[3.27] 10 Best Builds for New Players - PoE Keepers of the Flame

Do you plan on playing Path of Exile: Keepers of the Flame anytime soon? Are you a complete beginner with no knowledge about the game whatsoever? Still searching for a build that you can start the game with? If the answer to these questions is yes, then you have come to the right place!

Today, we will talk about the builds that are great to use and do not require you to learn complex mechanics. If this sounds good to you, then read further. This is our guide for the best builds for new players in PoE 3.27!

What Makes a Build Good for New Players in PoE 3.27?

Before we talk about our recommendations, we will discuss the things that make a PoE build good for new players.

It is without question that Path of Exile is the most complex ARPG out there. This game features so many mechanics that can easily overwhelm beginners, so much so that new players may be deterred from picking the game up.

However, if you take the time to learn the inner workings of each build, you will find that Path of Exile is not that bad at all.

Anyway, this guide will only cover builds that allow you to enjoy the game without any complicated stuff whatsoever. Of course, if you like PoE and would like to learn about the more complicated builds, then we have a full section dedicated to that on our website.

Back to the question asked earlier, what makes a build good for new players in Path of Exile? Here are some qualities to look for:

Must Be League-Start Viable

There is a class of builds in Path of Exile called "League Starters." To understand why they are called as such, Grinding Gear Games, the developer of PoE, typically launches a new league every three to four months.

During this time, players will start from scratch with no items and currency to their name. The term "league starter" just refers to builds that can work without any specific items. You just equip gear with the right mods and you should be able to enjoy them.

Easy Playstyle

Beginner builds should be quite easy to use. For instance, you should put your primary skill gem along with the necessary support gems to bring the most out of it. After that, you simply use that skill while you traverse the map without having to worry about complicated things like cooldowns and whatnot.

Good Survivability

Dying in any game sucks and that is even more so in a game like Path of Exile: Keepers of the Flame. Once you have reached the higher levels, dying would mean that you lose 10% of your EXP, which is something that takes time to build up again.

Therefore, a good beginner-friendly build should have sufficient survivability. Some of that is dependent on gear, but the other part must already be taken care of by the choice of ascendancy classes and nodes on the passive skill tree.

Seamless Transition to the Endgame

A good build for a completely new PoE player should not only be a good league starter, but it must also have enough power to transition well into the endgame.

Even if the build ends up changing some stuff to deal more damage, for example, the transition should still be seamless in that it feels (and plays) relatively the same since you have started.

If the skill is not as viable in the endgame as others, the levelled-up build should be easy to transition to an adjacent build (like Elementalist to another Elementalist build in PoE 3.27) without any problems.

Plenty of Upgrade Options

Lastly, a build in Path of Exile: Keepers of the Flame is considered good if there are plenty of avenues to upgrade it later down the line. For instance, if you have the option of switching from the base skill gem to its transfigured version, then that is part of what makes a build great!

Best Builds for New Players in PoE 3.27

Path of Exile is filled with plenty of skill gems, items, and ascendancy classes that you can use to create awesome builds. While there are some that are indeed very powerful, they require some technical know-how to pull off.

Don't worry, the ones that we are going to talk about here are those that a complete beginner can use without a hitch. They employ a plug-and-play setup wherein you only need to use the necessary skill gems, support gems, and items. After everything is in place, you should be good to go!

So, without further ado, here are the best builds for new players in PoE 3.27:

Righteous Fire Chieftain

The Righteous Fire Chieftain is arguably the better league starter version of RF compared to the other ascendancy classes. It is tanky, has enough power to destroy map monsters with ease, and is able to work with a minimal investment.

What makes this great is that you can slap on any armor-based gear with a high life roll on it. That is because Righteous Fire itself now scales better with more HP. The Marauder class is perfect in this regard, even more so when you ascend to the Chieftain.

The Chieftain has incredible modifiers that help it become a good ascendancy class for beginners. For one, Hinekora greatly improves your map-clearing speed as it makes enemies you kill explode on death, dealing huge amounts of fire damage even on a budget.

Next, you have Tasalio and Valako – two ascendancy nodes that aid in capping your elemental resistances. When you have these allocated, all you have to do is concentrate on your fire resistance, and your other elemental resistances will be taken care of as well.

Although Righteous Fire is great at blasting maps, this build does suffer from mediocre single-target damage. For this reason, you are also going to use Fire Trap to deal with tougher enemies.

If you are on the fence about choosing the best build for new players in PoE 3.27, then go for the Righteous Fire Chieftain. You can never go wrong with it!

Poisonous Concoction Pathfinder

The vast majority of builds in Path of Exile: Keepers of the Flame would require you to equip a certain weapon (or two). However, the Poisonous Concoction Pathfinder is different in that you only rely on your flasks to deal damage.

When used, Poisonous Concoction prompts you to throw a bottle that explodes upon impact. The damage of this skill is increased if a portion of the flask charges is taken from your Life Flask.

With the Pathfinder's Nature's Adrenaline notable ascendancy passive, you have near-permanent uptime of your flasks. In other words, you gain so many flask charges that any amount deducted by every use of Poisonous Concoction becomes negligible.

Your primary goal here is to attack fast so that you can apply multiple poison stacks to your enemies. Although this build works without unique items, there are some that you can invest in that will make things a whole lot better. For example, the Snakebite unique gloves significantly increases your chance to inflict poison on hit.

If you want, you can also replace the regular Poisonous Concoction skill with its transfigured variant, the Poisonous Concoction of Bouncing. This skill, unlike the original, only lets you hurl one poisonous concoction. However, that single projectile is enough because it bounces multiple times, from one monster to the next.

The Poisonous Concoction Pathfinder is one of the beginner-friendly builds in PoE 3.27 that can scale well into the endgame. With enough investment, you can take on pinnacle bosses with relative ease!

Arc Elementalist

The Arc Elementalist is similar to the Lightning Sorceress in Diablo II: Resurrected. It utilizes a lightning spell that chains to multiple enemies. Furthermore, the skill itself deals more damage on a single target, making it ideal for taking on bosses early on.

This can be built in a number of ways, but the Elementalist version of the build utilizes Shaper of Flames to a much greater extent. Normally, elemental damage in Path of Exile deals a certain type of ailment depending on the main element of the skill.

Since Arc is technically a lightning-based spell, you would only be limited to applying Shock and nothing else. However, with the Shaper of Flames, the chain lightning that Arc produces can actually inflict Ignite, which is a fire elemental ailment that deals damage over time.

That is the reason why you will see support gems like Deadly Ailments and Unbound Ailments being used here because these elevate the damage of Ignite. To further improve your damage output, you can rely on the Convergence buff from the Elementalist's Heart of Destruction node. This grants 30% more elemental damage, which is calculated multiplicatively rather than additively.

Now, if you somehow do not like the performance of the Arc Elementalist but have already amassed some PoE Currency, the good news is that you can transition to other builds like the EK Ignite Elementalist. Alternatively, you can use the other ascendancy classes available to the Witch if you want to try something else.

Poison Blade Vortex Assassin

This next build is similar to the Righteous Fire Chieftain in terms of ridding maps of monsters, albeit it utilizes potent poisons to deal with the enemy.

The Poison Blade Vortex Assassin is a build that can easily destroy enemies on a minimal investment. It utilizes two different skills, namely Blade Vortex and Plague Bearer.

Blade Vortex is a physical spell skill gem that allows you to create up to 10 ethereal blades at a time. Due to the nature of these blades, you can inflict poison much faster than hitting your foes with other spells or attacks.

Early on, you will use the aptly named Chance to Poison support to enable your character to inflict deadly poisons. Once you have saved up enough PoE Currency, you could transition to wearing the Dendrobate to make your poisons even deadlier!

In addition, the Assassin got a massive rework in Patch 3.27. There is a new ascendancy node called Infused Toxins that allow all damage from hits to poison enemies! This allows for a more consistent application of poisons, so long as your attacks hit the intended target.

Aside from that, the Poison Blade Vortex Assassin utilizes another skill called the Plague Bearer as well. This is akin to Righteous Fire in that it deals damage in an area when activated. However, the difference is that you will have to "incubate" poisons by using Blade Vortex first. This does take time to get used to, but it is not too hard to learn.

Dealing chaos damage is a great way to eliminate the enemy without breaking the bank. This is part of the reason why the Poison Blade Vortex Assassin is incredible as a starter build for beginners in Path of Exile: Keepers of the Flame!

Earthshatter Berserker

If slamming the ground with blind rage is what you're after, then the Earthshatter Berserker is the perfect fit for you! There is nothing complicated about this build whatsoever. It uses one of the most damaging slam skils in PoE 3.27, Earthshatter, which can deal more damage after using some warcry skills near the spikes.

Speaking of which, you're going to utilize several warcries on this build. You don't even have to worry about them because their activation is automated with the Autoexertion Support.

The endgame version of this build uses Echoes of Creation to unlock the full power of the Earthshatter Berserker. While its downside could defeat you in a couple of slams, the good thing about the Keepers of the Flame League is that you can wear grafts that allow you to gain bonuses to armor and life to address that.

In addition, the Berserker has the "Defy Pain" ascendancy node, which acts as a pseudo-Defiance of Destiny. And you know what? You can actually combine Defy Pain with Defiance of Destiny to ensure that your HP is always in the safe zone while you're slamming the ground with Earthshatter!

If you are new to Path of Exile: Keepers of the Flame, the Berserker is the game's ascendancy class of pure carnage. Amplify the damage provided by Rage by allocating Crave the Slaughter and Rite of Ruin.

Because warcries are an essential part of the Earthshatter Berserker, allocating "War Bringer" makes perfect sense. This effectively doubles the "exerted" effect on your Earthshatter, which ensures that you deal the most amount of damage at all times.

The Earthshatter Berserker is the epitome of "simple yet effective." Just slam the ground and see enemies get obliterated shortly after!

Lightning Arrow Deadeye

Bow builds had reigned supreme in Path of Exile for quite some time, and I am glad to say that it is still true in the Keepers of the Flame expansion.

The Lightning Arrow Deadeye is a build is an effective mapper capable of destroying enemies without a problem. It utilizes a bow skill that converts half of your physical damage to lightning damage. Besides that, Lightning Arrow hits three additional enemies near the main target.

Despite Lightning Arrow's inherent damage conversion, you are not actually going to fully convert your physical damage to lightning damage. Instead, you will utilize a bow with three different elemental damage mods so that you can take advantage of the damage boost provided by Trinity Support.

On top of that, you will link the Returning Projectiles Support to make your arrows return to you after traveling their maximum distance, effectively hitting enemies twice.

Admittedly, the Lightning Arrow Deadeye suffers from mediocre single-target damage at the beginning. To address that, you can either use the Artillery Ballista to summon a few totems for added firepower or leverage the Manaforged Arrows Support to automatically trigger a couple of bow skills for improved damage.

There are no new changes for the Deadeye ascendancy class in Patch 3.27. This is a good thing because the Deadeye is competitive in the previous league, which means that the same can be said for the Keepers of the Flame expansion as well.

It is important to note that bow builds, in general, are squishy in PoE. In this case, you must consider your offense as part of your defense, where you kill enemies first before they have a chance to hit you.

Other than that, the Lightning Arrow Deadeye is definitely one of the best builds for new players in PoE 3.27 for sure!

Lacerate of Haemorrhage Gladiator

The rework GGG has done to the Gladiator ascendancy class has definitely made bleed builds great again, and that is best exemplified by the next entry on our list.

The Lacerate of Haemorrhage Gladiator uses a physical skill gem that allows you to apply the bleeding status effect on enemies. Although Lacerate interacts with the skill called Blood and Sand, it is not really mandatory for the build to work.

Anyway, what has changed for the Gladiator in Patch 3.27? Nothing. But again, that's actually a good thing since the Gladiator is already pretty strong even on a minimal investment in the previous league.

In addition, the Lacerate of Haemorrhage Gladiator is no slouch when it comes to defenses. In fact, this build is incredibly tanky on a minimal investment thanks to Determined Survivor and More Than Skill.

Now, Lacerate is just a placeholder skill for this build. What we mean by this is that you will ultimately change it with its transfigured version, Lacerate of Haemorrhage, for better damage scaling.

Spectral Shield Throw Gladiator

If there is one thing that the Gladiator ascendancy class excels at, it is dealing huge amounts of bleed damage per second. This next build is slightly better in terms of overall feel than the last entry, but the damage is relatively the same.

The Spectral Shield Throw Gladiator is an awesome build where you throw a spectral copy of your shield that splits into smaller projectiles, hitting nearby monsters in the process. This projectile has a huge chance to apply bleeds to those that are hit, so it is basically a means to administer pain.

This skill gem has no increases or reductions in Path of Exile 3.27 Keepers of the Flame. So, if you liked this skill in the last league, you can comfortably use it again in Patch 3.27.

As for the shield you are going to use, you can go for the Colossal Tower Shield for its high base armor, though we highly recommend that you opt for the Emperor's Vigilance instead. This unique shield not only has an insane amount of armor, but it significantly increases your chance to block attacks and spells as well.

Now, you might think that the Spectral Shield Throw Gladiator is more of a defense-oriented build, but that is not necessarily true. In fact, you have the option to go for pure offense simply based on the notable ascendancy passive you take.

The Weapon Master notable passive grants a 30% more damage buff against enemies that are below 50% of their maximum life. Additionally, War of Attrition enables you to slay bosses on a budget, especially if the encounter has already taken too long to finish.

Since you are required to use a shield on this build, you can utilize Shield Charge to traverse maps quickly. If that is not your thing, you could do a simple gem swap and replace it with Leap Slam instead.

The only thing that might deter you from trying this build out is that it still deals bleed damage to delete monsters on screen. But, if that is fine with you, then the Spectral Shield Throw Gladiator does not disappoint!

Reap Exsanguinate Elementalist

The Reap Exsanguinate Elementalist is one of the best builds for new players in Path of Exile: Keepers of the Flame. Although there are a few underlying mechanics that are used here, this build is actually quite easy to play.

The basic premise of this build is that you deal insane amounts of physical damage over time with a couple of skills, namely Reap and Exsanguinate. The former should be used every so often to gain life and damage through Blood Charges, while the latter adds a layer of physical damage over time which stacks with other similar effects..

On top of that, you activate Corrupting Fever so that you gain the ability to apply Corrupted Blood on enemies. The best skill to use for the sole purpose of spreading this corrupted blood is Kinetic Blast.

As you can see, this build is quite dynamic because you have several abilities that you use while mapping and bossing, which means that there's never a dull moment when playing this PoE 3.27 build.

With your primary damage being physical damage, you might think that the Elementalist does not work here. However, that is not true at all!

Liege of the Primordial, coupled with The Dark Monarch unique helmet allows you to summon multiple golems at once. Since you lose a bit of your HP when casting Reap, the life regeneration boost provided by the Summon Stone Golem is more than enough to address that.

The Shaper of Flames, Shaper of Winter, and Shaper of Storms enable you to inflict Ignite, Chill, and Shock with physical damage. Quite insane when you think about it, right?

Despite the various mechanics at play, the Reap Exsanguinate Elementalist packs a lot of punch. You might want to invest in some of the new Foulborn Uniques, such as the Foulborn Berek's Respite, Foulborn Witchbane, and Foulborn The Red Dream to further enhance the capabilities of this build, though they are not mandatory by any means.

Cyclone Slayer

The last entry on this list is one of the most beloved builds in Path of Exile: Keepers of the Flame and that is none other than the Cyclone Slayer! This has a very familiar playstyle where you simply hold down the button for Cyclone and watch as you decimate any foe you come across!

Cyclone got a huge damage buff in the Keepers of the Flame League. More specifically, it now deals 20% more damage at all gem levels! Although it still no longer has added physical damage, that is sort of a good thing in that you do not have to deal with damage conversion mechanics whatsoever.

One major selling point of the Cyclone Slayer is that it has enough power to tackle any content that you wish to do in Path of Exile: Keepers of the Flame. You will mainly rely on Impale to deal significant amounts of physical damage, which you can scale with gear and the appropriate nodes on the passive tree.

As to how the Slayer factors into the equation, the Brutal Fervour ascendancy node is utilized to a great extent here due to Cyclone's innately fast attack speed. The overleech it provides can help you survive even with just self-found gear.

The combination of Bane of Legends and Headsman lets you deal with tough monsters by granting more damage and attack speed, respectively. Headsman even allows you to slay enemies immediately once their HP drops to below 20%.

In addition, the Cyclone Slayer has plenty of gearing options if you decide to elevate the build's potential. You could use a two-handed sword, axe, or warstaff for maximum damage. You can invest in more expensive unique items like a Headhunter or Mageblood later down the line.

Although this build struggles with survivability early on, we promise that it will get better as soon as it is equipped with the right gear.

With the damage that can delete enemies and a playstyle that is not complicated at all, it is without a doubt that the Cyclone Slayer is one of the best builds for new players in PoE 3.27!

Honorable Mentions

The builds that we have listed above are considered the best of the best. However, there are those that deserve some recognition, which is why we are also going to include some honorable mentions.

Forbidden Rite of Soul Sacrifice Occultist

In terms of mechanics, this next build utilizes a lot. However, when it comes to gameplay, it's pretty easy and satisfying! The Forbidden Rite ofs Soul Sacrifice Occultist is a build that can farm T17 maps comfortably, though you will need to set things up for success.

This build is a Power Charge stacker that deals tremendous amounts of damage with Forbidden Rite of Soul Sacrifice. Because this skill deals chaos damage to yourself, allocating the Chaos Inoculation keystone is a must. Simply improve your energy shield as best as you can to survive while mapping.

The Forbidden Rite of Soul Sacrifice Occultist has a couple of variations, but the one I am talking about here uses Lancing Steel of Spraying to automatically cast the said transfigured gem.

When it comes to upgrades, you can invest in the Whispers of Infinity for some added chaos damage, Malachai's Loop and Ralakesh's Impatience for more spell damage, and Willclash for a ton of energy shield and spell block chance.

Overall, the Forbidden Rite of Soul Sacrifice Occultist is a map blaster that only gets better with investment.

Exsanguinate Mines Trickster

This is one of those builds in PoE 3.27 that relies on damage conversion mechanics, which is why we did not include it on the initial list. However, this deserves a special mention due to it being one of the most popular league starters in the Keepers of the Flame expansion.

The Exsanguinate Mines Trickster uses a spell skill gem called Exsanguinate. When used by itself, it prompts you to unleash several blood tendrils that deal physical damage to those that are hit. The problem with this is that it has a cast time of 0.8 seconds which, in Path of Exile, is considered a long time.

Fortunately, you can turn it into a Mine Skill by linking it with High-Impact Mine Support. This allows you to throw multiple mines at once, which will then be automatically detonated shortly after with the help of the aptly named Detonate Mines and Automation Support.

As mentioned above, this build utilizes conversion mechanics, where physical damage is converted to cold damage. This can be achieved early on by equipping the Hrimsorrow unique gloves. Since you will now be dealing cold damage at this point, you have the chance of freezing enemies with critical strikes. This is complemented by Heatshiver – a popular unique item that grants extra fire damage against frozen enemies.

Although the Exsanguinate Mines Trickster requires certain unique items to work, the good news is that they are relatively easy to obtain.

Elemental Hit of the Spectrum Deadeye

If you are into the bow-and-arrow fantasy, then the Elemental Hit of the Spectrum Deadeye is easy to recommend. This build utilizes a bow skill that deals more damage against enemies that are affected by various elemental ailments, such as Ignite, Shock, and Chill, among others.

What's great about this build is that it can utilize many Foulborn Uniques, including the Foulborn Headhunter, Foulborn Mageblood, and the Foulborn Unnatural Instinct to deal more damage.

For the ascendancy nodes, you only need three from the Deadeye, including Gathering Winds, Far Shot, and Endless Munitions. The final two points are reserved for "Huntleader," which is a major node that you can allocate from the new Farrul Bloodline in Path of Exile: Keepers of the Flame.

The Huntleader node basically grants more critical strike chance and attack speed, so that you can breeze through maps with ease.

The Elemental Hit of the Spectrum Deadeye doesn't need any unique items to get off the ground, making it a solid option for new players in the Keepers of the Flame League.

Melee Builds That Use Slam Skills

Slam skills are still pretty good in PoE 3.27. Therefore, you can always choose builds that utilize slam skills. The ones we recommend are the Earthshatter Juggernaut, Volcanic Fissure Berserker, and Ground Slam Berserker, just to name a few.

Even though they have a relatively clunky playstyle, they deal massive amounts of damage with modest gear.

How to Use the POB

In each of the builds we have highlighted in this article, we have included POB links so that you can try them out for yourself. All of the skills, support gems, items, passive nodes, and ascendancy classes that each build uses are already laid out; you just have to import a specific code to the program.

If you are new to the game, POB is short for Path of Building — a third-party software that enables you to import builds, as well as modify builds in any way you like. You can download the program from its official page.

Once installed, click on any POB link above, and you will be directed to another page. Take the Earthshatter Juggernaut, for example. A collection of numbers, letters, and symbols are contained in a box on the right side of the page. Press the aptly named "Copy" button and the code that you need will be copied to the clipboard.

Next, run Path of Building. At the top portion of the initial page, click on "New." Doing so will direct you to the main interface. On the left-hand side, click on "Import/Export Build" as you can see in the screenshot below:

Under the "Build Sharing" section, right-click on the input box. Doing so will automatically paste the code you have copied earlier. There should be some text indicating that the code is valid. If that is so, press the "Import" button and it should be good to go!

Best Builds for New Players in PoE 3.27: Final Thoughts

Path of Exile is a really complex ARPG, so much so that it can overwhelm complete beginners. Fortunately, there are certain builds that are simple to understand and easy to play for new players. Just choose whichever build we have highlighted above because you can never go wrong with any of them.

Now, all builds in PoE 3.27 need pieces of gear to elevate their potential. If you do not want to go through the hassle of farming these items yourself, do not worry! Our dedicated PoE Store has a wide selection of items that can make your character go from zero to hero in an instant!

So, what are you waiting for? Visit our PoE Store today!