It’s that time of year once again Path of Exile fans. As Legion League winds down, Grinding Gear Games has revealed their newest major content update that’s coming for Path of Exile 3.8. Say hello to the Blight, just don’t get to close.
A New Challenge And A New Friend
The introduction of Path of Exile 3.8 will bring a new corrupting influence to the lands of Oriath and Wraeclast. Path of Exile is getting a new NPC to go along with these mechanics as well. The newly announced expansion will introduce Sister Cassia to the fold of ever-expanding friends to the legendary Exile.
Sister Cassia brings tales of a slithering pestilence spreading throughout the world, bringing with it a strange new entity. The cause and effect of this creeping plague is unknown, but what is known is that it’s bringing the denizens of the areas it corrupts under its thrall, turning them into savage beasts. The Exile and their allies must fight tooth and nail to stop the contagion, but they’ll have a little help.
Tower Defense
The newest mechanics in this league center around a simple goal, destroying Fungal Growths. These mysterious infections spawn in various maps, and its influence will spread over time. Fighting back the influence first entails beating down those under its control. Sister Cassia has some special tools, in the form of towers, that help with that.
There are towers that Chill, Shock, Stun, Burn, Summon, Empower, Petrify and Debilitate. Using these in the right places to take advantage of enemy weaknesses is key to success in combating the Blight. These towers form lanes that you must take control of by clearing monsters out, the tower abilities can help, but you’re still going to need plenty of DPS.
Check out the preview trailer for Blight League down below. After the break, you’ll find more details about the new challenge league and its mechanics.
Oils and Anointment
The biggest new introduction that goes along with this creeping influence is Oils and Anointment. Oils are claimed from within Blighted Maps, allowing players to trade them to Sister Cassia for Anointed Jewelry. You will want to do this as it enchants the item to grant you powerful new abilities. The Anointed items so far all seem to be items that grant free Keystone Passives, which is awesome for some really creative build ideas.
Four of the Unique Items exclusive to the Blight league form an armour set that can also be anointed with Notable Passives too.
New Skills
As always, this POE expansion brings new skills to the table for players to experiment with. Cobra Lash is one of the headline skills in Blight League. This skill lets you throw your weapon, chaining between multiple enemies and instantly poisoning them when you land a crit. A new buff called Elusive has been also added, increasing defense and mobility for a limited time.
Reworks
While this won’t be an earth-shattering rework like Legion or Synthesis, Blight League will offer some new twists on old content. Most of the tweaks appear to focus on Ascendancy balance, but you can bet that GGG has more in store as we get closer to release.
Assassin and Saboteur are both getting a balance pass. The Mine Saboteur archetype, and the builds around it, are getting a slight buff in 3.8, although details are still a bit vague, but things are looking up.
Summoners are another area of positive reworks. Certain skills will now allow you to specialize for much stronger or faster minions. This means some tree reworks are certainly coming soon. New skills alike Death Mark will aid in this by buffing the durability of your minions.
There’s many more reworks to old content as well, check out our rundown of the changes to existing content, including the plan for Legion.
Path of Exile 3.8, along with the Blight league mechanics, are due to launch for all three platforms this September. The newest expansion will go live on September 6 for PC players. PlayStation 4 and Xbox One owners will be able to check it out on September 9. You can, likewise, view the game’s official website for additional info.
