The Warrior is the hulking powerhouse and close combat specialist in Path of Exile 2. Here’s the best build to use while the game’s in early access.
Since the dawn of gaming, RPGs have used three character archetypes: Warrior, Rogue, and Wizard. In Path of Exile 2, the Warrior epitomizes everything this stands for, representing the biggest, strongest, and most martially minded of all the game’s classes.
This is a character who uses brute strength and raw power to win the day and is always willing to get up close and personal with enemies. However, there’s much more to this class than simply charging in and mindlessly swinging an axe, so here’s the best Warrior build in Path of Exile 2 and how to put it together.
What’s The Best Warrior Build in Path of Exile 2?
The best Warrior build we’ve used so far in Path of Exile 2 early access is the Boneshatter Smith build, one that you can use while leveling to endgame and continue to use once you’re there.
Path of Exile 2 is still in early access with the meta still being established, and the next major update may encourage us to respec from this build. However, at the moment, this build absolutely shreds.
What’s The Best Ascendancy For The Warrior?
A clue was in the name, but the best Ascendancy to choose for this build is Smith of Kitava. This will set you on the right path and allow you to pick the best skills for assembling this build.
Once an Ascendancy has been chosen, it cannot be changed, even if you respec your skills, so be sure this is the build you want. If you do want to respec later, you’ll need to choose a build within the Smith of Kitava Ascendancy.
What Are The Best Skills For Warrior Build in POE 2?
Now that you’ve got your Ascendancy chosen, it’s time to select your key Passive Skills we’ll be using for the duration of our play.
For the Smith of Kitava, select the following passives from the Skill Tree:
- Coal Stoker
- Unnatural Resilience
- Forged in Flame
- Smith’s Masterwork
- Tantalum Alloy
- Motlon Symbol
- Support Straps
- Kitavan Engraving
- Leather Bindings
- Flowing Metal
You’ll soon be able to add even more passives from the Skill Tree, so for this build, focus on skills that improve your damage output and defense.
Remember, the Warrior is a melee-focused one-person army, so we’ll often be surrounded when battling mobs. This means we need to be as hardy as possible in close combat.
Which Skills And Support Skills Should You Pick?
Now you’ll want to pick which Main Skills and Support Skills. These will be the skills we use to do the bulk of our offensive damage when in battle. So we’ll be picking our Main Skills, then boosting them with Gems/Support Skills.
Below, we’ll list the best Main Skills for this build, as well as the best Support Gems/Skills to use with them.
| Main Skill | Support Gem 1 | Support Gem 2 | Support Gem 3 | Support Gem 4 | Support Gem 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mace Strike | Concentrated Effect | Close Combat | Soul Thief | – | – |
| Infernal Cry | Premeditation | Tireless | Enraged Warcry | Raging Cry | – |
| Boneshatter | Impact Shockwave | Magnified Effect | Reach | Defy | – |
| Leap Slam | Brink | Rage | Overpower | Martial Tempo | – |
| Herald of Ash | Herbalism | – | – | – | – |
| Overwhelming Presence | Cannibalism | – | – | – | – |
| Hammer of the Gods | Fist of War | Heavy Swing | Rageforged | Lacerate | See Red |
| Seismic Cry | Dazing Cry | Inspiration | – | – | – |
| Earthshatter | Upheaval | Spinter | Aftershock | Reverberate | Font of Rage |
| Shield Charge | Ingenuity | – | – | – | – |
Feel free to add more Support Gems to some skills once you complete the build and want to make it your own.
What Are The Best Items to Equip?
The weapons and armor you pick in Path of Exile 2 are just as important to your build as anything else. This is thanks to the numerous buffs each piece provides. These can often be even more valuable than the item’s base defensive/offensive stats, helping a build become truly overpowered.
There are multiple versions of each item in PoE2, and your level will dictate which versions you find, however, you’ll be able to replace one with a more powerful version of the same item later in the game. So don’t panic if you find one of the below items and it soon becomes underleveled.
| Item Type | Item Name | Key Buffs |
|---|---|---|
| Weapon | Sacred Maul | Boosts Physical Damage, Attack Speed, and Melee Skills |
| Offhand | Vaal Tower Shield | Boosts Physical Damage, Block Chance, and Armor |
| Offhand 2 | Massive Greathammer | Boosts Physical Damage, Attack Speed, and Melee Skills |
| Offhand 3 | Massive Greathammer (2) | Boosts Physical Damage, Attack Speed, and Melee Skills |
| Helm | Thrillsteel | Boosts Onslaught |
| Armor | Ornate Plate | Boosts Physical Damage |
| Gloves | Vaal Mitts | Boosts Physical Damage, Attack Speed, and adds Lightning Damage |
| Boots | Vaal Greaves | Boosts Physical Damage, Movement Speed, and Resistances |
| Belt | Infernoclasp | Boosts Fire Resistance |
| Ring 1 | Breach Ring | Boosts life and Resistances |
| Ring 2 | Breach Ring | Boosts life and Resistances |
| Amulet | Amber Amulet | Boosts Strength, Life, and Melee Skills |
| Charm 1 | Experimenter’s Thawing Charm of the Chemist | Immune to Freeze |
| Charm 2 | Any | – |
| Charm 2 | Any | – |
Remember, these are the late-game versions of these items, and it’ll take time to find them all. So, don’t worry if you have to use other gear in the interim.
Will you be using the Warrior to bash your enemies to bits? Let us know via the Insider Gaming forum, where you can get involved in all the latest Path of Exile 2 discussions.
Also check out our other Path of Exile 2 classes guides, such as the Monk, Witch, Sorceress, Mercenary, Huntress, and Ranger.
