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PoE 2 Build

0.5.5 Grenade Gemling League Starter

0.5 RotA

Featured

By Lolcohol

Updated on Sep 1, 2026

Sep 1, 2026

Build Overview

This is my league starter for the PoE 2 0.5.5 Forbidden Rites event. I ran this build in SSF from Act I to Arbiter of Divinity and it was incredibly simple, smooth, and tanky. This is a perfect beginner league starter build for people who either want a safe and comfy league start, or for those who plan to reroll into a more expensive and complex Gemling build after farming some Currency in the endgame

Act 1-3 Campaign Run Live Stream: https://www.youtube.com/live/kqIAdrPJs_E?si=lKp7grE7fKPNh4NO&t=1555

Strengths and Weaknesses

Very Beginner-Friendly
Great Single Target Damage
Great Defences
SSF-Friendly
Easy to reroll into a different endgame build

Some people dislike the delayed damage playstyle of Grenades
Hard on the eyes. Turn off Global Illumination if it is too bright

Build Variants

Act I

Act II

Act III

Act IV

Starting Maps

Arbiter of Ash

Fourth Ascendancy

Act 1 Vendor Regex: "ent spe|to att|ssbow" "!uiv"

We use Explosive Grenade as soon as we cut it with our first Uncut Skill Gem from Renly
Use Fragmentation Rounds to help your clear and Crossbow Shot for single target while your Explosive Grenade is on Cooldown
Find the Mysterious Campfire in Clearfell and cut Frost Bomb which we use to apply Exposure to bosses, lowering their Resistances
You can also use a Talisman to enter Wolf form to move more quickly, but this isn't mandatory
Uncut Skill Gem 3: Flash Grenade and level your Explosive Grenade
Uncut Skill Gem 3: Pounce for additional mobility
Uncut Skill Gem 5: Gas Grenade
Uncut Spirit Gem: Attrition

Equipment

Act I

Act II

Act III

Act IV

Starting Maps

Arbiter of Ash

Fourth Ascendancy

Set 1

Set 2

Equipment Priority

+10

Act 1 Vendor Regex:

"ent spe|to att|ssbow" "!uiv"

(Copy and paste into vendor to highlight possible upgrades)

Items

Important: Make sure to upgrade your Crossbow to ensure you are dealing as much damage as possible. Sockets with Elemental Runes such as Lesser Desert Rune. Lesser Glacial Rune or Lesser Storm Rune are extremely strong early on.

Iron Rings are a huge damage boost early on, so keep a look out for these!

You will be getting most of your damage early on from your Crossbow, but also Iron Rings and Gloves

Weapon: Crossbow

% increased Physical Damage (Prefix)
# to # Physical Damage, Fire Damage, Lightning Damage and/or Cold Damage (Prefix)
% increased Elemental Damage with Attacks (Prefix)
Level of All Projectile Skills (Suffix) - massive damage but increases your Mana Costs
% increased Attack Speed (Suffix)

Rings: Iron Ring

# to # Physical Damage, Fire Damage, Lightning Damage and/or Cold Damage (Prefix)
Maximum Life (Prefix)
Resistances (Suffix)
Attributes (Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence - Suffix)

Gloves

# to # Physical Damage, Fire Damage, Lightning Damage and/or Cold Damage (Prefix)
Maximum Life (Prefix)
Resistances (Suffix)
Attributes (Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence - Suffix)

Other Gear

Boots - Movement Speed, Life, Resistances

Body Armour, Helmet - Life, Resistances (particularly Cold Resistance for Act 1)

Amulet - Look for a base that grants increased Attributes. A Lapis Amulet is particularly useful as it allows you to increase the level of your Contagion up until Level 14

Flask Upgrades

It's very important to upgrade your Flasks regularly as this is one of the few sources of recovery early on

Level 1: Lesser Life Flask and Lesser Mana Flask
Level 4: Medium Life Flask and Medium Mana Flask
Level 10: Greater Life Flask and Greater Mana Flask

Try to get modifiers such as "#% increased Amount Recovered" early on

Crossbow Upgrade Breakpoints

Level 1: Makeshift Crossbow 7-12 Physical Damage
Level 4: Tense Crossbow: 8-15 Physical Damage, Str/Dex Required: 8/8
Level 10: Sturdy Crossbow: 11-26 Physical Damage, Str/Dex Required: 15/15
Level 16: Varnished Crossbow: Very important upgrade breakpoint! It's worth investing a lot of Currency into a good Varnished Crossbow as this can carry you throughout Act 2

Skill Gems

Act I

Act II

Act III

Act IV

Starting Maps

Arbiter of Ash

Fourth Ascendancy

Support Gem Requirements:

Str 10

Dex 35

Int 0

Fragmentation Rounds

Level 3

Explosive Grenade

Level 3

Crossbow Shot

Frost Bomb

Level 1

Flash Grenade

Level 3

Pounce

Level 3

Attrition

Gas Grenade

Gem Priority

Supports in Order

Multishot I - Explosive Grenade
Elemental Armament I - Explosive Grenade
Rapid Attacks I - Crossbow Shot and Fragmentation Rounds (if you have extra Supports)
Multishot I - Crossbow Shot
Multishot I - Flash Grenade
Pin I - Flash Grenade
Multishot I - Gas Grenade
Elemental Armament I - Gas Grenade

Passive Tree

Act I

Act II

Act III

Act IV

Starting Maps

Arbiter of Ash

Fourth Ascendancy

main:

123

set 1:

set 2:

Quest Rewards

Check which quests you’ve completed on your character

Clearfell — Beira of the Rotten Pack

+10% to Cold Resistance

Hunting Grounds — The Crowbell

Grants Two Weapon Set Passive Skill Points

Freythorn — The King in the Mists

+30 to Spirit

Ogham Farmlands — Una's Hut

Grants Two Weapon Set Passive Skill Points

Ogham Manor — Candlemass, the Living Rite

+20 to maximum Life

Keth — Kabala, Constrictor Queen

Grants Two Weapon Set Passive Skill Points

Valley of the Titans — Medallion

30% increased Charm Charges gained

+1 Charm Slot

Deshar — Final Letter

Grants Two Weapon Set Passive Skill Points

The Spires of Deshar — Sisters of Garukhan

+10% to Lightning Resistance

Jungle Ruins — Mighty Silverfist

Grants Two Weapon Set Passive Skill Points

The Venom Crypts — Venom Draught

25% increased Mana Regeneration Rate

Jiquani's Machinarium — Blackjaw, the Remnant

+10% to Fire Resistance

The Azak Bog — Ignagduk, the Bog Witch

+30 to Spirit

The Molten Vault — The Molten Vault

Reforging Bench

Aggorat — Blood Sacrifice

Grants Two Weapon Set Passive Skill Points

Journey's End — Captain Hartlin

Two Weapon Set Passive Skill Points

Skill Gem(Lv 13)

Delirium Drop

Whakapanu Island — Great White One

+30% increased Global Armour, Evasion and Energy Shield

Eye of Hinekora — Navali's Rest

5% increased Maximum Mana

Halls of the Dead — Yama The White

Grants Two Weapon Set Passive Skill Points

Halls of the Dead — Tawhoa's Test

+5% to Lightning Resistance

Abandoned Prison — Goddess of Justice

30% increased Life Recovery from Flasks

Halls of the Dead — Tasalio's Test

+5% to Cold Resistance

Halls of the Dead — Ngamahu's Test

+5% to Fire Resistance

Halls of the Dead — Tribal Medicine

+30% increased Global Armour, Evasion and Energy Shield

Wolvenhold — Oswin, the Dread Warden

Grants Two Weapon Set Passive Skill Points

The Khari Crossing — Akthi and Anundr

Two Weapon Set Passive Skill Points

The Khari Crossing — Molten Shrine

5% increased Maximum Life

Qimah — Tabana's Pillar

12% increased Cooldown Recovery Rate

Kriar Village — Lythara, the Wayward Spear

+40 to Spirit

Howling Caves — The Abominable Yeti

Grants Two Weapon Set Passive Skill Points

How it Plays

Mana Solutions

If you keep running out of Mana, here are some ideas. Once we ascend and take Gem Studded this is a non-issue for the most part:

Have you been upgrading your Mana Flasks?
Roll your Mana Flasks with modifiers that grant 0.20 Charges per Second or increased number of Charges, or Reduced Charges per Use
Jewels can roll modifiers that grant #% Mana gained on Kill
Do you have too many + to Projectile Levels on your character?
Mana Gain on Kill is a decent modifier early on and can be found on many different gear pieces
Clarity II or even Clarity I is great to assist Mana Regen
Mana Regeneration on gear
Inspiration Support can be used to reduce the Mana cost of Skills
Lavianga's Spirits with Lavianga's Brew Instil on Amulet