S-Tier Paladin · Endgame Season 13 / Lord of Hatred · 12 min read

Wing Strikes is the passive-playstyle S-tier Paladin build for Season 13 / Lord of Hatred. You maintain permanent Arbiter of Justice form while Wing Strike auto-seeks and zaps enemies, dealing AoE damage on contact. Your active job is positioning, refreshing Arbiter form, and managing auras. The build pairs naturally with the new weapon DPS scaling and barrier synergies introduced in Lord of Hatred — Wing Strike scales directly off weapon damage, which has gone up across the board.

Core Skills

Gear — Uniques & Mythics

Critical Aspects

• Aspect of Tyrael's Jurisdiction (Offensive) — auto-targeting + range increase. Mandatory; this is what makes Wing Strikes always hit.
• Aspect of Celestial Strife (Offensive) — stacking damage multiplier.
• Aspect of Ascension (Offensive) — stacking multiplier via skill casts.
• Aspect of Holy Punishment (Offensive) — holy damage multiplier.
• Aspect of Lagera's Sovereignty (Offensive) — Disciple skill damage.
• Virtuous Aspect (Offensive) — generic damage multiplier.
• Aspect of Utmost Glory (Offensive) — Healthy/Weaken multiplier.
• Aspect of Heavenly Strength (Defensive) — flat damage reduction. Required if running 2H.
• Aspect of Angelic Masterwork (Defensive) — All Resistances boost.
• Aspect of the Disciple (Defensive) — Weaken application.
• Aspect of the Arbiter's Zephyr (Mobility) — Evade enhancement.

Glyph Priority

1. Arbiter
2. Apostle
3. Canny
4. Spirit
5. Judicator

Tempering Priorities

• Primary: Arbiter Duration tempers (extend form uptime).
• Secondary: Damage while in Arbiter Form.
• Defensive: Maximum Life on every slot, plus Armor + All Resistances on defensive pieces.

Rotation

1. Cast Arbiter of Justice to enter and maintain form.
2. Cast Falling Star for traversal between packs and to refresh form.
3. Cast Condemn on dense packs to group enemies for Wing Strike pulses; also refreshes Arbiter form.
4. Keep Fanaticism + Defiance auras toggled on; activate Defiance manually for Unstoppable when crowd-controlled.
5. Cast Consecration against grouped enemies to apply Weaken.
6. Position inside packs; let Wing Strike do damage automatically.

Is Wing Strikes Paladin good in Season 13?

Yes — it remains in S-tier in Season 13: Reckoning / Lord of Hatred despite the Sanctus of Kethamar amulet nerf. The build benefits directly from the new weapon DPS scaling that came with the expansion, plus barrier synergies and natural pairing with Arbiter of Justice. It excels at Tower pushing, Echoing Hatred, and high-tier Pit clears.

What is the playstyle?

Mostly passive. You permanently maintain Arbiter of Justice form, and Wing Strike auto-seeks and zaps enemies, dealing AoE damage at their location. Your active job is positioning, refreshing Arbiter form via Falling Star or Condemn, and using Defiance/Holy Light Aura situationally.

Do I need Sanctus of Kethamar?

It is the best-in-slot amulet and provides the largest damage multiplier and aura potency in the build, but the build still functions without it. After the nerf, you no longer need it just to clear content — you do still want it for serious Pit pushing.

How do I survive in Echoing Hatred?

Wing Strikes is one of the tankiest Paladin setups. Stack Maximum Life across all slots, use Aspect of Heavenly Strength on a 2H weapon for flat damage reduction, and lean on the layered barrier generation from Temerity pants + barrier-related skill tree nodes. Defiance Aura provides Unstoppable for clutch saves.