Path of Exile 2 (PoE2) continues to evolve as Grinding Gear Games pushes the boundaries of action RPG mechanics. With patch 0.4 just around the corner, many players are eagerly anticipating changes and improvements to the Atlas system—a core gameplay feature that determines the variety and rewards of endgame map content. As the game grows and develops, it’s worth comparing the Atlas system in POE 2 Orbs to its predecessor, Path of Exile 1 (PoE1), and exploring what can be done to enhance player agency, customization, and strategic depth.

Understanding the PoE2 Atlas Tree

At the heart of PoE2’s endgame is the Atlas—a skill tree-like system that affects map rewards, encounter types, and overall progression. Unlike PoE1’s often overwhelming Atlas tree, PoE2 has streamlined this system into a more approachable format. Currently, the PoE2 Atlas is divided into a few major areas:

The Main Tree: This branch focuses on general map improvements such as quantity, rarity, precursor tablets, pack size, and map completion bonuses. It also touches on non-league mechanics like shrines, strongboxes, wisps, essences, and rogue exiles. Players unlock this part of the Atlas through corrupted nexuses scattered throughout the Atlas.

League Mechanic Trees: PoE2 separates league-specific mechanics into individual trees. For example, Breach, Expedition, Delirium, and Ritual each have dedicated nodes that enhance rewards and gameplay for those mechanics. Map bosses also have their own branch, making the Atlas modular and easier to understand.

Player Flexibility: A standout feature of PoE2 is the freedom to experiment. Players aren’t forced to specialize; they can toggle between mechanics and explore different content without respecs. If a Delirium or Expedition appears in a map, players will receive the full benefits regardless of their current specialization—a welcome convenience compared to PoE1’s more rigid system.

The simplicity of PoE2’s Atlas is one of its strengths. Players can engage with the system without feeling overwhelmed by an excessive number of nodes or convoluted paths. It encourages casual experimentation and ensures that even endgame newcomers can enjoy varied content.

Comparing PoE1 and PoE2: Complexity vs. Accessibility

While PoE2 emphasizes accessibility, PoE1’s Atlas tree offers a different approach. In PoE1, all league mechanics are integrated into a single, shared tree. Players can specialize extensively, focusing on a particular mechanic such as Ritual, Expedition, or Delirium. This system allows for highly optimized farming strategies, but at the cost of accessibility.

Advantages of PoE1’s Atlas:

Deep Customization: Players can create a tree tailored to their preferred farming method. For instance, a Ritual-focused player can invest heavily in Ritual nodes to maximize altar spawn rates and reward efficiency.

Strategic Reward: PoE1’s Atlas makes a noticeable difference depending on your specialization. Choosing the wrong nodes for your desired content can make running those maps inefficient, which adds a layer of strategy.

Integration: All league mechanics coexist in one tree alongside core nodes like pack size and rarity, allowing for a holistic approach to map optimization.

Disadvantages of PoE1’s Atlas:

Overwhelming Complexity: The sheer number of nodes and choices can be intimidating to new players or even veterans who switch builds often. Learning the tree requires significant time investment, and most players end up relying on guides.

Limited Flexibility: Focusing on one mechanic often means ignoring others. If a player wants to engage in a map with a different mechanic, they might receive minimal benefit due to insufficient nodes, limiting their freedom.

Barrier to Entry: The learning curve of PoE1’s Atlas can discourage experimentation. Many players stick to proven meta builds rather than exploring new strategies.

The Current State of PoE2’s Atlas

The streamlined design of PoE2’s Atlas addresses several of PoE1’s pain points. By separating league mechanics into individual trees, players can experiment freely without being punished for lack of specialization. However, there are some areas where PoE2 could improve:

Middle Tree Impact: The core tree in PoE2—focusing on general map rewards—lacks meaningful impact. While nodes for rogue exiles, essences, shrines, and strongboxes exist, their benefits are often marginal. Most players default to maximizing pack size, rarity, quantity, and tablets because these nodes provide the most tangible rewards.

League Mechanic Trees: While these are functional and impactful, they tend to converge on a “best path” approach. Players often end up with the same optimal setup for each mechanic, reducing the sense of customization and experimentation.

Baseline Minimums: PoE2 does provide a baseline reward for mechanics, which is excellent for player flexibility. Players can explore content like Expedition or Breach and receive meaningful rewards, even if they are not specialized. However, this can reduce the incentive to invest deeply in a particular tree.

Potential Improvements for PoE2’s Atlas

To make PoE2’s Atlas system more engaging and rewarding, several adjustments could be considered:

1. Make the Core Tree More Impactful

The middle tree in PoE2 should feel like it matters. Buffing nodes related to rogue exiles, shrines, essences, and strongboxes could provide players with noticeable rewards for investing points. If these nodes offered more tangible benefits, such as higher currency drops, better map loot, or unique bonuses, players would diversify their builds rather than defaulting to quantity and rarity.

2. Introduce Strategy-Specific Customization

PoE1’s Atlas excels in allowing players to fully optimize for a single mechanic. PoE2 could adopt this concept without sacrificing flexibility by introducing optional “focus points” or universal nodes. For instance, players could have 4–8 points that can be allocated to any tree to enhance a specific strategy, like Ritual or Expedition. This system would provide meaningful customization while keeping the baseline accessible to all.

3. Retain Mechanic Separation

One of PoE2’s strengths is its clear separation of mechanics. Unlike PoE1’s convoluted single tree, PoE2’s modular approach makes it easy to understand and navigate. Retaining this design is crucial, but adding depth within each branch—through optional nodes or bonus paths—could increase strategic variety without sacrificing clarity buy POE 2 Exalted Orbs.

4. Balance Rarity and Currency Systems

Currently, rarity in PoE2 influences currency acquisition, similar to PoE1. Future adjustments could ensure that all nodes provide value independent of rarity, allowing players to focus on strategic gameplay rather than merely inflating drops. For instance, shrine or strongbox nodes could provide guaranteed bonus rewards that scale with investment, making them competitive alternatives to traditional quantity/rarity setups.

5. Encourage Multi-Strategy Engagement

PoE2’s baseline system encourages players to try mechanics they aren’t specialized in, but this could be enhanced further. Implementing dynamic bonus effects that reward players for diversifying their engagement across multiple trees would promote variety without punishing specialization. This system would incentivize experimentation and keep endgame mapping fresh.

Player Agency and Replayability

One of the key goals of these changes is increasing player agency—the freedom to play the game your way. Path of Exile has always rewarded experimentation and optimization, and PoE2 has the opportunity to expand this by providing meaningful choices in the Atlas. Imagine a player who prefers Ritual farming, but also wants to dabble in Expedition occasionally. With the right system, they could fully juice their Ritual setup while still gaining meaningful rewards from other mechanics.

Replayability is also enhanced when players can customize their experience. Multiple viable paths through each tree, combined with optional universal points, would allow players to tailor their Atlas to their preferred playstyle. This could reduce the meta convergence seen in PoE1, where most players adopt the same optimal setups.

Conclusion

The Path of Exile 2 Atlas system represents an exciting evolution of PoE1’s endgame structure. By simplifying the Atlas into separate, mechanic-specific trees, PoE2 makes the system approachable, flexible, and accessible to both newcomers and veterans. However, there are areas for improvement. The middle tree could be more impactful, optional nodes could enhance strategy-specific customization, and reward systems could better balance baseline access with deep investment.

Patch 0.4 presents a perfect opportunity for Grinding Gear Games to refine the Atlas system further. By taking lessons from PoE1 while maintaining the clarity and modularity of PoE2, the Atlas can become a system that rewards experimentation, fosters player agency, and keeps endgame mapping engaging for years to come.

In the end, the goal is simple: players should feel that their choices in the Atlas matter. Whether you prefer Rituals, Delirium, Expeditions, or Breaches, your decisions should be meaningful, impactful, and, most importantly, fun. As PoE2 continues to grow, the Atlas has the potential to be not just a path to loot, but a core part of the game’s identity—offering strategy, choice, and endless replayability.