Wraeclast Build Picker POE 1 3.30

Witch Elementalist

Wintertide Brand Elementalist

League starter Damage over TimeMappingAll-rounder

Build overview

Attach brands that build cold damage over time and leave a short-lived debuff on nearby enemies when they detach. Cast speed helps the brands gain stages faster.

SSF friendly

Wintertide Brand is a normal gem available during Act 1. Slinky’s campaign and early mapping setup runs on found rares. The older Chaos Inoculation setups are gear-dependent upgrades.

Gear and skill requirements

  • Wintertide BrandRequiredBuy the regular gem from Nessa after The Siren’s Cadence and start at level 12.
  • Rare wand or sceptreRecommendedLook for cold spell gem levels, cast speed, cold damage over time multiplier or spell damage.
  • Linked rare body armourRecommendedStart on life and resistances. Keep a high-Energy-Shield replacement to prepare for Chaos Inoculation.
  • Rime GazeUpgradeOptional cold damage multiplier helmet in the older level-85 PoB. Use a rare ES helmet while it is unavailable.

Stat requirements and priorities

  • Gem attributes at level 20155 IntLevel 1 requires level 12 and 33 Intelligence. Get Strength and Dexterity from gear for utility and green supports.
  • Brand activationCast speed and durationCast speed increases the activation frequency and duration gives brands longer to build stages.
  • Cold damage over timeGem levels and multiplierSpell damage also scales Wintertide Brand’s cold damage over time.
  • Chaos InoculationBuild Energy Shield firstKeep the life/ES setup until the replacement gear supports CI, including recovery and resists.

Sources

3.30 guide · 3.29 campaign PoB · 3.28 CI reference
Campaign walkthrough · Acts 1–10

Campaign walkthrough

Checks are saved in this browser. Look for links for your main skill. Any socket fits any gem. Matching colours add 10% quality.

Act 1 Merveil

Gems, gear & play

  1. Take Freezing Pulse after Hillock and link Arcane Surge from the beach. Get Frostblink and Frost Bomb after Breaking Some Eggs.
  2. Buy Efficacy after The Caged Brute and Wintertide Brand from Nessa at the Cavern of Wrath. Switch at level 12 with 33 Intelligence and link Efficacy. Look for a cast-speed or spell-damage wand.

Quests & route

  1. Kill Hillock for Enemy at the Gate. Take the Coast waypoint. For Mercy Mission, trade Nessa Tidal Island’s Medicine Chest for a Quicksilver Flask.
  2. For Breaking Some Eggs, put three Mud Flats nest glyphs in the Glyph Wall. Enter the Submerged Passage. Kill The Dweller of the Deep in the Flooded Depths. Claim Tarkleigh’s skill point.
  3. Cross the Ledge and the Climb. Do the Lower Prison trial on the way to Brutus for The Caged Brute.
  4. For The Marooned Mariner, bring Fairgraves the Allflame from the Ship Graveyard Cave. Kill him and claim Bestel’s skill point. Enter the Cavern of Wrath to unlock The Siren’s Cadence gems. Cross the Cavern of Anger and fight Merveil with cold resistance.

Act 2 Vaal Oversoul

Gems, gear & play

  1. Take Cold Snap after Intruders in Black. Add Controlled Destruction from Sharp and Cruel to Wintertide Brand at level 18.
  2. Link Efficacy to Cold Snap separately. Look for life or resistance on a shield and Dexterity on jewellery.

Quests & route

  1. From the Crossroads, do the Chamber of Sins Level 2 trial. Rescue Helena and take Fidelitas’s Baleful Gem for Intruders in Black.
  2. Find Kraityn at the Broken Bridge. Cross Fellshrine Ruins for the Crypt trial. For Through Sacred Ground, bring Yeena the Golden Hand from Crypt Level 2 for a skill point.
  3. From the Riverways, find Alira and Arteri in the Western Forest. Open the road with Arteri’s emblem for The Way Forward. Claim Bestel’s point in Act 1. Kill the Weaver for Maligaro’s Spike in Sharp and Cruel.
  4. Find Oak in the Wetlands for Deal with the Bandits. Use your build’s choice if listed. Alira grants +15% elemental resistances. Eramir grants one passive point for killing all three. Collect the amulets and claim the Apex.
  5. Use the Baleful Gem and Maligaro’s Spike at the Vaal Ruins for The Root of the Problem. Cross the Northern Forest and the Caverns. Use the Apex atop the Ancient Pyramid to summon the Vaal Oversoul for Shadow of the Vaal.

Act 3 Dominus

Gems, gear & play

  1. Buy Frostbite and Purity of Elements from Clarissa after Lost in Love. Use Frostbite and Frost Bomb on bosses.
  2. Buy Hypothermia after A Fixture of Fate. Add it to a four-link at level 31 with 52 Dexterity. Take Liege of the Primordial in Normal Lab.

Quests & route

  1. Rescue Clarissa in the City of Sarn. Do the Crematorium trial and defeat Piety. For Lost in Love, trade Tolman’s Bracelet to Clarissa for the Sewer Keys.
  2. Find three Sewer busts for Victario’s Secrets. Claim Hargan’s skill point. Do the Catacombs trial off the Marketplace.
  3. Get The Ribbon Spool in the Battlefront and Thaumetic Sulphite in the Docks for Fiery Dust. Bring both to Dialla in Solaris Temple Level 2. Use the Infernal Talc to clear the Sewers.
  4. Kill Gravicius in the Ebony Barracks for Sever the Right Hand and level 28 gems. Kill Piety in Lunaris Temple Level 2 for Piety’s Pets. Take the Tower Key and claim Grigor’s point.
  5. Do the Imperial Gardens trial. For A Fixture of Fate, bring Siosa four Archives pages in the Library. Carry currency for off-class gems. Run Normal Lab when ready. Use the Tower Key to climb The Sceptre of God and kill Dominus.

Act 4 Malachai

Gems, gear & play

  1. After Breaking the Seal, take Summon Stone Golem for regeneration or Summon Lightning Golem for cast speed. Buy more from Petarus and Vanja as your limit allows.

Quests & route

  1. Kill Voll in the Dried Lake. Use Deshret’s Banner to open the Mines for Breaking the Seal. Free Deshret in Mines Level 2 for An Indomitable Spirit. Claim Tasuni’s skill point.
  2. From the Crystal Veins, beat Kaom and Daresso. Bring their eyes to Dialla and check Petarus and Vanja for support gems.
  3. Cross the Belly of the Beast. Take the three Harvest guardians’ organs to Piety for Corpus Malachus. Kill Malachai in the Black Core. Claim Dialla’s support for The Eternal Nightmare.

Act 5 Kitava

Gems, gear & play

  1. Cast brands and Cold Snap on Kitava’s active target. Upgrade to boots with life and movement speed.

Quests & route

  1. Take the Ascent to the Slave Pens. Kill Krow for Return to Oriath. Bring Vilenta the Control Blocks Miasmeter for the In Service to Science skill point.
  2. Cross Oriath Square and the Templar Courts. Defeat Innocence for Death to Purity. From the Ruined Square, get the Sign of Purity in the Ossuary. Find three Reliquary relics for Kitava’s Torments and claim Lani’s skill point.
  3. Check life flasks and save resistance gear. Fight Kitava on the Cathedral Rooftop for The Ravenous God. All resistances drop by 30 points permanently.

Act 6 The Brine King

Gems, gear & play

  1. Buy missing gems from Lilly after Fallen from Grace. Keep Purity of Elements to cover resistance gaps and add Dexterity for Hypothermia as needed.

Quests & route

  1. Clear the Twilight Strand and talk to Lilly Roth for Fallen from Grace. She now sells regular gems to all classes. Use rings or bench crafts to restore elemental resistances toward 75%.
  2. Kill Tukohama in the Karui Fortress for The Father of War. Do the Lower Prison Cruel Lab trial. Defeat Brutus and Shavronne in the tower.
  3. Kill Abberath off the Prisoner’s Gate for The Cloven One. Kill Ryslatha in the Wetlands for The Puppet Mistress. Claim all three skill points in town.
  4. Take the Black Flag from the Cavern of Anger. Escort and ignite the Beacon fuel carts. Signal Weylam and sail for The Brine King. Stay inside the storm boundary and dodge lightning.

Act 7 Arakaali

Gems, gear & play

  1. Use Frostbite, Frost Bomb and Cold Snap on Arakaali. Refresh brands as you dodge and check golems after gear swaps.

Quests & route

  1. From the Crossroads, cross Fellshrine Ruins. Get Maligaro’s Map and do the Crypt trial. Open the map in Chamber of Sins Level 1 and kill Maligaro for Essence of the Artist. Trade the Black Venom to Silk for the Obsidian Key in Web of Secrets.
  2. Finish the Chamber of Sins Level 2 trial. Run Cruel Lab when ready. Kill Greust for The Master of a Million Faces. In the Dread Thicket, kill Gruthkul for Queen of Despair and collect seven Fireflies for Lighting the Way.
  3. Take Kishara’s Star near the end of the Causeway. Claim all three skill points. Give Yeena the Fireflies in the Vaal City. Descend through the Temple of Decay and kill Arakaali for The Mother of Spiders. Dodge her beam and purple ground.

Act 8 Solaris and Lunaris

Gems, gear & play

  1. Try Malevolence if you can still cast comfortably. Keep Purity of Elements for resists and ailment immunity.

Quests & route

  1. Clear Doedre’s Cesspool for Essence of the Hag. Find the Ankh and defeat Tolman in the Quay for Love is Dead. Kill The Gemling Legion in the Grain Gate. Claim both skill points in town.
  2. Cross the Imperial Fields and kill Dawn in Solaris Temple for the Sun Orb in Solar Eclipse. On the other route, cross the Grand Promenade and do the Bath House trial. Kill Yugul in the High Gardens for the Reflection of Terror skill point.
  3. Kill Dusk in Lunaris Temple for the Moon Orb in Lunar Eclipse. Use both orbs on the Harbour Bridge. Keep moving when the inactive boss attacks.

Act 9 The Depraved Trinity

Gems, gear & play

  1. Look for +1 cold spell gems, cast speed or cold damage over time multiplier on a wand. Set aside high-ES gear for later.

Quests & route

  1. Cross the Blood Aqueduct to Highgate. Get The Storm Blade in the Vastiri Desert. Inspect the Oasis sandstorm. Speak to Sin, then open the Oasis with Petarus and Vanja’s Bottled Storm. Kill Shakari for Queen of the Sands. Claim Irasha’s point.
  2. Take Basilisk Acid from the Boiling Lake. Do the Tunnel Merciless trial. From the Quarry, take Trarthan Powder in the Refinery. Kill Garukhan at the Shrine of the Winds for The Ruler of Highgate. Hand in her feather for a skill point.
  3. For Recurring Nightmare, give the acid and powder to Sin at the Quarry waypoint. Enter the Belly of the Beast. Kill all three Rotting Core guardians. Speak to Sin there to summon the Depraved Trinity.

Act 10 Final Kitava

Gems, gear & play

  1. Use regular Cold Snap until Vaal Cold Snap drops. Reapply Frostbite and both damage skills in each Kitava phase. Fix resists after the fight.

Quests & route

  1. Rescue Bannon in the Cathedral Apex for Safe Passage. From the Ravaged Square, kill Vilenta in the Control Blocks for Vilenta’s Vengeance. Claim Lani’s point. Do the Ossuary trial. Run Merciless Lab before Kitava if ready.
  2. For Death and Rebirth, kill Avarius in the Desecrated Chambers. Bring the Staff of Purity to Bannon. Speak to Innocence in town, then meet him in the Ravaged Square to open the Canals.
  3. Kill Kitava in the Feeding Trough for An End to Hunger. Dodge fire and slams. Attack the exposed heart. Follow Lilly to the Karui Shores. Claim two skill points from Lani. Use /passives in chat to find missed quests. All resistances drop another 30 points. Check them before mapping.

Ready for maps

Clear with Wintertide Brand linked to Efficacy, Controlled Destruction and Hypothermia. Use Cold Snap and Frostbite on bosses. Keep life/ES gear until you have enough Energy Shield and recovery for Chaos Inoculation.

Campaign sources

CATALOG NOTES

How builds are classified

Covens of Umbra is live. The catalog uses 3.30 patch notes and published build guides. The tier list shows verified ladder usage as samples become available. Earlier gameplay, Path of Building trees, and boss clears show their original patch when known.

SSF friendly
A fresh character can progress with self-found gear. Check the build details for any Labyrinth gems, farmable drops, or skill swaps.
Trade preferred
The listed setup relies on gear, drops, or combinations that are easier to assemble through trade. Some have a separate league-start route.
Gear and stats
Required gear applies to the listed setup. Recommended items and upgrades are optional. Stat entries include guide targets where available and priorities elsewhere.
Gear and crafting
League start covers the campaign and first maps. Midgame covers Atlas progression or the swap into the listed build. Endgame covers higher-investment upgrades. Use the linked guide or Path of Building setup for exact gear and breakpoints.
Path of Building imports
Paste a copied link into Import/Export Build in Path of Building. For a PoB with multiple setups, select the named loadout, or use the individual tree, skill, and gear selectors as indicated.
Skills & Gems
Use the selected stage for socket links, reservation choices, and swap timing. Gem tooltips show game values across the gem’s level range. Check the stage’s PoB for the gem levels used by the build.
Passive Tree
Each stage shows the allocated path from its source PoB on that patch’s tree, followed by passive priorities, Labyrinth order, and respec checkpoints. Base-tree tooltips show game stats and the selected mastery effect. Open the source PoB for Timeless Jewel or tattoo changes.
Can be scaled
A league starter with a documented upgrade path to Uber pinnacle bosses. Build details identify the evidence, which can include earlier patches or trade gear.
Uber clear evidence
The patch and mode describe the run. Recorded clears have footage, reported clears come from the player, and boss footage can show an encounter without confirming the kill. Planned setups link to Path of Building.

Path of Exile skill, item, class, and ascendancy artwork © Grinding Gear Games. Artwork and item data sourced from PoEDB.