Path of Exile 2 introduces a wealth of exciting new mechanics, builds, and strategies, and one of the standout approaches for leveling through the campaign is the Explosive Grenade Gas Grenade Mercenary Build. This build excels in both speed and efficiency, making it a perfect choice for those looking to blaze through the campaign, optimize their skill points, and rack up permanent stat bonuses. Whether you're tackling a fresh character start or embarking on a POE 2 Currency speedrun, this build offers high damage output, good survivability, and a clear path toward success.

Why Choose Explosive Grenade Gas Grenade Mercenary for Leveling?

The Explosive Grenade Gas Grenade Mercenary is a unique, proven League Start leveling build that focuses on explosive area-of-effect (AoE) damage while maintaining strong utility and mobility. It combines the high damage potential of Explosive Grenades with the crowd control and poison spread effects of Gas Grenades, all while benefiting from the Mercenary’s innate support and buffing abilities.

The Mercenary class is ideal for this build due to its ability to provide both offense and defense. With a Mercenary, you can summon powerful allies that provide both damage and defensive buffs, which complements the fast-paced playstyle of an explosive grenade build. This synergy ensures that you can keep moving through the campaign without getting bogged down by excessive downtime or tough enemy packs.

Leveling the Explosive Grenade Gas Grenade Mercenary Build

When starting out, your primary focus should be on maximizing Explosive Grenades for their high burst damage and AoE effects. You'll want to use them frequently to clear large packs of enemies, especially in early acts where trash mobs can be overwhelming. The Gas Grenades provide essential crowd control through poison damage and lingering area effects, making them perfect for bosses and tougher mobs that need to be handled with caution.

To begin, focus on damage scaling and area effect (AoE), picking up passives that increase the potency of your grenades and provide additional AoE radius. You can also opt for elemental damage and fire damage scaling, depending on the synergies with your grenade types. Don’t neglect your mobility either—movement speed and flask uptime will help you stay agile, especially as you progress through the campaign.

Key Skills and Passives

Explosive Grenades – A primary skill that allows you to deal massive burst damage across multiple enemies. Make sure to max out damage and AoE passives that boost this skill early in your leveling process.

Gas Grenades – These provide poison spread and lingering damage over time effects, perfect for applying debuffs to multiple enemies simultaneously. Invest in increasing poison damage and area duration.

Mercenary Support – The Mercenary’s abilities to summon soldiers and provide buffs will increase your survivability. Focus on passives that enhance summoning power and defensive buffs.

Stat Priority

Focus on boosting the following stats throughout your journey:

Intelligence/Strength/Dexterity – Depending on your class, prioritize the stats that enable your grenade skills and Mercenary support abilities.

Area Damage & AoE Radius – These are key to making your grenades effective.

Movement Speed – Ensuring quick clear times and faster mobility during the campaign.

Conclusion

The Explosive Grenade Gas Grenade Mercenary Leveling Build is a highly efficient and powerful choice for any Path of Exile 2 player looking to complete the campaign quickly. With strong AoE capabilities, survivability, and a cheap POE 2 Chaos Orbs high ceiling for damage output, this build ensures you’ll progress rapidly while maximizing your stat bonuses and skill points. Whether you’re starting fresh or aiming for a speedrun, this build is a fantastic way to conquer the challenges of Path of Exile 2’s campaign.