It is a Skill Gem.
Spell
AoE, Fire, Physical
Tier: 7 (Witch)
Level: 7
Cost: 22 Mana
Cast Time: 0.80 sec
Critical Strike Chance: 8.00%
Requires: Level 22, Int 52
Causes a Corpse to violently explode, damaging surrounding enemies.
Skills can be managed in the Skills Panel.
Detonate Dead is a powerful Fire and Physical AoE (Area of Effect) Spell in Path of Exile 2, designed to make use of corpses as explosive projectiles. Ideal for Witch and Chaos-focused builds, Detonate Dead allows you to cause corpses to explode violently, dealing Fire and Physical damage to all nearby enemies. It’s an excellent skill for players who want to clear large packs of enemies or target specific groups with devastating area damage.
Detonate Dead allows you to take control of corpses and convert them into powerful explosions that deal both Fire and Physical damage to all enemies in the surrounding area. Upon casting the skill, the targeted corpse will explode, sending out a shockwave of damage that can obliterate nearby enemies. This makes Detonate Dead an effective AoE damage skill that is perfect for clear speed and crowd control.
Explosion of Fire and Physical Damage:
The main effect of Detonate Dead is the ability to cause a corpse to explode, dealing a mix of Fire and Physical damage to surrounding enemies. The Fire damage ranges from 28 to 43 and the Physical damage equals 20% of the corpse’s maximum life. This dual-damage mechanism ensures that Detonate Dead is effective against both Fire-resistant and Physical-resistant enemies.
Explosion Radius:
The explosion radius of Detonate Dead is 2.6 metres, making it an effective skill for clearing out groups of enemies or damaging clustered foes. The radius ensures that nearby enemies will be caught in the blast, amplifying the skill’s effectiveness in crowd control and area clearing.
Corpse-Based Mechanism:
Detonate Dead requires the presence of a corpse to work. The skill detonates any corpse in its target area, meaning you must have a corpse nearby for the explosion to occur. This adds a layer of strategy to the skill, as you’ll need to either create or find corpses to take advantage of the skill’s power.
Physical Damage Scaling:
The Physical damage dealt by Detonate Dead is calculated as 20% of the corpse’s maximum life. This means that the health of the corpse significantly impacts the amount of Physical damage that is dealt. Larger enemies or those with more health will result in more Physical damage from the explosion, allowing you to clear tough enemies with ease.
Critical Strikes:
Detonate Dead has a Critical Strike Chance of 8.00%, which means there is a chance for the skill to deal additional damage with a critical hit. This can significantly increase the damage output of the skill, especially if you’re scaling critical strike chance or damage with gear or support gems.
Detonate Dead is a versatile skill that can be used effectively in various builds. Here are some synergies and recommendations to make the most of this explosive skill:
Minion Builds:
If you’re running a minion-based build, Detonate Dead becomes even more powerful. Summon minions like zombies or skeletons, and as they die, you can use Detonate Dead to create massive explosions that deal Fire and Physical damage. By pairing Detonate Dead with corpse explosion mods, you can chain explosions to quickly clear entire areas.
Chaos Damage and Corpses:
Combining Detonate Dead with Chaos damage over time effects (such as Contagion) allows you to stack Chaos DoTs on enemies and use Detonate Dead to trigger powerful explosions when those enemies die. This makes for an incredibly efficient AoE damage setup.
Corpse Generation:
Skills that generate corpses, such as Summon Raging Spirit or Flesh Offering, pair excellently with Detonate Dead. The more corpses you generate, the more opportunities you have to trigger Detonate Dead, allowing you to clear entire screens of enemies in an instant.
Elemental and Fire Builds:
As Detonate Dead deals Fire damage, you can enhance its damage through Fire damage modifiers or Elemental damage scaling. Fire-focused builds benefit greatly from Detonate Dead, especially if you are using Fire Penetration or Fire Damage over Time effects.
Corpse Detonation Synergies:
Pair Detonate Dead with support gems like Measuring Dead or Infernal Damage to increase the damage of the corpse explosions. Additionally, Increased AoE and Explosion Damage can further scale the damage and radius of the explosions, allowing for even larger area coverage.
Detonate Dead is a devastating Fire and Physical AoE skill in Path of Exile 2 that allows you to explode corpses for massive area damage. With the ability to deal both Fire and Physical damage, it is especially powerful in minion-based builds or Chaos damage setups. The explosion radius and synergies with corpse-based abilities make it a versatile skill for crowd control and map clearing. Whether used as a primary or secondary skill, Detonate Dead provides a fun and efficient way to deal massive damage by turning the dead into powerful explosive weapons.