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The Bleed Ritualist is a hybrid strength/intelligence build that combines the Ritualist's affinity for damage-over-time effects with brutal bleeding-based attacks. Focused on sustained area-of-effect (AoE) pressure and strategic pacing, this build uses ritual-themed skills, warcries, and bleed scaling passives to clear mobs and bosses with chilling efficiency. This guide will walk you through how to unlock the build, the core mechanics behind it, leveling and skill progression, gear requirements, and endgame viability.

1. What Is the Bleed Ritualist?

The Ritualist is one of the subclasses of the Witch in Path of Exile 2. Unlike the pure spellcasters of old, this class blends ritual magic with melee or hybrid attacks. The Bleed Ritualist capitalizes on Ritualist passives that enhance physical damage over time, blood magic interactions, and damage amplification through rituals.

This build specializes in:

Applying high stacks of Bleed

Enhancing Bleed with Ritual modifiers

Controlling battlefield tempo using area curses and blood zones

Scaling off Strength and Intelligence for survivability and damage

2. How to Unlock the Ritualist Class

To play the Bleed Ritualist, you must start as a Witch and complete the Act 2 Ascendancy Trial. At the end of this trial, you choose one of three Ascendancies:

Ritualist

Occultist

Summoner

Pick Ritualist. After that, the passive tree and skill pool will shift to allow ritual-themed nodes and blood/bleed mechanics.

3. Core Mechanics and Build Concept

The Bleed Ritualist builds around Physical DoT (Bleed) as the primary damage source. The bleed effect in PoE2 has been reworked to allow for higher stack caps and multiplicative scaling via passive nodes and skill interactions. Key mechanics include:

    a) Bleeding

Bleed scales with attack physical damage.

Moving enemies take increased Bleed damage.

Bleed now stacks up to 10 times (default), increased via passives.

b) Ritual Zones

Ritualist can create Ritual Grounds using support gems or skills like Blood Circle.

Enemies inside a ritual zone take increased DoT and are afflicted with secondary curses.

c) Blood Empowerment

Some passives allow you to convert part of life into temporary power (e.g., increased damage at low life, or while taking damage).

Blood Price and Blood Oath passives boost Bleed damage when on or near low life.

4. Skill Gem Setup (Core and Supports)

Here's a general setup for your main Bleed attack, curse utility, and mobility/defense:

Main Damage Skill

Rending Slam (or Rending Sweep)

A two-handed melee AoE skill that causes heavy Bleed.

Can be aimed in a cone or circular sweep depending on upgrades.

Supports:

Brutality Support (more physical, disables elemental)

Ruthless Support (massive third hit, causes large bleed)

Bleed Chance Support (adds more chance + increased max stacks)

Ritual Ground Support (turns ground into ritual zone for extra bleed scaling)

Melee Physical Damage Support

Utility / Debuff

Blood Circle

Creates a ritual zone that increases DoT taken and reduces enemy healing.

Despair Curse

Reduces enemy resistance to Bleed and DoT.

Blood Price Aura

Converts some life to damage bonus for Bleed.

Warcry (Intimidating Cry or Bloodhowl)

Buffs next attacks, adds bleed stacks or amplifies next slam.

Mobility

Blood Dash

Leaves a trail that inflicts bleed and travels through enemies.

Steelskin or Molten Shell

For defense against spike damage.

5. Passive Tree Focus

Path of Exile 2's passive tree is character-specific and unlocks as you level. Key areas to aim for:

Bleed and Physical Damage:

Hemorrhage Mastery – Increases max bleed stacks.

Sadist Ritual – Ritual zones increase DoT taken.

Cruel Oaths – Increases physical DoT and attack speed while in ritual zones.

Vascular Link – Bleed damage applies in wider radius.

Ritual Sacrifice – Buffs damage based on recent enemy deaths in a ritual zone.

Life and Survivability:

Bloodbound Fortitude – Damage taken recently grants Fortify.

Enduring Ritual – Increases life recovery while in ritual zones.

Thick Skin – Max life and regen nodes.

Utility:

Blood Echoes – Applies a second weaker bleed.

Sanguine Chains – Enemies chain bleed to nearby mobs.

6. Gear Progression and Stat Priorities

  a) Weapon

Two-handed axe or mace with high base physical damage.

Look for increased bleeding duration, +% to physical DoT multiplier, chance to cause bleeding on hit, and attack speed.

  b) Armor

Focus on Life, Armor, and Bleed Duration/Chance.

Helmets and gloves can roll modifiers that boost Ritual effects or increase area of effect for bleeding skills.

  c) Jewelry

Amulets: % Physical DoT multiplier, strength/intelligence, resistances.

Rings: Added physical damage, increased bleed chance, reduced enemy healing.

  d) Flasks

Blood of the Karui: Massive life recovery, great synergy with blood-based passives.

Diamond Flask: Helps with critical bleeding modifiers (if converted).

Sulphur Flask: Creates consecrated ground for regen.

7. Leveling Tips (Acts 1–5)

Act 1–2:

Use basic Heavy Strike or Cleave until Rending Slam is available.

Pick up Bleed Support and Ritual Ground as early as possible.

Focus on life nodes early for survival.

Act 3–4:

Switch to Rending Slam full-time once you get good support gems.

Unlock Blood Circle and Despair for better AoE control.

Begin investing in Bleed stacking and Physical DoT nodes.

Act 5:

You'll be able to clear packs quickly using slam + warcry combo.

Bosses should be hit with Warcry → Slam → Blood Circle combo for maximum bleed stacks.

8. Endgame and Mapping

Once you enter the endgame system (Maps or Pantheon Trials in PoE 2), the Bleed Ritualist really shines in:

Mapping:

Use high attack speed to apply bleeds to whole packs.

Ritual zones amplify damage and reduce incoming threats.

AoE clears by spreading bleeds via chains.

Bossing:

Use Warcry to prep next slam.

Stack 10+ bleeds quickly with Ruthless + fast slams.

Stay in Ritual Ground to boost defense and offense.

Use Blood Dash to evade slams or mechanics.

9. Pros and Cons

Pros:

High sustained DPS from bleed

Great synergy with Ritualist passives

Good survivability with Blood-based defense

Can scale very well into endgame

Unique gameplay with zones and rituals

Cons:

Not very bursty – relies on DoT uptime

Requires good gear to hit high bleed stacks

Can feel slower vs highly mobile enemies

Some bosses immune to movement penalties reduce bleed value

10. Example Endgame Setup

Weapon: Elder-based two-handed axe with “Bleeding inflicted deals damage faster”

Chest: 6-link armor with +max life, +ritual effect

Amulet: Coral Amulet with %DoT multiplier, +str

Flasks: Blood of the Karui, Jade Flask, Sulphur Flask

Skill Setup:

Rending Slam – Ruthless – Bleed Chance – Ritual Ground – Brutality – Melee Phys

Blood Circle – Despair – Increased Area

Warcry (linked with Seismic Support for shock)

11. Final Thoughts

The Bleed Ritualist is a rewarding build for players who enjoy damage-over-time mechanics, ritual-themed gameplay, and a mix of area control with melee combat. It's strong in campaign, scales well in endgame, and has a distinct feel thanks to ritual zones and blood-themed synergies. If you enjoy applying pressure, controlling zones, and watching enemies melt while you remain in control, the Bleed Ritualist might be your perfect build in Path of Exile 2.