The Witch is a minion-summoning, fire-spell-casting powerhouse in Path of Exile 2 — but you’ll need to know the best way you can build the class to maximize your potential.
Every ARRG needs a character class that leans into the forces of darkness to aid the forces of light and the Witch is that character in Path of Exile 2. Like the Necromancer from Diablo, the Witch uses infernal magic and the ability to summon undead minions to aid her in battle.
Below, we’ll detail the best Witch build so far in Path of Exile 2’s early access and explain how to craft it. This includes the Ascendancy you’ll need to assign, the skills needed and the gear you’ll need to hunt down to make the best version of the build.
Best Witch build
The best Witch build we’ve used so far in Path of Exile 2 is the Summoner Infernalist. A build that takes advantage of the Witch’s Infernalist Ascendancy along with skills that focus on summoning minions to do her dirty work while you sit back casting spells into combat.
Like most Witch setups, this build is a glass canon, so be aware that you’ll be vulnerable in close combat, but we’re going to ensure your minions keep you safe while you pull their strings from a distance.
Best Ascendancy
The Witch has 2 Ascendancy sub-classes to select during early access. For this build, we’re going to select the Infernalist Ascendancy.
Be aware, that while you’ll be able to respec your skills, you’ll be unable to change Ascendancies once you’ve committed to the Infernalist. You’ll also need to complete the Trial of the Sekhemas or Trial of Chaos before you can Ascend.
After selecting the Infernalist Ascendancy, select the following abilities from it to assemble this build:
- Loyal Hellhound – This gives you an additional Minion that ignites enemies and reduces the damage you take by 20%.
- Altered Flesh – This converts 20% of Cold and Lightning damage to Fire while also converting 20% of physical damage to chaos so make sure to have chaos resistance when you take this node.
- Beidat’s Will – This boosts your spirit at the cost of reserving 25% of your life
- Beidat’s Hand – Reserves life for energy shield
Best skills for Witch build in PoE 2
Builds in Path of Exile 2 are all about the skills you select, so when you start the game and begin your leveling path toward endgame, select the following skills and support skills:
| Skill | Support Skill 1 | Support Skill 2 | Support Skill 3 | Support Skill 4 | Support Skill 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summon Infernal Hound | Meat Shield | Fire Exposure | Strip Away | Maim | Blind |
| Detonate Dead | Arcane Tempo | Spell Echo | Unleash | Considered Casting | – |
| Flammability | Heightened Curse | Spell Cascade | Persistence | Inspiration | Hex Bloom |
| Skeletal Arsonist | Martial Tempo | Scattershot | Heft | Last Grasp | Fire Infusion |
| Flame Wall | Fortress | Mobility | Arcane Surge | – | – |
| Skeletal Warrior | Brutality | Splinter | Culling Strike | Overpower | Heavy Swing |
| Raging Spirits | Feeding Frenzy | Minion Instability | Elemental Focus | Immolate | Fire Penetration |
| Pain Offering | Magnified Effect | Font of Rage | Font of Blood | Ablation | Font of Mana |
| Skeletal Storm Mage | Conduction | Storm Fire | Overcharge | Lightning Penetration | Controlled Destruction |
| Blink | Second Wind | Ingenuity | – | – | – |
Selecting skills in Path of Exile 2 involves assigning them to Uncut Skill Gems, by “Cutting Gems” to a skill, you increase your abilities by adding Support Skills.
The above table is what your build should look like by the time you reach endgame, but it’ll take some time to craft. You’re also under no obligation to follow any particular order. As some skills take some time before they can be cut, you may choose to temporarily use other skills in the meantime.
For example, while leveling through the early Acts, we used skills like Chaos Bolt, Contagion, Unearth, and Skeletal Sniper. However, as we became more powerful, we abandoned those skills in favor of the ones listed above.
So, don’t be afraid to deviate from the path and create your own custom build. However, if you want to stick to this build, this is where your skills should be by the time you’ve completed the main quest.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
Passive skills
When it comes to the best Passive skills to select, there are far too many to name. These skills are general buffs you can add, not unlike Diablo 4’s Paragon Board in how they work.
However, for the Infernalist Witch, and as a general path across the board, you can use the following Passive skills nodes to chart your progress, activating them in this order:
- Raw Destruction – Provides some early damage buffs
- Power of the Dead – Provides some early damage buffs
- Spiral into Depression – Provides some early defense buffs
- Essence Infusion – Provides some early defense buffs
- Deadly Swarm – Boosts Minion damage
- Vile Mending – Boosts resistances
- Grip of Evil – Boosts Minion critical hits
- Entropic Incarnation – Boosts Minion damage
- Regenerative Flesh – Provides Life Recovery
- Dependable Ward – Creates a protective energy shield
- Necrotic Touch – Boost critical hit chance
- Lord of Horrors – Summon more Minions
These are the best nodes to use for this build, so after activating one, aim to follow the path towards the next one. Of course, you’ll need to work your way to it as you accrue points, but this will give you a sense of direction.
By the end, you’ll want your skill tree to look a lot like this:
This way, you’ll always be selecting Passives that support your build rather than wasting points on things you don’t need.
Best Witch armor, weapons & charms
When you first start playing Path of Exile, you’ll likely want to equip yourself with the first gear you find, but in time you’ll become a connoisseur for loot and will know what suits your Witch best.
Rather than hunting down specific items – only to constantly change them – you’ll be better off targeting items that provide the best buffs for your build. The below table will explain the best items to seek out for this build.
| Item Type | Base type | Benefit | How to obtain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weapon | Rattling Scepter | Decent Spirit roll and + level of minion skills | Random drop / Vendor |
| Off Hand | Focus | Decent energy shield roll and cast speed | Random drop / Vendor |
| Helm | Energy shield base | + Level to all Minion Skills | Random drop / Vendor |
| Armor | Energy shield base | Boosts Spirt with a good energy roll | Random drop / Vendor |
| Gloves | Energy shield base | Good energy shield and Life | Random drop / Vendor |
| Boots | Energy shield base | Boosts Movement Speed and Energy Shield | Random drop / Vendor |
| Belt | Utility Belt | Life and Res | Random drop / Vendor |
| Ring 1 | Resistance Ring | Solve resistances | Random drop / Vendor |
| Ring 2 | Resistance Ring | Solve resistances | Random drop / Vendor |
| Amulet | Spirit Amulet | Spirit boost | Random drop / Vendor |
| Charm 1 | Amethyst Charm | + 18 to Chaos Resistance | Random drop / Vendor |
| Charm 2 | Thawing Charm | Immune to Freeze | Random drop / Vendor |
| Charm 3 | – | – | – |
Now that you know the best way to build a Witch in Path of Exile 2, check back soon for full guides for the other classes in Path of Exile, including the Warrior, Monk, Ranger, and Mercenary. Until then, here’s how to respec your character to this build.
For a full breakdown of all classes in Path of Exile 2 early access, check out our builds for the Ranger, Monk, Sorceress, Mercenary, and Warrior classes.
