How Path of Exile 3.13 Reached 265,250 Players breaking all Previous Records

Path of Exile or the Diablo 3 alternative as gamers back in the day called it, made its debut back in 2013. POE is also available on both Xbox and PlayStation, but most of its players are on PC. Since its inception, the game has received numerous updates till date. Each new patch brings something new to the table. Although the core gameplay remains the same, Grinding Gear Games managed to surprise the players every time with something new. And, just when gamers thought that they had witnessed everything, POE 3.13 launched with content never seen before in the game’s history.

Why is POE so famous now?

Grinding Gear Games launched the POE 3.13 update on January 15^th, followed by a whooping 11% rise in the total player base. Why? Because the new patch is unlike anything else. Path of Exile is notoriously famous for its passive skill tree containing a total of 1325 skills, providing players with various options for character optimization. You can build the perfect character of your dreams, although you’re better off following a build guide because they are way more efficient.

But skill trees aren’t unheard of in RPG games. It’s impressive to have that many, but the concept itself is nothing new. So why are players rushing to Path of Exile like never before?

What’s new in Path of Exile 3.13?

The latest update, Echoes of Atlas, introduces a passive skill tree for the Atlas! It was mentioned in POE 3.13 release notes that you can now modify your maps to spawn specific enemies, add modifiers and much more. They have also introduced a new end game NPC, Maven, who provides a series of boss rush challenges which rewards passive skill tree points for the Atlas. Patch 3.13 also comes with eleven new maps and thirteen unique items to collect in this expansion—all of this for free, much like the previous patches.

In an age where every DLC is worth a new game, Path of Exile keeps pushing new content for free, without any signs of slowing down. Let’s take a deep into the world of Path of Exile and discuss the latest update in a bit more detail.

The Ritual League Explained

In the Ritual League, you get three to four ritual circles that spawn randomly throughout the map. Each ring has an altar in the middle. The mechanic of the ritual league goes something like this:

• Before you can activate the altar, you have to kill all the monsters on the circle.
• Once you activate the altar, all of the monsters you’ve already killed will respawn in addition to a few extra and more powerful critters.
• All of the monsters you kill in one circle will re-appear in the next one. So if you killed 30 critters on your first alter, all of them would respawn when you activate the second and third altars.
• Killing monsters grants you Tribute which can be used to buy exclusive items aka, Favours.
• Once you’re done killing all of the monsters, you gain access to Favours. You can buy something from the reward pool if you can afford the Tribute.
• You can also reroll for better rewards, or Defer
• Defering is a new mechanic introduced in the POE 3.13. If you cannot afford an item, you can Defer it to make it appear in a future reward pool, and higher rarity items take longer to resurface.

Tips and Tricks:

• Always start with the largest ritual circle as it grants the maximum Tribute. This ensures you have enough Tribute to buy, or at least Defer a rare or unique item in the reward pool.
• Reroll at least once so that you get two rituals worth of rewards from a single ritual circle.
• If you’re near a boss, try to lure them within the circle so that you can respawn them at a later ritual.
• Tributes don’t transfer between maps, so if you cannot afford any powerful items, you can buy cheaper stuff and sell them for chaos orbs, a standard POE Currency.

 

The New Atlas Explained

Echoes of Atlas is one of the best updates in Path of Exile till date. During the big reveal, both streamers and gamers went crazy after seeing what’s in store for them. The new Atlas passive skill tree adds a lot of depth to the game, greatly helping with endgame progression and farming. How? Let’s find out!

The Atlas is divided into eight zones, and there is a passive tree for each one of them, namely,

1. Haewark Hamlet
2. Tir’s End
3. Lex Proxima
4. Lex Ejoris
5. Glenmach Cairns
6. New Vastir
7. Valdo’s Rest
8. Lira Arthain

Each of the passive trees has 4-6 branches containing modifiers that enhance the league mechanics. For instance, the Outbreak node in Valdo’s Rest skill tree increases Blight Encounters’ likelihood by 10%. The Blight Titans node, makes Blight bosses drop an additional Anointed Jewellery Item. It also spawns in an extra boss in Blight Encountered regions.

These passive skills enable players to farm more efficiently and focus towards Maven encounters, who drops Atlas Passive Skill points. Whenever you successfully complete one of her challenges, you will get a point for your Atlas. So, get your endgame POE 3.13 builds ready because Maven’s prepared to push you to the limits. Defeating ten bosses simultaneously won’t be easy without a robust endgame build.

What’s in Store for new players?

The game can be overwhelming for new players. The sheer mechanics combined with the already complicated levelling system isn’t something you learn overnight. The best way to get into the game is with guides, and most guides have a cost guide.

POE is unique in regards to the Poe currency. A starter guide is cheap and dramatically helps with POE currency farming. Once you’ve farmed enough items, you can sell them at POE trade and buy the stuff you need.

Unlike Diablo 3, POE doesn’t have a paywall, and its character progression mechanic makes it unique compared to other games. The massive response from the gaming community only confirms POE’s vibrant future.