PoE 2 offers a vast array of spells, passive skills, and ascendancy options, yet the Witch class truly shines for players dedicated to commanding a legion of undead minions. Powerful synergies among your summoned units drive this master of dark arts through the entire storyline, from the initial campaign all the way to the most challenging end-game maps. This guide will showcase the core strengths of the Infernal Witch minion archetype, enabling you to summon an overwhelming force of skeletons, raging spirits, and other terrifying allies. We’ll focus on ensuring a seamless progression from the early game to late-game content by outlining essential skills, a suggested passive skill tree, and key gear recommendations.
Minion Skills Overview and Key Features
Skills centered on minions typically provide excellent crowd control, area-of-effect damage, and consistent single-target pressure. The core strategy involves combining summons such as Raging Spirits and Skeletal Arsonists to create multiple sources of fire damage and maintain a constant presence on the battlefield. By linking these abilities with appropriate support gems, each minion can unleash devastating offensive waves while benefiting from shared buffs that enhance their survivability.
This build grants access to spells that ignite foes, lower elemental resistances, and provide undead minions with significant damage boosts, faster attack speeds, or additional defensive layers. A crucial aspect is managing your Spirit resource to sustain multiple simultaneous summons. Balancing gear that provides extra Spirit with synergistic passive tree nodes ensures the Witch can command a massive undead army. Below is a concise table of primary minion skills and their advantages:
| Skill Name | Primary Role | Key Benefit | Typical Spirit Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raging Spirits | Supplemental Fire Summons | Summons up to 10 flaming skulls | ~30 Spirit |
| Skeletal Arsonists | Main Ranged Offense | Launches fiery projectiles that Ignite | ~30 Spirit |
| Skeletal Warriors | Close-Range Minions | Applies melee pressure and acts as a tank | Varies (0 if from Scepter) |
| Hellhound (Asc.) | Defensive Companion | Redirects a portion of incoming attacks | 0 Spirit (Asc. skill) |
Minion synergy intensifies with each additional support gem link, allowing you to blanket the entire map in flames and debilitating effects. The entire framework revolves around fueling your minions by expanding your Spirit pool and then amplifying their total damage output through curses, offerings, and fire-based support gems. The Witch can safely position herself behind her undead legion, reapplying Flame Wall and curses as the situation demands.
Early Progression and Skill Gem Setup
Beginning your journey as a Witch presents some initial challenges, but a minion-focused strategy easily overcomes them by distributing damage across multiple summoned allies. New spells become available quickly, providing a variety of skeletal options alongside direct damage spells like Contagion or Unearth. Early on, acquiring a Rattling Scepter is highly beneficial, as it grants free Skeletal Warriors that do not consume additional Spirit.
Many players discover powerful synergy by combining Flame Wall with Raging Spirits or Skeletal Arsonists, especially when paired with support gems that spread ignites. Deploying flame effects in a zone forces your ranged skeletons to fire projectiles through the wall, converting their attacks into amplified fire damage. Raging Spirits efficiently eliminate scattered enemies and detonate via Minion Instability when their health drops low. The table below suggests a skill gem setup for levels 1 through 25:
| Skill or Support Gem | Recommended Use | Reason for Inclusion |
|---|---|---|
| Skeletal Sniper/Arsonist | Early Ranged Summon | Provides safe ranged damage and Ignite synergy |
| Raging Spirits | Supplemental Fire Minions | Adds extra flaming skulls for increased DPS |
| Flame Wall | Cast in front of skeletons | Grants a projectile damage bonus through the wall |
| Meat Shield (Support) | On Skeletal Warriors | Enhances tankiness and improves aggro holding |
| Contagion + Unearth | Early Chaos + Corpse synergy | Offers an alternative for clearing small packs |
Up to level 25, simply align these skill gems with synergistic support gems, and you’ll be well on your way. Investing in minion passives and any equipment that provides extra Spirit will accelerate the leveling process. Upgrade your Rattling Scepter whenever a higher-level version drops, and aim to find ones with bonus Spirit or +1 to All Minion Skill Gems if possible.
Establishing early minion synergy with consistent flame damage lays the groundwork for everything the Witch aims to accomplish. Methodically stacking “+ minion life”, “+ minion damage”, and “increased Spirit” on gear or the passive tree is a reliable way to make your undead forces unstoppable. This early-game configuration transitions smoothly into the mid-game and beyond.
Mid-Game Expansions and Gear Considerations
The mid-game phase typically involves finding methods to empower your horde and layering additional defenses. Players might seek items like Folding Dawn Pilgrim Vestments (for +100 Spirit), Okor Sigil Crest Shield (for +50 Spirit), or Bones of Poer (for 20% reservation on undead minions). Additionally, allocate passive points in the skill tree that grant “+ minion movement speed” or “+ minion resist” to ensure your legion survives against higher-damage encounters.
It’s also wise to acquire specialized items or passives that address resistance needs. Fire-based minions face increased elemental or physical damage in later Acts, so preventing your skeletons from dying in one hit is a top priority. Simultaneously, bolstering your own defenses—such as block chance or increased maximum Energy Shield—keeps the Witch safe from unexpected bursts of damage in Maps. Here’s a concise mid-game checklist:
- Ascension Points: Allocate points into Infernalis for a free Hellhound and fire damage synergy.
- Gear with Extra Spirit: Utilize unique shields, chest pieces, or amulets to expand your Spirit pool.
- Minion Support Gems: Add Brutality or Overpower to Skeletal Warriors, or Emulate + Infernal Legion for Arsonists.
- Offerings: Employ Pain Offering or Bone Offering for team-wide buffs and extra survivability.
- Flame Ability (Curse): Reduce the fire resistance of bosses to stack even more burn damage.
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By monitoring these key points, you’ll maintain high damage output and robust defenses. Brutality and Overpower will transform your melee minions into formidable threats, while Pain Offering and Bone Offering will elevate the entire team’s performance. As the Witch advances into higher Acts and mid-tier Maps, a continued focus on minion upgrades will ensure steady progression.
Ascendancy Path and End-Game Strategies
In the end game, the Witch utilizes the Infernalis Ascendancy and advanced passives to command multiple specialized summons. Allocating points into Altered Flesh converts a portion of elemental damage taken into fire damage, simplifying resistance requirements. Betet’s Hand or Betet’s Will further modifies life reservations, granting extra Energy Shield or Spirit in exchange for a portion of the Witch’s life pool.
Securing the final Ascendancy points usually involves incorporating more curses, stronger offerings, or deeper minion synergy. The objective is to survive Tier 15+ Maps by relying on a solid block chance, a large Energy Shield pool, and a legion of unstoppable skeletons. The minion-based Witch will continue to scale effectively as long as gear and passives reflect a sustained commitment to Spirit, minion life, minion damage, and elemental or chaos resistances. The table below outlines recommended final Ascendancy points and their benefits:
| Ascendancy Perk | Major Effect | Recommended Order |
|---|---|---|
| Loyal Hellhound | +1 Summon with 20% damage taken redirect to Hellhound | First 2 Asc. points |
| Altered Flesh | 20% cold/lightning damage taken as fire, etc. | 3rd + 4th Asc. points |
| Betet’s Hand | Reserves 25% life but grants +1 ES per 8 life | 3rd (Defensive Option) |
| Betet’s Will | Reserves 25% life but grants +1 Spirit per 25 life | 3rd (Offensive Option) |
Betet’s Hand is the preferred choice for players seeking a safer approach, as it pushes Energy Shield to extreme levels. Betet’s Will adopts a more aggressive stance, allowing for more total minions via increased Spirit. Once the Witch has all four Ascendancy points, the synergy of partially reserved life, extensive minion pools, and massive Energy Shield makes her fearless in the face of end-game content.
Incorporating spells like Grim Feast further solidifies the Witch’s defenses, as each minion death drops a Grim Remnant that stacks Energy Shield above the maximum. Boss fights become less daunting as the Witch is surrounded by a wave of Arsonists, Warriors, Raging Spirits, and a steadfast Hellhound that shares incoming damage. Layering curses like Flame Ability or additional exposure effects will keep higher-tier enemies manageable, ensuring your undead horde emerges victorious. With all this considered, the Infernal Witch stands at the pinnacle of PoE 2 necromancy. This build is effective from Act 1 through the end game and adapts well to any league or game mode.
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