Path of Exile 2: Best Smith of Kitava build (Leveling and Endgame)

Path of Exile 2’s Smith of Kitava is one of the new Ascendancies released in the Dawn of The Hunt update (0.2.0). While it seemed a little weird at first, it looks to be an incredibly powerful build that can smash through pretty much any enemy in the game. Whether you’re doing massive screen clearing AOE or just swinging your mace through whatever boss comes up in a few hits, it’s clear that Warriors and this Ascendancy, in particular, are looking pretty good.

Though part of this build did get nerfed — it was really more of a bug fix. There was a bug where modifiers to melee splash radius were applied twice. That said, it’s still a very strong build, according to players, and many are having no problem cruising through maps with a mace and Herald of Ash. So here’s what you need to know about setting up a Smith of Kitava build in Path of Exile 2.

Key mechanics and Skills for Smith of Kitava build in Path of Exile 2

It’s incredibly easy to use the Smith of Kitava build, whether in leveling or in the endgame of Path of Exile 2. The gameplan is pretty much the same. You enter combat, swing your mace, and things explode in a haze of fire. Frankly, you can use Mace Strike the whole time if you want — the basic melee attack if you’re using a mace-type weapon.

Here's the various skills you're likely going to want in the end (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

However, you can also use Rolling Slam for the baked-in AOE and the knock back/stun, but it’s not necessary. If you don’t like that gameplay style, it’s not really necessary. The gist of it is to use Herald of Ash buff. This makes surrounding enemies ignite if you overkill by enough.

With the right mace, you can just smash through groups of enemies with ease. Then, when you get to bosses, use Perfect Strike. It may have been nerfed, but its damage doesn’t appear to have been.

Primary Skills (Final Setup)

Mace Strike: Reach, Ancestral Call, Martial Tempo, Magnified Effect, Fire Infusion
Infernal Cry: Premeditation, Tireless, Raging Cry
Perfect Strike: Eternal Flame, Window of Opportunity, Close Combat, Primal Armament
Boneshatter: Overpower, Impact Shockwave
Leap Slam: Holy Descent, Momentum, Fire Exposure
Herald of Ash
Blink: Ingenuity
Overwhelming Presence: Cannibalism, Vitality
Hammer of the Gods: Fist of War, Rageforged, Hourglass, Aftershock

Once you’re in Act 2 and Act 3, you may find it easier to use Leap Slam into Boneshatter for your clearing needs. It’s a little on the slow side, but it’s effective and can deal tons of AOE damage.

If your Leap Slam is Heavy Stunning and ruining your Boneshatter damage as a Smith of Kitava, you may want to slap Brink, which prevents that connected skill from Heavy Stunning. This can be useful if you aren’t Boneshattering enough due to outside damage. You’ll want to stop using Brink once you get Hammer of the Gods, so you can get those hammer procs.

Itemization for Smith of Kitava build in Path of Exile 2

As far as equipment goes for the Smith of Kitava build in Path of Exile 2, there’s only one Unique I’ve heard that was incredibly useful/must purchase, and that’s Infernoclasp (Plate Belt). It’s incredibly tanky (+102 armor), plus more potential armor, strength, and fire resistance. It’s a very useful belt.

Fanatic Greathammers are such a great pick for your final weapon as a Smith of Kitava (Image via Grinding Gear Games || YouTube/@Conner Converse)

When it comes to weapons, it’s likely you’re going to want to keep going down the route of two-handed maces, though a fast one-hander is also decent. Once you can pick up a Zealot’s Mace (Around Cruel difficulty), it should do a lot to really amp up your clearing. Ultimately, you’re going to want a Fanatic Greathammer and a Shield with Block Chance.

If you want to use Blink (and why wouldn’t you?), you’ll need plenty of Intelligence. Look for gear that has All Attributes, or Strength and Intelligence, to help meet the requirements for Blink.

Since you’re going Smith of Kitava in Path of Exile 2, you have access to Coal Stoker, which means modifiers to Fire Resistance also grant Cold/Lightning Resistance at half value. That means you’ll want to stack your gear with Desert Runes to get the most out of this. You also want tons of strength, but that should go without saying — you’re a Warrior!

Passive node progression for Smith of Kitava build in Path of Exile 2

Here's the full, final layout for your build (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Above, you can see the full progression tree for both your Warrior nodes for the Smith of Kitava in Path of Exile 2. This gives you a wide breadth of important nodes, strength, and the stats you’ll need for this build. Below are a few of the most important nodes:

Giant’s Blood: You can wield two-handed axes/maces/swords in one hand. Triple Attribute requirements of Martial Weapons.
Iron Reflexes: Removes all evasion rating and converts it to armor.
Resolute Technique: Your Hits can’t be Evaded. Never deal Critical Hits.

The above route is your final route. Early in it, you’ll have a choice between two routes, one featuring Reverberating Impact. You’ll take this in the late game (~Level 80s), but before that, go with Smash on the upper track. As far as Resolute Technique goes, if you have gear that has accuracy on it, you can come back for it later. Otherwise, grab it early.

From there, you’ll head south to get Giant’s Blood and pick up the various groups that have Strength Nodes along the way. Then, you can fill in slots you potentially skipped, such as some of the branching paths you may not have needed/wanted at the time. Then head north to the blocking nodes and then south towards Polymath and other useful nodes.

Here's your Smith of Kitava points for Path of Exile 2 (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

When you can finally start using points in your Smith of Kitava Ascendancy in Path of Exile 2, you’ll want Coal Stoker, Fire Resistance, Forged in Flame, Fire Resistance, and a few of the Smith’s Masterwork talents.

There are a few options here. Coal Stoker + Tantalum Alloy creates a massive amount of elemental resistance, so you’re ready for just about anything. Once you have enough resistance through gear/nodes, you can drop Tantalum Alloy. The order you’ll likely want for Smith of Kitava points is:

Coal Stoker
Fire Resistance (Right)
Fire Resistance (South)
Smith’s Masterwork (Free)
Tantalum Alloy
Molten Symbol
Kitavan Engraving
Leather Bindings
Drop Tantalum Alloy, grab Support Straps (if you have enough Fire Resistance and a big, strength-heavy weapon).

Check out our other Path of Exile 2 guides and features

About the author

Jason is an Esports and Gaming journalist at Sportskeeda holding an amazing 11 years of experience under his belt. Having put out 4000-plus articles and amassing over 12 million reads for Sportskeeda, he is among the company’s most experienced writers. Jason holds a Bachelor's degree in English from UNC Pembroke and was inspired to become a gaming journalist very early on in life after reading Nintendo Power.

Jason is a jack of all trades when it comes to gaming journalism. He’s a key writer in Sportskeeda's MMO department, but he also likes to help out in other categories, like streamers, RPG, card games, and whatever else is needed. A solo gamer at heart, Jason's favorite titles include Earthbound and Dragon Warrior.

Jason places high value on accuracy and relevance in his write-ups. He achieves this with thorough research to sift facts from rumors. One of the biggest highlights of his career is his interview with Canadian pro wrestler Kenny Omega about his inclusion in the Like a Dragon game series. He is also good friends with journalist Kazumo Hashimoto, who he admires for the kind of stories he works on and his deep ethics.

A true cinephile, one of Jason’s primary hobbies involves enjoying cinematic experiences. He also loves reading, be it fiction or manga, when not working. Additionally, he streams on Twitch and posts his gaming insights on YouTube.

Know More

Edited by Ripunjay Gaba