Passive Skill Tree

The Passive Skill Tree is a vast, interconnected web of passives in Path of Exile 2 that allows players to customize their character's skills and attributes. It serves as the primary progression system for character development, providing access to numerous bonuses, such as increased damage, survivability, or utility. Players allocate Passive Skill Points on the Passive Tree by levelling up or completing certain quests, enabling deep build customization and unique playstyles.

Passive Tree Nodes

Passive Tree Nodes are individual points on the Tree that grant specific bonuses when allocated. Nodes come in various types:

• Attribute Nodes (Travel Nodes): Adds +5 to any attribute selected. This node can be changed to a different attribute for the same gold cost as respecing 1 passive. The nodes that are dependent on this passive point do not need to be respeced for this change.
• Jewel Socket Nodes: Specialised nodes that allow players to insert jewels, granting bonuses or effects to enhance their character's build.
• Keystone Nodes: Dramatically alter gameplay mechanics, often providing powerful benefits alongside drawbacks.
• Small Nodes: Provide minor stat boosts, such as increased damage or life.
• Notable Nodes: Unlock after allocating Small Nodes in a cluster, allowing players to select additional specialised bonuses.

Nodes are interconnected, and players must allocate points in a path to reach desired nodes.

Passive Skill Points

Passive Skill Points are points earned by levelling up or completing specific quests in Path of Exile 2, which can be allocated on the Passive Skill Tree to unlock nodes. These allow players to enhance their character's attributes, skills, and synergies, providing the foundation for build customization and progression.

Passive Skill Tree Sections

The Passive Skill Tree is divided into distinct sections, each indirectly associated with one of the game's three primary attributes: Strength, Dexterity, and Intelligence. These sections influence the types of bonuses and playstyles available in each area and dictate the starting points for characters based on their class:

• Strength Section
  • Focuses on physical power, survivability, and melee combat.
  • Provides bonuses like increased life, armour, physical damage, and block buffs.
  • Starting area for classes like the Warrior.
• Dexterity Section
  • Emphasizes speed, evasion, and critical hit.
  • Offers bonuses such as increased movement speed, attack speed, projectile damage, and evasion.
  • Starting area for classes like the Ranger and Monk.
• Intelligence Section
  • Specialises in spell casting, energy shield, and utility.
  • Grants bonuses like increased mana, spell damage, energy shield, and elemental resistances.
  • Starting area for classes like the Witch and Sorceress.

This structure ensures that starting positions reflect each class's core identity, while the flexibility of the Passive Skill Tree allows for highly customized builds that can explore other sections as desired.

Refunding

Refunding, commonly referred to as a "respeccing", is the process of reallocating passive skill points. Players can remove previously allocated nodes on the tree by spending Gold, with the cost increasing as the character's level rises. This system allows for build adjustments, experimentation, and correcting mistakes in skill allocation while balancing accessibility with resource management.

Weapon Specialisation

When you use a Book of Specialisation, you gain two key benefits:

1. Two Passive Skill Points.
2. Two Weapon Specialisation Points allowing the equivalent number of your existing Passive Skill Points to be allocated differently, per weapon set, with the exception of Keystone and Jewel Socket Nodes.

The first Weapon Specialisation Slots can be obtained via the Book of Specialisation, awarded after defeating the optional boss The Crowbell in Act 1.

If you allocate points to both weapon sets, refunding these points requires removing one from each weapon set to reclaim a single normal Passive Skill Point. This system provides flexibility for builds that utilize multiple weapon setups or prefer to invest in general passives.

See also

Ascendancy class: An advanced speciality passive tree characters gain by completing Ascension trials.

Version history

Expand

Version	Changes
0.2.0	With the addition of the Huntress and other new game mechanics we've added passive support for these throughout the Passive Skill Tree. There are many new clusters, mostly in the Huntress/Ranger area of the tree, and many existing Passive Skills have been updated. These changes may result in your existing passive tree being forcefully refunded if you had allocated nodes around the areas where the layout changed. Added new Blind-related clusters. Added new Volatility-related clusters. Added new Ranged and Melee-related clusters. Added new Hazards-related clusters. Added new Companion-related clusters. Added new Presence Radius and Aura-related clusters. Added new Parry-related clusters. Added new Banner-related clusters. Added new Bleeding-related clusters. Added new Thorns-related clusters. Added a new Quiver-related cluster. Added a new Crimson Assault Keystone Passive Skill to the south-east of the Ranger and Huntress' starting location. Crimson Assault causes Bleeding you inflict to be Aggravated, and Base Bleeding Duration to be 1 seconds. Added a new Trusted Kinship Keystone Passive Skill to the south-east of the Ranger and Huntress' starting location. Trusted Kinship allows you to have two Companions of different types, causes Companions to have +1 to each Defence for every 2 of that Defence you have, and also causes you to have 30% less Defences. The following Notable Passive Skills have been removed, you will no longer be able to Instil them, but existing ones will still function: Break Focus, Hold Focus, Lasting Concoctions, No Escape, Pinned Down, and Potent Concoctions. 12 Jewel Sockets have been removed from the Passive Skill Tree. Existing characters with Jewels in these removed sockets can reclaim their Jewels to their main inventory using the new /reclaimjewels chat command. Notable Passive Skills in the starting areas of each class can no longer be instilled (or found on Unique items like Megalomaniac). This does not fix existing items where instilled notables in the Sorceress/Witch starting area could display incorrectly on the item due to the notables being different on Witch compared to Sorceress and other classes.
0.1.0	Introduced to the game.