Path of Exile's second league for 2023 is Trial of the Ancestors! Arriving with patch 3.22, players get to travel to the afterlife of the Karui to defeat tribes in a series of tournaments. Here's everything you need to know about Trial of the Ancestors.

Trial of the Ancestors launches on August 18, 2023.

Table of Contents

    What is the Trial of the Ancestors?

    The league mechanic this time around is visiting the afterlife of the Karui and taking part in a tournament against the tribes.

    • There are 10 different tribes you can fight against.
    • New rewards are available, with some being unique to the tribe you are fighting.
    • You can visit the afterlife by using a returning currency, Silver Coin. We also spend these coins to enter matches.
    • Nevali awaits us in the afterlife. Welcome back!
    • The tournament itself combines autochess with the normal gameplay we love, for epic battles.
      • You can expect double-elimination fights so if you lose once, you're not completely out.
      • Before each match you need to place your warriors and other items on the field.
      • The first team to defeat the Totems of the other team wins the battle.
    • Harcore characters do not die permanently in the afterlife.
    • Each tribe has favour that can be earned. This lets you buy equipment for your warriors.
    • Each tribe also has different perks, so taking warriors from different tribes can build very different compositions.
    • Unique items are available from each tribe.

    New & Returning Stuff Coming in Trial of the Ancestors

    You can expect the following additions to Path of Exile when 3.22 launches:

    • 16 new Atlas Keystones.
    • 14 new Support Gems.
    • Reworks of both the Guardian and Chieftain Ascendancy classes.
    • Passive Skill Tattoos that replace passive skills with different effects.
    • Hinekora's Lock which let's you see the results of currency crafting so you know if it's worth using that Divine Orb.
    • Omens which are stored in your inventory and activated when their condition is met. One per combat area.
    • The return of the Forbidden Sanctum.

    Let's talk more about each of those.

    Trial of the Ancestors Tattoos

    Tattoos change the skills on your passive tree and give you new effects over the attribute bonuses. You probably won't want to get rid of all your attribute bonuses though - you'll potentially need those to equip gear and gems. Here are some of the Tattoos that we know about:

    • Tattoo of the Ngamahu Firewalker
      • Replaces a Small Strength Passive Skill
      • Grants "+8% to Fire Resistance"
    • Loyalty Tattoo of Utula
      • Replaces a Small Strength Passive Skill
      • Grants "Trigger Level 20 Summon Spirit of Utula on taking a Savage Hit from a Unique Enemy"
      • Limit 1 Loyalty Tattoo
    • Tattoo of the Ramako Scout
      • Replaces a Small Dexterity Passive Skill
      • Grants "2% increased Movement Speed"
    • Tattoo of the Valako Storm Conduit
      • Replaces a Small Intelligence Passive Skill
      • Grants "Adds 1 to 7 Lightning Damage"
    • Honoured Tattoo of the Hatungo
      • Replaces a Small Attribute Passive Skill
      • Grants "1% increased Reservation Efficiency of Skills"
    • Honoured Tattoo of the Wise Man
      • Replaces a +30 Intelligence Notable Passive Skill
      • Grants "+1 to Level of all Intelligence Skill Gems"
      • Limit 1 Notable tattoo per Attribute

    Tattoos are earned each time you win a round in the tournament.

    Trial of the Ancestors Omens

    Omens are special items that sit in your inventory until their condition is met. When it condition is met, it is consumed and the effect is activated. Omens are earned by winning an entire tournament.

    • Omen of Return
      • On Death, this Omen is consumed and a Portal to Town is created
    • Omen of Refreshment
      • Upon reaching 25% Life, this Omen is consumed and Flasks recover all charges
    • Omen of the Soul Devourer
      • On Leveling Up, this Omen is consumed and you gain Soul Eater
    • Omen of Fortune
      • On using an Orb of Chance on an item, it will become Unique if possible and this Omen will be consumed

    Only one Omen can be consumed per combat area, so don't worry about walking around with a full inventory of them. These are also tradeable, so have fun trading!

    Hinekora's Lock

    More rarely than the Omens that Hinekora offers as rewards, she can give you a lock of her hair.

    • Allows an item to foresee the result of the next Currency item used on it
    • Modifying the item in any way removes the ability to foresee

    New Atlas Passives in Trial of the Ancestors

    There are 16 new Atlas Keystones. We don't have details on all of them yet, but here's what we do know:

    • Extreme Archaeology
      • 200% increased Explosive Radius in your Maps
      • 100% increased Explosive Placement Range in your Maps
      • Expedition Monsters in your Maps spawn with an additional 10% of Life missing
      • Number of Explosives is one
    • Lucid Dreams
      • Vaal Side Areas in your Maps are no longer Corrupted
      • (Currency items can be used on non-Corrupted Vaal Side Areas)
    • Destructive Play
      • The Maven summons 1 to 3 additional Bosses when Witnessing Map Bosses
      • Modifiers to the Final Map Boss in each Map also apply to these summoned Bosses

    New Support Gems in Trial of the Ancestors

    14 new Support Gems are coming in Trial of the Ancestors. We know a couple of them so far.

    • Returning Projectiles Support
      • Projectiles from Supported Skills return to you
      • Projectiles from Supported Skills deal 70% less damage while returning
      • Projectiles from Supported Skills Pierce all targets while returning
    • Frigid Bond Support
      • Supported Skills Damage and Chill enemies between you and linked targets
      • Supported Skills deal 355.9 base Cold Damage per second
      • Damage and Chill Linger for a base duration of 2 seconds
      • Modifiers to spell damage apply to Supported Skill's damage over time effect
    • Corrupting Cries Support
      • Warcries deal damage.
    • Mortal Totem Support
      • Totems launch fiery mortars at enemies that hit them.
    • Fresh Meat Support
      • Minions gain adrenaline for a duration after they are first summoned.
    • Sacrifice Support
      • Works on spells you cast yourself or with totems.
      • They gain chaos damage based on how much life is sacrificed.

    Guardian Ascendancy Rework

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    Chieftain Ascendancy Rework

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    Sanctum League Returns

    • The end game is getting Sanctum league in the core gameplay.
      • Sanctums are now tradeable items.
      • When you play a floor, the next floor becomes a tradeable item. It saves all the previous states.

    Quote From Path of Exile

    After meeting Divinia in Act Ten, you'll find Sanctum items while playing maps in the endgame. These tradeable items each represent a whole floor of the Sanctum. Upon successfully completing that Sanctum floor, the next floor is generated as a tradeable item, with all your Boons, Afflictions and Resolve states built-in.

    We have rebalanced The Forbidden Sanctum to provide more variety in the mechanics and monsters you encounter. Most notably, your primary character defences are now able to protect your resolve. Relics have also been rebalanced and are now tradeable.