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What Are The Changes Coming To Passive Tree In Path Of Exile 2?

Jun 21, 2024

In this guide we’ll talk about some of the big changes we’ve learned about Passive Skill Tree in Path of Exile 2. These changes are derived from Path of Exile 1, from the extinction of Life node to the introduction of the brand new Weapon Passive Skill feature, here we cover everything you need to know. Let’s get started!

Weapon Skill Tree Passive

So let’s jump right into the most interesting change on this list, Weapon Skill Tree Passive in POE 2 Weapon Swap will be incorporated into normal gameplay, with a feature that allows you to choose which weapon set a specific skill will use when it is cast.

What Are The Changes Coming To Passive Tree In Path Of Exile 2?

For example, you can attach a Staff that provides gem levels for Fire skills to your Firestorm skill, while you may want to attach another weapon set that improves the effect of the shocks you cause to your Spark skill. When you cast one of these skills, you automatically switch to the weapon set it is attached to so that using that skill can benefit from the stats of that weapon.

But as part of this feature, there will also be Weapon Skill Tree Passives, which are a portion of your character’s total Passive Skill allocation. This portion will come from Book of Skill during the campaign, and we don’t know exactly how many you’ll get, but I’d guess it’s around 20 or 25.

These Passive Points differ from Skill Points you get from leveling up, in that they can be attached to a weapon set to be assigned to a specific Passive Skill Tree while that weapon set is active. This, combined with the previously mentioned feature, allows you to assign these weapon specific Passive Points to nodes that will benefit that specific weapon set and its attached skills.

We could imagine a melee character using Two Hand Maces as an offensive weapon, and another Weapon Swap for a more defensive Flail and Shield combo. This character could then use their Weapon Passive Skill to deal more damage while Two Hand Maces is active. With the defensive Shield active, we could then choose to spend the points on a node that provides more armor or a chance to block.

This feature will be part of the build in Path of Exile 2, making it less focused on just one Archetype, and allowing them to focus on other options for specific scenarios.

Path Of Exile 2 Weapon Skill Tree Passive

Starting Position Of Characters

The next big change coming to PoE 2 is the starting position of characters on Passive Skill Tree.

In PoE 1, each class had a specific starting position, which was primarily determined by the class attribute alignment and Archetype category those classes belonged to.

In Path of Exile 2, each class still has a specific starting position, but the positions have been moved. All classes will start in the middle of Skill Tree, and the position they face is once again defined by attribute and archetype alignment.

Something to note here is the removal of Scion class in Path of Exile 2. In PoE 1, Scions started in the middle of the tree and could choose to leave the center in any direction they liked. This class was designed as a sort of Jackal Trades, bridging the gap between any possible unsupported archetypes by allowing easy access to specific areas of the tree in exchange for the mostly weaker Ascendency.

But in POE 2, Scion is gone, and that’s because they’ve added two classes for each attribute alignment, which means there will be a total of six different Ascendency options for each starting position on Passive Skill Tree, helping to solve the problem that Scion solved before.

You may also notice that the middle of the tree has changed significantly as well, with no routes going directly through the middle of the tree. The developers mentioned that the layout of the tree in POE 1 made it harder to balance, so they made it more direct to get from the class starting position to specific Keystones or Clusters by removing the middle of the tree.

New passive skill tree for POE 2

Life Node Removal

Speaking of balance, the third notable change between Passive Skill Tree in POE 1 and POE 2 is that Skill Tree in POE 2 will not have Life nodes.

Note that the decision to remove Life nodes would have had a tremendous impact on POE 1 if it was fully implemented, but POE 2 was designed from the beginning to have no Life nodes on the tree. When you think about it this way, this design decision actually makes a lot of sense.

They can better balance the life of ordinary characters, and the life available to players will be largely determined by POE2 Currency they invest in equipment. At the same time, due to this change, space on Passive Skill Tree without Life nodes is freed up. By the way, there are a lot of Life nodes on POE 1 Skill Tree.

These spaces can be used for more specific character defense investments, which is one of their goals for this change. The developers allow players to use these points to specialize in defense mechanics that make sense for the build they are playing.

Cancel Masteries

Another major change is that Path of Exile 2’s Passive Skill Tree will not have Masteries, at least at the beginning.

Just like the design of no Life nodes on Skill Tree, the concept of no Masteries makes sense in the context of POE 2. After all, Passive Masteries system was originally created to solve the problem of locking unique build-enabling mechanics into specific areas of the tree.

But POE 2’s skill system was designed to be very different from the beginning. It has performance abilities that can be combined with each other and a Support Gem system that limits characters to copies of a support gem. So it makes sense that these more niche offensive mechanics exist on the skills themselves or on specialized support gems that can enhance them.

Travel Nodes Selectable Stats

In addition, POE 2’s Travel Nodes will be stat selectable, providing lower but generally more meaningful stats. When selecting Travel Nodes, you can choose +5 Strength, Intelligence and Dexterity, helping you more easily meet the stat requirements of gear or abilities.

This change is actually huge for leveling, especially considering that the socket colors are gone as well, so you’ll be able to more easily level up the way you want without being limited by your stats or gear sockets.

That’s the major difference between the passive skill trees in Path of Exile 1 and Path of Exile 2.

Path of Exile 2 New Mapping System concept

Outro

So those are the top 5 changes we know about Passive Skill Tree in Path of Exile 2 so far. Let me know what you think of these changes and which changes (if any) you’re most excited about. I think it’s definitely those Weapon Skill Tree Passives, which could end up being an incredible feature! See you next time!

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