In today's guide, we'll show you the top two warrior builds in Path of Exile 2: Warbringer and Titan. We'll explore the best skill gems and upgrades to enhance your damage and survivability. I'll also highlight the optimal gear for both mid-game and end-game, ensuring you're prepared for any challenge.
We'll delve into the passive tree attributes, detailing the most effective paths and key nodes to prioritize. Additionally, we'll explain the best skill rotations and Atlas passives to maximize your damage output and efficiency.
By the end of this guide, you'll have a comprehensive understanding of how to build and play a top-tier warrior, ready to dominate the battlefield with unparalleled strength and strategy. Let's dive in and get started!
Top 1. Shockwave Warrior Build
This build focuses on using one or two skills to target and weaken large groups of enemies, causing them to explode. The Shockwave Totem is a key skill, allowing you to run into enemies and one-shot them effortlessly. The Ancestral Warrior Totem and Scavenged Plating enhance this by extending the damage of each hit, making it effective against bosses and tanky rare monsters. Despite the nerf to armor explosion, this setup remains one of the best warrior builds in the game. If you're looking for a powerful auto-targeting machine to delete enemies in seconds, this is the build for you.
Skill Gems
For the main class, you can choose the Warrior with the Warbringer ascendancy:
1. Mace Strike
• Support Gems: Rage, Armour Explosion, Magnified Effect, Primal Armament.
2. Shockwave Totem
• Support Gems: Inspiration, Close Combat, Overpower.
3. Scavenged Plating
• Support Gems: Precision, Vitality, Clarity.
4. Ancestral Warrior Totem
• Support Gems: Sunder, Supercritical, Overabundance.
5. Time of Need
• Support Gems: Fast Forward, Herbalism, Clarity.
6. Hammer of the Gods
• Support Gems: Fist of War, Concentrated Effect, Exploit Weakness, Heft.
Build Strategy
• Primary Skills: Use Shockwave Totem and Mace Strike to quickly eliminate enemies.
• Support: Enhance the size and damage of primary skills with support gems.
• Utility: Provide powerful buffs and utility with remaining skills, activating in the background.
• Efficiency: Only six active skill gems are needed for this build.
Passive Tree
1. Start: Melee Damage node, then progress to Brutal, Smash, Sturdy Metal, and Relentless.
2. Next: Move to the top right for Attribute, then go left to Ancestral Reach and Supportive Ancestors.
3. Circle Back: Devastation node, then proceed to Carved Earth and Hardened Wood.
4. Final Steps: Move forward to Socket, then unlock both totem nodes. Prioritize these nodes early for functionality and later for power. Fulfill attribute requirements for gear and skill gems, then invest in strength.
Ascendancy
• Unlock: Anvil's Weight, Imploding Impacts, Answered Call, and Wooden Wall.
Atlas Passives
• Aim for stats that spawn grouped monsters, useful for Expeditions and rituals. The build excels at single-target DPS, so invest points in farming boss maps or essences. Start at the bottom right, then move to Deadly Evolution, bottom left, and finally the middle path.
Gear
The following items is the best that you can use for POE 2 Shockwave Warrior build:
• Weapon: Cultist Greathammer for splash damage.
• Helmet: Warrior Greathelm for armor and resistances.
• Chest: Advanced Full Plate for life and cold resistance.
• Belt: Rahide Belt for flask recovery.
• Gloves: Interested Gloves for energy shield.
• Boots: Advanced Bronze Greaves for movement speed.
• Rings: Ruby Ring for fire resistance, Topaz Ring for lightning resistance.
• Amulet: Crimson Amulet for life regen.
Aim for: 75% resistance cap on all elements.
This build setups provides an example of desired stats and prefixes. For optimized damage rotation, place Shockwave Totem and Ancestral Warrior Totem, use Mace Strike for extra damage and rage generation, and Hammer of the Gods for stunning bosses. Focus on AoE damage rather than single targets.
Top 2. Ignite Warrior Build
This build focuses on scaling ignite from attacks to target large groups of enemies, setting them on fire and causing explosions. The Hammer of the Gods is a key skill, dealing incredible single-target damage without elemental penalties, making it effective against bosses and tanky rare monsters. Despite the nerf to armor explosion, this fire-focused setup remains one of the best warrior builds in the game. If you're looking for a powerful single-target fire build, this is the one for you.
Skill Gems
For the main class, you can choose the Warrior with the Titan ascendancy:
1. Hammer of the Gods
• Support Gems: Heft, Fire Infusion, Primal Armamen.
2. Leap Slam
• Support Gems: Jagged Ground, Holy Descent, Fire Exposure.
3. Boneshatter
• Support Gems: Impact Shockwave, Execute, Eternal Flame.
4. Perfect Strike
• Support Gems: Window of Opportunity, Martial Tempo, Fire Penetration.
5. Infernal Cry
• Support Gems: Premeditation, Corrupting Cry, Dazing Cry.
6. Seismic Cry
• Note: This is the Enraged Warcry.
7. Stampede
• Support Gems: Aftershock, Momentum, Magnified Effect.
8. Herald of Ash
• Support Gems: Vitality, Clarity, Fire Mastery.
9. Overwhelming Presence
• Support Gems: Cannibalism, Herbalism.
Build Strategy
• Primary Skills: Use Hammer of the Gods for single-target damage and Leap Slam for mobility.
• Support: Enhance damage and utility with support gems.
• Utility: Provide powerful buffs and utility with remaining skills, activating in the background.
• Efficiency: Focus on fire damage and ignite effects.
Passive Tree
1. Start: Melee Damage node, then progress to Brutal, Smash.
2. Next: Move up to Burn Away, then continue to Burning Strikes.
3. Attribute Node: Go down to the Beef node and get all small nodes around it.
4. Main Path: Find the Jewel socket, go right to Avatar of Fire, Overheating Blow, and Fulmination.
5. Keystone: Unlock Giant's Blood to enable the use of a two-handed weapon in one hand.
Prioritize these nodes early for functionality and later for power. Fulfill attribute requirements for gear and skill gems, then invest in strength.
Ascendancy
• Unlock: Colossal Capacity, Hulking Form, Earthbreather, and Mysterious Lineage.
Atlas Passives
• Aim for bonus passives that spawn grouped monsters, useful for Expeditions and rituals. The build excels at single-target DPS, so invest points in farming boss maps or essences. Start at the bottom right, then move to Deadly Evolution, and finally take the middle path.
Gear
• Weapon: Expert Forge Maul for critical chance and weapon speed.
• Shield: Expert Braced Tower Shield for block chance and resistances.
• Helmet: Expert Soldier Greathelm for armor and resistances.
• Chest: Advanced Iron Cuirass for life and lightning resistance.
• Belt: Plated Belt for armor and chaos resistance.
• Gloves: Expert Riveted Mitts for armor and resistances.
• Boots: Expert Trimmed Greaves for movement speed and resistances.
• Rings: Prismatic Ring for elemental resistances, Ruby Ring for fire resistance.
• Amulet: Gold Amulet for item rarity and strength.
Aim for: 75% resistance cap on all elements.
Damage Rotation
1. AoE Rotation: Start with Stampede into a pack of enemies, then use Boneshatter to clear remaining targets. Use Leap Slam for mobility and to prime enemies, then activate Boneshatter.
2. Boss Rotation: Use Perfect Strike to heavy stun, then cast War Cry, Seismic Cry, Hammer of the Gods, and Perfect Strike for massive damage. Keep shouts and Perfect Cry up until Hammer of the Gods refreshes, then repeat.
