Welcome to Wraeclast
Two minutes of context before the rest of the site makes sense. What the game is, what classes exist, how a league works, and the ten words you need to know.
What is Path of Exile 2
A top-down action RPG by Grinding Gear Games. You pick a class, you kill monsters, you find loot, you upgrade your character. Currently in Early Access on patch 0.5.
What makes it different from Diablo and PoE 1:
- Slower combat. You dodge roll, you weapon-swap, you read enemy tells. Mashing button gets you killed.
- Deeper crafting. Currencies are not just gold. Every orb does one thing to one item.
- Bigger passive tree. 1500+ nodes shared across every class.
- League cycle. Every few months a new economy starts with a temporary mechanic added. Your character starts fresh.
- No pay-to-win. Cosmetics and stash tabs are paid, gameplay is free once you own the game.
The eight classes
Eight base classes. Each picks one of two or three Ascendancies (sub-class) after completing the Trials in Act 2 and Act 3. The Ascendancy defines how you scale.
| Class | Weapon | Ascendancies | Archetype |
|---|---|---|---|
| Witch | Wand / Staff / Sceptre | Blood Mage, Infernalist, Lich | Caster, minion, chaos |
| Sorceress | Wand / Staff / Sceptre | Stormweaver, Chronomancer | Caster, elemental burst |
| Warrior | Mace, axe (eventually), shield | Titan, Warbringer | Slam, totem, armour stacking |
| Ranger | Bow | Deadeye, Pathfinder (datamined), Spirit Walker (0.5) | Projectile, evasion |
| Mercenary | Crossbow | Witchhunter, Gemling Legionnaire | Hybrid ranged, grenades |
| Monk | Quarterstaff | Invoker, Acolyte of Chayula, Martial Artist (0.5) | Combo melee, freeze / cold |
| Huntress | Spear + Buckler | Amazon, Ritualist | Hybrid melee / ranged |
| Druid | Quarterstaff / Staff | Oracle, Shaman | Shapeshift, nature, hybrid |
This site focuses on Witch (Blood Mage) and Sorceress (Stormweaver). Both are caster archetypes. If you want to play a melee or projectile class, you will still benefit from the general pages (atlas, crafting, trading, resistances) but the build deep-dives won't apply.
How a league works
PoE 2 runs on leagues. A league is a temporary economy that lasts a few months. Every league brings a new mechanic. The current patch 0.5 “Return of the Ancients” (live since May 29, 2026) runs the “Runes of Aldur” league. The previous patch 0.4 was “The Last of the Druids”.
At league start, every character begins fresh. The economy resets. Currency that was abundant last league is rare again, builds that were S-tier may get nerfed, new uniques are added.
You can also play on the Standard permanent server (no economy reset, less population) or pick a stricter variant: Hardcore (one death = retired to Standard), SSF (Solo Self-Found, no trade), or their combination. Most beginners start on the current league softcore non-SSF.
Ten words you must know
- Build. A combination of class + ascendancy + skill + passives + gear. Defines how you play.
- Passive tree. The 1500+ node skill grid shared across all classes. Your build picks ~120 of them by level 100.
- Ascendancy. Specialised sub-class. Unlocked through the Trials in Acts 2 and 3. Each gives 8 points across a small dedicated wheel.
- Skill gem. An item you slot into your weapon (NOT into gear in PoE 2) to gain a skill. Skill gems level up independently.
- Support gem. Modifies a linked skill gem (more damage, more projectiles, etc.). Each skill takes up to 5 supports.
- Currency. The orbs that craft items AND act as trade currency. Chaos / Exalted / Divine are the main trade currencies in 0.5.
- League mechanic. A repeatable in-map encounter (Breach, Ritual, Expedition, etc.) that drops league-specific rewards.
- Atlas. The endgame map system. Unlocked after the campaign. The campaign is the tutorial.
- Waystone. A consumable map. Tier 1 to 15. You enter it via the Map Device for the Atlas.
- Pinnacle boss. The hardest fights in the game. Unlocked through endgame mechanics, drop the best uniques.