By coolyou Walking back into the Temple of Atziri in PoE 2 doesn’t feel like a nostalgia trip anymore—it feels like a test you can actually fail. Since Fate of the Vaal landed in 0.4, I’ve been stuck in that “one more run” mindset, and the 0.4.0c patch finally took the edge off the decay so it’s less of a constant punishment. If you’re trying to gear up fast while you learn the new rhythm, I’ve seen plenty of players lean on poe 2 cheap currency so they can focus on practice instead of scraping for every upgrade.
Finding Your Way In
The loop starts out simple: you roam zones hunting Vaal Beacons, then cash them in to access the temple. You can enter once you’ve got enough, but it’s worth grabbing extras if you’re farming waystones or don’t want to break your flow. The trick is not getting greedy with the layout. People love to get clever with side paths, and then wonder why decay eats the run alive. Build like you mean it: 1) a straight route to the Architect, 2) only a couple of detours you’ll actually take, 3) upgrades that match what your build needs right now.
Rooms That Actually Matter
If you’re picking upgrades at the console, you’ll quickly notice some rooms feel like bait. Skip the ones that look cool but don’t change your run. Put attention on the Thaumaturge Lab if you’re serious about power spikes. Getting it to Tier 3 opens up gem double corruption, and yeah, it’s a gamble, but it’s the kind that can turn an “okay” setup into something that deletes phases. Keep your pathing tight so you’re not burning time just to reach the room you built for.
Atziri, Relearned
Reaching the Red Queen feels earned now, and the fight’s got a different pace than the old days. Phase 1 is mostly discipline: watch the tells, respect the spear swaps, and don’t pretend you can tank lightning just because you’ve been fine in maps. Phase 2 is where runs fall apart. Flameblast still hits like a truck, clones stack chaos fast, and if your damage is low you’ll get boxed in. I’ve been messing around with a Druid Wyvern setup, and the fire breath makes the clone moments way less scary, but any build works if you’re moving and you’re not hesitating.
Loot, Frustration, and Keeping It Fun
The rewards finally match the effort. Seeing drops like Atziri’s Rule or a Drillneck is the kind of rush that keeps you queuing up another run, and the currency benches feel a lot kinder after the hotfix. Still, RNG can be a jerk, and not everyone’s got the time to grind out crafting mats all week just to test a new idea. If you’re in that spot, some folks just grab cheapest poe 2 currency and spend their nights learning patterns, tweaking layouts, and actually fighting Atziri instead of farming the same zones on repeat.