Creating the perfect Path of Exile build is always not easy. There is a reason why guide builders list everything down to the minute details. Something as simple as a lower-level skill gem or an item with mildly altered stat can easily break your build, making it exceedingly inconsistent when it comes to dealing with damage. The Ultimatum league is a bit different from all previous ones as it tests the extreme limits of your character. So, unless you've learned the basics, you're going to struggle with both damage and survivability. So without further ado, let's discuss how you can make your build better without spending excess PoE currency.
Follow the Guides
Make sure to follow the guides precisely to the letter. Suppose you're planning to create a cyclone character. Moscyclone builds have consist of an axe. One to note here is that it doesn't matter if you have the same name on your axe or not. If the build you're following has a Torment Rend, you shouldn't focus solely on the name. Although searching for a similarly named axe makes it easier to hunt for that particular item. What you should be focused on are the stats. Let's assume that the Torment rends in this guide does 550 DPS while you build does 100 DPS. You'll naturally have problems mowing down enemies in the PoE 3.14 Ultimatum league.
Check the stats, then move onto the suffixes. Even if you don't the same ones, aim for the closest you can afford. Most players, especially the new ones, usually get frustrated when their failure to deliver sufficient damage to the enemies. Even though they follow the build to the letter, they tend to miss such minute details which hurts them in the long run in Path of Exile. If you want to make good use of your PoE currency, make it a point to double-check your guide at every single step.
Gem Levels
Gem levels may not seem much, but in the case of a few skills such as Toxic Rain and Caustic Arrow, a few boosted levels can exponentially increase the damage output of these gems. If you're starting out, just look up the skill on the wiki. It will list all levels alongside the stat boost. Gem levels may not be super level to all gems, but in a few cases, they can be extremely powerful. For instance, Reave only gets 0.2% damage modifier per level. On the contrary, a skill such as Fireball or Flame Wall receives a 15-30% damage boost per gem level, which is insane.
New players usually disregard these little things. They may have level 17, 18, 19 gems and think nothing of it. That’s where they go wrong when compiling a build and fall face first in PoE 3.14 Ultimatum. As an example, for many skills, going from level 17 to 20 is equivalent to going from a 5 link to a 6 link build. In terms of damage, you may end up getting a 40-50% more damage modifier simply by leveling your gem through three levels. Skills such as the Flame Wall can triple its damage output going from level 20 to level 30, which is massive in terms of raw damage.
How to Craft easy weapons for specific spell builds?
In this section, you'll learn how to craft powerful weapons on a budget. Let's assume you're building a chaos-based weapon. You're going to need a white wand and a few gems with a chaos tag, such as Viper Strike and Scrouge Arrow. You can use any number of gems, but they should add up to at least 40 quality; otherwise, this trick won't work. Now sell all of these to the vendor, and you'll get a new wand with +1 level to all chaos skill gems.
In the next step, you'll be rolling damage over time modifier for chaos damage. This is an enveil that you get from the Betrayal mechanic. Craft the cheapest modifier you can get your hand on. Now, move over to Harvest. You'll need Reforge an Item. There is a high chance to roll the chaos damage stats onto your item. This is quite a reliable strategy and only requires a few chaos orbs to craft. Now farming chaos is viable when you’re playing Path of Exile for 3-5 hours. In case you cannot afford that much time, you can buy PoE currency online. They are super cheap and can save you hours' worth of in-game grind. The sites almost always have PoE orbs for sale so make sure to drop by if you're looking for sweet deals.
Jewel Guide
New players often underrate jewels. But little do they know that jewels cost the most when crafting a new build. Powerful jewels with the right stat boosts can easily skyrocket the age output of any build. For example, some players spend 5-10 exalted orbs on gears and items, seven to eight times that amount on jewels. This is an aspect most players ignore. Even at 15-30 chaos, you can get some insanely high-powered jewels to help farm in PoE 3.14 Ultimatum.
Visit the official trading website and type in the stats you want in your jewel, such as global strike multiplier, increased damage, increased attack speed, maximum life, etc. After clicking search, you'll get a list of 4-stat jewels you can use on your character. So if you're starting out and only one or two or two-point away from a jewel slot, take it. There is a high chance of it paying off in the long run compared to any other stat node. You can go for a variety of stats and perfect your build using jewels. Jewels offer flexibility incomparable to any passive skill node. So when you pass by a jewel slot, always make sure to prioritize it over your neighbors.
