Mercenary Build Masterpiece: Forging a Blade in Path of Exile 2

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 refreshing change of pace, transforming the game into a top-down shooter experience. Ditch the swords and bows; embrace the crossbow – your trusty shotgun – and obliterate hordes of enemies!

Table of Contents

• Mercenary Class Overview
• Key Mercenary Attributes
• Essential Early-Game Skills
• Passive Skill Tree Recommendations

Mercenary Class Overview

With strategic leveling, the Mercenary becomes a formidable monster-slaying machine, effective against both regular mobs and challenging bosses. This guide focuses on the 0.1.0f early access version; Grinding Gear Games (GGG) may implement changes in the final release.

The Mercenary can wield any weapon, but crossbows are the optimal choice for ranged combat. They function as a versatile hybrid of automatic rifles, shotguns, and grenade launchers.

Image: ensigame.com

Image: ensigame.com

Key Mercenary Attributes

Prioritize Dexterity for increased damage and evasion. Evasion is superior to Armor. Movement speed is crucial for dodging attacks. Allocate Strength and Intelligence as needed to meet equipment or skill requirements.

Image: ensigame.com

Essential Early-Game Skills

• Fragmentation Rounds: A decent starting skill, but quickly outclassed by other options. Consider Brutality and Leverage support gems.

Image: ensigame.com

• Permafrost Bolts: A strong early-game choice. Freeze and immobilize enemies for increased critical hit chance with Leverage support. Double Barrel adds more bolts but increases reload time (mitigable later).

Image: ensigame.com Image: ensigame.com

• Explosive Grenade: Excellent for crowd control. Scattershot support gem allows for three grenades instead of one (damage reduction is offset by increased AoE). Second Wind is a valuable support gem.

Image: ensigame.com

• Gas Grenade: Releases poison gas, enhanced by Corrosion support (reduces enemy armor). Detonate the gas with fire skills (like Explosive Grenade or Explosive Shot) for massive damage boost. Bursting Plague increases damage.

Image: ensigame.com

• Galvanic Shards (Act 2): Transforms your crossbow into an automatic shotgun, firing lightning. Conduction and Lightning Infusion support gems significantly increase damage.

Image: ensigame.com

• Herald of Thunder: A powerful buff that increases shock chance, synergizing well with Galvanic Shards and Conduction. Requires 30 spirit units.

Image: ensigame.com

• Explosive Shot: Combines well with grenades; exploding bolts detonate nearby grenades. Fire Infusion support gem increases fire damage.

Image: ensigame.com

Image: ensigame.com

Passive Skill Tree Recommendations

Focus on nodes that increase projectile damage:

• Remorseless: Increased projectile damage, stun buildup, and attribute bonuses.
• Ricochet: Increased projectile damage and chain chance.
• Blur: Increased movement speed and evasion.
• Heavy Ammunition: Increased projectile damage and stun buildup (reduced attack speed).
• Careful Aim: Increased projectile damage and accuracy at close range.
• Cluster Bombs: Increased grenade fuse duration and additional projectile.
• Adrenaline Rush: Increased movement and attack speed after kills.
• Doomsayer: Increased Herald skill area of effect and damage.
• Instant Reload: Significantly increased crossbow reload speed.
• Volatile Grenades: Reduced grenade fuse duration (use only if not using Explosive Shot).

Image: ensigame.com Image: ensigame.com Image: ensigame.com Image: ensigame.com

Experiment with different skill combinations to find your optimal build!