Path of Exile: Mercenaries of Trarthus, explained 

Path of Exile is finally getting a new league, titled Mercenaries of Trarthus, after having players spend close to a year building a town in the Settlers of Kalguur. As the name suggests, this Challenge League will have players meet, recruit, fight, and interact with Mercenaries from different cities of Trarthus. These Mercenaries will have unique abilities, gear, and even fighting styles to both challenge and aid players.

Grinding Gear Games has finally unveiled a new chapter in the ongoing Path of Exile storyline that involves players delving deeper into the mysteries of the Atlas in the Secrets of the Atlas expansion. As it is tradition for the game at this point, a large Atlas expansion is always paired with a Challenge League. In this case, Secrets of the Atlas is paired up with Mercenaries of Trarthus.

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Path of Exile will have a go at Diablo 4's Mercenary system with Mercenaries of Trarthus (Secrets of the Atlas)

You will find Mercenaries of Trarthus in each zone, beckoning you to approach (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

For those who think that the Mercenaries of Trarthus sound a lot like the Mercenaries from Diablo 4's Vessel of Hatred expansion, the similarities pretty much end with their profession. The Mercenaries of Trarthus are unique characters who behave and function like another player. These hired death-dealers have unique skill sets, as well as gear that functions like crafted gear. They also follow certain playstyles that correspond to their equipped skill and gear.

Unlike Diablo 4's Mercenaries, you can't simply hire Trarthan Mercenaries by paying them Gold. Instead, you must enter a duel and best them in combat to prove that you deserve their services. If you want to take an item off their inventory or a currency from their coffers instead, you can do so after proving your worth in combat.

If you are victorious against a Mercenary and like their combat style, you can hire them for a Gold cost to assist you in your trek through Wraeclast. This Gold cost will increase as you progress through the game, given that Mercenaries with better gear and skillsets will pop up. It's important to know that these hired muscles do not level up, so you'll want to part ways with the weaker ones after a while.

At times, you might keep encountering Mercenaries of a certain type whose playstyle doesn't suit your fancy, or as game director Mark Roberts puts it:

"If you keep running into a Mercenary archetype and you think “man, this guy stinks, their gear is trash and they have no auras”"

In such cases, you can exile that Mercenary archetype. This prevents similar Mercenaries from showing up in your travels for a certain period. The Mercenaries of Trarthus operate on an honour system and track your reputation based on your interactions. For example, if you run away from duels, worse Mercenaries with bad gear and skills will show up. Conversely, if you are victorious against them, stronger Mercenaries will join the fray.

Grinding Gear Games has made the Mercenaries fully capable of becoming party-play-viable. While facing off against a Trarthan fighter, each party member can either join or sit the fight out. Should they decide to join and defeat the Mercenary alongside you, they have a 50% chance of getting a random reward, usually currencies.

Mercenaries will have a full suite of arms, skills, and currencies in their pockets (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

The Mercenaries of Trarthus also have unique interactions when it comes to gear. For example, their equipped gear is almost always better than loot drops from enemies, as they are adept at crafting (probably with better luck than you as well). Trarthan Mercenaries can also come equipped with Unique items that match their build, and even new Trarthan Uniques.

They can also equip unique variants of Skill Gems and completely new Gilded Support Gems. Players can even select these special Trarthan Skill Gems as potential rewards in duels. It remains unknown if the Gilded Supports can be acquired or not.

On the flipside, you can craft rare items and find Uniques that suit your Mercenary's build, since they don't level up. And no, if they die, their gear is not lost. If they do happen to fall in battle, you can go to the town and revive them with a bit of Gold. Trarthan Mercenaries also have a special effect where they add to the item quantity bonus of party play, so players will see more loot if they have a companion in tow. Furthermore, players can recruit up to three at a time, but only have one Mercenary accompanying them.

The Mercenaries of Trarthus know how to play their build (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Occasionally, players will encounter special Mercenaries with a unique title. The official showcase featured a Mercenary named "Vysera, the Cyaxan-Made". These special fighters can belong to any of the four Great Houses of Keita, Cyaxan, Bardiya, and Azadi. Players can find items on these Mercenaries with unique Infamous modifiers, which cannot be rolled on other items.

So to recap, Mercenaries of Trarthus

• can be recruited to fight alongside you if you defeat them in a duel.
• will offer their gear and accrued currencies if you defeat them in a duel.
• have skillset archetypes and follow specific builds.
• have better items than the dropped loot.
• have an honour system and can react accordingly to a player's standing with the faction.
• can equip items granted by players.
• can occasionally spawn elusive fighters who have better items, with a chance to contain special modifiers.
• can drop special Trarthan Skill Gems.
• can be revived with Gold (if they die) and do not lose their equipped items in the process.
• are compatible with party members.
• have full party synergy.

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The Mercenaries of Trarthus Challenge League arrives alongside the Secrets of the Atlas expansion. Both the expansion and the league will launch on June 13, 2025, at 1 pm PDT for PC and consoles.

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