Act 2 of Path of Exile 2 brings its own host of issues as you continue to chase the corruption. As you venture out on the Ardura Caravan to track it, you’ll make your way to the Traitor’s Passage, dark caves that should lead you to where you need to go, and it’s here that you’ll run into Balbala, who kicks off the Ascent to Power quest.

Table of Contents¶

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Balbala, the Traitor Location¶

Balbala is a bit of an odd one, even though she’s part of the Ascent to Power quest, you won’t fight her until you run into her during the Trail of Corruption quest in Act 2, that sees you head to the Traitor’s Passage. You’ll be fighting spiders here that can and will Poison you easily, so be sure to bring some resistance to it as you head through this area.

As you reach the later half of the area, you’ll find a door with an Ancient Seal on it, go inside and you’ll find someone impaled, locked in place with Runic Seals. Make sure you’re fully prepared before you remove them, as Balbala will attack the moment the last one is gone.

Balbala, the Traitor Boss Strategy¶

The difficult battles in Act 2 keep on coming, and Balbala is arguably the toughest of the bunch. To begin with, the arena itself isn’t overly large, and you have a hole in the center which blocks a lot of it off. On top of that, Balbala is quick, has some tricks up her sleeves, and cause Poison to fill the room, this is why you wanted that Poison resistance. As with all bosses in Path of Exile 2, you’re going to have to deal with plenty of attacks, and you can learn about them below:

Runic Circle¶

Balbala can toss a coin in a random location which spawns a Rune Circle, if left alone for a short period of time, this will spawn a Spirit of Balbala add that you’ll need to deal with. You can cancel this circle by walking or dodging through the coin in the middle, just be ready for Balbala herself to slam down on you when you do. If you’re low on health Potions though, you may wish to let the Spirit spawn and kill it for some charges.

Dagger Barrage¶

Balbala will summon many Runic Daggers that float for a while and then shoot off at once at your location. Wait for them all to appear, and then get ready to dodge as the first one gets close to you.

Spin Attack¶

Balbala will perform a dashing spin attack toward your location, this is perhaps the easiest attack to deal with as you can just dodge to the side and that will leave her open for some follow-up attacks.

Thousand Daggers¶

Balbala will coat the ground in daggers that, after a few seconds, will shoot up into the air. Keep moving when you see her start tossing these one the ground and try to get to an area without them. If you have ranged attacks, this is a good opportunity to score some free hits if you get out of the area quick enough.

Poison Daggers¶

Balbala will toss out multiple Poison Daggers at you in a line AoE that will, as you may expect, poison you. Hopefully you have some resistance to help with that, but look to dodge to the side to avoid the attack.

Gas¶

Balbala will vanish and cause gas to start filling the room, during this period, you must find her location and go near her to prevent it from continuing. As soon as you see the gas start appearing, start running around the edges of the room, as you get closer, she will reveal herself. Be prepared though, as she’ll instantly try to slam the ground where you are.

Circle Barrage¶

Balbala will conjure a circle of Runic Daggers around her that then spin outward and then back in. Simply get yourself into the opposite corner to avoid this entire attack and leave her open for some ranged counterattacks.

Balbala can be a very challenging battle, you’ll need to be on the move constantly, running through any Runic Circles you see (unless you need the adds for Flask charges), and get ready to hunt her down if she vanishes. The single biggest killer in this battle is taking too long to reveal her and suffering heavy poison damage.

She does, however, move around a lot, so any attacks you may have that can hit a wide area or deal AoE damage will very often hit her, making them the ideal skills to go for if possible. Balbala is weak to Cold, so if you have any weapons or skills that deal that, it should make life a bit easier too.

You’ll also want to keep an eye out for her constant ground pound attack, she’ll do this anytime you run through a Runic Circle or reveal her during the Gas attack, this will deal heavy damage to you and can ruin your entire run if you keep letting it happen. In that case, roll through where you reveal her so that you will always avoid it.

Once Balbala is defeated, be sure to grab any loot that is useful and don’t forget Balbala’s Barya, this will start the Ascent to Power quest that puts you on the path to unlocking your Ascendancy Class.