Time to Limber Up! - A Neith Arena Guide (S6)

Hello and welcome to my very first Smite build guide!

This is a build guide for The Weaver of Fate, Neith. This is for ARENA ONLY and I will update it as often as I can as new items come out and old items disappear.

For starters, please realize this is an Arena build, which is pretty much the only game mode I play. Sometimes I do Joust, and I think you could use these builds for that too but DO NOT expect these to work well for Conquest. I hate Conquest and never play it so do not ask me for Conquest builds. Please.

I also know that my builds are not perfect. I have experimented with a lot of different builds and sometimes you need other items than I have listed. Sometimes a little crit with Neith can be okay, but mostly not. Every item is situational, to be completely honest. My builds are a guide for you, and you can swap out certain items for similar ones for different situations. It all depends on the composition of the enemy team.

I tend to play Neith as ability-based (because she is) so I tend to build pen and things that will boost my abilities. I try to do a little attack speed as she can use basic attacks to help out, and a powerful basic attack isn't gonna hurt anyone (except the enemy of course!).

I tend to not build too many high attack speed items, such as Wind Demon or any of the bows because I have tried and they just don't seem to do much for Neith. I see SO MANY people build Odysseus' Bow on her. Please do not. Just. Don't build that item at all, ever, for anyone. Well, maybe in certain situations on certain gods that need high attack speed and will do a lot of basic attacks rather than using abilities, but do not build it on Neith, for the love of all that is holy. It's one of my biggest pet peeves lol.

As for me, I don't see why it's necessary, but I will mention that Neith is my main. I didn't intend for her to be, but she is. I currently have over 5,000 worshipers on her, which I know for some is just child's play, but it's been quite an accomplishment for me. I have 15 diamond rank gods and have mastered 90 gods so far, so I don't spend a lot of time on one god, I try to be well-rounded and play every god. If I only played Neith I can only imagine how many stars I would have for her lol. And I'm still not super good at her, I get caught up by heavy CC far too often, I'm bad at escaping, and sometimes I just can't seem to hit my abilities at all, and her ult is trickier than you would think, but I've spent a lot of time playing her. And a lot of time figuring out good builds. And a lot of time getting recommendations for items from people with far more stars on Neith than I could ever hope to have. So please believe me when I say, this is, at the very least, a decent build guide.

This is my usual build.

I like to start with Transcendence, even before boots. I know this is not always what people like to do in Arena, but I tend to start by getting the Charged Morningstar because it gives a little power plus enough mana and MP5 to keep you going for a while. I like the extra mana to start with because Neith is ability-based, and one of my pet peeves with ability-based gods is I'll help with clearing all the jungle camps, and have to immediately return to base to replenish my mana. With a little extra mana, I can usually clear the camps and a wave or two of minions before really having to go back to base. So, it's a personal preference I suppose. You could totally start with boots and then build Transcendence. However, I like to build Transcendence as soon as I can for another reason: stacking. I always find myself fighting to build stacks. Either other people are also stacking, or my team just doesn't freaking understand what it means when I say I'm building stacks (it means let me kill the minions for goodness' sake!). So that's also why I build Transcendence first, so I can get to stacking ASAP.

Boots are next. ALWAYS BUY BOOTS, YOU FOOLS. Unless you have a ton of items that give movement speed, which there are very few hunters can buy, buy boots for the love of all that is holy. Boots are super important. Go with Warrior Tabi, most of the time for Neith. If you think you need extra mana and/or attack speed then switch them out for Ninja Tabi. Both are totally valid options for her, but I usually stick with Warrior Tabi because of the extra power.

Next is Executioner, just a sort of great item that I tend to build with any hunter, and even some assassins. It's a great starter/mid item that gives power, decent attack speed, and reduces your target's physical protections. Who wouldn't want to build it?

The Crusher is probably my fave item to build on Neith, or any physical god who is ability-based. Power, attack speed, and flat pen is amazing as is, but the passive is really the great part about this item. It basically has a bleed and I don't know how many times it has come in handy when someone is escaping and I've hit them with an ability but it wasn't quite enough... But wait! The Crusher comes through with that extra damage over a 2 second period and finishes them off! It's fabulous to say the least.

Heartseeker. I didn't ever hardly use this item, on any god, until a Neith main told me it was a must-build item for her. And let me tell you, now that I understand this item and have it in my arsenal, I have never been the same. It takes some getting used to, having to stack with basic attacks and then use an ability, but it's worth it. It allows ability-based gods, especially gods like Neith and Bastet, to really pack a punch, Neith with her first ability and Bastet with her third. If an enemy god is low-health, it's basically a one-shot and they're done. Especially if you can time it just right and catch them near one of Neith's weaves, then use her first ability to do the extra damage from her passive plus the built-up power from Heartseeker. It's amazing the damage she can do, to any god, but especially squishies or someone at low-health. On the other hand, you could also build Hydra's Lament for her instead. I know most people don't, and I still think Heartseeker is the greater option here, but you totally could. Use an ability and then hit them with a basic attack. It's a lot easier than landing 5 basic attacks and then also landing an ability. You don't have to think about it as much. However, I feel you can do far more damage with Heartseeker if you do it right.

Lastly, Asi. It's a great utility item. Pen, power, and attack speed, plus a little lifesteal makes it a great item all-around. Sometimes, though, I swap this last item for something else, such as Bloodforge, if I feel like I need to (i.e. I need more lifesteal or, typically, I use it when I'm getting lots of kills and need that shield to escape, which, to be honest, isn't often lol). You could also switch Asi out for Titan's Bane or Qin's Sais if you're up against a particularly tanky team, or if you just need that % pen or attack speed. It's up to you, I just think Asi is a great item since it's got a little bit of everything.

I hardly ever use this build but I thought I would include it for those of us who sometimes feel lazy, or otherwise can't be bothered to stack, or if a lot of other people are also trying to build stacks. The stacking really gives that extra power though, so I will almost always recommend a stacking build over a non-stacking build for most ability-based gods, especially Neith. However, you can attempt to build up power without stacking.

Ninja Tabi is my go-to boots set when I don't stack because without Transcendence, you need extra mana, in my opinion, and I get that mana from Ninja Tabi. You could also build Jotunn's Wrath or even Blackthorn Hammer for more mana, and that way still build Warrior Tabi.

The rest I have pretty much covered in my first build, Executioner is always a good item, as is Asi. You could swap it out for Bloodforge maybe if needed. The Crusher and Heartseeker are must-haves, in my opinion, "core" items if you will. Titan's Bane is optional, just thought that scaling pen would always be good, but if you have an enemy who is a healer, build Brawler's Beat Stick instead. Could also go with Toxic Blade but since Neith is more ability-based, I would go with Brawler's Beat Stick. You could also build both Brawler's Beat Stick and Toxic Blade (cut out Asi) if there is more than one healer.

If you want to add critical strike chance to either build, I would build Rage, probably in place of Asi or maybe Heartseeker, though I'm not keen on cutting Heartseeker from the build. A lot of people like to build Deathbringer but by itself, it doesn't do much, and while Malice is a good option now, I still prefer Rage. I only build Deathbringer and Malice if I'm building them together. I don't usually build crit on Neith though, I used to but it didn't do much in the way of me getting more kills necessarily, so I cut it out. If you feel you need crit though, that's fine, I just don't recommend doing a full crit build for her, you need more pen and power than anything else.

You can build pretty much any relics with Neith. I tend to go for Purification Beads or Aegis Amulet first, depending on who I'm up against. My second is always Meditation Cloak for any god I'm playing. The only other relic I would buy would be maybe Phantom Veil if you're against Odin but I usually only buy that if no one else on my team has it. Heavenly Wings or Magic Shell are also valid options to help your whole team.

Just a brief thing about skills: I only play Arena typically, or sometimes MOTD, so I always just leave auto skills on, that's why I didn't include Skill Build Order in this guide. Sorry! However, I would try to build up her first ability first, then second, then her ult when you can, and third ability last. Third ability is good and can do decent damage plus it has the slow, but it's mostly used as a means of escape and to create weaves, which, if your first ability is powered up enough, will allow you to do some serious damage due to her passive.

That's it for now! Like I said I will update as time goes on if I need to.

Let me know if you have comments, constructive criticism, or questions. I'm always open to making my builds, and gameplay, better.

Remember, I'm no beginner but I'm not an expert necessarily either. This is just for fun, and I thought I'd give my input since I finally have a build I like for Neith and tend to do okay with. I've looked through the top most recent build guides for Neith, at least the Arena ones, and I don't like ANY of them 100%, so I thought I'd give my own thoughts and see what people say.

My Smite username is also aquariarius, in case anyone wants to look me up.

Thanks for reading. Good luck, have fun!~