Path of Exile 3.22: Trial of the Ancestors Details

Path of Exile 3.22: Trial of the Ancestors represents the latest major expansion from Grinding Gear Games, scheduled for release on August 18, 2023. This update introduces a comprehensive new challenge league alongside substantial class revisions, additional support gems, and the integration of previous league content into the core game experience.

The centerpiece of this expansion is undoubtedly the Trial of the Ancestors challenge league, transporting players to the spiritual realm of the Karui warrior culture. Here, you’ll engage in structured tournaments against ten distinct tribes, each presenting unique tactical challenges and reward opportunities.

League entry requires tradeable silver coins, functioning as specialized currency for accessing the Karui afterlife. Your initial roster consists of three basic warriors, but strategic recruitment from various tribes enables comprehensive team customization. A critical strategic element involves analyzing enemy battlefield configurations before committing to engagements—this reconnaissance phase often determines victory or defeat.

Combat mechanics blend autobattler elements with traditional ARPG action, creating hybrid encounters where you fight alongside your recruited warriors. The primary objective involves destroying the opposing team’s totems while protecting your own, creating dynamic battlefield priorities. Each successful engagement builds faction favor, which unlocks specialized upgrades and bonuses specific to each tribe’s combat philosophy.

The league’s reward structure introduces several game-changing mechanics that significantly expand build diversity and strategic depth.

•  Passive Tree Tattoos: These soul-engraved modifications fundamentally alter how attribute nodes function on your passive skill tree. For strength nodes, they might convert bonus life into attack speed, while dexterity nodes could transform accuracy into critical strike chance. Strategic tattoo placement can unlock build possibilities previously constrained by traditional passive tree limitations.

•  Omens: These conditional consumables activate automatically when specific combat conditions are met. Positioning Omens for maximum effect requires understanding enemy behavior patterns and attack sequences.

•  A lock of Hinekora’s hair: This revolutionary crafting tool provides preview functionality for modification outcomes, dramatically reducing the randomness inherent in high-level item creation. This enables precise resource allocation toward desired affix combinations.

•  Exclusive unique items: Each Karui tribe protects a signature unique item reflecting their combat philosophy. Defeating Hinekora, the Death Goddess, in tournament combat may reward one of her four legendary items, representing pinnacle power level achievements.

Sixteen new Atlas keystones introduce paradigm-shifting gameplay modifications that redefine character capabilities and limitations. These powerful passive skills become accessible through specific Atlas completion milestones, including boss defeats and regional objectives.

Each keystone presents substantial trade-offs that demand careful consideration before integration into your build strategy.

•  The Unseen: This keystone creates proximity-based combat dynamics where enemy visibility and damage scaling depend on distance. Close-quarters combat specialists benefit significantly, while ranged builds face substantial adaptation requirements.

•  The Unbound: Eliminating mana constraints entirely, this keystone converts all skill costs to life expenditure. This enables unprecedented skill spam potential but requires robust life sustain mechanics.

•  The Unyielding: Complete immunity to stun and knockback effects comes at the cost of 10% increased damage intake across all sources.

•  The Unforgiving: This keystone replaces traditional life recovery mechanics with damage-based sustain. Each hit grants 20% of damage dealt as life and energy shield recovery.

Strategic keystone selection should align with your character’s core strengths while mitigating inherent weaknesses through complementary gear and passive selections.

Ascendancy class revisions bring substantial changes to Guardian and Chieftain specializations, enhancing both thematic coherence and gameplay versatility.

•  Guardian: Templar specialists gain dynamic mode-switching capabilities between Protection, Aggression, and Harmony stances. Protection mode significantly boosts defensive capabilities for your entire party, while Aggression amplifies damage output at the cost of survivability. Harmony provides balanced bonuses that enhance both offensive and defensive parameters moderately.

•  Chieftain: Marauder practitioners now summon ancestral spirits that provide combat assistance through various manifestations. These spectral allies can generate area denial effects, resurrect fallen comrades, or amplify fire damage output based on your current combat requirements.

These reworks address previous balance concerns while introducing fresh strategic dimensions that reward situational awareness and adaptive playstyles.

Fourteen new support gems introduce innovative skill modification possibilities that enable previously impossible build archetypes.

•  Ancestral Bond Support: This gem creates spectral duplicates that replicate your skill usage with reduced effectiveness but additional targeting capabilities.

•  Firestorm Support: Transforming targeted skills into area denial effects, this support creates persistent damage zones that punish stationary enemies and control battlefield positioning.

•  Soul Link Support: Establishing symbiotic connections between party members, this support redistributes damage intake while sharing regeneration benefits across linked allies.

Skill gem combinations should prioritize synergistic effects that amplify your primary damage sources while providing utility coverage for your build’s weaknesses.

The Forbidden Sanctum transitions from league content to permanent endgame feature with comprehensive rebalancing for integration with the mapping system.

Originally introduced in Path of Exile 3.20: Echoes of the Atlas, this roguelike dungeon system now provides consistent endgame progression alongside traditional mapping content.

Sanctum items discovered during mapping represent complete dungeon floors with randomized modifiers. These items maintain full tradeability while preserving your accumulated boons, afflictions, and resolve states between sessions.

Progression through successive floors culminates in challenging boss encounters with reward quality scaling proportionally to completion difficulty and risk management throughout your Sanctum exploration.

No reproduction without permission：OnLineGames Guides » Path of Exile 3.22: Trial of the Ancestors Details Master the Karui afterlife tournaments, new Atlas keystones, and class reworks in Path of Exile 3.22