Path of Exile 2 Ascendancy: Trial of the Sekhemas

Here’s how to Ascend your class in Path of Exile 2 by completing the Trial of the Sekhemas

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Grinding Gear Games

Trying to figure out how to complete the Trial of the Sekhemas in Path of Exile 2? As you progress through Path of Exile 2 , you’ll soon feel the need to Ascend and take your character class to the next level. This can be done via the Trial of Sekhemas, one of the Ascendancy Trials included in Path of Exile 2’s Early Access. Completing this trial will let you unlock new abilities for your class, but it won’t be easy, and requires you to step off the beaten path of the campaign and survive a gauntlet of fierce challenges.

In this guide we’ll explain exactly what you need to do to complete the Trial of the Sekhemas in Path of Exile 2 and put your character on the path to unlocking their Ascendancy class.

• Starting the Trial of the Sekhemas
• Trial of the Sekhemas mechanics
• Trial of the Sekhemas boss

Starting the Trial of the Sekhemas

As of Path of Exile 2’s Early Access, two Ascendancy Trials are available, and The Trial of the Sekhemas is the easier one to reach, becoming accessible in Act 2 . The Trial of Chaos, an alternate method of ascending, only becomes available in Act 3.

You can access the Trial of the Sekhemas after you’ve begun Act 2’s “The Trial of Corruption” main quest. This quest sees you entering Traitor’s Passage . If you fully explore this area, you’ll eventually come upon a wall dubbed the Ancient Seal that’s covered in parchment.

Here’s the wall you’re looking for - interact with it and enter the chamber beyond. |Image credit:IGN/Grinding Gear Games

Go through the wall to enter a room with Runic Seals on the ground. Remove them and you’ll free the djinn boss Balbala, the Traitor . Balbala’s a fast opponent who chucks throwing knives out in returning arcs, summons a minion to fight alongside her, and creates fiery runes on the ground that explode when you step over them. Fighting her requires a fair bit of dodging and dexterity, but once you’ve made short work of Balbala, pick up the Balbala’s Barya object. Taking it starts the side quest “Ascent to Power” .

You can now return to the Ardura Caravan that serves as Chapter 2’s hub. Chat with Zarka and open your map to teleport to the Trial of the Sekhemas point of interest. Be sure that you’re at least level 22 to contend with the monsters here. Once you enter and proceed through the first chamber, you’ll locate a Relic Altar. Put Balbala’s Barya onto this altar to properly kick off the Trial of the Sekhemas.

Trial of the Sekhemas mechanics

The Trial of the Sekhemas features the following mechanics that differ from Path of Exile 2’s base game:

• You’ll have to survive a series of challenges in seven rooms, with a boss encounter awaiting you in an eighth room. This is mildly reminiscent of a Roguelike experience - the first room you enter will always be randomly generated, but after you pass this first room, you’ll see a Trial map that shows all of the other challenges that await you. Every time you complete a room, you’ll receive rewards to aid you on the remainder of your journey.
• On the Trial map, you can choose from the following routes: Escape Trial , Gauntlet Trial , Ritual Trial , Chalice Trial , and Hourglass Trial . The Escape Trial requires you to activate a series of Death Crystals before a timer reaches zero. The Gauntlet Trial takes place in a room replete with traps; you’ll need to fight through and pull either one or two levers to unlock the door. The Ritual Trial requires you to defeat multiple Ritual Casters that spawn at portals. The Chalice Trial is relatively straightforward and requires you to defeat rare monsters to fill up a Chalice. And the Hourglass Trial is a simple matter of surviving against enemy waves until the timer runs out.
• Dying is not the only threat during the Trial of the Sekhemas. You’ll notice that you now have a bar at the bottom of the screen labeled Honour . This is a new stat unique to the Trial - each time you get hit while progressing through the rooms, your Honour will be reduced, and if your Honour hits zero, the Trial will fail. Alas, Honour does not restore with consumables in the same way that Life and Mana do, so get ready to dodge as best you can.
• Prior to starting the Trial of the Sekhemas, you’ll be given a chance to equip various relics at the Relic Altar . Think of these as Roguelike modifiers that can make the Trial easier. The first time you start the Trial, you’ll obviously have nothing at your disposal, but you’ll unlock Relics when fighting the Trial’s final boss that will help with future runs.
• Balbala’s Barya, the item you use to unlock the Trial the first time, is considered a Coin . This first Coin can be used as many times as it takes you to complete the Trial of the Sekhemas; just speak with Balbala at the Relic Altar. If you’ve already completed the Trial once and want to run it again, however, you’ll need a new Coin - and these Coins are one-time items that disappear if you fail the Trial. You can find additional Coins later in the game as rare drops, known as Djinn Barya .

Trial of the Sekhemas boss

At the end of all of the Trial of the Sekhemas’ rooms, you’ll face Rattlecage, the Earthbreaker . This giant is slow, tanky, and has a pair of rocky fists that slam the ground at regular intervals, letting loose bursts of lava and small volcanoes. This fight is a battle of attrition, and you’ll have to time your dodges well to avoid getting scorched. The best strategy for fighting Rattlecage is to strafe around the arena, keep your distance, and constantly chip away at his health bar while watching out for those AoE lava attacks. When his health is halfway depleted, lava will temporarily rain down from the sky, and there unfortunately aren’t any easy visual signs telling you where it’s going to hit in advance.

Rattlecage is a big fella, but you know the old saying about the bigger they are, the harder they fall. |Image credit:IGN/Grinding Gear Games

Once Rattlecage is defeated, the Trial of the Sekhemas will be completed, and you can enter the rewards room. Go up to the Altar of Ascendancies to select your Ascendancy class. You only gain two Skill points to use on the Ascendancy’s Passive Skill Tree - meaning that you’ll need to go back and rerun the Trial if you want to unlock more points. Get ready to grind, in other words, and be aware that the Trial increases in difficulty each time you complete it.

Here’s a sample of the two Ascendancy classes available for the Sorceress. Choose wisely! |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Grinding Gear Games

That concludes our look at the Trial of the Sekhemas in Path of Exile 2. For more on the mechanics that power Grinding Gear Games’ epic ARPG, see our guides to the Passive Skill Tree , Attributes , and crafting . We’ve also got a look at the best character class for beginners , as well as a list of what to do first if you’re just getting started with Path of Exile 2’s early game.

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All 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints and where to get them

These areas have the highest chance of giving you Blueprints

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Looking for more Arc Raiders Blueprints? It’s a special day when you find a Blueprint, as they’re among the most valuable items in Arc Raiders. If you find a Blueprint that you haven’t already found, then you must make sure you hold onto it at all costs, because Blueprints are the key to one of the most important and powerful systems of meta-progression in the game.

This guide aims to be the very best guide on Blueprints you can find, starting with a primer on what exactly they are and how they work in Arc Raiders, before delving into exactly where to get Blueprints and the very best farming spots for you to take in your search.

We’ll also go over how to get Blueprints from other unlikely activities, such as destroying Surveyors and completing specific quests. And you’ll also find the full list of all 75 Blueprints in Arc Raiders on this page (including the newest Blueprints added with the Cold Snap update , such as the Deadline Blueprint and Firework Box Blueprint), giving you all the information you need to expand your own crafting repertoire.

In this guide:

• What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?
• Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes
• Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders Blueprints obtained from quests Blueprints obtained from Trials Best Blueprint farming locations

What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?

Blueprints in Arc Raiders are special items which, if you manage to extract with them, you can expend to permanently unlock a new crafting recipe in your Workshop. If you manage to extract from a raid with an Anvil Blueprint, for example, you can unlock the ability to craft your very own Anvil Pistol, as many times as you like (as long as you have the crafting materials).

To use a Blueprint, simply open your Inventory while in the lobby, then right-click on the Blueprint and click “Learn And Consume” . This will permanently unlock the recipe for that item in your Workshop. As of the Stella Montis update, there are allegedly 75 different Blueprints to unlock - although only 68 are confirmed to be in the game so far. You can see all the Blueprints you’ve found and unlocked by going to the Workshop menu, and hitting “R” to bring up the Blueprint screen.

It’s possible to find duplicates of past Blueprints you’ve already unlocked. If you find these, then you can either sell them, or - if you like to play with friends - you can take it into a match and gift it to your friend so they can unlock that recipe for themselves. Another option is to keep hold of them until the time comes to donate them to the Expedition.

Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes

Below is the full list of all the Blueprints that are currently available to find in Arc Raiders, and the crafting recipe required for each item:

Note: The missing Blueprints in this list likely have not actually been added to the game at the time of writing, because none of the playerbase has managed to find any of them. As they are added to the game, I will update this page with the most relevant information so you know exactly how to get all 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints.

Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders

Below is a list of all containers, modifiers, and events which maximise your chances of finding Blueprints:

• Certain quests reward you with specific Blueprints .
• Completing Trials has a high chance of offering Blueprints as rewards.
• Surveyors have a decent chance of dropping Blueprints on death.
• High loot value areas tend to have a greater chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Night Raids and Storms may increase rare Blueprint spawn chances in containers.
• Containers with higher numbers of items may have a higher tendency to spawn Blueprints. As a result, Blue Gate (which has many “large” containers containing multiple items) may give you a higher chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Raider containers (Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, Medical Bags, Grenade Tubes) have increased Blueprint drop rates. As a result, the Uncovered Caches event gives you a high chance of finding Blueprints.
• Security Lockers have a higher than average chance of containing Blueprints.
• Certain Blueprints only seem to spawn under specific circumstances: Tempest Blueprint only spawns during Night Raid events. Vulcano Blueprint only spawns during Hidden Bunker events. Jupiter and Equaliser Blueprints only spawn during Harvester events.

Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, and other raider-oriented container types have a good chance of offering Blueprints. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints have a very low chance of spawning in any container in Arc Raiders, around 1-2% on average. However, there is a higher chance of finding Blueprints in particular container types. Specifically, you can find more Blueprints in Raider containers and security lockers.

Beyond this, if you’re looking for Blueprints you should focus on regions of the map which are marked as having particularly high-value loot. Areas such as the Control Tower in Dam Battlegrounds, the Arrival and Departure Buildings in Spaceport, and Pilgrim’s Peak in Blue Gate all have a better-than-average chance of spawning Blueprints somewhere amongst all their containers. Night Raids and Electromagnetic Storm events also increase the drop chances of certain Blueprints .

In addition to these containers, you can often loot Blueprints from destroyed Surveyors - the largest of the rolling ball ARC. Surveyors are more commonly found on the later maps - Spaceport and Blue Gate - and if one spawns in your match, you’ll likely see it by the blue laser beam that it casts into the sky while “surveying”.

Surveyors are quite well-armoured and will very speedily run away from you once it notices you, but if you can take one down then make sure you loot all its parts for a chance of obtaining certain unusual Blueprints.

Blueprints obtained from quests

One way in which you can get Blueprints is by completing certain quests for the vendors in Speranza. Some quests will reward you with a specific item Blueprint upon completion, so as long as you work through all the quests in Arc Raiders, you are guaranteed those Blueprints.

Here is the full list of all Blueprints you can get from quest rewards:

• Trigger Nade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Sparks Fly”.
• Lure Grenade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Greasing Her Palms”.
• Burletta Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Industrial Espionage”.
• Hullcracker Blueprint (and Launcher Ammo Blueprint): Rewarded after completing “The Major’s Footlocker”.

Alas, that’s only 4 Blueprints out of a total of 75 to unlock, so for the vast majority you will need to find them yourself during a raid. If you’re intent on farming Blueprints, then it’s best to equip yourself with cheap gear in case you lose it, but don’t use a free loadout because then you won’t get a safe pocket to stash any new Blueprint you find. No pain in Arc Raiders is sharper than failing to extract with a new Blueprint you’ve been after for a dozen hours already.

One of the best ways to get Blueprints is by hitting three stars on all five Trials every week. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints obtained from Trials

One of the very best ways to get Blueprints is as rewards for completing Trials in Arc Raiders. Trials are unlocked from Level 15 onwards, and allow you to earn rewards by focusing on certain tasks over the course of several raids. For example, one Trial might task you with dealing damage to Hornets, while another might challenge you to loot Supply Drops.

Trials refresh on a weekly basis, with a new week bringing five new Trials. Each Trial can offer up to three rewards after passing certain score milestones, and it’s possible to receive very high level loot from these reward crates - including Blueprints. So if you want to unlock as many Blueprints as possible, you should make a point of completing as many Trials as possible each week.

Best Blueprint farming locations

The very best way to get Blueprints is to frequent specific areas of the maps which combine high-tier loot pools with the right types of containers to search. Here are my recommendations for where to find Blueprints on every map, so you can always keep the search going for new crafting recipes to unlock.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Dam Battlegrounds

The best places to farm Blueprints on Dam Battlegrounds are the Control Tower, Power Generation Complex, Ruby Residence, and Pale Apartments . The first two regions, despite only being marked on the map as mid-tier loot, contain a phenomenal number of containers to loot. The Control Tower can also contain a couple of high-tier Security Lockers - though of course, you’ll need to have unlocked the Security Breach skill at the end of the Survival tree.

There’s also a lot of reporting amongst the playerbase that the Residential areas in the top-left of the map - Pale Apartments and Ruby Residence - give you a comparatively strong chance of finding Blueprints. Considering their size, there’s a high density of containers to loot in both locations, and they also have the benefit of being fairly out of the way. So you’re more likely to have all the containers to yourself.

Buried City

The best Blueprint farming locations on Buried City are the Santa Maria Houses, Grandioso Apartments, Town Hall, and the various buildings of the New District . Grandioso Apartments has a lower number of containers than the rest, but a high chance of spawning weapon cases - which have good Blueprint drop rates. The others are high-tier loot areas, with plenty of lootable containers - including Security Lockers.

Spaceport

The best places to find Blueprints on Spaceport are the Arrival and Departure Buildings, as well as Control Tower A6 and the Launch Towers . All these areas are labelled as high-value loot regions, and many of them are also very handily connected to one another by the Spaceport wall, which you can use to quickly run from one area to the next. At the tops of most of these buildings you’ll find at least one Security Locker, so this is an excellent farming route for players looking to find Blueprints.

The downside to looting Blueprints on Spaceport is that all these areas are hotly contested, particularly in Duos and Squads. You’ll need to be very focused and fast in order to complete the full farming route.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blue Gate

Blue Gate tends to have a good chance of dropping Blueprints, potentially because it generally has a high number of containers which can hold lots of items; so there’s a higher chance of a Blueprint spawning in each container. In my experience, the best Blueprint farming spots on Blue Gate are Pilgrim’s Peak, Raider’s Refuge, the Ancient Fort, and the Underground Complex beneath the Warehouse .

All of these areas contain a wealth of containers to loot. Raider’s Refuge has less to loot, but the majority of the containers in and around the Refuge are raider containers, which have a high chance of containing Blueprints - particularly during major events.

Stella Montis

On the whole, Stella Montis seems to have a very low drop rate for Blueprints (though a high chance of dropping other high-tier loot). If you do want to try farming Blueprints on this map, the best places to find Blueprints in Stella Montis are Medical Research, Assembly Workshop, and the Business Center . These areas have the highest density of containers to loot on the map.

In addition to this, the Western Tunnel has a few different Security Lockers to loot, so while there’s very little to loot elsewhere in this area of the map, it’s worth hitting those Security Lockers if you spawn there at the start of a match.

That wraps up this primer on how to get all the Blueprints in Arc Raiders as quickly as possible. With the Expedition system constantly resetting a large number of players’ Blueprints, it’s more important than ever to have the most up-to-date information on where to find all these Blueprints.

While you’re here, be sure to check out our Arc Raiders best guns tier list , as well as our primers on the best skills to unlock and all the different Field Depot locations on every map.

ARC Raiders

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