Channelling is a skill mechanic that effects how certain skills are used to attack or cast.
Mechanics
Using Channelled Skills
Most skills in Path of Exile are considered "Fire and Forget". Meaning that once the player uses a skill, the effect is triggered the specified number of times denoted by said skill, and upon the completion of that action being performed, the skill is finished and ready to be used again. Unlike fire and forget skills, when you use a channelled skill the effect doesn't finish until you release the relevant button/key. Your character will continue performing the same skill repeatedly.
Similar to other skills, when the player initiates a channelled skill, the mana cost is used to start the ability. While the player continues to channell a skill by holding the corresponding trigger key, the mana cost of the skill must be paid relative to the attack/cast speed of the associated skill. Having insufficient resources to continue using a channelled skill will end the channell of the skill and trigger any end of channelling effects, such as the additional hits from Blade Flurry.
A player casts an unsupported level 1 Incinerate.
At the start of the cast the player must pay the mana cost of 6. If the player continues to hold the key needed to continue channelling, after .2 seconds of casting another 6 mana is spent to sustain the cost of continuing channelling the skill. This cycle of 6 mana every .2 seconds will continue in perpetuum until the key is released and channelling stops or insufficient mana is available to continue casting.
Other than insufficient mana, channelling can be halted by:
- Being subjected to a stun
- Becoming inflicted with a silence curse (if the skill used is a spell)
- Death
Triggered effects
On use triggers
Effects which trigger when you use a skill will only trigger when you initially start channeling, regardless of how long you maintain a channelled skill. As long as a player continues to channell an ability, this counts as the same single use of the skill. This makes effects such as gaining an power charge using Module Error: No skills found with q_where = skill.active_skill_name="Power Charge on Critical Support", life regeneration for casting a spell with LifesprigLifesprig
Driftwood WandWand
Quality: +20%
Physical Damage: 6-10.8
Critical Strike Chance: 7.00%
Attacks per Second: 1.40
Weapon Range: 120(8-12)% increased Spell Damage+1 to Level of Socketed Spell Gems
(20-28)% increased Spell Damage
(5-8)% increased Cast Speed
+(15-20) to maximum Life
+(15-20) to maximum Mana
Regenerate (6-8) Life over 1 second when you Cast a SpellFrom the smallest seeds
To the tallest redwoods,
Life endures in Wraeclast. equipped, and other on use effects are limited to one event per channelling regardless of the number of times the trigger criteria is met during the same channell.
This mechanic can have limiting effects for certain supports such as Module Error: No skills found with q_where = skill.active_skill_name="Power Charge on Critical Support", but can also be used to great advantage. Critical Strike chance is only rolled once per channelling. This means that if the first hit of a channelled skill scores a critical strike, all other hits while that skill is channelled will be critical strikes as well. The exception to this is when a hit is made a critical due to a conditional Critical Strike Chance modifier such as Module Error: Too many skills found with q_where = skill.active_skill_name="Assassin's Mark". Please choose only one of the following ids:
AssassinsMark - Base duration is (6-9.8) seconds, Hits against Cursed Enemies have +(30-49)% to Critical Strike Multiplier, Hits against Cursed Enemies have +1.5% to Critical Strike Chance, Cursed enemies grant (65-600) Life when Killed, Cursed enemies grant (25-80) Mana when Killed, Cursed enemies have a 100% chance to grant a Power Charge when slain (page)
AssassinsMarkTriggered - Base duration is (7.4-8.2) seconds, Hits have +1.5% additional Critical Strike Chance against you, Trigger this Skill when you Hit a Rare or Unique Enemy (page) or the Assassin notable passives Ambush and Assassinate.
On hit triggers
Effects which trigger on hit will trigger as with any other skill in the game that produces a hit. Life gain, leech, power charge per enemy hit while wearing Voll's ProtectorVoll's Protector
Holy ChainmailQuality: +20%
Armour: (426-523)
Energy Shield: (85-105)
Movement Speed: -5%Requires Level 35, 53 Str, 53 Int(100-150)% increased Armour and Energy Shield
50% reduced maximum Mana
Gain a Power Charge for each Enemy you hit with a Critical Strike
Inner ConvictionAlthough a great leader during the war,
Voll proved disastrous in times of peace., Module Error: No skills found with q_where = skill.active_skill_name="Curse on Hit", Module Error: No skills found with q_where = skill.active_skill_name="Cast On Critical Strike Support", and other on hit effects will all trigger as normal.
Multistrike and Spell Echo
Channelled skills cannot be supported by Module Error: No skills found with q_where = skill.active_skill_name="Multistrike Support" or Module Error: No skills found with q_where = skill.active_skill_name="Spell Echo Support". According to GGG, no current nor future channeling skills will be able to be supported by either of these gems for functional reasons.[1]
Related skills
- Blade Flurry
- Blight
- Module Error: No skills found with q_where = skill.active_skill_name="Cast While Channelling Support"
- Flameblast
- Incinerate
- Module Error: Too many skills found with q_where = skill.active_skill_name="Scorching Ray". Please choose only one of the following ids:
FireBeam - Deals (11.7-439.4) Base Fire Damage per second, Base duration is 1.5 seconds, Additional Debuff stages add 60% of Damage, Burning Debuff can have a maximum of 8 stages, Fire Exposure applies -25% to Fire Resistance, Modifiers to Spell Damage apply to this Skill's Damage Over Time effect (page)
DivineFireBeamUnique - Deals 738.9 Base Fire Damage per second, Base duration is 1.5 seconds, Additional Debuff stages add 60% of Damage, Burning Debuff can have a maximum of 8 stages, Fire Exposure applies -25% to Fire Resistance, Modifiers to Spell Damage apply to this Skill's Damage Over Time effect (page) - Wither
References
- ↑ Bex (November 20, 2016). "Recently Asked Community Questions". Official Path of Exile Forums. Retrieved November 21, 2016.