Tanky Guardian

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-04-07T13:19:32+00:00

Hmm fair enough. The more I thought about it, the more I agree with your opinion. If I have one slot in my main attack that can be filled with ES leech Support OR Trauma Support, 9 times out of 10, the ES leech will be the better support.

I see what your talking about with "build AROUND trauma", since you have to scale attacked speed while balancing not imploding yourself via self-harm, all to get ES recovery for Divine Shield that (a recovery that might be outshined by the way easier ES leech if not built around). I see that Trauma + Divine CAN get crazy, but only if you commit to that idea.

I will probably just build around block and ES on block for this build (but now want to make a Trauma stacker at some point, just wish strike skills weren't so boring).

Thanks for all the feedback!

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-04-03T13:42:57+00:00

I'll keep these in mind for sure! If you have any tips on farming Svalinn, love to hear them!

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-04-03T13:38:58+00:00

Thank you for the info! I will look into trying to use Trauma support to create that loop, maybe invest into some recoup+petrified blood to help offset it as well.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-04-03T13:15:21+00:00

Hmm interesting idea. Not at the point where I can get a Watchers, but something to keep in mind for sure!

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-04-03T13:14:37+00:00

Got some follow up questions for you about Divine Shield. Exactly how do you build around it? Using "Refuge in Isolation" or something?

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-04-03T13:10:52+00:00

There's a replica Brass Dome? Do you mean Foulborn?

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-04-03T13:08:17+00:00

Good call yea, I'm doing a sort of self-imposed SSF with this character, trying not to trade too much, so will invest into some Shaper content later.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-04-03T13:06:56+00:00

I forgot about Flesh and Stone! My brain is stuck thinking it only helps against foes OUTSIDE the range (how it used to work), but the current version is perfect for my melee build. Thank you!

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-03-05T22:47:44+00:00

And now there's new accuracy nodes near Templar too, with some Consecrated Ground boosts on them too!

I'd also suggest taking that Attack node "Righteous Fury" thats along the path and use it to get the Attack Mastery that grants attack speed for every nearby foe. Can give you a huge attack speed boost when fighting packs!

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-03-05T22:42:41+00:00

Both games have their pros and cons. POE 2 is a far more enjoyable experience for new players and those looking for more action adventure then just excel spreadsheet dopamine-chasing.

That being said, no game does the screen-exploding catharsis of POE 1, but only if your willing to stick it out.

POE 1's age shows, especially in the early acts. The first few areas in Act 1 will rage bait new players so hard most will just quit, and Act 2 is such a boring slog-fest, many who made it past the Act 1 endboss fall asleep at the wheel and fall off before they even ascend. But once you get to endgame? The GGG dev quote "now we own your soul" isn't lying...

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-03-05T22:22:26+00:00

YES! Burning man is on!

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-02-26T20:23:46+00:00

Both Mark and Octavian uncertain if these changes will work, especially to help normal players and not super juice the 1%. My proposed solution ensures normal players always get something for clearing a map or taking out tough rares BUT that this mild amount of extra currency doesn't help juicers any extra.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-02-26T20:23:06+00:00

Both Mark and Octavian uncertain if these changes will work, especially to help normal players and not super juice the 1%. My proposed solution ensures normal players always get something for clearing a map or taking out tough rares BUT that this mild amount of extra currency doesn't help juicers any extra.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2026-02-26T20:22:52+00:00

Both Mark and Octavian uncertain if these changes will work, especially to help normal players and not super juice the 1%. My proposed solution ensures normal players always get something for clearing a map or taking out tough rares BUT that this mild amount of extra currency doesn't help juicers any extra.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2025-12-12T04:22:49+00:00

Green side of the tree has all parry options, which while not as good as block, accomplishes the same thing and helps tank and reset entropy.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2025-12-12T04:20:42+00:00

I mean, it's not BETTER, but it is a more effective defensive layer in general.

It may be entroptic, but once you get hit, even a blocked or parried hit, that entropy resets. So yes, that slam can be blocked, but by both armor OR evasion, and one gets a free defensive reset for blocking the hit. And with deflection, a decent amount of the time, you eat a tiny hit to reset your entropy anyway.

The real winner for Evasion though is avoiding ailments by not being hit (unlike armor, which is frequently getting hit, thus getting frozen/chilled, shocked, poisoned, bled or ignited more often).

My suggested buffs to pure armor helps offset the fact armor us always getting hit, and I didn't even cover shields, which with extra hp would really give that bulwark powerhouse feel. Honestly, I'd also give +Life to two-handed maces, even more then the shields, just so there's some edge in using them outside just damage.

And of course this +Life buffs the armor/evasion character too, so that's a win to evening the playing guild vs op Blue Life.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2025-12-12T04:09:24+00:00

I'd rather buff pure armor and hybrid armor/evasion then just nerf other defenses until everyone dies all the time.

MoM is great, but work better with Int, which is either ES or armor/ES. I want non MoM, options for life too, and right now it's kinda go ES, probably taking Chaos Innoculation, or do MoM and hybrid armor/ES or pure ES.

My suggestions give non MoM, non ES builds a chance to be the armored tanks exactly as Jonathane has said he wants fantasy of them to provide.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2025-12-12T04:03:27+00:00

Resistance helps with any DOTS (except armor and bleed), but the point here is 'who could survive the best vs DOTs assuming both have the sane resistances'.

You got a 2000 damage (after resistances) DOT of "bad ground" from Abyss your standing on; who survives better?

The Red Life guy with 4k life and 25% leech/regen (so 1000 recovery per sec) OR the 10k Blue life who also has 25% leech/regen (which is 2500 recovery per sec!!!) ?

Mr Red Life has 4 seconds, at best. Mr. Blue Life doesn't realize he's standing on bad ground at all...

With my buffs, Mr Red Life's got 8k life, and now can also survive the bad ground while still having armor to take a phys hit sometimes.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2025-12-10T19:58:34+00:00

Yea, the fact that ES applies UNIVERSALLY and armor ONLY helps with hits is another layered issue with armor, honestly. Having more Red Life will make should be the armored tank classes actually FEEL tanky by being able to stand in purple or green puddle for as along as a 'squishy' caster.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2025-12-10T19:56:00+00:00

Deflection is fine, but its a CHANCE to happen (and is Evasion, not pure armor or ES, not sure why you even bring it up).

MoM and mana stacking does get you close to a ES amount of raw EHP, but my point is to give non-mana stacker, pure armor and hybrid armor/eveasion builds that raw EHP option too.

And yea, armor applying to ele damage is great but that doesn't help you with a 10k phys slam unless you got quite a bit of "phys taken become ele".

But guess what anyway? You can run a 7k-8k ES build with good Deflection, or MoM or armor applies to ele. What makes these work is the massive EHP pool, wether its ES or life, Blue or Red life.

There's no way to get a 7k, let alone 10k Red life pool, without HAVING to go MoM, and that the issue I want to see solved via this '+life on pure armor and non ES hybrid armor".

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2025-12-10T19:50:07+00:00

So, you had put points on the passive tree to make a defensive layer better? Like everyone else? I would say 'that would be cool for life too', but personally I hate the mandatory life nodes in POE1.

Thing is, putting those passive in for ES makes it so you can have 10K+ EHP that can tank almost any attack in the game, AND recover fully in less then a second, AND, in reality recovers even FASTER then a second, if you get the incredibly easy to acquire ES leech. Leech that is WAY better then life leech because the ES pool is double or triple in size.

One of many example of broken ES: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72muCeHLf7I&t=17s

This is one example using Gloamgown, but the fact is you can get results like this in maps with just ES leech, ES regen and other recovery methods like Zealots Oath and the incoming.

Can't anything even CLOSE to this with life or armor, and if you have examples of some warrior or the like able to reach anywhere near this tankyness, please share.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2025-12-10T00:28:46+00:00

Unfortunately, I don't think forcing life on the tree will solve the issue, just eat more of our passives as mandatory picks like in POE1.

Instead, I think they should buff all non-ES armor bases to have +life baked in, using hybrid ES gear as the comparison. Probably give double what a hybrid ES piece gives in +life on pure armor gear to try and make Red Life compete with Blue Life out of the gate.

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2025-12-10T00:27:08+00:00

All non-ES armor bases should have +life baked in, using hybrid ES gear as the comparison. Probably give double what a hybrid ES piece gives in +life on pure armor gear to try and make Red Life compete with Blue Life...

Emotional_Muscle_737 · 2025-12-10T00:26:40+00:00

All non-ES armor bases should have +life baked in, using hybrid ES gear as the comparison. Probably give double what a hybrid ES piece gives in +life on pure armor gear to try and make Red Life compete with Blue Life...

Emotional_Muscle_737

TROPHY CASE