Mana

Atziri's Foible - You can equip it very early on, and so you should.

(20-30)% increased Mana Regeneration Rate +100 to maximum Mana (16-24)% increased maximum Mana (80-100)% increased Mana Regeneration Rate Items and Gems have 25% reduced Attribute Requirements

Lifesprig - You can equip it at level 1, it increases various stats, all of which are important for a Spell caster early on.

(8-12)% increased Spell Damage +1 to Level of Socketed Spell Gems (20-28)% increased Spell Damage (5-8)% increased Cast Speed +(15-20) to maximum Life +(15-20) to maximum Mana Regenerate (6-8) Life over 1 second when you Cast a Spell

Doedre's Tenure - Reduces your Cast Speed quite significantly in exchange for increased Spell Damage, which might be a good deal depending on your Damage.

+(20-50) to Intelligence 100% increased Spell Damage (25-15)% reduced Cast Speed

Tabula Rasa - Use Tabula for the six, white, linked sockets.

Item has no level requirement and Energy Shield (Hidden) Item has 6 White Sockets and is fully linked (Hidden)

4. Final Skill Tree, Ascendancy Points, and Pantheon

Final Skill Tree:

111 Points Final Skill Tree (doesn't include Items, Unique, or Cluster Jewels)
118 Points Path of Building (PoB) link

Ascendancy points:

Preferably in that order:

1. Sanctuary
2. Pious Path
3. Rightous Providence
4. Inevitable Judgement

Pantheon:

Major God: Soul of Solaris: 6% additional Physical Damage Reduction while there is only one nearby Enemy; 20% chance to take 50% less Area Damage from Hits

Minor God: Soul of Yugul: 50% chance to Reflect Hexes, You and your Minions take 50% reduced Reflected Damage; 30% reduced Effect of Curses on you

5. Final Gems links

[DPS] Armageddon Brand setup socketed in Bitterdream
	Arc - Arc is a simple Lighting Spell that chains off enemies. In this setup, it is also linked to Bitterdream's Bonechill, Hypothermia, Ice Bite, Cold Penetration, Added Cold Damage, and Inspiration Support Gems - these are mostly used to increase the Mana Cost, but you'd benefit greatly from Hitting Chilled opponents and some Frenzy Charges.
	Elemental Focus Support - You won't be able to cause Elemental Ailments with Arc, but that's a role for your other skills. This one grants a lot more Elemental Damage.
	Spell Echo Support - Spell repeats an additional time with Higher Cast speed. It also has a very high Mana Cost Multiplier.
The Squire Support Gems:
	Unleash Support - Unleash has a very high Mana Cost Multiplier, and the storage of seals to discharge them all at once is also very good as you won't cast the Skill as often as your Cast Speed allows you to anyway.
	Archmage Support - The key component of the build - adds tons of Lightning Damage the more Mana you have, and spend on Skill.
	Increased Critical Strikes Support - Both  Power Charge on Critical, and  Increased Critical Damage might be equally good choices depending on your Critical Strike Chance - remember it has to be 100%.

[UTILITY] Guard Spell/Flame Dash setup
	Arcane Cloak - A Guard Spell that Spends a majority of your current Mana to protect you from incoming damage. It's very efficient with high Mana Regeneration.
	Flame Dash - Allows you to teleport over a short distance and stores three charges.
	Arcane Surge Support - You can level it all the way up, it increases Mana Regeneration Rate and grants more Spell Damage after spending enough Mana on a supported Spell.

[UTILITY] Vortex setup
	Vortex - Used mostly to Chill enemies and increase your Arc Damage which is linked with Hypothermia Support. It can also kill smaller enemies with a few powerful Support Gems.
	Increased Critical Strikes Support
	Power Charge on Critical Support - Has a high chance to generate a Power Charge when Vortex deals Strike Critically.
	Increased Critical Damage

[UTILITY] CwDT setup
	Sigil of Power - Creates a field in which you can spend Mana to upgrade it, it adds Lightning Damage to Spells and makes you receive less damage at maximum stages.
	Frost Shield - Drains some of your Energy Shield to protect you while inside the field, but more importantly - it grats some additional base Critical Strike Chance.
	Summon Ice Golem - Ice Golem increases your Critical Strike Chance, seek the Anomalous version for an increased buff effect.
	Cast when Damage Taken - All Spells are activated after taking some Damage, it is optional, you might not want to use it for more control during boss fights.

[UTILITY] Assassin's Mark
	Assassin's Mark - Use this Curse for an increased Critical Strike Chance and Multiplier.

[UTILITY] Zealotry socketed in Essence Worm
	Zealotry - Increases Critical Strike Chance and Spell Damage. Socket it in the Essence Worm to have all your Mana unreserved. You might switch it for a different Aura if you already have a 100% Critical Strike Chance.

6. Gear Setup

There are a lot of Unique Items worth your Attention, focused mostly on gathering more Mana and Mana-related unique modifiers. These are mostly cheap as there are not many meta builds that rely that heavily on Mana. The Squire Shield is the only pricey Item on this list so be sure that you can afford it. Besides accumulating Maximum Mana, keep in mind that you also need Mana Regeneration Rate if you want to pick fights with tough enemies, and a 100% Critical Strike Chance to penetrate Resistances via Inevitable Judgement. It can be done by foraging Strength and Intelligence. The Ice Golem will require 75 Dexterity so keep an eye on it too. Maximum Life is only half as important as it would be in a regular build, but still great to have. Energy Shield is sourced mostly from the Unique Helmet and Intelligence.

Our recommended items will:

1. Cap your resistances at 75%
2. Provide you with enough DPS and Life to start mapping

(Helmet) Mindspiral - Provides you with a lot of Maximum Mana, Energy Shield, and Damage Recouped as Mana, but you won't be able to Leech Mana. If you want to Leech mana via Mana Leech Support switch it for a Rare Helmet.

+(100-120) to maximum Mana Gain (10-15)% of Maximum Mana as Extra Maximum Energy Shield Enemies Cannot Leech Mana From you (10-20)% of Damage taken Recouped as Mana Cannot Leech Mana

(Helmet) Rare Helmet - Rare Helmet is abundant with Mana Modifiers, you can try to get one of many The Eater of Worlds Implicits for Mana Regeneration Rate. Use Rare Helmet only if you have a source of Mana Leech, the Mindspiral is still better in most cases.

Min. requirements: +70 to maximum Mana +60% to Elemental Resistances +40 to Maximum Life Optional affixes: Attributes increased Mana Regeneration Rate increased maximum Mana

Helmet enchantments: Arc, Arcane Cloak, or Sigil of Power enchantment

(Weapon) Bitterdream - Adds six additional Support Gems massively increasing the Mana Cost of your Spell socketed there. A lot of them are useless or even hindering, but it's still the best weapon you can get.

22% increased Elemental Damage Socketed Gems are Supported by Level 15 Bonechill Socketed Gems are Supported by Level 15 Hypothermia Socketed Gems are Supported by Level 15 Ice Bite Socketed Gems are Supported by Level 15 Cold Penetration Socketed Gems are Supported by Level 15 Added Cold Damage Socketed Gems are Supported by Level 15 Inspiration

(Off-Hand) The Squire - Allows for three extra Support Gems, making your main setup a 12-link. Undoubtedly a very important component of the build.

Has 3 Sockets All Sockets are White +(5-8)% to Quality of Socketed Support Gems Socketed Support Gems can also Support Skills from your Main Hand (100-150)% increased Armour and Evasion +(3-5)% Chance to Block

(Body Armour) Replica Kaom's Heart - You don't need a six-link Body Armour. Replica Kaom's Heart is the most appealing choice due to the massive amount of Mana and some Lightning Damage.

Has no Sockets (30-40)% increased Lightning Damage +500 to maximum Mana

(Boots) Rare Boots - Rare boots are the best option for footwear, you can still get around 70 Mana, Resistances, Movement Speed, and Life without any downsides.

Min. requirements: +70 to maximum Mana 25% increased Movement Speed Elemental Resistances +40 to Maximum Life Optional affixes: chance to gain Onslaught for 4 seconds on Kill You have Tailwind if you have dealt a Critical Strike Recently chance to gain Elusive on Critical Strike Attributes

(Boots) Skyforth - Skyforth grants a lot of Mana, Movement Speed, Stun "immunity", and Power Charges, but you won't be able to regenerate Life or ES which is very bad, especially with Pious Path and Sanctuary.

+(60-120) to maximum Mana 30% increased Movement Speed 25% chance to gain a Power Charge on Critical Strike 12% increased Reservation Efficiency of Skills You have no Life Regeneration Stun Threshold is based on 500% of your Mana instead of Life

(Gloves) Rare Gloves - Again, look for Maximum Mana, Life, Resistances, and some other rare mods, a lot of them found only on the Redeemer-influenced pairs.

Min. requirements: +70 to maximum Mana +40 to maximum Life +60% to Elemental Resistances Optional affixes: Attributes increased Spell Damage chance to gain a Frenzy Charge on Kill increased Global Critical Strike Chance Adds Elemental Damage if you've dealt a Critical Strike Recently

(Belt) Rare Belt - A great Belt is actually quite hard to get here - you could get one with a lot of Mana, Life, Resistances, Attributes - mostly Strength, and some Flask modifiers for more Mana Regeneration.

Min. requirements: +70 to Maximum Life +60 to maximum Mana +60% to Elemental Resistances Optional affixes: Flask modifiers Maximum Life increased Attributes Attributes

(Amulet) Atziri's Foible  - It is without a shadow of a doubt the best Amulet for this build. It has a lot of Mana-oriented modifiers, all of which are useful. It's very cheap and so is its anointment.

(20-30)% increased Mana Regeneration Rate +100 to maximum Mana (16-24)% increased maximum Mana (80-100)% increased Mana Regeneration Rate Items and Gems have 25% reduced Attribute Requirements

Recommended Anointments: Mind Drinker

(Ring) Rare Rings - Maximum Mana and mana Regeneration Rate can be very impactful on a Ring so be sure to have one with such modifiers, but don't forget about Maximum Life and Resistances.

Min. requirements: +50 to Maximum Life +70 to maximum Mana +60% to Elemental Resistances Optional affixes: Strength and Intelligence increased Mana Regeneration Rate Chaos Resistance Attributes

(Ring) Essence Worm - You can socket one Aura Skill here and still have all your Mana unreserved, great deal.

Has 1 Socket +2 to Level of Socketed Aura Gems Socketed Gems have no Reservation Your Blessing Skills are Disabled 80% reduced Reservation Efficiency of Skills

(Jewel) Rare Jewels - Maximum Mana, Life, Attributes, and Resistances are what you should look for on the Jewels.

Recommended affixes: Elemental or Chaos Resistances Attributes Maximum Life Maximum Mana Critical Strike modifiers

(Jewel) Militant Faith - If you can't find yourself a reliable source of Frenzy Charges, get the Militant Faith Jewel, the Dominus Variant, and transform the Agnostic Keystone into Inner Conviction.

Carved to glorify (2000-10000) new faithful converted by High Templar Dominus Passives in radius are Conquered by the Templars Historic <two random mods of devotion>

(Jewel) Clear Mind - Use Clear Mind for an increased Mana Regeneration Rate and Spell Damage, but be sure no Mana is Reserved.

(20-30)% increased Mana Regeneration Rate (40-60)% increased Spell Damage while no Mana is Reserved

(Jewel) Healthy Mind - Put it next to Instability and allocate Cruel Preparation for a massive Mana increase, around 1000 in total.

(15-20)% increased maximum Mana Increases and Reductions to Life in Radius are Transformed to apply to Mana at 200% of their value

(Jewel) Forbidden Flesh & Forbidden Flame - Divine Guidance Keystone is pretty much mandatory - it provides you with a lot of Mana and Damage. It is responsible for around 20% of your total DPS.

Allocates <Random Ascendancy Notable> if you have the matching modifiers on Forbidden Flesh Allocates <Random Ascendancy Notable> if you have the matching modifiers on Forbidden Flame

(Jewel) Watcher's Eye - Increased Critical Strike Chance or another Consecrated Ground modifier are the best Zealotry modifiers on a Watcher's Eye. A lot of Clarity modifiers are also great, but the Aura itself is pretty bad.

(4-6)% increased maximum Energy Shield (4-6)% increased maximum Life (4-6)% increased maximum Mana <Two or Three random aura modifiers>

(Jewel) Sublime Vision - If you're using a single Aura, Sublime Vision might be appealing. But be careful, the Zealotry modifier is pretty much useless.

<Aura bonus modifier>

(Jewel) Large Cluster Jewel - One Lightning Damage Cluster Jewel is enough. Scintillating Idea is great as it increases Mana, Storm Drinker allows you to Leech ES, and Prismatic Heart offers Resistances. Other notables increase Damage.

Recommended affixes: 1 Added Passive Skill is Scintillating Idea 1 Added Passive Skill is Storm Drinker 1 Added Passive Skill is Prismatic Heart 1 Added Passive Skill is Snowstorm 1 Added Passive Skill is Thunderstruck

(Flask) Bottled Faith - Use Bottled Faith for increased Damage and Critical Strike Chance, easily the best Unique Flask you can get.

40% increased Damage Creates Consecrated Ground on Use (30-15)% reduced Duration Consecrated Ground created by this Flask has Tripled Radius Consecrated Ground created during Effect applies (7-10)% increased Damage taken to Enemies (100-150)% increased Critical Strike Chance against Enemies on Consecrated Ground during Flask effect

Other suggested Flasks: Quicksilver Flask with an increased Critical Strike Chance Diamond Flask with an increased Movement Speed Granite or Basalt Flask with increased Armour Rating Seething Life Flask with Bleeding immunity/removal Caustic or Seething Mana Flask

If you have any other build requests please leave that in the comments below. We are always open to suggestions and constructive feedback.

Pictures used in this article are the intellectual property of Grinding Gear Games.