Tracking down the Well of Souls in Path of Exile 2's new Rise of the Abyssal league is the main way you start engaging with the seasonal mechanics. You'll likely have spotted the green-glowing rifts popping up in each region you explore, challenging you to fight abyssal enemies and earn a special chest at the end with some extra rewards. You might even have earned an Abyssal Bone that promises to desecrate a piece of your gear.
But how exactly do you desecrate items? This is why you'll want to track down the Well of Souls once you arrive in Act 2. Below, I'll explain how to find the well, how the desecration mechanic works, and the best ways to gather the materials you need to actually desecrate your gear and reveal those bonuses.
Where to find the Well of Souls in Path of Exile 2
You can find the Well of Souls in the Mastodon Badlands in Act 2. While in that first area, look for an entrance to a cave called the Lightless Passage and travel through it until you arrive at the well itself. This is essentially a seasonal hub area with an NPC called the Lurking Creature that lets you "desecrate" your equipment, which is the main mechanic of the new Rise of the Abyssal league. If you want to travel back to the well quickly, look for the option on the right side of the map screen when using a waypoint.
How to desecrate equipment in Path of Exile 2
To desecrate rare equipment, you first need to use an Abyssal Bone item like the Gnawed Jawbone to apply an Unrevealed Desecrated Modifier. Once you have that, you can reveal it in the centre of the Well of Souls and choose one of three potential affixes you want to apply to that piece of gear.
There are different bones for each piece of equipment, and you can also earn Omen items and activate them in your inventory to tweak the selection of modifiers you'll get when revealing, letting you tailor things a bit more. So, how do you get these seasonal items? There are a couple of different ways:
- Closing Abyssal Rifts: You may have already gotten some seasonal items by encountering and closing these glowing-green cracks in the ground. These events pop up in most areas and involve killing abyssal enemies until you earn an Abyssal Trove.
- Completing Abyssal Depths: One of the best ways to earn the seasonal items is to complete these areas. Abyssal Depths are special holes you'll find which you can jump into. Inside, you'll fight abyssal enemies and rares with additional modifiers and can get the items above either by opening chests or the Abyssal Troves at the end of the area guarded by some especially challenging rares.
There are likely more ways to earn these materials in the endgame, but these are the primary ways you'll get them during the story. While Abyssal Rifts appear all the time, my first Abyssal Depths popped up in the Titan's Grotto after I found the Well of Souls in Act 2, and I've had two more since then in Act 3 in Azak Bog and the Chimeral Wetlands.
How to unlock Abyssal Lich in Path of Exile 2
Another secret of the Well of Souls is the ability to earn a tweaked Lich ascendancy for the Witch. First, though, you'll need to find a Kulemak's Invitation item, which lets you jump into the Well of Souls itself, where you'll fight a special boss. It seems you can only get this item from Abyssal Commanders in the endgame once you've started mapping, so you'll first have to finish Acts 1, 2, 3, and 4, plus all of the interludes, before it becomes available. You'll also have to choose the Lich ascendancy or have it active. I'll add more details if I manage to unlock it myself, considering I'm playing Lich.
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