Your Complete Guide to the Trial of Ascendancy in PoE 2

Trials of Ascendancy in Path of Exile 2 unlock powerful class specializations and passive points, marking a pivotal early-to-mid game milestone. These challenging dungeons test survival, decision-making, and combat prowess through randomized rooms filled with traps, enemies, and bosses. Completing them grants your first Ascendancy class choice and up to 8 passive points total, supercharging builds for endgame mapping and bossing.

Unlocking and Accessing Trials

Begin with the Trial of the Sekhemas in Act 2 via the "Ascent to Power" side quest from Balbala's Barya in Traitor's Passage. Grab the quest item key, enter the trial, and navigate floors without dying or losing all Honour—a resource gained from kills and lost to damage. Act 3's Trial of Chaos follows, accessed via Chimeral Inscribed Ultimatum from the Trialmaster in Vaal Jungle's Temple of Chaos. You can skip Sekhemas for Chaos, but doing Sekhemas first provides earlier power spikes. Later points require higher-level keys with more floors/rounds or pinnacle bosses.

Core Mechanics and Room Types

Trials feature sequential challenges ranked by difficulty: Gauntlet (hardest, endurance races), Escape (disable Death Crystals before timer), Hourglass (survive waves), Chalice (boss rushes), Ritual (kill all foes and disrupt summons). Each room offers boons for buffs, afflictions as curses, healing spots, and keys for end-trial treasures. Build Honour by slaying rares and elites to afford better choices—pick easier trials early to stack resources. Death or zero Honour fails the run, so prioritize sustain via flasks, movement skills, and resistances.

Strategies for Success

Gear for chaos resist, life leech, and mobility before entering—level 20+ feels comfortable. In Sekhemas, chain Ritual/Hourglass rooms for Honour farming, save gold keys for pledge rewards like Vaal Orbs or Time-Lost Jewels. Chaos trials ramp with modifiers scaling enemy power; focus adds first, dodge telegraphed attacks, and use Trialmaster offerings wisely. Bosses like Rattlecage (earth slams) demand kiting; learn patterns via safe pulls. Run multiple times for points—first completion unlocks Ascendancy, repeats yield extras up to 8 total.

Rewards and Progression Path

First clear nets 2 Ascendancy points and class unlock (e.g., Witch to Infernalist). Subsequent runs grant more: points 3-4 from base Chaos, 5-6 from level 60+ Sekhemas (3 floors) or 75+ Chaos (10 rounds), 7-8 from pinnacle Chaos with fate fragments. Treasures include uniques, skill gems, and endgame access like higher Ultimatums. Cap at 8 points; allocate in specialized trees for massive DPS or tankiness boosts.

Advanced Tips and Common Pitfalls

Party up for shared Honour and revives, but solo hones mechanics. Avoid greed on high-risk boons; reset on bad luck. Track quest progress to avoid skips. Post-Ascendancy, weave trials into leveling for passive farming. Pitfalls: underestimating timers, ignoring curses, or low resists—always flask up.