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Dream Paladin Guide

Season 8A

Last Updated:August 10, 2024|Change Log

The Dream Paladin plays like a dream. Also known as a Tesladin, this Paladin effortlessly clears all content. Commanding a Level 30 Holy Shock Aura from both a Dream Helmet and Dream Shield, this build vaporizes everything it touches...and even things it doesn't touch! If you enjoy jumping directly into the fray and melting monsters with reckless abandon, the Dream Paladin is the build for you!

This build wields massive Lightning and Physical Damage simultaneously, making the Dream Paladin one of the most powerful, versatile late-game builds. In addition to insane on-hit damage with Zeal, the Tesladin's Dream-granted Holy Shock Aura passively deals significant Lightning Damage to surrounding enemies in an Area of Effect (AoE). Having a strong active Conviction and Decrepify from the Mercenary's The Reaper's Toll, this build rarely encounters issues with monster Immunities. The only real drawback of the Dream Paladin is its expense - it requires 2 Jah Runes at a minimum.

Ideal Standard Setup
Ideal Standard Setup


Zeal


Conviction


Holy Shock


Teleport

This build guide assumes you have a Character at Level 75 before transitioning to it. Check out our Paladin Leveling Guide and our General Leveling Strategies to reach Level 75.


Enjoyable Playstyle ✔
Can Farm Everything
Easy To Learn And Master


Requires Rare Items
❌ Dangerous Playstyle

❌ Repetitive Skill Usage

Sunder Charm Setup

Patch 2.5 introduced a new way of breaking Immunities: Sunder Charms. Any enemy that would be Immune to your damage type(s) is instead reduced to 95% Resistance, before any other Resistance reductions apply. These Charms also reduce YOUR Resistance against the sundered damage types! Check out our post on Sunder Charms to learn more about these new Charms. The following setup potentially benefits from Crack of the Heavens and Bone Break, enabling you to deal more damage to many enemies.

Sunder Charm Setup
Sunder Charm Setup

Gear Changes

Use Crack of the Heavens when facing Lightning Immune monsters to increase your damage against them. To optimize this Sunder Charm you need as much -% Enemy Lightning Resistance as possible. Level 25 Conviction Aura accomplishes this by itself. Crescent Moon would further increase your Lightning Damage against these mobs.

Use Bone Break when facing Physical Immune monsters to increase your damage against them. The Reaper's Toll equipped on the Mercenary provides enough -% Enemy Physical Resistance with its Decrepify proc to make Bone Break effective.

Overall, Crack of the Heavens is more impactful than Bone Break on a Dream Paladin.

Terror Zones

The new Terror Zone mechanic opens up a wide range of farmable areas. The following list highlights the best and worst Terror Zones for this build. Since this build deals both Lightning and Physical Damage simultaneously, it farms almost all Terror Zones efficiently on the Standard setup. Learn more about Terror Zones here and see how they stack up in our Terror Zone Tier List.

Best

Tal Rasha's Tombs - High Density, Many Elite Groups, Quick Access, Breakable Immunities
Worldstone Keep + Throne of Destruction - High Density, Many Elite Groups, Quick Access, Breakable Immunities
The Tower Cellar - High Density, Many Elite Groups, Breakable Immunities
Barracks + Jail - High Density, Many Elite Groups, Quick Access, Breakable Immunities
Pit - High Density, Easy Mobility, Many Elite Groups, Breakable Immunities

Worst

Burial Grounds + Crypt + Mausoleum - Low Density, Trash Mobility, Few Elite Groups, Slow Access, Immunities
Spider Forest + Spider Cavern - Low Density, Few Elite Groups, Immunities
Stony Field - Low Density, Immunities
Arreat Plateau + Pit of Acheron - Low Density, Immunities
Rocky Waste + Stony Tomb - Trash Mobility, Immunities

Skills

Put 1 Skill Point into each of the following Skills:
1. Zeal (Max Last)
2. Charge
3. Holy Shield
4. Cleansing
5. Vigor

Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Resist Lightning
2. Salvation
3. Conviction (Till Level 25)
4. Sacrifice
5. Zeal

Alternatively, put 5-10 additional Skill Points into Holy Shield before maxing Zeal for increased Holy Shield duration, Chance to Block, and Defense.

Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression
Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression

Damage

Utility

Attributes

Note: This section provides you with the standard Stat Point allocation. Build Variants may require different allocations!

Strength

Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength to equip all of your gear. Take into account how much Strength your gear provides when equipped.
Optional: Put additional Stat Points into Strength to increase your Physical Damage.

Dexterity

Allocate enough Stat Points into Dexterity to reach max Chance to Block (75%). Make sure that Holy Shield is active prior to putting Dexterity Points in. More Dexterity is needed at higher Character Levels. In addition to Dexterity and Character Level, Shield Bases also affect Chance to Block.

Vitality

Allocate any remaining Stat Points into Vitality after meeting Strength, Dexterity and Energy requirements.

Energy

Don't allocate any Stat Points into Energy. Mana costs are mainly covered by the “x% Mana Stolen per Hit” stat on your gear. This build also gets enough Mana from gear, Charms, buffs, and Mana Potions.

Essentials

Gear Options

Farming Spots

Mercenary

Playstyle

Breakpoints

Hardcore

Build Variants

Standard
Mobility
Hybrid
Ubers
Hardcore

Setup

This is the Standard Best in Slot (BiS) Dream Paladin featured in the beginning of the guide. It is the balanced "jack-of-all-trades" version, capable of performing the most tasks well. This variant is the point of comparison for all other variants. It carefully balances Damage, Magic Find, and Teleport mobility. Crack of the Heavens and Bone Break increase your damage against their respective Immunities. This setup achieves the 48% Faster Cast Rate Breakpoint on Weapon-Swap.

Mercenary

The Standard Dream Paladin uses an Act 2 Might Mercenary with The Reaper's Toll for Damage, -50% to Enemy Physical Resistance, and a Slow. Treachery and Guillaume's Face add to his damage and survivability. This Mercenary reaches the 75% Increased Attack Speed Breakpoint for maximum Decrepify procs.

Skills

Resist Lightning and Salvation are Synergies for the Level 30 Holy Shock Aura provided by the combination of Dream Helmet and Dream Shield.

Put 1 Skill Point into each of the following Skills:
1. Zeal (Max Last)
2. Charge
3. Holy Shield
4. Cleansing
5. Vigor

Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Resist Lightning
2. Salvation
3. Conviction (Till Level 25)
4. Sacrifice
5. Zeal

Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression
Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression

Attributes

Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength to wear your gear and enough into Dexterity to achieve maximum Chance to Block (75%). Put all remaining Stat Points into Vitality.

Setup

This variant prioritizes Teleport mobility. Achieving the 75% Faster Cast Rate Breakpoint on Weapon-Swap, the Mobility Dream Paladin travels to and through Farming Spots quicker than the Standard Build. In areas which require a great deal of Teleport travel (such as The Pit, Worldstone Keep, and several Terror Zones) this means higher farming efficiency. This setup sacrifices a decent amount of Damage for this purpose, however, making it less effective in High Player Count games or /Players5-8 on Single Player. Crack of the Heavens increases your damage against Immune to Lightning mobs.

Mercenary

In order to maintain maximum Attack Speed on the Mobility Dream Paladin, use an Act 1 Cold Mercenary with Faith for its Fanaticism Aura. Vampire Gaze and Shaftstop provide this Mercenary with a much needed 50% Damage Reduction and Life Leech.

Skills

Put 1 Skill Point into each of the following Skills:
1. Zeal (Max Last)
2. Charge
3. Holy Shield
4. Cleansing
5. Vigor

Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Resist Lightning
2. Salvation
3. Conviction (Till Level 25)
4. Sacrifice
5. Zeal

Put additional Skill Points into Holy Shield for increased duration, Chance to Block, and Defense if preferred or as needed.

Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression
Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression

Attributes

Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength to wear your gear and enough into Dexterity to achieve maximum Chance to Block (75%). Put all remaining Stat Points into Vitality.

Setup

The Hybrid variant uses Hand of Justice and Dragon to have a Level 30 Holy Fire Aura on top of the Level 30 Holy Shock Aura provided by double Dreams. With both high Fire and Lightning Damage on top of the Physical Damage provided by the Hand of Justice itself, this setup encounters virtually zero issues with Immunities. This is even more so the case if you use Crack of the Heavens and Flame Rift, a devastating combo on the Hybrid build. A Teleport Charges Amulet provides this variant with much needed mobility and repositioning ability given that we aren't using Enigma. Achieving the 48% Faster Cast Rate Breakpoint on your main weapon loadout with the help of items such as Trang-Oul's Claws improves the smoothness of Teleport repositioning.

Mercenary

In order to maintain maximum Attack Speed on the Hybrid Dream Paladin, use an Act 1 Cold Mercenary with Faith for its Fanaticism Aura. Vampire Gaze and Shaftstop provide this Mercenary with a much needed 50% Damage Reduction and Life Leech.

Skills

For the Hybrid build, max the Holy Fire Synergy Resist Fire after maxing Salvation. This will greatly boost the power of the Level 30 Holy Fire Aura provided by Hand of Justice + Dragon. Also, put 5-10 Skill Points into Holy Shield to increase this essential Skill's duration, Chance to Block, and Defense bonuses. These changes mean that we can't max Sacrifice and Zeal as on the Standard Build.

Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression
Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression

Attributes

Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength to wear your gear and enough into Dexterity to achieve maximum Chance to Block (75%). Put all remaining Stat Points into Vitality.

Setup

The Ubers variant specializes in defeating the Uber Bosses, including mini-Ubers such as Lilith. While you can use something approximating the Standard Build for defeating the Ubers, this setup provides a number of important stats that make killing these challenging foes a little easier/more reliable. Crushing Blow, Open Wounds, Damage Reduction, Resistances, and Life are priority stats on this build. You can use a Teleport Charges Amulet for mobility to justify using Chains of Honor for more Damage and All Resistances. Last Wish is ideal in that it provides a source of Life Tap for Life Sustain, Fade for Damage Reduction, All Resistances, and Curse Duration Reduction, and has high Crushing Blow. However, there are other easier to acquire item(s) that can fill these roles (see "Gear Options" above). Pre-buffing Enchant with Demon Limb is good here. Thundergod's Vigor and stacked Lightning Resistance allows this build to tank Uber Mephisto.

Crack of the Heavens breaks Uber Mephisto's Lightning Immunity, allowing you to deal more damage to him. Use Lightning Resist Charms to counteract its negative effect. Using Crescent Moon and a Lower Resist Charge Wand on Weapon-Swap enables you to maximize your damage output against Uber Mephisto.

Mercenary

In order to maintain maximum Attack Speed on the Ubers Dream Paladin, use an Act 1 Cold Mercenary with Faith for its Fanaticism Aura. Vampire Gaze and Shaftstop provide this Mercenary with a much needed 50% Damage Reduction and Life Leech.

Skills

Put 1 Skill Point into each of the following Skills:
1. Zeal (Max Last)
2. Charge
3. Holy Shield
4. Cleansing
5. Vigor

Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Resist Lightning
2. Salvation
3. Conviction (Till Level 25)
4. Sacrifice
5. Zeal

Put additional Skill Points into Holy Shield for increased duration, Chance to Block, and Defense if preferred or as needed.

Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression
Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression

Attributes

Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength to wear your gear and enough into Dexterity to achieve maximum Chance to Block (75%). Put all remaining Stat Points into Vitality.

Setup

For the Hardcore mode variant, aim for having decent Damage Reduction, high Defense, and maximum Chance to Block (75%) to guard against taking extreme amounts of Physical Damage. Additionally, overcap Resistances beyond the natural cap of 75% if possible to counteract hostile Conviction or Lower Resist. If using Sunder Charms, prioritize the appropriate defensive stats to counteract their negative effects. This setup only achieves the 30% Faster Cast Rate Breakpoint on Weapon-Swap for casting Teleport. Consult the “Hardcore" section for more detailed information.

Mercenary

Just as with the Standard Build, the Hardcore Dream Paladin uses an Act 2 Might Mercenary with The Reaper's Toll, Treachery, and Guillaume's Face.
Note: For additional safety, use a Holy Freeze Mercenary for the extra Crowd Control it provides, or a Defiance Mercenary for a large Defense boost. These options will result in a somewhat lower Damage output, however.

Skills

After maxing Sacrifice, allocate all remaining Skill Points into Holy Shield instead of Zeal to boost your Chance to Block and Defense.

Put 1 Skill Point into each of the following Skills:
1. Zeal
2. Charge
3. Holy Shield (Max Last)
4. Cleansing
5. Vigor

Max out the following Skills in this order:
1. Resist Lightning
2. Salvation
3. Conviction (Till Level 25)
4. Sacrifice
5. Holy Shield

Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression
Use the Scroll Bar to see Skill Point Progression

Attributes

Allocate enough Stat Points into Strength to wear your gear and enough into Dexterity to achieve maximum Chance to Block (75%). Put all remaining Stat Points into Vitality.

Video Guide

Video Guide by DarkHumility

Summary

  • The Dream Paladin requires both a Dream Helmet and a Dream Shield. This build doesn't work without these items.
  • Teleport using the Faster Cast Rate gear on your Weapon-Swap.
  • Make sure to keep Conviction active at all times while attacking with Zeal on your main weapon loadout.
  • Take advantage of Holy Shield: put enough Stat Points into Dexterity to achieve maximum Chance to Block (75%) with Holy Shield active.
  • The Dream Paladin can farm virtually anything with ease. With both solid Magic Find and incredible Lightning-Physical hybrid Damage, this build dominates nearly every area, including Terror Zones. Even farming Uber Bosses for Hellfire Torches is highly effective on this Tesladin.

We hope you enjoy this build! Not even the toughest monsters can long withstand the ruthless onslaught of the "Dream Machine". Take him for a spin and watch everything melt before you!

Good Luck!

Credits

Written by DarkHumility
Reviewed by MacroBioBoi

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