PoE Ascendant, Trigger builds without Relic of the Pact

PoB: Exsanguinate + Arcanist Brand From what I saw, Exsanguinate doesn't seem like an amazing spell to self-cast. Spell Totems seem like the obvious solution, but I think Arcanist Brands will provide the smoothest playstyle. Exsanguinate doesn't seem to suffer from its downsides (a lot). Question: Is the DoT debuff affected by the damage reduction from Arcanist Brand? I can see it going both ways depending on how one interprets the wording. If not, this could turn out godly. If it does, still not the biggest deal when