Path of Exile 3.29 has landed with a sweeping wave of spell changes, fresh gem additions, and reworked mechanics that reshape how players approach both league start and endgame farming. GGG has directed most of its balance attention toward spells this patch, meaning caster fans have plenty to be excited about. From massive projectile buffs on old favorites to entirely new exceptional gems like Pact of Katach, the meta looks noticeably different from 3.28.

Before jumping into the rankings, let's take a quick look at what's changed across the board so you can get a sense of the direction GGG has pushed the game this league.

PoE 3.29 Best Skill (Spells) Tier List (Buffed & New)

This patch leans heavily toward spells, mixing genuine buffs, cosmetic tweaks disguised as improvements, and a few disappointing changes. Skills like Spark, Arc, and Ball of Lightning of Orbiting got slightly better cast times but were hit with roughly 25% higher mana costs, which pretty much cancels out the improvements in practice. On the other hand, skills such as Winter Orb, Absolution, Freezing Pulse, and Soul Rend of Reaping received clean buffs without any downsides, and Forbidden Rite quietly got a base damage boost with zero drawbacks. Support gems saw fewer changes overall, though Unleash and Barrage both received notable buffs. Finally, GGG added new exceptional gems tied to Vaal spells and other archetypes, most notably Pact of Katach, and reworked Yaoax Accord to slot right into that gameplay loop.

Below is the fully sorted ranking, starting with the most impactful buffs and new gems and moving down to the changes that look good on paper but underperform in practice.

1. Winter Orb - [Buffed]

Winter Orb is easily the most hyped skill of this patch, and for good reason. It now fires two to three projectiles at gem level 20, up from just one at all gem levels previously. The base crit chance climbed to 1.5%, along with 25% more critical strike chance and 20% more base damage. Base damage at gem level 20 also jumped from 450 to 540.

The biggest impact is that the projectile buff lets you drop GMP from your links (previously mandatory) and slot another damage support instead. GMP gave four projectiles but cost 26% less projectile damage — now you're losing that penalty and gaining roughly 30% more damage from a fresh support. All told, Winter Orb is looking at roughly 60–70% more damage post-patch, close to doubling its 3.28 output.

The skill was already loved for its auto-targeting clear and passive channeling gameplay, and now it feels great in the early campaign as well since you can pick it up around level 28. Pair it with the cheap Mystic Refractor wand (+2 projectiles) and the new Void Knight ascendancy skill — which grants 35% more damage, six additional projectiles, and a circular projectile spread — and Winter Orb becomes both a great league starter and a legitimate boss killer.

2. Ethereal Knives of Massacre - [Buffed]

The Massacre transfigured version received a crit chance jump from 6% to 10%, keeping it viable as a top-tier crit mapper. Combined with the untouched Herald of Ice + Elementalist package and the popular Shavronne's setup, EK of Massacre remains one of the strongest late-game map farmers. It's not the best league starter, but two or three weeks in, this build becomes dominant.

3. Ethereal Knives - [Buffed]

Base Ethereal Knives got hefty buffs across the board. Crit chance jumped from 6% to 10% (roughly 60% more crit), effectiveness of added damage climbed to 250% with 220% more base physical damage, and projectile speed rose 20% baseline (becoming +30% next patch thanks to quality from socket colors). The 30% more projectile speed is a bigger deal than it sounds since projectile travel distance on EK scales directly with speed — your knives now cover 30% more ground. This could revive builds like EK Trickster and might even make base EK preferable over the Massacre variant with the right setup.

4. Pact of Katach - [New]

Pact of Katach is a brand-new exceptional gem that empowers your damaging Vaal spells. Empowered Vaal spells deal more damage, have less soul gain prevention duration, and refund souls on use. The catch is a random affliction debuff every time you use it — things like 20% reduced movement speed or reduced cast speed — that stack instead of refreshing. You'll want to invest in debuff expiry rate through the passive tree, duration mastery, Runegraft of the Warp, or the Soul of Arakaali pantheon to keep them manageable.

This gem shines on lingering-damage Vaal setups rather than pure spam builds. Vaal Blade Vortex, Vaal Flame Blast Ignite, Vaal Arc Ignite, and Vaal Cold Snap are all natural fits.

5. Freezing Pulse - [Buffed]

Freezing Pulse now fires one to five projectiles at gem level 1 to 20, previously locked to a single projectile at all gem levels. Crit chance jumped from 6% to 7.5%, and effectiveness of added damage climbed from 330% to 370%, along with more base cold damage. This is a huge clear boost that turns Freezing Pulse into a real mapping option again. Even if it doesn't become top-tier meta, the screen-wiping potential is very playable.

6. Soul Rend of Reaping - [Buffed]

Soul Rend of Reaping now fires three to five projectiles at gem level 1 to 20, a massive jump from the single projectile it had before. There's not a single downside attached to this change. It was already used with custom crit setups, and this projectile scaling makes it significantly more popular in 3.29 as a free damage upgrade. The main question is how well the projectiles overlap for single-target scenarios.

7. Absolution - [Buffed]

Absolution's base cast time dropped from 0.75 to 0.65, and there's no mana cost increase attached. That's a clean quality-of-life improvement across the board — especially during campaign where cast speed directly determines leveling pace. It was already a solid league starter last patch, and now it plays even smoother.

8. Crackling Lance of Branchchain - [Buffed]

The most popular Crackling Lance variant got the biggest boost. Effectiveness of added damage jumped to 370% from 330%, base lightning damage climbed noticeably, and cast time dropped. Even with the higher mana cost, this is a legitimate damage upgrade. Expect to see Crackling Lance of Branchchain builds pop up more often this league.

9. Unleash Support - [Buffed]

Unleash's less damage penalty dropped from 36% to 26% at max level — a massive win for spell builds, particularly Blade Vortex, which relied on this support as its main damage multiplier. This is one of the most impactful support gem changes of the patch.

10. Barrage Support - [Buffed]

Barrage's less damage penalty dropped from 62% to 44%, and it now fires four additional projectiles instead of three. Attack time per projectile went up slightly (10% instead of 5%), making it a hair slower, but the overall damage boost is real. Bow builds looking for improved single-target may finally give Barrage a serious look again.

11. Firestorm of Meteors - [Buffed]

Firestorm of Meteors is one of the very few skills that avoided GGG's mana tax entirely. It got more effectiveness, more base fire damage, and reduced mana cost — a rare clean triple buff. Popularity might still stay moderate due to the Rasp nerf, but the skill itself is objectively stronger.

12. Forbidden Rite - [Buffed]

Forbidden Rite now deals 14% of maximum life as base chaos damage, up from 12%. It's not a huge jump, but there's absolutely no downside attached — no mana increase, no cast time change. Free damage means far more Forbidden Rite builds this league.

13. Bladefall - [Buffed]

Bladefall got a clean numerical upgrade: effectiveness of added damage climbed to 160% from 140%, along with more physical damage. That's a solid damage boost with no downsides, which pairs perfectly with its combo partner below.

14. Blade Blast - [Buffed]

Blade Blast picked up slightly more radius and had its crit chance bumped from 6% to 10%. On its own, this is a nice bump, but combined with the Bladefall buff, the Chieftain Bladefall/Blade Blast combo becomes very appealing again for players who prefer a two-button clear pattern.

15. Greater Unleash Support - [Buffed]

Greater Unleash saw the same treatment as its base version, dropping from 31% to 23% less damage at max level. Between the two, Blade Vortex builds are the biggest winners of this change, along with any spellcaster leaning on burst repeat mechanics.

16. Lightning Tendrils - [Buffed]

The base version received one of the largest effectiveness jumps of the patch, climbing to 190% from 130%, plus more lightning damage and a larger base radius. This is a real caster archetype boost that should see meaningful play across a variety of ascendancies.

17. Lightning Tendrils of Eccentricity - [Buffed]

This transfigured version also got effectiveness and damage bumps, keeping it as a strong lightning caster alternative for players who prefer its unique mechanics.

18. Lightning Tendrils of Escalation - [Buffed]

The Escalation variant received similar treatment, more effectiveness and more lightning damage. All three Lightning Tendrils gems are now much more competitive, and the family as a whole becomes a legitimate meta option this patch.

19. Crackling Lance - [Buffed]

The base Crackling Lance got buffed alongside its transfigured versions. Effectiveness of added damage climbed considerably, base lightning damage went up, and cast time dropped. Mana cost also increased slightly, but the trade-off is worth it. This is a strong lightning caster option this patch even outside the Branchchain variant.

20. Storm Call - [Buffed]

Storm Call received a mostly positive rework. Cast time dropped from 0.5 to 0.4, effectiveness of added damage climbed to 270% from 250%, and base lightning damage at level 22 rose considerably. The 25% mana cost hike stings, but unlike Arc or Spark, Storm Call gets meaningful damage compensation. Since you rarely spam Storm Call while clearing, the mana cost is manageable in practice.

21. Firestorm - [Buffed]

The base Firestorm received effectiveness bumps and more base fire damage. It's a healthy numerical buff overall, but Firestorm builds relied heavily on Rasp, which got nerfed this patch. That will keep Firestorm relatively niche despite the damage boost.

22. Firestorm of Pelting - [Buffed]

Firestorm of Pelting also received an effectiveness bump and more base fire damage. Same story as its base version: solid numbers, but likely niche use because the supporting item ecosystem got weaker this patch.

23. Tornado of Elemental Turbulence - [Buffed]

Tornado of Elemental Turbulence now has 80% effectiveness of added damage (up from 65%) and more base physical damage. It works either as a secondary damage source in bow builds or as a self-cast spell option. It remains niche, but the buff is a real one.

24. Vaal Temptation Support - [New]

Introduced last patch but now especially strong, Vaal Temptation removes soul gain prevention entirely in exchange for taking physical damage over time. The debuff duration is based on soul gain prevention duration, so modifiers that reduce that duration (Pact of Katach, Yaoax Accord, Priest of Yaoac bloodline) all shorten the DoT window. Pair it with a low-SGP Vaal skill like Vaal Arc (2 seconds SGP), and you can chain Vaal skills back to back for sustained damage.

25. Arc of Surging - [Buffed]

Out of all Arc variants, Arc of Surging got the largest bump. The beam now splits toward six to nine additional targets (from four to seven), plus a lower cast time. Unfortunately, it also carries the 25% mana cost increase, which limits how much this actually helps. Playable, but probably not enough to bring Arc of Surging into proactive meta play.

26. Glacial Cascade - [Buffed]

Glacial Cascade got a crit bump to 7.5%, effectiveness of added damage climbed to 75% from 65%, and base cold damage went up. The problem is that Glacial Cascade lived and died with mines and traps, both of which took hits this patch. It's still playable, but far harder to build around than before.

27. Divine Ire - [Buffed]

All Divine Ire variants got more damage effectiveness and more base physical damage. On paper, this is a solid buff, but Divine Ire was mostly used with totems — and since totems got nerfed, this doesn't translate to real meta impact. As a self-cast option, Divine Ire remains uncomfortable to play, so its actual usage likely stays low.

28. Frost Blink - [Buffed]

Frost Blink got a small buff to crit strike chance (7.5% from 5%). It's a minor tweak that isn't likely to push the skill into serious play, but it's worth mentioning for hybrid builds looking for mobility with damage.

29. Vaal Wintry Blast - [Buffed]

Wintry Blast got the same small crit strike chance bump (7.5% from 5%). Same story as Frost Blink - a modest tweak rather than a meta-shifting change.

30. Ball Lightning - [Buffed]

Ball Lightning shares the same trap as the "buffed but actually nerfed" cluster below — small cast time gains offset by 25% higher mana cost. In practice, this means Ball Lightning builds will feel worse to play unless you have the mana investment to offset the change.

31. Frostbolt - [Buffed on Paper]

Frostbolt received a minor cast time improvement paired with a 25% higher mana cost, which functionally makes it worse to play. Avoid unless you're already invested in the archetype.

32. Spark - [Buffed on Paper]

Spark got a small cast time improvement paired with the same 25% mana cost hike. The improvement doesn't offset the extra cost, so Spark ends up feeling worse than it did last patch despite the "buff" tag.

33. Ball of Lightning of Orbiting - [Buffed on Paper]

The worst of the three "buffed but actually nerfed" gems. It received a minor cast time improvement paired with a 25% higher mana cost, and also lost some Archmage scaling, now dealing 8–14% of unreserved max mana instead of 10–16%. Avoid unless you're deeply invested in the archetype already.