Path of Exile II Early Access Starts Tomorrow

Greetings, I’m Jonathan Rogers, the Game Director of Path of Exile 2.

Path of Exile 2 is set to enter early access on December 6th. But don’t be fooled by the term ‘early access’ – this is no mere glimpse into the game; it’s a vast experience. In this livestream, we will be unveiling everything you can anticipate. So, without further ado, let’s roll the gameplay trailer.

As you’ve just witnessed, even in Early Access, Path of Exile 2 is a substantial game. It has been 5 years since we first announced PoE2, and over that time, we’ve unveiled a plethora of details, albeit in fragments. It can be quite challenging to keep track of everything, so today, we aim to provide a comprehensive overview of all the content that will be accessible at the commencement of Early Access. From classes and character progression systems to, for the first time, a comprehensive overview of the endgame. This is going to be a significant presentation, so get ready.

Story

For two decades, Wraeclast had been free from any sources of Corruption. However, the Count of Ogham, enticed by promises of power, seeks to once again harness it. The dead are rising, creatures are mutating, and madness is spreading.

Under the dark influence of corruption, the count dispenses death sentences to anyone who dares to question him. And this is where your journey begins in PoE2.

It is your responsibility to locate the Seed of Corruption, the origin of this devastation. Along the way, you will confront formidable monsters, encounter peculiar characters, form unlikely alliances, and unearth lost civilizations. 

But first, you must select a class. 

Classes 

At the outset of Early Access, there will be 6 classes available. Let’s take a closer look at them.

Monk

The monk epitomizes a swift and aggressive melee combatant. He swiftly maneuvers in and out of battles, employing mechanics that involve accumulating and maintaining momentum. Similar to all classes in PoE2, you will want to utilize a diverse array of skills to create various combinations. To acquire new Skills, you must first acquire Skill Gems. Utilizing a skill gem will open the gemcutting menu, which displays all the active skills available in PoE2. You can choose to level up an existing skill or opt to acquire a new one. In this instance, we utilized a level 7 Skill Gem, meaning that even if you choose a new skill, it will instantly be at level 7, allowing you to experiment with new abilities without consequences.

The monk primarily wields the Quarterstaff. There are three martial arts schools: Lightning, Ice, and Wind, yet you are not restricted to just one. The most effective combinations will involve incorporating elements from all three. Let’s test out Killing Palm. Much like many Monk abilities, this can be swiftly utilized to exploit a specific situation. If there is a weakened enemy, we can employ Killing Palm to swiftly dash towards them and eliminate them instantly, earning a power charge in the process. Subsequently, we can utilize a different skill to expend that power charge for a significantly more devastating attack.

The Monk also possesses potent combo skills. For instance, Tempest Bell is a skill that deploys a massive resonating bell. Striking the bell causes it to resonate, inflicting damage on all nearby foes. Additionally, you can freeze or shock the bell, adding elemental damage to the strikes. The monk also boasts an array of abilities to enhance his staff. If an adversary is nearing stun, you can utilize Staggering Palm to knock them down. Subsequently, any attack you execute will release wind projectiles.

There are 21 active skills for quarterstaves, providing merely a glimpse into the plethora of options available. By endgame, you will be dashing from one group of enemies to another, launching projectiles, and annihilating swaths of foes with massive combo assaults.

Warrior

If you prefer a slower-paced style of melee combat that delivers heavy blows, then the Warrior is the ideal choice. He delivers powerful strikes with substantial armor, capable of withstanding attacks from lesser adversaries. Although mace slams may be ponderous, they afford you unwavering control. Lengthier attacks can be redirected on the fly, and if you find yourself committed to an extended attack, you can dodge-roll out of it at any moment.

Within the skill options for maces, you will encounter an array of slams, fire attacks, warcries, and shield skills. Here, I’m going to slam the ground, splitting it apart with fiery fissures. Any subsequent slam will cause these crevices to erupt with lava. I can even traverse through them using a skill like Stampede to inflict substantial damage. The warrior can also utilize Warcries to enhance your subsequent skill. For instance, Seismic Cry will double the impact of any slams from your next attack. Since Stampede counts as a slam, I can magnify its effects for even more chaos.

Should you wish to adopt a swifter and more defensive approach, equip a shield. In PoE2, you can raise your shield at any moment to block all frontal damage, even spells. While upholding your shield, your stun gauge will accumulate as you absorb damage. Exercise caution, as reaching 100% will shatter your stance, rendering you vulnerable. Certain foes possess unblockable attacks, indicated by a red flash. Should you detect one of these impending strikes, be sure to evade it.

Employing a shield also grants access to shield skills like shield charge, enabling you to charge towards foes and stun them. While charging, you are continuously blocking, ensuring complete immunity to frontal assaults. The Warrior can also deploy totems. Certain totems boast inherent capabilities, such as Shockwave totem, which can be positioned to incapacitate nearby adversaries and trigger aftershocks akin to those from an earthquake.

Alternatively, you can summon Ancestral Warrior totems, allowing you to utilize any other slam skill in your arsenal. This is a meta skill, enabling you to incorporate other skills. For example, I can select a Slam like Sunder and slot it into my Ancestral Warrior totem. Upon summoning it, the totem will pummel monsters from a distance.

With 20 active skills for Maces, there’s much more to explore. By endgame, you will be raining hammers from above, fearlessly leaping into combat, and cleaving the very ground beneath your feet.

Ranger

Time for some ranged combat! The Ranger specializes in archery but is designed to feel agile as well. 

In PoE2, you can fire while on the move. Coupled with the Ranger’s skillset that enables you to maneuver swiftly, you’ll possess a plethora of mobility during engagements. Bow skills encompass a variety of Lightning, Poison, Ice, and Physical attacks. Lightning attacks bounce between targets. You can embed lightning arrows in the ground, detonating upon impact or electrocuting foes to incapacitate them. Ice attacks can impede and freeze adversaries, keeping them at bay. By employing poison, you can gradually wear down distant enemies while cultivating some…. Intriguing flora.

With 21 bow skills and the Ranger’s mobility and combo capabilities, you can adapt to any scenario. By endgame, you will be unleashing a barrage of arrows, whether they’re descending from the sky, ricocheting between enemies, or emanating from tornadoes.

Mercenary

The Mercenary wields a crossbow that can be loaded with various types of ammo, offering versatility, potency, and mobility. All classes in Path of Exile 2 can be maneuvered using WASD controls, making this class reminiscent of a shooter game.

With the crossbow, you will encounter skills akin to Shotguns, Sniper Rifles, Assault Rifles, and even Grenade Launchers. Moreover, there are diverse elemental ammunitions to explore. Switching between ammo types swiftly, provided they are pre-loaded, enables the Mercenary to chain abilities for devastating impact. Employ Glacial Bolt to erect ice barriers to separate enemies, then transition to fragmentation rounds to detonate the ice, inflicting substantial area-of-effect damage. Encountering an armored foe, you could deploy Armour Piercing rounds to breach their defenses, followed by High Velocity rounds to dispatch them. Alternatively, launch a gas grenade to poison adversaries, then detonate the cloud with an Explosive Shot for significant damage.

Should you desire to rain down suppressing fire, summon artillery ballistas. These possess a minimum range, necessitating strategic positioning before engaging. With 22 active skills for crossbows, by endgame, you will be unleashing destruction from above, littering the battlefield with grenades, and peppering your foes with automatic shotgun fire.

Witch

If commanding legions of minions to do your bidding while casting potent chaos spells to debilitate foes resonates with you, then the Witch is the class to choose. She can summon hordes of undead minions to battle on her behalf, all the while unleashing powerful occult spells to weaken her enemies. Occult skills are among the most diverse in the game, encompassing skeletons, noxious spells, specialized minions, curses, and sacrificial magic.

Prior to delving into minions, let’s introduce a new resource in Path of Exile 2 known as spirit. This Spirit Gem enables you to select from an array of enduring skills. Each class boasts a selection of these skills, offering intriguing effects such as arctic armor, which inflicts cold damage on foes striking you, or Raging Spirits, summoning fiery skulls with each fire spell cast.

For the witch, we’ll be utilizing our spirit to conjure permanent minions. These minions automatically revive upon death, alleviating the need for constant re-summoning. Here, I’m utilizing the skill screen to designate which minions I wish to include in my horde. The Spirit cost for each minion is displayed. Skeletal Warriors are cost-effective but frail, serving as effective damage sponges and distractions. However, I prefer more robust combatants in my ranks, thus I’ll dismiss some warriors in favor of Skeletal Arsonists. 

Permanent minions come equipped with unique active abilities known as command skills. You can instruct these minions to self-destruct, dealing additional damage and expanding the area of effect. For a larger army, equip a scepter. This new weapon category harbors even more Spirit, enabling you to summon additional allies. If you seek an even larger army, exploit corpses to summon vast hordes of minions. You can even reanimate a minion from the remains of any fallen foe, enlisting them to your cause. The range of abilities accessible from monsters presents ample opportunities for strategic advantages.

While your army busily engages foes, the Witch can employ chaos spells to afflict enemies with disease, impale them with bone spells, or weaken them with curses to facilitate your minions’ takedowns. <