Necromancer

Corpse Explosion Necromancer Build

No set · Necromancer

  • Tier A in Season 40
  • 1,221 views
  • 3 variants

Legacy gem build Corpse Explosion for the Necromancer: tier A, Season 40, with gear, cube powers, gems and 3 variants.

As of Season 40 · by eRnstl · updated

Changes since Season 39

  • The fourth cube slot is gone (Season 39 only).

Active Skills

  1. L Grim Scythe Rune: Cursed Scythe Poison
  2. R Land of the Dead Rune: Frozen Lands
  3. 1 Blood Rush Rune: Potency
  4. 2 Bone Spear Rune: Blighted Marrow Poison
  5. 3 Corpse Explosion Rune: Close Quarters Poison
  6. 4 Bone Armor Rune: Dislocation Poison

Passive Skills

  • Spreading Malediction
  • Blood is Power
  • Stand Alone
  • Eternal Torment

Equipment

1 set piece · 12 legendary items

  • HelmLeoric's CrownLegendaryDiamond
  • ShouldersRazeth's VolitionLegendary
  • AmuletThe JohnstoneLegendaryBane of the Trapped
  • ChestAquila CuirassLegendaryRubyRubyRuby
  • GlovesGrasps of EssenceLegendary
  • BracersAncient Parthan DefendersLegendary
  • BeltDayntee's BindingLegendary
  • PantsBlackthorne's Jousting MailSetRubyRuby
  • BootsIce ClimbersLegendary
  • Ring 1Krysbin's SentenceLegendaryLegacy of Dreams
  • Ring 2Convention of ElementsLegendaryBane of the Stricken
  • Main HandTrag'Oul's Corroded FangSanctifiedLegendaryEmerald
  • Off HandLost TimeLegendary

Kanai's Cube

  • WeaponNayr's Black DeathLegendaryEach different poison skill you use increases the damage of your poison skills by 100% for 15 seconds.
  • ArmorStone GauntletsLegendaryGetting hit increases your armor by 50%, but reduces your movement speed by 15% and attack speed by 20%. This effect stacks up to 5 times.
  • JewelryUnityLegendaryAll damage taken is split between wearers of this item.

Gear Stats

  • Leoric's Crown

    Helm

    Diamond
    • +626–750 Intelligence ancient +825–1,000
    • +626–750 Vitality ancient +825–1,000
    • Critical Hit Chance Increased by 4.5–6%
    • +141–160 Poison Resistance ancient +176–210
    • Socket
  • Razeth's Volition

    Shoulders

    • +416–500 Intelligence ancient +550–650
    • Chance to Deal 10–20% Area Damage on Hit.
    • Reduces cooldown of all skills by 5–8%.
    • Increases Corpse Explosion Damage by 10–15%
    • +141–160 Cold Resistance ancient +176–210
    Skeletal Mage gains the effect of the Gift of Death and Singularity runes. You gain 35–50% damage reduction if your Essence is not full.
  • Aquila Cuirass

    Chest Armor

    Ruby Ruby Ruby
    • +416–500 Intelligence ancient +550–650
    • +559–595 Armor ancient +654–775
    • Increases Corpse Explosion Damage by 10–15%
    • Reduces damage from melee attacks by 6–7%
    • Socket
    While above 90–95% primary resource, all damage taken is reduced by 50%.
  • Grasps of Essence

    Gloves

    • Critical Hit Damage Increased by 26–50%
    • Critical Hit Chance Increased by 8–10%
    • Chance to Deal 10–20% Area Damage on Hit.
    • Reduces cooldown of all skills by 5–8%.
    • +141–160 Poison Resistance ancient +176–210
    When an exploded corpse damages at least one enemy, your Corpse Explosion deals 150–200% increased damage for 6 seconds, stacking up to 4 times.
  • Ancient Parthan Defenders

    Bracers

    • +416–500 Intelligence ancient +550–650
    • Poison skills deal 15–20% more damage.
    • +416–500 Vitality ancient +550–650
    • Critical Hit Chance Increased by 4.5–6%
    • Reduces damage from ranged attacks by 6–7%.
    Each stunned enemy within 25 yards reduces your damage taken by 9–12%.
  • Dayntee's Binding

    Belt

    • +416–500 Intelligence ancient +550–650
    • +416–500 Vitality ancient +550–650
    • +10–15% Life
    • +373–397 Armor ancient +436–516
    • +141–160 Arcane Resistance ancient +176–210
    You gain an additional 40–50% damage reduction when there is an enemy afflicted by any of your curses.
  • Blackthorne's Jousting Mail

    Pants

    Ruby Ruby
    • +416–500 Intelligence ancient +550–650
    • Poison skills deal 15–20% more damage.
    • +416–500 Vitality ancient +550–650
    • +559–595 Armor ancient +654–775
    • Socket
  • Ice Climbers

    Boots

    • +416–500 Intelligence ancient +550–650
    • +416–500 Vitality ancient +550–650
    • +91–100 Resistance to All Elements ancient +110–130
    • +373–397 Armor ancient +436–516
    Gain immunity to Freeze and Immobilize effects.
  • The Johnstone

    Amulet

    Bane of the Trapped
    • Critical Hit Damage Increased by 51–100%
    • Poison skills deal 15–20% more damage.
    • Critical Hit Chance Increased by 8–10%
    • Reduces damage from melee attacks by 6–7%
    • Socket
    When Land of the Dead expires, you are granted 50 stacks of Macabre Knowledge. Macabre Knowledge increases the damage of Corpse Lance and Corpse Explosion by 150–200%.
  • Krysbin's Sentence

    Ring 1

    Legacy of Dreams
    • Attack Speed Increased by 5–7%
    • Critical Hit Chance Increased by 4.5–6%
    • Chance to Deal 10–20% Area Damage on Hit.
    • +141–160 Arcane Resistance ancient +176–210
    • Socket
    You deal 75–100% increased damage against slowed enemies or triple this bonus against enemies afflicted by any other type of control-impairing effect.
  • Convention of Elements

    Ring 2

    Bane of the Stricken
    • Critical Hit Chance Increased by 4.5–6%
    • Chance to Deal 10–20% Area Damage on Hit.
    • +141–160 Physical Resistance ancient +176–210
    • Critical Hit Damage Increased by 26–50%
    • Socket
    Gain 150–200% increased damage to a single element for 4 seconds. This non-static effect rotates through the elements available to your class in the following order: Arcane, Cold, Fire, Holy, Lightning, Physical, Poison.
  • Trag'Oul's Corroded Fang

    Main Hand

    Emerald
    • +(981–1,199)–(1,175–1,490) Damage ancient +(1,318–1,560)–(1,609–1,940)
    • +6–10% Damage
    • Chance to Deal 16–24% Area Damage on Hit.
    • Increases damage against elites by 5–8%
    • Socket
    The Cursed Scythe rune for Grim Scythe now has a 100% chance to apply a curse and you deal 150–200% increased damage to cursed enemies.
  • Lost Time

    Off Hand

    • Physical Damage (Weapon)
    • +626–750 Intelligence ancient +825–1,000
    • Critical Hit Chance Increased by 8–10%
    • Reduces cooldown of all skills by 5–8%.
    • Increases Corpse Explosion Damage by 10–15%
    Your cold skills reduce the movement speed of enemies by 30%. In addition, your movement speed is increased by 8–10% for 5 seconds. Maximum 5 stacks.
Enchantress

Enchantress

Eirena

Equipment

  • HelmCain's Insight
  • ShouldersHoming Pads
  • Chest ArmorTal Rasha's Relentless Pursuit
  • GlovesGloves of Worship
  • BeltThe Witching Hour
  • PantsCain's Habit
  • BootsIce Climbers
  • AmuletThe Flavor of Time
  • BracersNemesis Bracers
  • Ring 1Unity
  • Ring 2Oculus Ring
  • Main HandThunderfury, Blessed Blade of the Windseeker
  • Off HandEmpty
  • Enchantress FocusEmpty

Skills

  1. Level 15
    • Betören
    • Temporaler Impuls (selected)
  2. Level 20
    • Prophetische Harmonie (selected)
    • Verstärkung
  3. Level 25
    • Energieschild (selected)
    • Erosion
  4. Level 30
    • Konzentrierter Geist (selected)
    • Aufschub des Schicksals

Gameplay

The configuration

This setup is stored as a complete build — gear, skills, runes and cube powers work together and are not assembled from individual statistics.

  • Set: no class set — Legacy gem build
  • Rating: tier A across all classes
  • Kanai's Cube: Nayr's Black Death, Stone Gauntlets, Unity
  • Skills: Grim Scythe (Cursed Scythe), Land of the Dead (Frozen Lands), Blood Rush (Potency), Bone Spear (Blighted Marrow), Corpse Explosion (Close Quarters), Bone Armor (Dislocation)
  • Passives: Spreading Malediction, Blood is Power, Stand Alone, Eternal Torment
  • Variants available: GR push, Torment 16 / Nephalem rifts, Speed farming
Use the variant switcher above to move between the versions. What changes between them is spelled out below — read it before you rebuild.

How the variants differ

Measured against the push version. Anything not listed here stays the same:

  • Torment 16 / Nephalem rifts: swaps in skills Frailty (Aura of Frailty), Blood Rush (Metabolism), Decrepify (Borrowed Time), Bone Armor (Harvest of Anguish); cube Messerschmidt's Reaver, Krelm's Buff Belt, Briggs' Wrath; gems Boon of the Hoarder.
  • Speed farming: swaps in skills Command Golem (Flesh Golem), Blood Rush (Metabolism), Frailty (Aura of Frailty); cube St. Archew's Gage; gems Molten Wildebeest's Gizzard.

Sockets and gems

The 3 legendary gems (Bane of the Trapped, Legacy of Dreams, Bane of the Stricken) belong in the jewellery slots (rings and amulet). Urshi can upgrade them after a Greater Rift whether they are socketed, in your inventory or in your stash.

The remaining 7 sockets are filled with regular gems: Ruby (5), Diamond (1) and Emerald (1). The rubies in chest and pants are intentional: in armour pieces Ruby grants Strength, and Strength raises Armor for every class — that is where the push version gets extra toughness. Torment 16 / Nephalem rifts and Speed farming socket Topaz (Intelligence) there instead.

On the season theme

In Season 40, Angelic Crucibles sanctify a legendary item: perfect Ancient-level stats plus one of three powers of your class at random. You can only wear one Sanctified item at a time. None of your class's three powers boosts a skill of this build directly. The Army of the Dead power works regardless of your skill bar. Which item is sanctified depends on the version: Trag'Oul's Corroded Fang (GR push), In-geom (Torment 16 / Nephalem rifts) and Trag'Oul's Corroded Fang (Speed farming). Since the power is rolled at random, a Sanctified item can be sanctified again with another Crucible. All powers are listed on the Season 40 page.

FAQ

How good is the Corpse Explosion Necromancer build without a set in Season 40?

Good: it is rated tier A across all classes, just behind the top. It ranks #6 of our 9 Necromancer builds this season.

Which skills does the Corpse Explosion Necromancer build without a set use?

The skill bar holds Grim Scythe, Land of the Dead, Blood Rush, Bone Spear, Corpse Explosion.

What goes into Kanai's Cube for the Corpse Explosion Necromancer build without a set?

Weapon: Nayr's Black Death, Armor: Stone Gauntlets, Jewelry: Unity.

Which legendary gems does the Corpse Explosion Necromancer build without a set use?

The legendary gems are Bane of the Trapped, Legacy of Dreams, Bane of the Stricken.

Which variants of the Corpse Explosion Necromancer build without a set are there?

3 variants: GR push, Speed farming, Torment 16 / Nephalem rifts. Switch between them with the variant selector above; the differences are listed in the gameplay section.

Which follower suits the Corpse Explosion Necromancer build without a set?

Recommended follower: Enchantress, equipped with Cain's Insight, Gloves of Worship, Homing Pads, Cain's Habit.

Which stats matter for the Corpse Explosion Necromancer build without a set?

Prioritize these stats: Intelligence, Critical Hit Chance, Vitality, Area Damage, Armor, Critical Hit Damage.

What are the alternatives for the Necromancer?