Mercenary
Monk
Ranger
Sorceress
Warrior
Witch
In Path of Exile 2, there is a bigger focus on boss fights feeling engaging and difficult, even while playing through the acts. This guide will go over boss damage types, boss attacks, and how to deal with them.
In Path of Exile 2, certain attacks must be dodged, indicated by the boss flashing red and an accompanying sound cue. These attacks and abilities are highlighted in bold with the text (Requires Dodge) through out this guide.
Rootdredge
Zone: Sandswept Marsh.
Damage Type: Physical and Fire.
Minions will keep spawning from the swamps, around the arena, throughout the fight.
Throughout the entire fight, Rootdredge will have a baseline for the attacks used against the player. At specific health thresholds, the boss will begin using new attacks, however, the following will remain the same until Rootdredge has been killed.
- Stomp his staff at the player in melee range.
- Shoot three projectiles if at range.
- Special Ability: Volatile Orb
- Rootdredge will turn one of his small minions in to an orb that chases down the player and explode. Note: the lower Rootdredge health have the more minions he casts this ability on.
- Special Ability: Quicksand
- Rootdredge cast a circle below the player’s location that leave a pool of quicksand. Note: The quicksand leaves a stacking debuff that slows your movement speed, stacks of the debuff are removed by moving.
- Special Ability: Summon minions
- Rootdredge raises his arms and summons minions around the player’s location.
When Rootdredge reaches 90% health, it will gain the following abilities.
- Special Attack: Corpse exploding Slam
- Rootdredge lifts his staff into the air and slams it down dealing damage is in an area around him, this also makes all corpses in that area explode after a short delay. Note: These explosion spreads to living minions hit by it.
This is a good way to keep the minions under control throughout the fight.
Mighty Silverfist
Zone: Jungle Ruins.
Damage Type: Physical.
Silverfist has attacks that deal very high damage and will likely one shot you if not avoided.
Throughout the entire fight, Silverfist will have a baseline for the attacks used against the player. At specific health thresholds, the boss will begin using new attacks, however, the following will remain the same until Silverfist has been killed.
- Sweep at the player with his pillar.
- Special Attack: Sunder
- Silverfist slams his pillar down in front of him, sundering the earth in a straight line. Note: this attack is likely to one shot you if not dodge.
When Silverfist reaches 90% health, he will gain the following abilities.
- Special Attack: Combo Attack
- Silverfist does this default attack followed up by Sunder attack.
When Silverfist reaches 75% health, he will gain the following abilities.
- Special Attack: Cyclone Swings
- Silverfist swings his pillar around him two times while moving towards the player’s location before doing his Sunder attack.
- Special Attack: Roll
- Silverfist leaps in to a roll towards the player, dealing damage if he hits the player.
Ignagduk, the Bog Witch
Zone: The Azak Bog.
Damage Type: Physical and Fire.
Ignagduk is a two-phase fight, and her attacks are separated into each phase.
Throughout the entire fight, Ignagduk will have a baseline for the attacks used against the player. At specific health thresholds, the boss will begin using new attacks, however, the following will remain the same until Ignagduk has been killed.
Phase 1
- Special Ability: Broom Ride
- Ignagduk throughout the fight remounts her broom and flies around the arena, spawning bone clusters behind her. Note: She circles the arena and charge 3 times before dismounting.
- Special Ability: Bone Eruption
- Ignagduk summons red sigils throughout the arena before erupting bone spikes. Note: this break any bone spike clusters hit by the eruption.
- Special Ability: Sundering Bone Wall
- Ignagduk creates a bone pillar somewhere in the arena before making it sunder the ground in a line towards the players location.
- Special Ability: Bone spears
- Ignagduk summons a half circle of bone spears, either at here location or at the edge of the arena, shooting them all towards the player’s current location.
- Special Ability: Bone Cone
- Ignagduk erupts a cone of bone spikes in front of her before charging through them.
When Ignagduk reaches 75% health, she will do one last Broom Ride that end with her falling off the Broom, beginning Phase 2.
Phase 2
- Throws a fireball at the player
- Special Ability: Infernal corridor
- Ignagduk summons two walls beside the player before sending a wall of fire through the corridor that splits in a V-shaped pattern when it gets to Ignagduk.
The easiest way to avoid this ability is to run behind Ignagduk when the two walls are spawned.
- Special Ability: Fire Volley
- Ignagduk pulls fire from outside the arena to launch a volley of fireballs at the player.
- Special Ability: Firewalls
- Ignagduk Summons firewalls from two sides of the arena that travels towards the player.
- Special Ability: Bone Eruption
- Same ability as in phase 1.
- Special Ability: Flame Dash
- Ignagduk will dash around the arena.
- Special Ability: Flamethrower
- Ignagduk charges up and the channels a beam of fire from her hands.
A circle of ice spawns together with this attack. Standing in this circle makes you take no damage from the Flamethrower attack. However, don’t stand in the circle too long, as it will erupt dealing damage shortly after the flamethrower attack is done.
Upon killing Ignagduk, the boss will drop “Gemrot Skull“, providing the player with a permanent 30 Spirit and a level 10 Uncut Spirit Gem when used.
Xyclucian, The Chimera
Zone: Chimeral Wetlands.
Damage Type: Physical, Chaos, Cold, Fire and Lightning.
Throughout the entire fight, Xyclucian will have a baseline for the attacks used against the player. At specific health thresholds, the boss will begin using new attacks, however, the following will remain the same until Xyclucian has been killed.
- Bites at the player.
- Leaps at the player if at range.
- Special Attack: Slam
- Xyclucian rears its head and roars before slamming the around it, dealing damage in a large area.
- Special Attack: Wing Buffet
- Xyclucian will hover in the area before for doing a wing buffet, dealing damage in a frontal cone. Note: this attack is only used if you get behind Xyclucian.
- Special Ability: Frost breath
- Xyclucian stands on its hind legs and breaths frost in front of it, that spread chilling ground outwards in a large area.
- Special Ability: Fireball
- Xyclucian shoots a fireball towards the player.
- Special Ability: Flame Breath
- Xyclucian spews fire in a small cone.
When Xyclucian reaches 90% health, It will gain the following abilities.
- Special Ability: High Ground
- Xyclucian flies into the air and lands on one of the four pillars in the arena and starts shooting either poison projectiles which leaves poison ground or fireballs at the player. Damage the pillar to destroy it and stun Xyclucian temporarily.
- Special Ability: Frostwall
- Xyclucian lands on a pillar momentarily before flying off in a line, breathing a frost wall.
- Special Ability: Lightning Orbs
- Xyclucian spits out lightning orbs that slowly travels outwards before lightning strikes them, and they explode leaving behind shocked ground.
- Special Attack: Diving Slam
- Xyclucian flies into the air then dives, slamming the ground on impact. Note: Xyclucian always lands in the same spot doing this attack which is the spot where he first appeared when the fight started.
When Xyclucian reaches 70% health, it will gain the following abilities.
- Special Ability: Gliding Fire Breath
- Xyclucian hovers in the air breathing fire at the ground leaving behind burning ground while moving towards the player tracking them.
- Special Ability: Poison Cone
- Xyclucian shoots poison projectiles from its tail in a frontal cone pattern this leaves behind poison ground.
Upon killing Xyclucian, the boss will drop “Chimeral Inscribed Ultimatum”, take it to the Temple of Chaos for the possibility of getting your second set ascendency points. Read about ascending here.
Blackjaw, The Remnant
Zone: Jiquani’s Machinarium.
Damage Type: Physical and Fire.
Throughout the entire fight, Blackjaw will have a baseline for the attacks used against the player. At specific health thresholds, the boss will begin using new attacks, however, the following will remain the same until Blackjaw has been killed.
- Pushes the player back.
- Large swing with this axe.
- Special Attack: Slam
- Blackjaw raises his axe above his head slamming down in front of him.
- Special Ability: Flame Breath
- Blackjaw leans forward breathing fire in a sweeping arc.
When Blackjaw reaches 65% health, he will gain the following abilities.
- Special Attack: Slam Combo
- Blackjaw does a three slam combo with a delay on the last slam. Note: This attack can be hard to avoid but if you run in a circle around him for the first 2 slams and roll dodge the last one it should be easy.
- Special Attack: Leap Slam
- Blackjaw leaps towards the play slamming the ground on impact
- Special Attack: Fire Sweep
- Blackjaw breath fire on his axe before doing a frontal sweep with his axe.
When Blackjaw reaches 50% health, he will gain the following abilities.
- Special Ability: Flame Frenzy
- Blackjaw breaths a circle of fire around him and launches fire projectiles at the player ending it with a sweeping attack with his axe. Note: This ability is easy to out range or avoid by running in a circle around him.
Upon killing Blackjaw, the boss will drop “The Flame Core“, providing the player with a permanent 10% Fire Resistance when used.
Zicoatl, Warden of the Core
Zone: Jiquani’s Sanctum.
Damage Type: Physical and Lightning.
Throughout the entire fight, Zicoatl will have a baseline for the attacks used against the player. At specific health thresholds, the boss will begin using new attacks, however, the following will remain the same until Zicoatl has been killed.
- Swipes at the player with his snakes.
- Strikes the ground repeatedly with his snakes.
- Special Ability: Lightning Wall
- Zicoatl creates a lightning beam going horizontal of the player’s location and shoot it towards them.
- Special Ability: Lightning Cascade
- Zicoatl charges all of his snakes to shooting multiple lighting beams outward in front of him.
- Special Attack: Lightning Beams
- Zicoatl pulls beams of lightning from the fonts in the walls in front of him. Note: These fonts are only on the east and west sides of the arena.
- Special Ability: Pyramid Explosion
- Zicoatl charges up a triangular sigil around him that explode outwards. Note: Standing at any of the corners of the triangle to avoid damage from this ability.
When Zicoatl reaches 50% health, he will gain the following abilities.
- Special Attack: Lightning Grid
- Lightning Beams now charges the fonts it hits, shooting a beam around the room. Note: you can see the lines the beam will travel in just avoid standing in any of them.
- Special Ability: Lightning Explosion
- Zicoatl channels Lightning Beams in a circle dragging them towards the center exploding when they meet. Note: Move out when you see this ability or dodge roll through one of the beams.
Mektul, the Forgemaster
Zone: The Molten Vault.
Damage Type: Physical and Fire.
Lava will travel along the arena until everything is filled, making this a damage race. You may want to skip this if your damage is low and do it later.
Throughout the entire fight, Mektul will have a baseline for the attacks used against the player. At specific health thresholds, the boss will begin using new attacks, however, the following will remain the same until Mektul has been killed.
- Sweeps his axe hand at the player.
- Two-hit sweep with his axe hand.
- Special Attack: Leap Slam
- Mektul leaps at the player slamming the ground on impact.
- Special Attack: Hammer Slam
- Mektul turns his hand in to a hammer and does a overhead slam attack at the player.
When Mektul reaches 90% health, he will gain the following abilities.
- Special Attack: Molten Rupture
- Mektul turns his hand in to a hammer charging it up before slamming the ground in front of him rupturing the earth in a line leaving behind stalagmites along the path. Note: stalagmites explode when they come in contact with the lava.
- Special Attack: Seismic Cry
- Mektul preform a warcry that explode stalagmites from Molten Rupture in a area around him. Note: He will only use this if he is around two or more stalagmites.
When Mektul reaches 80% health, he will gain the following abilities.
- Special Attack: Molten Sunder
- Mektul stomps the ground and does a underhand swing that ruptures the ground with spikes in a line.
When Mektul reaches 75% health, he will gains the following abilities.
- Special Ability: Lava Waves
- Mektul runs into the lava and sends out small waves of lava while walking slowly out of the lava. Note: While in the lava he takes heavily reduced damage.
- Special Ability: Exploding Sigil
- Mektul sticks his hand in the ground creating a big sigil around him that explode shortly after.
When Mektul reaches 40% health, he repeats Lava Waves.
Upon killing Mektul, the boss will drop “The Hammer of Kamasa”, take it to the Oswald to unlock the the Reforging Bench
Queen of Filth
Zone: Apex of Filth.
Damage Type: Physical and Chaos.
Throughout the entire fight mushshrooms spawn all around the arena that explode if the player steps on them or if hit hit by Queen of Filth’s abilities in a chain reaction.
Throughout the entire fight, Queen of Filth will have a baseline for the attacks used against the player. At specific health thresholds, the boss will begin using new attacks, however, the following will remain the same until Queen of Filth has been killed.
- Sweep at the player with her hammer.
- Overhead slam at the player.
- Special Ability: Cursed Stomp
- Queen of Filth Stomps the ground and creates a circle of cursed ground under the player. Note: The color of the ground depends on what curse it gives; Red Vulnerability lowers armour, Green Enfeeble you deal less damage, and Purple Temporal Chains slow effects, buffs and debuffs, take longer to run out.
- Special Attack: Rolling Slam
- Queen of Filth rolls towards and then slam the ground
- Special Attack: Bouncing Slam
- Queen of Filth does a overhead slam and vaulting over her hammer slamming her body in to the ground leaving behind a poison pool
- Special Ability: Rock Toss
- Queen of Filth turns towards the fountain at the end of the arena, summoning a rock from it before hurling it at the player’s location.
When Queen of Filth reaches 90% health, she will start periodically summoning minions to help her in the fight.
This fight is all about handling minions and keeping the mushshrooms spawn under control to not get overwhelmed.
Ketzuli, High Priest of the Sun
Zone: Temple of Kopec.
Damage Type: Fire.
Throughout the entire fight, Ketzuli will have a baseline for the attacks used against the player. At specific health thresholds, the boss will begin using new attacks, however, the following will remain the same until Ketzuli has been killed.
- Throws a fireball at the player.
- Special Ability: Firebolt Slavo
- Ketzuli floats in the air summoning a large amount of firebolts above him firing them at the player while tracking their movement. Note: Keep moving in a line to avoid the salvo.
- Special Ability: Laser Vision
- Ketzuli lasers the ground in front of him in a line traveling outwards.
- Special Ability: Fire Orb
- Ketzuli sends out a slow moving fire orb that explodes on impact with either the player or edge of the arena.
- Special Ability: Dashes
- Ketzuli performs a series of dashes stopping to do a explosion between each. Note: After this he takes a moment before doing any new abilities.
When Ketzuli reaches 80% health, he will gain the following abilities.
- Special Ability: Black Hole Sun
- Ketzuli creates a Black Hole Sun that orbits around the edge of the arena. Note: Fire Orbs that get close to these black hole suns can start orbiting the Sun instead of continuing in their normal path.
- Special Ability: Fire Orb Swarm
- Ketzuli flies into the air and summons Fire Orbs from the edges of the arena that travels in straights lines through the arena exploding if they hit the player. Note: The lower Ketzuli health is, the more sides the Fire Orbs spawns from. If two orbs collide, they explode in a mini black hole.
When Ketzuli reaches 70% health, he will gain the following abilities.
- Special Ability: Gamma Ray
- Ketzuli channels a ray of energy in front of him, tracking the players location and turning towards them. Note: The longer you stay in the beam the more damage it deals.
When Ketzuli reaches 30% health, he summons another Black Hole Sun that orbits around the arena in the opposite direction, and a bit closer to the middle, of the first one.
Viper Napuatzi
Zone: Utzaal (Past).
Damage Type: Physical, Chaos, Fire and Lightning.
This fight takes place in a arena made up of soldiers with shields and spears if you get too close to them they will bash at you with their shield.
Throughout the entire fight, Napuatzi will have a swap between her spear and unarmed attacks changes her abilities as well
Spear
- A series of sweeps and slams with her spear.
- Lunches towards the player with her spear.
- Special Attack: Lightning Throw
- Napuatzi charges her spear with lightning throwing it at the player if it collides with the player or a minion it splits into three lightning bolts. Note: When the spear his the soldiers shields, it reflects the three lightning bolts back into the arena.
- Special Attack: Serpent Strike (Requires Dodge)
- Napuatzi charges her spear with Poison, sending out a wave of two large serpents. Note: Dodge as you see her thrust the spear forwards.
- Special Attack: Viper’s Disengage
- Napuatzi jumps backwards, throwing out poison bolts in a arc. These leave being a pool of poison.
- Special Ability: Weapon Swap
- Napuatzi stabs her spear in the ground, leaving a poison pool around it while she processes to fight unarmed Note: this happens first time at 90% health
Unarmed
- Throws a series of poison bolts tracking the player.
- Throws poison bolts in a arc in front of her.
- Special Ability: Meteor Shower
- Napuatzi stars floating around the arena summoning a series of sigils around the arena that gets hit by meteors before then turning it the sky dark creating bigger purple sigils that chaos meteors gets hit by chaos meteors. Note: It can be hard to find safe spots from the chaos meteors, but remember that it takes a while before the sigils get hit by the meteor. Look at the edges of the sigils to see how close it is to the meteor hitting it.
- Special Ability: Snake Spark
- Napuatzi sends out waves of small snakes, that explode if they hit the player. These snakes bounce of the shield of the soldiers making up the arena.
- Special Attack: Poison Slam
- Napuatzi leaps into the air, slamming her leg down, creating a large poison explosion.
- Special Ability: Spear Hell
- Napuatzi floats in the air, sending out a multiple waves of empowering poisons to the guards, causing them to attack in various patterns with their spears before attacking the entire arena in a wave from side to side, while stepping closer causing the arena size to shrink. Note: Napuatzi is invulnerable during this ability; focus on avoiding damage. Look for the glow of the guards spear to find safe spots. For the last wave, roll dodge towards it to avoid damage.
This is the hardest fight in all of Act 3. Focus on dodging her abilities, as the longer the fight goes on, the less space you have to fight in.
Doryani, Royal Thaumaturge
Zone: The Black Chambers (Past).
Damage Type: Physical, Cold, Fire and Lightning.
Doryani is a two-phase fight and his attacks are separated into each phase.
Phase 1
Throughout the phase, Doryani will have a baseline for the attacks it uses on the player. At specific health thresholds, it will begin using new attacks, however the following will remain the same until he changes phases.
- Flamethrower attack from his right hand at the player.
- Lightning Arc attack from his left hand at the player.
- Special Ability: Soul Gems
- Doryani throws soul gems in an arc in front of him, exploding after they’ve traveled a specific distance.
- Special Ability: Soul Beam
- Doryani fires a beam into a cluster of soul gems in front of him splitting itto a cone.
- Special Ability: Hybrid Slam
- Doryani charges up and slams the ground with fire and lightning as he leaps backwards.
When Doryani reaches 90% health, he will gain the following abilities.
- Special Ability: Altar of Mechanism
- Doryani rises an altar in the center of the room. The altar will begin rotating, firing beams occasionally.
- Special Ability: Crystal Traps
- Doryani summons and charges multiple spikes around the room that if touched by a player will activate and fire arcing red lightning. Note: Dodge roll away from them to avoid damage, if activated.
- Special Ability: Fire Shot
- Doryani shoots a fireball at the player that explodes. If it hits the edge of the arena, it sends a volley of fireballs back in to the arena.
- Special Ability: Lightning Tendrils
- Doryani channels tendrils of arcing lightning that track the player.
- Special Ability: Flame Orbs
- Doryani spawns multiple slow-moving orbs that burn the player.
- Special Ability: Flameblast
- Doryani channels a large fire explosion at his feet and any active Flame Orbs, detonating them.
When Doryani reaches 45% health he will create Doryani’s Triumph and transition to Phase 2.
Phase 2
Throughout the phase, Doryani’s Triumph will have a baseline for the attacks it uses on the player. At specific health thresholds, it will begin using new attacks, however the following will remain the same until he is killed.
- Slams with either of it’s arms at the player.
- Special Attack: Head Slam
- Doryani’s Triumph pulls it head out and slams the ground with it.
- Special Ability: Flamethrower
- Doryani’s Triumph fires a flamethrower from the right arm in an arc.
- Special Ability: Ice Beam
- Doryani’s Triumph shoots a Ice beam from the left arm in horizontal lines.
- Special Attack: Hybrid Slam
- Doryani’s Triumph slams the ground twice and then creates an explosion of fire and cold.
When Doryani’s Triumph reaches 90% health, it will gain the following abilities.
- Special Ability: Flameblast
- Doryani’s Triumph sticks it’s arm in the ground channeling large Flameblast around it.
- Special Attack: Ice Slam
- Doryani’s Triumph charges a ice slam with the left arm.
When Doryani’s Triumph reaches 70% health, it will gain the following abilities.
- Special Ability: Rail Gun
- Doryani’s Triumph detaches four legs to create a rail gun that fires a series shots from the sky. The rail gun has a small charge up time before each shot. Note: Either keep moving or be ready to dodge roll when you see the laser is about to shoot
- Special Ability: Disco Laser
- Doryani’s Triumph fires a barrage of lasers from its back in a clockwise rotation around the arena gradually speeding up. Note: Look at where the the start of the rotation and get to the right side of it for an easy way to avoid this attack.
When Doryani’s Triumph reaches 60% health, it will gain the following abilities.
- Special Ability: Detach
- Doryani detaches from his mech and orbits around the edge of the arena casting abilites.
- Special Ability: Attach
- Doryani sends out lightning bolts that tracks the player while he attaches to his mech.
While Detached:
- Special Ability: Flame Pillar
- Doryani creates a small pillar of flames at the players location.
- Special Ability: Lightning Storm
- Doryani creates a small storm of lightning at the players location.
- Special Ability: Doryani’s Fist
- Doryani’s Triumph explodes with lightning and transform into a giant fist in the air, tracking the player before slamming the ground in a massive Area. Note: The fist slows down the closer it gets to slamming. This attack deals heavy damage and likely will kill the player if they are hit.
While Attached:
- Special Ability: Lightning Cage
- Doryani’s Triumph creates a lightning cage around itself, which fires forked lightning at the outer edges of the cage. Note: It is safe to stand inside the cage, at the cost of less area to dodge attacks in, only the forked lightning deals damage.
When Doryani’s Triumph reaches 40% health, it will gain the following abilities.
- Special Ability: Vaal Flamethrower
- Doryani’s Triumph fires a red lighting “flamethrower” from the right arm in an arc.
- Special Ability: Vaal Ice Beam
- Doryani’s Triumph shoots a Ice beam from the left arm in horizontal lines and converting to red lighting beam before being cut in a horizontal burst. Note: to avoid the horizontal burst of the red lightning beam try to dodge roll behind the boss.
Continuing Beyond Act 3
This is the end of our Act 3 boss guide. Check out our other related guides below.