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Path of Exile 2 1.0 will officially launch on December 11th, bringing with it a new class - Duelist.

Duelist is the game's second hybrid Strength/Dexterity class. Its passive skill tree starts at the bottom center, in the same area as Mercenary. This advantageous starting position allows Duelists to easily specialize in various talent nodes such as armor, evasion, melee, and projectiles, providing players with a high degree of build freedom.

Weapons and Combat Style

Duelist's signature weapon is the sword, which can be chosen as follows:

• One-handed sword: Dual-wielding/Single-wielding (with shield or staff)
• Two-handed sword: For higher damage output

The core of swords in Path of Exile 2 lies in stance switching and a smooth combat experience. Players can seamlessly switch between different skills, weaving together various stances to create chained, coordinated combos.

Notably, swords possess a unique Parry mechanic - the ability to parry when dual-wielding swords. This mechanic provides Duelists with a crucial defensive tool, allowing them to unleash powerful attacks in melee combat while also deflecting fatal blows at critical moments.

Unlike other melee classes in PoE 2, Duelists have a complete stance system. Combat isn't simply about pressing skills and waiting for cooldowns; it revolves around switching between ready stance and blood/sand stance.

Many sword skills have different effects in ready stance, and the performance of subsequent skills changes upon entering blood/sand stance. This stance-driven design gives Duelists a higher skill ceiling and greater combo depth.

It's clear that Duelists' high build freedom is reflected not only in the skill tree but also in weapon combinations. For players who want to explore diverse combat styles using different swords, Path of Exile 2 currency reserves are equally important. After all, a complete build requires not only a suitable weapon but also proper equipment and continuous enhancement to truly unleash its full potential.

Core Skills Explained

Bloodied Blade

Bloodied Blade is the key skill for entering Blood Stance. Using this skill after parrying an enemy will apply bleeding to the target. If Frenzy Charge is consumed, each hit will apply bleeding to all targets hit. The character will automatically enter Blood Stance after the attack ends.

Sand Scour

Sand Scour is one of the primary means for Duelists to enter Sand Stance. Using this skill causes the character to step back slightly and inflict a heavy stun on armored enemies. A successful hit will enter Sand Stance.

If Frenzy Charge is consumed, Sand Scour gains additional effects. In combos, this skill is often used in conjunction with Engage (mentioned later) to create a rhythmic cycle of stepping back and then dashing forward.

Cyclone

Cyclone is one of the most iconic skills in PoE. In Duelist's two stances, Cyclone is presented in two distinct versions:

• Blood Stance: Presented with a red effect, focusing on damage output and granting additional attack bonuses.
• Sand Stance: Presented with a yellow effect, it fires sand discs while rotating, increasing area-of-effect damage.

This stance-switching design gives the classic Cyclone different tactical values ​​in different scenarios - switch to Blood Stance for maximum damage against bosses, and switch to Sand Stance for efficient clearing of mobs.

Perforate

Perforate is a classic skill from PoE 1, but it has been redesigned. Unlike the original version which stabs the ground to summon spikes, the new version stabs enemies, penetrating the target and striking all enemies behind it. The skill performs three rapid, consecutive stabs, with the final strike always inflicting bleeding.

In Blood Stance, multiple spikes erupt from the ground, hitting enemies multiple times; in Sand Stance, the spikes spread outwards. However, using this skill in a ready stance allows you to skip the first two thrusts and directly deliver a higher-damage, guaranteed-bleeding finishing blow.

Earth Rend

Earth Rend can be understood as a sword-based version of Earth Shatter from PoE 1. Upon use, it creates a fissure in front of you, ending with a blade. If used in a ready stance, blades will be generated along the entire path of the fissure.

While the skill itself doesn't deal high damage, its true value lies in its synergy with other skills - the generated blade can be detonated, enhanced, or converted by subsequent skills, making it a cornerstone of the entire sword combo system.

Blade Conduit

Blade Conduit infuses the blade generated by Earth Rend with lightning damage. When used, the character uses their sword as a lightning conduit, summoning a surging nova around themselves and leaving shocked ground. This skill converts 100% of physical damage into lightning damage.

Blades enhanced by Blade Conduit gain additional lightning damage. Furthermore, Shocked Ground works exceptionally well with Cyclone - causing a shock with every spin.

Blade Plunge

Blade Plunge is the ultimate combo skill with the highest damage potential in the entire sword skill tree. Similar to Earth Rend, it plunges the sword into the ground, creating three fissures around the character, each ending in a blade. You can channel to detonate all blades - not only those generated by Blade Plunge itself, but also those generated by Earth Rend.

Extending the channel time grants supercharge to the blades, further increasing their damage and area of ​​effect. Crucially, this skill utilizes stance synergy:

• Blood Stance: Creates a Blood Pool at each blade location, dealing continuous damage.
• Sand Stance: Creates a Sand Disc at each blade location, dealing continuous damage.

Since the area-of-effect damage from multiple blades stacks, this combo's single-target burst damage is already terrifying.

Summary

As a major addition to Path of Exile 2 version 1.0, Duelist offers players who enjoy melee swordplay a new option that combines depth of gameplay with flexible build options. Its unique stance switching mechanism and rich sword skill set allow for high versatility in clearing maps, single-target burst damage, and survivability.

For players who love melee combat and pursue the ultimate in skillful gameplay, Duelist will undoubtedly be one of the first features to experience upon the official launch of Path of Exile 2. As more game content is revealed, we look forward to seeing this class shine even brighter on the continent of Wraeclast.

Path of Exile 2 Forbidden Rites, is about to be released. The new economic environment, new challenges, and a batch of gameplay adjustments should have made this update another noteworthy addition before 1.0. However, for some long-time Runes of Aldur players, the focus has shifted elsewhere.

They aren't necessarily against GGG creating a new economic environment, nor do they simply want all players to stay in the old league.

The real controversy stems from the fact that, as the duration and league positioning of Forbidden Rites have become clearer, some players have found that their judgments about the future of Runes of Aldur over the past few months may not align with GGG's final plans.

As a result, the debate is no longer simply about whether GGG should launch another league. It's increasingly about how the developers communicated the change.

Changing Expectations

This round of controversy initially arises from players' differing understandings of the positioning of 0.5.5.

Some players previously understood it as a short-term Fresh Economy Event running parallel to Runes of Aldur.

Under this expectation, Runes of Aldur would remain the main League for a longer period before PoE 2 update 1.0. Continuing to farm resources, improve their characters, and invest large amounts of Currency into crafting and trading high-end gear still made sense.

This assessment began to change after the announcement of Forbidden Rites event.

Besides Fresh Economy, 0.5.5 would also bring Ritual adjustments, Sacred Plume, Forbidden Wildwood, Trial of Chaos, and Expedition-related changes, as well as independent Challenges and Rewards. More importantly, Forbidden Rites wouldn't end quickly but would continue until around 1.0.

However, the premise that 0.5.5 was originally only supposed to last a month is not definitively confirmed. Therefore, this controversy is difficult to directly attribute to the developers breaking their promises. Some players did indeed continue playing Runes of Aldur based on the expectation of a short-term event, but the current arrangements differ from what they initially anticipated.

Trading Pressure

Forbidden Rites and Runes of Aldur will exist as two independent Leagues running in parallel. Players who switch to Forbidden Rites Event will need to start over in Fresh Economy, and the gear, Currency, and trading resources accumulated in Runes of Aldur cannot be transferred.

If this shift is short-lived, the impact may be limited. However, Forbidden Rites will continue until around Patch 1.0. Once players shift their primary time to the new League, they may have little incentive to return to Runes of Aldur.

This is particularly sensitive for trading Leagues. The high-end market in Runes of Aldur is already not very active; some expensive Rares may struggle to sell even after price reductions. If a portion of players who regularly farm and craft gear, and are willing to invest hundreds or even thousands of PoE 2 Divine Orbs, shift to the new economy, high-end trading may shrink further.

Once the cycle of farming, trading, and leveling slows down, the incentive to remain in the old League will also decrease.

Promoting a New Economy

From the developers' perspective, this arrangement isn't hard to understand.

PoE series has always relied on new Leagues and economic resets to bring players back. Everyone starts from scratch, giving players who have already left a reason to return and temporarily narrowing the gear and wealth gap established in the old Leagues.

If Runes of Aldur was only going to remain the main League for such a short time, some players may question why they invested so heavily in it in the first place.

However, when this new League might continue until Patch 1.0, and there are independent Challenges and Rewards, the incentive to return is obviously much stronger, and it also makes it easier for developers to obtain more testing and feedback before the official release.

As a result, more players will shift their time and resources to Forbidden Rites, and the active player count and trading demand in Runes of Aldur may decrease accordingly.

Information Flow

League-based games inherently have cycles. Gear depreciates, markets reset, and Leagues eventually end. When players choose to enter PoE 2, they have already accepted these changes.

However, if a new economic environment lasts for several months and significantly alters the player base and trading activity of the old League, players should be informed much earlier about its duration, the future positioning of the old League, and how the two will coexist before Patch 1.0. This information shouldn't be pieced together from scattered replies and player accounts.

More problematic is that this experience could influence long-term players' future choices.

A player who leaves after a month or two may barely be affected. But the experience is very different for someone who has spent months farming currency, upgrading gear, and pushing a character toward completion.

If they eventually find that the assumptions behind that investment have changed, they may approach the next league very differently. Once they reach the mid-to-late game, they may stop investing much earlier, settle for a character that is good enough, and wait for the next reset.

If more and more long-term players begin making this choice, the impact won't just be on Runes of Aldur, but on the activity levels of every subsequent League in the mid-to-late game.

With Patch 1.0 still under development, changes to League plan are not surprising. However, when such changes are significant enough to influence whether PoE 2 players continue farming, crafting gear, and staying in their current League, the later this information is communicated, the more likely players are to find that their earlier investment decisions were based on assumptions that no longer hold.

Whether this controversy will ultimately cripple Runes of Aldur remains to be seen, but when changes to League plans can affect players' investment decisions, changes should clearly be communicated much earlier.

During Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.5 reveal livestream, the official details of this update were confirmed. While the highly anticipated swords will not be implemented in Patch 0.5.5, the livestream still revealed a significant amount of key information about sword skills.

POE 2 Patch 0.5.5 is an Economy Reset, where players will create brand-new characters on a separate event server. Runes of Aldor League will remain available, so players can continue their journey without losing access to unfinished challenges. This update also introduces several major improvements, which will be explained below.

Balance Changes

The balance patch originally planned for Patch 0.5.5 is not yet complete and will instead be delayed until the full 1.0 release. As a result, this patch contains No Balance Changes.

This means that previously powerful builds will remain strong, allowing players to continue using the builds you are already familiar with.

For players who have not yet completed their endgame progression or challenges, Runes of Aldor League will remain open, with no forced migration to the new event.

Forbidden Rites

A new Forbidden Rites event will be added to the campaign. This content belongs to Ritual system, where after defeating a Boss, that Boss carries over into the next Boss encounter, creating a continuously stacking challenge.

As the battle progresses, the difficulty gradually increases, but the rewards become more generous as well. This provides a more efficient way to acquire gear during the early progression stage, helping players strengthen their characters more quickly.

Forbidden Rites will run alongside Runes of Aldor. If you are satisfied with your existing character and progression, you can simply ignore this event and continue playing without any disruption. If you want a Fresh Economy and a brand-new progression experience, you can join the event instead.

The event will also introduce a separate Challenges list, with exclusive cosmetic or visual effect rewards available for completion. The challenges are not particularly difficult, so regular players will also have a good chance of completing them.

Trial of Chaos Rework

Trial of Chaos was previously considered relatively thin on content. After the update, players will be able to progress through 30 Trial floors consecutively and challenge all Bosses within the same run before ultimately facing Trialmaster.

Furthermore, the developers have improved the quality of life by adding a Leave and Return feature. Players can leave the trial area and then return to continue, a fantastic feature for those who enjoy helping others complete Ascension Trials.

The development team has removed many of the largely useless Corrupted Items from Trial and replaced them with direct currency drops. An additional Chest has also been added to provide extra bonuses.

The impact of Trial of Chaos's Debilitating Affixes on early progression has been significantly reduced. The difficulty now increases in a smoother and more gradual manner, while the later stages retain their original level of challenge.

The previously frustrating Escort Missions and mechanics such as picking up Cores have been replaced with Kill Challenges. Elevator movement speed has also been increased, making the overall pace much faster and more satisfying.

Trial of Chaos rework is not exclusive to the 0.5.5 event. Instead, it will become a permanent core improvement introduced with the patch. This significantly increases its replayability and usefulness, and it could even become one of the preferred ways to obtain PoE 2 currency.

Endgame Improvements

Fortress Nodes

Previously, players had to defeat Arbiter of Divinity and complete all five areas inside Fortress one by one to unlock Atlas Passive Skill Tree points.

Now, defeating any Arbiter will immediately unlock all the map nodes inside Fortress, granting all of its Atlas Passive Skill Tree points at once. This change significantly reduces the time required for endgame progression.

Abyssal Ravines

Abyssal content will introduce new Ravines, which can be seen on Atlas Maps as a long green path.

These areas add several new nodes that can increase monster density and difficulty, while a Boss awaits at the end.

Expedition

Although the event will not include Runes of Aldor content in every area, Expedition, Farrow, Dannig, and other related mechanics will remain available. They will also continue to function normally in the standard league.

Expedition can now be encountered starting from Act 4, and new Expedition Tablets will also be introduced. These Tablets can roll various modifiers, such as causing two complete Expeditions to appear in the same area or creating two separate Remnant encounters.

The modifiers on Expedition Tablets will include enhancement effects provided by Aldurs Saga. This means players can roll Aldurs Saga-like bonuses on their Tablets and obtain more generous rewards from Grand Expeditions.

Sacred Bloom and Wildwood

In the endgame Atlas system, Patch 0.5.5 introduces a brand-new consumable item called Sacred Bloom. After using a Sacred Bloom, you can attach a Wildwood area to an Atlas Map of your choice.

Once you enter Wildwood, you will need to collect three different types of Wisps: Primal, Vivid, and Wild. Wisps you collect will empower all monsters in the map, making them more difficult to defeat while also increasing their drop rewards.

Although PoE 2 Patch 0.5.5 does not include balance adjustments, it still provides an excellent opportunity for players who enjoy starting fresh. The patch also delivers substantial Quality of Life improvements, making it worth revisiting the game while waiting for the arrival of 1.0 in December.