Path of Exile: Best and worst Ascendancies in 3.26

Path of Exile features 19 Ascendancy classes across seven character classes, and it shouldn’t come as a surprise that some are better than others. The shift in popularity can happen following changes to Skill Gems or the Ascendancy passives. Patch 3.26 was the largest update in a long time, and needless to say, the developers made some major changes.

Many of the Skill Gems and Ascendancy were either reworked or changed, creating a new dynamic. This guide will list the three best and worst Ascendancies after the changes in Path of Exile 3.26.

Best Ascendancies in Path of Exile Mercenaries League

These are some of the best Ascendancies you can pick and build around in the latest League. Apart from having strong passives, they synergize well with Skills.

1) Elementalist (Witch)

Elementalist Ascendancy (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Witch was already a popular class in the game, and the rework for the Elementalist Ascendancy only made her more popular. She can now summon two extra golems and have better mana reservation efficiency for persistent skills.

The conditional activation for Shaper of Storms, Winter, and Flames' passive nodes has been reworked. These passives will now activate when the conditions are met. This creates incredible synergy when using all three element types to deal damage.

2) Deadeye (Ranger)

Deadeye Ascendancy (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Swift and deadly, the Deadeye benefits from increased movement speed and is one of the best damage dealers. While it’s not as strong as a Berserker or Chieftain when it comes to taking hits, the ability to chain hits clears the room before enemies reach you.

The Mercenaries League did not bring any changes to Deadeye, and since it was one of the top picks previously, builds based around this Ascendancy should perform similarly. The most popular skill you can currently use is Elemental Hit of the Spectrum.

3) Berserker (Marauder)

Berserker Ascendancy (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Berserker is a mix of offensive and defensive passive nodes, like the Aspect of Carnage and Crave the Slaughter. The Rage mechanic for a Berserker also delves into self-damage as you gain more and more stacks of rage.

If you have no idea about Rage, it increases the damage you deal. Each point will increase the damage you deal by 1%. By default, you can have a maximum of 30 Rage, which can be bypassed using unique items like Kaom's Primacy.

Worst Ascendancies in Path of Exile Mercenaries League

These are low-tier Ascendancy classes you can play, but they require double the effort spent on others.

1) Ascendant (Scion)

Ascendant passives nodes (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

The Scion was supposed to be a combination of the best in every Ascendancy class. Unfortunately, she hasn’t received many changes compared to others. The latest update introduced better mana reservation efficiency, which is great in an aura-stacking build, but requires a decent amount of investment.

Compared to other characters, she is much more complex to build, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t a viable starting class. However, you’ll have a far easier time building a Berserker or Pathfinder, especially when it comes to investing in a character.

2) Assassin (Shadow)

Assassin Ascendancy (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Once a popular Ascendancy, the Assassin was the top pick when it came to poison and crit builds. This changed after the Pathfinder Reworks and how the weapons interacted with certain damage types. Over time, poison builds were mostly used with Pathfinder.

While the Assassin still deals good damage, survival without defense has become challenging. This class is now the definition of a glass cannon. It’s good if you defeat enemies quickly, but you’ll need to keep a lookout for map modifiers like Reflected Damage.

3) Guardian (Templar)

Guardian Ascendancy (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Templar was the premium life regen, damage reduction, and elemental resistance class for a long time. This changed with Chieftain, who now provides better defences and can shred the fire resistance of enemies.

The latest rework with Path of Exile 3.26 grants the Guardiana a random shrine buff every 10 seconds. But the block chance received from the Bastion of Hope now provides an increase in block recovery.

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About the author

Mayank Singh Rathour is an MMO writer at Sportskeeda. He graduated from college with a degree in Business Administration and has over two years of experience as an esports journalist.

Mayank was introduced to gaming at an early age and played Contra, Double Dragon, Castlevania, etc., on his Nintendo DS. When he was a little older, Counter-Strike — a title that majorly helped develop his passion for gaming — became his favorite pastime. Though he's played a bunch of games since then, his love of CS has remained strong. Shroud, a former Counter-Strike: Global Offensive pro, is an inspiration to him. He's also a fan of series' esports scene, following teams like Vitality, NAVI, and The Mongols closely.

When Mayank has some free time, he plays basketball and helps people build PCs.

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Edited by Angad Sharma