The Slormancer: Mage Class Build Guide

In bold are key masteries. You must spec them for this build to feel good.
<T> for Time-Lock.
<A> for Arcane Tempo.

There are really 2 ways of playing this.
Time-Lock (Stun) with damage proliferation
OR
Arcane Tempo with stacking projectiles for single target with Phalanx.

Time-Lock stacks damage to be instant after the stun effect wears off. You have 40% increased crit chance on time locked targets inside Arcane breach.

Arcane Tempo projectile stacking with Phalanx focuses down bosses with immediate ramping burst damage. This is best when you already have a high crit chance from gear.

Arcane Missile
M1: Incomplete Missile (-35% Cooldown Time)
M2: Conflux (Additional Damage = 10% of Maximum Mana)

M3: <T> Remnant Copycat (fires a Remnant behind the first shot)
M4: <T> Remnant Lock (Applies Time-Lock aka Stun for 3 seconds)
M5: <T> Not So Lost (Time-Lock damage proliferates to other non-“stunned” enemies.)

M3: <A> Arcane Tempo (+1 Projectile every cast, up to 3. then resets)
M4: <A> Arcane Phalanx (Focus Fire)
M5: <A> No Spec. Arcane Sovereign doesn’t feel nice at all.

Arcane Breach
M1: Reap What you Sow (10% Mana and 23 Mana Regen PER enemy in area of effect)
M2: Multi-Breaches (-50% Cooldown Time, 500% Mana cost since we use always use arcanic)

M3: <T> Almighty Remains (40% Crit Chance on Remnant shots)
M4: <T> Any of the other 3 NOT “On Arcane Ground”
M5: <T> Gravitational Force (Vaal Cyclone. Sucks everything in for Arcane Explosion.)

M3: <A> Arcane Flux (+1% Attack Speed per tick of Arcane Breach on mobs)
M4: <A> Any of the other 3 NOT “On Arcane Ground”
M5: <A> Gravitational Force

It is really hard to take screenshots of how the mana bar expands whenever you cast Arcane Breach, but it should be 2x or 3x your current mana pool cap depending on how many mobs are in effect.

In bold are key masteries. You must spec them for this build to feel good.
<T> for Time-Lock.
<A> for Arcane Tempo.

9 times out of 10, you go Devoted Scholar.

Devoted Scholar

M1: Endless Stocks (180 flat mana, 20% max mana)
M4: Slow Awakening (Elemental Damage based off 25% of missing mana)
M6: <T/A> Wall of Termination (Projectiles hitting wall are destroyed)
M8: Eminent Scholar (5 Emblems)

M2: <T> Determination (Tenacity, less CC time on you)
M3: <T> Safety Lock (90% Increased Damage on Time-Locked enemies)
M5: <T> Invigorate (50% elemental damage depending on killing time locked enemies)
M7: <T> Double Cylinder Lock (Time Lock lasts WAY longer)

M2: <A> Determination (Tenacity, less CC time on you)
M3: <A> Magic Mutation (Thorns = 20% of Max Mana)
M5: <A> Wall of Thorns (Wall deals Thorns Damage)
M7: <A> Easing Pain (Ele Res) or Bouncing Magic (Rebound Chance)

Phlegmatic Caster

I wouldn’t go this route unless you have the Ferocious Affinity slorm reaper, but still maybe don’t.

You have 20% increased elemental damage and increased mana regen, but that’s about it.
The Manabender scales damage via mana cost and mana regen, but the flat elemental damage you get from Slow Awakening: constantly missing mana is hard to beat.
Flat > %.

Manabender
Obviously Manabender is great.

5% Damage based off skills’ mana costs.
1% Raw (Skill Damage) based off mana regen.
It comes with a nice ancestral skill that gives life regen over 8 seconds.
It doesn’t have an evolution path so you don’t have to grind more.

The Primordial version (Max reaper level) gives Crits to explode as elemental damage. Yummy.

The Ferocious Affinity
Gives 15 Flat Mana per reaper level
0.5% of Max Mana per reaper level
5% of Max Mana = FLAT Raw Damage. We have tons of Flat raw damage and max mana. Win Win.

Primordial version of this is currently unknown.

The Ancestral Legacy
Not ideal. We found out Elemental Damage is bad to scale despite 25% of missing mana as flat elemental damage.

1% Elemental Damage per level.
Reaper damage is added to elemental damage instead of skill damage.
Like Inner Fire, it generates crystals that orbit around you dealing 30% elemental damage every hit.
Every evolution increases the crystal # up to 3.

If you do not find these, no biggie. Use whatever feels good.

Gearing Tip: If you click the dot next to Stat lines in the Character screen, it highlights on gear and when you look on the ground to pick up.

Main Damage Stats:
+Raw Damage
+% Raw Damage
+Flat Mana
+% Critical Strike Chance
+% Critical Strike Damage

Minor Damage Stats:
+% Max Mana

Main Defence Stats:
+Flat Life
+% Max Life
+Armor
+Elemental Resistances

Nice to Have Stats:
+%Life on Hit, Life Leech
+%Mana on Hit, Mana Leech
+Mana Regen, +%Mana Regen
Damage to Elites

Armor and Elemental Penetration is NOT a good stat to roll for.
As of this stage in Early Access, mob resistances do NOT scale with Wrath level.
Scaling Evasion on a Mage class is terrible. There are no mastery nodes to improve evasion.

Currently the cap for attribute points is 40 in Early Access.
You can add more mastery points via Gear.

Savagery to 45 is the way to go. FLAT missing mana = FLAT Raw Damage.
Other attributes are personal preference.
Toughness for Life and Armor.
Willpower @ 5 and 10 pt thresholds gives 15% and 17% Max Mana each.
Zeal for Flat Mana.
Determination for Elemental Resistances.

Edit: Raw Damage is way better to scale than Elemental Damage.
Thanks @Xares for showing his current build. Much of what he’s shown will be reflected on this guide for the time being until further patches in Early Access change how damage works.

Not to be confused with the Slorm Reaper,
The Ancestral Legacy tree is quite free in terms of what you want to do.

While leveling, I was using Air Conditioner to slow enemy attacks.
Neriya’s Shield also for Elemental Resistance and chills nearby enemies.

These together gives enemies -30% Movement Speed and a -45% Attack Speed multiplier.
We’re always in close contact to mobs due to current game system.

I triggered some OCD people just now 🙂

Heart of the Wizard
This node gives 10% max mana as well as mana on kit and kill.
Minor, but nice QoL.

Elemental Swap is NICE.
+60% Elemental Damage and Mana cost of skills DOUBLED.
This means we are missing more mana faster,
hence more flat elemental damage.
We do not scale elemental damage, so this is still a minor buff.

Burning Shadows
VERY INSANE.
50% Raw Damage
100% Critical Strike Damage
for 12 seconds on a ~20 second cooldown.
Bursty.

Pain Weaver
It has everything we want.
10% Mana Regen
10% Raw Damage
10% Damage to Elites
Good node if you wanna forego defences.

Obtain the Ferocious Affinity Slorm Reaper.

Convert damage scaling to full Raw Damage.
You now scale damage based off % Max Mana instead of stacking Mana Cost and Missing Mana.

Switch to Phlegmatic Caster.
30% Mana Cost Refund on Mastery 1.
5% Missing Mana as Mana Regen on Mastery 2.

OR Keep Devoted Scholar if Mana Regeneration feels okay.

Theoretically, the build should feel better since you’re not struggling with regaining mana to cast more Arcane Breaches.

This build is current as of patch 0.1.096 in Early Access. 04/09/2021.
This build is subject to balance changes and itemization changes upon Full Release.