With the Path of Exile 2 0.4 update, spectres have been a major focus for minion players. If you’re looking to maximize your minion build or want to try the new Druid talisman and weapon combos, understanding which spectres perform best is more important than ever. This guide brings together extensive playtesting, patch note analysis, and community impressions to help you choose the most effective spectres for both campaign and endgame content.
Changes To Spectres in Path of Exile 2 0.4
The 0.4 patch introduced a slew of changes to spectres. Many received lowered spirit costs and improved monster AI, while others had their skill cooldowns reduced or particular abilities adjusted. For example, the cultist archer and Valgard Grenadier both saw tweaks that made them even more attractive options. However, not every spectre benefited: some remain too slow or underpowered to recommend, while others have awkward AI patterns or conflicting ability scaling.
The update also brought new flexibility with weapon and talisman combinations for Druid builds, allowing players to run animal forms alongside minions. The result is a meta that leans heavily toward spectres with strong AoE, good mobility, and reliable high-impact abilities.
PoE 2 0.4 Best Spectres Tier List
Below is a tier list based on performance, reliability, and synergy with current meta gear and passives. Spectres are grouped from top performers to those with more niche or limited use.
S Tier: Top Choices for 0.4
1. Vaal Guard Grenade (VGA)
Type: Ranged Attacker
Monster Family: Humanoid
Damage: Physical Hit, Fire Hit, Ignite
Zone: Utzaal Act 3
Base Spirit Cost: 50
After the patch, the cooldown on oil grenades was increased to 11 seconds (from 2), but the main explosive grenade remains on a 2-second cooldown. This change means Valgards now throw their high-damage grenades more frequently instead of alternating between the less impactful oil trap and explosive grenades. This adjustment has been described as a damage buff, with better visual clarity and less screen clutter. They still have massive damage multipliers on their explosive grenades, and the spirit cost remains manageable. Valgards were already a top spectre, and this update improved their performance even further. Anyway, in the 0.4 patch, they throw the explosive grenades more often and oil grenade that melts your GPU less often, resulting in a lot more DPS!
2. Cultist Archer
Type: Ranged Attacker
Monster Family: Humanoid
Damage: Physical Hit, Chaos Hit, Chaos Dot
Zone: Freythorn Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 60
Benefiting from both improved AI and a reduction in the cooldown of their main AoE skill, cultist archers have seen a clear power boost. The rain of spores attack, which previously had an 8-second cooldown, can now be used far more often, and the overlapping chaos damage makes them extremely effective in both clearing and bossing scenarios. What's more, the cultist archer is more aggressive with targeting and gets approximately 20-30% CD reduced across the board. Their movement speed is reasonable, and they remain a fan favourite for many minion builds. Overall, Cultist Archer is one of the best ranged spectres, great for leveling with Essence Drain + Contagion + Despair Curse.
A Tier: Very Strong, With Some Limitations
3. Vile Vulture
Type: Melee Attacker
Monster Family: Beast
Damage: Physical
Zone: Deshar, Spires of Deshar Act 2
Base Spirit Cost: 93
Receives improved AI and a lower spirit cost, jumping into enemy packs constantly. These leaping minions are more aggressive with targeting, have better AOE cleave on basic attacks, and provide solid coverage when properly supported in the PoE 0.4 patch. They are especially useful in mapping, breach encounters, and when paired with Infernal Legion. While their single-target damage isn't outstanding, their clear is reliable, and they scale well with attack speed.
4. Powered Zealot (Spark)
Type: Hybrid Caster and Attacker
Monster Family: Humanoid
Damage: Physical Hit, Lightning Hit
Zone: Etched Ravine Interlude 3
Base Spirit Cost: 55
Powered Zealots are still the best caster spectre in the Last of the Druids season. Their mobility is mentioned as a plus, and when combined with Vaal Guard, using powered zealots can work out just fine. Someone pointed out that, because they’re mobile like that, it’s kind of fine to use the powered zealots if you have Vaal Guard. This suggests they aren’t a first choice on their own but can complement a stronger spectre setup.
5. Faridun Impaler
Type: Melee Attacker
Monster Family: Humanoid
Damage: Physical Hit, Bleed
Zone: The Spires of Deshar Act 2
Base Spirit Cost: 93
Now with improved AI and reduced spirit cost, Faradin Impalers have a versatile set of abilities, including bleeds and area coverage. However, their performance can be inconsistent due to AI cycling through multiple abilities and some less effective default attacks. If the AI improvements help them use their powerful skills more frequently, they could become even more attractive.
6. Ghoul Commander
Type: Melee Attacker
Monster Family: Undead
Damage: Physical Hit
Zone: Mausoleum of the Praetor Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 62
Ghoul Commander is a promising spectre because it introduces fresh gameplay opportunities and creative strategies, particularly for players interested in commanding minions with unique mechanics. The appeal comes from the anticipation of experimenting with the new commander class for the sorceress, which suggests that Ghoul Commander offers innovative minion interactions and playstyles. This spectre attracts attention from those eager to try out new content and devote time to builds that capitalize on its distinct abilities, making it a compelling choice for anyone looking to experience the latest features and adapt to the evolving meta.
7. Quadrilla
Type: Melee Attacker
Monster Family: Beast
Damage: Physical Hit
Zone: Jungle Ruins Act 3
Base Spirit Cost: 84
Shows promise thanks to improved AI, good stun potential, and tankiness. With the new impact shock wave buff, Quadrillas might be able to stun lock even high-HP targets. They could be especially useful when paired with shamans or rage-sharing builds due to nice damage output and animations!
8. Iron Thaumaturgist
Type: Hybrid Caster and Attacker
Monster Family: Humanoid
Damage: Physical Hit, Fire Hit, Ignite
Zone: The manor Ramparts Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 67
A fast-casting spellcaster with decent fireball damage. The flamethrower is less impressive, but the fireball attack can be amplified with nova projectiles and pierce setups. They offer solid clearing and can keep up better than many other spectres.
B Tier: Usable, But With Clear Downsides
9. Shaman Kin
Type: Ranged Caster
Monster Family: Humanoid
Damage: Physical Hit, Lightning Hit
Zone: Isle of Kin Act 4, Interlude Glacial Tarn
Base Spirit Cost: 84
Shaman spectres have also been receiving positive attention. They're pretty solid, and even players without high-level gear have found success with them. The tone suggests satisfaction and reliability, as someone mentioned they don’t even have levels of a weapon, but still felt confident. Shaman Kins appeal to those looking for a consistent and straightforward option, and there is a sense of comfort in their performance. These look very promising; they can use wildshards or multiproj, have really nice proj speed and spread, and could be a solid choice in the current patch.
10. Brimstone Crab
Type: Hybrid Attacker
Monster Family: Beast
Damage: Physical Hit, Fire Hit, Ignite
Zone: Vastiri Outskirts Act 2, Trial of the Sekhemas
Base Spirit Cost: 55
Reduced cooldown on abilities and a low spirit cost, but remains squishy and suffers from poor movement speed. Their multi-hit spray attack looks good, but the low area coverage and reliance on fire damage hold them back.
11. Mar Acolyte
Type: Hybrid Caster and Attacker
Monster Family: Humanoid
Damage: Physical Hit, Fire Hit, Ignite
Zone: Buried Shrines Act 2
Base Spirit Cost: 67
Improved AI and reduced cooldowns help, but damage remains modest and scaling is limited by fire conversion. They may perform well in early mapping or as a campaign choice, but tend to fall off for bossing.
12. Black Strider
Type: Melee & Ranged Attacker
Monster Family: Beast
Damage: Physical Hit
Zone: Traitor's Passage Act 2, Titan Grotto Act 2
Base Spirit Cost: TBD
Improved AI, lower spirit cost, and increased web mortar skill damage make these fast-moving spectres a potential threat, particularly versus melee enemies. However, their area coverage is lower than top choices like cultist archer or Valgard.
13. Iron Sharpshooter
Type: Hybrid Attacker
Monster Family: Demon
Damage: Physical Hit, Chaos Hit
Zone: Ogham Manor Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 64
AI and cooldown improvements don’t quite solve the issue of an unclear identity—abilities mix physical and chaos damage, making scaling awkward. Damage output is mediocre and movement speed is only average.
C/D Tier: Niche or Underperforming
14. Frost Wraith / Lightning Wraith
Frost Wraith
Type: Ranged Attacker
Monster Family: Undead
Damage: Cold Hit
Zone: Cemetery of the Eternals Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 71
Frost Wraith
Type: Ranged Attacker
Monster Family: Undead
Damage: Lightning Hit
Zone: Mausoleum of the Praetor Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 84
Both saw reduced spirit costs and lower cooldowns, but their damage remains underwhelming and AI is still clunky. Movement speed is poor, and they tend to fall behind during mapping. They may appeal to niche projectile-focused builds but are not recommended for general use.
15. Bramble Hulk
Type: Melee Attacker
Monster Family: Beast
Damage: Physical Hit
Zone: Hunting Grounds Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 84
Even with improved AI and lower skill cooldowns, they remain slow and waste time on abilities that have little impact. Unless movement speed is addressed, they are still rarely seen.
16. Mud Simulacrum
Type: Melee Attacker
Monster Family: Construct
Damage: Physical Hit
Zone: Mud Burrow Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 72
Slam damage is now more consistent, but these spectres are extremely slow and rarely catch up to the player. Their AoE is limited and they struggle to stay relevant in fast-paced content.
17. Knight Gaunt (Skeletal Reavers)
Type: Melee Attacker
Monster Family: Undead
Damage: Physical Hit, Physical DOT/Bleed
Zone: Tomb of the Consort Act 1, Mausoleum of the Praetor Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 91
Even after AI improvements and lower spirit cost, their slow movement and unreliable bleed ability make them a weak pick, especially when speed matters.
18. Fungal Proliferator
Type: Hybrid Caster and Attacker
Monster Family: Undead
Damage: Physical Hit, Poison
Zone: Grelwood Act 1, Grim Tangle Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 84
Movement speed is a major issue, and their AoE cone is inconsistent. They do chaos damage, but poor targeting and slow animations mean they are rarely used.
20. Werewolf Prowler / Ancient Ezomyte Bow
Werewold Prowler
Type: Melee Attacker
Monster Family: Beast
Damage: Physical Hit
Zone: Grelwood Act 1, Ogham Farmlands Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 64
Ancient Ezomyte Bow
Type: Ranged Attacker
Monster Family: Undead
Damage: Physical Hit, Lightning Hit
Zone: The Red Vale Act 1
Base Spirit Cost: 50
Both suffer from low damage and slow movement speed. Werewolf prowlers received only a slight damage boost, and ancient ezomites now scale correctly with attack damage, but neither is recommended unless movement improvements are made.
PoE 2 Best Spectres + Druid Talisman Weapon Combos
The 0.4 patch also brought new build possibilities for Druid minion players. Jonathan confirmed that you can now equip talismans in one hand and a scepter in the off hand, provided you pick up a notable in the passive tree. This approach lets you run animal forms alongside minions, opening up creative combinations for summoners.
Popular Combos and Strategies:
Animal Form + Minions: For example, combining your wolf form with minions is now viable. With the right setup, you can apply a mark to an enemy so that when it dies, it automatically summons more wolves. While this comes with a tradeoff - a passive node that reduces your maximum spirit by 50% - the synergy is strong enough to be worth considering, especially for campaign and early mapping.
Shaman Druid with Furious Wellspring: This build focuses on sharing rage with minions. With the right passive points and keystones, you can ensure that rage generation benefits both you and your summoned creatures. The potential is high, especially if minions can consistently maintain rage without it decaying.
Tactician Wolves: Using a tactician approach with talisman and banner setups can be an effective defensive strategy, especially if you combine it with companion nodes and warlord berserker. This setup supports both your personal survivability and the overall strength of your summoned army.
Weapon Swapping for Specialization: Some players prefer running a clearing spectre (like vile vulture) for mapping, then swapping to a bossing spectre (like Vaal Guard or powered zealots) for tougher encounters. This strategy takes advantage of spectres with specialized strengths and keeps your gameplay efficient.