So Path of Exile 2 is out in early access for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC, and even with roughly 82 percent of its 31K user reviews being positive, fans have mixed opinions. Some are blasting through the campaign, annihilating everything in their path. Others are struggling, getting trapped by monsters in a corner (as often happened to me) and dying. Impressions on loot are pretty much divided, with some getting a steady amount of Exalts and Rare gear throughout the campaign while others are less favored.
There’s a lot to get through, and while I had fun with the game, there are things to keep in mind for those on the fence. Let’s go over 15 of them here.
This is NOT Path of Exile 1
It’s obvious but bears repeating – Path of Exile 2 isn’t the same game as Path of Exile 1. Yes, it shares many systems like the giant Passive tree, Skill and Support Gems, etc., but the movement, combat, enemy and boss design, and so on are completely different. You need to take advantage of new mechanics to survive (besides simply dodge-rolling out of the way) and rely on more than a Skill or two to do some damage.
Side Quests
For years, players perfected an optimized playthrough of the first game’s campaign, including which side quests were mandatory. Throw that out the window with Path of Exile 2, and make sure you complete every side quest available. Not only will you fight monsters for additional EXP, but you’ll also earn Skill Gems, Passive Skill Points, Gold, and even some gear.
Zone Bosses
While exploring different regions, you may find bosses in the world that aren’t part of a main or side quest. Some can be outright brutal (Blackjaw. Not even once), but the rewards are usually worth it, including permanent buffs to resistances, life, mana, and much more. You can even rematch them to get some additional Gold (loot is a completely different story).
Skills
While Path of Exile fans will notice familiar Skills, there are differences in how you earn and equip them. An Uncut Gem provides a choice of one of four Skills in the beginning, but as your level increases, more become available (though you also have to meet the stat requirement to unlock and use them). Each Skill starts with two sockets – you’ll need Jeweller’s Orbs to add more sockets. It also seems that higher-level Skill Gems with more sockets can drop, so don’t sell them immediately because you already have a level 14 or 15 Skill. Also, unlike Path of Exile 1, you must find higher-level Gems to upgrade a Skill – using it and earning XP from kills sadly won’t level them up.
Support Gems
Support Gems have different levels, though they’re not nearly as high as Skill Gems. They provide differing effects, like cutting through a set amount of enemy resistance, more projectiles at the cost of damage, etc. While the game will recommend certain Support Skills, it’s best to click on the arrow below to see all the available options and find the one best suited for your playstyle.
Resistances
Resistances are important in Path of Exile 2, especially since you won’t get access to much in the starting Passive tree nodes. Find more on gear and jewellery as you go along since further story progress will apply negative modifiers to your current resistances (which only becomes more punishing in Cruel difficulty). Even if a piece of gear fits your current stat requirements, try to craft or purchase something superior for higher resistance. It may not make the greatest difference in endgame, but it’s better than nothing.
Dodging
There are many unanswered questions with Path of Exile 2 currently, including: How exactly does the darned dodge roll work? When swarmed by monsters, you can’t dodge through them, and it doesn’t have invincibility frames. The start of a dodge roll will avoid many strikes and projectile attacks but not slam attacks and area-of-effect spells. For the latter, it’s best to move around normally and then dodge when you’re confident of landing outside or away from the attack.
Melee Builds
Though every class can attempt melee in some fashion, most players will opt for only two. The Warrior has received some criticism for its janky Skills and the default attack dealing the most damage. However, the Invoker has been crushing content with skills like Glacial Cascade, Tempest Flurry, Tempest Bell (to the extent that many feel it’s bugged), and Charged Staff. And since you’re relying on elemental damage, you’ll avail of benefits like freezing and shocking enemies.
Ranged Builds
Having played a Sorceress and transitioned to a Stormweaver during my time with the game, casting Frost Wall to build freeze and activate Cast on Freeze to bring down a Comet on enemies worked wonders. However, Deadeye Rangers are seeing much more success, especially with Lightning Arrow, or Gas Arrow plus Flame Wall to ignite it (though it may get nerfed soon). Heck, some builds that use the Mercenary’s grenades are opting for Deadeye for its extra projectiles and damage reduction with Wind Ward.
Ascendancies
Ascendancies are your sub-classes in Path of Exile 2, offering additional buffs and passives aside from the default tree. Unlocking them can be a headache, though – you must complete Trial of the Sekhemas to unlock your Ascendancy (and choose carefully, because there’s currently no way to change it). After that, it’s the Trial of Chaos, which requires completing four rounds of Ultimatum to gain more Ascendancy Points.
Both activities are challenging, so it’s recommended to play them when you’re over-levelled and have good gear. Completing both activities on higher difficulties is required for the remaining Ascendancy Points, though they’re clearly over-tuned. Look for the Djinn coins that have three trials and the Inscribed Ultimatums with seven trials. Tackle Ultimatum and wait for the Trial of the Sekhemas to receive much-needed balance changes.
Crafting
Gone is the crafting bench and spending currency to add specific resistances, life or allowing your gear to have three crafted modifiers. Instead, you must spend currency like Regal Orbs, Exalts, etc. to add modifiers. There are several ways to go about this, like finding a Magic item with a desired stat, adding a random modifier with an Orb of Augmentation, upgrading it to a Rare with a Regal Orb and adding more modifiers with Exalts.
Alternatively, if you find a good Rare item with an undesired modifier, use a Chaos Orb to replace it with a new one or an Orb of Annulment to remove it (though both are random, so take your chances). Keep checking vendors for any new items and try to save those Exalts for the items that you know are going to be with you for longer periods.
Reforging Bench
Once you obtain the hammer for the Forgemaster in Act 3, you get the Reforging Bench, but it’s not quite like the Recombinator from Sentinel League or the Settlers of Kalguur bench. You must have three items of the same type and rarity – no corruption. They’ll turn into a new item with an item level that’s the lowest of the three. More experimentation is required, but for now, it’s best to avoid it unless you’re chasing after specific types of loot and have a bunch of extras.
Selling vs. Disenchanting
Whenever you’re selling items, get them identified, usually from the Hooded One for mass IDs, to sell for more Gold. You can also disenchant, aka exchange them for shards of orbs. It’s hard to say when you should do more selling vs. disenchanting. If you’re in the endgame and your build is figured out, sell loot for Gold. Alternatively, you might want to save any good gear or weapons for other classes if you ever want to make alternate characters.
Endgame
Despite the systemic issues some have with Path of Exile 2, most seem to enjoy the campaign. The endgame with the Atlas of Worlds is a different story. Much of this is due to the quality of loot drops, but there are other issues. For instance, be careful when tackling nodes with Ritual, Delirium, Breach, etc. Depending on your build, using lower-tier Waystones with less punishing modifiers may be ideal. If you die on a map, the node is still available, and you can attempt it again with a different Waystone, but the end-game mechanics will be gone.
This is a Challenging Game
You may have heard some people complaining about the difficulty and others telling them to get good. And while there is a method to successfully conquer all the challenges that Path of Exile 2 has in store, let’s make one thing clear – this is a hard game. Even if you’re not getting dog-piled by enemies with no way to roll out, it’s Rares or bosses stomping you into the ground without mercy.
It may not suit everyone, especially with how difficult it is to come across resistance passives early on in the passive tree, add more Support Gem slots to skills, and whatever is the deal with Trial of the Sekhemas and Ultimatum. And that’s perfectly fine. It wouldn’t be surprising if GGG heavily retuned the difficulty in the coming weeks, so waiting to see how early access pans out (especially since the full game will be free) isn’t a bad idea.
