This guide provides a strong foundation for a Mercenary starter build in Path of Exile 2, focusing on effective early-game skills, synergies, and progression.
Best Skills and Support Gems
Fragmentation Rounds
- Brutality: +35% physical damage
- Leverage: +50% crit chance against immobilized enemies
Synergizes with Permafrost Bolts for shattering frozen enemies.
Permafrost Bolts
- Frost Nexus: Creates chilled ground after freezing an enemy
- Double Barrel: -30% reload speed, +1 bolt
Freezes enemies for shattering with Fragmentation Rounds.
Explosive Grenade
- Scattershot: +2 projectiles, -20% damage, -20% attack/cast speed
- Second Wind: -50% cooldown recovery, +1 cooldown use
Powerful against bosses, synergizes with Rapid Fire for extra damage.
Gas Grenade
- Corrosion: Poison breaks armor
- Bursting Plague: Adds plague damage based on poison DPS
Effective against high-armor targets.
Rapid Shot
- Chain: +1 chain, +100% chain times, -50% damage with chained hits
- Ignition: +100% ignite chance
High damage output, ignites grenades for extra damage.
Herald of Ash
- Precision: +30% accuracy
- Magnified Effect: +40% area of effect
Causes overkill explosions, synergizes with shattering.
Stat Priorities
Regular Stats
- Dexterity
- Strength
- Intelligence
Defensive Stats
- Evasion
- Movement Speed
- Armour
Offensive Stats
- Projectile Damage
- Chance to Inflict Ailments
- Weapon Swap Speed
- Grenade AoE
Passive Skills
| Skill | Description |
|---|---|
| Remorseless | 15% increased projectile damage, 30% increased stun buildup against enemies within 2 meters, +5 strength and dexterity |
| Feel No Pain | 20% increased armour and evasion rating, 20% increased stun threshold |
| Ricochet | 15% increased projectile damage, projectiles have a 10% chance to chain an additional time |
| Exposed Wounds | 15% increased chance to inflict ailments, breaks 30% increased armour on enemies affected by ailments |
| Blur | 4% increased movement speed, 20% increased evasion rating, +10 dexterity |
| Heavy Ammunition | 8% reduced attack speed, 40% increased projectile damage, 40% increased projectile stun buildup |
| Quick-Change Act | 50% increased weapon swap speed |
| Cluster Bombs | 50% increased grenade fuse duration, grenade skills fire an additional projectile |
| Defiance | 80% increased armour and evasion rating when on low life |
Gear
Prioritize evasion on gear. Look for crossbows with damage modifiers and inherent traits that complement your skills.
- Sturdy Crossbow
- Tense Crossbow: 26% increased projectile speed
- Varnished Crossbow
- Dyad Crossbow: Can fire one additional bolts before reloading
- Alloy Crossbow
- Bombard Crossbow: Grenade skills fire an additional projectile
