How Do You Deal With The Encounter With Ekbab And Iktab In Path Of Exile 2? - Battle Guide
Path of Exile 2, which has been popular all over the world for some time, has become a popular target for many players who love challenges because of its unique boss battle encounter mechanism. A double boss encounter in Act 2 of this sequel has become the most discussed topic among exiles.
The two bosses are Ekbab, Ancient Steed and Iktab, Deathlord. They will reward you with Mastodon Tusks and a piece to assemble the Horn of Vastiri, so that you can cross the current desert and go to more dangerous places.
Since the difficulty of fighting two bosses at the same time is very high among the boss encounters in the whole game, this guide will show you how to find Ekbab and Iktab, as well as the attacks and mechanisms they use in the battle, so that you can complete this unique boss encounter faster and more comfortable.
How To Find Ekbab And Iktab?
The first thing we need to know is that Ekbab, Ancient Steed and Iktab, Deathlord are located in The Bone Pits in Act 2, which you will find during A Theft of Ivory quest.
You will explore two very important locations during this quest, the first being the Mastodon Badlands. Although there is no boss to fight here, it is great for farming POE 2 Currency and some loot, as it contains a lot of lower-level monsters that are easily defeated by your normal attacks. The other location is The Bone Pits where you fight Ekbab and Iktab.
How To Defeat Ekbab And Iktab?
As you explore The Bone Pits, a very large area, you will definitely come across Blackrib Pit, which is the location of the arena where you fight these two bosses. Since this arena is regional, try not to set foot in it until you have decided on a strategy to deal with them.
It is also worth noting that when either Ekbab or Iktab is defeated, the other will be given some power, which will cause their damage output per attack to be very high and very efficient, so when making your build, you can’t focus your main attack power on only one boss.
You can try to spend some POE 2 Exalted Orbs to invest in multiple gears with different offensiveness, so that they can deal equal damage to each other, so that Ekbab and Iktab’s health will be depleted at the same rate, and then quickly defeat them one after another. After you prepare a powerful build, you also need to understand the attack moves and mechanics of these two bosses so that you can react faster and more accurately during the battle.
Also Read: Player Feedback: The Endgame In Path Of Exile 2 Would Be Better With Some Changes!
Ekbab, The Ancient Seed
- Ground Slam: If you see Ekbab is standing up, it means that it is about to raise its front hooves and slam itself in front of it, which will cause a wave of cascading damage to you. So you need to dodge immediately when you see it standing up to avoid this attack.
- Tusk Swipe: At this time, Ekbab will swing his head to the left to cause tremendous damage, so you can stay on its right side to avoid this move. But it should be noted that it is always moving, so Ekbab will often swing to the right, so please always pay attention to the direction of its head swing.
- Charge: When you see Ekbab start to retreat, it is about to use this attack move: charging forward to cause unbearable straight-line damage once hit. At this time, it is recommended that you can increase the mobility in the build as much as possible, or keep some distance to better avoid this attack.
In general, most of the attacks used by Ekbab can be judged by its actions before the attack and the distance between you and the boss. The safe area you are standing in is generally safer on both sides. So between Ekbab and Iktab, Ekbab is easier, but when it gains a buff because of Iktab’s death, it will be your real challenge.
After gaining the specified buff, Ekbab will create a smaller version of Iktab’s Ghost Nova, which will fire a number of projectiles at you. There will also be one or two small ghost orbs that will follow you around and explode when they get close to you. The strategies available here are very limited, as each player’s play style is slightly different, but the easiest way to practice is to just keep dodging their attacks until the projectiles are gone.
Iktab, The Dreadlord
- Lightning Wand: Iktab will fire a bunch of small lightning projectiles around the arena that will explode when they hit your character. Unfortunately, it’s hard to tell where the projectiles are from, so when you see the first set, it’s best to stay at a distance or dodge.
- Sigil Meteor: If you see orange marks on the ground, it means Iktab is about to summon a meteor to hit those marks for heavy damage. Obviously, you need to avoid the orange marks and find a way to deal some damage to the boss from a safe area.
- Lightning Strikes: Not only do you need to avoid the orange marks, but you also need to pay special attention to the blue ones that appear in the arena, as they are the signs that Iktab will release Lightning Strikes to deal heavy lightning damage to you. During this process, it is recommended that you equip some POE 2 Items that can provide you with lightning resistance to keep your character safe.
- Ghost Nova: After getting all the above moves, you will see a nova appear in the center of the arena, which will periodically fire some projectiles at you while slowly spinning. It is best to move to the edge of the arena and give yourself some space to deal damage to the boss. Also, be careful to avoid each projectile as the nova moves, which has tremendous damage.
When Ekbab dies, all of Iktab’s attacks gain a huge buff: Sigil meteors will form waves that cover most of the arena, Lightning Strikes become denser, and Ghost Nova’s novas will spin faster and projectiles will fly faster.
In addition, Iktab gains a new attack called Bone Tendrils, which is the only Area Damage of the two bosses. You will see 5 circular AOEs around where you are standing, which will explode after a few seconds. So you may need to move around to stay in a safe area.
That’s it for finding and fighting the two powerful bosses Ekbab and Iktab in POE 2. Overall, the best strategy for completing this encounter is to deal with Iktab first, as Ekbab has a strengthened attack that is easier to avoid. Once you defeat them both, you can find Mastodon Tusks from the loot provided to you and then embark on your journey to find the rest of Horn of Vastiri. Have fun!
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In Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.5, Abyss farming has emerged as a highly popular strategy. Driven by Omen of Light and other high-value Abyss drops, the approach has shifted from chasing specific items to a comprehensive strategy that prioritizes overall returns and resource efficiency. Let's take a look at the changes to Abyss content in Patch 0.5.5 and how to build an effective farming setup.
What's Different About Abyss in Patch 0.5.5?
Patch 0.5.5 introduces several enhancements to Abyss mechanic.
Ghastly Relics now affect all large Abyssal Chests spawned within Pits, rather than just the final chest; additionally, of Champions suffix on Abyssal Tablets has been buffed, increasing the number of spawned rare monsters from 1-2 to 2-3. The introduction of Abyssal Ravines further increases the likelihood of consistently encountering Abyss content within maps.
These changes have shifted the focus of Abyss farming toward Abyssal Depths. Recent player testing indicates that while obtaining Omen of Light in standard maps has become more difficult, Abyssal Depths have emerged as a crucial source. Meanwhile, high-value drops like Cranium have raised the potential profitability of Abyss farming strategy.
Core Mechanics
Omen of Light is an extremely valuable currency item. When active, it ensures that the next use of an Orb of Annulment removes only a Desecrated modifier. This effect is highly prized for high-end gear crafting.
In Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.5, the acquisition method for Omen of Light has changed: any rare monster within Abyssal Depths has a chance to drop it, regardless of faction. In contrast, within standard maps, only monsters belonging to Amanamu faction - specifically those bearing Amanamu's Void Lichborn modifier - can drop Omen of Light.
It is worth noting that monsters affected by Amanamu's Void are surrounded by black smoke. If you kill the monster while it is still inside the smoke, you will only obtain an Omen of the Liege; you must lure the monster out of the smoke before killing it to have a chance at obtaining other Abyssal Omens, including the Omen of Light.
Therefore, the primary advantage of choosing Amanamu faction is that it covers both sources of the Omen of Light: regular maps and Abyssal Depths.
Atlas Passives and Map Configuration
As established, the acquisition efficiency of Omen of Light in Abyssal Depths was significantly increased in version 0.5.5. So, how should you configure your Atlas passives and maps to maximize returns?
Atlas Passives
First, select Jado as your Atlas Master; his Spycraft focuses on map enhancements, Tablet effects, and rewards from Abyss chests.
Regarding Atlas passive tree, prioritize the following nodes:
- Unexpected Mission: A must-have node for corrupted maps; it further boosts map rewards.
- Partial Translation: Provides up to a 40% increase in Tablet effects, significantly boosting overall map returns.
- Mysterious Gifts: Increases the drop rate of Cryptic Keys, which are used to open Abyssal Troves.
- Ancient Activations: Improves chest quality and increases the spawn rate of rare chests.
Within Abyss Atlas passive tree, selecting the Amanamu faction node is the top priority. Other key passives include:
- Scattered Pits: If your Tablet already has a modifier granting a 10% effect boost for every closed Pit, this node offers additional chances for Heart of the Well drops.
- Forest Biomes: Increases the number of rare monsters.
- Water Biomes: Increases the number of currency chests.
- Rarity-related nodes: Prioritize nodes that boost item rarity and monster rarity.
Map Preparation
For map Waystones, prioritize stacking item rarity and monster rarity; aim for at least 55% item rarity and 25% monster rarity. Item rarity primarily boosts the map's base rewards, while monster rarity further increases the chance of high-value drops. If you are on a limited budget, you can lower the monster rarity slightly, but abandoning it entirely is not recommended.
Regarding Tablets, the core objective for this Abyss farming strategy is to increase Abyss density, the number of rare monsters, and overall drop quality; using 3-4 Tablets is recommended. Regarding modifiers, prioritize attributes that directly boost map returns - such as item rarity, monster rarity, tablet effectiveness, and additional Abyss encounters - while ensuring at least one Abyssal Depths modifier is included to increase the chance of accessing Depths.
The of Champions suffix for Abyss Tablets is particularly noteworthy, as it causes Abyss to spawn 2-3 additional Rare Monsters within the map.
It is recommended to keep the total cost of Tablet configuration within the equivalent of 2-3 Omens of Light to ensure the overall cost-efficiency of your farming runs.
Practical Gameplay and Operational Tips
Map Selection
Prioritize the city map due to its layout and the available space for Tablet configurations. Once inside, progress along the Abyss crack and close the Pits sequentially; if your Tablet includes relevant modifiers, closing a Pit can further enhance the effects of the Abyss monsters.
Abyssal Depths
If an entrance to Abyssal Depths appears after Abyss crack collapses, prioritize entering it. Rare Monsters here have a chance to drop Omens of Light, making this a crucial source of profit for this farming strategy. Use a Cryptic Key to open any large Abyssal Chests you encounter.
Kill Priority
In actual gameplay, prioritize Rare Monsters with Abyss modifiers, followed by Rogue Exiles, and finally clear out ordinary monsters. Pay special attention to the location where you kill Amanamu's Void monsters; failing to do so could result in missing out on Omen of Light drops.
Overall, Abyss mechanic in PoE 2 0.5.5 has evolved from a simple hunt for Omens of Light into a comprehensive farming system centered on Abyssal Depths, Rare Monsters, Abyssal Chests, and high-value drops.
Its strengths lie in its straightforward gameplay and diverse revenue streams, while still offering a high profit ceiling. However, since access to Abyssal Depths and high-value drops involves RNG, actual returns can fluctuate significantly. As long as you manage Tablet costs and adjust your configuration based on market prices, this Abyss farming strategy remains a solid, reliable choice for the current patch.
Although nearly four months have passed since the initial release of Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.0, the new Ascendancy classes introduced then remain solid choices; Spirit Walker, for instance, has several viable builds available in 0.5.5 league.
If you are looking to significantly boost your damage, particularly against single targets, Freezing Shards Spirit Walker Build, which relies on the specific Gelid Staff item, is a reliable option. Here, we will outline the crafting strategy for this build.
What is the core mechanic of this build?
Freezing Shards skill in this build is granted to you upon equipping Gelid Staff. By default, the skill fires six projectiles, all of which can strike the same enemy.
This means that when facing single targets, stacking many projectiles allows you to deal massive damage through shotgunning (hitting a single target with multiple projectiles simultaneously).
By combining this with Spirit Walker's Primal Bounty skill, you can further increase projectile count and damage, enabling you to instantly kill bosses and smoothly clear high-difficulty content.
However, it is worth noting that under current PoE 2 mechanics, Freezing Shards appears to have some bugs; certain modifiers that should provide additional projectiles do not seem to be functioning correctly.
It is unclear whether this is intentional or a technical error, but it results in a significant loss of combat power. Fortunately, even before a fix is implemented, other viable strategies can be developed around Primal Bounty.
Passive skill and gem options
Freezing Shards Spirit Walker Build establishes its core defensive and offensive setup by combining Energy Shield, high critical strike potential, and damage mitigation via minions.
To this end, the most crucial element in Spirit Walker's passive tree is Primal Bounty. Serving as the primary source of burst damage, this skill allows you to accumulate three stacks of Owl Feather charges over six seconds; these charges are then consumed by performing a dodge roll to empower your next skill.
The empowered skill fires six additional projectiles and significantly increases projectile speed. Additionally, unlocking Mhacha's Gift node in Spirit Walker passive tree further accelerates the rate at which Owl Feather charges are generated.
Mana Tempest skill grants a buff that causes projectiles to split, thereby increasing the total number of projectiles. Additionally, Breachlord's Amalgam Lineage Support Gem allows all projectiles to return to you after traveling, dealing damage a second time.
Wild Protector is another key PoE 2 Ascendancy passive that summons a bear. By boosting the bear's survivability, you can have it soak up damage on your behalf.
For instance, unlocking Sacred Unity node grants the bear Embrace of the Wild effect, allowing it to share 8% of the damage you take. Further enhancing the bear's tankiness is possible by combining this with support gems like Hulking Minions and Meat Shield.
Another Lineage Support Gem, Zarokh's Revolt, introduces a long-cooldown mechanic that lets you cast Freezing Shards five times in rapid succession. You should also pair this with Pinpoint Critical to boost your critical strike chance, which is crucial for this build.
PoE 2 Projectile Acceleration III provides increased projectile speed and damage, making it an excellent synergy with Primal Bounty.
What does the gear setup entail?
The key to maximizing the effectiveness of Freezing Shards Spirit Walker Build is ensuring every projectile hits the target enemy. However, achieving this in actual combat is difficult; even when facing a boss at point-blank range, many projectiles often fly off-target.
In other words, hit registration is a highly inconsistent factor for this build, but fortunately, this issue can be resolved by equipping Ghostmarch Threaded Shoes.
These unique boots allow you to pass through enemies while performing a dodge roll. You can use this maneuver to position yourself inside the enemy's hitbox, thereby significantly increasing the likelihood that your Freezing Shards projectiles will connect with the target.
While this phasing technique requires some practice to master, it is currently the most reliable method in Path of Exile 2 to ensure all projectiles hit the boss.
For your core gear, Gelid Staff, ideally, you should reroll the stats to prioritize +Cold Skill Levels, Spell Damage, Critical Strike Chance, Critical Strike Multiplier, Cast Speed, and any other high-quality damage modifiers.
Of course, don't forget to increase the staff's quality, as doing so grants an additional projectile for Freezing Shards.
Another excellent gear upgrade for this build is to roll modifiers on your gloves that grant +2 to the level of projectile skills, along with increased projectile speed and damage bonuses, resulting in a significant boost to your overall damage output.
Additionally, equipping two Pearl Rings with increased cast speed modifiers can drastically improve your casting speed, while also helping to cap your resistances and provide extra cold damage.
The amulet slot is another prime location to boost your damage in Path of Exile 2. Prioritize finding modifiers that offer increased cast speed and bonuses to projectile skill levels, while focusing other stats on defense, maximum life, and resistances.
For your body armor, ensure you have reserved enough Spirit to accommodate all necessary gems as well as defensive and resistance-boosting modifiers. Apply the same logic to your helmet, prioritize stacking defensive stats wherever possible.
That covers everything for this guide. If this build aligns with your plans for your next PoE 2 session, why not give it a try right away? Good luck!
In Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.5, Expedition remains a highly profitable endgame farming method. Here, I introduce a streamlined speed-farming strategy for Grand Expeditions: instead of aiming to clear the entire map, you quickly scan for Runic Remnants, engage only with high-value rewards, and exit immediately, thereby maximizing profit per unit of time.
This farming method requires a certain level of character power. If you have a build with high movement speed and efficient map-clearing capabilities, consistently generating dozens of Divine Orbs per hour is entirely achievable. However, if your character clears monsters slowly, the time cost will erode the profits gained from repeatedly entering and exiting maps; it is recommended to upgrade your build before attempting this strategy.
Core Mechanic: How do Runic Remnants work in Grand Expeditions?
Grand Expeditions are specialized maps unlocked via Logbooks. Unlike standard map Expeditions, Grand Expeditions feature a large number of Runic Remnants, each with a varying number of Rune Slots.
Placing and detonating explosives on a Runic Remnant spawns enemies affected by specific Runic Modifiers. Defeating these enemies grants the rewards associated with that Remnant. Generally, more Rune Slots mean a greater impact on enemies and a larger scale of rewards, making multi-slot Remnants the primary targets of interest.
This is the heart of the speed-farming strategy: prioritize high-value Runic Remnants rather than clearing the entire Grand Expedition map. Upon entering, quickly scout the area to check the rewards offered by various Remnants; if you find a target worth pursuing (using a value of 1 Divine Orb as a benchmark), place your explosives and complete the encounter. If the map contains no worthwhile rewards, do not waste time - simply detonate one charge and exit immediately.
Expedition Atlas Passive Tree: Two Key Nodes
As of PoE 2 Patch 0.5.4, Expedition has its own dedicated Atlas Passive Skill Tree, comprising 24 nodes in total, 12 of which are Notables. These talent points are earned by defeating bosses in Grand Expedition questline and are completely independent of the standard Atlas Tree points.
For Grand Expedition speed-farming strategy, two nodes are particularly important.
Feeling Lucky?
The first is Feeling Lucky?. Allocating this node causes Farrow to start selling Liquid Verisium. This is a kind of POE 2 currency used on Runic Remnants that allows you to directly reset Runic Inscription on that Remnant - essentially a free reroll.
When you encounter a Runic Remnant with good slot placement but a poor reward list, using Liquid Verisium to reroll it offers a chance to transform it into a high-value target, significantly boosting the expected yield per map.
Extra Remnant
The second node is Extra Remnant. It directly increases the number of Runic Remnants encountered during an Expedition. For speed-farming, a higher number of Remnants means more rewards can be checked within a given timeframe, making it easier to find high-value targets worth using explosives on.
The remaining 22 nodes can be allocated according to personal preference. However, there is one more node to consider: Extreme Archaeology. It alters the explosive mechanics, replacing the standard multiple small-scale placements with a single, large-area blast.
While this significantly simplifies the explosive placement process, it also activates more enemies at once, placing higher demands on your character's clear speed and survivability. Therefore, if your goal is simply to execute a consistent speed-farming strategy, there is no need to rush into allocating this node.
Map and Logbook Selection and Usage
Grand Expedition speed-farming places almost no requirements on the map itself. Whether the map is Normal, Magic, Rare, or Unique, as long as your character can complete it quickly and locate Expedition, it is suitable for use.
Since the primary returns from this strategy come from Runic Remnant rewards rather than the map's inherent drops, there is no need to invest excessive resources into Waystone. For high-speed builds, minimizing the time spent per map is usually more important than maximizing the returns from map modifiers.
Logbooks are crucial resources for accessing the Ocean region and locating Grand Expeditions. Using a Logbook reveals a new exploration zone within the Atlas's Ocean region, featuring standard Expeditions, Grand Expeditions, and other special encounters. Note that a Grand Expedition is not a standalone map launched directly by Logbook; instead, it appears as content within the revealed Ocean exploration zone. Therefore, the basic gameplay loop is quite simple: obtain Logbooks from standard Expeditions found in regular Path of Exile 2 maps, use them to explore oceanic zones, and hunt for Grand Expeditions. Once inside a Grand Expedition, focus on inspecting Runic Remnants and engage only with high-value targets that justify the time investment.
Standard map Expeditions are also a crucial part of this cycle. Runic Monsters have a chance to drop Logbooks, creating a continuous resource loop between standard Expeditions and Grand Expeditions.
Overall, the core strategy for speed-farming Grand Expeditions in Path of Exile 2 is straightforward: use a high-speed build to quickly clear maps, selectively target high-value Runic Remnants, and concentrate your time on objectives that truly offer the best returns. This approach is best suited for players who prioritize efficiency - maximizing profit per unit of time - and whose characters already possess strong mobility and clear speed.
If you regularly farm Abyss content in Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.5, using Heart of the Well to make currency is a strategy well worth trying.
Acquiring them isn't complicated: simply spawn Rogue Exiles on top of Abyss, and they have a chance to drop Heart of the Well diamond. These diamonds are inexpensive, typically costing between 16 and 18 Chaos Orbs.
The goal is straightforward: take this cheap material and use Desecrate to craft it into a high-value jewel, profiting from the price difference. Sounds tempting, doesn't it?
Affix Rules
Before diving in, you need to understand the affix distribution for Heart of the Well.
The first and last Desecrate steps always grant a prefix, while the intermediate steps grant a suffix. This makes the initial prefix crucial; you'll usually want to activate an Omen of Abyssal Echoes to gamble for a beneficial affix.
Among prefixes, Lightning and Cold damage bonuses are the most valuable. Fire bonuses are usable, but Chaos bonuses are the least desirable.
If the first step doesn't yield a beneficial affix, continuing the process is usually not cost-effective; it's best to stop there rather than stubbornly pushing on.
There are plenty of good options for suffixes - such as Rage, Attack Speed, Cast Speed, Mana on Kill, Critical Strike-related mods, Rage on Melee Hit, and Skill Effect Duration - all of which have a market.
Memorize the valuable affixes so you can make quick decisions during the crafting process.
Crafting Process
First, head to The Well of Souls to perform the crafting.
Next, activate Omen of Abyssal Echoes and perform the first Desecrate on the diamond.
If you land a Lightning or Cold bonus, you can happily proceed. A Fire bonus is also worth keeping, but be cautious with Chaos bonuses, as they rarely fetch a high price.
During the intermediate steps, aim for the useful suffixes mentioned earlier; these significantly boost the final sale price.
Finally, use the last Desecrate to gamble for another beneficial prefix, aiming to secure a double-bonus item.
If you end up with a dud, don't rush to throw it away; Reforging Bench in PoE 2 allows you to combine three jewels of the same type to recoup some value - or even turn trash into treasure.
Throughout the process, constantly evaluate whether the base item is worth continuing with; avoid wasting time on jewels that lack potential.
When crafting in bulk, try focusing on the first prefix roll across all items first. Discard any that don't yield the desired bonus before processing the rest; this approach is significantly more efficient.
Also, patience is key during crafting. Not every Heart of the Well will roll a great combination of modifiers, but when you do hit a good one, the payoff is often substantial.
Comparing Market Prices
Keep in mind that the price variance for finished jewels in Path of Exile 2 is huge, so always check the market before selling.
A near-perfect Heart of the Well can fetch around 65 PoE 2 Divine Orbs - a single sale that could recoup the majority of your total crafting costs.
A Heart of the Well with both Fire and Lightning bonuses goes for about 14 Divines; adding a Critical Spell Damage bonus pushes the price to 20 Divines, and including Critical Hit Chance can bring it close to 50 Divines (listing it at 49 Divines often makes it easier to sell).
Similarly, Cold and Lightning bonus combination is highly sought-after in PoE 2; adding Critical Hit Chance allows for a price of around 24 Divines, while adding Mana Regeneration can push it to 34 Divines.
However, as mentioned earlier, combinations like Fire and Chaos bonuses are cheaper; a pure Chaos bonus version might only sell for 1 Divine Orb.
Unless, of course, you also roll Spell Damage bonus or Mana on Kill, which could raise the price to 5 or 6 Divines.
Heart of the Well, featuring other useful modifiers - such as Movement Speed or Attack Speed - can also command prices ranging from 18 to 35 Divine Orbs.
Finally, when setting your price, it is best to check what other players are asking for similar Heart of the Well.
Listing yours slightly lower usually helps it sell faster without sacrificing too much profit. If a jewel sits unsold for a long time, you can lower the price appropriately, but avoid dropping it too far below your cost.
Returns and Risks
The cost of this strategy - profiting from the price spread of Heart of the Well jewels - is around 75 Divine Orbs. Since there is potential to nearly double your investment, the profit margins are indeed attractive.
Of course, not every Heart of the Well you craft will yield a profit; producing duds is inevitable. You will need to rely on Reforging Bench and smart pricing strategies to minimize losses.
However, you must approach this with the right mindset: view it as a steady, long-term jewel-trading business rather than a gamble for an overnight fortune.
You must strictly adhere to the rules for filtering modifiers during every craft: abandon the item immediately if the initial roll lacks beneficial stats, or stop if the suffix rolls are subpar. Only by maintaining this discipline can you ensure consistent profitability.
This type of jewel has performed strongly across multiple leagues in PoE 2, and it remains a powerful option in the current Patch 0.5.5. Consequently, if you regularly farm Abyss content, this strategy will generate a reliable stream of extra income.
Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.5 has been live for two weeks. Although this is merely an interim mini-league without a massive amount of new content, players have fully immersed themselves in it, discovering new gameplay mechanics and build possibilities.
Compared to the ongoing Patch 0.5.0, 0.5.5 Forbidden Rites League introduces several commendable changes to PoE 2, though there are still areas that fall short of perfection.
With the full 1.0 launch of PoE 2 approaching after 0.5.5, we are highlighting the shortcomings revealed by this patch. We hope the development team can address these issues promptly to ensure a superior experience for the final release.
Review of new gameplay in 0.5.5
Forbidden Rites League replaces the campaign's Remnants mechanic with Rituals. This allows you to encounter Exiles early on and earn extra PoE 2 currency, or valuable gear to boost your build's power, through these encounters.
While the difficulty spikes sharply as you progress, making it easy to die if your build isn't fully optimized, the mechanic offers a fresh experience and additional ways to generate rewards beyond what was available in 0.5.0.
However, once you reach the endgame, the relevance and profitability of Ritual mechanic begin to wane, eventually becoming lackluster. Unless you specifically tailor your tactics to it, the mechanic tends to fade into the background of your daily farming routine.
Another addition in Patch 0.5.5 is the optimization of Trial of Chaos. By reducing the number of gimmicky room types, more levels now focus on pure combat; simultaneously, the boss arenas have been downsized to create a tighter, more intense combat experience.
Additionally, in the new Trial of Chaos, you can earn top-tier loot by challenging Trialmaster or simply collect Soul Cores. These can be used to enhance your gear setup or sold for currency.
Issues with Atlas system
As the core of Path of Exile 2, Atlas defines the endgame experience, while its associated passive tree determines your character's ultimate potential.
Although the current Atlas system has improved compared to earlier versions, there are still design elements that hinder the overall flow of gameplay.
While acquiring passive points is faster now than before, the issue remains that you must endure a lengthy grind before you can truly begin efficient mapping.
Even if you have allocated the nodes for the main passive tree and those related to Vaal Temple, theoretically enabling you to farm the temple, you won't achieve a truly reliable farming experience without also investing in other areas and Masters of Atlas nodes.
However, doing so forces you to clear a multitude of worthless, throwaway maps just to unlock the necessary pathing nodes, significantly disrupting the momentum of executing your specific mapping strategy.
Another issue is that the feedback and rewards for defeating the boss, Arbiter of Divinity, lack clarity; this not only risks discouraging players but also confuses newcomers unfamiliar with the encounter.
The current mechanics require you to collect fragments and defeat Arbiter of Divinity a second time to fully claim the available points. Faced with such a tedious and unengaging system, you might prefer simply trading for the fragments on the exchange.
We suggest that PoE 2 development team enhance the rewards and sense of accomplishment associated with the first defeat of Arbiter of Divinity, while also allowing players to gradually unlock the remaining Atlas points through open-world gameplay or standard mapping.
Suggestions for QoL improvements
Beyond core gameplay, ensuring a strong launch for Path of Exile 2 version 1.0 requires the development team to prioritize further QoL optimizations.
First, regarding item storage, the game could adopt a feature from the original title: a dedicated mini-stash located near the map interface for storing temporarily acquired maps and currency used for rerolling map modifiers, thereby preventing them from cluttering the main inventory.
Additionally, when encountering Strongboxes or rare enemies within a map, the system should allow players to access currency directly from their main stash or provide a dedicated storage space, eliminating the need to constantly carry around a multitude of miscellaneous orbs.
Furthermore, Tablet configuration system should allow players to preset and instantly switch between different tablet combinations to adapt to varying terrain or strategies, reducing the tedium of frequent manual swapping.
Ideally, the development team should also resolve the issue where tablets remain locked in a character's inventory when switching to a different character. In fact, the most efficient solution would be to make tablets shared across all characters on the same account.
It is worth noting that in the current trading market, some unscrupulous players sell used Tablets, which have very few remaining uses, as if they were fresh, fully-charged items.
To mitigate this issue, it would be best to either prohibit the sale of used Tablets entirely or mandate the display of their remaining usage count.
Regarding game balance and mechanics, PoE 2 currently relies too heavily on Hit Damage, making it difficult for DoT and Chaos-based builds to scale effectively in the endgame.
We also recommend that Path of Exile 2 implement a death replay feature. This would allow players to review the source of fatal damage and real-time combat logs, helping them understand exactly why they died and enabling more efficient build optimization. Such a feature would also assist in identifying hidden bugs.
While PoE 2 version 0.5.5 has certainly made strides in campaign innovation and core gameplay improvements, further refinements to the finer details are needed to ensure the final 1.0 release is truly polished. We sincerely hope the development team delivers an official launch in December that satisfies the player base.
Exiles, do you want to experience the thrill of commanding an army of archers and blanketing the entire screen in a rain of arrows in Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.5? Tactician build we are introducing here is designed exactly for that kind of spectacle.
Centered on Archon of Undead and high-frequency Command skills, Tactician can rapidly clear screens while maintaining a solid defensive position through crowd control, letting your minions handle the suppressive fire!
Core Damage Output
First, Tactician's primary damage comes from Supporting Fire and Command: Death From Above. These skills carry the Minion tag and unleash a massive volley of arrows from your army positioned in the rear.
The damage of a single arrow is already substantial, and the shotgun effect allows multiple arrows to strike the same target; this damage stacking becomes even more devastating against large-sized enemies.
Next, we incorporate Pin II support gem and Tactician's Right Where We Want Them skill. Enemies affected by Pin are immobilized, providing screen-wide crowd control while keeping foes stationary to absorb the full brunt of the arrow barrage.
This combination gives the Tactician screen-clearing and single-target damage capabilities that far exceed expectations.
Rotation Mechanics
Command: Death From Above normally has a cooldown of around 10 seconds, but Archon of Undead provides damage bonuses and accelerates Command skill cooldown recovery. This compresses the cooldown to nearly one second, while the effect lasts for approximately six seconds.
Additionally, any Command skill has a 50% chance to trigger Archon of Undead. We can exploit this by frequently using Command: Explosive Demise from Skeletal Arsonist minion (it is recommended to carry two Skeletal Arsonists to ensure uptime in case one dies unexpectedly).
While Dominion passive reduces the effectiveness of Archon buffs by 50%, it also removes the recovery period, allowing for a continuous uptime window; overall, it remains a worthwhile choice.
Meanwhile, using Command skills generates Puppet Master stacks (up to a maximum of 11). These stacks boost Tactician's skill speed, reduce the movement speed penalty associated with Command skills, and increase minion movement speed.
By frequently using Command skills in Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.5, you can achieve an Archon of Undead uptime of nearly 95%.
Defense and Control
As previously mentioned, Tactician can pin enemies using support gems; this serves as a crucial form of crowd control for the build.
Pinned enemies are immobilized, which not only reduces the damage Tactician takes but also keeps foes within the area of effect of your arrow barrages, ensuring more consistent damage output.
Regarding basic survivability, mechanics such as armor, deflection, resistances, and the armor also applies to elemental damage stat all play a role in Path of Exile 2.
Ideally, your shield should feature Spirit of the Ox or Spirit of the Bear. Spirit of the Ox is generally the priority, as it grants immunity to slows and ailments while providing additional armor and damage reduction.
Additionally, Tactician can utilize defensive items like Romira's Requital (to transfer 10% of damage taken to minions) and Amanamu's Tithe (to gain an Abyssal Monster modifier upon a minion's death).
Minion Setup
Regarding minion selection, Skeletal Arsonist will be commanded frequently; therefore, its skill level should not be too high, or the mana cost of Command: Explosive Demise will become unmanageable.
Meanwhile, Skeletal Brute can be linked with Muster to amplify minion damage, Armour Demolisher II to accelerate Armour Break, and Lightning Attunement to add lightning damage and facilitate Shock application.
Thunderstorm allows Tactician to apply more reliable Shock effects during boss encounters in PoE 2, further stabilizing overall damage output.
Equipment Configuration
Scepter
Choose a scepter base that increases the maximum stacks of Puppet Master, boosts Spirit, and raises the level of summoning skills; mana regeneration affixes are also highly beneficial.
A Shining Scepter base provides free Purity of Fire and Purity of Lightning auras, whereas a Stoic Scepter focuses more on supplementing Energy Shield.
Gloves
Players should select armor-based gloves with high armor values; using Leather Bound Gauntlets allows your armor to simultaneously provide an equal amount of Evasion.
Body Armor
For body armor, a Death Mail or similar defensive chest piece - supplemented with movement speed and resistances - will greatly benefit Tactician.
Rings
Prioritize finding rings with Cooldown Recovery Rate and Minion Damage modifiers for Tactician; critical strike modifiers are only valuable if you choose to use Omen Scepter (introduced in PoE 2 Patch 0.5.5).
Amulet
Ideally, your amulet should provide +4 to Summoning Skill Levels and resistances, and have Dominion passive allocated.
Additionally, if you need to address resistance issues, a Mageblood paired with Legacy of Bismuth can simultaneously solve your resistance problems while significantly boosting Tactician's movement speed and overall power.
PoE 2 currency for sale can help you quickly acquire this key gear, making Tactician build process much smoother.
Further Upgrades
Once you achieve high uptime for Archon of Undead, the movement speed, resistances, and immunities provided by the associated passives will alleviate the build's resistance requirements.
For further progression, you can focus on upgrades like a two-socket scepter and a higher Puppet Master proc rate to build a more robust defensive system for your minions.
In short, the core strategy for Tactician build in PoE 2 is to maintain stacks of Archon of Undead and Puppet Master while cycling your Command skills frequently!
