Grinding Gear Games has set December 11, 2026 Pacific time for the full release of Path of Exile 2. The action RPG will become free to play when it leaves early access, with the final two campaign acts, a stealth-focused Shadow class and a league built around raising armies. The studio made the announcement at ExileCon in Auckland, nearly two years after the early-access launch.
The road back to Oriath
Acts 5 and 6 will complete the six-act story. Act 5 takes players back to Oriath, where a route through ruined districts, abandoned estates and a desecrated temple leads toward an assault on the city's defenses. The final stretch brings the fight against the Twilight Order and the Beast to its conclusion. Grinding Gear Games counts 24 areas, 18 bosses and more than 20 special encounters in the two acts.
For someone starting in December, that means a continuous campaign with a defined finish before the endgame opens up. The developer puts the full release at ten playable classes, 26 Ascendancies and more than 150 endgame maps. Those are totals across the game. The new acts, along with changes to the Atlas and character builds, are the pieces early-access players will encounter for the first time.
Stealth, traps and a squire of your own
The Shadow can approach enemies under cover of stealth and disappear again after a kill resets its cooldown. That gives a dagger build a reason to pick its opening target carefully. A trap-focused build can lay several traps while concealed and trigger them in placement order when it comes out of stealth. The class can also summon Shades that imitate its attacks and use a resource called Darkness to strengthen strikes from concealment.
The Duelist's Knight Ascendancy approaches a fight with a companion and a set of War Banners. Its squire can carry equipment and use melee skill gems, so the player can build around the pair's roles in combat. The Knight also gains Glory for abilities such as a mounted charge. Grinding Gear Games says the Duelist's second Ascendancy, Master of Arms, is due later.
Build a fortress and put your army to work
Conquerors of Wraeclast, the new league, adds a layer of campaign battles and stronghold management to the action RPG. Players choose a faction, recruit soldiers, gather supplies and construct buildings that support their forces. The league has 23 campaign battles. It also gives players commanders who can be sent on missions once those systems open up, so building a force has consequences beyond the troops standing beside a character in a siege.
Sieges bring those decisions back into combat. The army you assemble and the upgrades you choose shape the assault on an enemy position. The trailer highlights how the league moves between commanding troops and fighting on the ground, giving the fortress a purpose in the action.
What returning players will need to revisit
The passive skill tree, skills and Ascendancies are all getting changes, alongside more than 40 new unique items and more than 70 reworked ones. Returning players planning to recreate an early-access build have several moving parts to check. The updated Atlas also ties its passive points to objectives such as defeating bosses and completing special maps, giving map progression a clearer set of milestones.
The December release is planned for Windows PC, Mac, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. PC players can use the standalone client, Steam or the Epic Games Store. Grinding Gear Games announced the date in Pacific time, so the local launch date may differ by region.
