Campaign Layout Guide: Act 2

Although somewhat randomised, many of the zone layouts throughout the Path of Exile 2 campaign are fairly readable which can help making get through them more quickly. This is a basic PoE 2 campaign layout guide to help you have some sense of direction in each of these areas.

The images in this guide were created by looking for consistent patterns in each area to create a generalised method for running each zone. The images you see won't perfectly match what you have in game, and your zone orientation and locations of points of interest may be different, but these images do serve as a good guideline. Try to understand the pattern they demonstrate rather than blindly following them and expecting your in-game maps to look identical.

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If you'd like to get much more detailed insights into the various layouts of the campaign, please join in on the Campaign Codex Discord where hundreds of Exiles are already working to solve the campaign more thoroughly! The Discord server can be found here: discord.gg/Jdd8589DBy

This guide covers layouts in Act 2.
For Act 1, click here: Campaign Layout Guide: Act 1
For Act 3, click here: Campaign Layout Guide: Act 3

Thanks

Big thank you to the Campaign Codex, especially to Guitaraholic for his huge amount of data collection, collation as well as the Campaign Codex Discord server which players can join to share their layouts and insights.

Seeds and Generation

From our analysis of a fairly small sample size of zones (around 30-40 per area), it has become clear that layout seeds exist in PoE 2. This becomes most obvious when comparing Softcore and Hardcore layouts, however this likely only partially explains these different layout seeds.

The good news:

In almost all circumstances, a different seed just means that a layout will be rotated, entrances and exits will be swapped, or a point of interest will be mirrored to an opposite side of the area. From our investigation almost all layout patterns are maintained between seeds save for these variations, which means that the logic of how to run the zone is similar, but rotated

Orientation & Legend

It's sometimes hard to describe exactly in which direction to move, so we have opted for using North, East, South and West which correlates to the Top, Right, Bottom and Left-hand side of your screen.

Occasionally there will be tips like "hug the right-hand wall" from the entrance. In this case, if your character enters a zone facing West with a wall behind them, their right hand would lead the character in a Northerly direction

I have also added a confidence level to convey how sure we are of the consistency of the pattern that we have established.

Confidence: Medium

In this area, our goal is to find and slay Rathbreaker.

The town area will either be leaning diagonally to the right or left (sort of like a back slash or forward slash \ /) with the entrance to the Vastiri Desert from town leaning in a similar direction.

Right-Leaning: If the entrance to the Vastiri Desert leads up and to the right (Northeast), hug the right-hand wall; the area will open up down and to the right and you will meet another wall -- follow this wall up and to the right until you find a narrow canyon which will lead you to the boss arena. The area will follow a Z-shape pattern .

Left-Leaning: If the entrance to Vastiri Desert leans to the left, hug the left wall and do the same as the above pattern but in reverse.

Note: In the Hardcore seed of this layout, in some instances the area opened to the Southwest, but the boss room was found in the Northwest, meaning that this method isn't a sure thing.

Route

1. Hug the inside wall after leaving the town area that corresponds with the direction in which the town "leans" (eg. Hug the right hand wall if the town leans right, hug the left hand wall if the town leas left)
2. Continue until you find a narrow canyon that leads to the boss room

Confidence: Fairly High

The Mawdun Quarry is a fairly simple layout that follows an S-shape or Z-shape or loop that moves from top to bottom. There are some little "traps" along the way, such as bridges that lead to dead ends, but this layout is fairly simple with two major open sections separated by a bridge. The final section of the area that will lead you to the Mawdun Mine is preceded by one more bridge and checkpoint.

When you first start the area, it might not be immediately obvious if you are moving up or down, but it will become clear quite quickly. Usually, hugging a wall and following the bridges will get you through this zone fairly efficiently.

When in doubt, hug a wall.

Confidence: Very High

The Mawdun Mine has a very static layout which is easy to follow.

Imagine the area like a diamond: you spawn on the bottom-ish corner of the diamond and will find the boss at the top corner. Some layouts has the area leaning more to the right, or you might spawn more on the side than the corner, but if you keep moving upward in a Northerly direction, you will find the boss without problems.

Pro Tip: This boss can deal a ton of damage, so try to get your Fire Resistance as high as possible for this fight and pay attention when she starts swinging her bombs at you!

Confidence: Fairly Low, Some Clues

Traitor's Passage is a fairly large and winding area that is difficult to read. However, there are some tips to help you find Balbala and have a better chance of finding the exit that leads you to The Halani Gates

The area is broken up into two sections: the opening area, and then The Six Sisters. The Six Sisters is a C-shaped bridge with a very obvious popup that lets you know you're entering the area and can be a hint that you're getting closer to the end. However, this isn't always the case. Firstly, let's talk about Balbala

Finding Balbala

About halfway into Traitor's Passage, you will find a large, interact-able pillar known as the Decree of Imprisonment with a lore book on the minimap. This object will be found at an intersection: one direction will lead you to Balbala, the other will lead you to the Halani Gates.

There is a very distinct visual clue that will tell you the direction of Balbala: yellow paper seals on the walls. If you follow the yellow seals, you will find the Prison of the Disgraced where you can fight Balbala for the Djinn Barya that will allow you to complete your first Ascendancy

Early Six Sisters Layout

Occasionally, you will find the Six Sisters staircase very close to the start of the area. When you find this, it means that Balbala's arena will be found by following a loop that takes you back in a similar direction to the entrance.

Thought Process

1. From the entrance, head in the opposite direction you came in and use that direction as a weak guiding light to find The Halani Gates
2. Find the Lore Book and follow the yellow paper seals to find Balbala if you want to complete your Ascendancy now
3. Continue on in the same direction you were moving before (often in the opposite direction the yellow paper seals guided you) until you find The Halani Gates

We will do more work to figure out this area. It's likely that the area has several fairly set layouts that can be identified, but this is more advanced and would require studying and memorisation of the area

Confidence: Very High

The Halani Gates has an extremely set, narrow layout that funnels you directly to the end of the area. While it is possible to optimise your route in this area, if you just head in the opposite direction in which you came and follow the bridges, you'll find the boss arena and exit very easily.

Note on Seeds

This area has the identical pattern in all leagues, but it is rotated in different ways. In Softcore leagues, it's common to start at the top of the area and move in a downward direction to find the boss. In Hardcore leagues, it is the opposite: you start at the bottom and move upward. SSF currently features a more left to right pattern. Once you know the direction the first bridge faces, if you know the pattern of the area, the route will become obvious

Pro Tip: The boss in this area deals high amounts of Lightning Damage so try to get your Lightning Resistance above 50% to not die! If you have one, equip a Topaz Charm for this fight

Confidence: Medium

In Keth, you'll need to locate The Venom Pit to slay Kabala, Constrictor Queen for +2 Weapon Specialisation Skill Points. The spawn locations seem to be located on the corners of a square that can be pictured in the middle of the area.

Finding the Exit

This is more often than not spawned on the opposite corner of the "square" of the area. In some cases like in the bottom layout above, the exit will be in a corner at a slightly different angle. Even in this case, the pattern remains similar despite the angle of the exit tile.

Route

1. Run one of the outside edges of the zone and keep a look out for the Venom Pit to slay Kabala. If you don't locate her along the way, continue until you find the Exit Tile
2. Tag the Checkpoint at the Exit tile and take it back to the Checkpoint at the start of the area
3. From here, run the other outside edge and keep a look out for Kabala's arena. If you don't locate it, Respawn at Checkpoint
4. From the Waypoint Checkpoint, check the other two top spots above

If you somehow still don't find Kabala using this method, search the rest of the area. Don't worry if this happens - the XP in Keth is excellent, so you shouldn't feel too bad getting lost in here.

Keth seems to have approximately 8 different layouts that can be learned with enough studying, but this above method functions as a generalised method for running this zone.

Environmental Tells

• If you find a head-shaped tile in the top third of the area like in the image above, Kabala will always spawn either to the left or right of it
• The checkpoint for Kabala is always found next to the top of a large, partially buried rounded building and a fairly obvious set of shapes on the minimap that looks like an angry face

Confidence: Medium

The Lost City is a large area that can be thought of as two large rectangular sections, separated by a V-shaped bridge. This V-Bridge will spawn on either the far left or far right of the first "rectangle", leading you to the second "rectangle" of the area.

From there, continue heading in the opposite direction in which you entered The Lost City to locate the entrance to Buried Shrines. It's common for the Buried Shrines entrance to be found in one of the corners of the second rectangle.

The tile that leads to the Buried Shrines has a very distinctive wing-shaped pattern that can help you see the exit before you see the actual door icon on the minimap.

Route

1. Check one of the corners of the first rectangle you spawn in for the V-Bridge. If you don't find it, run along the wall to the opposite side where it will spawn. Cross the V-bridge
2. Run to the far wall of the second "rectangle" and check the edge until it opens up into the exit tile - it will spawn somewhere along this wall.

Do note that the above image is very simplified and there will be many corridors and dead-ends that you will have to navigate, but the methodology behind this route will help you find the exit much more quickly

Points of Interest

• There is a Sarcophagus in the Lost City that you can open for a Level 6/7 Uncut Spirit Gem
• The Ninth Treasure of Keth is a large, Rare scarab enemy that drops a Magic Jewel. Just be warned that this monster deals a large amount of damage and fighting it isn't often worth it for the reward

Confidence: High

While Buried Shrines might be intimidating at first due to its size, it has a fairly set layout that can be followed to reach the exit more quickly.

Firstly, think of the area similarly to The Lost City: two rectangles, separated by a pair of bridges.

The Bridge Tell

• South-North-Top: If you cross one of the bridges from South to North and move in an upward direction (toward the top of your screen), you will find the boss tile at the most Northerly point of the area.
• North-South-East: If you cross one of the bridges from the North to the South and move in a downward direction (toward the bottom of your screen), you will find the boss tile in an East-facing position

Boss Tile

You are looking for a tile that looks a bit like a crown, often preceded by a V-shaped or a long bridge. This tile seemingly always has the same orientation: facing Northeast, although this may change in other seeds

Note on Seeds

Currently, this pattern seems to remain constant in all league types (SC, HC, and SSF), but the overall shape of the map and certain points of interest may be slightly differenet

Points of Interest

Elemental Offering: This event spawns in this area and has a similarly-shaped tile with a Lore Book icon and a Checkpoint. In this room, you'll be able to open one of three chests that will give you a Magic Resistance Ring

• Offering of Fire - Ruby Ring (Fire Resistance)
• Offering of Water - Sapphire Ring (Cold Resistance)
• Offering of Lightning - Topaz Ring (Lightning Resistance)

This can be a very useful point of interest to seek out at the start of a new league where your character won't have much access to Resistance gear.

Elemental Offering seems to spawn in either the first or second "rectangle" of the area depending on the league type your character is playing in (SC, HC or SSF)

Mastodon Badlands

Confidence: Low

The Mastodon Badlands is an area with no discernible pattern. Currently, the best way to get through this area is to just hug a wall and follow it until you find the exit. It appears that more often than not, following the wall opposite to the one beside the Waypoint will lead you to The Bone Pits more quickly, but this is questionable

Points of Interest

There is an Effigy in this area beside a Checkpoint that can be clicked for a guaranteed Uncut Support Gem Level 1 in Normal Difficulty and a Level 13 Uncut Skill Gem in Cruel

The Bone Pits

Confidence: High

The Bone Pits fortunately has a more obvious layout, with the boss room being almost directly in line with the entrance area. After passing through the bone arch at the start of the area, continue in that same direction until you meet the opposite wall and try to find the opening to the boss room. It won't be perfectly in line, but close enough that it shouldn't be too hard to find.

Confidence: Medium

In Valley of the Titans, you'll need to find three Ancient Seals to open up the way to the Titan Grotto, which are located fairly easily by following the edges of the map. However, it is possible for one of the Seals to spawn on the inside edge of an inaccessible canyon that appears to be present in all permutations of this area.

Route

1. Find the sealed Titan Grotto Entrance. This is usually located in a fairly obvious straight line after entering the area. You'll know you're near it when your camera starts to zoom out slightly and you see a Checkpoint with a Red Hand icon on your minimap
2. Run the outside edge of the area, tagging the Ancient Seals you find along the way (next to Checkpoints)
3. If you find all three Seals, take the Checkpoint to the Titan Grotto and enter. If not, run the outside edge of the middle gorge to locate the final Seal

Make sure to also locate the area with the Waypoint and the Medallion to complete the Offering to Amrit Quest which grants your character a permanent buff after acquiring the Kabala and Sun Clan Relics

Confidence: Medium

Titan Grotto can be thought of as a square area composed of tight, winding corridors, with two long, straight passageways on either end. One of these passageways will be the one you start from, the other will lead to the boss, Zalmarath, the Colossus.

If you make you way from the starting area to the opposite side of the "rectangle", you'll find Zalmarath fairly comfortably. Even though there will be many twists and turns, use this concept as your compass to find the other side.

Route

1. Determine the orientation of the zone by taking note of the direction in which the area opens up.
2. Continue in that direction until you reach the far wall; the long staircase bridge leading to Zalmarath will spawn somewhere along that wall

Zalmarath

This is a particularly tough boss, especially if you're playing Hardcore! Staying close to him in a 12 o'clock position for his first phase, and 3 o'clock position for his second phase, can help ensure you aren't killed by his slam attacks. Also be aware of the mobs he spawns as they can be quite deadly too!

Confidence: Medium/High

Deshar is an extremely large area that can be though of as having two "square" sections: the first is a more deserted area, the second has several large buildings.

There isn't much to do in the first section, but there is an important quest in the second area; you will need to locate the body of a fallen Dekhara Warrior, resting beside one of the buildings. Completing this quest grants +2 Weapon Specialisation Points.

Finding the Fallen Dekhara

Currently, there aren't any obvious clues as to where the body may spawn, but by checking the base of each building you encounter, you will find the body.

Finding the Exit

In order to find the entrance to the Path of Mourning, continue traveling in the opposite direction from the entrance until you make it to the furthest-most edge of the second area with buildings.

Confidence: Low

Path of Mourning is long area composed of circular buildings connected by narrow bridges. There are some layouts of this area that feel fairly easy to follow, but others remain confusing. That being said, as with many zones throughout the campaign, if you travel to the opposite side of the area, you'll likely find the exit.

The 3-3-3 Pattern

The pattern that appeared in Softcore that seemed obvious followed a "Down-1-2-3-Up-1-2-3-Down-1-2-3-Up" rule that I dubbed The 3-3-3 Pattern

1. Find the first circular building, cross the bridge to the right until you find a second, then a third building
2. From the third building, take the bridge up and to the right and follow the same pattern of passing through three buildings before taking the bridge down and to the right at third building.
3. Continue straight, pass through three buildings and head up and to the right again

Similarly to other zones, even if you don't get the 3-3-3 Pattern, the Exit is seemingly always found on the opposite side of the area.

Confidence: Medium

The Spires of Deshar has a similar theme to The Path of Mourning, but also currently doesn't have an obvious layout.

There are two major points of interest in this zone

1. The Sisters of Garukhan: +10% to Lightning Resistance

Thanks to FireMCG, we know that the Sisters of Garukhan tile is consistent, with a bridge from the bottom and right hand side, with platforms above and to the left as well. Understanding this "G-shaped" pattern, as she identifies it, makes telling where this tile is by knowing where it can't be.

Important Note: Clicking Sisters of Garukhan will spawn swarms of enemies that deal lightning damage on all platforms. This can make the area very hard to run, so it's recommended you first find the checkpoint for Tor Gul first so you don't have to deal with these monsters while trying to find the boss room.

2. Boss: Tor Gul, the Defiler

Tor Gul always seems to spawn in a straight line, directly opposite from the entrance of the area, making him easier to locate than the permanent buff in the area.

Route

1. From the entrance, make your way to the direct opposite end of the area and locate the Checkpoint to Tor Gul's boss arena.
2. If you find Sisters of Garukhan along the way, don't click it but instead tag the Checkpoint and come back to it after defeating Tor Gul
3. If you defeated Tor Gul but didn't locate the Sisters, head back in the opposite direction and explore, keeping in mind FireMCG's tip about the G-shaped tile that spawns this bonus.

Confidence: High

The final two areas of Act 2 have a straightforward, linear layout. While this is a dangerous area that is usually traversed more quickly by being patient, the nature of it being a caravan means that it can't turn off in too many odd directions.

From the entrance, continue in the opposite direction and keep going until you find the other end. There are a few pathing optimisations that can be made in this area, but since this is a basic layout guide, there isn't a need to get into hyper-specific layouts to maximise efficiency.

You can see the basic weaving pattern that you can follow in the images below