Bodyswap of Sacrifice
Necromancer Build

Created for Patch 3.25

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The Bodyswap of Sacrifice has the potential to be one of the hardest-hitting Spells in the entire game. It teleports you to your Minion and causes it to explode, dealing up to 35% of its maximum Life in a large AoE around it. There are many Minions you could use for this Setup, but Zombies prove to be the best choice as they can achieve large amounts of maximum Life, and they are easy to resummon. You will need the Aukuna's Will Gloves to freely resummon your Zombies without any Corpses. With some lightweight investments, they can easily reach over 250k maximum Life, which sets up a great foundation for the Bodyswap of Sacrifice which uses up to 35% of that amount as base Damage. The insane amount of Damage is offset by the Skill mechanics itself. It is a Movement Spell that requires living Minions to function, which requires some automation to be efficient, and can be very easy to lose control of your position. 

In this version, we use the Weapon Enchant that Triggers Fire Spells on Hit available for 1-handed Axes in Settlers League. Combined with the Squire Shield you can have a separate Setup purely for the Bodyswap that focuses on improving the Damage, and a secondary 6-link Setup used to Summon Zombies with extra Life. It also Triggers the Bodyswap, as the Enchant only works with Attacks. Furthermore, there are two possible Setups for Zombies. You can use Lancing Steel with Cast on Crit to Summon Zombies from a long distance or opt for more reliable Cast while Channeling Setup with the Cyclone which requires entering close range. Both Setups are easily interchangeable, so you can experiment to find what suits your gameplay style the most. If you don't have access to the Enchant you can use a conventional single Cast on Crit Setup, but it won't be as efficient as two separate specialized Setups. 

Scaling your Damage can also be quite problematic. Bodyswap is a Spell that causes an explosion, but the explosion itself does not deal Spell Damage. Instead, you will have to opt for sources of generic Damage or Critical Strike Multiplier. Your most impactful modifier is the maximum Life of your Minions, as it directly affects the base Damage of the explosion. For this reason, we chose the Necromancer Ascendency, which grants a massive bonus of 20% More maximum Life for all your Minions. With the aforementioned Aukuna's Will Gloves, your Zombies will also count as Corpses, so you will deal More Damage, weaken your Enemies, and inflict them with guaranteed Shock and Chill. You will also be able to use a Bone Offering to massively boost your own Chance to Block Spells and Attacks. 

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1. Gameplay

Depending on your choice, you will spin with Cyclone or attack with Lancing Steel to summon Zombies and immediately teleport to them, exploding them in the process. Use Frostblink to move across the Map or dodge incoming threats. You will automatically apply Assassin's Mark with your Attacks. You can automate your second Curse and Bone Offering with Cast when Damage Taken Setup, or cast them manually for better uptime on demand. 

2. Build's PROS & CONS

3. Leveling tips

The Build is unplayable at early levels, you will need certain Unique and Rare Items to make it functional. We recommend our Witch Leveling Guide using Minions in PoE to gain levels and complete the campaign.

Bandits:

Kill all Bandits to get an additional Passive Tree Skill Point, or help Alira to gain additional Resistance.

Leveling Skill Trees:
43 Points Passive Tree
You will be able to quickly pick up most of the Minion Notables available on the Passive Tree to greatly boost the Damage of your Minions.

73 Points Passive Tree
Pick up the remaining Minion Notables, and a bit of Life or Mana. If you use temporary Minions like SRS you can pick up extra Duration. 

4. Final Skill Tree, Ascendancy Points, and Pantheon

Final Skill Tree:

99 Points Final Passive Tree  
121 Points Path of Building (PoB)

Ascendancy points:

Preferably in this order:

1. Mindless Aggression
2. Mistress of Sacrifice
3. Plaguebringer
4. Corpse Pact 

Pantheon:

Major God: Soul of Arakaali: 10% reduced Damage taken from Damage Over Time; +40% Chaos Resistance against Damage Over Time

Minor God: Soul of Ralakesh: 25% reduced Physical Damage over Time taken while moving, Moving while Bleeding doesn't cause you to take extra Damage

5. Final Gems links

[DPS] Bodyswap of Sacrifice setup Socket in Enchanted Axe and the Squire
	Bodyswap of Sacrifice - teleports to your Minion, detonating it in the process, and dealing heavy AoE Fire Damage.
	Hypothermia Support - increases your Damage against Chilled Enemies, which will be applied via your Ascendency.
	Elemental Focus Support - disables Elemental Ailments but greatly improves your Elemental Damage.
	Fire Penetration Support - your Fire Damage will penetrate Enemy Resistance. The Awakened version also offers Fire Exposure.
	Inspiration Support - lowers the Mana Costs of your Skills and increases your Elemental Damage.
	Increased Area of Effect Support - greatly improves your Area coverage. You can also swap it for the Concentrated Effect or Combustion Supports for more Damage instead.

[Utility] Lancing Steel of Spraying setup
	Lancing Steel of Spraying - a ranged Attack that fires multiple Projectiles that can Hit the same Enemy many times in short intervals.
	Raise Zombie - a very slow Minion with a very high amount of maximum Life. Usually, it requires a Corpse, but you can bypass it with the Unique Gloves.
	Cast on Critical Strike Support - triggers linked Spells when you land a Critical Strike with your Attack.
	Minion Life Support - improves the Maximum Life of your Minions.
	Empower Support - raises the Gem Levels of your Skills, which adds extra base maximum Life for your Zombies.
	Increased Critical Strikes Support - increases your Critical Strike Chance fo more reliable triggers.

[Utility] Cyclone setup
	Cyclone - a Channeling Attack Spell that quickly Hits nearby Enemies. By default, Channeling this Skill slows you down, but with extra Quality, it can make you faster.
	Raise Zombie - a very slow Minion with a very high amount of maximum Life. Usually, it requires a Corpse, but you can bypass it with the Unique Gloves.
	Cast when Channeling Support - triggers liked Spells while you keep Channeling the Cyclone. It doesn't require Critical Strikes but has a longer Cooldown.
	Minion Life Support - improves the Maximum Life of your Minions.
	Empower Support - raises the Gem Levels of your Skills, which adds extra base maximum Life for your Zombies.
	Enhance Support - adds Extra Quality to your other Skills. With enough Quality Channeling, the Cyclone will make your Move faster.

[UTILITY] Aura setup
	Grace - a defensive Aura that grants a lot of Evasion Rating and helps improve it further.
	Tempest Shield - grants you a Chance to Block Spells and Immunity against Shock.
	Arctic Armour - grants you Physical Damage Reduction while stationary and makes you Immune to Freeze.
	Clarity - an important Aura that grants you Mana Regeneration. Higher Gem Levels reserve more Mana.
	Precision - optional Aura that grants a bit of Critical Strike Chance. Keep it on a low level to enable certain modifiers on the Watcher's Eye without Reserving too much Mana.
	Enlighten - lowers the Reservation Cost of your Auras. Link it with your most demanding Auras.

[UTILITY] Curse setup
	Assassin's Mark - a Mark that greatly improves your Critical Strike Chance and Critical Strike Multiplier against a single Enemy.
	Mark on Hit Support - automatically apply a linked Mark when you Hit an Enemy with any Attack.
	Flammability - a Hex that lowers the Fire Resistance of the affected Enemy. You will need to anoint the Whispers of Doom Notable to use a second Curse.

[UTILITY] CwDT setup
	Steelskin -  a Guard Skill that absorbs large amounts of Damage while active. It also disables Bleeding.
	Bone Offering - thanks to the Necromancer Ascendency your Offering Skills will also affect you at 50% Effecitivnes. You can use the Bone Offering to gain a large amount of Block Chance.
	Cast when Damage Taken Support - automatically Triggers linked Spells when you take enough Damage. You can also use the Automation to trigger the Steelskin periodically and cast the Offering manually.

[UTILITY] Movement setup
	Frostblink - an instant teleport that leaves a Chilling ground. You can use it without interrupting other Skills.

6. Gear Setup

This Build uses certain Unique Items and quite specialized Rares to perform well. The Aukuna's Will and a Rare Axe with Fire Trigger Enchant are mandatory. The Squire, Ashes of the Stars, and Dialla's Malefaction are also very impactful, although not necessary for functionality. Other than the usual maximum Life, Resistances, and enough Attributes for Gem Requirements you will need bonuses to your Minion's Life, Critical Strike Chance and Multiplier, and possibly Mana Cost Reduction or Cooldown Recovery Rate. With the Spiritual Aid Notable, you can make use of increases to your Minion Damage modifiers to boost your own Damage too. 

(Helmet) Rare Helmet - Your helmet is the only piece of equipment that can grant you extra Mana Reservation Efficiency. It can also raise your Minion Gem Levels, which will raise the maximum Life of your Zombies.

Min. requirements: +100 to maximum Life 10% increased Mana Reservation Efficiency of Skills +1 to Level of all Minion Skill Gems Optional affixes: Elemental or Chaos Resistance Minions have #% increased maximum Life Dexterity

(Weapon) Rare 1-handed Axe - with the Settlers-exclusive Enchant you can reliably Trigger any Fire Spell by simply Hitting an Enemy with an Attack. It can be only used on a 1-handed Axe, which does not roll modifiers that benefit Fire Spells naturally, so you will have to use Influence and Essence modifiers to boost your Damage.

Min. requirements: Trigger a Socketed Fire Spell on Hit, with a 0.25 second Cooldown Hits can't be Evaded Optional affixes: Socketed Gems are Supported by Level 20 Increased Critical Strikes Socketed Gems are supported by Level 20 Increased Critical Damage Minions deal #% increased Damage % increased Fire Damage % increased Attack Speed

(Shield) The Squire - with this Shield you can add 3 Extra Support Gems to your main Setup. It doesn't offer defensive modifiers except for the fairly high chance to Block Attacks.

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) Dialla's Malefaction - an Armour focused purely on the offensive. It will raise the Gem Levels or Quality of your Skills depending on the Socket Colours. Use it to boost your Zombies.

Gems can be Socketed in this Item ignoring Socket Colour Gems Socketed in Red Sockets have +2 to Level Gems Socketed in Green Sockets have +30% to Quality Gems Socketed in Blue Sockets gain 100% increased Experience Has no Attribute Requirements

(Belt) Rare Belt - you can use the Essence of Fear to guarantee a Minion Life modifier here. Other than that it should provide maximum Life for you, Resistance, and Attributes. Use Crafting Bench to improve your Cooldown Recovery Rate too.

Min. requirements: +100 to Maximum Life Minions have 25% increased maximum Life 10% increased Cooldown Recovery Rate +40% total Elemental Resistance Optional affixes: Chaos Resistance Strength % increased Maximum Life

(Boots) Rare Boots - here focus on high amounts of maximum Life, Movement Speed, and Resistance. You can get extra Action Speed and Cooldown Recovery Rate using Eldritch Implicits.

Min. requirements: +100 to Maximum Life 30% increased Movement Speed +80% total Elemental Resistance Optional affixes: Chaos Resistance % increased Action Speed % increased Cooldown Recovery Rate

(Amulet) Ashes of the Stars - additional Quality on the Bodyswap of Sacrifice raises the Minion's Life scaling. It is also useful for your other utility Skills, such as adding Movement Speed for Cyclone or increasing the Projectile amount of Lancing Steel.

+(10-16) to all Attributes (5-10)% increased Experience Gain of Gems +1 to Level of all Skill Gems +(20-30)% to Quality of all Skill Gems

(Gloves) Aukuna's Will - with those Gloves you can Summon your Zombies without any other prerequisites, and make them count as corpses, which enables various other interactions.

+(30-40) to Dexterity (5-7)% increased Cast Speed (100-150)% increased Evasion and Energy Shield Raised Zombies have (80-100)% increased maximum Life Raise Zombie does not require a corpse Your Raised Zombies count as corpses

(Ring) Rare Ring - look for bonuses to your maximum Life, Resistance, and Attributes. If your basic needs are satisfied, you can add Critical Strike Multiplier, Minion Life, or Mana Cost Reductions here.

Min. requirements: +100 to Maximum Life +40% total Elemental Resistance Optional affixes: Chaos Resistance Minions have #% increased maximum Life % to Global Critical Strike Multiplier Non-Channelling Skills have -7 to Total Mana Cost

(Jewel) Rare Jewels - here you can find a multitude of useful modifiers. Look for bonuses for your and your Minion's maximum Life, Critical Strike Multiplier for Fire or Elemental Skills, and various Resistances or Attributes.

Min. requirements: increased maximum Life Recommended affixes: Minions have #% increased maximum Life % to Critical Strike Multiplier with Elemental Skills Resistances Attributes Corrupted Blood cannot be inflicted on you

(Jewel) Rare Abyss Jewel - an Abyss Jewel socketed in your Belt can provide the same modifiers as the aforementioned regular Rare Jewel. You can also look for flat Mana Regeneration or useful Corruptions.

Min. requirements: +30 to maximum Life Recommended affixes: Minions have #% increased maximum Life % to Critical Strike Multiplier Resistances Attributes Corrupted Blood cannot be inflicted on you

(Jewel) Large Cluster Jewel - the most important Notable here is the Doryani's Lessing which grants you Life Leech. Other Notables are of less importance, but you should aim for the Prismatic Heart for extra Resistances.

Recommended affixes: 1 Added Passive Skill is Doryani's Lesson 1 Added Passive Skill is Prismatic Heart 1 Added Passive Skill is Smoking Remains 1 Added Passive Skill is Burning Bright 1 Added Passive Skill is Cremator

(Jewel) Medium Cluster Jewel - those are your best source of Minion Life. You can use a simple version with two useful Notables, or opt for an increased effect of small Nodes with additional modifiers attached.

Recommended affixes: 1 Added Passive Skill is Blessed Rebirth 1 Added Passive Skill is Hulking Corpses Added Small Passive Skills have 35% increased Effect Added Small Passive Skills also grant: +#% to all Elemental Resistances Added Small Passive Skills also grant: +# to Maximum Life Added Small Passive Skills also grant: +# to Strength/Dexterity

(Jewel) Watcher's Eye - it is used mostly for the Clarity-related modifiers that offer a lot of flat Mana Cost reduction. You can also use other Auras to get additional Damage bonuses.

(4-6)% increased maximum Energy Shield (4-6)% increased maximum Life (4-6)% increased maximum Mana Recommended Aura modifiers:  +(20-30)% to Critical Strike Multiplier while affected by Precision Non-Channelling Skills have -(10-5) to Total Mana Cost while affected by Clarity

(Jewel) The Light of Meaning - this Jewel grants extra Fire Damage bonuses to all nearby Notables. It is especially effective when combined with an overlapping Unnatural Instinct Jewel.

Passive Skills in Radius also grant 6% increased Fire Damage

(Jewel) Unnatural Instinct - with this Jewel you can benefit from all Unallocated Passive Skills in this Radius. It will also grant you the additional effect granted by Light of Meaning.

Allocated Small Passive Skills in Radius grant nothing Grants all bonuses of Unallocated Small Passive Skills in Radius

(Jewel) Impossible Escape - allows you to remotely allocate Notables in a radius of certain Keystones. With the Glancing Blows variant, you can reduce the Mana Cost and improve your defense.

Passive in Radius of <Keystone> can be Allocated without being connected to your tree

(Flask) Bottled Faith - greatly improves your Damage by raising your Critical Strike Chance and increasing the Damage taken by Enemies standing on the Consecrated Ground it creates.

(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 Effect

Suggested Flasks: Life Flask  with Bleeding Removal Jade Flask with Evasion Rating bonus Diamond Flask with extra Critical Strike Chance  Quicksilver Flask with bonus Stun Avoidance

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

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