Fire Conversion Reap
Chieftain Build

Updated for Patch 3.21

The Best Crafty Guides by Odealo

It's one of the more interesting builds that emerged amidst patch 3.18 which introduced a brand new type of Prismatic Jewel - Sublime Vision. After Supreme Ego Keystone was completely changed, the builds which use just one Aura have found themselves at a disadvantage, but the new Jewel fills this niche. It allows you to have only one Aura, increases its effect on you, and provides a unique bonus - Purity of Fire redirects 30% Cold and Lightning Damage to be taken as Fire Damage. Tempered by War - a Keystone obtainable by Lethal Pride works almost exactly the same as it makes 50% of the Cold and Lightning Damage to be taken as Fire. The last piece is a Dawnbreaker Shield, which takes care of the remaining 20%. With this setup, the only type of Elemental Damage you can take is Fire Damage, so it's very important to have as close to 90% of Fire Resistance as possible.

The class and ascendancy are a rather easy choice - pick Chieftain. Tasalio can be used for Fire Resistance, Ignite Resistance, and yet another layer of defense - 20% of Physical Damage taken as Fire. Ngamahu and Hinekora are excellent for Physical to Fire-type builds. The Skill to be used in the main damage setup is Reap. It's a very effective Spell that deals Physical Damage, and the longer you fight the more damage it deals. It also costs you no Mana, but Life. The damage can quickly ramp up, especially with heavy investment into increasing the Gem Level. It's overall a very sturdy build, but to gain significant damage you will have to get expensive gear, on top of the already expensive Jewels.

You can also check our other Path of Exile builds right over here Odealo's Crafty Guides - Full List

1. Gameplay

The gameplay is very straightforward, just use Reap to kill all types of enemies. When it's properly linked, it will create multiple, overlapping scythe swipes which can damage a single enemy multiple times. To apply combustion and Curse you can use the Flamethrower Trap. Enduring Cry should be used as often as you can - it synergizes with Valako Keystone and Endurance Charges. For a Guard Spell use Molten Shell, and for enhanced mobility - Flame Dash. The only Aura you can use is Purity of Fire, and the rest of your Mana can be spent on Herald of Ash, Herald of Purity, Petrified Blood, and Arctic Armour. The high maximum Fire Resistance allows you to use Righteous Fire as a minor damage boost.

2. Build's PROS & CONS

3. Leveling tips

Start with any Fire or Physical-to-Fire Skill, preferably an attack, as there are a lot of Attack nodes near Marauder's starting location. You can use for example Tectonic Slam or Molten Strike. You can switch to Reap Spell anytime after converting your damage to Fire, but it won't do much damage at first. You should start using Purity of Fire after already acquiring the jewels and after level 67, it is the level required to equip Dawnbreaker. Without the three components, there is no point in using this Aura. You can pick more powerful Auras like Anger or Determination instead.

Suggested leveling Gem setups:

Molten Strike setup
	Molten Strike - A strike Skill that converts 60% of Physical Damage to Fire, and releases multiple Fire Projectiles on use. The remaining 40% conversion can be granted my Fire Mastery.
	Ancestral Call Support - Strike Skills target two additional enemies, massively enhancing clear speed.
	Ruthless Support - every third attack is much more powerful
	Combustion Support - enemies ignited by Molten Strike have reduced Fire Resistance, while the skill itself deals more Fire Damage

various Gems
	Molten Shell - a Guard Spell that negates a portion of the damage you take from Hits
	Flammability - use it to lower the Fire Resistance
	Flame Dash - a spell that makes you dash over a short distance
	Anger - adds an additional Fire Damage to Spells and Attacks
	Herald of Ash - grants more and increased Fire Damage and physical damage as extra fire damage
	Clarity - grants Mana Regeneration Rate

Bandits:

KIlling all Bandits for two additional Passive Points is the best option

Leveling Skill Trees:

35 Points Skill Tree
Start with Resolute Technique, Magmatic Strikes, and Art of the Gladiator

74 Points Skill Tree
Allocate Aura Clusters if you need a bigger Mana Pool. Lava Lash and Tribal Fury are great for more Attack Damage. Go for Divine Judgement, Divine Fury, and the nodes near Templar's starting location.

Recommended leveling items:

The Ignomon - one of the best Amulets for leveling Fire Damage Attack builds

(12-20)% increased Rarity of Items found+10 to Dexterity Adds 12 to 24 Fire Damage to Attacks +(100-150) to Accuracy Rating +(100-150) to Evasion Rating +20% to Fire Resistance

Praxis - a Ring that grants you a better Mana sustain and more Mana

+(20-30) to maximum Mana +(30-60) to maximum Mana Regenerate (3-6) Mana per second -(8-4) to Total Mana Cost of Skills 8% of Damage taken gained as Mana over 4 seconds when Hit

Redbeak - the best Sword you can use for leveling during the early game

40% increased Global Accuracy Rating 100% increased Damage when on Low Life 50% increased Physical Damage Adds 2 to 6 Physical Damage 10% increased Attack Speed +(20-30) to maximum Life +2 Life gained for each Enemy hit by Attacks

Goldrim - provides you with a lot of Elemental Resistances

+(30-50) to Evasion Rating 10% increased Rarity of Items found +(30-40)% to all Elemental Resistances Reflects 4 Physical Damage to Melee Attackers Level Requirement reduced by 100 (Hidden)

Tabula Rasa - allows you to link any six Gems

Item has no level requirement and Energy Shield (Hidden) Item has 6 White Sockets and is fully linked (Hidden)

4. Final Skill Tree, Ascendancy Points, and Pantheon

Final Skill Tree:
115 Points Final Skill Tree (doesn't include Unique or Cluster Jewels)
123 Points Path of Building (PoB) link

Ascendancy points:

Preferably in that order:

1. Nhamahu
2. Hinekora
3. Tasalio
4. Valako

Pantheon:

Major God: Soul of Solaris: 6% additional Physical Damage Reduction while there is only one nearby Enemy; 20% chance to take 50% less Area Damage from Hits

Minor God: Soul of Gruthkul: 1% additional Physical Damage Reduction for each Hit you've taken Recently up to a maximum of 5%

5. Final Gems links

[DPS] Reap setup
	Reap - A Spell that conjures a scythe to deal Physical Damage and Physical Damage over Time. If the target is alive after getting hit, you gain a Blood Charge, and for every charge you have you deal more damage. The Damage of multiple Scythes can overlap. Use Vaal Reap if you can.
	Spell Cascade Support - each cast also conjures two or four more scythes, if you have the awakened version
	Spell Echo Support - Skill is beating repeated an additional time with increased Cast Speed
	Added Fire Damage Support - adds Extra Physical Damage as Fire Damage, we recommend the awakened version for extra gem level of Reap
	Empower Support - increases the Gem Level of Reap, which is one of the best ways to gain more damage
	Fire Penetration Support - Damage penetrates a big chunk of Fire Resistance, here we also heavily recommend the Awakened version as it inflicts Fire Exposure

[UTILITY] Flamethrower Trap setup
	Flamethrower Trap - This is the way in which you can apply Combustion and Curse. The Trap itself does not deal damage and can be replaced with other Skills which can Hit and Ignite, such as Brands. If you're applying Curse on Hit by a Ring's Affix, link it with Lifetap and Culling Strike Support Gems.
	Combustion Support - Combustion reduces the Fire Resistance of the enemy Ignited by the linked Skill while increasing its Chance to Ignite.
	Hextouch Support - Linked Curse is applied on Hit with the Linked Skill
	Flammability - a Curse that lowers the Fire Resistance of your enemies

[MOBILITY] Flame Dash setup
	Flame Dash - a mobility Skill that teleports you over a short distance
	Arcane Surge Support -  keep it at a low enough level so that a single cast of Flame Dash will activate it, it grants you Spell Damage and Mana Regeneration Rate

[UTILITY] Molten Shell setup
	Molten Shell - the Guard Spell that can prevent some of the incoming Hit Damage
	Cast when Damage Taken - Molten Shell activates only after you take a certain amount of Damage
	Increased Duration Support - increases the Duration of Molten Shell

[UTILITY] Arctic Armour setup
	Arctic Armour - Chills enemies when Hit, Grants Freeze Immunity, and Less Fire and Physical Damage Taken while Stationary which is especially useful since that's the only type of damage you can receive
	Arrogance Support - Arctic Armour reserves Life instead of Mana

[UTILITY] Herald of Ash
	Herald of Ash - Herald of Ash is used for additional Physical Damage as Fire Damage, more Spell Damage, and enhanced clear speed, as the enemies you kill "explode" on kill

[UTILITY] Herald of Purity
	Herald of Purity - Herald of Purity grants more Physical Damage, which is later converted to Fire

[UTILITY] Purity of Fire
	Purity of Fire - The only and most important Aura - it provides you with increased Maximum Fire Resistance, Fire Resistance, and is later enhanced by Sublime Vision.

[UTILITY] Petrified Blood
	Petrified Blood - This Skill protects the lower half of your Life Pool to make a part of the incoming hit damage be dealt over time, instead of all at once.

[UTILITY] Enduring Cry
	Enduring Cry - Use it as often as you can, it generates Endurance Charges, restores your Life, and grants Physical Damage reduction

[UTILITY] Righteous Fire
	Righteous Fire - As your Fire Resistance is very high, Righteous Fire won't hurt you much, so you might as well enable it for a minor damage boost

6. Gear Setup

The build requires a specific set of Unique Items, while others are very recommended. The significance of Dawnbreaker, Lethal Pride, and Sublime Vision cannot be overstated, as with these three items you won't need any Cold or Lightning Resistance at all. Increasing Gem Level and Maximum Fire Resistance is the primary objective here. Arn's Anguish and Skin of the Lord adds a lot of extra Damage. There are some Unique as well as Rare Items that can help you with that. When choosing rare items you now have more Suffixes to choose from - we recommend gaining more Chaos Resistance or Attributes. Other stats to prioritize are Maximum Life, Critical Strike mods, Physical, and Fire Damage. Rare items may be vastly different from all other builds in the game. Remember that with Avatar of Fire, all Chaos Damage will have no effect.

Our recommended items will:

1. Cap your resistances at 75%
2. Provide you with enough DPS and Life to start mapping

(Helmet) Rare Helmet - Get more Life and Redeemer's Prefix for an extra Seal. "Nearby Enemies have -9% to Fire Resistance" is a quite rare mod that can increase your Damage by quite a lot

Min. requirements: +90 to Maximum Life Skills supported by Unleash have +1 to maximum number of Seals Optional affixes: Nearby Enemies have -#% to Fire Resistance Strength Intelligence Chaos Resistance

Helmet enchantments: Reap Enhancements

(Weapon) Rare Wand or Sceptre - The most important are increased Spell Fire Damage and level of your Reap Skill. Seek the Fire Damage, Spell Damage, and Critical Strike mods

Min. requirements: 80% Increased Fire Damage +1 to Level of all Fire/Physical/Spell Skill Gems Optional affixes: +1 to Level of all Fire/Physical/Spell Skill Gems Elemental Damage Global Critical Strike Multiplier increased Critical Strike Chance for Spells Adds Fire Damage to Spells

(Off-hand) Dawnbreaker - Redirects a portion of all Elemental and Physical Damage to be taken as Fire Damage. It's not a very good shield, but for this build it's essential

+(10-20) to maximum Life (150-250)% increased Armour +(20-25)% Chance to Block -1% Chance to Block Attack Damage for every 200 Fire Damage taken from Hits Recently (10-20)% of Cold Damage taken as Fire Damage (10-20)% of Lightning Damage taken as Fire Damage (10-20)% of Physical Damage taken as Fire Damage Scorch Enemies in Close Range when you Block

(Body Armour) The Brass Dome - You can Use Brass Dome as it grants up to 5% of Maximum Fire Resistance, no other Body Armour is capable of it. It's a great defensive option

(350-400)% increased Armour +(1-5)% to all maximum Elemental Resistances Strength provides no bonus to Maximum Life Take no Extra Damage from Critical Strikes

(Body Armour) Skin of the Lords - Skin of the Lords grants you more Defences and two extra Gem Levels for socketed Gems. Getting one that would suit you might be expensive, as the sockets and Keystone cannot be changed

Item has no level requirement and Energy Shield (Hidden) Sockets cannot be modified +2 to Level of Socketed Gems 100% increased Global Defences You can only Socket Corrupted Gems in this item Item has 6 Sockets and is fully linked (Hidden) <Random Keystone>

(Body Armour) Cloak of Flame - It is much cheaper than Skin of The Lords, and the additional corrupted implicit may upgrade it even further. It will help you mitigate Physical Damage.

+(50-75)% to Fire Resistance (40-75)% increased Ignite Duration on Enemies Reflects 100 Fire Damage to Melee Attackers 40% of Physical Damage taken as Fire Damage

(Boots) Rare Boots - Life, Movement Speed, and up to +3% to Maximum Fire Resistance as Crusader's Suffix will be necessary to get on your boots

Min. requirements: +70 to maximum Life 30% increased Movement Speed +3% to maximum Fire Resistance (Crusader's Suffix) Optional affixes: Chaos Resistance chance to gain Onslaught for 4 seconds on Kill You have Tailwind if you have dealt a Critical Strike Recently chance to gain Elusive on Critical Strike

(Gloves) Rare Gloves - Get as much Maximum Life as you can, as there are no affixes that would be especially useful for this build in particular. We recommend getting Chaos Resistance, Fire Resistance, or Strength.

Min. requirements: +80 to maximum Life +20% to Chaos Resistance  Optional affixes: increased Global Critical Strike Chance Fire Resistance Attributes increased Spell Damage increased Cast Speed

(Belt) Rare Belt - Again, there's not much to look for here, just the regular Maximum Life - try to get as much of it as it is possible. It's not a recommended option since you will most likely need to replace it with Arn's Anguish for more Damage.

Min. requirements: +90 to Maximum Life Fire or Chaos Resistance 50 Strength Optional affixes: increased Elemental Damage increased Damage increased Maximum Life

(Belt) Arn's Anguish - The Belt which grants more Maximum Life, Fire Resistance, one Maximum Endurance Charge, and it also transforms all your Endurance Charges into Brutal Charges, each granting you a chance to deal triple damage.

+(600-700) to Armour (12-15)% increased maximum Life +(40-60)% to Fire Resistance +1 to Maximum Endurance Charges Modifiers to Minimum Endurance Charges instead apply to Minimum Brutal Charges Maximum Brutal Charges is equal to Maximum Endurance Charges Gain Brutal Charges instead of Endurance Charges

(Amulet) Rare Amulet - An Amulet can be used for more Maximum Life and for increased Gem Level of Reap by up to two. It's a more offensively-suited option if you manage to get one.

Min. requirements: +80 to maximum Life +1 to Level of all Physical/Fire Skill Gems Optional affixes: +1 to Level of all Physical/Fire Skill Gems Attributes Chaos Resistance

(Amulet) Leadership's Price - This Amulet can get you 3% extra Maximum Fire Resistance, and if you're able to balance out your Strength and Intelligence, it will make you able to apply alternative Elemental Ailments, much like Secrets of Suffering.

+(10-16) to all Attributes +(-3-3)% to maximum Fire Resistance +(-3-3)% to maximum Cold Resistance +(-3-3)% to maximum Lightning Resistance You have Scorching Conflux, Brittle Conflux and Sapping Conflux while your two highest Attributes are equal Cannot Ignite, Chill, Freeze or Shock Corrupted

Recommended Anointments: Assassination Doom Cast

(Ring) Rare Ring - Besides Maximum Life focus on Strength, Intelligence, and on one of your Rings - Flammability Curse on Hit. Extra Maximum Endurance Charges are welcome but expensive.

Min. requirements: +70 to maximum Life Strength and Intelligence Curse Enemies with Flammability on Hit Optional affixes: increased Global Critical Strike Multiplier Maximum Endurance Charges Fire Damage per Endurance Charge Added Fire Damage to Spells increased Spell Damage

(Jewel) Rare Jewels - These should provide you with extra Life and some other various stats like Resistances or Immunity to Corrupted Blood.

Recommended affixes: Maximum Life Elemental Resistances Strength Intelligence Increases Fire Damage

(Jewel) Sublime Vision - Sublime Vision allows you only to have one Aura, Purity of Fire in this case. It redirects 30% of Cold and Lightning Damage to be taken as Fire and increases Aura Effect.

30% of Cold and Lightning Damage taken as Fire Damage while affected by Purity of Fire Aura Skills other than Purity of Fire are Disabled Auras from your Skills have (20-40)% increased Effect on you

(Jewel) Lethal Pride - Transform one of your Keystones into Tempered by War, which will redirect 50% of Cold and Lightning Damage to be taken as Fire while reducing Cold and Lightning Resistance, but that's not important. The Agnostic is a good candidate for a Keystone to be replaced.

Commanded leadership over (10000-18000) warriors under Rakiata Passives in radius are Conquered by the Karui Historic

(Jewel) Impossible Escape - The Imbalanced Guard is surrounded by some of the best Notables for this build, ones granting you extra Elemental and Fire Resistances. Allocate Prismatic Skin, Soul fo Steel, and Kinetic Impacts.

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

(Jewel) Rational Doctrine - If you're already using Leadership's Price, adding this Jewel into the build is an excellent idea. It grants you the Profane and Consecrated Ground bonuses.

<Three random synthesis implicit modifiers> You have Consecrated Ground around you while stationary if Strength is your highest Attribute 25% chance to create Profane Ground on Critical Strike if Intelligence is your highest Attribute Effects of Consecrated Ground you create Linger for 4 seconds Effects of Profane Ground you create Linger for 4 seconds

(Jewel) Watcher's Eye - "Physical Damage from Hits taken as Fire Damage while affected by Purity of Fire" is another layer of defense to gain as an aura mod from Watcher's Eye. It also provides many immunities to Curse or AIlmets which you could be aware of.

(4-6)% increased maximum Energy Shield (4-6)% increased maximum Life (4-6)% increased maximum Mana <Two or Three random aura modifiers>

Other suggested Flasks: Life Flask of Staunching for Bleed removal Diamond Flask with Immunity to Poison during Flask Effect Basalt Flask with random ailment removal Quicksilver Flask with random ailment removal Granite Flask with random ailment removal Silver Flask with random ailment removal

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

Pictures used in this article are the intellectual property of Grinding Gear Games.