Path of Exile 2: Ascend and Earn All 8 Ascension Points with Confidence

PoE 2: How to Ascend and Get All 8 Points

Ascendancy Class Overview

In Path of Exile 2, Ascendancy Classes allow you to further specialize your chosen Class. Some other games might refer to this as a Job Advancement or a Subclass. During Early Access, all six Classes have two Ascendancy Classes to choose from, and the plan is for each Class to eventually have three options.

You’ll gain access to your first Ascendancy starting in Act 2. Each Ascendancy grants you access to its own special Passive Tree, providing substantial power boosts and new ways to enhance your character.

Key Points About Ascendancies:

• You can earn up to 8 Ascendancy Points in total.
• Once chosen, you cannot change your Ascendancy Class.
• You can refund or respec your Ascendancy Passive Points on the Ascendancy tree by speaking to the Hooded One or Doryani in town, at a Gold cost.

For details on each Class’s Ascendancy options and their unique Passive Trees, check out our full Ascendancy Class Breakdown guide.

How to Ascend Breakdown

Ascending in Path of Exile 2 can seem unclear at first, so here’s a concise breakdown of the process.

You ascend by completing one of two Trials:

• Trial of the Sekhemas
• Trial of Chaos

Each Trial has four difficulty levels, with each level rewarding 2 Ascendancy Points. You can complete your Ascension using either Trial, and the difficulty level determines the points earned.

There’s one exception: for your second Ascension, you can complete the first difficulty level of both Trials to gain 4 points total. After this, the third difficulty of either Trial must be completed for your 5th and 6th points.

Ascension Stages and Points

First Ascension (2 Points)

• Source: Campaign Boss
  • Djinn Barya: Dropped from Balbala, the Traitor in Traitor's Passage (Act 2).
  • Inscribed Ultimatum: Dropped from Xyclucian, the Chimera in Chimeral Wetlands (Act 3).

Second Ascension (4 Points)

• Source: Random Monster Drop
  • Djinn Barya: Requires Area Level 45+ and Trials: 2.
  • Inscribed Ultimatum: Requires Area Level 60+ and Number of Trials: 7.

Third Ascension (6 Points)

• Source: Random Monster Drop
  • Djinn Barya: Requires Area Level 60+ and Trials: 3.
  • Inscribed Ultimatum: Requires Area Level 75+ and Number of Trials: 10.

Fourth Ascension (8 Points)

• Source: Random Monster Drop
  • Djinn Barya: Requires Area Level 75+ and Trials: 4, plus defeating the final boss.
  • Inscribed Ultimatum: Requires defeating the Trialmaster (final boss).

How to Find Djinn Barya and Inscribed Ultimatum

To attempt each Trial, you must first obtain the corresponding "key" to unlock it.

Djinn Barya

In Act 2, you will encounter Balbala, the Traitor in Traitor's Passage. Defeating her drops a Djinn Barya and activates the Ascension Quest in your quest log. After this initial encounter, Djinn Baryas will become a random drop from monsters. These higher-level Djinn Baryas can then be used to access more difficult versions of the Trial of the Sekhemas.

Important Notes:

• For the first Trial of the Sekhemas, you keep the Djinn Barya even if you fail, allowing you to retry without losing it.
• At higher difficulty levels, failing the Trial consumes your Djinn Barya, meaning you’ll need to find or acquire another one to try again.

Inscribed Ultimatum

Inscribed Ultimatums work similarly to Djinn Baryas. You’ll find your first one in Act 3 after defeating Xyclucian, the Chimera in the Chimeral Wetlands.

For the first difficulty, failing the Trial of Chaos allows you to keep your Inscribed Ultimatum and retry as many times as needed. However, starting from difficulty levels 2-4, failing the Trial consumes your Inscribed Ultimatum, requiring you to find another one for your next attempt.

Important Notes:

• The Trial of Chaos is generally considered much harder than the Trial of the Sekhemas, especially at higher levels.
• For instance, your Third Ascension can be completed with a Level 60+ Djinn Barya, whereas the equivalent Trial of Chaos requires a Level 75+ Inscribed Ultimatum, making it significantly more challenging.

Additional Tips

To wrap things up, here are some extra tips to help you succeed in the Ascension Trials.

Balbala, the Traitor

During the fight with Balbala, she occasionally disappears, filling the room with Poison Gas. You’ll need to find her by moving around. Once you locate her, be prepared to Dodge Roll immediately, as she will slam the ground around her upon reappearing.

Xyclucian, the Chimera

When fighting Xyclucian, it will jump onto a stone pillar. Attack the pillar to break it, causing Xyclucian to fall down and become stunned. This gives you a perfect opportunity to deal damage without interruption.

Trial of the Sekhemas

This Trial emphasizes avoiding hits. You have an Honour resource that depletes when you’re struck. Losing all your Honour results in a failed run.

From Difficulty 2 (Area Level 45+), the Honour damage you take increases significantly. To counter this, equip Relics with the "Honour Resistance" stat. These Relics greatly reduce the Honour damage you take, making it easier to complete your run.

Relics are dropped by monsters within the Trial of the Sekhemas, so be sure to pick them up as you progress.

Trial of Chaos

The Trial of Chaos is notoriously challenging for most characters, so don’t underestimate the hazards present on the map. These dangers can quickly stack up and become overwhelming if not carefully managed.

Unfortunately, some runs may present debuffs or effects that your build simply cannot handle. In these cases, success might not be possible, regardless of preparation. However, with persistence and multiple attempts, you may eventually encounter a run where the Tribulations have minimal impact on your build, giving you a better chance to succeed.

Overleveling

For many players, overleveling before attempting the Trials is highly recommended. While you can start the first Trial of the Sekhemas early in Act 2, waiting until the end of Act 2 to gain more levels and strength can make the run significantly easier.

This same principle applies to Act 3 when you first access the Trial of Chaos. Similarly, you don’t need to rush the third difficulty of the Sekhema Trial (Area Level 65+). You can tackle it much later, even around Level 75 or so, to increase your chances of success.

Ultimately, the decision is up to you. As you progress through the Endgame System, you’ll find plenty of Djinn Baryas and Inscribed Ultimatums, so don’t worry too much about failing—there will always be more opportunities to try again.

Character Planning

Many players transitioning from PoE 1 mistakenly assume that the Ascension Trials will be straightforward. However, for many builds, obtaining all Ascension Points—especially beyond the first 4—can be quite challenging.

When planning your character, avoid relying too heavily on all 8 Ascension Points for your build to function. Characters that depend on the full 8 points will face a tougher path to reach their full potential, making the Trials even more difficult to complete.