Question to experienced witch players

[Nox Arcana]

Hi, I'm a relatively new player and I would like to get some help from experienced players that play minion builds(mostly ice skeletons, but any tips would be appreciated)
1) in most guides people recommend to add at least one storm mage, he can stun several enemies and with stormfire gem his shocks don't remove ignites from hellhound and overall he has nice synergy with the rest of the team, but I heard a weird rumor that if there're a lot of summons his presence may break the ai, and overall dps will actually drop, that it's not noticable on regular maps but only against beefy bosses. Could someone clarify this info, please? Currently I'm using 13 ice mages, 1 storm mage, 2 clerics and 2 warriors from rattling sceptre, so I'm not sure if I should buy perfect orb for this guy or just get rid of him, just in case. So far I didn't notice anything abnormal, but it might be because the team is too small
2) For fighting bosses people recommend switching from Wild shards to Concentrated effect(skills deal 40% more damage and have 50% less area of effect). Obviously wildshards gem is useless against single targets but I'm not sure what concentrated effect actually does, is it supposed to buff Ice bomb aoe damage for my ice minions or somehow buff Scattershot gem. I'm confused about this one, because damage numbers don't change for any of the skills or regular attacks when I check the stats

[Nefser]

I use a few snipers and mainly ice mages. I also have optional spells I use as well (such as contagion) to essentially just give my minions a little less work to do (or get it done quicker).

You might consider that maybe sometimes, one or two support gem swaps are ok, for handling bosses vs normal/group clears (i.e., cold penetration vs chain).

I'm really pleased how well minions work in the game, but you should really ensure you a) have loads of spirit and b) have the 'command' key mapped someone easy to use and get that to shift the minions.

Yes, doorways are awkward at times, but if your skels can't get through...then you can tap inside and outside the doorway, which should 'jiggle' them free. Or just fight behind them at the doorway, with you all shooting through it at the mobs.

===========

CE is exactly what it says...just think it through, as all the descriptions are clear about how it works.
- Upside: you get 40% more damage, which is fab. Considering passive skill nodes might give you 10-15% damage boosts, 40% is like getting 3-4 of them in one support gem
- Downside: it's smaller AoE splash. So when you use their targeted ice bomb, the splash that 'it' makes is only half the size...but then again, are you trying to bomb trash mobs, or perhaps one chunky rare with a few friends?

For me, CE is a benefit. Secondly, you can also pair it with the gem that gives you a wider range, which offsets the downside...but that seems a little wasteful. Either decide if the damage boost is worth it (depending on how you plan to use their AoE attacks), or the impact size reduction is worth it.

[Trunks]

Ice you want to use offering to buff the mages and weaken the boss with ice shard spinning ball(sorc skill). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZibK4AIIQpY&t=567s check this out for a solid ice mage build with the same minion line up. Compare to your own and adjust.

[Pipakrax]

Originally posted by Nefser:

I'm really pleased how well minions work in the game

*laugh in Augury, Mire, and Crypt*

[Nox Arcana]

Thank you for your replies

[KillJoy]

I use brutes, clearing T10 maps with ease. 7 brutes and 2 warriors and 1 hell hound.
I stopped using firewall as I don't need it.

Just moving around staying back, and let my brutes clear the mobs. Might on rare occasions have to press 1 to drink a health potion. Otherwise no buttons need to be pressed.

[Generic-Raider]

I played with them all from full partys like tank healer dps minions to full 1 type of them all
the best ones is just a full party 10+ of arsonist with you casting flame wall and them having a extra projectile throw a shield on and just sit back and be board why they kill every thing