Diablo 3
Guides
Natalya Spike Trap Demon Hunter Guide
Last Updated: July 7th 2024
Share on Social
Introduction
In Season 28, Natalya's Vengeance has been completely reworked into a Spike Trap set. Before that, the set was renowned for its versatility by providing a massive generic damage multiplier that could support any skill which didn't fit any of the other Demon Hunter sets. With this rework, builds like N6M4, N6GoD4, N6 RF and N6 FoK vanished to make room for something new - and frankly, that wasn't a huge loss.
The new build combines Spike Trap as a powerful nuke ability with Caltrops for utility to enable a true trap-based playstyle. While this setup is relatively slow-paced, the build can still move around quickly because of all the extra Discipline generation from the (2) Bonus, allowing you to spam Shadow Power, Caltrops, Vault and Smoke Screen nearly all the time.
In order to deal the most damage through the (6) Bonus, you have to set up a chain reaction of up to 10x Spike Trap Custom Trigger (with Custom Engineering + Scatter from Trag'Oul Coils) and detonate them with a Hatred Generator, usually by tapping Evasive Fire Hardened. Thanks to the set's (4) Bonus you even create your own pulls for more Area Damage!
This build is an Area Damage (AD) build, since Spike Trap and all its effects can proc it. The main sections of this guide cover the easy solo push version using Dawn for permanent Vengeance uptime. The high-end push version and other setups are described in more detail in the variants below.
High skill ceiling ✔
Unique playstyle ✔
Huge area damage ✔
Satisfying big nukes ✔
❌ Many buttons
❌ Needs setup time
❌ Constant knockbacks
❌ Not beginner friendly
Core Setup
Items
- Natalya's Vengeance (2) Bonus removes all costs and cooldowns for Spike Trap, increases its damage by 100% when combined with Caltrops and refills Discipline rapidly all the time.
- Natalya's Vengeance (4) Bonus allows Caltrops to pull in enemies when hit by Spike Trap and provides 75% damage reduction.
- Natalya's Vengeance (6) Bonus provides a 10,000% damage bonus to Spike Trap and increases their damage by 25% for consecutive explosions of the same chain reaction.
- Chanon Bolter provides a 200% damage bonus to Spike Trap and taunts enemies.
- The Demon's Demise provides another 200% damage bonus of Spike Trap and triggers explosions an additional time, effectively doubling damage again.
- Trag'Oul Coils adds yet another 200% damage bonus to Spike Trap, increases the deployment speed and adds the Scatter rune for free.
- Dawn offers massive cooldown reduction for Vengeance to ensure permanent uptime.
- Aughild's Authority is a strong secondary set choice that adds extra damage and defense, which is included in most variants of the build.
- Ring of Royal Grandeur is required to combine Natalya's Vengeance with additional sets and free up more item slots.
Global Stat Priorities
Stack the typical damage stats such as Critical Hit Chance, Critical Hit Damage and Fire Damage on every piece possible. In order to reach permanent Vengeance uptime, roll ~37% Cooldown Reduction with a perfect Dawn or ~47% Cooldown Reduction for setups without it to play a 48 second rotation with Convention of Elements. On Chest and Shoulders, add Spike Trap Damage and fill remaining affix slots with Average Damage (Rings) or Area Damage where possible.
Resource Cost Reduction on Shoulders and a Weapon can help to smooth out the build's playstyle and increases toughness when running with Captain Crimson's Trimmings. Other than that, we prefer Vitality > Life % = All Resistance on armor pieces for more defense.
Assembling the Build
Item Stat Priorities
Gems
Skills
Passives
Paragon Points
Follower
Gameplay
Hardcore
Variants
Nephalem Rifts
GR Solo Speeds
GR Solo Push
GR Group Trash Killer
Concept
This build isn't great for T16 and if you have other setups such as GoD DH or Multishot available, you should go with those instead.
In Torment 16 we want to go fast, so this setup differs from the GR versions. We include Danetta's Hatred, turning our Vault Action Shot into a spender that can detonate Spike Trap while we move. For this, we need to switch its rune to Echoing Blast. Omryn's Chain creates Caltrops automatically to make enemies fly to us whenever we detonate traps.
Gameplay
Keep up your buffs Shadow Power, Preparation Focused Mind and Vengeance as much as possible. Vault around to hunt elites and valuable monster packs. Whenever you engage in combat, drop a few Spike Traps around the area and detonate them with Vault.
Whenever you have enough leftover Discipline, spam Smoke Screen Displacement for extra speed.
Setups
If you need more damage, replace Wreath of Lightning with Zei's Stone of Vengeance.
If you don't feel tanky enough, replace Hot Pursuit with Awareness and Warzechian Armguards with Trag'Oul Coils to free up the armor cube slot for Goldwrap.
In groups, replace Warzechian Armguards with Nemesis Bracers to spawn elites from shrines and pylons.
Concept
This setup is similar to the solo push version described in the main sections of the guide, but aims to complete GRs in faster runs lasting around 3 minutes. Reduce the set-up time in favor of more damage output and don't worry about Convention of Elements rotations. In addition, Bane of the Stricken isn't necessary so that gem gets replaced by Molten Wildebeest's Gizzard to protect the buff from Squirt's Necklace.
To increase run speed, we use Shadow Power Shadow Glide and drop Numbing Traps for Tactical Advantage.
Gameplay
Keep up the buffs from Vengeance and Shadow Power while searching valuable monster packs and elites. When you find some, place a few Spike Traps around the area, then tap Caltrops + Evasive Fire simultaneously to pull them in.
Once you have set up a pull, place Caltrops in the center and spread 5x Spike Trap around the area, then detonate them with 1 tap of Strafe for maximum damage output. Repeat this until all enemies are dealt with and move on. Activate Smoke Screen whenever necessary to reduce incoming damage.
Setups
At higher Paragon (2,500 or more), Guardian's Jeopardy should be replaced by Captain Crimson's Trimmings for more damage, cooldown and resources.
If you have too much trouble keeping up the Squirt's Necklace buff or staying alive, replace Molten Wildebeest's Gizzard for Bane of the Powerful and Numbing Traps or Ambush for Awareness.
Select Build Version
Perma Vengeance (EZ)
Concept
This setup combines high damage and toughness to reach the highest GR tiers. We want to stack up large packs of enemies with the pulling effect from Caltrops and nuke them down with Area Damage.
Gameplay
This is described in more detail in the Gameplay section above. Keep up the buffs from Vengeance and Shadow Power while searching valuable monster packs. When you find a good spot, place Spike Trap underneath enemies, then tap Caltrops + Evasive Fire once together to pull them in. Repeat this process until you have all nearby enemies stacked up.
Once you have all enemies inside your Caltrops area, set up chain reactions of 10 Spike Traps stacked on top of each other. Once the density thins out, kite leftover enemies with you and prepare the next pull. Whenever Oculus Rings appear, reposition into them for more damage and use Smoke Screen frequently to stay alive.
Setups
At higher Paragon (2,500+), Captain Crimson's Trimmings should be included instead of Guardian's Jeopardy.
If you want to include Awareness or Leech in the setup, drop Ambush for it.
If you feel daring, you can replace Esoteric Alteration with Gogok of Swiftness for more damage and to free up some CDR rolls for other damage stats.
Concept
This is a more high-end version of the build that replaces Dawn with Natalya's Slayer to free up the ring slot for Convention of Elements. With at least 47% Cooldown Reduction you can activate Vengeance once every 48sec exactly on the Fire CoE cycle to get it for 2 out of 3 rotations. This version does significantly more damage but suffers from low toughness when Vengeance is down.
Gameplay
This is described in more detail in the Gameplay section above. When you find a good spot, place Spike Trap underneath enemies, then tap Caltrops + Evasive Fire together to pull them in. Repeat this process until you have all nearby enemies stacked up.
Once you have all enemies inside your Caltrops area, set up chain reactions of 10 Spike Traps stacked on top of each other. Optimally, prepare the pull and 10 traps right before the Fire Convention of Elements cycle and activate Vengeance in the same moment if it's ready. This way you can detonate them immediately when the cycle changes and repeat the process two more times for maximum damage output.
Once the density thins out, kite leftover enemies with you and prepare the next pull. Whenever Oculus Rings appear, reposition into them for more damage and use Smoke Screen frequently to stay alive.
Setups
If you want to include Awareness or Leech in the setup, drop Ambush for it.
If you feel daring, you can replace Esoteric Alteration with Gogok of Swiftness for more damage and to free up some CDR rolls for other damage stats.
Concept
This is the setup is similar to the one described in main sections of the guide but more optimized for group play in high GRs. Most of the hard work is done by your Supports and instead you simply focus on dealing the most damage. With party buffs, the setup is significantly tankier.
Instead of pulling enemies around yourself, coordinate with your team to deal heavy bursts during the Fire Convention of Elements cycle. In order to play this setup with Vengeance on a 48sec cycle, you need to have at least 47% Cooldown Reduction.
Gameplay
Keep up Shadow Power whenever enemies are present. Wait for your supports to prepare a pull, then start cycling 5x Spike Trap + 1 tap of Evasive Fire to deal damage. While doing so, make sure to protect yourself with Smoke Screen as much as possible.
Optimally, prepare the pull and 10 Spike Traps right before the Fire Convention of Elements cycle. This way you can detonate them immediately when the cycle changes and repeat the process two more times for the highest damage output. Every 48 seconds, activate Vengeance at the start of the Fire Convention of Elements cycle to have it up for 2 out of 3 rotations.
Once the density thins out, move on to find new enemies and prepare the next pull with your team. Whenever Oculus Rings appear, reposition into them for more damage and use Smoke Screen frequently to stay alive.
Setups
At lower Paragon (2,500 or less), Captain Crimson's Trimmings should be replaced by Guardian's Jeopardy.
If you want to include Awareness in the setup, drop Numbing Traps for it.
A more high-end version of the build replaces Natalya's Slayer with Dawn and drops Endless Walk for Natalya's Reflection + Squirt's Necklace. Like this you don't have to worry about standing still for extra damage and have permanent Vengeance uptime, but now have to protect the Squirt's Necklace buff with the shield from Molten Wildebeest's Gizzard. This setup is recommended if you are at the point where you speed run high tier GRs in only a few minutes. However, if you can't keep up the amulet's buff most of the time, you should stick the the regular setup.
If you're playing in a team as the only damage dealer or for some other reason have to kill the boss, include Bane of the Stricken instead of Pain Enhancer.
Video Guide
Mechanics
Natalya's Vengeance
Chanon Bolter
The Demon's Demise
Trag'Oul Coils
Summary
- Keep up your buffs from Vengeance as much as possible.
- Stack up nearby enemies by placing 1-2x Spike Trap Custom Trigger below them, then tapping Caltrops and Evasive Fire together at the same time.
- With a fully prepared pull, set up 10x Spike Trap Custom Trigger, detonate them and repeat to deal damage.
- Use Smoke Screen frequently to move around and survive.
- Kite leftover enemies to the next pull or move on without them if they're too slow.
I hope you enjoyed this guide! Although the Spike Trap has a setup time, it offers a unique and powerful playstyle that has been missing from the game for years. With this build it's all about the right timing to create fantastic damage bursts.
Good luck!
Credits
Written & Updated by wudijo.
Review and contributions by Northwar.
