Path of Exile 2 Ascendancy Tier List – The Third Edict Season (Patch 0.3.0)

Aug-28-2025

 

The release of Path of Exile 2: The Third Edict (Patch 0.3.0) has completely reshaped the ascendancy landscape. With sweeping reworks to key passive nodes, skill redesigns, and brand-new mechanics, many ascendancies have risen or fallen in power.

 

Below, we break down the rankings from (S Tier - B Tier), the key changes that drove them, and why each ascendancy landed where it did.

 

 

S-Tier Ascendancies – The Best Choices

Deadeye

Deadeye received major upgrades to its Mark mechanics this season.

Called Shots now chains projectiles to marked enemies, while automatically applying Marks with the new meta skill.

Eagle Eyes further amplifies burst potential by stacking Critical Weakness when consuming Marks.

These changes make Deadeye one of the most consistent damage dealers, with unrivaled clear speed and mapping efficiency. Combined with its natural synergy with bows and projectiles, it sits firmly at the top.

 

Blood Mage

Blood Mage has consistently been strong, but The Third Edict took it even further.

Sanguimancy is now free to allocate, making its Life Remnants easier to scale.

Sanguine Tides introduces flask-charge synergy, rewarding aggressive Life expenditure with additional damage boosts.

The ascendancy thrives in caster builds that convert resource management into raw DPS. Its balance of sustain and explosive damage explains why it remains a community-favored S-tier pick.

 

A-Tier Ascendancies – Strong but More Specialized

Acolyte of Chayula

The Acolyte rework introduced the Volatility mechanic, rewarding elemental ailment infliction with free defensive uptime.

Nodes like Inner Turmoil and Unravelling transform Chaos damage into hybrid elemental pressure, making it a unique offensive powerhouse.

It's not as universally dominant as Deadeye or Blood Mage, but it's one of the strongest chaos-damage ascendancies to date.

 

Invoker

Invoker's Hollow Palm synergy and Living Weapon buffs make unarmed or weapon-manifestation builds stronger than ever.

The Manifest Weapon minions now benefit from attack speed scaling instead of accuracy, greatly improving consistency.

Its flexibility across melee-spell hybrid builds keeps it a stable A-tier choice. To unlock its full strength, you'll need poe2 currency to invest in weapons with high base damage or uniques that enhance minions.

 

Ritualist

With Ritual Sacrifice being merged into As the Whispers Demand, Ritualist's kit became more streamlined.

This ascendancy excels in Life-recovery manipulation, enabling aggressive playstyles that sustain through ritual-based mechanics.

Its straightforward yet effective buffs keep it highly competitive in the current league.

 

Lich

Lich shifted towards self-sacrifice mechanics this patch.

Eldritch Empowerment now makes spells consume Energy Shield for massive 30% more damage while keeping recharge intact.

Incessant Cacophany grants infinite-duration curses, offering unmatched debuff uptime.

The combination of strong curse scaling and dangerous but rewarding ES-sacrifice gameplay makes it one of the strongest specialized spellcasters.

 

Titan

Though less mainstream, Titan continues to impress with strong defensive layering.

Block mechanics, stun synergy, and hybrid armor-based scaling make it an ideal tanky archetype.

While it lacks the raw clear speed of S-tier classes, it excels in survivability-heavy builds. It's the go-to pick for Hardcore players or anyone who values defense first.

 

Infernalist

Infernalist's Demon Form was reworked into pure spell-scaling territory.

Gains 3% more Spell Damage per Demonflame, with additional cast speed scaling from quality.

The Infernal Hound ignite aura and Pyromantic Pact (double Mana scaling) make fire-based casters extremely potent.

While not as consistent as Blood Mage, Infernalist now delivers frightening peak damage.

 

B-Tier Ascendancies – Playable but Not Meta

Tactician

Tactician gained Strategic Embankments, granting different aura effects depending on the totem type.

While strong on paper, its scaling is highly team-focused, and solo power remains behind other totem ascendancies like Warbringer.

Unlimited Banners offer utility but lack the raw punch of higher-tier options.

Thus, Tactician settles into B-tier: functional, but niche.

 

Witch Hunter

Once valued for explosive clear speed, Witch Hunter has now fallen behind.

While it retains strong critical scaling and AoE damage, the Deadeye rework completely overshadows its strengths.

It's still playable but lacks a unique advantage in the current meta.

 

Warbringer

Despite receiving +1 Totem and stronger ancestral spirits, Warbringer is overshadowed.

The new Turtle Charm (max block cap 75%) and Answered Call buffs improve survivability and scaling, but not enough to compete with S/A-tier versatility.

It remains a solid but not meta-defining ascendancy.

 

All in all, for new players, start with Deadeye or Blood Mage for a smooth path through the campaign and into endgame. Veterans looking for unique mechanics can explore Lich, Acolyte, or Infernalist to push their builds to the next level.