5 Best Shadow Builds in Path of Exile

If you are looking into the next build to try in the current league or just want to see what the best Shadow builds are in Path of Exile, we got you covered! Players have tested and tried many different builds, but these are the best of the best.

Toxic Rain Dot Trickster

Toxic Rain is a staple in so many Shadow builds for a reason. It can work both at the start of a league and at the end of a league. Not only is it consistent but it’s flexible. For this specific one, we are going with the damage over time method. The arrows will do damage on hit and then produce pods on the ground which will also cause damage over time. The goal for this build is to stack as many pods as we can on top of one another, so we need to be able to attack fast and create more of our little friends. Stack as much attack speed on here and get to leveling.

Related: Path of Exile Classes Tier List, Ranked

Drain Contagion Trickster

Trickster is a popular class with many excellent builds. Essence Drain and Contagion are probably two of the most focused skills in the game. When the combination is built right you can get a consistent content clearer at the league start and play it all the way to the end. Two buttons are all you need. Cast Contagion then Essence Drain and watch the miasma spread across the whole map. Trickster scales with Damage over Time so as you level up with these skills you’re just going to get stronger. This is truly one of the best and most consistent builds in the game.

Storm Brand Assassin

Unlike the last two shadow builds this one isn’t going to be the best league starter for you. In fact, this build relies heavily on specific unique drops. If you want to try it out you should wait until the middle or end of a league just so you have an active way to farm currency to buy the parts you need. The skill uses Storm Brand and Archmage support, slot them together as soon as you can. Once you can buy a Void Battery and Badge of the Brotherhood for spell damage do so. Then try and buy a Fenumus Spinnerets for more defense and try and roll these with Life Leech. Then you should be good to go.

Arc Mines Saboteur Shadow Build

Tried and true within the community, you’ve definitely seen this one before. Grab Explosive Mine, Arc, and Flame Dash. As you get into a map you lay down the mines then shoot them with your arc, simple as that. Flame Dash is purely for movement and getting through obstacles. It may seem a bit outdated but it’s on here for a reason. This build is able to clear almost anything and can be used right at a league start on top of that.

Poison Blade Vortex Shadow Build

When the Blade Vortex skill busted onto the scene it was quite literally broken. It’s been fixed a bit but it’s still good at what it does. Combining good clear speed, high survivability, combined with the ascendancies you can choose it is very hard to beat. You only need to buy or find one piece of gear, the Kintsugi. This build will end up making you the tankiest light-footed assassin the game has ever seen. Stay close to your enemies, spam your poison daggers, and dash through them in the blink of an eye.

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