[Top 10] Path of Exile Best Class Builds (PoE Best Class for Max Damage)

Updated:

05 Apr 2022

[Top 10] Path of Exile Best Class Builds (PoE Best Class for Max Damage)

Path of Exile has many classes and Ascendancies, and as such, it is hard to see which is better and worse. With that in mind, I’ve collected a few of the best classes and their respective builds. And here they are! The Top 10 PoE Classes!

10 – Assassin

The Assassin

The Assassin is all about killing before being killed. They excel in critical strikes, both for ailments and for hits, they can do it all. Truly the archetypal glass canon!

What the Assassin Excel in:

One of the quickest classes in the game, with a high Elusive Effect.
Has one of the highest potential for damage in the game.
Can be scaled in many different ways, for several types of builds.

Pìck the Assassin if you Like:

Playing any Cast on Crit, as they are the best ascendancy for that. You also can double the +1 Power charge the Assassin gets, and his other benefits, to scale Power and Frenzy Charges with the Badge of the Brotherhood, since that amulet makes so your maximum Power charge also becomes your maximum Frenzy charge.
Dealing massive amounts of damage. Being a purely offensive ascendancy, the Assassin is all about killing enemies quickly and efficiently, and leaving nothing behind, at the cost of being paper-thin, though you can remedy that with a few mechanics.

Best builds for Assassin:

https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3225536
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/2284176
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3079012

9 – Slayer

The Slayer

The Slayer is almost the brother of the Assassin, where all it cares about is dealing as much damage as possible and gorging himself in the blood of enemies to fuel his frenzy. But where the Assassin is laser-focused on single enemies, the Slayer excels when faced against hordes of them!

What the Slayer Excels in:

The famous Slayer Leech, able to charge up your leech so you have near-instant recovery.
Slayer Cull, the only class or skill in the game that instantly kills anything with less than 20% HP, essentially a 6/5 More damage multiplier.
Is the god of weapons and can use anything from daggers to bows and scepters. Build variety, from Spells to attacks and even unarmed totems.

Pick the Slayer if you Like:

Sassy character lines. I’m kidding, but not really, he’s amazing. The Slayer is the only class that can perform the insanely powerful combo with Badge of the Brotherhood, Arn’s Anguish, and Dual Void Battery, to achieve 9+ Frenzy/Power/Brutal Charges, so you can deal insane amounts of damage with your spells.
You can also use any weapon and make it a strong weapon to Critically strike with, essentially ignoring the need to spec into Base Crit Chance, and making certain unique weapons viable.

Best builds for the Slayer:

https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3229063
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/2976624
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3251425

8 – Berserker

The Berserker

The Berserker is all about dealing as much damage as possible before dying. He even embodies that with his Aspect of Carnage, which grants a massive boost to damage at the cost of taking 10% more damage. He’s also unique in being the only class that revolves around Warcries, and is capable of boosting his damage to the heavens with his shouts to the wind!

What the Berserker Excels in:

One of the highest damage potential classes in the game.
Very versatile, being able to play with several different archetypes.
Very straightforward, and has the best synergy with Rage.

Pick Berserker if you Like:

Playing any Rage skill, or scaling Rage in any substantial way.
Warcries that massively boost your damage, combined with Rage and Aspect of Carnage.
Destroy enemies before they can even see you, much less attack you.

Best Builds for Berserker:

https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3229740
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/2998167
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/2618769

7 – Elementalist

The Elementalist

As the name suggests, she is the master of elements, and is the single best class for Ignite builds, but can make any other element-based skill work. She’s also a fantastic, and probably the best Golemancer, getting tons of benefits from them.

What the Elementalist Excels in:

Best ignite builds in the game.
Golemancer dedicated Ascendancy.
High build variety.

Pick the Elementalist if you Like:

Commanding an army of Golems.
Clearing screens through ignite proliferation and being able to ignite with any kind of damage, even chaos.

Best builds for Elementalist:

https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3229590
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3174762
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3229979

6 – Raider

The Raider

The fastest class in the game, the Raider can blitz through anyone and everyone, and is one the smoothest classes to play with. While she lacks in the offense, she more than makes up for defense and speed.

What the Raider Excels in:

Extremely flexible in build choices. She can do Attacks, Spells, Chaos DoT, Physical, Chaos, Elemental, Melee, Bow, anything.
Fastest Ascendancy in the game.
The easiest class to achieve Elemental Immunity and Phasing with.

Pick Raider if you Like:

Speed mapping while ignoring anything and anyone, easily achieving 200+ Base movement speed.
Has the most versatile kit in the game.

Best Raider builds:

https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3006940
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3254104
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/2912054

5 – Inquisitor

The Inquisitor

The Inquisitor is one of the few classes that can go truly hybrid with Life and ES and be extremely rewarded for doing so, with his unique regeneration mechanic. He is one of the few classes that can achieve true immortality because of it, and as such, it’s quite the popular pick in this league.

What the Inquisitor Excels in:

Unique regeneration mechanic with buffed-up Consecrated Ground.
Can completely ignore enemies’ resistance and doesn’t need Penetration.
Extremely easy to cap on Critical strikes.

Pick the Inquisitor if you Like:

Being Tanky with fairly low investment.
Being critically capped with nary an effort.
Able to either go for Battlemage, the only Class with access to that, or completely ignore the enemies’ resistances, and demolish any enemies without an issue.

Best Inquisitor builds:

https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3248368
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/2865430
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3246656

4 – Ascendant

The Ascendant

The Ascendant is the Jack of All Trades in Path of Exile. She can do everything fairly well, and a master of none, but her flexibility allows her to do unique things since she can stretch from top right to top left of the tree if she so chooses.

What the Ascendant Excels in:

The most flexible class in the game.
The class with the highest potential in the game.
Has access to the most amount of jewel sockets and can access parts in the passive that are impossible for other classes.

Pick the Ascendant if you Like:

With how she works, you can essentially be an Int/Str based character, but still go down to the Ranger side to pick up other goodies without having to travel, saving up points, and being the most flexible class there is.
She can also do every single build, with proper investment, and with insane investment, she can get the most damage of all classes.

Best Ascendants builds:

https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/2885943
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3252273
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/2913007

3 – Deadeye

Elemental Hit against Baran

The Deadeye is the Queen of Projectiles. She can manipulate them in a way to make them excel further than any other class can. If you want perfect Barrages, that doesn’t lose damage for splinters, she does it. You want free and unique Chains? She does it. One of the fastest classes in the game, the Deadeye can cruse through enemies and pack a massive punch while doing so!

What the Deadeye Excels in:

Free Chain, +2 Projectiles (spells and attacks), Straight Barrages, and free Tailwind.
While she’s mostly a Bow user, she can also use projectiles to supreme effect.
Has the best Mark enhancement in the game.

Pick the Deadeye if you Like:

Clearing screens of monsters with a few shots.
Having the best Tailwind in the game along with the best Marks in the game.
Free Projectiles.

Best builds for Deadeye:

https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3244077
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3207105
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3216828

2 – Occultist

The Occultist with Bane

Where the Elementalist excels with Fire, the Occultist shines in Cold and Chaos spells. She’s the only class that has access to one of the most powerful clearing tools in the game, Profane Bloom.

What the Occultist Excels in:

Free +1 Curse, Profane Bloom, Strongest Chaos DoT class (Raider is quicker), Power Charge Stacker.
Extremely flexible in build choices.
Can be ridiculously tanky, and is the best Blackflame Ignite build in the game.

Pick the Occultist If you Like:

Profane Bloom is single-handedly the most satisfying feeling there is, except maybe for Gladiator’s bleed pops.
Can be even stronger than the Assassin for Power Charge Stacking.
Has the highest damage possible for any Chaos DoT Skill, especially if you combo it with +1 Curse, for extra damage and safety.

Best builds for the Occultist:

https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/2661120
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3250447
https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/3244618

1 – Necromancer

The Necromancer with her minions.

The Queen of the Undead, the Necromancer can command hordes of minions to deal with her problems with just a wave of her hand. A class designed to make the most out of minions and corpses, she excels in the sheer flexibility and power output she dishes out!

What the Necromancer Excels in:

One of the easiest classes to be capped Blocked, both Spells and Attacks, without Glancing Blows.
Is the best minion class and minions by themselves are as varied as the stars.
One of the best classes for ‘bang for your buck’ scenarios. She scales superbly well with investment but is one of the best to League Start with.

Pick the Necromancer if you Like:

Commanding hordes of minions while you’re safe behind a meat wall of zombies or golems.
Living out your fantasy of exploding corpses and demolishing your enemies with VD, DD, or Cremation.
AFK Farm anything without a care in the world. Minions do it all!

Best builds for the Necromancer: