Diablo 3 - Best Wizard Builds

Diablo 3 offers gamers 6 unique characters to choose from, but undoubtedly one of the most fun heroes to play with is the wizard. If this is your hero of choice, then this article is for you. I will show you several builds that will make your wizard shine and kill the hordes of hell with ease. The builds are both effective and fun to play.

Diablo 3 is a game centered around gear. That is why it is very important to find weapon, armor, helm, etc. that match your hero and playstyle. Certain legendary or set pieces of equipment can even force you to change completely your hero's set of skills and that is the beauty of the game - your can easily change your skills and enjoy a completely different playstyle. However, some skills prove to be more effective than others, especially when combined properly to boost each other stats. Diablo 3 skill system is all about synergies, which means that, with rare exceptions, you should focus on a given damage type and choose your skills accordingly. That is what will make your character a real nightmare for the hordes of hell. So read on and let the fun begin.

1. The Arcane Wizard Build
   The Arcane wizard build is focused on dealing arcane damage to the enemies and slowing them down with the Temporal Flux passive. The build consists of the following skills:

   • Left Mouse Button: Electrocute (Surge of Power) - helps you regenerate Arcane power faster for the Disintegrate spell.
   • Right Mouse Button: Disintegrate (Chaos Nexus) - your main damage dealer, which also slows down enemies considerably. The Chaos Nexus run makes the spell also damage and slow down nearby enemies.
   • Skill Slot 1: Wave of Force (Impactful Wave) - deals arcane damage and slows down enemies, but most importantly knocks them back, which helps you easily escape when surrounded by multiple foes.
   • Skill Slot 2: Familiar (Sparkflint) - deals Arcane damage to enemies, but also increases your own damage output.
   • Skill Slot 3: Magic Weapon (Force Weapon) - increases the damage of your wizard considerably.
   • Skill Slot 4: Energy Armor (Energy Tap) - increases your Arcane Power, which will help you use your main damage dealer, the Disintegrate spell, for longer periods.
   • Passive Skills:
     • Blur - reduces damage taken.
     • Unwavering Will - increases armor and damage when standing still.
     • Temporal Flux - slows enemies when hit with an arcane spell.
     • Audacity - increases the damage you do to nearby enemies. Activate this when your wizard reaches level 70 (a new passive skill slot unlocks then).

   This wizard build is easy to use in battle and performs very well even without great gear (some Arcane damage bonuses will help, of course). Basically you hold the right mouse button to slow down and disintegrate your enemies and use the left mouse button to cast the Electrocute (Surge of Power) spell only when you are out of Arcane Power. When surrounded by multiple enemies, press 1 to activate a Force Wave and knock them back, so you can escape. Do not forget to keep the Familiar, Magic Weapon and Energy Armor active all the time in order to boost both your damage and armor.
2. The Cold Wizard Build
   The snow/freeze wizard is my favorite build, but unfortunately it's more gear dependent and is not as effective as the Arcane wizard build if you do not have any items that have cold/freeze bonuses. Anyways the build is fun to play, so I recommend you try it.

   • Left Mouse Button: Magic Missile (Glacial Spike) - damages enemies with frozen missiles and has a chance to freeze them.
   • Right Mouse Button: Arcane Orb (Frozen Orb) - your main damage dealer, pierces through the enemies dealing massive amounts of cold damage.
   • Skill Slot 1: Frost Nova (Cold Snap) - freezes nearby enemies for a few seconds. You can also use this defensively to escape from danger.
   • Skill Slot 2: Blizzard (Unrelenting Storm) - casts a blizzard that slows and damages enemies in a wide area for several seconds. Very useful when multiple foes attack you.
   • Skill Slot 3: Magic Weapon (Force Weapon) - greatly increases your wizard's damage.
   • Skill Slot 4: Ice Armor (Frozen Storm) - casts a frozen storm around you that chills nearby monsters and deals cold damage every second.
   • Passive Skills:
     • Blur - reduces damage taken.
     • Cold Blooded - increases the damage taken by monsters when chilled or frozen.
     • Unwavering Will - increases your wizard's armor and damage when standing still.
     • Prodigy - helps you quickly regenerate Arcane Power by casting signature spells (e.g. the Magic Missile).

   This cold wizard build is very fun to play and can also be very effective if you find one or two pieces of equipment that boost cold skills or increase freeze chance. An effective way to play this build is to spam frozen orbs and blizzards around and when you are out of Arcane Power, use the magic missile (Glacial Spike) signature spell to quickly regenerate Arcane Power (thanks to the Prodigy passive). Always maintain the Magic Weapon and Ice Armor active to boost your damage and armor. When surrounded use the Frost Nova to freeze your enemies and escape. Note that when frozen, enemies receive additional damage from all sources thanks to the Cold Blooded passive, so you can also use the Frost Nova spell to freeze your enemies and inflict more damage to them.

These are my favorite Diablo 3 Wizard Builds. I hope you enjoy them, too. Let me know in the comments below if you like other builds more.

See also:

• Diablo 3 on Intel HD Graphics
• Heroes 5 vs Heroes 6 - which is better?