Path Of Exile 2: Ascent To Power Walkthrough

Path of Exile 2: A Comprehensive Guide to the Ascent to Power Quest

Path of Exile 2's Ascendancy system significantly impacts character builds. Unlocking your first Ascendancy requires completing the Ascent to Power quest in Act 2. This guide details how to initiate and complete this quest, including navigating the Trials of the Sekhemas.

How to Start Ascent to Power

In Act 2, after unlocking the Ardura Caravan and exploring two location nodes, speak to Zarka before visiting Traitor's Passage. She'll direct you to Balbala, a trapped Djinn, to gain power.

Balbala's location is randomized within Traitor's Passage. Locate the Ancient Seal Door leading to her prison. Defuse three seals to initiate the encounter.

How to Defeat Balbala the Traitor

Balbala resists Fire Damage and inflicts Physical, Chaos, and Fire damage, along with Poison and Ignition. Exploit her Cold Damage vulnerability.

Balbala's Attacks and Counters:

• Slash Attack: A basic attack; easily blocked or dodged.
• Throwing Attack: Ranged attack; dodge or block. Each dagger inflicts Poison.
• Whirling Dash Attack: A fast lunge with AoE explosion (1.5-second delay). Cannot be blocked, but can be dodged. Voice cue: "Face Me!" or "Na'kai!"
• Teleport Dagger Attack: Teleports and throws daggers creating AoE. Dodge only. Voice cue: "Atul!"
• Summon Shadow Clone: Throws a Barya (coin), creating a yellow AoE. Step over it to avoid summoning a Balbala clone. If stepped on, she teleports and performs a slam attack.
• Teleport Slam: After clone summoning, she teleports and yells "Tithe!", creating a fiery AoE. Dodge.
• Summon Poison Mist/Vanish: Vanishes (voice cues: "Visions of Jarah!" or "Mists of Sulamith!") summoning poisonous mist. Find and attack her to cancel. She'll yell "Sands of Wrath!" or "Darakatha!" before a slam attack.
• Explosive Blade Rain: Throws explosive daggers in a counter-clockwise cone. Dodge accordingly.
• Blade Storm: If the Shadow Clone isn't eliminated quickly, she summons a destructive blade storm. Prioritize clone elimination.

Defeating Balbala yields Balbala's Barya, to be given to Zarka. She'll then reveal the Trials of the Sekhemas.

How to Complete the Trials of the Sekhemas

Travel to the Trials of the Sekhemas node (initially requiring caravan movement). Balbala will explain the trial's mechanics.

The Trials are procedurally generated dungeons with various challenges (timed challenges, traps, elite enemies). Before entering, use a Relic for a boon.

Key Mechanics:

• Honor: A resource bar depleted by damage. Reaching 0 Honor fails the Trial.
• Sacred Water: Earned by killing enemies; used to buy boons, keys, and recover Honor.
• Keys: Earned from remaining Sacred Water; used to open chests.

Energy Shield drain does not reduce Honor. Energy Shield builds are advantageous.

Each Trial section offers a boon and a curse. Examples of Trials include:

• Chalice Trial: Defeat two bosses.
• Escape Trial (timed): Defuse Death Crystals before time runs out.
• Gauntlet Trial: Avoid traps and find levers.
• Hourglass Trial (timed): Survive enemy waves until time runs out.
• Ritual Trial: Find and kill Summoners and their summoned beasts.
• Boss Trial: Tiered bosses (Rattlecage, Terracota Sentinels, Ashar, Zarokh).

Successfully navigating the Trials requires balancing boons and curses and preserving Honor. Rattlecage, the Earthbreaker, is a particularly challenging boss; prioritize Fire Resistance.

Completing Ascent to Power

Defeating Rattlecage unlocks the final altar where you choose your first Ascendancy. This choice is permanent.

Cruel Difficulty: The Cruel difficulty quest is currently bugged. To gain additional Ascendancy points:

1. Talk to Zarka.
2. Defeat Balbala in Cruel difficulty (ensure the Barya indicates "Number of Trials 2").
3. Return to Normal difficulty and enter the Trials using the Barya.
4. Complete two Trial runs to gain 2 additional Ascendancy points.

Only the first Normal and Cruel difficulty runs grant Ascendancy points (2 each). You'll need to complete the Trial of Chaos in Act 3 (Normal and Cruel) for the remaining 4 points (total of 8). Reaching 0 Honor fails the trial, but the first attempt doesn't consume the Barya. Subsequent attempts do.