His blade in Path of Exile 2 is at your service: How to make a Mercenary build

Conquer Path of Exile 2 as a Mercenary: A Beginner's Guide

Tired of fantasy tropes? Path of Exile 2's Mercenary class offers a unique, action-packed experience reminiscent of a top-down Doom game. Ditch the swords and magic; embrace the crossbow and unleash explosive mayhem! This guide focuses on building an effective Mercenary in PoE2's early access version (0.1.0f). Note that Grinding Gear Games (GGG) may implement changes affecting this guide's accuracy in the final release.

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The Mercenary's Arsenal: While capable of wielding any weapon, the crossbow reigns supreme. Think of it as a versatile blend of automatic rifle, shotgun, and grenade launcher. Leave bows to the Ranger; your crossbow is your best friend.

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Key Mercenary Attributes:

Prioritize Dexterity for increased damage and evasion. Evasion significantly outweighs armor. Boost movement speed for nimble combat. Allocate Strength and Intelligence as needed to meet equipment and skill requirements.

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Early Game Skill Selection:

• Fragmentation Rounds: A decent starting skill, but quickly outclassed. Consider Brutality and Leverage support gems.

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• Permafrost Bolts: A strong early-game choice. Freeze and immobilize enemies using Frost Nexus and Leverage support gems. Double Barrel adds more bolts but increases reload time.

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• Explosive Grenade: Essential for crowd control. Scattershot throws three grenades, albeit with reduced damage. Second Wind provides added survivability.

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• Gas Grenade: Releases poisonous gas, enhanced by Corrosion (armor reduction) and Bursting Plague (damage increase). Detonate the gas with fire skills for massive damage boosts.

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• Galvanic Shards (Act 2): Transforms your crossbow into an electric shotgun. Conduction and Lightning Infusion support gems drastically amplify damage.

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• Herald of Thunder: A powerful buff, especially with Galvanic Shards and Conduction. Requires 30 spirit.

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• Explosive Shot: Combines well with grenades. Fire Infusion increases fire damage. Offers ranged crowd control.

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Passive Skill Tree Recommendations:

Focus on nodes increasing projectile damage:

• Remorseless: Projectile damage, stun buildup, attribute boosts.
• Ricochet: Projectile damage, chain chance.
• Blur: Movement speed, evasion, dexterity.
• Heavy Ammunition: Damage, stun buildup (requires careful consideration of attack speed reduction).
• Careful Aim: Projectile damage, accuracy.
• Cluster Bombs: Increased grenade fuse duration, extra projectile (for Explosive Shot users).
• Adrenaline Rush: Movement and attack speed boosts after kills.
• Doomsayer: Increased Herald skill area and damage.
• Instant Reload: Significantly increased crossbow reload speed.
• Volatile Grenades: Reduced grenade fuse duration (optional, if not using Explosive Shot).

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Experimentation is key! Discover your own optimal skill combinations and builds. Enjoy the explosive carnage!