Best Solo Class Builds For Beginners - PoE 3.25

Ben Author

Created - 17.07.2024 Updated - 22.11.2024

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Path of Exile is a really fun action RPG to play. However, if you are new to this game, you will find that it is far more complex than other similar titles out there.

Every three to four months, Grinding Gear Games will launch a new "league" that is filled with new content that you can enjoy. But, how exactly can you do that if you do not know what build to run?

Luckily for you, we have all the information you need! In this guide, you will find the best beginner builds in Path of Exile that you can comfortably play solo.

What is a League Starter?

A league starter is a build in Path of Exile that you can use to farm your starter pieces of gear. If you have farmed enough currency, you can eventually spec into a different build if you want to. However, some league starters are fun to play and can be improved further to handle endgame content with relative ease.

The main thing about a league starter is that it can run without any mandatory pieces of gear. Just slap on whatever suitable equipment you can find and it will perform just fine.

Unlike other ARPGs, Path of Exile relies heavily on gems. There are two types of gems in the game. The first are skill gems, which are those that grant you the ability to use a skill for map clearing or bossing. The second are support gems which, as their name implies, support your main skills to improve their functionality or to increase their damage.

For the most part, you are only going to use one main attack skill gem and the others are either support gems or utility/movement skills like Flame Dash or Leap Slam.

Best Builds for Solo Players

Whether you decide to play in the trade league or in an SSF (Solo Self-Found) environment, there are builds that you can certainly enjoy without the help of others. With that said, here are the best beginner builds for solo players in Path of Exile:

Righteous Fire Inquisitor

The Righteous Fire Inquisitor is one of the best league starters in the game. In fact, it is so good and easy to use that many pro players recommend this build to those who are still starting out.

This build relies on Righteous Fire (RF) as the main skill gem. Righteous Fire is an ability that, when activated, creates a ring of magical fire around you that burns nearby enemies. The playstyle is very simple in that you just activate RF and then walk around to see your foes burn to a crisp.

The downside here is that the skill actually deals fire damage to you as well. However, this is addressed by taking care of your life/energy shield regeneration and overcapping your fire resistance.

Righteous Fire has received adjustments in 3.23. Instead of using flat fire damage for calculation, it now takes into account 70% of your maximum life and energy shield as base fire damage per second. Fortunately, the Inquisitor class can handle that and more.

Most people used to go for the Juggernaut ascendancy class because it was easier to level up thanks to its inherently higher HP and armor, which are especially useful when running Righteous Fire in previous leagues. But, because of the change in damage calculation implemented in 3.23, the Inquisitor is now the preferred class to use.

That is because the Inquisitor has notable ascendancy passives that can benefit Righteous Fire. Sanctuary and Pious Path enable you to run Righteous Fire effectively without worrying about the skill's downside. Augury of Penitence and Righteous Providence both take RF's damage to the next level.

Because the Inquisitor mainly uses equipment that has armor or energy shield on it, you can easily scale Righteous Fire damage without even trying. Hence it is now the go-to option if you are going to use the said spell skill gem.

PROS:

• Easily one of the best league starters in the game
• Can work with minimal investment
• Can tackle endgame content by spending more currency
• Quite tanky thanks to notable ascendancy passives
• Scales RF damage better than the Juggernaut

CONS:

• Walking simulator playstyle might not be for everyone
• More suited for casual gameplay
• Just "average" in mapping and bossing compared to other builds

Lightning Arrow Deadeye

If you are more into builds that have a more active playstyle, then you might want to try the Lightning Arrow Deadeye. This build uses Lightning Arrow as the main attack skill gem, though it is complemented by the Artillery Ballista when dealing with tougher enemies.

Lightning Arrow fires a few projectiles that can inflict Shock on enemies. Shock is an elemental ailment associated with lightning damage that makes enemies take more damage from all sources.

This build utilizes a tri-element bow because it uses the Trinity Support gem for increased elemental damage and elemental penetration. But more importantly, going for a main weapon that has all three elements on it also enables the Lightning Arrow Deadeye to inflict other elemental ailments, including Chill, Freeze, and Ignite.

The Lightning Arrow Deadeye is a viable class for solo play because most of the pieces of gear that can take it to the top can be self-crafted. If you don't have the means of crafting the tri-element weapon, you can use some unique bows in the meantime. Some good options include Roth's Reach, Doomfletch, Death's Harp, Lioneye's Glare, and Windripper until you are able to craft a competent tri-element bow.

Deadeye is the main go-to ascendancy class for almost all projectile builds in PoE. Gathering Winds increases your attack speed and movement speed, allowing you to finish the main campaign faster.

Far Shot and Endless Munitions work great when using the Lightning Arrow as the two additional projectiles provided by the latter and the "more damage" multiplier given by the former are things that you cannot ignore. They are just that good!

Since this build uses Sniper's Mark – a gem that makes cursed enemies take increased damage from projectile hits, you want to enhance its effects in any way you can. Fortunately, the Deadeye has Focal Point, which increases the effectiveness of your marks by a whopping 75%!

When you are able to farm enough currency to craft your endgame gear, the Lightning Arrow Deadeye can destroy enemies from afar without a hitch!

PROS:

• One of the fastest map-clearing builds in the game
• Can be used as a league starter
• Scales damage really well the more currency is invested

CONS:

• Upgrades may be a bit expensive
• Not a tanky build

Hexblast Mines Saboteur

Do you love throwing mines to see enemies explode into oblivion? If so, you might like using the Hexblast Mines Saboteur. As you can probably tell by the name, this build utilizes Hexblast for damage. But, Hexblast is a spell skill gem, right? Well, if we are talking about the gem itself, then yes, it is a spell skill gem. The only problem is that when you use Hexblast by itself, it feels quite clunky because of its 1-second cast time. And, in a fast-paced game like Path of Exile, you want builds that can eliminate enemies quickly and efficiently. To circumvent the gem's slow cast time, you turn Hexblast into a Mine Skill by adding the High-Impact Mine support gem.

With High-Impact Mines, you can throw up to 23 mines that can be set to detonate in quick succession. Since you are going to put a lot of mine-throwing speed modifiers on your gear, hurling mines will feel very smooth!

The preferred ascendancy class for this build is the Saboteur. When you finish your first Trial of the Labyrinth, you will get Demolitions Specialist, which increases the effect of your mine's "auras" by 150% and hinders enemies near them for a couple of seconds when they land. This makes you employ a "stop-and-go" playstyle where you pause for a brief second, throw mines, go to a different location, rinse and repeat.

Born in the Shadows and Pyromaniac are your next notable ascendancy passives. They improve your survivability by reducing the damage you take from blinded enemies, as well as regenerating 2% of your life per second for each Hexblast Mine you have triggered recently. You are also immune to Ignite and Shock thanks to Pyromaniac.

Since this build is able to inflict freeze, shock, and ignite, the last ascendancy passive is Explosives Expert. To put it simply, this node increases your damage against enemies that are affected by these elemental ailments.

The Hexblast Mines Saboteur is a perfect build if you want to play solo because you can use it for both mapping and bossing. Interestingly, the build works great even if you tackle the game's pinnacle bosses.

PROS:

• Very competent build for mapping and bossing
• Can work with minimal investment
• Able to tackle pinnacle bosses with the right gear

CONS:

• Mine playstyle might not be to everyone's liking
• Not as tanky as other builds for solo players

Elemental SRS Guardian

Summon Raging Spirits is another spell skill gem that is used in many league starters, particularly the Poison SRS Necromancer. However, with the recent rework to the Guardian ascendancy class, a new type of SRS build has emerged! Instead of using poison damage, this build utilizes elemental damage to annihilate enemies in a cinch.

The Guardian is one of the tankiest classes in Path of Exile. And, because Summon Raging Spirits is technically a minion skill gem, using this poe classes over the Necromancer just makes sense.

Radiant Crusade is a notable ascendancy passive exclusive to the Guardian that allows you to summon the Sentinel of Radiance. This minion can soak some of the damage you take. It also taunts enemies, diverting their attention away from you so you can run away to safety.

Since this build utilizes elemental damage, you can improve your Summon Raging Spirits' potential by taking Unwavering Crusade. This notable ascendancy passive creates an Elemental Relic that provides a random buff depending on the minion's current element. Additionally, it can grant you and your SRS minions a level 27 Anger (Fire), Hatred (Cold), or Wrath (Lightning) buff, taking your overall damage output to an entirely new level.

Your Summon Raging Spirits are going to do most of the damage, which means that you just have to survive and let your minions do the rest. For this reason, taking Radiant Faith is a sensible thing to do. This notable ascendancy passive increases your maximum armor and energy shield based on 25% and 10% of your reserved mana, respectively.

The last notable ascendancy passive is flexible. If you want to boost your attack block or spell block, then take Bastion of Hope. On the other hand, if you need more life regeneration, then Time of Need is more appropriate for your needs.

The reason why the Elemental SRS Guardian is great not only for solo players but for league starters as well is that it is quite tanky and can work without mandatory pieces of gear.

Its playstyle is also quite easy. Whenever you enter a new zone or map, you simply press the hotkey for your Summon Raging Spirits and let them do the rest. You can zoom around the map with Shield Charge or Flame Dash, whichever travel skill you prefer.

PROS

• Quite tanky even with low investment
• Summon Raging Spirits deal most of the damage
• Guardian's notable ascendancy passives provide even more damage to the SRS minions

CONS

• Minion playstyle may not be perfectly suited for everyone
• Poison SRS variant still better for endgame

Ice Shot Deadeye

Another projectile build that utilizes the Deadeye ascendancy class, the Ice Shot Deadeye is a beginner build with great clearing potential. It doesn't need mandatory equipment to begin with, though getting your hands on a Vaal Ice Shot is necessary if you want to deal the most amount of damage with minimal investment.

The Ice Shot skill gem itself converts 60% of your physical damage to cold damage. You can easily achieve 100% cold conversion if you take the 40% from the Cold Mastery on the passive tree. Scaling its damage is very easy because you are just going to put physical damage, elemental damage, and cold damage modifiers on your gear wherever possible.

The "Vaal" portion of the skill gem allows you to summon Mirage Sharpshooters that fire Ice Shot projectiles when you do. This lets you deal incredible amounts of damage even if you don't have expensive gear, making it one of the best league starter builds in Path of Exile.

For defenses, this build utilizes a high evasion rating and 100% spell suppression to mitigate 50% of the spell damage you take. Since most enemies deal spell damage, most notably in the endgame, spell suppression is a defensive layer that you should cap as soon as you can.

The good news is that achieving 100% spell suppression is easy because you have access to spell suppression nodes on the passive tree. You just need to add one or two pieces of gear and you should be all set in this department.

Once you reach the endgame, you will start investing in equipment that has critical strike chance and critical strike multiplier mods on them. The higher your crit chance, the better your killing potential will be.

You can scale damage by putting these modifiers on your gear:

• Increased Physical Damage
• Increased Projectile Damage
• Increased Attack Damage
• Flat damage
• Increased Elemental Damage
• Increased Critical Strike Chance
• Increased Critical Strike Multiplier
• Maximum Frenzy Charges

Aside from the Mirage Sharpshooters, this build utilizes Ballista Totems as well. These totems will shoot enemies with Ice Shot when you do. Simply place your totems whenever you're dealing with bosses or tough monsters.

Because bow builds are pretty popular in recent leagues, you may find some equipment to be quite expensive on trade. If you're on SSF, you will need to spend more time farming specific crafting materials to create your own endgame gear.

Still, the Ice Shot Deadeye can be used as a league starter and it is actually a very fun build to play.

PROS:

• Fun and fast mapper
• Ice Shot deals massive damage, able to clear packs of monsters with ease
• Damage can be taken even further with enough investment

CONS:

• Gear can be quite expensive due to the popularity of bow builds
• Glass cannon build

Boneshatter Slayer

If you are fond of using melee characters, then the Boneshatter Slayer is a great choice. This utilizes the Boneshatter skill gem, which grants you the ability to decimate foes by getting as many Trauma stacks as possible.

Every time you hit an enemy with Boneshatter, you will receive one stack of Trauma. Each stack increases your flat physical damage, giving you tremendous amounts of power with each hit. Unfortunately, the downside of this mechanic is that Trauma stacks also cause you to take damage each time you strike an opponent.

While you can technically accrue infinite Trauma stacks, you can only sustain a limited number at a time since you can potentially kill yourself in the process. For this reason, you have to put as many physical damage reduction mods on your gear as you can. Mods that give you "Damage Recouped as Life" can also aid in your survival.

Now, you might have seen other people using Boneshatter Juggernaut instead of Slayer. Although this variant is very capable on its own, its true damage potential can only be unlocked when you have invested a lot of currency into the build.

The Boneshatter Slayer is a better league starter because of its notable ascendancy passive skills. Bane of Legends allows you to deal more damage, especially against unique enemies. Headsman not only provides you with an attack/movement speed boost, but it also culls enemies that are below 20% life.

Impact is great as it increases your accuracy rating and melee strike range. Moreover, this notable ascendancy passive allows you to deal more damage to enemies that are closer to you.

And lastly, Brutal Fervour enables you to leech life even if your unreserved life is already filled. This is the "overleech" node that other PoE players are talking about. Because this build attacks fast, you can gain great benefits from Brutal Fervour.

Now, because there is a self-damaging component to Boneshatter, it may take some time to get used to the Trauma mechanic. But, if you are able to master it, the Boneshatter Slayer is definitely a fun build to play.

PROS:

• Better league starter than Boneshatter Juggernaut
• Can work with self-crafted gear
• Can utilize some unique weapons to great effect
• Slayer has access to offensive nodes

CONS:

• Boneshatter Juggernaut scales better in the endgame
• Not as tanky as the Juggernaut
• Overleech may not be enough to sustain more than 50 Trauma stacks

Toxic Rain Ballista Pathfinder

The Toxic Rain Ballista Pathfinder utilizes chaos damage over time to kill enemies. While you can certainly attack using Toxic Rain yourself, this build relies heavily on Ballistas to fire Toxic Rain for you. The reason for this is that Ballista Totems attack extremely fast, which will result in a screen that is populated by Spore Pods in no time, leaving your enemies with nowhere to run.

Toxic Rain can work without mandatory pieces of gear. However, there are certain unique items that you can obtain early on that can take you well into the endgame. For instance, the Quill Rain is a unique Short Bow that gives you a significant boost in attack speed at the cost of 30% less damage. This is an acceptable downside considering that you can fill the screen with damaging pods for faster clear times.

Because Toxic Rain relies on damage over time, you do not need to invest in accuracy rating at all, giving you more room for other mods that can benefit the build like resistances or spell suppression.

As you level up, you will gain access to Ballista Totem Support which takes the brunt of the work from that point onward. Occasionally, you will fire Ensnaring Arrows to activate your Mirage Archers. These archers will slow your enemies down, making them take more chaos damage from your Spore Pods.

The Pathfinder is the ascendancy of choice for this build mainly because of its ability to maintain and utilize flasks to a much greater extent. Thanks to Master Surgeon, Life Flasks provide healing until their duration is up. This effect applies to all flasks, which makes this notable ascendancy passive great!

Thanks to the interaction of Life Flasks and Master Surgeon, you can use the buff "Petrified Blood" to improve your survivability immensely.

PROS:

• Proficient league starter that doesn't require mandatory pieces of gear to work
• Does not need to invest in accuracy rating
• Pathfinder ascendancy class makes flasks even better
• Clears maps fast, especially when Mirage Archers and Ballista Totems are up

CONS:

• Totem playstyle might not be your cup of tea
• Not an effective bossing build

Conclusion

There you have it! These are the best beginner builds in Path of Exile that you can play comfortably in SSF or in the trade league.

The great thing about these builds is that you can easily grasp their mechanics without having to use certain pieces of gear. Of course, some unique items can help improve the damage or functionality of the build, but for the most part, you can equip whatever you can find and go from there.

If you like a certain build's playstyle, you can take that a step further by investing more currency. Of course, in Path of Exile, you may need to dip your toes into crafting. Fortunately, that is not hard to do, especially if you have the currency and crafting materials to make things happen.

Just remember, no matter which build you choose, the most important thing is to have fun! Good luck on your adventures, Exile!