Now that you’ve conquered Acts 1-5 and chosen the Infernalist Ascendancy, it’s time to tackle Cruel Mode. This phase separates good builds from great ones, as enemies hit harder, resistances become crucial, and your minions need serious upgrades. In this fourth part of our guide, we’ll focus on mid-to-late game strategies, gear progression, and how to make your Witch Minion build unstoppable.
Cruel Mode Challenges and Preparation
Cruel Mode ramps up difficulty by increasing enemy damage, reducing resistances, and adding deadlier boss mechanics. Here’s what to prioritize:
Cap Resistances – Fire, Cold, and Lightning resistances must be at 75% or higher.
Boost Minion Life – Your minions need to tank more damage, so gear with +Minion Life and defensive stats is essential.
Mana Management – Cruel Mode fights are longer; maintaining mana for consistent summoning is key.
Key Strategy: Prioritize defensive flask upgrades. Granite and Basalt flasks add essential armor, while Sapphire and Topaz flasks counter elemental bosses.
Essential Gear for Cruel Mode
By this stage, gear upgrades heavily influence performance. Look for these specific items and stats:
Weapons (Wands/Scepters):
+1 to Minion Skills – Increases overall minion levels.
Fire Damage to Minions – Synergizes with Infernalist.
Trigger Socketed Minion Skills – Auto-cast minion abilities for smoother gameplay.
Armor (Body/Helm/Gloves):
Minion Life and Resistances – Ensures minions survive harder encounters.
+Spirit or Mana Regen – Keeps summoning consistent.
+Minion Damage – Core stat for boosting army DPS.
Jewelry (Amulet/Rings):
+Fire Damage to Spells – Increases Flame Wall and Bone Blast efficiency.
+Resistances – Helps cap your elemental resistances.
Minion Regen or Leech – Enhances sustain during prolonged fights.
Gem Setup for Cruel Mode
By this stage, aim for 5-6 link setups to maximize damage output.
Main Summon (6-Link):
Skeletal Arsonists
Links: Feeding Frenzy – Fire Penetration – Immolate – Minion Damage – Elemental Focus.
Flaming Raging Spirits (5-Link):
Links: Spell Echo – Elemental Damage – Minion Speed – Combustion.
Support Minions (4-Link):
Skeletal Cleric:
Links: Minion Life – Increased Duration – Minion Resistances.
Utility (3-Link):
Flame Wall:
Links: Flammability – Arcane Surge.
Mid-to-Late Game Bossing Tactics
Positioning is Key – Place Flame Wall directly between you and the boss for consistent DPS.
Keep Clerics Active – They provide critical healing to minions during drawn-out fights.
Focus on Movement – Avoid standing still. Minions can handle the fight, but staying mobile prevents unnecessary deaths.
Boss Priority: Focus on killing adds first—minions excel at AoE clear, and reducing distractions lets them focus on the main threat.
Late-Game Goals and Mapping
Once Cruel Mode is under control, mapping becomes the next goal. Farm lower-tier maps for gear before pushing higher-tier content. Minion builds shine in map-clearing due to their innate crowd control.
Mapping Tips:
Map Mods: Avoid maps with “% Less Minion Life” or “Cannot Regenerate Life/Mana.” These mods cripple your build.
Focus on Density – Maps with large mob packs allow minions to snowball damage.
Chaining Explosions – Skeletal Bombers in dense maps clear waves faster than almost any other skill.
Conclusion
Cruel Mode tests your build’s durability, but with the right path of exile 2 currency for sale. and setup, your Witch Minion army will dominate. In the final part of this guide, we’ll explore endgame mapping strategies, boss fights, and optimizing for the hardest content PoE 2 offers.
Need better gear to smooth out Cruel Mode progression? U4GM provides affordable buy path of exile 2 orb and poe 2 currency for sale to give your minions the edge they need. Don’t struggle—gear up and let your minions do the heavy lifting!