Path of Exile 2: Full Breakdown of Unique Relics and Their Effects
In Path of Exile 2, Unique Relics are powerful and often game-changing items that bring new strategic elements to character builds. As a successor to Path of Exile, the second installment in the series introduces a range of exciting mechanics, with Unique Relics playing an essential role in shaping builds, advancing gameplay, and offering more customization for players. These items not only add more complexity to the game's expansive loot system but also allow for fresh opportunities in character optimization.
This guide will cover all the Unique Relics available in Path of Exile 2, their effects, and the strategies you can implement to fully utilize them in your character builds.
1. What Are Unique Relics in Path of Exile 2?
In Path of Exile 2, Relics are special items that provide character enhancements and bonuses, distinct from other gear like weapons and armor. They work similarly to Amulets or Rings but are significantly more powerful and come with unique properties that can dramatically alter your playstyle. These relics can provide buffs to:
Skill modifiers
Resistances
Attribute bonuses
Unique effects that change gameplay
The inclusion of Unique Relics in Path of Exile 2 represents a significant expansion to the series' itemization system, adding even more depth and customization. Relics can be slotted into specific gear pieces, offering both passive bonuses and active effects.
The real value of these items lies in their potential to influence gameplay on a much broader scale. Whether you're an experienced exile or a newcomer, understanding the role of Unique Relics and how to use them optimally can significantly impact your performance in the game. If you're looking to upgrade your Relics quickly, consider using POE 2 Currency to purchase the necessary items or buy POE 2 Orbs for crafting or upgrading your gear.
2. All Unique Relics in Path of Exile 2 and Their Effects
A. Relic of the Everfrost
Effect: The Relic of the Everfrost increases the cold damage of all your abilities and adds an increase in freeze duration. In addition, it grants an ability that adds a chance to freeze to all of your attacks.
Strategy: Ideal for builds focused on cold damage or freezing effects, especially with skills like Ice Shot or Glacial Cascade. Players can also incorporate Elemental Overload or Elemental Proliferation to maximize the effects of freezing enemies.
B. Relic of the Inferno
Effect: This Relic boosts fire damage and burning effects. It also grants a chance to ignite all enemies hit by your attacks. In addition, it provides increased area of effect for any fire-based skill.
Strategy: The Relic of the Inferno is perfect for any build revolving around fire skills like Fireball, Flameblast, or Scorching Ray. Players can pair it with Combustion Support or Ignite Proliferation for massive area damage and lasting burn effects.
C. Relic of the Stormcaller
Effect: The Relic of the Stormcaller significantly boosts lightning damage and grants an increased chance of shocking enemies. It provides extra lightning penetration, ensuring that lightning-based attacks pierce through enemy resistances more effectively.
Strategy: Best suited for lightning-based builds using skills like Arc, Lightning Tendrils, or Discharge. Consider combining it with Shock Nova or Increased Lightning Damage Support to ramp up the lightning burst effects and maximize damage against shocked enemies.
D. Relic of the Vortex
Effect: This Relic is tailored for chaos damage builds. It adds bonus chaos damage to all attacks and grants the Corruption status effect, causing enemies to take increased damage over time. It also offers reduced chaos resistance for enemies within a certain radius.
Strategy: Perfect for Chaos Inoculation or Corruption-based builds, such as Chaos Claw or Poison Assassin. The Corruption debuff amplifies your damage, and Chaos Damage Over Time skills like Essence Drain or Contagion synergize well with it.
E. Relic of the Sun's Wrath
Effect: The Relic of the Sun's Wrath enhances sun-based abilities, providing extra damage to burning enemies and increasing the duration of burning effects. It grants reflective aura which makes enemies deal a portion of their damage back to them when near you.
Strategy: Focused on sun-themed or burning builds, such as Sunburst or Solar Flare, the Sun's Wrath Relic provides exceptional synergy with Aura builds and Flame Dash. Consider Increased Burning Damage modifiers to capitalize on its effect and use the reflective aura to mitigate incoming damage from melee enemies.
F. Relic of the Deep One
Effect: This Relic is crafted for summon-based builds, enhancing minions with increased health, damage, and speed. It also provides summoned creatures with the ability to taunt enemies, ensuring that they draw aggro away from you.
Strategy: If you're building a Summon Necromancer, Summon Specter, or Zombie Build, the Relic of the Deep One will add immense power to your minions. Combining it with Minion Damage or Summon Duration modifiers will make your summons a formidable force, distracting enemies while providing strong offensive support.
G. Relic of the Blood Moon
Effect: The Relic of the Blood Moon enhances life leech and life regeneration while inflicting damage over time to enemies in a small radius. It grants an ability to reflect life leech back to enemies who are affected by this item.
Strategy: This Relic is excellent for builds focused on Life Leech, Vampirism, or Siphoning Life abilities. Ideal for Slayer, Gladiator, or Vampire builds, it allows you to maintain sustainability during long fights and bosses, and you can pair it with Blood Magic for higher survivability.
H. Relic of the Voidwalker
Effect: The Relic of the Voidwalker enhances dark damage and shadow manipulation. It also provides increased stealth abilities, allowing you to temporarily phase out of combat and become invisible for short periods. In addition, the Relic boosts damage dealt while invisible.
Strategy: Perfect for Assassin builds focusing on stealth, Poison, or Critical Strikes, this Relic synergizes with Shadow Dance or Blade Vortex. If you're looking to deal high burst damage with hit-and-run tactics, combining this with Invisibility or Critical Strike Multiplier can lead to devastating results.
I. Relic of the Storm's Eye
Effect: The Relic of the Storm's Eye grants damage reduction and enhanced movement speed when standing still. It also provides a burst of storm damage that deals massive lightning damage to nearby enemies when you remain still for a certain period.
Strategy: This Relic suits builds that utilize Channeling Skills or Static Spells, such as Charged Dash, Cyclone, or Arcane Surge. The standstill effect encourages slow, powerful attacks, making it a must-have for builds that capitalize on sustained damage output.
3. Building Around Unique Relics
Unique Relics offer a massive variety of effects and can define or refine entire character builds. They allow you to focus on specific damage types, survivability, or utility, drastically influencing how you approach combat in Path of Exile 2.
Optimizing Relic Usage
Choose Relics Based on Playstyle: Determine if your build is centered around specific elements (fire, cold, lightning) or damage types (chaos, physical, elemental). Choose the appropriate Relic to further enhance your strengths.
Combine with Synergistic Passives: The most effective builds combine Unique Relics with passive skill tree nodes and support gems. If you're building for poison or chaos, prioritize Relic of the Vortex and pair it with poison-specific nodes and damage over time passives.
Timing and Strategy: Many Relics have timed effects or require specific positioning to activate (e.g., the Relic of the Sun's Wrath's reflective aura works best when you're surrounded). Understanding when and how to trigger these effects can give you a tactical advantage.
4. Where to Find Unique Relics
Unlike standard gear, Unique Relics are typically found in high-level encounters, specialized vendors, or as rewards from major quests in Path of Exile 2. To increase your chances of obtaining specific Relics, focus on completing:
Endgame bosses
Faction missions
Map rewards
Uber or modified league challenges
You can also try trading with other players to acquire specific Unique Relics you're looking for, using currency items or rare loot as barter.
5. Conclusion
The introduction of Unique Relics in Path of Exile 2 adds an entirely new dimension to character customization and gameplay. These Relics not only offer significant buffs but also provide an opportunity to craft diverse and unique builds that may not have been possible in the original Path of Exile. Whether you prefer dealing damage through fire, ice, chaos, or the storm, there's a Relic that will suit your playstyle and help you carve your path through Wraeclast.