Path of Exile: Best Way to Farm Tier 17 Maps

In Path of Exile's Necropolis league, the introduction of Tier 17 (T17) maps has added a new layer of endgame content. These maps feature unique bosses, monsters, and loot pools that significantly increase the difficulty and reward potential of your farming experience. But before you can start farming these maps, there are a few steps you need to take to unlock and farm them efficiently. Here's a comprehensive guide on how to get Tier 17 maps and the best strategies to farm them.

1. Unlocking Tier 17 Maps: Collect All Voidstones

The first essential step in farming Tier 17 maps is to collect all four Voidstones. These Voidstones are critical because they increase the drop rate of T17 maps by 0.2% per Voidstone. With all four Voidstones equipped, you'll have a 0.8% chance to receive Tier 17 maps.

However, it's important to note that this drop rate is also heavily influenced by the quantity of your maps. The more quantity you have, the more likely you are to receive higher-tier maps, including Tier 17s.

2. Optimizing the Atlas Skill Tree for Tier 17 Farming

Once you have your Voidstones, the next step is to tweak your Atlas Passive Tree to maximize the chance of getting T17 maps. Here are some recommended strategies for optimizing your atlas:

Destructive Play Maven

Destructive Play adds one to three extra map bosses, depending on how many monsters are left before encountering the final boss. Map bosses generally have a higher chance of dropping higher-tier maps, including T17s.

Focus on linear maps like Silo or Underground River, where you can rush to the boss quickly after clearing the map.

Great map choices for this strategy include Cemetery, Jungle Valley, and Dunes due to their open layout and ease of clearing.

Recommended Atlas Passives for Destructive Play:

Vivid Memories: Increases the chance of influenced maps dropping.

Remnants of the Past: Further boosts influenced map drops.

Conquered Conquerors: Adds more chance for influenced maps to drop.

Using Scarabs and Additional Mechanics

While Scarabs aren't strictly necessary for Destructive Play, they can significantly boost the overall loot and map drops. Essence Scarabs are particularly useful because Essences is a high-reward mechanic that synergizes well with boss-rushing strategies.

If you're seeking a more profitable method, Essence Scarabs should be your primary choice, though using Cartography Scarabs might not provide as much of a benefit in this case.

3. Eldritch Influence and Scarabs: Boosting Boss Drops

For a more investment-heavy but highly rewarding strategy, you can utilize Eldritch Influence from Searing Exarch and Eater of Worlds. These influences increase the likelihood of Final Map Bosses dropping additional rewards like Divine Orbs or exalted PoE items, making it a lucrative farming strategy.

Domination Scarab of Terrors is the key to spawning Eldritch Altars that grant additional rewards for map bosses. This is where things get interesting: you can get modifiers such as "Final Map Boss drops four Additional Divine Orbs", which significantly increases the value of each map.

Recommended Steps for Eldritch Influence Strategy:

Atlas Passives: Focus on passives that boost Shrines, Influenced Map Drops, and Eldritch Influence.

Scarabs: Use Domination Scarabs, particularly the Domination Scarab of Terrors, to increase the number of bosses on the map and boost map rewards.

Map Preparation: Roll your maps to 90+ quantities to maximize loot. Clear the map first, but leave the bosses alive until you've activated all Eldritch Altars for the best possible rewards.

Once you've cleared the map and triggered all the Eldritch Altars, return to defeat the bosses. The Eldritch Influence combined with Domination Scarabs creates an optimal environment for farming higher-tier maps, including Tier 17s.

4. General Farming Strategy: Increasing Map Density

To improve the chances of getting T17 maps, you can stack monster density by using mechanics like Delirium and Beyond alongside Searing Exarch or Eater of Worlds. These mechanics increase the number of monsters in your maps, thus increasing the potential for higher-tier drops.

Combine Searing, Delirium, and Beyond:

Searing Exarch: Spawns extra monster packs, which significantly increases map density.

Delirium: Creates an even more monster-dense environment, especially when combined with Searing Exarch's packs.

Beyond: Monsters that spawn during Beyond maps also increase density and lead to better loot, including Tier 17 maps.

Using Cartography Scarabs:

Cartography Scarabs are essential for boosting the overall quantity of maps you're generating. You can use Cartography Scarabs to increase your map drops, and Cartography Scarab of Duplication can help duplicate higher-tier maps like T17s, giving you even more chances of landing them.

5. Additional Tips for Efficient Farming

Stack Quantity and Rarity: Ensure that you focus on atlas nodes that increase item quantity and rarity of maps. These nodes will significantly improve your chances of getting Tier 17 maps.

Multitask Mechanics: Don't focus only on Tier 17 maps. Using mechanics like Heist, Essences, and Delirium can supplement your map farming with additional POE currency drops and loot, while also increasing your overall chances of getting higher-tier maps.

Run Specific Maps for Synergy: Some maps have better synergy with your strategy. For example, Cemetery and Jungle Valley are good for clearing quickly and getting map bosses, while Silo and Underground River are perfect for fast boss kills.

Conclusion

Farming Tier 17 maps offer a high-reward opportunity for cheap POE currency and valuable items. By optimizing your Atlas skill tree, utilizing powerful Scarabs, and stacking monster-dense mechanics like Delirium, Essences, and Eldritch Influence, you can significantly increase your chances of valuable drops. Whether you focus on currency farming or obtaining rare items, these strategies will help ensure that you get the most out of your T17 map runs.

Lastly, always keep experimenting with your farming strategies, adjusting your builds based on the loot and rewards you're after. Flexibility in your approach will maximize your potential rewards as you progress through the game. Happy farming!