The latest Path of Exile 2 update, “Dawn of the Hunt” (Patch 0.2.0), has reshaped the meta in a big way. Some fan-favorite builds have dropped in power, while a few unexpected setups have climbed the tier list. Here’s a clear breakdown of what changed, which builds were nerfed or buffed, and what it means for players moving forward.
S Tier – Still Kings of the Meta
Bonestorm Witch: Surprisingly, Bonestorm is now a top-tier build. With the right passives and gear, it scales incredibly well. Two variants offer either huge crit potential or tanky life-based scaling.
Explosive Shot Deadeye: This build can wipe entire screens quickly, thanks to crossbow buffs and synergy with multiple Heralds. The setup is structured around using explosive shots, which will release bunches of Buffs like the Herald of Thunder, Herald of Ice, and Herald of Ash, which will all create massive explosions and give you the ability to clear entire screens of mobs in just a few seconds. Single-target still needs support from Shockburst Rounds.
Ice Shot Ranger: Ice Shot + Lightning Rod + Blink + Orb of Storms gives insane AoE and speed. Destroying tier 16 maps and up to 5M DPS with high mobility and solid boss damage.
Lightning Arrow Ranger: Fast, powerful, and unchanged by the patch. Great for farming, leveling, and bosses. Cast on Shock and Ball Lightning synergy keeps it dominant.
A Tier – Strong but Not Overpowered
Corrupting Cry Warrior: Buffed by new PoE 2 armor scaling and thunder skills. Strong AoE and solid tanky with Stampede and slam combos.
Fireball Sorceress: Frost wall + infinite fireballs make for consistent ranged DPS. Fire scales well with exposure and has better pacing than the Comet build.
Frost Mage (Infernalist): Summons Frost Mages with huge freeze and damage potential. Scales energy shield to absurd levels.
Fire Warrior: Melee fire build with solid ignite and AoE. It works well against groups and single targets alike.
Minion Spirit Witch: Combines minion summoning with self-casting to maximize DPS. Get benefits from high synergy with specific gear and passive choices.
Totem Warrior: Shockwave totem makes this the strongest warrior build right now. It is easy to play and has high clearing power.
Skeletal Sniper Witch: Uses Detonate Dead and minions for aggressive play and fast clears. Strong energy shield scaling adds defense.
B Tier – Viable with Good Scaling
Spark Sorceress: Slightly nerfed, especially Storm Beavers. It’s still fun and viable but no longer dominant.
Demon Form Witch: Nerfed for early leveling but could shine in endgame. Fire-stacking with Demon Form is still potent.
Ice Strike Monk: Herald skill Nerf hurt the build, but it’s still decent for crowd control and sustained DPS.
Permafrost Witchhunter: Benefiting from crossbow buffs. Freeze and explosive synergy work well for control and AoE.
Stat Stacking Mercenary: Known as Tempest Flurry, this dex/int stacking build scales with uniques. Strong on a budget.
Flicker Strike Monk: Fast, flashy, and fun. Great map clear with charge stacking, but it can feel squishy.
Shattering Palm Invoker: Also hit by Herald nerf. Focuses on building explosive melee stacks, still decent for AoE.
Poison Gemling Legionnaire: Applies fast poison stacks with rapid attacks. High sustained damage, good for tough fights.
C Tier – Niche and Falling Out of Favor
Hexblast Witch (Blood Mage): Big nerfs made this build drop. Less reliable kill-trigger effects hurt viability.
Poisonous Concoction: Heavily nerfed. Flask timing and 200% buildup requirement slow it down significantly.
Shattering Concoction: Fast and flashy but suffers from the same issues as other concoction builds.
Ice Sorceress (Comet): Long cooldowns and underwhelming AoE. Penetration helps, but not enough.
D Tier – Avoid for Now
Hammer of the Gods Chronomancer: Destroyed by Nerfs. Formerly decent, now at the bottom. So, if you were thinking about the Hammer of the Gods, then rethink your decision. This build was usually focused on powerful melee attacks, with Divine Teed Hammer dealing with very high AoE damage. It typically scales with fire damage physical conversion and crits, which previously made it very strong for clearing and Bossing.
All Grenade Builds: Still slow to activate and clunky to play. There are no meaningful buffs in this patch.
Final Thoughts
“Dawn of the Hunt” really shook up the POE 2 build landscape. A concoction, hex, and herald-reliant builds took a hit, while crossbow and elemental-focused setups rose. If you’re planning your next league starter or looking for a new endgame setup, lean into the S and A tier builds for smoother progression.
Stay sharp, exile!
