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Conquer Path of Exile 2 as a Mercenary: A Beginner's Guide
Tired of fantasy tropes in Path of Exile 2? The Mercenary class offers a unique, action-packed experience reminiscent of a top-down Doom game. Ditch the swords and magic; embrace the crossbow, your trusty shotgun substitute, and obliterate hordes of enemies! This guide focuses on building an effective Mercenary in PoE2's early access version (0.1.0f). Note that GGG may implement changes affecting this guide's accuracy in the full release.
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Key Mercenary Attributes
Prioritize Dexterity for maximum effectiveness. Evasion trumps Armor; focus on boosting evasion. Movement speed is crucial for dodging attacks. Allocate Strength and Intelligence as needed to meet equipment and skill requirements.
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Essential Early-Game Skills
- Fragmentation Rounds: A decent starting skill, but quickly outclassed. Consider Brutality (35% increased physical damage) and Leverage (50% increased crit chance against immobilized enemies) support gems, but these might be better saved for later.
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- Permafrost Bolts: A strong early-game choice. Freeze and immobilize enemies with frost projectiles. Use Frost Nexus (increased chance to freeze the ground) and Leverage support gems for enhanced effectiveness. Double Barrel is another option, doubling bolts but increasing reload time (though this can be mitigated).
Image: ensigame.com
Image: ensigame.com
- Explosive Grenade: Excellent for crowd control. Scattershot (three grenades instead of one, reduced damage) and Second Wind support gems are recommended. Remember grenade trajectory and physics!
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- Gas Grenade: Releases poison gas. Corrosion (reduces enemy armor from poison damage) and Bursting Plague (increased damage) support gems are beneficial. Detonate the gas with fire skills (like Explosive Grenade later Explosive Shot) for massive damage boosts.
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- Galvanic Shards (Act 2): Transforms your crossbow into an automatic shotgun. Use Conduction and Lightning Infusion support gems for optimal damage.
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- Herald of Thunder: A powerful buff, especially when paired with Galvanic Shards and Conduction. Requires 30 spirit units.
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- Explosive Shot: Combine with grenades for devastating AoE damage. Fire Infusion increases fire damage. Offers ranged combat and fire damage alternatives.
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Image: ensigame.com
Recommended Passive Skill Tree Nodes
Focus on nodes increasing projectile damage:
- Remorseless: Increased projectile damage, stun buildup, strength and dexterity.
- Ricochet: Increased projectile damage, projectile chaining.
- Blur: Movement speed, evasion, dexterity.
- Heavy Ammunition: Reduced attack speed, increased projectile damage and stun.
- Careful Aim: Increased projectile damage, accuracy at close range.
- Cluster Bombs: Increased grenade fuse duration, additional grenade projectile. (Useful with Explosive Shot)
- Adrenaline Rush: Increased movement and attack speed after kills.
- Doomsayer: Increased Herald skill area of effect and damage. (For Herald of Thunder)
- Instant Reload: Increased crossbow reload speed.
- Volatile Grenades: Reduced grenade fuse duration. (Only if not using Explosive Shot)
Image: ensigame.com
Image: ensigame.com
Image: ensigame.com
Image: ensigame.com
Image: ensigame.com
These skills and passive nodes provide a solid foundation. Experiment and discover your own optimal build for maximum destruction!
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