You've finally reached Act 2 in Path of Exile 2, and the game hits you with a curveball. It’s not just about resists and life anymore. Suddenly, you’re staring at a second health bar that doesn't care about your flasks. Welcome to the Trial of the Sekhemas.
Honestly, it feels a bit like the developers at Grinding Gear Games watched us breeze through the Labyrinth in the first game and decided we needed a lesson in humility. This trial isn't just a boss rush. It’s a roguelike gauntlet that tests your patience as much as your DPS. If you’re coming from the original PoE, forget everything you know about sustain. Leech won't save you here. Regen is basically useless for the mechanic that actually matters.
The Secret Language of Honour
The biggest shock for most players is the Honour system. Think of it as your "Trial HP." When you enter, your maximum Honour is basically a snapshot of your Life and Energy Shield combined. Every time a stray projectile touches you, that bar drops.
Here is the kicker: Honour does not regenerate naturally. You can't just run away and wait for it to tick up. You can't chug a life flask to fix a mistake. If that bar hits zero, the run is over. You don’t "die" in the experience-loss sense, but you get kicked out and lose your progress. This shift in focus makes Evasion and Spell Dodge arguably more valuable than raw mitigation during the run. Sure, Armour helps reduce the Honour lost per hit, but avoiding the hit entirely is the only way to keep your run alive through all four floors.
Relics: Your Only Real Safety Net
Before you even step foot in the first room, you have to deal with the Relic Altar. You’ll find this in the Trial lobby. These aren't just stat sticks; they are the meta-progression that makes this whole thing bearable.
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- Non-Unique Relics: These stay in your altar. You don't lose them if you fail. Look for "Honour Resistance" specifically. Stacking this up to 75% is the difference between a relaxing stroll and a stressful nightmare.
- Unique Relics: These are one-time use consumables. They make the trial much harder but guarantee specific high-tier rewards. If you see The Last Flame, be careful. It sets your Honour to 1. One hit and you're out. But if you win? You get the Temporalis body armour, which is worth a fortune.
- Expansion: You start with a small grid. As you beat the final boss, Zarokh, you unlock more slots. Eventually, you can fit up to 18 relics.
Surviving the Seven Rooms
The Trial of the Sekhemas consists of seven rooms followed by a boss. The first room is always a surprise—totally random. After that, the game gives you a map. You get to choose your path, and this is where most people mess up. You aren't just choosing a room type; you're balancing rewards against Afflictions.
Room Types You'll Encounter
Escape Trial
This is essentially a high-speed chase. You have to find and deactivate Death Crystals before a timer runs out. Don't stop to fight. Just run. If the timer hits zero, it’s an instant fail.
Hourglass Trial
Survival 101. You’re locked in a room with waves of enemies. The timer ticks down, but you can speed it up by hunting down Rare monsters. If your build has low clear speed, this room can be a death trap for your Honour bar.
Gauntlet Trial
Traps. So many traps. You need to find levers to open the exit. It’s very Labyrinth-esque. Honestly, unless the reward is insane, most veteran players avoid these because one mistimed roll into a floor spike can eat a huge chunk of Honour.
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Ritual and Chalice Trials
These are your standard "kill things in a circle" mechanics. Ritual requires you to kill casters to close portals. Chalice requires filling a bowl with the blood of Rares. These are generally the safest rooms because you control the pace of the fight.
Finding the Entrance (The Part That Bugs Out)
There is a weird quirk with how you actually get into the trial. You have to find Balbala, the Traitor in Traitor’s Passage during Act 2. Once she's dead, she drops a quest coin called a Barya.
Kinda weirdly, the waypoint doesn't just "unlock" like others. You have to go to the Desert Map (the physical table near Sekhema Asala in the caravan) and click the little diamond icon. If you try to just use a regular waypoint, it might not show up. Also, if you’re playing on a higher difficulty like Cruel and can’t find it, go back to Normal and make sure you actually finished the quest there. The game is a bit finicky about that flag.
Why Everyone Hates Zarokh, The Temporal
The final boss of the fourth floor is Zarokh. He’s a jerk.
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He doesn't just hit hard; he messes with time. His most dangerous move involves him disappearing and leaving a glowing spot in the center. You must go to that spot. If you don't, you'll miss the hourglass phase. He spawns several hourglasses around the arena, and you have to touch all of them before a clock face on the floor completes a rotation.
If you're slowed by an Affliction, this is nearly impossible. This is why "Movement Speed" and "Reduced Effect of Chill/Slow" are mandatory stats for this fight. Zarokh also loves a rotating lightning beam. Stay close to him and rotate with the beam. It's much easier to outrun the rotation when you're near the center than when you're at the edge of the arena.
The Sacred Water Economy
Throughout the run, you collect Sacred Water. Use it. It’s a "use it or lose it" currency.
If you find a Merchant room (look for the scales icon on the map), spend that water on Boons. The best ones are "All-Seeing Eye" (reveals the whole map) and anything that restores Honour. There’s also a fountain that restores 10% Honour for 5 Sacred Water—use it if you’re below half.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Run
If you're struggling to get your Ascendancy points, stop trying to "power through" with damage.
- Reforge your Relics. Use your currency to roll for Honour Resistance or "Restore Honour on Boss Kill."
- Avoid "Random" Afflictions. Never take a deal that gives a random minor affliction. There are too many run-ending modifiers like "cannot use travel skills" or "reduced movement speed."
- Prioritize the Merchant. Pathing toward a Merchant on Floor 3 or 4 can save a run that's running low on Honour.
- Watch the ground. In the Zarokh fight, the traps he spawns will freeze you. If you get frozen during the hourglass phase, the run is 100% over.
The Trial of the Sekhemas is a marathon, not a sprint. Take the "safe" rooms. Pick the "boring" rewards if the path has fewer afflictions. Getting those two Ascendancy points is worth more than a few extra pieces of gear from a dangerous Gold Cache. Once you have a full board of 18 relics, you can come back and farm those Time-Lost Jewels for the endgame passive tree boosts. For now? Just survive.