PoE Voyages: Charts, Planning and Underwater Routes
A Voyage in Path of Exile 1 combines charted underwater areas into one expedition. Planning involves more than filling cells: you need suitable connections, manageable property combinations and a clear return route with your loot.
This guide covers Curse of the Allflame 3.29. The introductory Voyage and regular expeditions use different board sizes. It explains Chart preparation, the planner, modifier choices, Cursed Ducats, underwater movement and deciding when to leave early.
Before the first large configuration, learn to finish an individual Chart: use lanterns, understand the return journey and verify item transfers to the ship. A larger board does not fix an unfamiliar mechanic; it combines areas where the same mistakes can recur.
A Chart, a charted area and a Voyage
A Chart opens an individual underwater area. Running it reveals a property for a future Voyage, while the charted area becomes a planning component. These are two decisions: choose what to explore, then decide what to combine with the resulting area.
In a direct interview, GGG explained that an original Chart is tradeable, but is no longer tradeable after running it. Its expedition implicit is revealed through the run. Buying an appropriate original type therefore does not guarantee the desired future board bonus.
Do not purchase an entire set solely by similar names. First identify what is missing: a connection option, a suitable reward or a property the build can handle. Another explored area may be more useful than forcing an expedition from the first available results.
Why four areas first, then nine
The developers distinguished an introductory 2-by-2 Voyage from subsequent 3-by-3 boards. The first requires four areas, while regular Voyages use nine. Board size should not be confused with a separate quest condition for unlocking the feature.
Nine does not mean any nine areas necessarily form a working configuration. Their connections must also fit. Build a reserve of options to replace an awkward area instead of compensating for a poor configuration with expensive empowerment.
Progression changed after launch as well. Patch 3.29.0b reduced the league's Vesper upgrade requirement from five to three. This concerns upgrades rather than changing regular Voyage board size. If the next stage has not unlocked, inspect the current quest journal and upgrades instead of combining unrelated numbers from different descriptions.
Assembling the board
Every connection on every placed Chart must lead either to another Chart connection or to an edge of the board. A connection facing the closed side of a neighbouring Chart makes the arrangement invalid. Right-click a Chart to rotate it, match the openings, then inspect Area Modifiers for the affected cells. The Voyage always begins in the bottom-left Chart, so build your intended route from that starting point.
Discuss planning with Valerie aboard The Sovereign and open the Voyage Planner. Since 3.29.0b, individual Charts can launch directly through the Bathysphere, while Voyages still require planning with Valerie. In a group, planning belongs to the instance owner; 3.29.2 removed the corresponding dialogue options from other players.
Begin by arranging areas into an understandable connected structure. Inspect transitions, matching sides and whether your desired area remains reachable. Do not start by maximising rewards if you cannot explain how you will traverse the configuration.
The official interface shows right-click rotation. When checking a position, try orientation changes before deciding you need another area. A charted area with suitable properties does not necessarily fit the selected cell.
The planner combines charted areas; inspect the selected configuration before launching.
Check the configuration in this order:
The board fits the expedition's current stage.
Areas connect in the necessary directions.
A route reaches the chosen points and returns.
The property combination suits your character.
Empowerments are added after the basic layout is checked.
This is a practical checklist rather than extra game rules. It distinguishes a technically possible configuration from one that suits a particular objective.
Check the arrangement directly in Plan your Voyage: hover over a cell to read its relevant Area Modifiers in the left panel. This makes a particular area easier to assess after moving Charts than remembering every property. To restart the arrangement, Clear Board removes placed Charts and returns them to Charted Inventory. This is a way to rebuild before launching; do not confuse it with ending an expedition already in progress.
Modifiers: inspect the combination rather than one line
Separate an area's own properties from effects arising from its position relative to neighbours. The planner displays active modifiers; reread the result after moving an area. A useful property in isolation can become awkward in the final combination.
For example, increased rewards do not justify a configuration in which the character cannot handle incoming damage or enemies. Define the build's mandatory limitations before launching. Reject configurations violating them before comparing potential loot.
Change one element at a time while learning. Move an area, inspect the result, then consider an empowerment. Replacing the entire board and several Ducats together makes it difficult to identify which change made the next expedition more dangerous or rewarding.
Patch 3.29.2 replaced Chart properties granting increased gold found with increased item rarity because the gold bonus did not work in Charts and Voyages. Do not assess the current configuration using an old more-gold description. Rarity and quantity are different properties.
Which modifiers support your objective
The following are concrete Chart modifier examples. Compare their scope and useful outcome: neighbouring areas, the entire Voyage and empowered encounters require different planning decisions. Values belong to the selected examples; read your own Chart before launching.
Modifier example | Scope | Planning decision |
|---|---|---|
2-4 additional Strongboxes | Adjacent Charts | Match the bonus to reachable neighbouring areas where you want to open additional containers. |
60% increased number of Rare Monsters | Adjacent Charts | Choose it for an objective involving rare enemies; assess whether the character can handle the additional dangerous encounters. |
10% increased item Quantity or 9% increased item Rarity in separate variants | Entire Voyage | These are different properties: more items and greater item rarity. A global bonus does not require the central cell for adjacency. |
7% increased monster pack size | Entire Voyage | Account for denser packs when choosing the route and assessing clear capability. This serves a different purpose from adding Strongboxes. |
20% increased Dead Man’s Sulphur found | Entire Voyage | Compare the resource objective with crafting and border-reroll expenses; the percentage does not specify an absolute Sulphur total per run. |
100% chance for Rare Monsters to be Possessed | Entire Voyage | Plan for empowered rare encounters and check the character’s capability before launching. |
Monsters have a chance to be empowered by 4000 Wildwood Wisps | Adjacent Charts | Assess readiness for empowered enemies. The number 4000 concerns empowerment; this example does not state its chance of occurring. |
Cursed Ducats and outer borders
Cursed Ducats modify expedition configuration. Since 3.29.3, up to three can be used simultaneously. This is a planner limit rather than a currency count for Vesper's item crafting. Assemble a suitable base expedition first, then evaluate each empowerment together with its conditions.
The same update added a way to see all twelve outer-border properties by holding Alt on keyboard or LT on controller while hovering a border. Inspect the tooltip before confirming rather than relying on a border's appearance to remember its effect.
For the first learning expedition, use a small, controlled set of changes. If you cannot identify which effect comes from an area, adjacency or a border, understand the original layout first. A stronger modifier does not replace knowing what it affects.
The borders have a separate Reroll Border Modifiers action costing Dead Man's Sulphur. Read the price in the button's tooltip before paying and decide whether changing the borders is worthwhile for your selected Charts. Sulphur also funds equipment crafting: account for both uses within the same resource budget. Do not pay merely to see a different set before deciding which bonus the configuration needs.
Underwater: lanterns, loot and returning
Before beginning the next Voyage, collect the loot already delivered to the ship. Starting a new Voyage removes all items remaining in the capsule collection inventory. When extracting from the current Voyage, empty the Capsule inventory before choosing Call Bathysphere: that action is unavailable while items remain inside. Send those items to the surface first, then call your exit.
After launching, preserve a clear return route and monitor the lanterns' safe area. A newly opened passage is not an obligation to continue. The assembled board defines expedition opportunities, while risk decisions depend on the character's state and remaining time.
Use Allflame Capsules to send loot to The Sovereign and verify the transfer result. Since 3.29.2, multiple players can use a Capsule, but its inventory capacity is shared. Coordinate who needs space before transferring; additional participants do not create a separate full capacity for each player.
The same update added a button to claim transferred loot together. This simplifies collection rather than guaranteeing protection for items not yet sent. Distinguish delivered loot from items still carried by the character.
An Allflame Capsule has two different buttons. Send to Surface sends the loot placed inside to The Sovereign for later collection; Call Bathysphere calls your means of leaving the Voyage. Separate the decision to deliver valuables from the decision to finish the route itself. Review the window's contents before sending, and choose Call Bathysphere specifically when finishing. A warning that no Allflame Lanterns remain to place is a reason to reassess extraction rather than continue out of habit.
Calling the Bathysphere through an Allflame Capsule changes the route’s state: Allflame Lanterns in other rooms collapse, and you can no longer place new lanterns. Before choosing Call Bathysphere, finish the exploration you need and decide whether you are ready to leave the expedition.
After calling the Bathysphere, defend yourself until it arrives. Once its arrival is confirmed, you can extract and return to the surface. Allow for this wait when choosing when to leave: calling while already on the verge of dying is more dangerous than keeping a margin for defense.
When to finish early
Since 3.29.2, the backup Capsule allows departure before all lanterns are exhausted. Do not continue a dangerous section merely to complete the layout: when the raid objective is achieved, an early finish can preserve useful progress.
Before another attempt, identify why you stopped. Excessively difficult properties require board changes; losing direction calls for a smaller learning route; a crowded shared Capsule calls for group coordination. One solution does not address all three problems.
Evaluating the next Voyage
Record preparation and expedition duration, Charts and empowerments spent, delivered loot and the section where problems arose. One fortunate expedition demonstrates a possible outcome rather than average profit.
Patch 3.29.1 added Eldritch Depths, Sunken Opulence and Sunken Gems. Expanded content and rewards do not mean every assembled Voyage must contain the same set. Choose the properties actually visible in your planner.
Can I buy an already revealed Chart bonus?
GGG described trading the original Chart before running it; the part revealed through exploration is no longer transferred that way. Treat the purchase as entry to exploration rather than a guaranteed Voyage property.
Does the introductory expedition require nine areas?
No. GGG distinguished the first 2-by-2 board from regular 3-by-3 boards. Do not confuse cell count with separate progression conditions.
Must I use three Cursed Ducats?
No. Up to three is the available limit after 3.29.3. Assess the basic layout and its conditions before deciding whether more empowerment is useful.