Best Spectres to bind in Path of Exile 2 Dawn of The Hunt (0.2.0)

Path of Exile 2 has introduced the long-awaited Raise Spectre Skill to the roster of Occult Skills, mostly to reinforce the somewhat barebones, no pun intended, state of Minions. It's a Skill and playstyle that Path of Exile 2 has inherited from its predecessor, and given that there are a myriad of different monsters in the game, the Summoner playstyle is expected to be quite distinct.

Spectres are effectively a spectral version of a felled enemy. Apart from unique bosses, these spectral copies can be of any monster in the game and possess unique abilities and behavioural mechanics that aid significantly in combat. Risen Spectres can either be a pseudo-support for you and your existing minions or can dish out serious damage by themselves.

Listed below are some of the best-performing Spectres, their abilities, quirks, costs, and more.

Best performing Spectres in Path of Exile 2 Dawn of the Hunt (0.2.0)

As it stands, there are hundreds of potential Spectres in Path of Exile 2, owing to its extensive roster of monsters, beasts, constructs, and humanoid enemies. While the entire list is quite large and will take nothing less than a compendium to jot down everything, we've compiled a list of ten Spectres that can serve as good DPS, Tank, and hybrid roles.

Frost Wraith

Spirit Cost - 80

Location - Cemetery of the Eternals in Act 1

These are the premiere ice-based caster Spectres in this patch. Frost Wraith's main ability is shooting out projectiles, dealing cold damage and inflicting a significant Freeze ailment buildup. They even have an AoE Frost Nova-type attack in close range. It can be highly potent with Multiple Projectiles and other cold-based support gems.

Bloodrite Priests

Spirit Cost - 90

Location - Temple of Kopec in Act 3

As the name suggests, these mobs prefer to use blood-based attacks that deal moderate damage but offer good coverage. Their normal attack involves shooting out three projectiles that deal Physical damage while up close, and they prefer using the Exsanguinate Skill on a 0.5-second cooldown. Both Skills are considered spells and can be improved with spell-oriented support gems.

Vaal Guard

Spirit Cost - 50

Location - Utzaal in Act 3

The current star player (or should I say Spectre) of the Dawn of the Hunt update, Vaal Guards have become an instant hit with players. These Spectres can chuck a ton of grenades ahead of you and set the entire area on fire, dealing massive fire damage. Vaal Guards can use both Explosive and Oil Grenades, so they're a fully-functioning DPS option that only gets better with Skill gem levels and Support Gems.

Regurgitating Vulture

Cover the world with poison (Image via Grinding Gear Games | YouTube/@truditoru619)

Spirit Cost - 70

Location - Deshar in Act 2

A commonplace mob in the Vastiri Deserts, these carrion birds can set the world afoul with their poison-based attacks. These Spectres function similarly to Frost Wraiths as they lob Caustic Mortars at ranged targets and use Poison Nova when enemies close in. A little hard on the Spirit but has great potential with Swift Affliction and other ailment-oriented Support Gems.

Chaos Zealot

Spirit Cost - 60

Location - Trial of Chaos in Act 3

These worshippers of Chaos can cause some of their own, and if you've stepped foot inside the Trial of Chaos, you probably know it well. These mobs can shoot out multiple Spark projectiles that deal moderate amounts of Lightning damage. Augmenting the Spectre with Acceleration and Lightning Penetration should do sufficient DPS in acts. Likewise, with investment, this can become a solid option in the endgame.

Filthy Crone

Spirit Cost - 120

Location - Apex of filth in Act 3

If you're looking for a Spectre to boost your damage through weakening the enemy, the Filthy Crone can make your life easier. The Filthy Crone can cast multiple curses on enemies, namely Vulnerability, Despair, Enfeeble, and Temporal Chains. Be careful not to summon multiple of these witches as they can override the applied curses. Then again, the high Spirit cost should make it difficult to summon multiple, either way.

Doryani's Elite

Spirit Cost - 70

Location - The Black Chambers in Act 3

Similar to the Vaal Thaumaturgist they protect, the Doryani's Elite cast fast-moving Lightning orbs that act as floating mines. After a small delay, these orbs explode, dealing significant Lightning damage in an area. Supporting these Spectres with Feeding Frenzy and Scattershot can do wonders, but the delay in explosions and non-moving nature of the orbs make it a little difficult to play around.

Also Read: Path of Exile 2 Dawn of The Hunt Mystery box reward table

Azak Fledgling

Spirit Cost - 50

Location - Azak Bog in Act 3

Exceptionally strong for the Spirit cost, these Spectres can shoot out darts extremely quickly, which also deal a good amount of damage and guarantee Poison on hit. Using Corrosion Support, players can easily break the armour on enemies with the Poison damage, and subsequently scale up the Spectre's hit damage even more.

Priest of the Sun

That's probably arson (Image via Grinding Gear Games | YouTube/@truditoru619)

Spirit Cost - 100

Location - Temple of Kopec in Act 3

Another Fire damage-oriented Caster-type Spectre, this minion can use two special attacks. The first one is a slow-moving Solar Orb that deals constant but moderate damage in an area, while the second one is a Solar Beam that deals heavy damage, pierces through targets, and extends quite far. This is a solid choice for Infernalist Spectremancers who want a full caster alternative for their Vaal Guards.

Faridun Heavy Infantry

Summon your legion and tell them to put the pointy end in front (Image via Grinding Gear Games | YouTube/@truditoru619)

Spirit Cost - 60

Location - Spires of Deshar in Act 2

Changing up the pace with a melee-oriented Spectre, the Faridun Heavy Infantry is the perfect choice for you if you like seeing enemies dying from being stabbed repeatedly with spears. As their name suggests, these Spectres serve as your frontline warriors, dishing out moderate damage with their spears and absorbing the blows with their shields. A perfect choice for a Meat Shield, Feeding Frenzy, and Brutality to have a basic setup.

Also Read: Path of Exile 2's biggest campaign Act so far is finally getting smaller

Currently Known Spectres in Path of Exile 2 Dawn of the Hunt (0.2.0), ranked

Before putting down these ten choices on a pedestal, it should be noted that these are likely to differ from player to player. Due to the unfortunate state of Patch 0.2.0, players are likely to choose the highest DPS options for every build. Yet, there can be cases where niche options can become the best-in-slot for certain players, and the same goes for Spectres. At the end of the day, play with whatever makes sense for you or what looks cool to you.

Tier	Spectres
S	Vaal Guard, Priest of the Sun, Frost Wraith
A+	Chaos Zealot, Doryani's Elite
A	Bloodrite Priest, Regurgitating Vulture, Azak Fledgling
B	Faridun Heavy Infantry, Filthy Crone

Case in point, Filthy Crone is B-tier for standard DPS builds, but can be exceptionally strong in a group format, where it can function as a cursebot. Similarly, Azak Fledgling is extremely strong during the acts and early mapping and should be an A+-tier candidate. However, the minion's power quickly falls off in mid-game, and thus, it's relegated to A-tier.

It's also important to remember that this isn't even the final list of Spectres. As the playerbase continues testing the enemy pool for the perfect Spectral summon, the meta is likely to shift according to the new power scaling.

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

About the author

Arnab Chakrabarti is an MMO writer at Sportskeeda. After getting his first console and playing Oni, he knew that playing games and writing about them was all he ever wanted. To that end, he gave up his bioscience studies to take the leap into video game coverage - a move that saw him work for such publications as TechARX, XRIG, eSportsportal, and Game Rant, to name a few.

Arnab looks up to popular video game journalists and commentators like John Peter Bain aka TotalBiscuit, Jason Schreier, and SkillUp, and tries to bring the same level of commitment and accuracy to his work.

He was also a part of the team that created the event Nerdmeet, which garnered over 5000 attendees in its final run.

In his spare time, Arnab takes care of animals, learns new languages, and plays his guitar. He is eyeing amateur astronomy soon as his next hobby.

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Edited by Aatreyee Aich