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Discover everything you need to know about which is the best Class to pick in Path of Exile 2 (POE2) and all Class overviews.
Path of Exile 2 has received an initial release on December 6, 2024. The full-release schedule is still TBA, but the developers have confirmed that we will be getting 6 out of the 12 planned Classes in the early access itself. Grinding Gear Games has already decided which ones we will see in the early access. There are a total of 12 distinct Classes, each granting its own uniqueness in the game. Unfortunately, the Classes in Path of Exile 2 are gender-locked, meaning you cannot choose the gender of a specific Class as it is predetermined. Explore the best Classes to pick in Path of Exile 2 and see how it redefines summoner gameplay!
Classes Overview in POE 2
The Classes in Path of Exile 2 can be upgraded into 3 different Ascendancy Classes, ensuring your chosen Class is stronger. Each Class starts in specific regions of the passive skill tree at the north position. We have the pure intelligence casters which are both available in early access, the Witch and the Sorceress. At the northeast are the Dexterity/Intelligence Classes, in early access that is the Monk and they will eventually add the Shadow. At the east of the tree is pure Dexterity and that is the Ranger and eventually Huntress. To the south is the Dexterity/Strength which will eventually be Duelist and in early access there is Mercenary.
The Ranger Class focuses on speed, evasion, and critical strikes and the Witch Class specializes in summoning minions and dark magic. The Warrior Class excels in slams and warcries to deal area damage and Monk specializes in martial arts with elemental attacks. The Sorceress Class excels in wielding fire, lightning, and ice spells and dual-wield wands or staves. The Mercenary Class uses crossbows with various ammunition types, granting a dynamic combat style.
Reminder, only the ascendancies ultimately matter when it comes to Class. Any Class can use any weapon and skill combination in the game. You can make a Warrior that summons skeletons, you can be a Sorceress with a giant mace. These Class/weapon/skill combos are just guidelines for new players, you can ignore them entirely if you wish.
All Classes in Path of Exile 2 Explained
If you’re unsure which Class suits your playstyle, then don’t worry we’ll discuss every early game Class and which is the best Class to choose. Here is the list of all Classes in Path of Exile 2 and the top six are early game Classes.
| Classes | Gender | Attribute Focused | Weapon | Archetype | Ascendency |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ranger | Female | Dexterity | Bows | Agile Archer | Deadeye Pathfinder |
| Witch | Female | Intelligence | Wand | Necromantic Occultist | Blood Mage Infernalist |
| Warrior | Male | Strength | Maces | Melee Attach | Titan Warbringer |
| Monk | Male | Intelligence/Dexterity | Quarterstaff | Martial Artist | Invoker Acolyte of Chayula |
| Sorceress | Female | Intelligence | Staves | Elemental Spellcaster | Chronomancer Stormweaver |
| Mercenary | Male | Strength/Dexterity | Crossbows | Flexible Crossbowman | Witch Hunter Gemling Legionnaire |
| Druid | Male | Strength/Dexterity | Scepter | Shapeshifter | N/A |
| Duelist | Male | Strength/Dexterity | Swords | Swordsman | N/A |
| Huntress | Female | Dexterity | Spears | Spearman | N/A |
| Marauder | Male | Strength | Axes | Axe Barbarian | N/A |
| Shadow | Male | Dexterity/Intelligence | Daggers | Cunning Rogue | N/A |
| Templar | Male | Strength/Intelligence | Flails | Holy Bastion | N/A |
1. Ranger
The Ranger is a ranged Class in the game. But this time around, you won’t be wielding magic but instead dealing physical damage to your foes. Unlike the Sorceress, this Class is also pretty agile, vaulting away whenever needed. It deals physical and elemental bow damage from a distance. Unlike many Classes, the Ranger can shoot while moving, giving players a significant edge on the battlefield. Basic arrow skills can be fired on the go albeit with a slight movement penalty allowing her to reposition while death upon enemies.
Lightning, poison, fire, and frost, as well as using plants and vines are the key elements for the Ranger Class. Any kind of basic arrow skill can be fired while moving with a movement penalty. This immediately gives you a lot more freedom on the battlefield. Ranger is a dexterity-based character Class renowned for quick attack, agility, and efficiency with bows. The Ranger Class has a Dexterity attribute, meaning the Class will begin on the lower right side of the passive tree. This area is near the Cold Damage, Crit, Bow Damage, Flask Effect, Evasion, and Attack Speed.
2. Witch
The necromantic Witch Class in Path of Exile is the perfect Class for you. Witch is designed to be the ultimate summoner. While some Classes can have access to a few minions, the Witch dominates in commanding large diverse armies. She has unique mechanics that allow for seamless summoning and advanced minion customization. The Scepter is the primary weapon that grants you, minions, like Warriors while also generating a resource called spirit.
The spirit bar displayed above your mana is key to your summoning abilities. Use spirit to tailor your army’s composition on the skill screen. The Witch deploys chaos-based spells that inflict damage over time and weaken enemies. Infernalist is the Witch Class specialized ascendancy which focuses on harnessing hellfire and demonic powers. Minions also revive upon death automatically and you can issue a command to control minion behavior and send them to certain locations or targets.
The Witch Class in Path of Exile specializes in occult magic, utilizing skills that summon an undead army or deal chaos damage with contagion and poisons. The Witch can summon Skeletal Warriors, Skeletal Mages, Zombies, and other undead creatures. The Spirit determines the number and strength of minions you can summon. Contagion and Essence Drain are the skills that can apply continuous damage to enemies and spread effects to close enemies.
3. Warrior
The Warrior Class in Path of Exile 2 focuses on the strength attribute that grants raw and massive damage. Shields, maces, and their two-handed counterparts that are strength-stunned are the primary weapons for this Class. This allows you to adapt offensive and defensive stances to make you terrifying in several combat situations. Warriors excel in dealing with heavy physical damage through ground slams and seismic waves. Equip heavy armour and weapons to increase offense and defense. Use shields to block frontal attacks, including spells, to reduce damage. The prolonged blocking removes the stance and you’re not allowed to block charged attacks or other heavy attacks.
Warrior’s playstyle can be further customized by selecting one of two Ascendancy Classes, Titan and Warbringer. Titan focuses on crowd control along with high defense to disrupt enemies and Warbringer on the other hand focuses on melee damage and detonates fallen enemies. Earthquake, Infernal Cry, and Stampede are some major skills for Warriors in Path of Exile 2. If you’re choosing Warrior Class, then balancing offense and defense is important.
Improve survivability and damage outcome by timing mobility skills accurately. Use life nodes and physical damage while leveling. You can also equip the effective gear to maximize damage and durability. Choose the Ascendancy wisely to modify your playstyle. Utilize support gems to increase your core abilities.
4. Monk
The Monk is a new Class with intelligence and dexterity attributes that focuses on applying elemental damage. This Class starts near the Shadow Class on the passive skill tree. Monks get early access to nodes, increasing lightning and cold damage along with defensive choices like Spell Suppression and Energy Shield. The primary weapon for the Monk is the Quarterstaff which roll attack modifiers. Monk abilities consist of elemental damage with agile melee combat.
Falling Thunder, Killing Palm, and Glacial Cascade are the best massive damage-dealing skills that players can use during fights. Monks specialize further through two Ascendancy Classes, Invoker, and Acolyte of Chayula. While the Invoker focuses on empowering skills, inflicting ailments, and elemental magic, the Acolyte of Chayula on the other hand focuses on using the Spirit of Darkness to deal damage. Tailor your playstyle towards elemental prowess through Ascendancies. The Monks can use attacks to crowd-control mobs, freeze your enemies, and deal AoE damage. Monks depend on constant motion and activity in the game.
The key playstyle elements for this new Class are Mobility, Elemental Ailments, and Dynamic Skill Usage. Frozen Locus and Vaulting Impact are the new skills that increase maneuverability. Shocking and freezing skills can cripple enemies and boost damage. Monk is an excellent choice for players who favor elemental power and high-speed combat. This unique Class is a balance between offense, defense, and speed.
5. Sorceress
The Sorceress is one of two intelligence starting Classes in Path of Exile 2. This Class is heavily focused on elemental damage, elemental ailments, mana, and energy shields, making it somewhat akin to the Elementalist of Path of Exile 1. The sorceress excels in casting potent elemental spells and uses staves and wands to cast spells. You can switch between different staves to gain a variety of elemental attacks that increase combat versatility. The Sorceress has a mixed array of skills, each supporting a certain element.
Flame Wall, Spark, Comet, Ice Nova, and Arc are some of the best skills that players can use while fighting in combat. Sorceress can customize your playstyle through Ascendancy Classes, Stormweaver, and Chronomancer. Stormweaver focuses on enhancing elemental damage and Chronomancer exploits time to her advantage. Combine different elemental skills to take control of the battlefield and exploit enemy weaknesses. Maximize the damage output transitions between elemental attacks through the weapon-swapping feature. This Class offers a dynamic and versatile playstyle, revolving around elemental magic.
This is a magic archetype that primarily uses elements to bring enemies to their knees. As a Sorceress, you should be able to use a variety of elements at your disposal to wreak havoc on everybody. Unlike the Warrior, it is more of a ranged Class and probably wouldn’t excel in close combat situations.
6. Mercenary
The Mercenary Class in Path of Exile 2 offers ranged battles while focusing on crossbows, ammo, and attachments. It is a Strength/Dexterity hybrid Class that is centered around crossbows. This Class offers an experience that feels more than any other RPG. This Class doesn’t depend on skills or passive nodes. You can customize your playstyle by choosing different crossbows, ammo, and attachments. Each one of them influences how to tackle enemies.
At the heart of the Mercenaries, the gameplay is the crossbow system, which provides different weapons archetypes mimicking real-world firearms. Choose crossbows that favor sniper rifle playstyle for precision and long-range combat. Assault rifles type crossbows are usually used for rapid-fire projectiles and shotguns for close-range bursts. SMGs like crossbows are well suited for high-speed attacks. Each crossbow type offers its mechanics in the game. However, they are best for either clearing mobs or defeating bosses.
The attachments offer enhanced versatility and most of the crossbows can equip underslung attachments. Grenade launchers allow you to deal devastating area damage in combat. Use fire-firing grenades with your crossbows to provide AoE attacks to clear large clusters of enemies in closer areas. These attachments aren’t just for show, they are integral parts of the Mercenaries’ build, giving you the ability to handle complex combat scenarios with creativity.
What truly elevates the Mercenaries’ customization is the ammo system. This introduces another layer of depth to its combat mechanics. Ammo isn’t just about dealing with damage, it’s about controlling the battlefield, applying utility effects, and amplifying your overall strategy. Each type of ammo offers unique effects, such as armor-piercing rounds for tackling heavily armored foes or elemental ammo like incendiary and frost rounds for additional utility and crowd control.
Which Class You Should Pick and Why in POE 2?
The Witch is the Best Early Access Class
Witch is an absolutely amazing mix of summoner, slash, necromancer, and even sorcerer. Keep in mind that the minion gameplay and quality of life are on a different level when it comes to this Class. You don’t have to always resummon your minions. You don’t need to click the button every time a minion goes down because they auto-summon.
One of the coolest things about the Witch is the fact that you can turn your enemies into your minions. It also applies to some high-level enemies as well. Imagine, you find a really cool monster, you take him out and the next thing you know it’s your minion and dealing all of those skills to other enemies.
Infernalist and Blood Mage are the two Ascendencies of the Witch Class. Infernalist is the fire-slash minion playstyle. You can summon a hellhound which gives the ability to burn enemies attack takes 20% of the damage instead of you. You can turn into a demon and you will be able to deal way more damage but your HP drains.
The other option for you is Blood Mage. Every time you kill enemies they drop blood orbs and these orbs can overfill your HP to double. It’s tied to your critical hit damage because the higher HP you have the higher your crit damage is. You can also build into life steal on the Blood Mage, so can create awesome builds with this Ascendency.
Mercenary is the Another best Class to pick
The Mercenary is the best Class to pick because you will have different options when it comes to dealing damage with your crossbow. Shotgun style, AR-style, or even sniper style, all of these options create awesome tools depending on what kind of combat you’re in. Are you fighting a lot of enemies, in that case shotgun might be the key. If you’re fighting a boss or trying to stay at range, you’re probably better off going sniper. You also have a grenade launcher that comes with your crossbow, granting incredible boss damage. You can also freeze, slow, and burn enemies with the different types of grenades.
Witch Hunter is one of the Ascendency to pick because you can get a skill that gives you a 10% chance to explode enemies on death. It also deals 100% of their HP as damage. Gemling Legionnaire is also the best Ascendency to pick because it is mostly focused on making everything involving gems. You can get three additional skill slots, go for really high resistances, or straight-up increase the quality of gems.
All of these things combined will give you a lot of cool build crafting options to create an incredible long-range Class with high burst damage and at clear as well. You can succeed in any environment and doesn’t tie you down to a specific style of combat. Not many Classes can really offer that, so it’s definitely a unique Class both mechanically and playstyle-wise.
FAQs about Classes are in Path of Exile 2
How many Classes are in POE2?
There are a total of 12 distinct Classes, each granting its own uniqueness in the game. The three Classes can be upgraded into 3 different Ascendancy Classes that make your Classes powerful.
Does Path of Exile have Classes?
Yes, Path of Exile 2 has 12 Classes that you can choose according to your playstyle. At the early access, you will have access to only six Classes.
What are the classes of gender locked in Path of Exile 2?
Classes in Path of Exile 2 are gender-locked, meaning you cannot choose the gender of a specific Class as it is predetermined.
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