PoE 2: Herald of Ice and Thunder Combo Guide

Mastering the Double Herald Setup in Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2's Double Herald setup leverages Herald of Ice and Herald of Thunder for devastating screen-clearing potential. This guide details how to implement this powerful technique and explains its underlying mechanics.

Implementing the Double Herald Setup

This strategy requires four key elements:

1. Herald of Ice: Socketed with the Lightning Infusion Support Gem.
2. Herald of Thunder: Socketed with the Cold Infusion Support Gem (Glaciation is highly recommended).
3. 60 Spirit: Ensure your character meets this requirement.
4. Cold Damage Infliction: A method for inflicting Cold damage is essential to initiate the chain reaction.

Remember to activate both Herald skills via right-clicking their icons in the skill menu.

Effective ways to initially proc Herald of Ice include:

• Monk's Ice Strike (highly effective).
• Passive skills boosting Freeze buildup.
• Weapons/gloves with flat cold damage.
• Against the Darkness Time-Lost Diamond Jewel (+Cold damage percentage).

How the Heralds Interact

Herald of Ice activates upon shattering a frozen enemy, causing an AoE cold damage explosion. Crucially, Herald of Ice's cold damage cannot freeze, preventing self-perpetuating chain reactions.

Herald of Thunder activates upon killing a shocked enemy, unleashing damaging lightning bolts. Similarly, Herald of Thunder cannot inflict Shock independently.

The synergy arises from their damage conversion: Lightning Infusion on Herald of Ice converts some damage to Lightning (which can Shock), and Cold Infusion on Herald of Thunder converts some damage to Cold (which can Freeze).

Ideally, this creates a continuous loop: Herald of Ice shocks, triggering Herald of Thunder, which freezes, triggering Herald of Ice, and so on. In practice, the chain reaction often ends after one or two cycles due to the need for a constant supply of enemies. Breaches, with their high enemy density, are particularly advantageous for this setup.

To initiate the chain: Freeze and shatter an enemy using a cold damage skill (like Ice Strike). This procs Herald of Ice, causing a cold explosion that shocks, triggering Herald of Thunder. Prioritizing Herald of Ice is beneficial because Freeze is easier to inflict than Shock, and Herald of Thunder's lightning bolts have greater range.