50 Fun Facts About Path of Exile

On which cursed continent, used as a penal colony, do the exiles of Path of Exile wake on the shore?

Wraeclast was once the seat of a mighty empire, and its ruins hold the secrets of both the Eternal Empire and the older Vaal civilisation.

Which studio, founded in a suburban garage in 2006, developed and published Path of Exile?

Grinding Gear Games kept the project under the radar for three years before announcing it publicly in September 2010.

In which Southern Hemisphere country was Path of Exile made, by a studio now seen as that nation's most prominent?

New Zealand's most prominent game developer began in a co-founder's garage in the Auckland suburb of New Lynn before moving to offices in Titirangi.

Path of Exile is often described as the successor in all but name to which dark action role-playing game from 2000?

Diablo II was the main model, but the designers also cited Titan Quest, Guild Wars and the card game Magic: The Gathering as inspirations.

Which in-game money, absent from Path of Exile for over a decade, arrived with the Settlers of Kalguur league?

Gold came with a catch: it cannot be traded to other players and is spent only with non-player characters.

Which Path of Exile currency item, a common yardstick for player trades, rerolls every modifier on a rare item?

Chaos Orb crafting is a gamble because every modifier is replaced at once, and using one after another in hope of a good result is known as Chaos spamming.

Which famously rare Path of Exile currency item, pictured in the game's logo, makes an exact duplicate of another item?

A Mirror of Kalandra copy has its artwork reversed and can never be modified again, and owners of the best items sell copies as a service.

Which Path of Exile class, once a locked prestige class, starts at the centre of the passive skill tree?

The Scion is the only class aligned with all three attributes, which is why she begins in the middle and can build in any direction.

A full set of eight copies of the divination card The Doctor is exchanged for which coveted Path of Exile belt?

Headhunter gives its wearer every modifier of each rare monster killed for 60 seconds, and its scarcity has made it a status symbol.

Which Chinese technology giant bought a majority stake in Path of Exile's studio in 2018 and later became sole owner?

Tencent first published the game in China in 2017, and the three co-founders sold it their last shares in March 2024.

Which island nation, ruled by a theocratic Templar order, banishes the player character at the start of Path of Exile?

Oriath gets its reckoning in a 2017 expansion that added six acts and sent players home to overthrow the rulers who banished them.

Which High Templar, the final boss of Path of Exile's third act, is the man who exiles the player character?

Dominus has a name that is Latin for lord or master, fitting the holder of the highest rank in the theocratic order.

Which ravenous Karui god is fought as the final boss of both Act 5 and Act 10 of Path of Exile?

Kitava leaves a lasting mark: each of the two fights permanently lowers all of the character's resistances by 30%.

Which god of Path of Exile's Templars is defeated in Act 5 but returns reformed to help in the final battle?

Innocence is first met as an enemy, defeated along with High Templar Avarius, before being reborn and making amends.

In which opening area does every new Path of Exile character begin, before facing the first boss, Hillock?

The Twilight Strand ends with Hillock, and beating him at level 1 always lifts the character to level 2 and opens the way to the first town.

Which Path of Exile emperor built the Labyrinth to find a worthy heir and still guards it as its boss?

Izaro handed the throne to the first man to pass the test, who promptly cast the old emperor into the maze and sealed the gates.

Which Vaal queen, the final boss of the Apex of Sacrifice, tried to merge with the Beast in Path of Exile lore?

Atziri brought on the Cataclysm that destroyed her own empire, and her tougher form in the Alluring Abyss is nicknamed Uber Atziri.

In which Path of Exile town, the hub of Act 4, does Tasuni exchange full sets of divination cards for rewards?

Highgate is also where the first half of the story peaks, since the exile enters the Beast from there to kill Malachai.

Which real-world people inspired the Karui, the canoe-faring island tribes of Path of Exile?

The Māori influence later drew scrutiny: carving imagery in the sequel was removed after concerns about cultural appropriation.

Which real-world civilisation inspired the Vaal, the fallen empire behind Path of Exile's Temple of Atzoatl?

Aztec echoes run right through the Vaal, and the sequel sends players back in time to the eve of the empire's fall.

Which colour of gem socket is tied to Strength, the core attribute of Path of Exile's Marauder?

Red goes with Strength throughout the game, and the same attribute is tied to the element of fire.

Which Path of Exile class blends Dexterity and Intelligence and fights with daggers, claws, traps and mines?

The Shadow can specialise as an Assassin, a Saboteur or a Trickster after completing the Labyrinth.

Necromancer, Elementalist and Occultist are the three Ascendancy paths open to which Path of Exile class?

The Witch is the pure Intelligence class, favouring wands and sceptres and the energy shield that Intelligence armour provides.

Which Path of Exile keystone passive removes a character's mana entirely and makes skills cost life instead?

Blood Magic softens the trade by also granting more maximum life, and players usually shorten the name to BM.

In which permanent Path of Exile league is a character who dies moved to the Standard league for good?

Hardcore is the game's version of permadeath, though the fallen character lives on rather than being deleted.

Which personal base, unlocked by freeing Helena in Act 2 of Path of Exile, can players decorate and fill with masters?

The Hideout arrived with the Forsaken Masters expansion in 2014, and a new one is claimed by clearing it of monsters.

Which Final Fantasy magic system did Path of Exile's lead designer name as an inspiration for the game?

Materia was named alongside the Sphere Grid of Final Fantasy X, and Path of Exile's own skills likewise come from gems slotted into gear.

Which Path of Exile endgame system, named after a 2016 expansion, has players run map items in a Map Device?

The Atlas of Worlds presents its maps as potential realities, referred to as dreams, and its 2016 debut added 30 maps and 19 bosses.

Which Path of Exile pinnacle boss is unlocked with the Key to the Crucible, earned from the Guardians of the Void?

The Shaper in turn drops a fragment needed for an even harder fight, and the items he influences carry a star icon.

Which Path of Exile boss watches the player beat map bosses, then invites them to fight several at once?

The Maven arrived in a 2021 expansion that PC Gamer described as turning the endgame into an interdimensional fight club.

Which Path of Exile league sends players down the near-infinite Azurite Mine behind a mine cart called the Crawler?

Delve runs are fuelled by Voltaxic Sulphite, which powers the cart, and both the monsters and the rewards grow with depth.

Which Path of Exile master helps players net wild creatures for the Menagerie and first appears in Act 2?

Einhar joins the hunt in person: he turns up once a beast is down to half its life, then nets it for the Menagerie.

Which Path of Exile master of Vaal heritage sends players back in time on incursions to reshape an ancient temple?

Alva tracks down the present-day Temple of Atzoatl once enough incursions are done, and its rooms reflect what the player changed in the past.

Which Path of Exile league introduced the Immortal Syndicate, a secretive organisation investigated by the master Jun?

Betrayal lets players interrogate captured members for clues to the group's stronghold and leader, or bargain with them instead.

Which Path of Exile league introduced Contracts, Blueprints and a hub called the Rogue Harbour?

Heist jobs start from the Rogue Harbour, and the aim is to take the artifact and escape alive without raising the alert.

Which Path of Exile league plays like tower defence, with Sister Cassia pumping a Fungal Growth as monsters close in?

Blight also brought oils, which Sister Cassia uses to anoint an amulet or ring with an extra enchantment.

Which Path of Exile league introduced Oshabi and the Sacred Grove, where slain monsters yield life force for crafting?

Harvest monsters are home-grown: players plant seeds in the grove, raise them into creatures and then kill them.

Which Path of Exile league is a run through a randomised dungeon, gathering Aureus coins before Resolve runs out?

Sanctum progress is kept between floors, and the next floor even takes the form of a research item that can be stashed or traded.

Which irreversible state does a Vaal Orb put on a Path of Exile item, altering it unpredictably?

Corruption is a gamble: the orb can greatly improve an item or change it for the worse, and ordinary currency cannot modify it afterwards.

Which Path of Exile currency item, three of which every new character carries, reveals an unidentified item's modifiers?

The Scroll of Wisdom is the most commonly dropped currency item in the game, and it is the only way to identify a strongbox.

Nine copies of Path of Exile's divination card Humility are traded for which robe with six linked white sockets?

Tabula Rasa is Latin for blank slate, and the robe earns the name by granting no defences or stats at all.

A set of five copies of The Apothecary, a Path of Exile divination card, is exchanged for which prized belt?

Mageblood keeps its wearer's magic utility flasks permanently active, and the card is thought to nod to the Potion Seller internet meme.

Which Path of Exile body armour grants a large life bonus but can never have sockets?

Kaom's Heart asks a real price for its life bonus, because in this game skills come from gems placed in an item's sockets.

Which 2015 Path of Exile expansion, which also added a fourth act, introduced divination cards to the game?

The Awakening launched with 49 cards, every one of them designed by players who had bought a supporter pack.

On which console did Path of Exile make its first appearance outside Windows, arriving in August 2017?

Xbox One players got the game nearly four years after the PC launch, and a PlayStation 4 version followed in March 2019.

Which BAFTA Games Awards category did Path of Exile win in 2020, more than six years after its full release?

Evolving Game suited a title that by then was shipping a new expansion and league roughly every three months.

Which Path of Exile co-founder and original lead designer started the studio in his own garage?

Chris Wilson met fellow founder Jonathan Rogers while both were studying computer science at the University of Auckland.

Which kind of purchase mainly funds Path of Exile, a game that has been free to play since its open beta?

Cosmetic skins make up most of the shop, though a few conveniences such as extra character slots also sit behind payment.

Which new resource in Path of Exile 2 is reserved by auras, replacing the first game's mana reservation?

Spirit is one of several breaks from the original, alongside a dodge roll and new weapons such as spears, crossbows and flails.

At the start of Path of Exile 2, which form of execution does the player character narrowly escape in Ogham?

Hanging kills every other candidate on the class-select gallows, while the chosen character's rope snaps.