Request Advice on Progression

Hey all,

I was wondering if someone with far more knowledge than I can have a look at my build and see where I should be farming to get better gear to do the end-game content.

I completed Act X today, and have tried Tier I maps, trash mobs are no issue, normally 1-2 casts of Arc (not Vaal) will clear a whole pack. The main issue is when I come across elites. I end up dropping Storm Brands with the occasional Wave of Conviction cast to keep Conductivity proc'd, then Flame Dash away, essentially kiting for a good while whilst SB chips away at them. I always have Wrath enabled as well.

The build I have been following can be found here:
https://www.poe-vault.com/guides/arc-elementalist-build-guide

Please excuse the one awry Ascended Skill point, I am currently praying to RNGesus for one more Orb of Regret so I have the 5 needed to refund it and place it in line with the aforementioned build.

Many thanks to those who can give me any much needed advice!

I haven't looked too deep but I would say the most glaring issue I see in your build is your chest piece, you would want to get a 6 link for your main skill(arc) asap with the colors in the guide, now that might not be easy to find so I suggest getting a Tabula Rasa for now till you make your initial bits of currency. They currently go for 5 chaos orbs right now? maybe less. I also recommend getting Lilly Roth who sells most gems in the game if you haven't completed the act 6 side quest to clear Twilight Strand. If you need any more help you can message me in game.

P.s I think I have a spare tabula Rasa if you need

Edit: It also looks like the guide you are using uses a staff(somewhat expensive unique for a new player too) not double wand setup giving you 2 6 link items required which getting would also improve your dps but till you can afford it getting a rare staff with added X damage or +level (of socketed gems, all skill gems or lightning spell skill gems) would probably suffice

Thanks for taking the time to look into my issue. I'll definitely be on the hunt for a six-socket chest. Where would you suggest I farm as a Lvl 70?

As a level 70 I think your best bet is gonna be filling out your atlas tree with points is your first priority, While doing that I suggest learning how to use poe trade if you dont already know. And once you think you have a decent amount of atlas points I recommend Blight as a strategy as your towers can carry you through tougher content than your build might be able to handle.

https://www.pathofexile.com/trade/search/Sanctum/MJ2EePUJ

Get 5 chaos.

Grab a 6-Link.

https://www.pathofexile.com/trade/search/Sanctum/G72lw5Wib

Anything is better than what you have now. Even a 5-Link is good and will help ramp up damage a lot.

Then focus on resistances. Don't worry too much about Chaos Resistance right now.

While those tips in general are correct, they set false expectations for your build-journey in the future. And if I am being honest, the buildguide doesn´t work without the recommended unique items. See, Annihilating Light Triples your damage and comes with a huge downside, and as long as you can´t use that staff your dps will be very low on this setup, as Arc is a great gem for clearing but very bad on single targets. With the buffs to rare monsters in the recent patches you need a certain level of single target. This can be reached by different options, be it a 4-link clear with arc and a different 4-link for single target like lightning conduit (stormbrand is mediocre at best as single target as well), but the guide does not provide any way to do that.

Getting a 6-link chest is indeed helpful, but a band-aid fix for the underlying problem. De facto you should never expect to just get a six-linked chest when entering maps, and for league-start scenarios I specifically test setups that work halfway through yellow maps on 5- or even 4-linked, as I personally don´t like a 0-stat chest like tabula rasa as well.