Path of Exile 2: Best League Starter Lich build guide (0.2.0)

Path of Exile 2’s Lich is brand new, and we’re ready to look at the best League Starter for this Ascendancy class. Witch is my favorite class, and the new Lich Ascendancy looks like it does a lot for Curses and minion builds, both of which are something I prioritize in a build. That’s honestly the major reason for playing a Lich — it looks fun! It’s something fresh and different and has some very interesting and potentially powerful mechanics.

Minion builds are also very beginner-friendly, allowing you to relax a little while your minions pummel everyone into dust. This build does wind up as a minion build as well, so keep that in mind before you try this build out. This Lich League Starter build is the one I’m most interested in personally in Path of Exile 2. Here’s what you need to know.

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Key mechanics and Skills for League Starter Lich build in Path of Exile 2 0.2.0

Playing a Lich as your League Starter in Path of Exile 2 isn’t too challenging. You’ve got a few skills that will power you through most of the content pretty easily. Frost Bomb deals plenty of damage and is one of your primary, go-to attacks. You’ll also run Contagion and spread it around with Flame Wall. This spreads out your curse as far as possible, getting lots of free, effortless damage.

Lich players are going to use a few spells in the early game to get damage, but then it all becomes about Raging Spirits. Even post-nerf, they're still good (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

For single-target damage, you want to use Essence Drain, which also pairs nicely with Contagion. This will probably be cycled out in Act 2. However, once you have 30 Spirit, whether by weapon or defeating The King in the Mists, it’s time to get Raging Spirits and spam them with Flame Wall.

Below is the complete list of skills you will be equipping throughout your adventure as a Lich in Path of Exile 2:

Note: We're still figuring out which of the new Support Gems will be worth using. Once we've determined that, we'll update accordingly.

Key Skills

• Frost Bomb: Fast Forward, Concentrated Effect, Spell cascade
• Contagion: Unleash, Hinder, Magnified Effect
• Flame Wall: Fortress, Arcane Tempo
• Essence Drain: Controlled Destruction, Swift Affliction, Intense Agony
• Skeletal Snipers: Scattershot, Feeding Frenzy, Bidding
• Shield Charge: Ingenuity
• Raging Spirits: Splinter, Demolisher, Martial Tempo
• Skeletal Arsonists: Scattershot, Fire Infusion, Feeding Frenzy
• Flammability: Heightened Curse, Inspiration
• Pain Offering: Ablation, Persistence, Font of Rage
• Skeletal Storm Mage: Overcharge, Conduction, Stormfire
• Skeletal Cleric: Meat Shield, Minion Mastery, Last Gasp

It’s also worth noting that you’ll want to keep a Shield/Sceptre build and have Shield Charge (with Ingenuity) as soon as possible to speed up how you move through maps. It’s an incredible dash, so you’ll want to bind this somewhere.

As far as Minions go, Skeletal Sniper is the priority. Gas Cloud+Flame Wall is such an amazing way to deal damage to bosses. Then you want a few Skeletal Arsonists as soon as possible. You can worry about a single Skeletal Cleric much later in the game. When you hit Cruel, I recommend having a Skeletal Storm Mage, but not before.

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Itemization for League Starter Lich build in Path of Exile 2 0.2.0

Thankfully, the Lich League Starter build in Path of Exile 2 doesn’t require you to have a whole bunch of Uniques. In fact, it doesn’t require any! There will perhaps be one or two that show up that wind up being useful, but at this stage, there aren’t any must-haves.

However, we do know what the stat priority is on our equipment. Naturally, having +Minion Skills is a must-have. The more minions you can afford to have, the better. This will be made more important when you can reduce the amount of Spirit your minions require in Path of Exile 2.

Stat Priority

• +Minion Skills
• Movement Speed
• Resistances
• Strength/Intelligence
• Maximum Life/Mana

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Passive Skill Tree and notable nodes for Starter Lich in Path of Exile 2 0.2.0

Here's your route for the Talent Tree (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Personally, when I’m playing through as a Witch, and then Lich in Path of Exile 2, the most important skill for me is Lord of Horrors. That flat 12% reduction in reservation for minions is incredibly important. I’m a big fan of the Silent Guardian passive on the far left for 20% Minion Resistance. That also comes with a lot of +Minion damage, as well.

I’m also fond of Adamant Recovery and Ancient Aegis for protection. Adamant Recovery makes it so increases/reductions to Armour also apply to Energy Shield, and it Recharges Rate at 40% of their value. Then you have Ancient Aegis, which grants 60% increased Armor from Body Armour and 60% increased Energy Shield from Body Armour. But what about Lich Ascendancies? Right now, we’re looking at the “Energy Shield” line. That means you want to pick the following:

• Generic Node
• Soulless Form
• Life
• Eternal Life

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Considerations and limitations

I've already started trying to hoard useful gear for my Witch/Lich. (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Once a Lich build starts moving in Path of Exile 2, it doesn’t stop. You have Raging Spirits and tons of minions to get damage on the board. You'll also have Flammability to enhance your damage further. It’ll be potent at all stages of the game, that’s for sure. That’s what makes the Lich/Witch class great overall. It’s easy to pilot and deals mountains of damage without much work.

However, leveling at the start of the game is pure misery. It’s so slow and frustrating. Even with Frost Bomb, which was buffed for 0.2.0, it’s going to be slow until you get Raging Spirits, Energy Drain, and skills like that. You’ll have to suffer for a while to be truly great. It will also help if you have gear ready for them, like Sceptres with high Spirit, for example, or +Minion levels.

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Check out our other Path of Exile 2 guides and features:

• All new Ascendancies in path of Exile 2 Dawn of the Hunt (0.2.0)
• Path of Exile 2: A Quick Summary of what’s new in Dawn of the Hunt
• Path of Exile 2’s upcoming content update is holding back PoE 1’s next league
• Path of Exile 2 brought back 40% of its player count with Dawn of The Hunt despite abysmal day-one experience