Divinity: Original Sin 2 is in full swing, and one of the major issues players are having with the game isBuilds. WhatBuilddo I use? What’s a goodBuildfor a Warrior? Ranger? Mage? etc. Since the game is rather difficult this has come much more into focus than one would expect. In thisBuild Guidewere going to cover the:Blood Mage. Let’s jump into thisBuildand see just how it works.
Blood Mage - Necromancer Build
TheBlood Mageis aNecromancer Buildthat relies on highIntelligenceandCritical Chanceto deal massive damage. Unlike otherMages, theBlood Magedeals Physical Damage, much like aWarriororRanger.Blood Magestypically have very goodArmourand are extremely hard to kill because they can heal themselves and replenish theirArmour(bothPhysicalandMagical) as necessary. Blood Mages can deal extremely high damage withGrasp of the StarvedorBlood Storm, but outside of these twoSkillstheir damage isn’t particularly great, and thus they will be more of a Support type role earlier on in the game until they acquire these.
Blood Mage Attributes and Equipment
Blood Mageswill focus primarily onIntelligenceto increase the damage of a over half theSkillsthey use.Blood Magescan make better use ofCritical ChanceandCritical Multiplierthan some otherBuilds. For this reason it is recommended that you put a few more points intoWitsthan you normally would with otherMage-type Buildsas you get later on into the game. I would recommend a 3:1 ratio ofIntelligencetoWits. Keep in mind this is not aLone WolfBuild.
Blood Mageswill useIntelligence-based Armourwhich works fine here, as they shouldn’t be in melee range unless they absolutely need to (this isn’t aDeath Knight).Blood Mageswill prioritizeArmourwith bonuses toWarfaresince it increases the damage of all theirSkills, followed byIntelligence,Critical ChanceandScoundrel(ScoundrelincreasesCritical Multiplier). This will help maximize the damageBlood Magesdo. Also, they will wantFlame Runes of Powerin theirArmour, andNecklace.
As far asWeaponsgo, you’ll want to use aWandandShieldfor maximumArmour. You shouldn’t ever need to attack with yourWeapon, so we’ll take aWandhere just because you’ll have the correctAttributesfor it and they generally give a bonus toIntelligence. Always pick the one with best bonuses, not damage.Shieldswill help keep you alive, and will allow you to replenishArmouron yourself. They also come withRune Slots, which will allow you to increase the effectiveness ofBouncing Shieldby slottingMasterwork Runes. attempt to find aShieldwith highArmourand 1 or 2RuneSlotsto maximize your damage.
Blood Mage Talents and Abilities
One of the hardest parts about making aBuildinDivinity: Original Sin 2is getting yourAbilitiesdistribution correct. It’s easy to get spread too thin, and often people make the mistake of not spreading points around enough. The bonuses you gain fromAbilitiesin this game are somewhat different than the original, so it’s easy to see why people can get confused. Let’s take a look at whatAbilitiesandTalentsyou need for aBlood Mage.
In Act 1Blood Mageswill most likely have 2 points inNecromancer, 1 inHydrosophist, 1 inPyrokineticand the rest inWarfare. Once you gain access toSource Pointsthen you’ll want to bump these up to 3 points intoNecromancer, 3 points intoHydropsophist, 2 points intoPyrokineticand the rest should all go intoWarfare. Any left over points should go intoScoundrelto increaseCritical Multiplier. This will allow you to use the neededSkillsfor thisBuildand maximize your damage with them.
As far asTalentsgo I’d recommend the following:
Elemental Affinity– ThisTalentworks really well with thisBuildbecause Blood is not hard to produce. If you are anElf,Flesh Sacrificemakes this a turn one thing, before you even cast a skill.
Executioner– This should be the secondTalentyou take because it works really well with thisBuild. Although it’s not as useful in a party as it is inLone Wolf, it’s still better than a lot of Talents for this Build.
Savage Sortilege– ThisTalentis a must for thisBuildas it allows your spells toCritical Hit. However, you won’t need it right away because you won’t have muchCritical Chanceearly on in the game. Take this around the beginning of Act 2 if you can.
Hothead– Another very goodTalentfor thisBuildsince you shouldn’t take a whole lot of damage. Can really help you increase yourCritical Damage.
Far Out Man– Will increase the range of many of yourSkillsby 2 meters. This Talent can help you reach your target when you otherwise might be just out of range.
Blood Mage Skills
Now that you’ve decided whichTalentsandAbilitiesyou want, you’ll need to identify just whichSkillswork best with this kind of setup.Blood Mageswill use primarilyNecromancerSkillsto deal damage. SinceBuildsevolve over the course of the game, I’m going to put theSkillsin order from earliest obtainable to latest, because you won’t be able to get them all right way.
Necromancer Skills
Blood Sucker– This is a great pick up early on as it’s a good cheap heal for 1AP. Can also damageDecayingenemies. Combine it withRaining Bloodto deal good damage or get a good heal.
Mosquito Swarm– Deals decent damage and sets theBleeding Status Effect. Has very good range (13 meters) which is nice. Also heals you for a decent amount of Vitality, which is nice.
Decaying Touch– This skill has very limited range but can deal good damage and set decaying, which can prevent a target from healing. Not as useful early game as it is late game.
Raining Blood– A great way to help get use ofElemental Affinityif you need and also helps to ratchet up the damage ofGrasp of the Starved. Can also setBleeding, but deals no damage itself.
Shackles of Pain– This skill won’t deal any damage when first cast, but only costs 1 AP and will help you deal damage as you get hit. Be sure to use it after you have taken down your target’sPhysical Armouror it won’t work.
Infect- Just likeMosquito Swarm, this skill does decent damage and has very good range. Can setDiseasedon the target, which can then spread to others. Doesn’t happen often though.
Bone Cage- A great skill for buffing up yourArmourand the more dead bodies around the better. Between this andArmour of Frostyou should rarely take any damage.
Grasp of the Starved- This skill when properly used deals insane damage and will all but 1 shot most enemies in its AoE. Be sure to use in areas with lots of Blood or Clouds to maximize the damage.
Blood Storm- Might be the single deadliest skill in the game. For 4 AP and 3 SP you get a skill that deals insane damage to all targets in a huge AoE, setsDiseasedandDecaying, then does it again for 2 more rounds. This is an instant win skill.
Miscellaneous Skills
Bouncing Shield- This skill works really well with thisBuildbecause it doesn’t scale off ofStrength, onlyWarfare, which you will have a lot of. You can also increase the damage by upgrading your Shield.
Deflective Barrier- A great skill for buffing yourPhysical Armourand also dealing some damage to enemies. I like to use this turn 1 or 2 of any engagement to get the best results.
Challenge– As of February 1st, 2018 this Skill now only costs 1 AP, making it viable for nearly every Warfare oriented Build. Buffs Physical and Magic Armour in addition to increasing your damage by 15% for 1 turn.
Corpse Explosion- Since the patch on October 26th, 2017 this skill now scales withIntelligence, and as a result this skill does exceptional damage for 1 AP.Warfarealso increases it’s damage, which is great.
Mass Corpse Explosion- This skill is hard to use effectively but when you’re able to it deals devastating damage for 1 AP and 1 SP. Try to use when corpses are grouped on your target. Can one shot enemies if done right.
Armour of Frost- A good skill for buffing yourMagic Armour, which you shouldn’t need to do often, but still helps. Can also be used on teammates, and only costs 1 AP.
Final Tips
Elvesmake the bestRacefor this build becauseFlesh Sacrificecreates a Blood puddle beneath you. This allows you to get great use ofElemental Affinityand also gain one AP and some damage for a turn (at the cost ofConstitution). Be sure you move, if you need to, before using it so that you don’t waste it. Once moved, useFlesh Sacrificebefore casting any otherNecromancer Skills.Note:that you will loseConstitutionwhen usingFlesh Sacrificeand yourShieldwill be un-equipped if you don’t have enough to use it after the reduction, so be sure you have enough.
Corpse ExplosionandMass Corpse Explosionboth deal tons of damage for 1 AP, which makes them really good additions to thisBuild. They can also hit multiple targets, and objects. You won’t be able to use these every battle effectively because of positioning, but when you can use them they perform really well. 2 points intoPyrokineticto get them is definitely worth it, especially since you could get this on gear inadvertently anyhow.
Blood Mageshave very few amazingSkillsthat don’t useSource, but the ones that do are EXTREMELY good!Grasp of the Starvedcan 1 shot just about any enemy inside its radius andBlood Stormwill literally clear an entire battlefield if positioned properly. This makes Act 1 much harder forBlood Magesthan Act 2 and onward, where they getSource Points.
Blood Magesdeal crazy damage with these skills because there is no Resistance to Physical Damage like there is to the elements. This means when they strike they will always do 100% of the damage on the tooltip (and more if they Crit). I imagine theseSkillswill be nerfed in a future patch, but until then, enjoy!
Be sure to check out our otherBuild Guides! Good luck Sourcerers, Rivellon is counting on you!
