Best Mercenary Builds in Path of Exile 2 Early Access

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I. Witchhunter Build – Stealth and Critical Strikes Mercenary

Overview

The Witchhunter Mercenary is a master of stealth and critical strikes. This build focuses on high burst damage through critical hits, making it a great choice if you love dealing massive damage with each shot. With the ability to vanish and strike from the shadows, the Witchhunter excels in hit-and-run tactics.

Weapon Choice

For a Witchhunter, you’ll want to focus on ranged or light melee weapons:

• Primary Weapon: A Bow or One-handed Weapon (dagger or sword) paired with a shield for defense. Bows work best for long-range damage, while one-handed weapons with a shield can provide better protection and faster attacks.

• Weapon Stats: Prioritize Critical Strike Chance, Critical Strike Multiplier, Attack Speed, and Projectile Damage for your bow, or Attack Speed and Crit Multiplier for one-handed melee weapons.

Gear

The Witchhunter relies heavily on evasion and crit-based modifiers. Here’s what you should focus on:

• Helmet: Look for life, resistance, and increased critical strike chance.

• Body Armour: Choose life, energy shield, and resistance. Rare armors with evasion or energy shields are great for survivability.

• Gloves: Opt for critical strike multiplier, life, and attack speed.

• Boots: Focus on life, resistance, and speed for better agility.

• Amulet: Crit Chance, Crit Multiplier, Elemental Damage, or Attack Speed are great stats here.

• Rings: Aim for Crit Chance, attack speed, life, and resistances.

• Belt: Look for life, crit multiplier, and resistances.

Skills and Gems

The Witchhunter is all about dealing damage from afar with critical strikes. Here’s the recommended setup:

• Main Skill: Poison Arrow or Explosive Arrow for ranged crit-based damage.

Gems:

Poison Arrow: Add Chaos Damage, Faster Projectiles, Critical Damage, and Poison to deal devastating damage over time.

Explosive Arrow: Boost with Increased Critical Damage, Elemental Damage with Attacks, and Poison for big hits.

• Secondary Skills: Use Vigilant Strike for defensive buffs, Vaal Lightning Trap for AoE damage, and Dash for quick movement.

• Auras: Precision for increased accuracy and crit chance, Herald of Ash for more damage and Vitality for life regeneration.

Ascendancy: Witchhunter

The Witchhunter ascendancy focuses on critical hits and stealth. Here’s what to prioritize:

• Critical Precision: Increases crit chance and crit multiplier, making you a critical strike machine.

• Stealth Assassin: Gain increased evasion and critical damage when unseen, perfect for hit-and-run tactics.

• Marksman’s Stealth: After gaining stealth, you’ll get bonuses to attack speed and crit chance, boosting your damage potential.

• Death’s Embrace: Apply poison for more crit damage and increase your crit chance even further.

Passive Skill Tree Allocation

To maximize your Witchhunter, focus on:

• Crit Chance and Crit Multiplier for maximum damage output.

• Life and Evasion for defense.

• Projectile Damage and Attack Speed to scale your ranged skills.

• Don’t forget to take Witchhunter's ascendancy nodes for increased crit damage and stealth buffs.

II. Gemling Legionnaire Build – Gem-Powered Hybrid Combat Mercenary

Overview

If you prefer a more hybrid playstyle that blends melee and spellcasting, the Gemling Legionnaire is for you. This build uses powerful gem-powered abilities to enhance both physical and elemental attacks. You’ll be leveraging the unique gem system in PoE 2 to deliver sustained damage while maintaining solid defenses.

Weapon Choice

For the Gemling Legionnaire, you’ll want a mix of melee and gem-enhanced abilities:

• Primary Weapon: A one-handed sword, dagger, or mace, paired with a shield for balance between offense and defense.

• Weapon Stats: Focus on attack speed, increased elemental damage, and life leech for survivability.

Gear

Here’s what you should focus on when gearing up:

• Helmet: Look for life, resistances, and increased elemental damage.

• Body Armour: Go for life, energy shield, and resistance. Items that boost gem slots or gem effects are key for this build.

• Gloves: Attack speed, life, increased gem damage, and resistance.

• Boots: Life, resistances, and movement speed for better positioning.

• Amulet: Elemental Damage, Life, and Crit Chance to maximize your offensive potential.

• Rings: Elemental Damage, Crit Chance, Life, and Energy Shield.

• Belt: Look for life, resistance, and energy shield.

Skills and Gems

The Gemling Legionnaire build revolves around combining melee with gem-powered abilities. Here’s a recommended setup:

• Main Skill: Gem Beam or Gemling Slaughter for hybrid damage, scaling both physical and elemental attacks.

Gems:

• Gem Beam: Increase elemental damage, crit damage, and area of effect for maximum impact.

• Gemling Slaughter: Boost with Melee Physical Damage, Crit Chance, Life Leech, and Elemental Damage to enhance hybrid damage.

• Secondary Skills: Leap Slam for mobility, Vigilant Strike for defensive buffs, and Flame Dash for repositioning.

• Auras: Herald of Purity for added elemental damage, Hatred for cold damage scaling, and Determination for defense.

Ascendancy: Gemling Legionnaire

The Gemling Legionnaire uses gems in unique ways to empower your attacks and defenses. Key ascendancy points:

• Gem’s Wrath: Boosts gem-powered damage and grants bonuses when linked gems are used.

• Legionnaire’s Might: Increases melee damage and gem synergy for greater damage output.

• Empowered Gems: Provides extra gem effects and reduces energy shield costs when using gem-powered skills.

• Gemling Overload: Grants extra gem effects and enhances gem-related abilities.

Passive Skill Tree Allocation

For the Gemling Legionnaire, focus on:

• Elemental Damage and Physical Damage to scale both melee and gem damage.

• Life, Energy Shield, and Resistances for Defense.

• Crit Chance and Crit Multiplier for boosting your damage output.

• Invest in Gemling Legionnaire’s ascendancy nodes for synergy with your gem-powered abilities.

Conclusion

Whether you choose the Witchhunter for its stealth and crit-based gameplay or the Gemling Legionnaire for its hybrid melee and gem-powered combat, the Mercenary class in PoE 2 early access offers exciting and versatile playstyles. Both ascendancies provide powerful abilities that cater to different types of players, ensuring that there’s a Mercenary build for everyone.

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