Frost Blades Raider Build Guide (PoE Metamorph 3.9)
Guide Format
This build guide is split over multiple pages, both to prevent it from getting too long, as well as to help you better find the information you are looking for. In addition to the current page, which presents general information about the build and also contains a Leveling and FAQ section, we have the following pages:
Introduction
Frost Blades is a melee skill that shoots a cone of projectiles behind the first target you hit. This is why the skill is great for clearing and also has respectable single target damage potential.
Touch of Anguish unique Claws have great synergy with the skill, since they allow the projectiles to chain, resulting in even greater area coverage.
The ascendancy of choice is Raider; this class has great synergy with Touch of Anguish. With this ascendancy, Frost Blades becomes a very fast map-clearer without any expensive investments. Dealing mostly cold damage and playing a critical-based build means you will Chill and Freeze enemies most of the time, which will keep your character safe. For sustain, you have a lot of leech via the Claw passive node Soul Raker. The build is also able to achieve over 180% Increased Maximum Life on the passive skill tree, which results in a respectable life pool.
Build Summary
The Frost Blades Raider can be played on a budget, with the potential to become very powerful if you choose to invest vast amount of currency into the build. Early on, two threshold jewels Fight for Survival will allow you to penetrate 30% Cold Resistances.
Touch of Anguish is your endgame weapon, which should be cheap, even in the start of a new league.
Loreweave is a good addition to the build, but you can play without it early on. A pair of
Tombfist gloves will carry you a long way.
Pros & Cons
Pros
+ Hardcore viable
+ Cheap to start
+ Great clear speed
+ Active playstyle, fun to play
Cons
- Dies to Elemental Reflect
- Needs good investment in order to achieve great single target damage
Playstyle
Offensively, attacking with Frost Blades will result in a massive amount of chaining projectiles that will clear whole screens of monsters. When it comes to fighting tougher bosses, you can utilize a totem, banner and cold resistance reductions like
Frost Bomb. For mobility, you should use
Whirling Blades all the time.
Hatred and
Herald of Ice will provide a lot of damage.
Defensively, keeping your distance is key, considering from how far the skill can attack. You will rely on Acrobatics and Phase Acrobatics’ dodge chance as a main defensive mechanics. When you get hit you will have a decent amount of life to soak the damage, then you will be able to recover it with life leech and life gain on hit.
The Frost Blades Raider can easily achieve over 7 Frenzy charges, which makes the build extremely fast and fun to play. You will feel very mobile and shattering enemies’ with your cold hits is always satisfying. Once you become a bit more experienced with the skill, you will rarely get hit.
Passive Tree
This is what your endgame passive skill tree should look like.
We mainly focus on picking all the powerful Claw nodes, all the Frenzy charges, Acrobatics, Phase Acrobatics, Point Blank, and a decent amount of life. As in all critical-based builds, we recommend transitioning into Critical Strikes at level 60+.
For more information, be sure to check out the Passive Skill Tree page.
Ascendancy, Bandits, and Pantheons
Our Ascendancy, Bandit, and Pantheon Power page goes into detail about all the choices you need to make in these regards.
Gems
We go over all of the gem links this build uses in the end-game on our Gem Link page.
Gear Summary / TL;DR
These items provide a good balance between offense and defense and are enough to deal with the endgame, although there is definitely a room for improvement. Please ensure you read the Gear, Jewels and Flasks page in its entirety.
Our recommendation:
Item Slot | Item Name |
Head | ![]() |
Amulet | ![]() |
Chest | ![]() |
Gloves | ![]() |
Boots | ![]() |
Belt | Rare ![]() |
Rings | Rare Rings |
Weapons | 2x ![]() |
Leveling
As a reminder, we have several guides to help you level up a character.
- Our step-by-step leveling walkthrough, which allows even more experienced players to save time and speed through the leveling process.
- Our guide to Unique Items for leveling, which helps you gear up your characters for the leveling process.
- Our beginner leveling guide, which answers many of the questions new players might have and will set you on the right path.
The Frost Blades Raider can be leveled with its signature skill since level 1, the build is also a decent league-starter, although you might struggle until you get Touch of Anguish unique Claws.
Leveling Trees
This is the passive tree, which will get you through the leveling content.
Useful Leveling Unique Items
As you begin a new character, there are few unique items that can boost your power exponentially. Tabula Rasa allows you to have a 6-Linked skill as early as you get the gems.
Wanderlust gives a decent movement speed, which will make your leveling that much more efficient.
Goldrim provides a lot of elemental resistances, this will let you worry less about gearing when approaching certain Act encounters. Unique Claws like
Last Resort,
Al Dhih and
Ornament of the East will carry you through the leveling content.
If you are a new player (or if this is your first character for the league), then note that obtaining these items will be very difficult, if not impossible. They are rare drops, which you can otherwise only acquire if you have saved up currency, so do not focus on them too much, and instead simply look for items that match the affix priorities listed in the gearing section above.
Gem Progression
Using Tabula Rasa will allow you to have 6-Link gem setups early on, which is why we show such examples below. If you cannot get Tabula Rasa (or another item with a 6-Link), then simply prioritize the first gems in each link provided below.
In order to acquire gems that are not available to your class as a quest reward, simply ask a friend to buy them off vendors for you, or buy them yourself from Sioasa in The Library in Act III Library.
From level 1, you should use the following link.
At level 4, you should add Ancestral Protector,
War Banner and
Frost Bomb for better single target damage. Your
Frost Blades should look like this.
At level 8, your Frost Blades should look like this.
At level 10, you should add Whirling Blades for additional mobility.
At level 16, you should add Herald of Ice for additional damage.
By level 18, your Frost Blades should look like this.
Frost Blades
Onslaught Support
Ancestral Call Support
Elemental Damage with Attacks Support
Added Cold Damage Support
At level 24, you should Hatred for additional damage.
At level 28, you can replace Ancestral Protector with
Ancestral Warchief.
By level 31, your Frost Blades should look like this.
Frost Blades
Nightblade Support
Ancestral Call Support
Elemental Damage with Attacks Support
Hypothermia Support
Added Cold Damage Support
FAQ
What map mods are impossible to do?
Elemental Reflect is impossible to do; you can do Physical Reflect without any issue since you fully convert to cold.
What content is the build good at and what it is bad at?
The Frost Blades Raider excels at clearing super fast; this build is a top-tier clearer. It is bad at running Labyrinths, and it is also slower when fighting tough bosses, compared to boss killers.
Conclusion
The Frost Blades Raider is a dual wielding Claw build that excels at striking the enemy with strong cold attacks. The build requires fast reactions and is very fun to play.
Hi !
Sorry but skilltree have a problem here too :D
Good luck