[0.5] Woolie's WOLFMAN (Leaguestart friendly)

--0.5 RETURN OF THE ANCIENTS--

Pounce was slightly nerfed (4s cd > 5.1)
Stormcharged passive node changed (no longer grants 40% inc dmg & 15% crit chance)
Lunar Blessing Moonbeams no longer considered "melee skill" (lose one 40% dmg node on tree lol)
Bhatair's Vengeance sucks now (swapped to Ice Bite II for Lunar Assault)
Overextend removed (use Elemental Focus in Shred, instead)

all of the above equates to something like 7-8% less dmg idk lol
keep in mind +lvl of skills was nerfed, so, if you're relying on the Essence mod (instead of natty roll), expect another ~20% dmg loss
but this dmg loss applies to p much ALL attack builds

build is otherwise exactly the same. enjoy!

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SKILL ROTATION

Single Target

-----------PRE Cross Slash (Act 1)------------

spam Shred (Bleed I > Rage I) and use Pounce (Fist of War I > Stomping Ground) and Savage Fury whenever they are off cooldown

----------AFTER YOU HAVE Cross Slash------------

open with Ferocious Roar to generate Rage, if you do not have Eternal Rage yet

pop Savage Fury whenever you remember to (ideally, at the start but it works whenever)

however, ALWAYS ensure that Lunar Blessing is active - it grants a MASSIVE damage boost

1. Pounce (to use Freezing Mark - THIS IS A REGULAR SKILL GEM, NOT A SUPPORT)
2. Lunar Assault until enemy is "primed for freeze" (blue circle indicator on them)
3. Arctic Howl on primed (60% freeze buildup for Rare enemies; 70% for Uniques) OR frozen enemy
   if you froze them with Lunar Assault, still use Arctic Howl for its buff and Cold Exposure
4. Shred to generate Ice Fragments (use until the "Final Strike" occurs)
   you should have time to do two full Shreds
5. Cross Slash to pop all Ice Fragments

repeat!

sometimes, Lunar Assault will freeze the target before you can Arctic Howl - this is not a big deal (if they're easily frozen, they're easily killed!)
still, remember to pop Arctic Howl on tankier enemies anyway due to its buff and Cold Exposure

Clearing

use Lunar Blessing whenever it's off cooldown
ENSURE YOU HAVE Prolonged Duration II SOCKETED FOR PERMA-UPTIME!
press dodge SLIGHTLY after Lunar Blessing to animation-cancel
if you do it immediately, you may cancel the cast entirely (you'll quickly learn the correct timing)
be sure to generate rage with Ferocious Roar beforehand, if you don't have Eternal Rage yet

then, just Lunar Assault and Pounce from pack to pack
Herald of Ice and Lunar Blessing do the rest

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CAMPAIGN CHOICES

Valley of the Titans (Act 2)
30% Increased Charm Charges Gained

The Venom Crypts (Act 3)
30% Elemental Ailment Threshold

Halls of the Dead (Act 4)
+5 Strength, Dexterity & Intelligence
%Resistance is fine too

Abandoned Prison [CHAPEL STATUE] (Act 4)
30% Increased Life Recovery from Flasks

Qimah - 7 Pillars (Interlude Act 2)
12% increased Cooldown Recovery Rate

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CRAFTING A WEAPON

GGG nuked the "old" method of crafting from orbit - now, only ONE Essence mod may be on an item, at a time.

your best bet is to find a MAGIC weapon (two mods) with %phys (prefix) and +lvls (suffix), then use Greater Abrasion to guarantee +phys, then Desecrate a prefix and pray for something decent (hybrid phys or +ele dmg)

gl tho

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IF YOU'RE STUCK

remember, you're playing melee (lol), which means your WEAPON is your LIFEBLOOD - if it has low flat damage, that is almost certainly the reason you're getting booty blasted.
phys & cold damage are ideal but any damage type works in Acts 1-2
"+lvl melee skills" is also a VERY good stat to have (also rolls on gloves!)

either gamble for an upgrade OR buy a decent one off a vendor and "craft" it (read: also gamble) if you are in dire straits

and, obviously, buying an upgrade from a player is absolutely the easiest and most cost-efficient!

if you're having mana issues...

once you each mid endgame and have invested a bit of $$, you will swap over to Blood Magic and ignore mana entirely.

however, until then... do these in order (likely on steps 1 and 2 will be necessary, though):

1. get a Sapphire with "recover %max mana on kill"
2. socket Mark of Siphoning II in Pounce (for bosses)
3. grab "%phys att dmg leeched as mana" on a ring (Lunar Assault deals 20% dmg as phys)
   you can also get life leech while you're at it
4. upgrade your mana flask (Lavianga's Spirits is expensive but nice QoL)

5/21 - added 0.5 RotA updates. ~7-8% less dmg. two support gem changes. otherwise, build is the same. enjoy!
Pounce was slightly nerfed (4s cd > 5.1)
Stormcharged passive node changed (no longer grants 40% inc dmg & 15% crit chance)
Lunar Blessing Moonbeams no longer considered "melee skill" (lose one 40% dmg node on tree lol)
Bhatair's Vengeance sucks now (swapped to Ice Bite II for Lunar Assault)
Overextend removed (use Elemental Focus in Shred instead)