Practical, no-nonsense guides for Path of Exile 2 — from your first exile steps through brutal endgame maps. Builds, currency tips, and walkthroughs written by players, for players.
Hand-picked guides to get you going. New ones added regularly.
Which unique items are worth chasing from campaign to endgame — tier list with build archetypes and acquisition tips.
02The fog, Deliriousness, Distilled Emotions, and the 7-wave Simulacrum.
03How the Runes of Aldur mechanic works, the Atlas tree rework, Kalguuran gems, and Atlas Masters Jado, Hilda, and Doryani.
04Farm, craft, and roll the best Breach Rings — Genesis Tree, Hiveblood, and top affixes explained.
05How the Monk's Martial Artist and the Huntress's Spirit Walker work, plus the Runes of Aldur league mechanic.
06What Spirit is, every campaign source, the best gear slots, and how to plan your budget for aura, minion, and meta gem builds.
07How to unlock every pinnacle encounter, gear benchmarks to enter safely, and key mechanics for every boss.
08Five archetypes that clear the campaign on vendor gear — Twister, Minions, Crossbow and more.
09Best endgame strategies for farming Exalted Orbs and Divines — Atlas passives, Ritual, Breach, and mapping tips.
10Every currency orb, the crafting order, runes and the Reforging Bench.
11The 75% cap, the campaign penalty and the fastest path to full coverage.
12The new Uncut Gem system, support sockets, Spirit and meta gems.
13Unlock your subclass — the Sekhemas Honour run and the Trial of Chaos.
14Refund passive points with gold via the Hooded One — and cost scaling.
15How charges work, flask mods and the ailment charms every build needs.
✦Hidden things the community discovered — worth knowing.
17Classes, the campaign and the systems that trip up new exiles.
18Forgiving, strong builds to clear the campaign without the headache.
19Orbs aren't just money — they're how you craft. Here's what to keep.
20Waystones, the Atlas tree and how mapping progression works.
21Where the orbs come from — efficient farming without the burnout.
22Currency Exchange, merchant tabs and safe player-to-player trades.
Not yet — during Early Access (which the game is still in as of mid-2026) you need a paid supporter pack to play. Once the game reaches its full 1.0 release, which Grinding Gear Games is targeting for 2026, it will become free to play for everyone on PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S. Microtransactions are limited to cosmetics and stash tabs; nothing sold affects gameplay power.
No. Path of Exile 2 has a completely separate campaign set in a different era of Wraeclast, with its own story and characters. You can jump straight in without any knowledge of the first game. That said, veterans will recognise many core systems — passive tree, orb-based crafting — since the two games share some mechanics.
Every class starts at a different point on a single enormous passive tree shared by all characters. As you level up and complete quests you earn passive points to spend on nodes that grant stats, modifiers and powerful keystones. The tree is intimidating at first, but you never have to explore it all — focus on a rough path toward the nodes that support your chosen skill gems and playstyle.
Classes that have strong built-in defences or straightforward skill synergies tend to be the most forgiving for newcomers — the Mercenary (crossbow, physical ranged) and the Witch (minion summoning) are popular starting points because they let you deal damage from a safer distance. Note that not all planned classes are available yet during Early Access; the full roster will expand at 1.0 launch. That said, every available class can clear the campaign — the "best" one is the one whose playstyle you enjoy, since build choice matters more than class alone once you understand the basics.
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