Path of Exile : A Comprehensive Guide to Key Mechanics and Tips for Getting Started
Path of Exile ( PoE ) is an exciting evolution of Path of exile currency its predecessor, with a host of new mechanics, an expansive campaign, and a rich endgame. This massive game offers players a chance to get deeply immersed in its world, where complex systems and opportunities for customization await. Whether you’re a seasoned Path of Exile player or a newcomer, you’ll want to have a solid understanding of some of the core mechanics to help you navigate the game and get the most out of your experience. In this article, we’ll break down essential tips and strategies to help you get started in Path of Exile .
1. Gem Cutting and Acquiring New Skills
One of the fundamental changes in Path of Exile is how skill gems are handled. Unlike in the first game, where gems were socketed directly into items, PoE introduces a "skills manual," where you can store and manage all your abilities.
Skill Gems and Support Gems
In Path of Exile , you will acquire uncut skill gems as you play through the game. These uncut gems can be refined and upgraded through the gem cutting menu, which is accessible via the G key (by default). There are two main actions you can perform with these gems:
Engrave a new skill: This option allows you to engrave a skill gem into your skills manual at the level of its uncut version.
Level up an existing skill gem: By selecting an existing skill gem, you can enhance it, improving its effectiveness.
This applies not just to main skill gems, but also to support gems. Support gems modify how your skill gems behave, offering additional effects like adding extra projectiles, status effects, or various buffs. Each skill gem can be supported by up to five support gems. However, note that only one copy of each support gem can be used in your build.
Socketing and Customizing Skills
Once you acquire a skill gem or support gem, you can place them into your skills menu. By default, there are up to nine skill gem slots and five support gem slots. As you progress in the game, you can unlock additional slots, giving you more flexibility to create complex skill combos and synergies. For the Mercenary class, an additional three slots are unlocked, allowing a total of 12 skill gem slots.
Support gems can significantly enhance your abilities, and finding the right combination is crucial. Make sure to keep experimenting with different combinations, as there are hundreds of available support gems that can greatly alter the outcome of your skills. The game will provide you with recommended supports to help you get started, but you can always explore all available options if you're an advanced player.
Unlocking More Support Gem Sockets
You can unlock additional support gem sockets on your gear using Jeweler Orbs. These orbs will help you unlock more sockets on your items, giving you greater flexibility in how you link skills and support gems.
2. Dodge Rolling: Mastering the Art of Evading Attacks
A new mechanic introduced in Path of Exile is dodge rolling, which allows players to quickly roll out of harm’s way during combat. This mechanic becomes particularly useful when facing bosses or mobs with powerful telegraphed attacks, similar to Souls-like games.
Performing Dodge Rolls: You can perform a dodge roll by pressing the space bar on your PC (or the respective key on your console). Dodge rolls have no cooldown, and they also feature pathfinding to ensure you don't get stuck in walls or other obstacles. It’s a versatile move that allows you to evade both melee and projectile attacks.
Dodge Rolls and Animation Cancelling: One of the most valuable uses of the dodge roll is animation cancelling. If you’re in the middle of casting a spell and an enemy attack is about to hit you, you can dodge roll to avoid the damage and cancel the casting animation, allowing you to act more quickly.
However, dodge rolling doesn’t grant invincibility frames (i-frames), so it won’t protect you from AoE ground effects or other non-telegraphed hazards. Additionally, dodge rolling doesn’t help you escape if you're physically cornered by enemies, so always be aware of your positioning during combat.
Movement Speed and Dodge Rolls: While dodge rolling itself doesn't scale with movement speed, having faster movement speed through passive skills can help you dodge roll more effectively, allowing you to evade attacks more efficiently.
3. Spirit: The New Resource for Persistent Buffs
In Path of Exile , Spirit is a new resource that plays a key role in managing persistent buffs, auras, minions, and more. Spirit is separate from Mana and is used to activate certain persistent skills like auras or summoning minions.
How to Gain Spirit: You start with no Spirit but can increase it in several ways. Spirit can be gained as a reward from completing side missions or by using specific items like Scepters, which can grant large bonuses to Spirit. Additionally, quests often provide permanent increases to Spirit, which are essential for managing certain builds, particularly those reliant on auras and minions.
Using Spirit in Your Build: Spirit is primarily used for skills that persist throughout combat, such as defensive auras or summoning minions. Certain classes, such as the Witch, will rely heavily on Spirit to summon permanent minions, and their Spirit management becomes a crucial part of their build.
Spirit Gems and the Spirit Resource: Much like skill gems, Spirit-based abilities are also tied to uncut Spirit gems. These gems are found as loot and allow you to unlock Spirit-based skills. As you progress, you’ll find more powerful Spirit gems that enhance your abilities further.
4. Side Missions and Bonuses
Side missions in Path of Exile have been expanded and made more rewarding than ever before. These side quests not only provide unique story content, but they also grant permanent character bonuses such as increased resistances, passive skill points, and Spirit increases.
Exploration and Bonuses: When you explore the world map, you’ll encounter various bonus encounters marked by a gray skull icon. These side missions often reward you with permanent upgrades that can significantly enhance your character. For example, in Act 1, you might receive a permanent 10% cold resistance bonus from a side mission, which can help you survive tougher encounters.
Boss Fights for Bonuses: Some side missions involve boss fights that drop consumable items granting permanent stat increases, like +30 Spirit or +10 to all elemental resistances. These items are crucial for strengthening your character and should not be overlooked.
5. Skill Combos and Weapon Specialization
Path of Exile places a significant emphasis on skill combos and synergies between different abilities. Many skills now interact with one another, allowing players to create devastating combos that increase damage or provide other benefits.
Skill Combo Example: For instance, you can freeze enemies and then use armor-piercing burst shots with a mercenary to shatter those enemies, dealing massive AoE damage. Another example includes casting fire spells through fire walls to gain bonus fire damage. The possibilities are vast, and experimenting with different skill combos is one of the most exciting aspects of Path of Exile .
Dual Weapon Specialization: One of the most exciting new features is the Dual Weapon Specialization, which allows players to equip two sets of weapons and dynamically switch between them during combat. This mechanic lets you assign specific skills to each weapon set and switch between them as needed. For example, you might equip a set of fire damage-boosting weapons for one set and a set of lightning damage-boosting weapons for another. This adds a layer of complexity and customization to combat, allowing you to optimize your damage output depending on the situation.
6. Item Upgrades and Crafting Mechanics
Path of Exile introduces more accessible and frequent item upgrades compared to the first game. This includes upgrading your gear, using runes and soul cores, and enhancing your items through enchanting.
Runes and Soul Cores: Unlike in the first game, where gems were socketed into gear, PoE ’s socket system is dedicated to applying runes and soul cores to your items. These items provide powerful bonuses and can be found or crafted as you progress. Early in the game, runes provide essential resistances and survivability. Later on, you’ll upgrade to soul cores, which offer even stronger bonuses but are rarer.
Enchantment and Transmutation: Enchanting returns in PoE , allowing you to craft powerful items even when you can’t find the perfect gear. By disenchanted magic and rare items, you can obtain transmutation orbs and regal orbs, which allow you to modify items, adding more modifiers or upgrading an item’s rarity.
7. Vendors and Towns
In Path of Exile , visiting towns frequently is essential for your success. Not only will you find vendors that sell useful items, but they also receive new stock as you level up.
Gambling and Respec: Vendors also offer a chance to gamble for random item rarities, and you can purchase items with gold that could provide rare upgrades. Additionally, towns are where you’ll respec your passive skill tree and modify your build as you progress.
Conclusion
Path of Exile is shaping up to be a massive and rewarding game, filled with intricate mechanics, deep customization, and endless possibilities. From skill gem cutting to mastering new resources like Spirit, and from engaging in skill combos to cheap POE currency upgrading your gear, there is always something to explore and optimize in this game. With the addition of dual weapon specialization, side missions, and a revamped crafting system, PoE offers a fresh yet familiar experience for fans of the franchise and newcomers alike.
Prepare for an incredible journey as you dive into the rich world of Path of Exile !