Tempest - Condi DPS

The community gave this build a rating, making it second-tier: Good

Focused on: Condition damage

Designed for: Raids

Expansions required:

Difficulty:

Normal

This build was last updated on July 23, 2024 and is up to date for the April 15, 2025 patch.

Overview

This is a build focuses on Burning and Bleeding and offers high damage with a relatively simple rotation.

Thanks to the Earth traitline and Hardy Conduit, this build has more survivability than other elementalist builds.

With Warhorn, skills like Heat Sync and Sand Squall allow you can maintain permanent Fury and Might on yourself and party (provided you have some other source of Fury) for a minor DPS loss.

Skill Bar

Pistol/Warhorn

Utility

Weapon Variants

• Dagger/Warhorn is the best weapon set for players that don't own Secrets of the Obscure.

Skill Variants

• Signet of Earth deals more damage than Glyph of Storms, but the traited passive you gain from Written in Stone still applies 180 toughness, which can mess with tanking.
• If you do not have time (e.g. during pre-events) to pre-cast Glyph of Lesser Elementals a few times, then Glyph of Elemental Power may be a stronger choice.

Template Code

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Equipment

Head
Viper

Shoulders
Viper

Chest
Viper

Hands
Viper

Legs
Viper

Feet
Viper

Backpiece
Viper

Accessory
Viper

Accessory
Viper

Amulet
Viper

Ring
Viper

Ring
Viper

Pistol
Viper

Warhorn
Viper

Sigil

Sigil

Rune
x6

Infusion
x18

Relic

• Sigil of Superior Sigil of Bursting only deals slightly more damage than a Sigil of Superior Sigil of Earth, which is much cheaper.

Consumables

Food

• , , or ascended alternatives.

Utility

• or .
  • are stronger if you don't have Spiteful Infusions, but the difference is practically nonexistant.

Usage

Pistol Rotation

Pistol skills have a unique bullet mechanic where using a pistol skill stocks a bullet, or if you already have a bullet, consumes it for an enhanced effect. In each attunement, one of the enhanced effects is defensive while the other is offensive. As such, it is important that these skills be used in the correct order to avoid missing out on damage.

Stocked bullets appear as buffs on your bar, and as all attunements use an even number of pistol skills, you can track whether you've made a mistake in these attunements and adjust for future loops - you should be exiting Fire Attunement, Water Attunement and Earth Attunement with a bullet stocked, and Air Attunement with no bullet stocked. If this is not the case, skip one of the skills in the relevant attunement on the next loop.

Throughout the rotation, use Flame Barrage off cooldown, and Glyph of Lesser Elementals and Glyph of Elemental Power (if using) off cooldown whenever you are in Fire Attunement.

Autoattacks are not listed.

Opener

Start with Fire, Ice and Earth bullets stocked.

You can precast Glyph of Elemental Power (if using) in fire attunement.

1. Overload Earth
2. Dust Storm
3. Shattering Stone
4. Boulder Blast
5. Signet of Fire
6. Water Attunement

Water 1

1. Frozen Fusillade
2. Frigid Flurry
3. Fire Attunement

Fire

1. Raging Ricochet
2. Searing Salvo
3. Firestorm (Glyph of Storms) (if using)
4. Wildfire
5. Overload Fire
6. Signet of Fire
7. Raging Ricochet
8. Searing Salvo
9. Air Attunement

Air

After using your first skill in air, you will gain access to Elemental Explosion. This is a powerful skill, but will consume all your stocked bullets, so it is important not to use this skill.

1. Aerial Agility - charging away from your target allows Lightning Orb to hit more times
2. Dazing Discharge - make sure not to cast this too early, as it will go on an interrupted cooldown
3. Lightning Orb
4. Water Attunement

Water 2

1. Frozen Fusillade
2. Frigid Flurry
3. Earth Attunement

Earth

1. Shattering Stone
2. Boulder Blast
3. Dust Storm
4. Overload Earth
5. Signet of Fire
6. Shattering Stone
7. Boulder Blast
8. Water Attunement
9. Return to Water 1

Video example

Dagger Rotation

• Use Glyph of Elementals (if using) in Fire Attunement, and cast Flame Barrage off cooldown.
• You want to cast Glyph of Elemental Power in Fire Attunement off cooldown.
• Cast Signet of Fire and Signet of Earth (if using) off cooldown.
• If using Glyph of Storms, then cast it in Fire Attunement off cooldown.
• Thanks to Written in Stone you can cast the signets and still receive their benefits, allowing you to use Signet of Restoration freely.

The gist of the rotation is to cycle between Earth Attunement ⇒ Air Attunement ⇒ Fire Attunement, using key abilities in each attunement off cooldown until the next attunement is ready.

When you enter Fire Attunement, use Wildfire, Burning Speed and Drake's Breath, then use your key abilities as they come off cooldown. When Earth Attunement is available, use one last Drake's Breath and switch (Earth Attunement should become available during the cast of Drake's Breath - you can switch attunement without interrupting the skill).

In Earth Attunement, your first and last skill should be Ring of Earth.

Steps listed as optional below are DPS losses, but will assist with boon uptimes in your group.

Opener

1. Overload Earth (only if you can pre-cast it)
2. Dust Storm
3. Ring of Earth
4. Air Attunement
5. Signet of Fire
6. Lightning Orb
7. Fire Attunement

Loop

1. Wildfire
2. Burning Speed
3. Drake's Breath
4. Overload Fire
5. Drake's Breath
6. Heat Sync (optional)
7. Glyph of Elemental Power
8. Glyph of Lesser Elementals (if available)
9. Signet of Fire
10. Burning Speed
11. Drake's Breath
12. Earth Attunement before cast finishes (be careful not to use other skills before Drake's Breath has finished channelling)
13. Ring of Earth
14. Earthen Rush
15. Dust Storm
16. Overload Earth
17. Sand Squall (optional)
18. Ring of Earth
19. Air Attunement
20. Signet of Fire
21. Lightning Orb
22. Convergence
23. Fire Attunement before cast finishes

Repeat from 1

Video example

Hammer Rotation

You can pre-cast Flame Wheel as long as it won't prevent you being able to switch back to Fire Attunement in the opener.

Opener

1. Overload Earth (only if you can pre-cast it)
2. Rocky Loop
3. Ground Pound
4. Whirling Stones
5. Air Attunement during the cast of Whirling Stones
6. Crescent Wind
7. Signet of Fire
8. Fire Attunement

Fire
The fire section can vary each loop depending on Conjure Fiery Greatsword and Triple Sear:

1. Flame Wheel - if you precast this in the opener, skip this on the first loop
2. Triple Sear (if available) - depending on cooldown, this will either be used at the start and end of the fire section, or in the middle (alternating between loops)
3. Surging Flames
4. Conjure Fiery Greatsword (if available) or pick up the second one
5. Fiery Eruption (only if there is a Fiery Greatsword)
6. Firestorm (only if there is a Fiery Greatsword)
7. Overload Fire
8. Fiery Eruption
9. Drop Fiery Greatsword
10. Autoattack, and use Surging Flames and Triple Sear as they come off cooldown
11. Grand Finale just before Surging Flames is off cooldown again
12. Surging Flames
13. Flame Wheel
14. Triple Sear
15. Earth Attunement

Earth

1. Rocky Loop
2. Whirling Stones
3. Ground Pound
4. Autoattack, and use Overload Earth when it comes off cooldown
5. Signet of Fire
6. Whirling Stones
7. Air Attunement during the cast of Whirling Stones

Air

1. Crescent Wind
2. Switch to Fire Attunement as soon as you can

Video example

Defiance Bars

• You inflict a lot of Immobilize with this build.

Dagger

• While in Air Attunement you can use Cyclone and Shocking Aura ⇒ Transmute Lightning.
• If you are really desperate, you can switch to Water Attunement for Tidal Surge.

Hammer

• While in Air Attunement you can use Wind Storm and Shock Blast.