4 min read · Jun 30, 2023
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This article delves into the reworked masteries introduced in Path of Exile’s Patch 3.21. These changes aim to provide more exciting options while reducing the prevalence of “always pick” masteries. As we anticipate the remaining masteries to be reworked in Patch 3.22, let’s look at the top five most popular new masteries added in Patch 3.21.
1. Spell Suppression Mastery: Chance to Suppress Spell Damage is Lucky
The Spell Suppression Mastery is utilized by approximately 15% of characters on the Softcore Trade Crucible ladder, including those on the opposite side of the passive tree with no direct access to this mastery. It has become a favorite among characters on the right side of the tree investing in spell suppression. This mastery significantly enhances spell suppression gearing by providing a lucky chance to suppress spell damage.
Players can utilize this mastery early on to increase their effective spell suppression chance before acquiring stronger gear. Its effectiveness is further enhanced by rolling the charm to suppress spell damage twice, making it a valuable one-point modifier. With its synergistic benefits and popularity among spell suppression builds, the Spell Suppression Mastery proves to be a powerful choice.
2. Leech Mastery: 10% of Leech is Instant
The Leech Mastery is chosen by approximately 19% of all builds on the Softcore Trade Crucible. This mastery offers tremendous sustain by providing instant leech for life, mana, and energy shield. It particularly shines in trickster builds, allowing for swift energy shield recovery. By recovering energy shield quickly, tricksters can maintain the full damage bonus provided by the Energy Leech Support gem more consistently.
Dead Eye builds heavily rely on the Leech Mastery, especially when using the Calm Spirit unique gloves. Instant leech serves as their primary form of recovery, ensuring continuous action and survivability during challenging encounters. Whether you’re a trickster or a Dead Eye, the Leech Mastery proves to be an invaluable addition to sustain-focused builds.
3. Elemental Mastery: Hits have a 25% Chance to Treat Enemy Monster Elemental Resistance Values as Inverted
The Elemental Mastery boasts a slightly higher usage rate of approximately 21% among all characters on the Softcore Trade Crucible. This mastery significantly benefits bow builds utilizing skills like Ice Shot and Lightning Arrow, often paired with the Sniper’s Mark curse. It becomes a game-changer by allowing hits to treat enemy monster elemental resistance values as inverted.
Bow builds, particularly those lacking exposure mechanics, typically face bosses with 50% elemental resistance against their damage. When the Elemental Mastery procs, their hits deal damage like the boss had -50% elemental resistance. This substantial damage increase from a single passive point investment makes the Elemental Mastery highly sought after, even if the boss has some elemental resistance reduction from a curse.
4. Life Mastery: 15% Increased Maximum Life if There are No Life Modifiers on Equipped Body Armor
The Life Mastery, chosen by approximately 26% of characters on the Softcore Trade Crucible, offers an intriguing alternative for body armor crafting. Replacing the 10% Increased Maximum Life Mastery from the previous patch, this mastery caters to different use cases. Many Dead Eye builds, especially those using the Herald of Agony unique body armor, benefit greatly from this mastery. While the Herald of Agony provides significant added damage, spell suppression, and evasion, it lacks a life modifier, making it a perfect match for the Life Mastery.
Moreover, Juggernaut builds focusing on armor and other modifiers such as physical damage reduction (PDR) find value in the Life Mastery. By forgoing life modifiers on their body armor and allocating the mastery instead, they can optimize their character’s survivability while making crafting options more efficient. With its versatile applications, the Life Mastery has become a popular choice among various builds.
5. Mana Mastery: 12% Increased Mana Reservation Efficiency of Skills
Unsurprisingly, the Mana Mastery claims the top spot as the most popular new mastery in Patch 3.21, with a massive usage rate of 40% among characters on the Softcore Trade Crucible. With the removal of dedicated reservation efficiency masteries, this global mana reservation efficiency modifier has become a staple for many builds. It enables players to run additional auras alongside their primary skills, often requiring only three skill points and an Enlighten support gem.
Previously, investing points in a mana wheel on the passive tree may not have been a priority for some builds. However, the Mana Mastery’s inclusion has incentivized many players to allocate points to unlock the potential of running multiple auras simultaneously. Its global nature makes it a versatile and powerful choice, granting players significant flexibility in their skill setups.
As we eagerly await Patch 3.22, we can anticipate the addition of more masteries, further expanding the options available to players. It’s exciting to see the introduction of unique and interesting masteries while hoping for improvements to underperforming ones. Which set of masteries would you like to see reworked the most in Patch 3.22? Feel free to share your thoughts and preferences in the comments section below.
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