by Lockhole · Endgame · ~80% complete
Core Loop: Crit → Arctic Petals → Ice Crystals → Shatter → Crit → …
The Even Tide Pedals amulet grants Midnight Zenith. Critical hits with other skills generate Arctic Petals. At 10 petals → 5 Ice Crystals (max 10). Skills that consume freeze shatter crystals for increased AoE damage, making space for new crystals — a self-sustaining chain.
Most important stat: Critical strike chance. Way of the Stonefist converts %crit damage bonus → base crit, multiplied by all %increased crit on gear and tree.
Mapping: Punch one pack → cascading explosions clear the screen.
Bossing: Stack 3 Tempest Bells with Delayed Gratification → everything crits → crystals shatter → bells ring → loop.
Even Tide Pedals (amulet) → Midnight Zenith
Amulet modifier: Ice Crystals have -3 to +3 increased max life per 5 cold resistance you have. Since this build shatters crystals by consuming freeze (not by dealing damage), this stat is irrelevant.
This loop creates the "shatter chain" clear — one punch cascades across entire packs.
| Skill | Links | Role | Relations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shattering Palm | — | Main attack — dashes, ice shards explode on damage threshold | crits → petals ; quality from Stonefist → more crit |
| Tempest Bell | Delayed Gratification, Ancestral Call 2 | Boss DPS — rings out on hit/crit | needs Whirling Assault combo ; rings shatter crystals |
| Herald of Ice | Biting Frost | Consumes freeze on kill → shatters crystals | feeds chain loop ; Coming Calamity buffs cold dmg |
| Herald of Thunder | Biting Frost | Secondary consume-freeze trigger | same as HoI |
| Whirling Assault | — | Combo generation (boss opener) | combo → Tempest Bell |
| Killing Palm | — | Generate power charges | hit Hollow Focus bells → power charge |
| Rend | — | Consume power charge → 50% dmg as extra lightning | needs Killing Palm charge ; buffs all dmg |
| Hand of Chaula | — | Apply curses | Elemental Weakness + Freezing Mark |
| Pinpoint Critical | — | Support — 60% more crit, 30% less crit dmg bonus | linked to crit skills |
During bosses (no kills → Biting Frost doesn't proc):
| Node | Effect | Relations |
|---|---|---|
| Way of the Stonefist | %crit damage bonus → base crit; +melee skills → gem quality | feeds Shattering Palm quality → crit ; base crit × all %increased on gear |
| Hollow Focus | Ethereal bells spawn; hits count as crits | auto-crits → Arctic Petals → Ice Crystals |
| Hollow Resonance | Back bell rings out on your crits | your crits → bell dmg → bell can also crit → more petals |
| Runic Meridians | +5 rune sockets on gear | enables curse immunity (Hollow Keeper + rune), lategame dmg (Emergent Possibility) |
| Option | Effect | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| Storm / Glacial Runes | Resistances | Early, eases suffix pressure |
| Crayian's Rune of Warning | 50% reduced curse effect | + Hollow Keeper → curse immunity |
| Emergent Possibility | 1% dmg as extra random element per socket | Expensive lategame damage |
| Marshall Adept | +combo, -0.2s ES recharge delay per combo | CI sustain / recovery |
| Priority | Stat | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sinister base | 12% base crit |
| 2 | Added cold / lightning damage | Scales all attack skills (not ice crystals) |
| 3 | %increased crit chance | Multiplies base crit |
| 4 | %crit damage bonus | Feeds Way of the Stonefist conversion |
Modifiers convert into different stats:
| On Item | Converts To |
|---|---|
| Flat dmg to attacks | Gain dmg as extra for attacks |
| %increased ES | Global ES + Evasion |
| Flat max ES | Flat ES + Evasion/level |
| Poison/ignite/bleed magnitude | Explode modifiers |
| On Item | Converts To |
|---|---|
| +melee skills | Quality to all gems |
| %crit damage bonus | Base crit |
| Reduced attribute req | All attributes |
| Attack speed | Onslaught |
| Resistances | Max resistances |
| Intelligence | Cooldown recovery |
Recommended focus: crit chance suffix + defensive prefixes (ES).
| Slot | Key Stats |
|---|---|
| Helmet | ES + Evasion, life, crit chance suffix, deflection |
| Body Armor | High ES + Evasion, spirit |
| Boots | ES + Evasion, life, MS, resistances, deflection |
| Rings | Resistances, %inc cold dmg (scales crystals), flat dmg to attacks |
| Belt | Shabon Satchel (life flask → ES recovery) |
| Amulet | Even Tide Pedals (high level Midnight Zenith) |
| Node | Effect | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| Coming Calamity | 40% inc cold dmg while affected by Herald of Ice | scales ice crystals |
| Heavy Frost | Ignore non-negative ele res of frozen enemies; +20% freeze buildup | boss damage + CC; works with Biting Frost not proccing during bosses |
| Hollow Keeper | 50% reduced curse effect | + Crayian's Rune → 100% curse immunity |
| DO NOT TAKE. Knocks back on crit, ruins boss DPS. | ||
Look for these modifiers in the cluster around your tree:
| Modifier | Source |
|---|---|
| Generic %inc cold damage | Rings, staff desecrated, Coming Calamity |
| %damage gained as extra | Rend, Emergent Possibility |
| Generic %inc crit chance | Tree, gear |
| Generic %crit damage bonus | Tree, gear |
| Consuming freezes | Biting Frost → more dmg + AoE |
| Midnight Zenith gem level | Higher level → more crystal dmg |
| Modifier | Why |
|---|---|
| Flat dmg to attacks on weapon | Crystals don't use weapon dmg |
| %crit dmg bonus for attacks | Attack-specific; crystals aren't attacks |
| Base crit / crit bonus on weapon | Not inherited by crystals |
| +melee skills on weapon | Doesn't affect Midnight Zenith |
Key difference: Biting Frost only triggers on kill, so during bosses, Tempest Bell rings shatter the crystals instead. The boss stays frozen for Heavy Frost + CC.
These are suggestions based on poe2db.tw data, not part of Lockhole's guide. Evaluate fit for your socket count and playstyle.
| Gem | Tier | Effect | Synergy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cold Penetration | 2 | 30% Cold Res Penetration | Direct DPS boost for cold damage |
| Ambush | 1 | 100% more crit vs full life | Pairs with crit focus; great for mapping one-shots |
| Freeze (Glaciation) | 2 | 50% more Freeze Buildup | More reliable freezing → more Herald procs |
| Cold Attunement | 1 | +25% cold as extra; -50% fire/lightning | Consolidates damage to cold |
| Deep Freeze | 1 | 50% increased Freeze Duration | Longer freezes, helpful on bosses |
| Practiced Combo | 3 | 40% chance +1 Combo | Faster Tempest Bell setup |
| Execute | 1 | 40% more dmg vs low life | Good cleanup on rares |
| Elemental Focus | 3 | +25% elemental dmg, no ailments | ⚠️ Breaks the build — prevents freeze |
| Gem | Tier | Effect | Synergy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Magnified Area | 1 | 35% increased AoE | Bigger shockwaves from bell hits |
| Overabundance | 1 | +1 Limit, -50% duration | Alternative to Delayed Gratification |
| Elemental Armament | 1–5 | Increased Elemental Damage with Attacks | More bell shockwave damage |
| Gem | Tier | Effect | Synergy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Magnified Area | 1 | 35% increased AoE | Larger Herald explosion radius |
| Freeze (Glaciation) | 2 | 50% more Freeze Buildup | Heralds freeze more reliably |
| Cold Penetration | 2 | 30% Cold Res Penetration | More Herald explosion damage |
| Cold Attunement | 1 | +25% cold as extra | More cold damage from Herald hits |
| Frost Nexus | 2 | Chilled Ground on Freeze | Utility — chills enemies near frozen targets |
| Deep Freeze | 1 | 50% increased Freeze Duration | Longer freezes from Herald kills |
| Innervate | 1 | +25% lightning on shock kill | Works with Herald of Thunder shocks |
| Elemental Focus | 3 | +25% elemental dmg, no ailments | ⚠️ Breaks the build — prevents freeze |
| Gem | Tier | Effect | Synergy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overabundance | 1 | +1 to Power Charge Limit | More charges stored → more uptime on Rend buff |
No dedicated leveling guide. Creator recommends:
He leveled with unplanned Ice Strike until reaching the amulet.
Build by Lockhole · Written guide on Mobalytics · Streams on Twitch/YouTube