Path Of Exile 2: Ascent To Power Walkthrough

Path Of Exile 2 has one of the most complex and fun-to-play class systems in ARPGs, but it is also quite reliant on the Ascension system. To unlock the first Ascendancy, players need to complete the Ascent To Power quest during Act 2.

Path of Exile 2: Best Atlas Skill Tree Setup

The Atlas Skill Tree is an endgame mapping mechanic in Path of Exile 2 that unlocks after the campaign. Here’s how to set it up correctly.

For those who are a little lost as to where and when this quest starts, here’s a comprehensive guide on all the details players need to know to start this mission, as well as the best advice on how to complete the Trials of the Sekhemas.

How To Start Ascent To Power In Path Of Exile 2

When players unlock the Ardura Caravan during Act 2, they will be able to explore two location nodes. Right before visiting the third location named Traitor’s Passage, players should talk to the NPC named Zarka, and she will tell them to seek Balbala, the Djinn that has been trapped there to acquire more power.

As most of the maps in PoE2 are procedurally generated, the location of the Boss players need to face and defeat to proceed will be randomized, but it will be more or less at the end intersection between Traitor’s Passage.

Players need to look for the Ancient Seal Door, which will then lead them to Balbala The Traitor’s prison. Once there, to start the encounter, players will need to defuse three seals and wait for the cutscene before stepping into a boss fight.

How To Beat Balbala The Traitor In Path Of Exile 2

To beat Balbala in Path Of Exile 2, players need to be aware that she resists Fire Damage and deals Physical, Chaos, and Fire damage. She can also cause Poisoning and Ignition with her attacks.

The best way to beat her is to use Cold Damage, since she is vulnerable to that element.

Balbala is a boss that is not extremely complicated, but it might take one or two tries before players get the hang of her mechanics. Here are Balbala the Traitor’s main abilities and how to counter them:

Slash attack: Balbala will do a regular attack to chip down the player’s health; This can be blocked or dodged easily. Energy shield will also block it, but it is recommended that players save it to prevent damage from other dangerous attacks. This attack can also cause burning or poisoning ailments.
Throwing attack: Same as with the prior attack, but ranged. Dodge or Block them. Every dagger hitting the player will cause Poison ailment build-up.
Whirling Dash attack: Balbala will lunge forward and move really fast, causing damage to the player, and releasing explosive AoE in her path that will detonate after 1.5 seconds. This cannot be blocked, but it can be dodged. Right before performing this attack, she will do a voice cue: ‘Face Me!‘ or ‘Na’kai!‘
Teleport dagger attack: Balbala will teleport and then throw daggers that will create an AoE at the player’s location. Dodging is the only way to prevent damage. The voice cue for this attack is: ‘Atul!‘
Summon Shadow Clone: Balbala throws a Barya (coin) at a random location. This creates a yellowish AoE, and players need to step fast over it to prevent the summoning of a copy of Balbala. When stepping on the yellow AoE, Balbala will follow with a teleport and slam attack.
Teleport Slam: When stepping over her summoning circle, Balbala will teleport and yell: ‘Tithe!’ This will create a fiery circle AoE that needs to be dodged.
Summon Poison Mist/Vanish: Mid-fight, Balbala will vanish and yell one of the following cues: ‘Visions of Jarah!’ or ‘Mists of Sulamith!’ A thick poisonous mist will start to emerge from the hole in the middle of the arena. Players need to quickly find Balbala and attack her to cancel this channeling. To find her faster, circle around the arena counterclockwise from her last position. Upon being discovered, Balbala will yell ‘Sands of Wrath!‘ or ‘Darakatha!,’ slamming the player with an AoE that needs to be dodged.
Explosive Blade Rain: If the fight prolongs, Balbala will start throwing fans of explosive daggers at the players, and they will be dropping in a conical pattern counterclockwise from her position. Balbala always does this in said direction, so players need to be careful and dodge in the opposite direction.
Blade Storm: If the Shadow Clone is not eliminated properly, it will give Balbala enough time to summon a destructive storm composed of several swirling blades that will populate the arena and make it difficult for the player to dodge her attacks. Counter by eliminating the shadow clone quickly and preventing Balbala from gaining distance.

Upon being defeated, Balbala will drop the Balbala’s Barya, which needs to be taken to Zarka. Once done Zarka will reveal the location of the Trials of the Sekhemas, the next step in the Ascent to Power Quest.

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How To Complete Trials Of The Sekhemas In Path Of Exile 2

With the activated Djinn Barya in hand, travel from the Ardura Caravan to the Trials Of The Sekhemas node on the map. It is important to mention that the first time, players will have to command the caravan to move from the Sekhemas’ map located in the front of the wagon.

Once there, players will be able to unlock the Waypoint and approach an altar where Balbala will receive them as an NPC, roughly explaining what they need to do to complete the trial.

The map is a procedurally generated dungeon, and each room will have its own challenge. Some rooms have timed challenges, others will have traps players need to avoid, and others will have Rare (Elite) enemies they need to defeat to proceed further. The important mechanic is that prior to entering the Trial, players will be able to use a Relic to perform an offering, granting them a boon.

At the start of each Trial of the Sekhemas run, players will notice they have a new resource bar called ‘Honor’ and a new currency called Sacred Water that they will be using in several ways throughout the Trials. These mechanics work in the following way:

Killing enemies will sometimes drop Sacred Water, which players can use to purchase boons, keys, and recover Honor.
Players will lose Honor proportional to the damage they receive.
Upon reaching 0 honor, players will automatically fail the Trial and will have to start all over.
The remaining Honor is traded for Sacred Water at the end of the Trial.
Sacred Water remaining at the end of the Trial is exchanged for Keys to open chests (Bronze, Silver, and Gold).
Honor is preserved if players have to go through two different trials (this will be used in the Cruel Difficulty to repeat the Trial and earn more ascendancy points).

Energy Shield drain will not remove Honor proportional to the damage. Players using a build that consists of Energy Shield have a greater advantage when they participate in the Trials, so keep this in mind before attempting a run.

At the start of each Trial, a map with several pathways opens at each of the altars. Players need to clear one map and its requisites before accessing a backroom with boons, merchants, or Fountains to recover Honor and gain more Sacred Water. Each time players complete one section, they will receive a boon and a curse.

Boons have positive effects, and Curses have negative effects.

Different Trials will pop up in every node. Here’s a detailed list of them and what to do in each case:

Chalice Trial: Defeat the Two Boss Monsters. Approach the Chalice and follow the blood path to find them.
Escape Trial (timed): Defuse every Death Crystal before the time runs out. Follow the path marked upon, deactivating each crystal to find the next one. Avoid monsters to prevent running out of time. If time runs out, players will immediately fail the whole Trial and have to start over.
Gauntlet Trial: Avoid traps, find the levers, and escape the room. Players will have to do this, as they prevent damage from traps, as this will chip away at their honor pool.
Hourglass Trial (timed): Activate the hourglass and survive waves of enemies until the time runs out. It is not obligatory to kill the monsters, but they will drop Sacred Water, so it’s up to the challenger to decide what to do.
Ritual Trial: Find the Summoners opening portals, then kill them and the beasts they summon to deactivate the portals. Repeat until completing the Trial.
Boss Trial: The players will face the following boss at the end of each floor (Tier) in the Trials: Tier 1 – Rattlecage, the Earthbreaker; Tier 2 – Terracota Sentinels; Tier 3 – Ashar, the Sand Mother; and Tier 4 – Zarokh, the Temporal.

To complete the Trials of the Sekhemas and attain Ascension, players will have to balance out these and choose the safest path that helps them preserve Honor, preventing certain Curses that can greatly decrease their chances of completing the Trials. A boss named Rattlecage, the Earthbreaker awaits at the end of several sections, and they are quite complicated.

The most straightforward way to win against him is to bring Fire Resistance in the form of Charms, Rings, and any boon that increases the mentioned Elemental Resistance in all the pieces of equipment players can get their hands on.

Then, avoid the lava cracks he summons, and bring him down by stunning him. Rinse and repeat to complete this tiresome battle and attain ascension.

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How To Complete Ascent To Power In Path Of Exile 2

Once players defeat Rattlecage, the Earthbreaker, they will gain access to the last part of the Trials of the Sekhemas: the rewards. There’s an altar there that players need to interact with to select their first ascendancy. Each class has two different ascendant paths to pick from, but once they pick one, their decision will be permanent, so choose carefully.

Some players are also confused about Ascent To Power in Cruel difficulty, but here’s what players need to do to earn another 2 extra ascendancy points during Act 2 Cruel Difficulty:

Talk to Zarka to start the Quest.
Defeat Balbala In Cruel difficulty and pick up Djinn Barya (make sure the coin says ‘Number of Trials 2.’
Return to Act 2 Normal Difficulty and enter Trials of the Sekhemas.
Then access the Trials using the Coin with the Two Trials and corresponding difficulty to Cruel.
Players will need to complete two runs of the Trials one after the other, and in each of them defeat a boss, so keep that in mind.
After that, they will gain another 2 Ascendancy Points to distribute in their chosen skill tree.

Keep in mind that this is not the intended way it should be completed, but at the time of writing, the Quest in Cruel difficulty is bugged, and this is the only way to bypass it and access the Cruel Difficulty Trials of the Sekhemas.

Remember that reaching 0 Honor means failing the Trial. This won’t consume the Djinn Barya the first time, as it is considered a Quest Item, so players have as many tries as necessary before finally completing the Ascent to Power Quest.

Subsequent Tries and the Cruel Difficulty ones will consume the Djinn Barya, and players will need to find another to complete another run. Only the first run on Normal and Cruel Difficulties will grant 2 Ascendancy Points each.

The players will also need to complete the Trial of Chaos in Act 3 Normal and Cruel to earn the remaining 4 Ascendancy Points for a total of 8 points.