In Path of Exile 2, besides acquiring better gear and enhancing it, you can also enhance your team’s combat effectiveness by recruiting special allies. This not only reduces your damage output pressure but also helps you share some of the damage.
For example, after obtaining Tame Beast skill gem, you can cast it on a rare monster you encounter. Killing it while it’s blocked by will-o’-the-wisp will transform it into a “companion” gem, allowing you to summon it to fight alongside you.
This time, we’ll introduce a somewhat similar mechanic, Bind Spectre. It also uses the skill gem of the same name. Using this skill, you capture the spirit of the slain monster and bind it as your spectre, providing additional support.
This presents a key question: which Spectres should be prioritized for binding? This is especially difficult to choose with the addition of several new spectres to the game since Patch 0.3.0. Next, POECurrency.com will provide you with the latest Spectre rankings.
Bind Spectre Mechanics Overview
Before understanding the spectre tiers, it’s necessary to first provide a detailed explanation of how Bind Spectre works.
After obtaining Bind Spectre skill gem, use it on fallen enemy corpses to capture their spirits. You can then summon spectres and use their skills to assist in battle. Importantly, spectres can be revived repeatedly.
However, to summon spectres, you must maintain a certain amount of spirit, which is quite difficult to obtain. Therefore, to ensure you equip the best spectres without wasting spirit, we’ve provided the following spectre rankings.
In addition, as you search for and farm spectres, you can earn PoE 2 currency, or materials needed to complete the main quest through related battles. By structuring your battle schedule, you can maximize your loot farming efficiency.
1. Frozen Mandibles
This spectre requires 99 spirit and was added via Interludes in patch 0.3.0. You can find it in Ashen Forest and defeat it to complete the spectre binding.
As the strongest spectre in PoE 2, Frozen Mandibles offer a significant damage bonus, especially excellent single-target damage, and boast a high movement speed.
In addition, when summoned in combat, they fire icy projectiles at the ground. These projectiles explode after a momentary delay, dealing cold damage to your enemies.
2. Powered Zealots
Comparatively, these spectres require much less spirit, only 55, but they’re still incredibly powerful. Powered Zealots create lightning projectiles that deal AoE damage, quickly clearing the enemy and helping you earn more PoE 2 currency at once.
On the other hand, they also have a chance to deal enough single-target damage to hit the same enemy multiple times if you use their lightning ability with Pierce support gem.
To obtain this spectre, you need to travel to and defeat Etched Ravine in Interludes. Note that more powerful spectres are also more difficult to defeat, it’s best to buy cheap and safe PoE 2 currency from POECurrency.com to enhance your gear affixes in advance.
3. Vaal Guards
This spectre already appeared in Utzaal in Act 3, and even with the addition of new spectres, it remains reliable and only requires 50 spirit to be effective.
Vaal Guards can quickly clear the enemy with their screen-wide grenade explosions, and their attack range is further increased when combined with the support gem, Scatter Shot.
4. Cultist Archers
You can obtain this spectre in Freythorn in Act 1 when you first enter the game, reserving 60 spirit for the slot. Their advantage lies in their ranged damage, which most spectres lack.
In addition, Cultist Archers can use their special ability to create a poisonous flower that explodes after a brief delay. The more Cultist Archers you summon, the more you can create enough explosions to cover all enemies, quickly ending the fight.
5. Wardrum Kin
This spectre can be found in both Isle of Kin and Volcanic Warrens in Act 4, requiring approximately 64 spirit. They primarily create a circle of damage around themselves by constantly beating their drums, dealing significant AoE damage.
However, Wardrum Kin has a significant drawback: its low movement speed and maneuverability, making it difficult to fully utilize its potential unless combined with warp tech.
6. Twilight Order Oathsworn
If you started the game immediately after the release of Patch 0.3.0 and have already completed the quests in Acts 1-3, you’ll quickly find this spectre in Arastas in Act 4 and can later summon it by consuming 57 spirit energy.
This spectre’s damage is similar to a mage’s, constantly tracking a specific enemy throughout the fight and targeting them with a laser, which then deals damage. It’s ideal for single-target bosses.
If you want Twilight Order Oathsworn to deal AoE damage, combine it with Wildshards support gem to expand its single beam and convert it into an AoE attack.
7. Ancestral Channeler
You can find this spectre in Act 4, Halls of the Dead. Once bound and summoned, they will continue to summon spherical minions, firing frost projectiles upon detecting nearby enemies, dealing frost damage.
Ancestral Channeler’s strength lies in its ability to stack with frost projectiles for significant damage. However, its weaknesses include slow speed and low health, making it easily displaced by enemies.
8. Gargantuan Wasps
A new spectre in Rise of the Abyssal League, Gargantuan Wasps appear in Arastas in Act 4 or Ashen Forest in Interludes. They require 84 spirits.
Their strength lies in their exceptional speed and their ability to fly around terrain obstacles and attack enemies hiding on the sidelines.
Thus, while their overall damage output isn’t exceptional, their speed allows them to deliver more attacks, making them excellent support in combat.
These are the spectres we’ve introduced to you this time. While we’ve ranked them by overall strength, as long as you choose the spectres that best suits you in battle and maximize their effectiveness, then it will be the best for you!