Paladin Lightning Smite Meteor Endgame Build for Last Epoch (Patch 1.0) (2024)

Last updated on Mar 18, 2024 at 00:00 by GhazzyTV and Lavender

Welcome to our Last Epoch Paladin Lightning Smite Meteor build guide for the Sentinel class.Here you will learn everything about the Paladin play style, passives, skills, strengths, and weaknessesto conquer the world of Eterra.

Build Introduction

Summon a lightning storm to electrify your foes while energized meteorsrain down upon them, eradicating all enemies in your path. This build utilizeshigh Critical Hit Chance alongside some choice Unique items in order to create abuild that will shock your opponents, while at the same time filling yourscreen with an electric light show.

This build was created by Brau, an active member of the Last Epoch theorycrafting community.

Strengths

Deals amazing AoE damage
Mobile
High uptime and multiple sources of Smite

Weaknesses

Requires specific gear and affixes to function properly
Mana requirements

Skill Selection

The main damage skill in this build will be Smite. This spellis converted to deal Lightning Damage, and through both the Passive Treeand our gearing selection, is set to have a 100% Critical Hit Rate. This isperfect, as we bank on what is normally a Mage spell, Meteor, to enhanceour AoE damage with this build through the use of the Unique Belt Harbinger of Stars.Beyond this interaction, all other skills are taken to provide support or facilitate morecasts of Smite. Javelin will cast its own Smites in an area around where you've placed it,and Lunge, while also our Traversal Skill, will also automate Smite on use depending onthe distance we covered when using it. Healing Hands will heal us with every manual cast ofSmite for a substantial amount, while Holy Aura will increase our Critical Hit Rate and Multiplierand help round out our Resistances.

Class and Skill Passive Trees

Class PassivesSkill Passives

SentinelPaladin

Sentinel Passive Points

5 points into Juggernaut: Taken for a bit of extra Resistances.
5 points into Armour Clad: This is huge for our defensive aspect, as it provides a flat10% reduction in damage taken for being in melee range.
5 points into Valiant Charge: Cooldown reduction for Lunge.
5 points into Time and Faith: Smite will not replenish Mana on manual cast.

3.2.

Paladin Passive Points

5 points into Defiance: 15% Resistance for Cold, Fire, and Lightning. This is taken tounlock access to Healing Hands.
10 points into Valor: Huge boost to Health, and increases the effectiveness of Healing Hands.

In this section, we will break down each skill and highlight the key passives we have selected to make the skill shine in the build.While some of these skills do allow for some variation to exist depending on your own custom choices, we recommend utilizing the skilltrees as presented until you have a strong understanding of the build itself.

3.3.

Smite

Smite is the main spam skill used for this build. This is how we will automate Healing Hands andalso proc casts of Meteor to fall on groups of enemies. Smite will be converted to Lightning in order to takeadvantage of damage modifiers on gear and the Paladin Passive Tree.

3.3.1.

Order of Skill Points

3 points into Pillars of Light: 36% chance to double cast. This allows for more chances to crit, which means more Meteors.
5 points into Sacrifice: Smite deals 250% more damage, but consumes a portion of our Health on each use.
1 points into Atonement: This cuts the Health drain down a bit, but it still exists. It is nullified through Healing Handsand the innate healing on Smite.
2 points into Conviction: Adds 4% to your base Critical Hit Rate for Smite.
4 points into Deep Impact: Adds 100% extra Critical Multiplier.
5 points into Blinding Flash: Smite now has a 50% chance to Blind, which is used as a way to bump the damage by 50%.
2 points into Piety: Pathing node.
1 point into Order of Lagon: Converts Smite into a Lightning skill, as well as all Ignite is nowconverted to Electrify.
1 point into Unbalanced Scale: Increases Mana cost, but Smite now deals damage to multiple targets.

In the event you do not have the extra 4 Skill Points from the Relic, drop 4 points from Blinding Flash. This will loseyou damage, but the build will still function as intended.

3.4.

Healing Hands

Healing Hands is how we sustain our Health this with build, as Smite will constantly be drainingour Health as we use it. The amount we heal with Healing Hands is much higher than the life drain on Smite, so thiswill also cover damage taken by enemies. While you will almost never need to manually use Healing Hands, it should stillbe on your bar for emergencies, such as DoT ailments and there are no enemies to attack.

3.4.1.

Order of Skill Points

4 points into Hand of Aurelus: Directly casting Smite will now trigger an instance of Healing Hands.
1 point into Divine Barrier: Taking for pathing.
1 point into Homeward: This node is required! If you alter this tree, do not remove this. This will force HealingHands to center on your character rather than where Smite lands. This is important, as you no longer need to be in melee range tomake sure you're healing, but on larger bosses (Reign of Dragons) it is impossible to make Healing Hands hit you consistently dueto the hitbox of the boss.
4 points into Prayer of the Fallen: 100% Increased Healing Effectiveness.
3 points into Blessed Parish: Drops the Mana cost for Healing Hands by 6.
1 point into Purity of Thought: Reduces the Mana cost by 5.
4 points into Urgent Healing: Adds an initial 140 Health to the heal.
2 points into Vow of Restoration: Healing Hands heals more over time.

3.5.

Lunge

Lunge will be used as our main way of getting around maps, allowing us to dropextra casts of Smite as we do so. Using Lunge will grant you Frenzyfor a short period of time as well. Lunge for this build will come on a charge system,allowing you to Lunge twice if needed without needing to wait for the cooldown torecharge.

3.5.1.

Order of Skill Points

1 point into Dawn Charge: Pathing node.
4 points into Juggernaut Dash: You have a 100% Block Chance while Lunging.
1 point into Unstoppable: You are invulnerable while Lunging. This is necessary for dashing through things likeLagon's eye beam. While good gameplay avoids this anyway, its always nice to have a back-up option.
1 point into Warrior's Renewal: Pathing node.
2 points into Initiate's Onslaught: Pathing node.
1 point into Cull the Weak: Pathing node.
4 points into Holy Incursion: Will now cast Smite up to three times, with the chance scaling offthe distance traveled with Lunge.
3 points into Reckless Skirmish: Applies Frenzy on Lunge usage for three seconds.
2 points into Ambuscade: Pathing node.
1 point into Double Strike: Lunge now has an additional charge.

3.6.

Javelin

Javelin only has one real purpose here, and that is to automate more casts of Smite,which can then be used to proc more casts of Meteor. This does mean that Javelin is a greattool for map zoning; place Javelin down in one direction, and focus your own efforts elsewhere.

3.6.1.

Order of Skill Points

1 point into Mighty Delivery: Pathing node.
1 point into Burning Strength: Pathing node.
1 point into Siege Barrage: Increases the Mana cost significantly.
1 point into Battle Standard: Turns Javelin into a Battle Standard.
4 points into Ardent Symbol: Increases the duration Javelin is active by 8 seconds.
1 point into Capture the Flag: If an enemy touches Javelin, it will latch onto that enemy and move with it.
1 point into Divine Intervention: Javelin will now automate Smite, casted at nearby enemies while it is active.
5 points into Righteous Descend: Increases Smite frequency. This does add base Crit Chance as well, but it is mostly overkillif you have the proper gear.
2 points into Serrated Javelin: Pathing node.
3 points into Excellent Balance: Reduces the Mana cost on Javelin.

3.7.

Holy Aura

Holy Aura exists mostly to provide us with Resistances and take the burden off suffixes in our gear.It will also provide us with a nice boost to Critical Hit Chance and Critical Hit Multiplier. In most cases,the extra Ignite chance will be converted to Electrify. All benefits from Holy Auradouble for a short period of time if the skill is pressed.

3.7.1.

Order of Skill Points

2 points into Rahyeh's Devotion: Adds Ignite Chance to all of our actions.
3 points into Fanaticism: Increased Cast Speed.
4 points into True Strike: Increased Critical Strike Chance.
3 points into Extreme Zeal: Increased Critical Multiplier.
2 points into Vital Boon: Pathing node.
1 point into Purification: Increased Poison Resistance, and Holy Aura now becomes a cleanse when activated.
3 points into Shelter from the Storm: Increased Elemental Resistance and additional Endurance.
1 point into Demoralizing Aura: Provides a chance to Slow enemies while active.

Image courtesy of Last Epoch Tools

Lightning Smite Meteor Build Planner

Build Mechanics and Playstyle

This build plays very similarly to a regular Smite build, but adds a fun and rewarding gimmick byusing the Unique Belt, Harbinger of Stars to proc casts of Meteor in order to deal more AoE damage.Meteor has dual purpose in this build, as not only does it add more damage to the build, but it also forcibly dropsour Mana which then increases the damage we deal with Smite. Due to Attunement stacking, this leaves us with amassive Mana pool; Meteor has an extremely high Mana cost, so this balances things out. The build, if used withidentical skill nodes as we have laid out, will run into Mana issues fairly quickly if you do not have the helmetsuffix Mana Gained When You Directly Cast Smite. If unable to acquire this on Peak of the Mountain, anExalted Helmet will do just fine while you farm for one.

Between manually casted Smite, the Smite casts off Lunge, and the Meteor procs offHarbinger of Stars, this build will entirely fill your screen with Lightning explosions.

Equipment and Gear Affixes

For this build, we will be focusing on several main affixes for each piece ofnon-unique gear, as well as working towards acquiring the specific uniques neededto make this build operate correctly. Our equipment will focus on these specificaffixes for the Implicits and Modifier stats.

Gear Slot	Implicits	Modifiers
Two-handed Staff	Vilatria's Downfall	-
Head	Peak of the Mountain	Legendary Potential Attunement Mana Gained When You Directly Cast Smite
Amulet	Devotion	Legendary Potential Increased Spell Critical Strike Chance
Chest	Armor Armor Mitigation also applies to Damage Over Time	Prefixes Attunement Vitality Suffixes Health Increased Health
Belt	Harbinger of Stars	Legendary Potential Increased Lightning Damage
Gloves	Armor Armor Mitigation also Applies to Damage Over Time	Prefixes Increased Cast Speed Attunement Suffixes Health Hybrid Health
Ring	Increased Critical Strike Chance	Prefixes Increased Lightning Damage Increased Critical Strike Chance Suffixes Health Endurance Threshold
Ring	Increased Critical Strike Chance	Prefixes Increased Lightning Damage Increased Critical Strike Chance Suffixes Health Endurance
Feet	Transient Rest	Legendary Potential Attunement Hybrid Health
Relic	Increased Fire Damage Increased Healing Effectiveness	Prefixes +4 Levels of Smite Attunement Suffixes Health Needed Resistances

A loot filter made specifically for the gear table above may be copied by pressing the button below. Once inthe Loot Filter portion of the in-game menu, choose the "Paste Clipboard Contents" option to import the code.

Copy Loot Filter to Clipboard

Press the Copy 📋 button to copy the following text to your clipboard

Uniques

Aside from the items listed below, there is the opportunity to use the Unique Relic, Stormcarved Testament. We have not included itin the table or our recommended options simply because the Tier 7 to Levels of Smite is more important. However, if you're looking totake this build above and beyond and you can manage to snag one of these with Legendary Potential and the correct affixes, feel free toswap to it.

6.1.

Peak of the Mountain

Peak of the Mountain: This helmet is great for scaling Critical Strike Chance, and it is incredibly easy to secure, as itdrops from all difficulties of Lightless Arbor.

6.2.

Devotion

Devotion: This amulet will help scale our damage based on how much Mana we're missing. Meteoracts as a great tool to drop our Mana, while Smite will replenish it per cast. There are a bunch of other useful effectson this item, such as Endurance, Healing Effectiveness, and Lightning Penetration as well. This item candrop from anywhere, but can also be target farmed in the Monolith Timeline "The Age of Winter".

6.3.

Harbinger of Stars

Harbinger of Stars: Normally used on Mage builds, this belt will allow us to drop Lightning Meteors ontargets, proc'd off crits from any other source. This adds a good chunk of DPS to the build, and really bumps upthe AoE damage when clearing maps. It does also have a defensive aspect, as you will take less damage for recentMeteor casts, up to a maximum of 18%. You can find this belt anywhere, but it may also be target farmedin the Monolith Timeline "Fall of the Empire".

6.4.

Transient Rest

Transient Rest: These boots were taken almost entirely for the Resistance gains it brings to the table, howeversince this is a caster build, we will quite often be stopping to deal damage. Since we scale Attunement, our Mana poolwill be high, meaning these boots will grant us quite a bit of Ward when we stop moving. These can be farmed fromthe Monolith Timeline "Spirits of Fire".

Idols

Idol slots are gained through the campaign, unlocking small bonuses and unique affixes for the player to discover and augment their builds with. The Idol screenconsists of a grid system for the player to fill out with different sized Idols, eventually filling in every part of the grid. As the Idol shape increases (1x1, 1x2,1x3, 1x4, etc.) the stronger an affix you might find for your build.

The Idols for this build will be split between offense and defense gains. Prioritize four Large Rahyeh Idols with Increased Damage with Smiteand Health. The remaining slots can be used for further Health gains, or to cover for any Resistances you may be missing.

Blessing

Blessings are permanent buffs that are applied to your character. These come in two different powers, Standard and Grand. Grand blessings are significantlystronger than the Standard Blessings. In total, there are 10 Blessing Slots, one for each Monolith Timeline. When you complete a Monolith and defeat the final boss youwill be awarded a choice of three blessing with a random value.

Blessing Name	Affix	Timeline
Grand Survival of Might	Critical Strike Avoidance	Reign of Dragons
Grand Bulwark of the Tundra	Increased Armor	The Age of Winter
Grand Body of Obsidian	Armor	Spirits of Fire
Grand Mysteries of the Deep	Chance to apply Shred Lightning Resistance on Hit	Ending the Storm

Changelog

18 Mar. 2024: Guide Added.

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