An Interview About Necropolis' T17 Maps And Ranger Class In Path Of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2 shows a redesign of the original’s Ranger class, giving players a lot of cool lightning or poison skills. Path of Exile series continues to grow, showing its potential as the go-to ARPG for generations to come.

Game Director of Path of Exile series answered many questions in an interview, including Path of Exile’s upcoming Tier 17 Maps, and Path of Exile 2’s approach to Ascendancy classes.

An Interview About Necropolis' T17 Maps And Ranger Class In Path Of Exile 2

Ascendancy Classes And T17 Maps

Q: Will the duration of effects change dynamically? For example, if a player gains Frenzy Charge through Sniper’s Mark and Snipe while using Rain of Arrows, will the duration of Rain of Arrows change immediately?

Path of Exile 2 Game Director: In Path of Exile 2, these effects are generated when the player uses a skill, not when Frenzy Charge is gained. When the player activates these skills, they actually consume the existing charges.

Normally, the game will dynamically update various situations based on the changes in the character’s attribute values. However, if the player plans to consume the charge at the same time as the skill is activated. Then the skill’s effect will still be triggered when it is used, but the corresponding charge will also be consumed.

Q: In Path of Exile 1, Pathfinder was successful because of its excellent survivability and efficient use of flasks and poisons. So, how do you plan to adjust Ascendancy classes in Path of Exile 2?

Path of Exile 1 and 2 Game Director: In PoE 1, Ascendancy class system was successful. Although sometimes the balance was unbalanced and suddenly half of the players were only playing one class. But it created a lot of build diversity. PoE 2 will add 18 Ascendancy classes, and the existing Ascendancy classes will be completely redesigned and changed.

Q: How will the addition of Tier 17 Maps affect the game?

Path of Exile 1 and 2 Game Director: Tier 17 Maps are not mandatory. Players can still choose to run any tier they like. Players should be able to play comfortably on any tier their characters are capable of. Tier 17 Maps are only for players who wish to challenge a higher difficulty.

The quests or challenges in Tier 17 Maps are fixed and cannot be changed. They are usually larger and more challenging, and are a test of the player’s character’s skills. Therefore, players may try these quests occasionally instead of completing them repeatedly.

In addition, Divination Cards that can be obtained in other maps are not available here. Players should not focus on collecting these cards all the time, because the chances of obtaining them in the first place are not many. It is more like players occasionally try some of the high tier maps in Path of Exile.

Q: Are Tier 17 Maps tradable?

Path of Exile 1 and 2 Game Director: Tier 17 Maps are tradeable, and like any other in-game item, they last forever once traded. If you’re good enough and willing to put in the time, you can trade for more maps. If you’re just playing the game, you may find it difficult to get enough resources to support your progress.

Additionally, you can’t just farm Tier 17 Maps to get new Tier 17 Maps, so you’ll need to find other ways to get these resources, such as using Path Of Exile 2 Currency.

Chase Unique Meta And Class Identity

Q: What do you think of the current Chase Unique meta? Will it change with the redesigned Uniques in Necropolis?

Path of Exile 1 and 2 Game Director: I don’t think it will change substantially with the redesigned Uniques in Necropolis. There will always be new Uniques, some of which will hopefully become chase Uniques, but we can never predict which ones. We don’t know what the meta will be, or what the build will look like, we can only make best guesses.

One thing we hope to do is reduce the pain. So we’re going to make some changes to the drop rates of some Uniques to make them more world drop friendly and less non-world drop friendly, but that’s probably something we’ll talk more about later.

Q: How did you determine the class identities in Path of Exile 2?

Path of Exile 2 Game Director: When thinking about the game design, each class usually has its signature weapon type and most skills are associated with that weapon. Since Path of Exile is an open system game, this is just a suggestion to help new users understand a pleasant path.

For new players, it makes sense to choose a signature class and corresponding weapon type and focus on related skills. For example, as the game experience accumulates, players may find that some classes’ exploration methods are also applicable to other classes.

The game design aims to ensure that each class has a clear identity, providing players with a clear direction. When players start to try content outside of the class, all the crazy elements in Path of Exile begin to show.

In the future, we look forward to seeing more new content and updates to allow Path of Exile series to continue to grow and become the preferred ARPG for future generations.