Path of Exile 2 takes the Trials of Ascendance to the next level

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Summary

  • Compared to its predecessor, Path of Exile 2 is a slower game that focuses on player skill, combos, and dodging.
  • Path of Exile 2 introduces Trial of the Sehkemas, a roguelike experience with resources like Honor.
  • The Trial of the Sehkemas offers more agency and fairer gameplay, despite being more challenging.



As a game that launched during one of the busiest times of the year, especially for an Early Access title, Path of Exile 2 has had many successes so far. Path of Exile 2 is a separate sequel The path of exileand while both games are action RPGs, they take the approach quite differently, despite sharing a lot of DNA. While PoE is a fast-paced game that's been around for ten years, creating items and skills that have empowered the metaphor, Path of Exile 2 is a slower game that rewards players' ability to use their resources, combos, and dodge rolls to survive. This translates perfectly into his new Ascendancy system.

IN The path of exileplayers have access to the three campaign difficulties and then the Maps in the end game. At each difficulty setting, they can gain their Ascendancy class and more passive Ascendancy points to spend on it, which is done by venturing into the Lord's Labyrinth – a trap-filled maze where the goal is to reach the end and defeat Izar. Path of Exile 2 uses a similar concept with its Trial of the Sehkemas, which turns the original Labyrinth on its head by turning it into a roguelike experience.


They consider Path of Exile 2 players as enemies

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Trial of the Sehkemas explained in Path of Exile 2

Similar to its predecessor, dying during Path of Exile 2's Trial of the Sehkemas means players have to start from scratch and not unlock PoE 2Ascendance classes or extra nodes. However, Trial of the Sehkemas has multiple resources to micromanage in order to complete the challenge, the most important of which is Honor. Unlike Sacred Water or the various keys (Bronze Keys, Silver Keys, and Gold Keys), Honor can determine whether players can complete their run or not, even if they never die. This is because running out of Honor means the end of the run, so one has to be extra careful.

Like Life or Energy Shield, players lose honor when hit by enemies, traps, or other effects, including damage over time. When Honor reaches 0, players must start the Trial of Sehkem again.


While this may seem like a mechanic designed to punish players, there are various ways to micromanage Honor outside of not getting hit by attacks and traps. This is because Trial of the Sehkemas has multiple paths and rooms for players to choose from, all of which can shape a given run in multiple ways. Some rooms grant holy water or keys, and others allow players to restore their honor by playing into them Path of Exile 2difficulty and ways to handle it.

However, each run is different due to different modifiers, with Afflictions usually being the most problematic. These are permanent modifiers that either make players weaker or monsters stronger, making every run potentially more difficult if present. However, the idea of ​​Trial of the Sehkemas offering a roguelike approach to what is normally an ARPG is great and proves that Path of Exile 2's gameplay has evolved and surpassed its predecessor's gameplay.


Why Trial of the Sehkemas is a worthwhile addition in Path of Exile 2

A player with multiple rage stacks

The reason why Trial of the Sehkemas feels like an improved version of Lord's Labyrinth, despite being more technically difficult, is that players have much more freedom when it comes to different encounters and bonuses (or afflictions). If a run fails due to Honor reduction, players can search for rooms to restore it; conversely, if the run goes particularly well, challenging rooms with keys or holy water as rewards will improve the loot Path of Exile 2 players reach the end. While arguably more difficult, Trial of the Sehkemas may seem more fair compared to Labyrinth, which is nothing to scoff at when a losing run means having to start over.

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