Last Epoch: Warlock Leveling Build
Last Epoch continues to captivate ARPG fans with its deep customization and versatile mastery classes. Among the Acolyte's masteries, the Warlock offers a dark, DoT-heavy (damage over time) playstyle filled with curses, shadow magic, and chaos energy. If you're looking to level efficiently with the Warlock and unleash a torrent of curses on your enemies, this guide is for you.
In this guide, we'll cover everything from skills, passives, gear recommendations, and leveling tips to help you ascend swiftly and smoothly through the campaign into endgame maps.
Why Choose Warlock for Leveling?
The Warlock is the latest mastery for the Acolyte in Last Epoch and is designed around:
Damage Over Time (DoT) focus: stacking curses and shadow spells.
Life sustain via damage: using skills that leech or heal you per DoT tick.
Area Control: wide-area curses that debuff enemies and deal damage.
Strong Synergy between Shadow, Chaos, and Necrotic damage.
Pros
Extremely high damage potential early on.
Scales well with minimal gear investment.
Strong AoE (Area of Effect) damage for clearing packs.
Excellent sustain with life leech mechanics.
Flexible playstyle between spells and curses.
Cons
Initially squishy without defensive layers.
Some skills have delayed damage due to DoTs.
Requires attention to positioning.
Leveling Overview
The Warlock excels with a Curse + DoT + Shadow damage build, primarily built around:
Spirit Plague - Your primary leveling nuke with massive spread.
Hungering Souls - Adds supplemental single-target damage.
Aura of Decay - AoE poison aura that also applies debuffs.
Chthonic Fissure - Warlock-exclusive powerful DoT area spell.
Transplant - Mobility skill to stay safe and reposition.
Passive Tree Progression
Acolyte Base Tree (Level 1-20)
Blood Aura (8/8): Increased spell damage.
Forbidden Knowledge (5/5): Boosts Intelligence (main scaling stat).
Stolen Vitality (5/5): Strengthens health and vitality early.
Soul Aegis (5/5): Flat Ward Retention for early defenses.
Warlock Mastery (Unlocked at ~Level 20)
Once you choose Warlock at the End of Time, start investing in:
Reaper's Curse (8/8): Boosts Curse effectiveness.
Twisted Heart (5/5): Gain Ward when a DoT is applied.
Doom Herald (5/5): Increases global damage while curses are active.
Chthonic Bloom (5/5): Boosts DoT damage and mana efficiency.
Shadow Covenant (5/5): Grants a shadow aura for more Necrotic and Shadow scaling.
Lich Tree (Optional Secondary Mastery)
If you want more survivability and sustain:
Desolation (5/5): Increased DoT damage.
Survival of the Cruel (5/5): Leech from DoTs.
Unholy Ascension (1/1): Huge boost to DoTs while low life.
Core Leveling Skills and Specializations
1. Spirit Plague (Main DoT/Clear)
When to unlock: Level 5+
Key Nodes:
Contagion: Makes Spirit Plague spread on kill.
Suffering: Increases damage over time.
Inevitable Decay: Extends duration for less frequent casting.
Usage: Cast on a pack, watch it spread like wildfire. This is your main source of clearing mobs.
2. Hungering Souls (Single-Target Focus)
When to unlock: After Level 12.
Key Nodes:
Lingering Souls: Converts to DoT.
Torment: Increases shadow damage.
Spiritual Collapse: Increases single-target output.
Usage: Great for bosses or rare enemies where Spirit Plague isn't sufficient.
3. Aura of Decay (Debuff & Sustain)
When to unlock: Level 16.
Key Nodes:
Poison Skin: Applies poison to enemies in range.
Insidious Influence: Boosts damage for ailments.
Putrid Recovery: Healing based on poisons applied.
Usage: Toggle this on when clearing or during bosses for extra debuffs and passive sustain.
4. Chthonic Fissure (Massive AoE, Warlock Exclusive)
When to unlock: After selecting Warlock at level 20.
Key Nodes:
Umbral Flames: Adds Shadow damage over time.
Crack the Earth: Expands AoE size.
Riftborne Embrace: Improves duration and damage.
Usage: Big AoE for tough encounters or crowd control.
5. Transplant (Mobility)
When to unlock: As early as possible.
Key Nodes:
Acolyte's Fervor: Boosts cast speed after teleport.
Bone Armor: Grants temporary defenses.
Wandering Spirits: Free extra damage after teleport.
Usage: Always keep on your bar for movement and temporary buffs.
Attribute Priorities While Leveling
Intelligence: Boosts spell and DoT damage.
Vitality: Increases health and some defensive scaling.
Attunement: Slight benefits but optional.
Endurance/Armor: For survival at higher difficulties.
Leveling Gear Tips
While leveling, prioritize gear that grants:
+Spell Damage
+Necrotic / Shadow / Poison Damage
Increased Damage Over Time
Health / Vitality
Ward Retention
Mana Regeneration
Some useful uniques (if you have access):
Reach of the Grave: Boosts Hungering Souls.
Plague Bearer's Staff: Enhances DoT damage.
Soulfire: Adds extra fire/necrotic damage to spells.
Avarice Amulet: Extra resistances and damage.
If no uniques, don't worry - prioritize rare gear with high Intelligence, spell damage, and DoT multipliers.
Playstyle and Rotation
Engage with Transplant into packs for armor buff and mobility.
Cast Chthonic Fissure to open the fight with heavy AoE.
Apply Spirit Plague to start the spread.
Use Hungering Souls on tougher enemies.
Keep Aura of Decay toggled for passive poison and sustain.
Kite or reposition with Transplant as needed.
This rotation allows you to layer multiple DoTs and debuffs, maximizing your scaling.
Defensive Layers
Warlocks are inherently squishy if not careful. Key defenses include:
Ward Generation via Twisted Heart and other Warlock passives.
Health Leech from DoTs (via Lich passives).
Bone Armor from Transplant.
Aura of Decay Healing via Putrid Recovery.
Additionally, get as much resistance (especially Necrotic and Void) as possible on gear.
Endgame Transition
After finishing the story (~Level 55+), begin transitioning your gear to:
Focus more on Shadow/Necrotic Damage scaling items.
Stack Increased DoT Damage, especially for Spirit Plague.
Obtain Idols that increase DoT, Spirit Plague duration, or Shadow scaling.
Pursue Empowered Monoliths to find key Warlock-enhancing uniques.
Some players eventually transition into low-life Ward builds, stacking Exsanguinous or Last Steps of the Living for even greater sustain and power, though this requires specific gear.
Tips for Efficient Leveling
Keep your main skill nodes maxed to avoid falling behind in damage.
Upgrade weapons frequently-spell damage scales hard with base wand/staff damage.
Don't over-invest in defenses early; most survivability comes from mobility and ward generation.
Use Idols to augment Shadow/DoT/Spirit Plague damage.
Take side quests that reward passive points and idol slots.
Conclusion
The Warlock in Last Epoch offers a dark, thematic, and powerful way to level through the game with an enjoyable mix of curses, shadows, and damage over time spells. This build focuses on maximizing Spirit Plague and Chthonic Fissure for fast clears while using Hungering Souls for bosses. You can use your Last Epoch Gold to improve its properties and become stronger. With a good balance of offensive power and defensive sustain through ward and health leech, the Warlock is one of the smoothest leveling experiences in Last Epoch.
As Last Epoch continues to evolve, the Warlock will likely remain a top contender for DoT and curse-based builds, offering flexible endgame pathways whether you focus on Shadow, Necrotic, or Poison.
MMOexp Last Epoch Team