PoE2: Surviving the Wilderness with Optimal Character Selection

Path of Exile 2: Mastering the Best Builds in Early Access

Choosing your first character in Path of Exile 2's early access can be daunting with six classes and two Ascendancy options each. This guide highlights top-tier builds for each class, focusing on effectiveness and ease of play for newcomers. Note that future updates may shift the meta.

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Witch: Minion Summoner Infernalist

This build maximizes the Witch's summoning potential, offering a balanced and less demanding experience than other options. The Infernalist Ascendancy provides a strong alternative to the riskier Blood Mage. You'll command a horde of undead and demonic minions, supported by your own fire-based attacks. Strategic use of Vulnerability is key.

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Key Skills: Skeletal Brute, Skeletal Cleric, Pain Offering, Skeletal Arsonist, Detonate Dead, Flame Wall, Raging Spirits, Vulnerability, Summon Infernal Hound.

Gameplay: Maintain your minion army, providing fire support and utilizing mobility during boss encounters. Effectively applying Vulnerability debuffs is crucial for maximizing damage. Master the interplay between Flame Wall, Raging Spirits, and Detonate Dead for optimal AoE damage.

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Mercenary: FrostFerno Witch Hunter

This hybrid build combines fire and ice damage for a unique and effective playstyle throughout PoE2. Dual crossbows and two passive skill trees enhance its versatility.

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Key Skills: Permafrost Bolts, Explosive Grenade, Gas Grenade, Explosive Shot, Herald of Ash, Galvanic Shards, Herald of Thunder.

Gameplay: Freeze enemies with Permafrost Bolts and Galvanic Shards, then unleash devastating fire damage with grenades and Explosive Shot. Master the timing and synergy between freezing and explosive attacks.

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Monk: Herald of Thunder Invoker

This build offers exceptional survivability coupled with significant damage output, making it ideal for both campaign progression and endgame content. The Herald of Thunder skill forms the core of this build.

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Key Skills: Tempest Flurry, Tempest Bell, Staggering Palm, Vaulting Impact, Orb of Storms, Storm Wave.

Gameplay: Utilize Tempest Flurry and Orb of Storms for crowd control and high damage. Leverage Vaulting Impact and Staggering Palm for mobility and enemy disruption.

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Warrior: Armour Breaker Warbinger

This balanced build utilizes a two-handed mace for impressive damage while maintaining strong survivability in melee combat.

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Key Skills: Mace Strike, Stampede, Leap Slam, Ancestral Warrior Totem, Scavenged Plating, Hammer of the Gods, Seismic Cry, Attrition.

Gameplay: Early game focuses on Earthquake and Shockwave Totem for AoE clearing. Later, utilize Mace Strike for single-target damage and Rolling Slam for mobility. Warbinger ascendancy skills enhance armor breaking for increased damage.

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Sorceress: Ember Fusillade Stormweaver

This build provides a good balance of damage and survivability, enabling rapid leveling and campaign completion.

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Key Skills: Spark, Flame Wall, Ember Fusillade, Solar Orb, Firestorm, Flammability, Blasphemy (Enfeeble).

Gameplay: Utilize Flame Wall and Spark early, transitioning to Ember Fusillade, Solar Orb, and Firestorm as you progress. Master the skill rotation for optimal damage output against bosses. Blasphemy (Enfeeble) provides additional defensive utility.

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Ranger: Deadeye Grenadier

This build offers high mobility and area-of-effect damage but demands skillful play due to lower survivability.

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Key Skills: Permafrost Bolts, Fragmentation Rounds, Flash Grenade, Gas Grenade, Explosive Shot, Explosive Grenade, Rapid Shot.

Gameplay: Focus on freezing enemies, deploying grenades, and exploiting poison and explosions for massive damage. Prioritize evasion, elemental resistances, and movement speed.

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This guide provides a starting point for your Path of Exile 2 journey. Experimentation and adaptation are key to mastering these builds and discovering your own preferred playstyles. Remember that game balance changes may affect build viability over time.