Path of Exile: Best Maps That Every Player Should Run

Path of Exile is an action RPG that lets you create different classes to finish the campaign. But, after completing Act 10 and defeating Kitava, what else is there to do? Well, that is when the real fun starts.

Placed in your hideout is a thing called the Map Device, where you can insert items called "Maps" that create portals leading to new areas. These places have different layouts and are riddled with monsters for you to defeat.

What is the main objective here? Why is mapping considered the true endgame in PoE? And, which maps are the best ones to run? All of these questions will be answered in this article.

So strap yourself in, this is our ultimate guide for mapping in Path of Exile!

What is Mapping?

Before we talk about anything else, it is crucial that we establish what mapping is. Mapping is a term used by the PoE community to refer to running maps with the intention of farming items and gaining currency.

Most of the time, players only complete a handful of maps, particularly because they want to obtain specific items, such as The Apothecary, Brother's Gift, and certain Tier 17 maps, among many others.

That said, maps can drop from the monsters that you kill. Taking passive nodes on the Atlas Skill tree improves your chances of getting a map, most notably ones that are connected with the one that you are currently running.

So, the next time you see a player saying that they will be "mapping", now you know what they actually mean by that.

Why is Mapping Important?

This is a common question asked by a lot of beginner players in Path of Exile. The simple answer is that mapping provides you with the easiest and most accessible way to farm PoE Currency.

As soon as you complete the game's main campaign, you will have access to the Map Device that lets you run any map that you want. Maps are separated by tiers, with the higher ones offering the most rewarding loot at the cost of having to defeat tougher monsters.

You can increase the tier of the maps that drop from monsters by inserting Voidstones on the Atlas of Worlds (press "G" on the keyboard to bring up the UI). Each Voidstone raises the map tiers by 25% (up to a maximum of 100% due to there being four different Voidstones). Once all Voidstones are inserted, all of the maps on the Atlas will all be at Tier 16.

The Voidstones can be acquired from the game's pinnacle bosses, including The Maven, Searing Exarch, Eater of Worlds, and The Elder. They are not easy encounters, so you have to be prepared before you engage.

The vast majority of your time playing Path of Exile is spent on mapping as this is the gateway to other content in the game. Do you want to fight The Maven? You have to complete maps "witnessed" by the said entity.

Do you want to challenge Sirus to a fight? The only way for you to do that is to defeat the four Conquerors and obtain their fragments. And where do you think that these fragments drop from? Yes, you have guessed it! From maps, of course!

The loot that you acquire from mapping can be used to craft equipment yourself or sell to other players for currency via the trade website.

What Are Map Modifiers?

Map modifiers work similarly to that of the mods that are found on items. A rare map can have up to six different modifiers, including three prefixes and three suffixes. Each map can attain eight modifiers by "corrupting" them with a Vaal Orb.

If you are running a non-unique map, the first thing that you want to do is use an Orb of Alchemy to turn a normal map into a rare one. If you are satisfied with the mods on it, you can proceed to use a Vaal Orb for a chance to improve the map even further.

Conversely, there are times when modifiers on maps might not be appropriate for your build. So, in the event that this happens, you could use an Orb of Scouring to remove the modifiers, thereby allowing you to use an Orb of Alchemy once again.

It is also worth noting that increasing the quality of maps by spamming Cartographer's Chisels is a common practice. Raising the map's quality guarantees a higher item quantity and increased pack size, which are great things if you want to get better loot.

Now, Vaal Orbs may result in several different outcomes. If you are lucky, the said PoE Currency will reroll the map's modifiers, essentially giving it eight random affixes. This makes the resulting map harder to accomplish, but finishing it completely may net you better rewards.

Another possible outcome is that the map will have a random Vaal implicit modifier, such as:

• Map Crafting Options for This Map Have No Cost
• Atlas Passives Have (10-15)% Increased Effect on Area
• Area Contains an Additional Guarded Exquisite Vaal Vessel
• Unique Monsters Drop Corrupted Items
• And many more...

When you use a Vaal Orb on a rare T16 map, it may turn into a completely different map called the Vaal Temple. This is a pretty incredible place to farm corrupted items and you might even snag some up while mapping here. Alternatively, you could trade some special items you have obtained in this area to other players on the trade website.

Lastly, utilizing a Vaal Orb on a rare map may result in nothing. In other words, the map will still have the same set of modifiers prior to the corruption, albeit you can no longer alter it in any way due to it being in a "corrupted" state.

Aside from the currency items just mentioned, you need to know about the Orb of Unmaking as well. This orb allows you to gain points that you can use to allocate nodes on the Atlas Skill Tree. Now, what does this have to do with map modifiers?

On the Atlas Skill Tree, specifically on the upper part known as the "top hat", each node here increases the explicit modifiers on a map by 2%. Taking all of these nodes will result in a +30% increased effect of explicit modifiers on your maps.

As you can see, taking the "top hat" nodes makes your maps more challenging to complete. However, this is with the promise of more pack size, item quantity, and item rarity, which all lead to better loot.

Best Maps to Run

Now that you have learned the basics of mapping in the game, it is time for you to know our recommendations for the best maps to run in Path of Exile. Take note that GGG cycles through maps in every expansion, so some of our recommendations might not be available in the current league. But, fear not! At some point, the company will bring them back, so you can run them as soon as they become available.

So, without further ado, let's get started!

Crimson Temple

The Crimson Temple is one of the most popular maps in PoE mainly because of the Divination Cards that drop from this place. You have The Apothecary, which allows you to obtain a Tier 0 unique item called the Mageblood just by trading five pieces of this card.

Then, you have the Seven Years Bad Luck - another Divination Card that produces a highly coveted Mirror Shard. You need about 13 of these cards to get a single Mirror Shard, so your journey to getting a Mirror of Kalandra is long and arduous. Despite that, the Crimson Temple is definitely a good start if you want to begin collecting these cards.

Another thing of note here is that the Crimson Temple has a pretty easy map design, so you are less likely to get lost. Our only gripe here is that the corridors are annoying to deal with, especially if you activate Legion Encounters.

Still, the Crimson Temple is definitely a map that you should run multiple times. We promise that you won't regret it!

Cemetery

If you want to have an efficient mapping experience, then the Cemetery Map is ideal for that. It has an open area layout, making it easier for you to traverse the different sections of the map.

Most people who do their mapping runs here typically farm the Brother's Gift divination card. This card turns into five Divine Orbs when traded to Lilly Roth in your hideout.

The divination card called "Brother's Stash" also drops here. Unlike its cousin, this card gives you five Exalted Orbs instead of Divine Orbs after the exchange.

Even though not a lot of people are talking about this, the Cemetery Map lets you acquire another area-specific divination card named "The Union". Trading seven of these cards will give you 10 Gemcutter's Prisms.

The Union deserves a special mention here because GGG implemented a change in Patch 3.24, where you can no longer "sell" a level 20 gem to the vendor along with a Gemcutter's Prism to get a level 1 gem (of the same type) but with a 20% quality.

Because The Union is not too rare, you could easily get your hands on a healthy supply of Gemcutter's Prisms, which you can sell for profit to other players.

Graveyard

The Cemetery Map is a good one to run due to the divination cards that you can get. However, because of how popular it is, you could spend a bit more PoE Currency just to obtain one. Fortunately, there is an alternative in the form of the Graveyard Map.

In case you do not know, the Graveyard Map has a very similar layout to Cemetery, though it does have a few more bosses that you need to defeat in order to complete the run.

The good news is that you still get the highly sought-after divination cards here, including the Brother's Stash, Brother's Gift, and The Union. The only difference is that the Graveyard Map is more affordable than the Cemetery Map, making it a viable substitute indeed!

Burial Chambers

If you have played Path of Exile for quite some time now, you may have heard of the Headhunter. It is a unique item that grants you all of the modifiers of a rare monster after killing them.

Although you can acquire the Headhunter as an uber-rare drop while mapping, the best approach is to get one through divination cards. Well, the Burial Chambers is one spot where you can farm "The Doctor". Collect eight of these and you will have a new and shiny Headhunter that you can be proud of!

There is another divination card that can drop here that is worthy to note and that is The Fortunate. Trading 12 of these will net you a couple of Divine Orbs. It may not be much, but it will be if you farm the Burial Chambers map diligently.

Defiled Cathedral

The corridors and the skimpy layout of the Crimson Temple Map may hinder you from sweeping the area in under two minutes. If you are farming The Apothecary, you could run the Defiled Cathedral Map instead.

This map has a square layout, so it is virtually impossible for you to get lost while mapping. Searching for the boss arena is also easy; you just have to make sure that you go deeper.

We still do not recommend that you do Legion Encounters here, but the Defiled Cathedral is great for Abyss and Breach if you decide to do some extra content.

The Enlightened, which can be traded for a level 3 Enlighten Support, is also available in the map's drop pool.

Mausoleum

Did you choose the Eater of Worlds Altar for mapping? If so, you need to run Mausoleum maps to maximize your time and efficiency. Why is that, you ask?

Well, the Mausoleum is quite popular in the PoE community not for the divination cards that may drop here, but for the "non-existence" of boss altars while you are mapping.

Tolman, the Exhumer, is the "big bad" here. What you need to know about this encounter is that the boss is not considered "spawned" yet unless you trigger the sequence that initiates the fight.

Why is this useful for those who chose the Eater of Worlds Altar? It is useful because the altars that grant boss modifiers will not show up. This increases your chance of getting altars that reward Divine Orbs when killing monsters. You can easily rack up some bonuses as well.

In addition, the linear layout of the Mausoleum makes it incredibly easy for you to sweep the entire map. That is why it deserves a spot on the list of the best maps to run in Path of Exile!

Jungle Valley

If you are not a fan of Mausoleum's dark interior, then the Jungle Valley is definitely a good replacement. This map is also best known for Altar farming since the boss in the area is only considered spawned if you are inside its lair.

The thing that we love about Jungle Valley over the Mausoleum is that it has a much brighter design, making it less likely for you to get lost while moving around.

It is worth mentioning that The Fortunate and The Scout divination cards drop here as well. If you are wondering what the latter is, it rewards you with seven Exalted Orbs if you exchange eight pieces of this card.

Strand

Going to an area with a complicated layout is problematic as it reduces your map-clearing speed considerably. If you just want a simple and straightforward map, then nothing can beat Strand in that regard.

Strand is ideal for farming Legion Encounters due to its linear, open-area design. More importantly, it is impossible for you to get lost here because all you have to do is run forward from start to finish.

This map also contains two bosses, so if you have taken some boss modifiers from the Eldritch Altars before entering the arena, you could possibly get twice the loot that was promised.

In terms of profit, Strand does not have any divination cards that you can sell for a buck. However, you could collect a bunch of Lingering Remnants and exchange them for Vaal Temple maps. Besides that, The Stormcaller divination card guarantees an Agnerod Staff every time you exchange four of them with Lilly Roth.

For those who do not know, there is a vendor recipe where you can obtain The Vinktar Square map by selling the four Agnerod Staves, namely Agnerod East, Agnerod North, Agnerod South, and Agnerod West to any PoE vendor. The resulting map allows you to farm a unique flask called the Vessel of Vinktar.

Dunes

While certain divination cards drop from specific maps, maybe you are not concerned with that. Perhaps you just want a wide area to do some extra content like Legion Encounters, Delirium, and whatnot.

If that is the case, take a look at Dunes. This map is perfect for such because of its wide open space. For instance, Legion monsters will always be there, ripe for the picking, and you do not even have to worry about any clipping issues whatsoever.

While most of the divination cards that can be dropped in this area are trash, you could get The Fortunate if you are, well, fortunate enough to acquire one.

Mesa

Some farming strategies would have you rush to a boss as quickly as you can in order to farm Eldritch Invitations (Incandescent Invitation for the Searing Exarch and Screaming Invitation for the Eater of Worlds). If this is what you intend to do, then you have Mesa for that.

A lot of players in the PoE community are fond of this map, specifically because the boss here can be rushed in a matter of seconds. You just have to use a fast-moving character to get the job done.

Maze

Since you have read our guide for the best maps to run in Path of Exile, we are going to let you in on a little secret. Are you ready? The Mirror of Kalandra is one of the rarest PoE Currencies in the game. In fact, it is so rare that those who played the game for so many years have yet to obtain one. Well, that is probably because they do not know how to get it in the best way possible.

Sure, you have the Seven Years Bad Luck divination card that was mentioned earlier, but collecting them is a chore, particularly when you need boatloads just to assemble one Mirror of Kalandra.

Thankfully, there is a divination card that trumps that and it is called "Unrequited Love". Ok, so that is good and all, but what is the catch? Surely, there is one, right? Yes, there is. There are only two areas where you can farm the said divination card consistently - one of which is the Maze.

The layout of this map is a pain to navigate. However, it does provide you with an opportunity to get the Unrequited Love divination card. So, if you can manage to navigate through the complex map design, then the Maze is definitely worth running to completion.

Grave Trough

This next map is a perfect example of a good substitute. Both the Cemetery and Graveyard maps are great because you can get a few divination cards that are worth your time. However, if people catch wind of the things that these maps offer, you could see their prices surge up as a result.

If those maps get really expensive for your budget, do not worry! You can go for the Grave Trough map instead. Do you want the Brother's Gift, Brother's Stash, and The Union divination cards? You can farm them in this particular area!

Vaal Temple

Unlike the other maps on this list, this next entry is the only one that can be obtained in a corrupted state. The Vaal Temple is a map that contains 10 special strongboxes called "Vaal Vessels". When clicked, it spawns groups of monsters with one boss that is typically found in Vaal Side Areas. Once defeated, you are guaranteed to get at least one corrupted item; may it be a corrupted gem, a corrupted item with double implicit modifiers, or a corrupted map, to name a few.

You can acquire the Vaal Temple by corrupting a T16 map using a Vaal Orb. This is not always guaranteed because, as mentioned before, this process can result in several possible outcomes. Alternatively, you can trade 16 Lingering Remnants to Lilly Roth to get a level 83 Vaal Temple Map in return.

It is also worth pointing out that, at the time of writing, there is no way to change the modifiers on Vaal Temple maps other than allocating the "Twisted Fate" keystone passive. This keystone adds up to three random modifiers, which might make completing the map a challenging endeavor.

Be that as it may, if you are interested in getting items with possibly juicy modifiers, then be sure to pay the Vaal Temple a visit.

Fortress Map

Among the five T17 maps that were introduced in Patch 3.24, the Fortress Map is one of the most popular. This is likely due to the fact that the boss, the uber version of The Unbreakable, is the easiest to defeat as far as mechanics are concerned. Most of the boss' attacks are telegraphed, so you can quickly get out of harm's way before they are executed.

Keep in mind that Tier 17 maps are a different animal compared to those in the lower tiers. They contain modifiers that are not fine to run on certain builds. That is why you need to reroll the map using Chaos Orbs if the mods are impossible to deal with on your current character.

At the time of writing, you can acquire the Fortress Map by farming specific areas, including the aforementioned Dunes Map, as well as Mesa, Promenade, and Arcade, among many others. GGG might rotate the maps in the next expansion, so you just have to look at the patch notes to see what has changed.

Conclusion

After completing the game's main campaign, most of your time will be spent running maps. You do this because you want to gain PoE Currency and possibly obtain some amazing loot that you can use on your build or your other characters (if you want to create new ones).

To make the most out of every map, make sure that you turn it into a rare one by using Orb of Alchemy or Orb of Binding. Ensure that your build can handle the modifiers that are on the map you have just rolled. Otherwise, you use an Orb of Scouring and try again. You could just use Chaos Orbs to reroll the rare maps, but that will be a bit costly, especially if you are still new to the game.

When your build is strong enough, you can start getting your first Voidstones. We recommend that you beat the Searing Exarch and Uber Elder fights because they are a bit easier to deal with than The Maven or the Eater of Worlds. Of course, the order really does not matter here, so if you prefer eliminating The Maven first, then it is entirely up to you.

After obtaining your four voidstones, you will have access to Tier 17 maps (granted that you are running T16 maps). They are a lot more difficult than Tier 16s and they are definitely unforgiving. Only attempt T17s if your build is capable enough of downing the normal versions of pinnacle bosses without breaking a sweat.

If you want to maximize your time farming currency, make sure that you put any scarabs that enhance the extra content you want to engage in. Right now, the most popular scarabs you can use are Ambush (for Strongboxes), Essence, Harvest, and Harbingers.

Lastly, do not forget about your Atlas Skill Tree. Similar to scarabs, take the passive nodes that amplify the extra content that you want to farm. Do you need more Strongboxes? How about guaranteed Sacred Groves in maps? These can certainly be improved by taking the appropriate nodes on the tree.

So there you have it! We hope that this guide has served you well. Let us know your experience running any of the maps highlighted above.