Build:Chronomancer - Power DPS

The community gave this build a rating, making it top-tier: Great

Focused on: Strike damage

Designed for: Raids and Fractals

Difficulty:

TBD

This build was last updated on July 27, 2022 and is up to date for the October 8, 2024 patch.

Overview

A power DPS Chronomancer build for raids and fractals. This build deals decent burst and decent sustained damage against single targets. In addition, it has very good CC, utility, and versatility, and is capable of generating its own Fury and some Alacrity, and even remove boons.

This build greatly benefits from a high uptime of Slow on your target. Time Warp, Time Sink and general crowd control through Delayed Reactions contribute to a decent slow uptime.

Skill Bar

Sword/Sword

X/Focus

Utility

Weapon Variants

• Pistol: can replace focus when there are too many adds, since the Phantasmal Warden from focus attacks random targets in range.

Skill Variants

• Phantasmal Defender instead of Phantasmal Disenchanter if your target has more boons than can be removed.
• Gravity Well instead of Time Warp for more CC, but you will lose a big source of Slow.
• Signet of Humility if extra CC is required. Be aware of the long cooldown.

These are the skills suggested for full DPS, but if the situation requires, you can slot utility skills like Feedback, Portal Entre, Mantra of Distraction or other.

Template Code

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Specializations

Specialization Variants

• Time Catches Up extremely situational, if the boss already has 100% Slow uptime.
• Improved Alacrity on encounters where Slow uptime is too low (~30% or less).

Illusions

If your group has terrible boon uptime and you are barely getting Quickness and Might, you can replace Domination for Illusions. This is obviously a DPS loss, but you lose even more dps if you don't have those 2 key boons.

Equipment

Head
Berserker

Shoulders
Berserker

Chest
Berserker

Hands
Berserker

Legs
Assassin

Feet
Assassin

Backpiece
Berserker

Accessory
Assassin

Accessory
Assassin

Amulet
Berserker

Ring
Assassin

Ring
Assassin

Sword
Berserker

Sword
Berserker

Sigil

Sigil

Focus
Berserker

Sigil

Rune
x6

Infusion
x18

• This set provides exactly 60% critical chance. With Fury and Danger Time you reach 100% critical chance.
• Alternatively, use full Berserker stats gear with Rune of Superior Rune of the Eagle, Sigil of Superior Sigil of Force and Sigil of Superior Sigil of Impact for 59,1% critical chance, reaching 99,1% with fury and Danger Time.
  • This berserker eagle set has the exact same ferocity, 19 more power, 0,9% less critical chance, and doesn't need to worry about staying above 95% health.

Equipment Variants

Danger Time accuracy

As your illusions do not gain the benefits of your Sigil of Superior Sigil of Accuracy, the variant below is more subject to RNG and will have a lower burst for players that are able to perform the illusion-heavy continuum split opener. It is easier to gear and should provide high long-term DPS

Head
Berserker

Shoulders
Berserker

Chest
Berserker

Hands
Berserker

Legs
Assassin

Feet
Berserker

Backpiece
Berserker

Accessory
Berserker

Accessory
Berserker

Amulet
Berserker

Ring
Berserker

Ring
Berserker

Sword
Berserker

Sword
Berserker

Sigil

Sigil

Sword
Berserker

Sigil

Rune
x6

Infusion
x14

Infusion
x4

• If you do not have stat infusions, switch one accessory to Assassin stats.

Improved Alacrity

If running with Improved Alacrity because Slow uptime is extremely low, use the following gear.

Head
Berserker

Shoulders
Assassin

Chest
Berserker

Hands
Assassin

Legs
Berserker

Feet
Assassin

Backpiece
Assassin

Accessory
Berserker

Accessory
Berserker

Amulet
Berserker

Ring
Berserker

Ring
Berserker

Sword
Berserker

Sword
Berserker

Sigil

Sigil

Focus
Berserker

Sigil

Rune
x6

Infusion
x18

• Only a single mainhand sword is required

Consumables

Food

Utility

Usage

The goal of the rotation is to use Signet of the Ether and Continuum Split to cast your phantasm 4 times in short succession. This is achieved by casting your phantasms inside Continuum Split, casting them again thanks to Signet of the Ether, and repeating this process after Continuum Split ends.

Opening burst

Start on Sword/Focus.

1. Phantasmal Warden
2. Mirror Images
3. Weapon swap
4. Phantasmal Swordsman ⇒ enter Continuum Split at the end the cast of this skill.
5. Time Warp (if using Time Warp)
6. Phantasmal Disenchanter
7. Illusionary Leap ⇒ Signet of the Ether to cancel the aftercast of Illusionary Leap.
8. Phantasmal Swordsman and begin casting the 2 charges of Mantra of Pain
9. Phantasmal Disenchanter
10. Blurred Frenzy - Continuum Split should end during Blurred Frenzy.
11. Phantasmal Swordsman and begin casting the 2 charges of Mantra of Pain
12. Phantasmal Disenchanter
13. Signet of the Ether
14. Phantasmal Swordsman
15. Phantasmal Disenchanter
16. Gravity Well (if using Gravity Well) ⇒ Weapon swap to cancel the aftercast of Gravity Well.
17. Phantasmal Warden
18. Proceed to Loop rotation

Loop

This is a simplified loop rotation, you should use Mirror Images and Illusionary Leap when needed to spawn 3 clones and shatter them with Split Second.

Fill the gaps with auto attacks. Try to not interrupt your auto attack chain as the damage is heavily loaded into Mind Spike.

1. Phantasmal Warden
2. Blurred Frenzy
3. Blurred Frenzy ⇒ Weapon swap to cancel the aftercast of Blurred Frenzy.
4. Phantasmal Swordsman
5. Phantasmal Disenchanter
6. Blurred Frenzy
7. Phantasmal Swordsman
8. Signet of the Ether
9. Phantasmal Swordsman
10. Weapon swap
11. Phantasmal Disenchanter
12. Repeat from step 1

Video example

As the fight progresses, you will have to think whether it would be better to cast Continuum Split right off cooldown during the focus set rotation, or delay it briefly until you swap to sword. If the boss is going to die or phase soon, don't delay CS. If the boss is not going to phase/die, or is going to phase very soon, delay CS until you swap to sword or until the boss phases in again.

Crowd Control

• Gravity Well
• Time Sink
• Illusionary Riposte ⇒ Counter Blade
• Temporal Curtain ⇒ Into the Void
• Your CC will also Slow thanks to Delayed Reactions, with an internal cooldown of 3 seconds

Notes

• Fill gaps in between skills listed in the rotation with auto-attack chains and Blurred Frenzy.
• Use Split Second whenever you have 3 clones up.
• Make sure not to interrupt your autoattack chain as the damage from it is heavily loaded into the final strike, Mind Spike.
• Blurred Frenzy and Signet of the Ether will interrupt your current skill cast. That is why the Continuum Split burst rotation ends with Blurred Frenzy, to ensure you finish the casting time (by cancelling its aftercast) of your last phantasm inside the split, so that it is off cooldown after the split.
• Save clones to shatter with Time Sink if you will need to CC in the immediate future.
• You can use Temporal Curtain → Into the Void to pull adds onto the boss if needed.
• Mantra of Pain should be cast as soon as there is a charge available.
• In the initial burst inside Continuum Split, slightly delay Mantra of Pain to first get some stacks of Fencer's Finesse, but ensure you can still cast it twice inside the Split.
• If the boss does not have Slow, it might be worth to cast Illusionary Riposte → Counter Blade to daze the enemy and trigger Delayed Reactions to inflict 3 seconds of slow if you are going to be doing significant damage in those 3 seconds (such as having phantasms attacking and using Blurred Frenzy and Mind Spike).