Path of Exile 2 is set to bring a wealth of new content and mechanics to the already beloved Path of Exile universe, but it also promises to refine and expand upon existing systems. One such mechanic is Ritual, which debuted in the original Path of Exile and is expected to play a significant role in Path of Exile 2 as well. Ritual offers players an opportunity to engage in high-risk, high-reward encounters where they can unlock powerful loot and face challenging enemies. Whether you're new to the Ritual mechanic or looking to optimize your farming, this guide will help you understand how to efficiently farm Rituals and maximize the rewards.

What is Ritual?

Ritual is a game mechanic in Path of Exile that revolves around offering sacrifices to a mysterious entity known as the "Ritual Altar." This mechanic allows players to encounter waves of enemies while interacting with Rituals on the map. Once these Rituals are activated, players face escalating waves of enemies, and each successful wave defeated contributes to a growing reward pool.

In essence, Ritual is a combination of arena combat and loot farming. The core objective is to defeat waves of enemies within the Rituals while ensuring you can continue to engage with the Altar, sacrificing resources to unlock more loot. The mechanic combines elements of challenge, strategy, and risk-reward gameplay.

How Ritual Works in Path of Exile 2

Although Ritual remains similar to the previous iteration in Path of Exile 2, there are some key changes and refinements to consider. Here's how Ritual works in Path of Exile 2:

1. Finding Ritual Altars

In Path of Exile 2, Rituals are activated at specific locations within maps. These Ritual Altars appear randomly, and players must find them while exploring their current map. Once you locate the Altar, you can begin interacting with it to start the Ritual process.

Unlike traditional league mechanics, where you need to unlock certain content first, Ritual Altars will be scattered throughout your maps, providing consistent opportunities for players to engage with them. They are marked on your map for easy visibility, and their frequency increases with higher-tier maps or when you modify maps with specific mods that amplify Ritual encounters.

2. Sacrificing Resources for Rituals

To activate a Ritual, you must first sacrifice resources to the Ritual Altar. This is a fundamental mechanic that drives the progression of the Ritual. These resources come in various forms, such as:

Rituals Currency: Ritual-specific currency is used to activate the Ritual Altars. This currency is dropped by enemies during map runs, and as you accumulate it, you can spend it to start the Ritual encounters.

Items and Orbs: Some Rituals will require specific items like POE 2 Divine Orbs, Orb of Alchemy, or Chisel Orbs as sacrifices. These items act as high-value offerings, improving the loot quality and difficulty of the Ritual encounter.

By offering these resources, you build up the difficulty of the Ritual event, meaning that the more you invest, the more dangerous the Rituals become. However, investing more resources increases the potential rewards, so it's a balancing act of risk versus reward.

3. Waves of Enemies

Once activated, the Ritual triggers waves of enemies that players must defeat to gain access to the Ritual's rewards. These enemies vary in type and strength depending on the tier of the Ritual and the resources you've sacrificed. The number of waves and the difficulty of these waves will scale based on the offering, providing a challenge that increases the more you commit.

For those experienced in Path of Exile's endgame mechanics, the Ritual waves are designed to test your combat skills, positioning, and survivability. Strong enemies, bosses, and various mob types will emerge, each with their own mechanics.

Rituals offer increased monster density, meaning you'll encounter large groups of enemies that force you to clear quickly to survive. This high-density aspect gives the Ritual a diagonal difficulty curve-the more you sacrifice, the more dangerous and chaotic the encounter becomes.

4. Reward Pools and Looting

After defeating each wave, players are rewarded with loot that scales with the difficulty of the Ritual. The loot is granted in a pool, which players can access after completing all waves. You can then decide how much loot you want to claim and sacrifice. Some Ritual Altars have multiple stages, each offering an opportunity to maximize the loot gained.

Loot in Rituals typically consists of the following:

Currency: Rituals are a fantastic source of chaos orbs, exalted orbs, divine orbs, and other currency items.

Divination Cards: Rare or sought-after Divination Cards often drop as part of the Ritual loot pool, making Ritual farming highly profitable.

Unique Items: You may also receive valuable unique items that can either be used for your builds or sold on the market.

Ritual-Specific Rewards: These include ritual-themed loot or exclusive items that can only drop from Rituals. These may be rare crafting materials or unique weapons/armor that serve as special upgrades for your character.

Tips for Efficient Ritual Farming

Ritual farming is a great way to earn high-level rewards, but like all farming mechanics in Path of Exile 2, it requires planning, preparation, and efficient execution. Here are some tips for maximizing your Ritual farming:

1. Invest in Loot Modifiers

Loot modifiers can significantly impact your Ritual farming, improving both the quantity and quality of loot dropped. When preparing maps, consider using Map Modifiers that increase the number of Rituals or the rewards you can get, such as:

Increased Item Quantity

Increased Item Rarity

Better Ritual loot outcomes

Additional Ritual Altars (on maps that have this option)

These modifiers will increase the frequency and strength of loot drops and should be prioritized when running maps to optimize your farming.

2. Choose the Right Build for Ritual Farming

The effectiveness of your Ritual farming heavily depends on your character's build. Here are some build recommendations to make Ritual farming more efficient:

High Clear Speed Builds: Builds that prioritize quick clear speed-such as Cyclone, Essence Drain, or Lightning Tendrils-are ideal for Ritual farming. These builds let you clear multiple waves of enemies quickly, maximizing the time you spend looting.

Survivability: While clear speed is important, Ritual farming also demands high survivability. Opt for builds with high defenses, life regeneration, and damage mitigation. Characters that can sustain heavy damage and keep fighting in large groups will excel in these encounters.

AoE and Crowd Control: Builds that focus on AoE (Area of Effect) damage are perfect for Ritual farming, as they allow you to take down waves of enemies quickly. Freezing, Shock, and Burning effects can further crowd-control enemies, making your encounters more manageable.

3. Optimize Your Map and Rituals

Choosing the right map and Ritual will maximize your efficiency. When farming, look for:

Maps with Ritual Affinities: Some maps come with modifiers that increase Ritual rewards or reduce the difficulty of enemy mobs. Maps that boost the quantity of loot or increase the number of Ritual Altars will allow you to get the most out of your farming session.

Balance Risk and Reward: Don't overcommit your resources too early in the Ritual farming process. Sacrificing large amounts of cheap POE 2 Currency may give you access to better loot, but it can also ramp up the difficulty of the encounter significantly. If you're farming for Divine Orbs or Exalted Orbs, ensure that your build can handle the higher difficulty levels before committing large resources.

4. Use Ritual Currency Efficiently

Ritual-specific currency plays a pivotal role in determining the difficulty and reward of the Ritual. Use this currency wisely:

Maximize the rewards with smart sacrifices: Save your high-value items or currency for special Rituals. You don't need to sacrifice everything at once. Try to space out your sacrifices, allowing you to scale your loot efficiently.

Get Ritual-specific crafting materials: Keep an eye out for special crafting materials or unique loot, as they can be extremely profitable when traded.

Conclusion

Ritual farming in Path of Exile 2 is a thrilling way to acquire high-quality loot, currency, and unique items while facing intense challenges. Whether you're farming for currency, unique items, or Divination Cards, Ritual farming offers a satisfying balance of risk and reward. By choosing the right map, optimizing your build for high-clear speeds and survivability, and using Ritual currency wisely, you can make the most out of your Ritual farming sessions.

The Ritual mechanic will likely continue to be a cornerstone of endgame farming in Path of Exile 2, and mastering it will give you an edge as you progress through the game's ever-expanding world. Stay adaptable, keep refining your approach, and may your Rituals be profitable, Exile!