The developers of Path of Exile 2 have introduced their latest feature for the ARPG. The crafting system aims to address the game’s greatest weakness.
What weakness is being referred to? Since its release, players of Path of Exile 2 have been complaining about the lack of crafting options in the game. While the season update was supposed to bring the first improvements with the new mechanics, the developers are adding more with the upcoming update.
However, the complaints persisted. Building a character using self-found upgrade materials and items is still much harder than simply exchanging for perfect items. Trading makes it much easier to acquire the suitable endgame gear.
With the major update 0.2.1, a plethora of new crafting sockets will be added to the game. Now the developers are showing what they exactly mean by that.
Here you can watch the trailer for the current season of Path of Exile 2:
22 new crafting sockets for the midgame
What are the developers delivering? The developers of Path of Exile 2 have now presented 22 new crafting sockets. These are intended to make it easier for players during the campaign and in the early maps of the ARPG’s midgame.
The developers’ idea, as stated on PathofExile.com, is that these items “help you in your campaign by supplementing missing attributes or resistances that you may lack.” In the endgame, the 22 new sockets can then be replaced by stronger ones.
All 22 items can only be found as drops in the open world, meaning they cannot be crafted like other items by upgrading old runes. However, the developers also indicate that the drops will be relatively rare because using them offers a strong upgrade for your character.
Here are some examples of new runes coming to Path of Exile 2 with update 0.2.1:
- HedgeWitch Assandra’s Rune of Wisdom
- Wand or staff: +1 to level of all spell skills
- Farrul’s Rune of the Chase
- Boots: 5% increased movement speed
- The Greatwolf’s Rune of Willpower
- Body armors: 10% of damage is deducted from mana before life
- Tacati’s Soul Core of Affliction
- Helmets: Enemies you curse have -8% to chaos resistance
- Talisman of Thruldana
- Weapon: 25% reduced poison duration
- Targets can be affected by +1 of your poisons simultaneously
Even though these new items help, the greatest weakness due to the rarity of the crafting items will likely not be resolved completely. Nevertheless, this is another step by the developers towards an alternative to the trading system. Why trading is so problematic in Path of Exile 2, you can find out here: In Path of Exile 2, sneaky players exploit a crucial mechanic, taking advantage of newcomers’ ignorance
