Have you played the Occultist in Path of Exile 1 and thought, Wouldn't it be great if something similar existed in the sequel? Good news! Grinding Gear Games (GGG) has introduced a new ascendancy class exclusively for the Witch in Path of Exile 2: Dawn of the Hunt—the Lich. This new class is an evolution of the Occultist but with its unique mechanics and abilities. If that piques your interest, read on to discover what the Lich can do!
The Lich: A Master of Chaos and Energy Shield
The Lich is heavily reliant on Energy Shield (ES), which means that stacking ES-based gear is crucial for survival and efficiency. If you're looking for the best ES gear, greater runes, or new talismans, check out our Path Of Exile 2 Currency store for everything you need.
In this guide, we will explore each of Lich's Ascendancy Nodes and explain why they make this class such an exciting addition to Path of Exile 2.
Ascendancy Nodes of the Lich
Eternal Life
Dying in Path of Exile 2 is brutal, especially when you're at level 81 and above, where each death results in a 10% EXP loss. The Eternal Life ascendancy node helps mitigate this risk in an almost overpowered way.
Effect: Your Life cannot change while you have an Energy Shield.
Since the Energy Shield is the first layer of defense before Life is affected, Eternal Life ensures that your Life remains untouched as long as you have even a single point of ES left. This makes the Lich almost unkillable as long as you manage your ES properly!
Soulless Form
Spending mana is a necessary evil for spellcasters, but the Soulless Form node removes that concern altogether.
Effect:
• Removes passive mana regeneration.
• Instead, regenerate mana equal to 6% of your maximum Life per second.
• 10% of Damage Taken Bypasses Energy Shield.
For example, if you have 4,000 Life, you gain 240 Mana per second, which is more than enough for continuous spellcasting. The minor downside of 10% damage bypassing Energy Shield isn't a problem, especially when combined with Eternal Life.
Crystalline Phylactery
This node lets you insert a rare jewel into your Ascendancy tree, doubling its modifiers!
Effect: Socketed Jewels have 100% increased effect.
This bonus can be game-changing, as some rare jewels can provide enormous boosts to Energy Shield, spell damage, and survivability. The only drawback is the 50% additional mana cost of skills when you have no ES, which can be mitigated by high ES gear.
Dominion Over Flesh
Curses are an integral part of Path of Exile, but some enemies are immune. Dominion Over Flesh bypasses this limitation.
Effect:
• You can apply curses on Hexproof enemies.
• You can apply two curses at once.
This node turns the Lich into the ultimate debuffer. Imagine using Conductivity and Temporal Chains simultaneously—lowering enemy resistances while slowing them down significantly. This synergy makes the Lich deadly in both solo and group play.
Rupture the Soul
If you enjoy corpse explosion mechanics, this one's for you.
Effect: Enemies affected by your curses explode on death, dealing 25% of their maximum Life as Chaos Damage.
This node automates corpse detonation, making it a fantastic clear speed booster. When combined with Blasphemy Support, you can apply curses automatically and trigger mass explosions with ease.
Necromantic Conduit
This node grants access to a powerful Chaos damage buff, at a steep cost.
Effect:
• Grants Unholy Might (30% extra Chaos Damage).
• You lose 5% of your Mana per second.
The 30% extra Chaos Damage makes the Lich an insane DPS powerhouse. However, 5% Mana Drain per second is significant, which makes Soulless Form a must-have to sustain mana regeneration.
Blackened Heart
GGG announced nerfs to attribute stacking, but this node keeps a variation of that mechanic alive.
Effect: Unholy Might grants 4% increased Chaos Damage for every 100 points of Mana you have.
For example, if you wear Dream Fragments (which gives around 7,000 Mana), you gain a massive 280% Chaos Damage increase! However, Dream Fragments is expensive—luckily, we sell it at our PoE 2 Store!
Eldritch Empowerment
A significant spell damage boost for non-channeling spells.
Effect:
• 30% more damage for non-channeling spells.
• Each cast increases ES cost by 3%.
• Energy Shield recharge is not interrupted by spending ES.
This means you can spam powerful instacast spells with zero interruptions to ES recharge—a game-changer for sustain-focused builds.
Price of Power
Power Charges are crucial for spellcasters, and this node lets you spend them for massive damage boosts.
Effect: Casting a non-channeling spell consumes Power Charges, granting 25% more damage.
To maximize this node, you need a consistent way to generate Power Charges—possibly through new gear or passive keystones in Path of Exile 2.
Final Thoughts: The Lich in Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.2.0
If you loved the Occultist in PoE 1, the Lich will feel familiar, yet fresh.
• Eternal Life and Soulless Form ensure unparalleled survivability.
• Dominion Over Flesh and Rupture the Soul make the Lich an amazing Curse-user and AoE clearer.
• Crystalline Phylactery and Blackened Heart offer unique scaling mechanics.
• Necromantic Conduit, Eldritch Empowerment, and Price of Power turn her into a Chaos-damage monster.
The Lich is not just an Occultist clone—it introduces brand-new mechanics that breathe life into Energy Shield and Chaos builds. With Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.2.0 adding new layers of complexity, the Lich is shaping up to be one of the most exciting ascendancy classes yet.
Will You Play the Lich?
What do you think about the Lich Ascendancy? Are you planning to main it in Path of Exile 2: Dawn of the Hunt? Let us know in the comments!
Need Exalts Orbs, Divine, or high-ES gear? Visit our PoE 2 Currency Store for exclusive deals!
Stay tuned for more Path of Exile 2 guides and updates!