Overview
A build of Ida around Thunder Barrage focused on fast endless realm climb.
1. Introduction
These build focus around shock by Thunder Barrage. We will focus on increase the stored damage and stacking charges. I feel that its a really fast and strong solo build that maybe its on top on speed of farming renown. Most of the battles ends on the first turn, and you never are playing more than 12-14 cards per turn, most of the time less than 8 per turn. These great game are growing day to day thanks to a highly committed and hard workers devs, that had tons of talent. For these reason, these build maybe get outdated soon, but hey, you can check how was Gordian in the past 😀
2. Deck.
Get to the amazing Ida, as a Forest Seer to began the procces.
Bread and butter (the core):
6-10 Deck size
Natural State x 2:
Dominated to Unlimited (change cost to SP). Gives a good heal source, draw card (and these is relevant for the Thunder Barrage composition vs guard enemies) and gives 2 channel charges that we use to launch the Thunder Barrage gifts.
Wall of thorns x 1:
We need some guard, mainly to avoid burn/shock/etc.. The dominated version can be a boost to a base stats or lightweighted. I run both and i think that the boost its good for the early game and, when we need add more defensive cards, lightweighted wins. Another side to see, its that if our deck size its bigger than our card draw its better lightweighted. Most of the battles, you dont want to play it, but when you need, you need it a lot. We want to equip to a 2 slots equip (i choose boots) with a Fury rune. The average no-defensive use, when we had enough sp, its launch as our first card to charge fury or after launch Thunder Barrage (+1 Fury), cast Thunder Bolt with fury (-1 fury) and cast Wall of Thorns to get again Fury.
Thunder Barrage x 2-3+ (Native):
Well, the star of the team. Hits 5 cells (7 with the right weapon) and apply 1 (2 with the right amulet, 3 if your talent give you some luck, 25%) shock charge. When the shock charge gets 5, deals all the damage to the target, and all other targets get damaged by their shock stored damage. These can deal a lot of hits (nice for these enemys that need to be hitted X times before cause any damage), and a pretty slaughtering scene on the screen. When a full shock are trigger, we get one copy for each trigger of Thunder Bolt. Cost 2 AP but its channeled, and Natural State provides channel charges, and adds 1 shock charge (2, 3 by talent 25%). Really, in the early game, do a good damage, but when you are getting your setup and increasing your stats, works better like a free bit of damage and a good source to trigger shocks. The numbers of copies that you want its enough to fill your card draw. We want it equipped at armor with a fury rune and a mirror rune / a fury rune and dual spell armor (hard to get). We want all copys dominated to potent (bypass guard and invicibility)
Thunder Barrage x 0-2 (by weapon):
I run it with mirror rune and fury rune, because i feel like a need more attacks. But if i think about it, really its better put a void rune in the weapon and 2 int runes, or put 1 fury rune, 1 focus (+channel) on it. Today, if i get three fury Thunder Barrages with the other equip, i choose the void and +2 int option. Get on your mind that these attacks arent potent, and you will miss vs guarded enemies!
Glass Cannon (by ring):
Give us might (base +30% damage per hit, only consumed when does damage, if you apply shock and anything triggers, you keep all charges) and fragile (+30% of incoming damage). When you go on deep realms, you will are virtually perma-might, except on very populated battles. On early game, when your int its low, isn’t a great damage boost i your routing travels, because the stacks goes off fast, but works excellent vs boss that had a high hp pool, and do the things really fast. These its a great boost to our output damage, and we will try to boost by talents and gear.
Defensive Mode:
Some boss and battles need a bit more of guard, yup, im thinking on you, my Dear Queen… On high realms, you need some of these boost. Really, to play these defensive deck, i build the core deck without the weapon Thunder Barrage cards. I choose these options:
Feral Instict x 1:
Before you get hit, add the guard. Its a dex card, but i think that its better than any other, and, for game mechanics, Thunder Ida hasnt any problem with these. When you draw it, never will be a load, has retain, and you can use all your AP to deal damage. These its a option for mid game+ (when you had a dex modifier that its near your int modifier). Before these point, you can use the vanilla defensive cards that the initial deck provides. Today, these card DONT trigger if suppresors loads are at 0.
Barkskin x 1:
A easy and cheap way to get armor. You are playing as perma-fragile, but playing a short deck give you the option to play Wall of Thorns – natural state x 1/2 – Wall of Thorns + Feral instict trigger and these its a lot of guard that need to be break 3 times before your HP gets naked. If you will get recieve more than 3 hits, you dont need guard, you need move your ass to another cell. Remember to use it as the last card in the round, because you dont want it in the pool that Natural State rolls her draw.
Defensive Cards that i consider but finally discard:
Stoneskin:
The guard that provides isnt very high, its good that grows with a 200% STR modifier, and sounds nice that channeled spell. The truth its that you will get more for less with another Wall of Thorns early, and you want to use your AP to kill that things vs you missthink that its a good idea get guard.
Animal Companion: Hard to discard, had nice mastering, but the AP cost its very strong reason to discard. I need to say that someone that has one of these in their out-deck stock, at max range and mastered to power, ready to introduce it in the main deck vs some tought fights, has all my respect.
Conditioned Reinforcer:
Imagine one use per turn of Wall of Thorns, and some ninja positioning to evade the damage and use only 1 AP to build a over-kill stock of fortify, that will keep grow your guard between rounds for the moment that you need, and in these moment you had a brutal number over your shield ready to get all the incoming damage. Well, i imagine these and try it. Forget, Conditioned Reinforcer cant be cast over self one.
3. Gear.
Core:
Amulet:
Thundercore: Doubles the shock charges that you applies. In our build, these amulet doubles the output damage. There aren´t any alternatives.
Weapon:
Una’s Wrath: Adds 1-2 hits to thunder barrage, when you get it, crush any other no equipped gear to roll it in the forge to 2 hits, and when you had some resources try to get 2 hits – 2 ints. Virtually, adds 40% of damage, and adding more hits, reduce the innate randomess of Thunder Barrage. Need some luck to get, the weapons pool are big. Visit your local merchant and sanctuary as many times as you can. I bet for void – int – int in the runes.
Ring:
Covenant of Power: Provides Glass Cannon. The other bonus are things that are in the world but Ida ignores. A good option its socket a intrinsec rune (the card are always on the initial draw), but if you had enough card draw, you want a int rune here. When the passive triggers, the rune effects doesn’t trigger. At the moment, i dont know about the “trigger but no passive” cards type.
With these 3 items you will be able to do fast runs going up on the realms and know the power of the build. The others slots will be less game-change, but adding all of them do your life easy. Your main focus when you are naked its get as soon as you can the Thundercore. The good news its that trying to get it, you has a chance to get the Covenant.
Secondary:
Ring 2:
Twinkle: Adds some crits when you apply shock, and you will apply a lot of shock. In the past, give 7 crit per shock applied, now gives only 2 and you hasnt need to use a legendary ring for the AP. Today, i will choose any of the other options.
Gift of Mercy: Gives 2 of int and a expend card with 0 AP cost. With a blue socket and a int rune you had some good, but its my second choice.
+2 Chaos Resist Ring: I dont know what modifiers can roll on rings, but the base of these ring its amazing. As int char, you will end with elemental resistances over 20 in a few hours (doing that the malus that reduce fire/ice/electric can be ignored, any resistance over 15 only works as a shield vs some realms modifiers, and you will get 75%), but physical and chaos its another story. Im not sure about what can be rolled, but any point on int will be wonderful, and any chaos/physical/card draw in some decks will be welcome.
Belt:
Sigmund’s Pride: A reforce for Crystal Cannon, does the same work, and its my favorite in the early game.
The Eclectic: You will get 2 of the 3 bonus, thats means +3 to int and +3 to dex, and its a good stat boost. Nice belt for early-mid game.
Spirit Foci: Gives you 7-10% of int, reduce 1 max channel charges. When you are 60 of base int (without mod), its better than the The Eclectic. The channel charges malus would be a problem, but if you had 3 channel charges, you had 1 over you deck need.
Boots:
Stormwalkers: Sounds better that how works. Same reasons that Twinkle, the crits goes out on the first hit and, if you had a good day, you are doing over 4 hits per card use.
Freedom Greaves: Immunity to root. Some “before-expect-ending” runs does that these sound like a angelic chorus. But i want big numbers. I WANT BIG NUMBERS. OH MY GOD, I HAD A CARD THAT NAMES “CRYSTAL CANNON”, DEATH ITS A PART OF MYSELF!. Relax, lovely Ida, and tell to our friends the reason (we promise you that we never do a question about how a amazing forest druid that has wolves, falcons and bears as friends can be prisioned by a few rotten roots). We need fury. Its +40% of damage (im not sure how works, but in game, i think that its more accurated something like 15-25%, anyways, its a good boost). And to get fury we need socketing some cards with rune furys, the legendary gear never spawn with card socket.
Any +2-3 base int shoes with spell/shield socket: I saw boots with movement and shield, and maybe spells (not sure). We looking for the boots with shield, to socket in Wall of Thorns with a fury rune. Easy mode to initiate your fury-chain combos.
Gloves:
Astra Grasp: Read in the rings about Twinkle, read in the boots about Stormwalkers, and you knows what are think me.
Dusk Deceivers: Meh. Anything bad, anything amazing. It’s a good option to put your focus on get other things, but the dusk deceivers will go to the trash cane in the future.
Iron grip: Boost might, a option when i was trying to use all the crit-shock related gear. After i decide to change, the next option its better.
Hands of Valor: Cant generated crit. Increase might effect for 60-120%. 60-120%. Big numbers. A thing to say… the increase its a multiplier. Might base effect its 30%, increasing might effect by 90% would result in a 30+(0.90*30), for a final might of 57%. And its a great boost.
Spellward: Gives 1 avert (ignores 1 hit) per each 7-10 spells used. We use a lot of spells and its a great defensive property. Really, with these gloves your life will be a lot more quiet. I prefer other option, but i think that Spellwards are the best bet. You knows… big numbers.
+7-10% int with +1 AP mod gloves: Only for really deep adventurers. Its a great boost to int, and we will understand the importance of these shortly. Throw in a int rune and crush them.
Headgear:
Leggionare’s Gaze: Its ok, like the Dusk Deceivers, if you find and hasnt any better, use it. Because how works the might boosting, isnt a great boost.
Trinity Mask: Gives 1 more channel when you gain channel, increase your max channel charges. If you find, use, but isnt the thing that you are looking for.
+3 Int headgear with Spell and red rune: Put in a Thunder Barrage and a fury rune to live as a perma-fury druid. My favorite.
Body Armor:
Any <30% of hp life saving: Same reason as Trinity Mask. Its something that its ok to get if you hasnt any better.
Dei Disdain: A excellent armor with a really good 7-10% to intelligence, but cant be socket with a spell. And we need one three-slots gear with Thunder Barrage.
Mirror Mail: These beauty gives you 1 aver charge every 3-5 rounds. Really, if your standard battles use it, its that are something wrong with the build or are in a early phase. But vs bosses that can be waste 4 or 5 turns can help a lot. Anyways, we need in these slot the next option.
Any armor with 1/2 spells and 1/2 red runes: If had 1 spell, use one rune with fury and the other with mirror. If had 2 spells, socket a pair of Thunder Barrage together with a fury rune. Yup, you are officially a perma-fury char!
4. Talents.
At level 100 you will end with 10 talent sockets. 2 for tier 3, 4 for tier 2 and 4 for tier 1 (with some relics you will had one more of tier 1). Before goes with our talents setup, lets me introduce you some things about the shock stored damage and other things.
The shock its 4 + DEX MOD per charge, and, with thunder barrage, you get a bonus of +2 per rank level, to a max of 8. Do you know what its dex/int/str mod? Well, in your char page, you see your stats, and looks like 20+5 STR, 16+3 DEX and 90+40 INT. The X mod its the number after “+”. In these case, the str mod its 5, dex 3 and int 40. These modifier grows at ratio of 2 base stats over ten : 1 modifier. If your use 10 skills points to grow your STR to 30, your STR mod will grow by 10/2=5 points, and will show like these 30+10 STR. These mod its that does your deck numbers grows. Red cards with STR, green with DEX and blue with INT (if you push and retain the “ctrl” left button in your keyboard, you will see how works your spells).
Well, as i say, shock formula its 4 + DEX MOD. Here we had a bug. Or its a interface bug (my bet for these, Thunder Barrage its a INT spell and hasn’t sense that the stored damage didn’t grows with int) or its a mechanical bug. Anyways, Thunder Barrage shock charges grows by int. If we want big numbers, we need to increase it. And we increase it by 1 per 2 INT points, or we increase by 0.5 each stack per int point. Yup, but we can do better, a lot better.
Note: I order the talents for each tier by importance. The first that you find, its the first that i recommend you to take in the game.
Note 2: I feel its more easy to read the T1 talents with the arrow icon if i call it for they function (dex to int arrow, int to str arrow,…) that for the original names.
T3 Talents
[Outdated: Now [Build Bleeding Edge 104k] Savant gives around 20% of the int modifier. If it is a final game desing choice (that has a lot of sense, or these talent will be a must for any stacking build), skip these talent. If the ratio that adds if better than 30% take it over Force of nature, and if better than 25% get over Innate Power.
Savant (21 int): Add again your int modifier. Thats its near to a 100% boost compared to the shock base damage. Its very strong.
End of Outdating 😀
]
Innate Power (21 int): Really, Force of Nature adds more damage. But Innate has two that i love for early game over Force. First, you will unlock it by int, and these its more damage. The STR mod will add some damage in the mid game+. The second, always works. If you are naked and hasnt any decent gear, it will boost your damage by a 25%. Force of nature require that you has a might source. Like Uma Wrath, reduce a bit the random factor.
Force of Nature: Increase might boost by 100%. Its a 30%. Really, you will consume your mights charges more fast that you can produce, and, at the end of the day, never its a real 30% of increase. Obviously, you need your Covenant of Power to generate the might. If you hasnt, take Savant.
T2 Talents
Grounded (16 dex): Now, all the dex mod adds to any charge of shock. But we are a int build, and only had a few DEX! Looks like something to solve… be patient.
Short Fuse (19 str): The little brother of Force of nature. Adds a “false” 15% of base damage when we had might. Again, if our Covenant ring are in the hands of the enemy, take another talent.
No more T2 talents, we will use for T1 (6). If you are in the early game, or hasnt the might source, use the other talent sockets to fix your little problems, like a increase of card draw or SP generation.
T1 Talents
INT to DEX (int 14): Only if you had unlock Grounded. Adds the 50% of your int modifier to the dex modifier. By grounded, these its a boost of 50% of the initial stored damage.
INT to STR (int 14): Only if you had unlock grounded and had another talent socket free. Whats the point of throw 50% of the int mod in the str? Keep reading.
STR to DEX (str 14): Only if you meet the requisite for the INT to STR talent. Now, your boosted STR mod by INT mod, goes 50% to your DEX mod, that increase your shock stored damage by Grounded. Its a 25% + tip for the natural STR mod to the base damage. Remember that any point that we invest in int gives 0.5 more stored damage? Now, we are getting 0.5 base + 0.25 by dex 0.125 by str-dex [+0.5 when Savant added all int mod :_(], getting 0.875 damage stored per int point. For these reason we will carry as many int as we can. I like to call these as stat chain.
Acrobatic (dex 10): +4 dex. I feel that its better use one talent slot to hit the requisites to unlock the dex and str talents than get by grid stat cells, because these cells are permanent. In addition, you will need invest some points to get the requisites. Plan your stat build thinking that all your gear that give stats is for int.
Raw Strength (str 10): +4 str. Same reason than acrobatic.
Curio Attunement/Art of war/Staff proficiency: Any of the three works well, gear dependant.
Keep in mind that some augmented gear gets some of these talents and give you a free talent socket. Gear talents and socket talents only have effect one time.
5. Planning your route.
Soon…
6. Must and dont.
Soon…
7. Thanks and hopes!
Thanks to all the people that was/are working on these game, you bringme a great game experience.
Thanks to all the community that are growing around Gordian.
I hope that the game workers and the community had a good years speaking, learning, competing and sharing a amazing game experience, and i think that a these pre-release and not finished version of the game its a great reason to sustain my hope!
8. Legal
Someone (me) wrote these because are proud of the Ida, the Druid, build and want to share. You can do and reproduce all or partially you want with these guide without any requirement or obligation.