Path of Exile 2: Triggered Metagem nerf, explained (Cast on Freeze)

Modified Dec 13, 2024 17:55 IST

explore the cast on freeze nerf in path of exile 2 — Cast on X Gems just got nerfed (Image via GGG)

With the 0.1.0d patch this week, Path of Exile 2 developers have massively nerfed mobbing aspects of triggered Metagems, such as Cast on Freeze, Cast on Ignite, and so on. The developers, as they mentioned two days before the patch, were dissatisfied with triggered Metagems' state of balance at release, so the impending nerf was only a matter of time, especially given the other Skills they have already nerfed.

Specifically, they found that the conditions used to trigger the Metagem could be met rather cheaply with low-resource Skills, which turned it into a big resource hack with a very high damage ceiling.

The feature has now been nerfed to the point that many players using Cast on X Gems as their main crutch might need to thoroughly reassess their build. In this guide, we'll try to explain what exactly got nerfed with Triggered Metagems like Cast on Freeze in Path of Exile 2.

Note: Parts of this article are subjective and reflect the writer's opinions.

How was Cast on Freeze (and other trigger Metagems) nerfed in Path of Exile 2?

Comet remains the same, but at what cost (Image via GGG)

In Path of Exile 2, Metagems that trigger other Skills function with a separate "Energy" resource. Essentially, there is a set amount of Maximum Energy threshold you have to cross to trigger the socketed Skill Gem.

Cast on Freeze, for example, used to have a 10 Maximum Energy threshold for every 0.13 second of cast time of socketed Spells. Support Gems do not have any cast time, so it will only take into account Skills that you could otherwise cast. In an average pre-nerf Frost Sorceress build, the meta option would be Cold Snap early on, and then Comet once you got it.

Comet has a total cast time of 2 seconds (even though it says base cast time, Cast on X Gems actually look at total cast time). This means, when Comet is socketed, the maximum Energy would be set to 153 (rounded down).

Explaining the Nerf

After the patch, Comet now has 10 Maximum Energy per 0.1 second of cast time. In other words, it will now need to hit 200 Energy to trigger with Cast on Freeze.

The much bigger component of the nerf, however, is not the max Energy Threshold, but how you trigger the Metagems. Previously, Cast on Freeze would give you 100 Energy for every Freeze. With the Impetus Support Gem, as well as additional levels on the Cast on Freeze Gem itself, you could easily take it to above 153 per freeze during your Cruel campaign rotation. In other words, it could cast triggered Skill Gems on every single freeze.

After the patch, the math is based on Monster Power. In Path of Exile 2, this feature is not explained very well, but going by the formula presented on POE2DB, this takes a hidden stat that varies with monsters and multiplies it by a factor based on Rarity. On regular mobs, this varies from 0.5 to 2, meaning the average Monster will only grant you 10 Energy per Freeze with Cast on Freeze.

After the nerf, you must proc the Freeze Ailment in Path of Exile 2 five to twenty times as often to trigger Cast on Freeze. However, it's easier to trigger on Rare beasts, whose Monster Power is five times as high as the regular variants.

What's interesting is that bosses (indicated by dedicated boss Health bars) will always have a Monster Power of 20, meaning you can guarantee one Cast on Freeze trigger for every Freeze — just as it used to before.

Other Metagems were nerfed similarly. Cast on Ignite was specifically made to be based on the Spell you get the Ailment from. The Energy you gain for Ignite takes the new Monster Power formula and multiplies it by the percentage of the enemy's Ailment Threshold the Ignite will deal.

Where does this leave us?

To start with, this is a direct nerf to triggered Cast on X Gems. There's no sugarcoating it. They will be worse for wear when used for mobbing, requiring you to go for alternative setups. For example, Cold Snap has 0.5 cast time, making it four times easier to trigger with Cast on Freeze than the Comet setup. With this, an off-meta Support Gems like Energy Retention might also see some use.

On the whole, this change means more direct damage builds might get their turn in the limelight — such as the Lightning Arrow Deadeye, which is rising in terms of Leaderboard numbers already.

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Edited by Abhipsito Das