Path of Exile: How to Make a Lightning Arrow Deadeye

Lightning Arrow (LA) Deadeye is one of the most iconic and popular bow builds in Path of Exile. Known for its exceptional clear speed, screen-wide chaining, and smooth mapping experience, the LA Deadeye excels at farming maps quickly and efficiently. While it is not the tankiest archetype, proper gearing and POE orbs positioning can turn it into a devastating ranged powerhouse. This essay explains how to build a Lightning Arrow Deadeye from the ground up, covering ascendancy choices, passive tree direction, gearing, and playstyle.

Core Concept of Lightning Arrow Deadeye

Lightning Arrow is a bow attack skill that converts a portion of physical damage to lightning and releases lightning bolts that hit nearby enemies. When combined with Deadeye's projectile bonuses and chaining mechanics, Lightning Arrow clears entire packs with a single attack. The build revolves around scaling elemental damage, attack speed, critical strikes, and projectile behavior rather than raw physical damage.

Deadeye is the preferred ascendancy because it amplifies projectile count, speed, and chaining-three things Lightning Arrow benefits from more than any other bow skill.

Ascendancy Choices

The standard Lightning Arrow Deadeye ascendancy path focuses on maximizing clear speed and projectile effectiveness:

Gathering Winds - Grants Tailwind, which increases action speed and provides strong mobility and damage.

Endless Munitions - Adds an extra projectile and increases area of effect, massively improving clear.

Ricochet - Allows projectiles to chain one additional time, which is crucial for Lightning Arrow's screen-wide clears.

Far Shot - Increases damage at long range, synergizing perfectly with a ranged, hit-and-run playstyle.

This combination gives the build its signature fast-paced and fluid feel.

Passive Skill Tree Direction

On the passive tree, the Lightning Arrow Deadeye prioritizes:

Bow damage and attack speed

Elemental damage with attacks

Critical strike chance and multiplier

Projectile speed and damage

Evasion and spell suppression for defense

Key notables include nodes around the Ranger, Shadow, and Duelist areas. Acrobatics and Phase Acrobatics are commonly taken to boost survivability through dodge (in leagues where applicable), while modern versions often emphasize spell suppression and evasion scaling instead.

Skill Gems and Links

A typical Lightning Arrow setup looks like this:

Lightning Arrow

Trinity Support

Inspiration Support

Elemental Damage with Attacks

Greater Multiple Projectiles (for mapping)

Added Lightning Damage or Increased Critical Damage

For single-target damage, players often swap GMP for Barrage Support or use a secondary skill like Barrage or Storm Rain to handle bosses more effectively.

Auras such as Wrath, Grace, and Precision are core to the build, boosting damage, evasion, and accuracy.

Gear and Stat Priorities

Weapon choice is critical. A high-elemental DPS bow with added lightning damage, attack speed, and critical strike chance is ideal. Early on, unique bows like Storm Cloud or Death's Opus can carry you, while endgame builds aim for a well-crafted rare bow.

Other gear priorities include:

Life and resistances on all rare items

Added elemental damage to attacks on rings and amulets

Critical strike multiplier on amulets and jewels

Spell suppression and evasion on armor pieces

A Quiver with added elemental damage, critical stats, and projectile speed is especially valuable.

Playstyle and Strengths

Lightning Arrow Deadeye is all about speed and positioning. You dash through maps, fire once or twice per pack, and move on. Defensive layers rely on evasion, suppression, and not getting hit in the first place, making awareness and movement crucial.

Conclusion

Building a Lightning Arrow Deadeye in Path of Exile is an excellent choice for players who buy POE orbs value fast mapping, flashy clears, and a high-skill, high-reward playstyle. With the right ascendancy choices, passive tree investment, and gear, LA Deadeye becomes one of the most satisfying and efficient builds for farming and league progression.