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 classes each, the possibilities are vast. This guide highlights optimal builds for each class, focusing on effectiveness and relative ease for new players. 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 for beginners compared to the riskier Blood Mage. You'll command an army of undead and demons, adding a dynamic element to combat. The ability to transform into a demonic form provides an extra layer of engaging gameplay.

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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 fire support for your minions, utilizing mobility during boss fights, and consistently applying Vulnerability debuffs. Experiment with minion combinations for optimal battlefield control. Flame Wall acts as both damage and minion summoning. Detonate Dead requires corpse generation.

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Mercenary: FrostFerno Witch Hunter

This hybrid build excels in both early and late game, combining fire and ice skills for a unique and powerful approach. Dual crossbows and two 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 explosive fire damage with grenades. Early game focuses on clearing with Permafrost Bolts and Galvanic Shards, while Explosive Shot dominates later stages. Maximize ice and fire damage bonuses through skill and weapon choices.

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Monk: Herald of Thunder Invoker

This build prioritizes defense while delivering significant damage, making it ideal for newcomers. Herald of Thunder is the core skill.

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

Gameplay: Early game utilizes Quarterstaff Strike. Later, Herald of Thunder empowers attacks with lightning damage. Tempest Flurry and Orb of Storms provide crowd control, while Tempest Bell and Storm Wave deliver AoE damage. Mobility is crucial, utilizing Vaulting Impact and Staggering Palm for crowd control and stunning.

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Warrior: Armour Breaker Warbinger

This balanced build uses a two-handed mace for high damage and melee survivability.

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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 utilizes Earthquake and Shockwave Totem for crowd clearing. Mace Strike targets single enemies, while Rolling Slam offers mobility and survivability. Warbinger ascendancy skills like Anvil's Weight and Imploding Impacts enhance damage by breaking armor. Mace-and-shield variations focus on Giant's Blood, Glancing Blows, Turtle Charm, and Renly's Training for defense.

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Sorceress: Ember Fusillade Stormweaver

This build balances damage and survivability for efficient leveling and campaign completion.

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

Gameplay: Early game uses Spark and Flame Wall. Solar Orb replaces Spark later. Ember Fusillade, enhanced with Scattershot and Controlled Destruction, is the core damage skill. Flammability weakens enemies, increasing damage output. Blasphemy Enfeeble provides extra defense. Prioritize Exploit the Element, Potent Incantation, and Dampening Shield nodes.

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Ranger: Deadeye Grenadier

This build offers high mobility and AoE damage but requires more skill 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: Utilize a crossbow for high physical and elemental damage. Freeze enemies with Permafrost Bolts, then use grenades for AoE damage and Gas Grenade for poison and armor reduction. Explosive Shot detonates gas clouds for massive damage. Focus on evasion, elemental resistances, and movement speed.

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These builds represent strong starting points, but remember that Path of Exile 2's meta is dynamic. Experimentation and adaptation are key to success.