Path of Exile 2 Classes Guide: 6 Characters Classes

Last Updated: December 11, 2024

Welcome to our comprehensive guide to the six unique character classes in Path of Exile 2! Path of Exile 2 features a total of 12 character classes, with six of them available at the early access launch. Each class has distinct attributes, strengths, weaknesses, and unique playstyles. Below is a detailed overview of each class.

Path of Exile 2 Classes in Early Access

Warrior

The Warrior in Path of Exile 2 pounds the ground with big, chunky attacks and can shrug off the hits of smaller enemies with large amounts of armour.

Primary Attribute: Strength
Primary Weapon: Swords, Axes, Maces
Strengths: High physical damage, durable, straightforward gameplay.
Weaknesses: Struggles in ranged encounters, limited area of effect (AoE) abilities.
Ascendancies:
- Titan: The Titan focuses on stuns, slams, and beefy defence. Call upon your ancestors to boost your slams. Push your enemies to the ground. Shrug off any attack.
- Warbringer: This fearsome frontline fighter conjures ancestral spirits to pummel his foes and has a voice so powerful his Warcries can detonate his fallen enemies.

Sorceress

The Sorceress bends the elements to her will, using them to unleash devastation on her foes. This classic spellcaster weaves a flurry of elemental magic from afar.

Primary Attribute: Intelligence
Primary Weapon: Staves and Spellcasting
Strengths: Powerful spellcasting abilities, high elemental damage.
Weaknesses: Fragile in close combat situations.
Ascendancies:
- Stormweaver: Become a master of the elements who can cast faster, hit harder, and chill and shock enemies en masse. The Stormweaver can even conjure devastating Elemental Storms.
- Chronomancer: The Chronomancer wields powerful temporal magic that can reset cooldowns, slow enemies in her presence, and even freeze time itself.

Ranger

The Ranger class in Path of Exile 2 is quick, but deadly, peppering her enemies with arrows and then vaulting away before they have a chance to reach her.

Primary Attribute: Dexterity
Primary Weapon: Bows
Strengths: High mobility and evasion, excels in ranged combat.
Weaknesses: Lower health pool compared to strength-based classes.
Ascendancies:
- Deadeye: This expert marksman can take down foes with style. She moves as fast as the wind, and can nock additional arrows with every draw.
- Pathfinder: Pathfinder is a master of flasks and poison. She can turn mana potions into chemical weapons, and stack poisons to her heart's content.

Monk

The Monk is a fast and furious melee fighter. He dashes in and out of combat, and has mechanics that involve building up and keeping momentum.

Primary Attribute: Strength/Dexterity
Primary Weapon: Quarterstaves
Strengths: Agile melee combat with a focus on speed and precision.
Weaknesses: May lack raw damage compared to dedicated melee classes.
Ascendancies:
- Invoker: The Invoker wields the elements with ease and can use that power to become an Elemental Avatar. The Invoker is also a master of the Spirit allowing him to use many abilities without lifting a finger.
- Acolyte of Chayula: The Acolyte of Chayula exchanges mastery of Spirit for Darkness, a resource that can be utilized to both absorb and deal damage. Summoning power from the Breach, he trades elemental affinity for Chaos.

Mercenary

The Mercenary wields a crossbow that can be loaded with different ammo types, offering versatility, power, and mobility. He also has options to combo abilities together to devastating effect.

Primary Attribute: Dexterity/Intelligence
Primary Weapon: Crossbows
Strengths: Versatile ranged combat with unique mechanics resembling top-down shooters.
Weaknesses: Requires frequent reloading; can have downtime during battles.
Ascendancies:
- Witchhunter: The Witchhunter specialises in taking down the most deadly of foes. With extra defences against magic, and the ability to break the concentration of his enemies, he is perfectly suited for slaughtering spellcasters.
- Gemling Legionnaire: Enhance your abilities by embedding Gems directly into your flesh. The Gemling Legionnaire can use more skills than any other class, and the more he uses, the more powerful he becomes.

Witch

Death and decay are the Witch's weapons of choice. She can call forth hordes of undead minions to fight for her while casting powerful chaos spells.

Primary Attribute: Intelligence
Primary Weapon: Minions and Spellcasting
Strengths: Strong summoning capabilities and crowd control spells.
Weaknesses: Vulnerable in direct combat; relies on minions for protection.
Ascendancies:
- Blood Mage: Become a master of life energy. The Blood Mage uses her own life as a resource to bring destruction to her enemies.
- Infernalist: Infernalist transcends the need for mana, instead building heat as she casts spells. With an Infernal hound at her side she can even turn into a demon herself.

Core Attributes & Ascendancy Classes Explained

In Path of Exile 2, the primary attributes for each class are:

Strength: Increases physical damage and health; ideal for melee fighters.
Dexterity: Enhances accuracy, evasion, and critical strike chance; suited for ranged attackers.
Intelligence: Boosts spellcasting abilities, mana pool, and elemental damage; perfect for mages.

Each class has three unique Ascendancy options that allow for further specialization:

Classes can choose between different playstyles within their primary role (e.g., melee vs. ranged).
Ascendancies provide unique skills that enhance the base class's capabilities.