Path of Exile 2: How to Make the Best Ranger Build

Ben Author

Created - 20.12.2024 Updated - 20.12.2024

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Path of Exile 2 is a great ARPG with an assortment of classes to choose from. If you’re a fan of fantasy movies and have seen timeless classics like The Lord of the Rings, the character “Legolas” is probably one that resonated with you the most.

After all, the elven archer is not only charismatic, but he is also quite proficient with the bow and arrow. Do you want to be like Legolas, at least, in PoE 2? That’s good! There is a particular class that fits that description and that is none other than the Ranger!

If you’re wondering how you can create a build that uses this class from scratch, you’ve come to the right place! This article will provide you with some useful tips and information about how to make the best Ranger build in PoE!

Why Choose the Ranger in Path of Exile 2?

When Path of Exile 2 Early Access went live, there was a relatively large portion of the player base that chose the Mercenary because it is an entirely new class never seen before in the franchise.

While the Mercenary introduced a new way of playing the game by hurling devastating grenades to the enemy, the class has one glaring issue that not a lot of people want to deal with. What is that, you ask? The crossbow reload mechanic.

You see, skills that require a crossbow to use have to be reloaded every time their ammo is depleted. This mechanic drove people off because it was quite tedious and cumbersome, especially early in the campaign.

The Ranger class, at least the skills that are recommended for her to use, require the traditional bow and arrow. Abilities like the Lightning Arrow and Gas Arrow only need a simple bow to use.

Another thing that the Ranger excels at is that she has easy access to passive skills that improve evasion. This is a useful defensive layer because enemies barely hit the Ranger with their attacks.

At later stages, the Ranger can take one of the most useful keystone passives in the game: Acrobatics. This keystone basically enables the Ranger to evade all hits, including regular attacks and boss slams. This comes with a heavy price of 70% less evasion rating but this class has no problem addressing that.

In Path of Exile 2, the Ranger can ascend to two different ascendancy classes—each offering something unique that suits various ranged playstyles.

The Deadeye is the most popular Ranger ascendancy class in PoE 2 Early Access. Gathering Winds is an easy node to take using the first two ascendancy points. This increases attack speed and movement speed considerably via a stackable buff called Tailwind.

After that, the Deadeye can specialize in two different combat styles depending on one’s preference. Projectile Proximity Specialization enables the Deadeye to either deal huge damage against enemies that are near her (Point Blank) or eliminate monsters from afar (Far Shot).

Normally, modifiers that greatly amplify damage output in Path of Exile 2 come with nasty downsides that kind of reduce the euphoric experience of using them. The Deadeye's Endless Munitions does not have that, though.

Taking the said ascendancy node allows the Deadeye to fire an additional projectile which, when combined with the Dualstring Bow, grants her the ability to fire two arrows with one skill!

With how Grinding Gear Games programmed monsters in the game, particularly while mapping, it’s easy to get killed if defenses are not in check. Fortunately, the Acrobatics keystone is not the only thing that the Deadeye can rely on. Thanks to Wind Ward, she receives 30% less damage at full Tailwind stacks!

Most Popular Ranger Skills in PoE 2 Early Access

Before we disclose the most popular skills for the Ranger Class, it is important to note that these are powerful at the time of writing this article. With the way things are going in Path of Exile 2 Early Access, some of these skills could be nerfed depending on how overpowered they are.

That said, we still encourage budding Rangers to try these skills out because they are definitely worth it! So, without further ado, let’s get started!

Lightning Arrow

Arguably the most popular skill that’s being utilized by Rangers in PoE 2 right now, Lightning Arrow is just amazing in terms of sheer map-clearing speed.

When used, you fire an arrow charged with lightning. Every time it hits the enemy, it causes beams of lightning to hit nearby monsters in the process.

With the skill’s mechanics, coupled with how easy it is to scale damage, it is no wonder why Lightning Arrow is constantly being used in almost every Path of Exile 2 Ranger leveling build guide out there! It is that good!

Escape Shot

The Ranger relies on a relatively high amount of evasion to escape her foes. Besides that, there is a brand-new skill in the franchise called Escape Shot that perfectly encapsulates what this class is all about.

Escape Shot allows the Ranger to jump backward and shoot a freezing arrow while doing so. When the projectile hits an enemy, it almost always freezes them in place.

During the campaign, you will find Escape Shot to be incredibly useful. Although there are skills that perform better in terms of damage, Escape Shot is great for mobility and for getting out of dire situations.

Lightning Rod

Do you want the Ranger to deal insane amounts of damage in a short period of time? Then look no further than the Lightning Rod! This skill allows the Ranger to fire multiple arrows in the air and land at certain spots on the ground, causing lightning to burst on impact.

Having said that, Lightning Rod has a cool interaction with Lightning Arrow. Every time Lightning Arrow is used near the arrows produced by Lightning Rod, these arrows will release additional bursts of lightning!

For some PoE 2 Ranger builds, the Lightning Rod is their primary damage dealer next to the Lightning Arrow. The latter is only being utilized as a means of exploiting the lightning bursts produced by the former, resulting in fast map clears!

Orb of Storms

Although not specifically an arrow skill like the ones previously mentioned, Orb of Storms is a complementary skill that is meant to work in conjunction with Lightning Rod to do insane amounts of single-target damage.

Because it is a lightning damage spell, you have to keep Orb of Storms at low levels. Only increase it if you have enough INT on your build.

Explosive Shot

One of the things that many people like about Path of Exile 2 is that skills can be utilized no matter what class you intend to play. Explosive Shot is not locked behind the Ranger, mind you, but it is being utilized by the said class even more so as of late. Instead of a bow and arrow, though, you have to equip a crossbow to use this skill.

Explosive Shot allows you to fire a flaming bolt that explodes immediately upon impact. The resulting explosion causes nearby grenades to detonate, making it a perfect combo when you like to take advantage of synergies with other skills.

Wind Dancer

As mentioned earlier, Acrobatics is a mandatory keystone passive skill for pretty much all PoE 2 Ranger builds out there. This is because it allows her to evade most enemy attacks, including those damaging slams that some monsters seem to use often.

Acrobatics does come with a downside in that it significantly reduces evasion rating. Fortunately, there is a buff called Wind Dancer that can address that.

Wind Dancer is a persistent buff in Path of Exile 2 that grants more evasion per stage (maximum of three). Enemies that can land a successful hit on you will trigger Gale Force, which is an AoE attack that damages them a bit and then knocks them away.

Herald of Thunder

The last skill that we’re going to talk about in this section is actually a buff called the Herald of Thunder. This is active all the time and works really well if you are using Lightning Arrow and Lightning Rod.

What Herald of Thunder does is it enables you to call forth lightning bolts whenever you attack your foes. This makes finishing the campaign a breeze and gets even better in the endgame, provided that you have enough Spirit to activate it with several support gems included.

Ideal Stats for the Ranger Class

To make the perfect Ranger build in PoE 2, you must know the ideal stats, mods, and attributes that can be found on gear. Here is a brief rundown to guide you:

• Life
• Elemental and Chaos Resistance
• Increased Evasion Rating
• Bow Attacks Fire an Additional Arrow
• Adds Lightning Damage to Attacks
• Increased Critical Hit Chance
• Increased Critical Damage Bonus
• + to Level of All Projectile Skills
• Life per Enemy Killed
• Mana per Enemy Killed
• Life regeneration (optional but highly desired)

In terms of the passive skills you are going to take, prioritize projectile damage early on so that your arrow skills (particularly Lightning Arrow and Lightning Rod), deal a lot of damage. You want to get to Cruel Difficulty as fast as possible so that you can farm PoE 2 currency quickly.

Dexterity is also very important. All bow skills require a hefty amount of DEX at higher levels. Since they are your main damage dealers, you should aim for at least 180 to 220 DEX depending on the arrow skills you want to use.

Attack speed is not only for improving quality of life but being able to fire arrows at a rapid pace is essential for mapping. An evasion-based character like the Ranger should kill fast enough before the enemies get to her.

As for the notable passive skills that you are going to take, that depends on your preference. If you like to use lightning skills, take nodes that improve lightning damage and provide lightning penetration. Some examples of these include Exposed to the Storm, Storm Surge, and Wild Storm, to name a few.

For PoE 2 Poison Ranger builds, Crippling Toxins and Low Tolerance ensure that your enemies die quickly due to the poisons you inflict. The good news is that these notable passive skills are pretty accessible even at the early stages of the campaign!

Of course, never neglect passive nodes that increase your evasion. Catlike Agility is very near the Ranger’s starting point on the passive tree. This node increases evasion rating by 25% and adds 25% on top of that if you’ve used the Dodge Roll recently.

Escape Velocity is nice, especially if you want to play the Pathfinder. This is because it increases evasion by 30%, in addition to the slight movement speed boost. Freedom of Movement is similar to Catlike Agility, albeit you’re getting a 30% increased evasion rather than 25%.

Best Ranger Builds in PoE 2

Path of Exile 2 is quite a complex game. Even when you’ve already nailed the basics, you still need some guidance to ensure that you have an enjoyable experience. That is why in this section of our PoE 2 Ranger Guide, we will provide you with only the best Ranger builds in Early Access so far.

Lightning Arrow Deadeye

If you are having a hard time deciding on which PoE 2 Ranger build to play for your first character, then look no further than the Lightning Arrow Deadeye.

The Lightning Arrow Deadeye is a swift killer capable of eliminating a large group of monsters in a matter of seconds!

As the name of the build implies, it utilizes Lightning Arrow and Lightning Rod to great effect. This is combined with other complementary skills like Orb of Storms and Herald of Thunder.

Although this build lacks survivability in certain areas, the Lightning Arrow Deadeye’s power to quickly dispatch her enemies kind of addresses that. After all, she won’t take damage if she kills her foes fast enough before they come close, right?

Here is the optimized skill setup for the PoE 2 Lightning Arrow Deadeye:

• Lightning Arrow
  • Martial Tempo
  • Ice Bite
  • Cold Infusion
  • Primal Armament
  • Inspiration
• Lightning Rod
  • Scattershot
  • Concentrated Effect
  • Conduction
  • Rising Tempest/Close Combat
  • Heft
• Herald of Thunder
  • Lightning Infusion
  • Lightning Penetration
• Herald of Ice
  • Cold Penetration
  • Magnified Effect
  • Elemental Focus
• Orb of Storms
  • Chain
  • Unleash
  • Overabundance
  • Persistence
• Cast on Shock
  • Ball Lightning
  • Deceleration
  • Energy Retention
  • Impetus
• Wind Dancer
  • Blind
• Voltaic Mark
  • Innervate
  • Lightning Mastery
• Ascendancy Nodes
  • Gathering Winds
  • Projectile Proximity Specialization -> Point Blank
  • Endless Munitions
  • Wind Ward

You are probably wondering why some support gems on Lightning Arrow provide some cold damage. The vast majority of the build’s damage actually comes from Lightning Rod. Lightning Arrow, in this instance, is just a skill that causes the arrows from Lightning Rod to create additional bursts of lightning.

In other words, Lightning Arrow is being used both for utility and extra damage. Cold Infusion’s extra cold damage enables the Deadeye to freeze monsters. Ice Bite then deals a considerable amount of damage to enemies that are frozen.

On boss fights, include Orb of Storms as part of your main rotation. This causes you to create an orb that consistently fires lightning bolts at nearby enemies. Remember that lightning damage has a chance to shock enemies, which ties in perfectly with Cast on Shock.

Cast on Shock is a meta skill in PoE 2 that will use any active skill socketed into it. In this case, CoS activates Ball Lightning for even more damage. Don’t forget to activate it by right-clicking on its portrait on the skills menu.

Keep in mind that although the skills mentioned above enable this build to obliterate monsters easily, they can be unforgiving to your graphics card. If you have a modest system while playing Path of Exile 2, it is best to reduce Bloom in the settings just so that the game won’t grind to a halt.

Explosive Shot Deadeye

That’s right, a PoE 2 Deadeye build that uses a Crossbow-only skill to deal massive amounts of damage. Before you create a Ranger and go straight to using this ability, though, you have to know that this build only works if you wear a specific unique item—The Three Dragons.

The Three Dragons is a unique helmet in Path of Exile 2 that causes fire damage to apply Shock instead of Ignite. This ties in with its complementary skill called Shockburst Rounds.

Shockburst Rounds, when used by itself, is nothing special. In fact, the damage that this skill can produce is quite negligible. However, whenever it is used on enemies affected by Shock, then that’s an entirely different story!

So the build’s skill rotation goes something like this: You fire Explosive Shot to apply Shock to your target. Then, unleash hell with Shockburst Rounds and continue firing at the enemy until they are properly dealt with!

If your gear is not that good yet, you can cast Voltaic Mark before you use Explosive Shot. This way, you can shock enemies more effectively.

How does the Explosive Shot Deadeye perform in terms of clearing maps? Well, this PoE 2 build is quite good at blasting monsters to oblivion! With The Three Dragons equipped, Explosive Shot can decimate enemies without a hitch by leveraging the power of three “herald” buffs—Herald of Ash, Herald of Thunder, and Herald of Ice.

So, what are the skills and support gems that you need to maximize the damage of the Explosive Shot Deadeye? Here is a list:

• Explosive Shot
  • Scattershot
  • Conduction
  • Martial Tempo
  • Fire Penetration
  • Fire Infusion
• Shockburst Rounds
  • Primal Armament
  • Concentrated Effect
  • Lightning Infusion
  • Heft
  • Note: Must have a good physical crossbow to maximize the damage of Shockburst Rounds with these support gems
• Herald of Thunder
  • Innervate
  • Glaciation
  • Ice Bite
  • Lightning Penetration
• Herald of Ice
  • Cold Infusion
  • Cold Mastery
  • Magnified Effect
  • Cold Penetration
• Herald of Ash
  • Fire Mastery
• Wind Dancer
  • Blind
• Emergency Reload
  • Premeditation
  • Persistence
  • Ingenuity
• Voltaic Mark
• Overwhelming Presence
• Ascendancy Nodes
  • Gathering Winds
  • Point Blank
  • Endless Munitions
  • Wind Ward

Always remember that the Explosive Shot Deadeye, at least in its current iteration, will not work without The Three Dragons helmet. If you want to try this build out for its impressive map-clearing ability, make sure to invest in the said unique item.

Poison Gas Arrow Pathfinder

If you do not want to switch to different skills every so often, then this next entry on our Path of Exile 2 Ranger Guide is ideal for you!

The Poison Gas Arrow Pathfinder is a one-button wonder that relies on multiple stacks of poison to kill enemies. Although the game only lets you apply one stack of poison on an enemy by default, there are things that can be done to raise that limit considerably.

Some unique items like the Snakebite allow you to apply an additional poison on the same target. Stacking Toxins is just one of the notable passive skills that increase the poison limit as well.

However, what really elevates this build to new heights is the Ranger ascendancy class called the Pathfinder. She has access to Overwhelming Toxicity, which outright doubles the number of poison stacks that can be applied to a single target.

With the said notable ascendancy passive skill alone, the Poison Gas Arrow Pathfinder can quickly stack as many as 8 to 10 lethal poisons on an enemy at the same time. This results in heavy damage that can deplete monsters in full health rather quickly!

The only downside here is that poison deals damage over time. The slight delay in damage (not that you have to wait that long) may turn you off from trying out this PoE 2 build. But, we promise you that it’s worth it!

If you are asking why this build is popular, its main selling point is that it outputs significant amounts of damage for a relatively low investment. As long as your gear contains modifiers that were mentioned earlier, then you should be good to go!

Generally, you want a high physical damage bow with some chaos damage on it if you are to play the Poison Gas Arrow Pathfinder. The reason is that poison damage in Path of Exile 2 is calculated based on the damage of the hit that inflicted it (a good 50/50 split between physical and chaos damage).

Since physical damage is much more scalable, you can see why most players who use this build prefer a bow with a high amount of the said damage type. Chaos damage on a bow is also good, especially if you take any increased chaos damage nodes on the passive tree as well.

It’s undeniable that Deadeye is the more popular Ranger ascendancy class in the game right now. However, the Pathfinder is no slouch at all! If you want to try this build out, here are the ideal skill setups for the Poison Gas Arrow Pathfinder:

• Gas Arrow
  • Comorbidity
  • Deadly Poison
  • Concentrated Effect
  • Bursting Plague
  • Momentum/Inspiration
• Vine Arrow
  • Encumbrance
  • Font of Blood
  • Font of Mana
• Dark Effigy
  • Arcane Tempo
  • Withering Touch
  • Persistence
• Wind Dancer
  • Blind
  • Unbreakable
  • Cannibalism
• Despair
  • Heightened Curse
  • Focused Curse
  • Magnified Effect
• Ghost Dance
  • Fast Forward
  • Vitality

You can pretty much kill any monster in the game with Gas Arrow alone. The combination of support gems that this skill has enables you to quickly apply the maximum poison stacks on a single enemy, which is why it’s also potent against bosses. Of course, if you want to deal the most damage possible, incorporate Vine Arrow and Dark Effigy into your rotation.

Vine Arrow produces multiple vines that can latch onto enemies, hindering their advance. Additionally, the vines themselves can be poisoned by your attacks, causing them to deal more damage to those unfortunate enough to get entangled in them.

On the other hand, Dark Effigy allows you to establish a totem on the ground that instantly bombards enemies with a bevy of chaos damage projectiles.

Now, the reason why the Poison Gas Arrow Pathfinder is a one-button wonder is that this build barely relies on Vine Arrow and Dark Effigy to clear maps. Plus, it does not need any expensive gear to take off, which may appeal to most Path of Exile 2 players who are still starting out.

Final Thoughts

The Ranger class is in a very good spot right now in Path of Exile 2 Early Access. She can quickly eliminate enemies from afar, which is quite helpful as monsters will have no chance of getting near her. In the event that they do come close, the Ranger can utilize Escape Shot to get out of harm’s way.

While GGG is quick to rebalance skills that outperform others, we believe that the skills that the Ranger class can use exceptionally well are less likely to be nerfed. Why? Certain things have to happen in order to deal the maximum amount of damage possible.

For instance, Lightning Arrow works really well only when an acceptable number of arrows from Lightning Rod are planted on the ground.

Explosive Shot is capable of taking a huge chunk off the enemy’s HP. However, the Deadeye, which is the preferred ascendancy class to use in this scenario, can only utilize it effectively when wearing a particular unique helmet.

How about Gas Arrow? Sure, it is a one-button wonder and yes, it can deal a good amount of damage for a low investment. However, players may be put off by the damage over time mechanic of poison in this game.

Given GGG’s track record, the company only nerfs skills that are too overpowered. So, it’s safe to say that the skills mentioned in this PoE 2 Ranger build guide are fine, at least, in the foreseeable future.

With all of that said, are you going to play the Ranger in Path of Exile 2 soon? If so, what drew you to the said class? Let us know in the comments!

If you need any help obtaining gear fast, then head to our PoE 2 Store for a wide selection of items.