All Ailment types in Path of Exile 2, explained

Ailments are part of Path of Exile 2's vast combat mechanics. Some have a direct source of damage, while others possess more of a damage-amplifying component. These unique modifiers come in different elemental and non-elemental variants and should be leveraged to boost one’s damage profile.

These are also a two-way mechanic, as players as well as enemies can inflict and be inflicted. In this guide, we will explore all the Ailment types one can inflict, how they amplify effects, and how to best utilize them in minute-to-minute gameplay.

Note that the boss has two ailments on it (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Ailments in Path of Exile 2: How many are there and what are their functions?

There are currently seven Ailments in Path of Exile 2. Five are in the elemental category, while the rest are non-elemental in nature.

There are special restrictions and thresholds to adhere to before they can be applied to enemies, and yes, that includes you, the player.

Ailments can only be applied by the hit portion of an attack, so your default chance has to be 100%. Investing a little into Dexterity Attribute for Accuracy Rating is a good idea, so your attacks can land safely.

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Furthermore, each damage type applied by the hit will inflict their Ailments separately.

For example, any hit with a Physical, Fire, Cold, and Lightning damage component will inflict Bleeding, Poison, Ignite, Chill, and Shock on an enemy, should the player meet the appropriate thresholds. The Physical portion of the hit will apply the Bleeding and Poison ailment, while the elemental portions will apply their respective ailments.

Beyond the Accuracy Rating, the damage range of the hit is also significant for ailment and its application range. For example, any Physical hits on an enemy can apply a Bleeding ailment, but only the last hit will be counted and 70% of that hit's damage will be dealt as Bleeding per second.

Shocking outcomes (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Now that we've discussed the mechanisms of Ailments in Path of Exile 2, let's dig a little deeper into each one and what they can do in-game.

Bleeding

Any Physical hit can inflict the Bleeding ailment. Bleeding enemies take Physical damage over time, at 70% of the Physical damage of the hit that inflicted bleeding per second. This damage is amplified to an additional 140% damage per second if the enemy is moving or the bleeding has been Aggravated.

Aggravated Bleeding is a variant of the Bleeding ailment. It always treats the target as moving, dealing 100% extra damage. Once a Bleeding has been Aggravated, it will remain so until its duration expires. Aggravating one Bleeding doesn't affect other instances of Bleeding on the target or Bleeding applied afterward, and each instance of Bleeding is Aggravated separately.

The base duration of a Bleeding ailment is 5 seconds.

Poison

Poison is another non-elemental Ailment in Path of Exile 2 affected by both the Physical and Chaos damage components of the applying hit. The poison causes the affected target to take chaos damage over time, at 20% of the combined physical and chaos damage of the hit that applied it per second, with an explicit source of poison chance.

The base duration of Poison is 2 seconds.

Ignite

Ignite is inflicted by a hit dealing Fire damage and is the only elemental ailment that directly deals damage. Ignite causes the affected target to burn for 20% of the fire damage of the final hit that applied it, per second.

The base duration of an Ignite is 4 seconds.

Chill and Freeze

Stop them in their tracks (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Chill and Freeze are intertwined ailments that are applied by the Cold damage of an attack. By default, any Cold damage will Chill enemies, with only higher damage affecting the measure of Chill inflicted. Chill slows all actions of the affected target up to 50%, based on the Cold damage of the hit.

The base duration is 2 seconds.

Freeze is the alternate variant of Chill, which functions based on the Freeze buildup component of a Cold hit. Fully freezing an enemy will prevent them from taking any action for 4 seconds. Freeze can be further exploited by certain elemental skills, dealing additional damage by violently shattering the frozen enemies.

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Shock and Electrocute

Shock and Electrocute, just like Chill and Freeze, are two ailments intertwined and are inflicted by Lightning Damage. Shock increases the amount of damage taken by enemies by 20%, at maximum effect. Shock has an application range that is affected by the damage range of the Lightning hit, as a higher hit will inflict a higher Shock on the target.

The base duration of a Shock is 4 seconds.

Electrocution is the alternative to Chill, which immobilizes enemies in place for 5 seconds. Electrocution is only inflicted by specific skills and on-hit effects and cannot be inflicted by Lightning damage by default. Uniques like the Two-Handed Mace Brain Rattler and Kitoko's Current Jewelled Gloves can change this interaction and can cause almost all hits to inflict Electrocution.

Ailments in Path of Exile 2: What are Exposure and Magnitude?

Exposure and Magnitude are two modifiers that affect the outcome of elemental ailments. Magnitude modifiers from the Skill Tree can increase the potency of elemental modifiers, which are calculated after the hit is registered. For example, increasing the magnitude of a shock will apply a greater shock value to an enemy.

Elemental Equilibrium is weird, but that's the point (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

Exposure is another elemental ailment-related mechanic that reduces the resistance of an enemy to the corresponding elemental damage type. Exposure at its base reduces the elemental resistance by -20% and lasts for 4 seconds. The Elemental Equilibrium Keystone changes the functionality by removing one type of exposure to apply another.

These ailments in Path of Exile 2 can be used in various formats and by various classes. Meta skills like Cast on Shock and Cast on Freeze are perfect for Invoker and Stormweaver builds who can inflict Shocks and Freezes on the fly, with little investment. The Exploit the Elements Notable on the Passive Skill Tree is invaluable in boosting a Sorcerer's damage early on.

Likewise, Bleed and Poison are extremely viable for damage dealing, which have spawned entire builds in Path of Exile. As Path of Exile 2 is currently in Early Access, it will take some time for these mechanics to become fully fleshed out.

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