Mjölner
Ritualist Build

Updated for Path of Exile 2 Early Access

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Mjölner's an iconic Weapon. It's a Mace that Triggers Lightning Spells of your choice when you accumulate enough Energy by simply hitting enemies with it. It puts one in a peculiar position where the DPS, despite depending on Spell Damage, needs Attack Speed instead of Cast Speed for a higher Cast Rate. This high Attack Speed can be achieved with Hand of Wisdom and Action, which scales it alongside Dexterity. The other two Attributes will also be needed in huge quantities since Mjölner has very high Strength and Intelligence requirements. To satisfy all these demands, we'll pick Ritualist as they can equip a third Ring. Titan is also a comparable choice with its Hulking Form, but it will struggle with Resistances a lot. To make this build more dynamic, we're using two Mjölners to Trigger two sets of Thundergod's Wrath setups. Forfeiting a Shield is a dangerous move, but the damage gained in return pays off big time. The Melee Attack that'll trigger all these Spells is Boneshatter. Boneshatter is the best candidate for this role because it has the highest Attack Speed out of all Melee Mace Attacks, once you increase its Gem Quality.

The Spells we're Triggering are free, no Mana Cost for them at all. That's great, because that would be a very restricting speed bump. We've set up one Thundergod's Wrath setup to release a powerful Arc, and the second one to generate Lightning Remnants and teleport the character around for better mobility. Arc can be Infused with Lightning Remnants to deal much more damage, so generating them is a big part of the build. The damage shall next be increased by modifiers to Lightning Spell Damage, reduction to enemies' Lightning Resistance, additional Spell Levels for Arc, and some extra Energy gain from Jewels. Dexterity, however, remains the most important stat in this whole setup. The defences are an afterthought, but since the character has lots of Strength, we'll go with Maximum Life. Intelligence will get us Evasion via Knightly Tenets, so we'll lean towards it with Evasion Gear enhanced with Deflection Rating. Wind Dancer will improve Evasion further. Survivability is not as necessary as it would be if the damage weren't that high, but it's definitely not a Hardcore build.

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1. Gameplay

The Boneshatter makes it a one-and-a-half-button build, since you'll hardly need to use anything else. It Triggers all that is to be Triggered. Orb of Storms, Frost Bomb, and Elemental Weakness are Spells to be cast once, and only on particularly strong bosses. All other Skills are passive, like Herald of Thunder, Overwhelming Presence, and Wind Dancer.

2. Build's PROS & CONS

3. Leveling tips

The build is very specific about the conditions that make its gears turn. You need certain items, two of which are not easy to equip in the first place for most characters, and you need a very high character level for that. We recommend starting as a completely different Ritualist build, one that's popular at the moment or one you're already comfortable with. Try the Thorns Ritualist, for which we have a guide already.

4. Final Skill Tree, Ascendancy Points, and Pantheon

Final Skill Tree:

Click on the image to open the Passive Tree preview in a new window Or import the build into PoB: Path of Building 2 code

Ascendancy points:

Preferably in this order:

1. Unfurled Finger
2. Mystic Attunement
3. Wildwood Persistence
4. Intricate Sigils

5. Final Gems links

[DPS] Thundergod's Wrath setup
	Thundergod's Wrath - A Skill you can only get from Mjölner. It's a Meta Skill that Triggers Linked Lighting Spell, omitting its Mana Cost. The Energy for Trigger is gained by landing a Melee Hit.
	Arc - Arc is the main damaging ability. It has 50% more Magnitude of Shock inflicted, and can be Infused with Lightning to deal 200% more damage.
	Deliberation
	Sione's Temper
	Boundless Energy
	Retreat

[DPS] second Thundergod's Wrath setup
	Thundergod's Wrath - With the second Mjölner, you can set up two Thundergod's Wrath setups. This one is to create Infusion Remnants.
	Lightning Warp - Teleports you to an enemy that can be culled or Ball Lightning. More importantly, it creates Lightning Infusion.
	Ball Lightning - A Projectile that you can teleport to with Lightning Warp. It is also very likely to Shock.
	Boundless Energy
	Harmonic Remnants

[UTILITY] Boneshatter setup
	Boneshatter - The Melee Attack we will use to Trigger Thundergod's-Wrath-linked Spells.
	Rapid Attacks
	Rage
	Defy - alternatively, use Rigwald's Ferocity (weapon set 2 for 20% more Attack Speed), or Heightened Accuracy.
	Elemental Armament
	Close Combat

[UTILITY] Herald of Thunder setup
	Herald of Thunder - Triggers a Lightning Bolt on Attack Hit after killing a Shocked Enemy. It will enhance clear speed.
	Elemental Focus
	Lightning Attunement
	Lightning Penetration
	Elemental Armament
	Lightning mastery

[UTILITY] Wind Dancer setup
	Wind Dancer - Wind Dancer grant more Evasion with each stage. It breaks when Hit, Hitting nearby enemies.
	Culling Strike
	Blind
	Maim
	Magnified Area

[UTILITY] Orb of Storms setup
	Orb of Storms - One of the few Skills you can cast yourself, particularly on tough enemies. Its role is to inflict Exposure and create a Lightning Remnant.
	Lightning Exposure
	Shock
	Efficiency
	Potent Exposure
	Harmonic Remnants

[UTILITY] Elemental Weakness setup
	Elemental Weakness - A Curse that simply lowers Elemental Resistances.
	Heightened Curse
	Cursed Ground
	Magnified Area
	Efficiency

[UTILITY] Overwhelming Presence setup
	Overwhelming Presence - Nearby enemies have reduced Elemental Ailment Threshold. That causes you to generate more Energy for Thundergod's Wrath.
	Precision

[UTILITY] Frost Bomb setup
	Frost Bomb - Frost Bomb is the best skill to inflict Exposure with. It's an Elemental Exposure (that works with Lightning Damage) that's stronger the longer it takes for the Bomb to detonate. It's optional; you may deem the Exposure from the Orb of Storms good enough.
	Magnified Area
	Lifetap
	Efficiency
	Potent Exposure
	Prolonged Duration

6. Gear Setup

On Items, you'll need a lot of Attributes to even equip two Mjölners. Since you can get lots of Attributes at the bottom of a Skill Tree, where the powerful "Surround" notables are, we can safely recommend Constricting Command for the Helmet. The most important Attribute, despite weapons' requirements, is Dexterity. That's because we're planning to equip Hand of Wison and Action - the most efficient way to accumulate Attack Speed in this build. Other Uniques to aim at are Astramentis for Attributes and Ingenuity, since we value our Rings. With Rare items, we'll try to patch Resistances, which may be difficult since they're Suffixes - just like Attributes. With Prefixes, we'll try to get Maximum Life and Evasion. Remember to use Runes for more Attributes.

(Helmet) Rare Helmet - If you can't afford to wear Constricting Command, it's most likely because you still need Resistances on a Helmet, so prioritise that.

Min. requirements: Elemental or Chaos Resistance Maximum Life Attributes Optional affixes: Evasion Gain Deflection Rating equal to #% of Evasion Rating

(Helmet) Constricting Command - We have easy access to the powerful "surround" nodes, so Constricting Command with the "5" roll should be the Helmet to strive for.

+(80–120) to maximum Life +(10–15) to all Attributes (8–12) Life Regeneration per second Require (2–5) fewer enemies to be Surrounded

(Weapon) Mjölner - You will need two Mjölners. Try to get ones with a high Level of Thundergod's Wrath, Attack Speed, and Level of all Lightning Skills.

Grants Skill: Level # Thundergod's Wrath +200 Intelligence Requirement +100 Strength Requirement (250–350)% increased Physical Damage (10–20)% increased Attack Speed +(2–4) to Level of all Lightning Skills

(Gloves) Hand of Wisdom and Action - That's the reason to stack Dexterity. The amount of Attack Speed you can get from these gloves is unparalleled.

+(15–25) to Dexterity +(15–25) to Intelligence 1% increased Attack Speed per 20 Dexterity Adds 1 to 10 Lightning Damage to Attacks per 20 Intelligence

(Boots) Rare Boots - Boots ought to have Attributes or Resistances with Movement Speed, Maximum Life, and maybe Evasion with Deflection Rating.

Min. requirements: increased Movement Speed Elemental or Chaos Resistance Attributes Maximum Life Optional affixes: Evasion Gain Deflection Rating equal to #% of Evasion Rating 100% increased effect of Socketed Items (Essence Suffix)

(Amulet) Astramentis - It grants tons of Attributes. Astramentis is your goal, and until you can afford it, use a Rare Amulet with Attributes and Level of all Lightning Spells to get the most damage out of it.

+(5–7) to all Attributes +(50–100) to all Attributes -4 Physical Damage taken from Attack Hits

(Ring) Rare Ring - You'll need three Rings. Here, get Resistances and Attributes. As for Prefixes, there's Maximum Life, increased Lightning Damage, Accuracy, and added Damage to Attacks. None of them is as important as Suffixes.

Min. requirements: Elemental or Chaos Resistance Attributes Optional affixes: Adds Elemental Damage to Attacks Maximum Life Accuracy Rating increased Lightning Damage

(Belt) Ingenuity - Increases the bonuses gained from the left and right Rings, so it requires good Rings. Until you have them, just use a Rare Belt with Resistances and Strength.

Has (1–3) Charm Slot 20% of Flask Recovery applied Instantly (-20–20)% reduced Charm Charges gained (-10–10)% reduced Charm Charges used (20–30)% increased bonuses gained from left Equipped Ring (20–30)% increased bonuses gained from right Equipped Ring

(Belt) Headhunter - Headhunter grants Strength, Dexterity, Maximum Life (which is already great), and the iconic feature to take one rare monster's mod on kill. Definitely an option that's worth considering.

Has (1–3) Charm Slot (20–30)% increased Stun Threshold +(40–60) to maximum Life +(20–40) to Strength +(20–40) to Dexterity When you Kill a Rare monster, you gain its Modifiers for 60 seconds

(Body Armour) Rare Body Armour - Rare Body Armour will provide you with defences like Evasion, Maximum Life, Deflection, and the obligatory Attributes or Resistances.

Min. requirements: Elemental or Chaos Resistance Maximum Life Attributes Optional affixes: Spirit Evasion Gain Deflection Rating equal to #% of Evasion Rating

(Jewel) Rare Jewels - Jewels can roll modifiers for increased Energy gain, increased Damage with Triggered Spells, and directly boost your Lightning Damage.

Optional affixes: Damage Penetrated #% Lightning Resistance increased Lightning/Elemental Damage Meta Skills gain #% increased Energy Triggered Spells deal #% increased Spell Damage Recover #% of Mana on Kill

(Jewel) Prism of Belief - Prism of Belief with Gem Levels of Arcs will be a huge damage improvement.

+(1–3) to Level of all Specific Skill Skills

(Jewel) Heroic Tragedy - You want the Knightly Tenets Keystone from Olroth's Heroic Tragedy. The Mana bonus inherent to Intelligence is not useful at all; you may as well increase your Evasion with it instead.

Remembrancing (100–8000) songworthy deeds by the line of Olroth Passives in radius are Conquered by the Kalguur Historic

If you have any other build requests please leave that in the comments below. We are always open to suggestions and constructive feedback.

Pictures used in this article are the intellectual property of Grinding Gear Games.