How Many Hexes Can You Apply in Path of Exile?
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The question of how many hexes you can apply in Path of Exile (PoE) is a nuanced one, tied closely to the game’s mechanics around curses and player character builds. The short answer is: you can generally apply one hex by default to an enemy, but this limit can be increased. The number of hexes you can have on a single target is determined by your character’s curse limit. Understanding how to manipulate this limit is crucial for optimizing your damage output and survivability, particularly at later stages of the game.
Understanding Curses and the Curse Limit
In Path of Exile, curses are powerful debuffs applied to enemies, reducing their resistances, offensive capabilities, or hindering their actions. Hexes are a specific category of curses, typically associated with spells and a wide array of support gems. They are the most common form of curse in the game.
By default, a character can only have one curse applied to an enemy at any given time. Applying a new curse overrides the old one, meaning you can only have one hex active on a target at a time. This is where the importance of the curse limit comes into play.
The curse limit is a variable that determines how many curses an enemy can be affected by simultaneously. Think of it as a cap or a maximum number. This limit affects both hexes and marks. Marks are another type of curse, though only one mark can exist per enemy at a time, so increasing curse limits do not change this restriction.
Increasing Your Curse Limit
Luckily, the base curse limit of one can be increased through various game mechanics. These mechanics include:
- Passive Skills: Certain passive skill nodes on the skill tree increase the curse limit. Whispers of Doom is a notable keystone passive that grants +1 to your curse limit.
- Ascendancy Classes: Some Ascendancy classes possess nodes or mechanics that specifically raise your curse limit. For example, the Occultist’s Unholy Authority and Ascendant’s Occultist options can grant an additional curse.
- Unique Items: Specific unique items may provide additional curse limits. Keep your eye out for these, as they can drastically change your character’s potential.
Hexes vs Marks
It’s important to distinguish between hexes and marks. Both are forms of curses, but there are crucial differences:
- Hexes: Hexes, such as Elemental Weakness, Vulnerability, or Temporal Chains, are spells or effects that can debuff enemies in various ways. Many different types of hexes exist, each with its own effect.
- Marks: Marks are curses that generally focus on single-target damage and utility. For example, Assassin’s Mark can generate power charges upon hitting the marked target, while Warlord’s Mark provides life leech and endurance charges upon killing the marked target. Only one mark can be placed on an enemy at any time. Increasing your curse limit will not allow more than one mark at a time on one enemy.
This means, with a +1 curse limit, you can have two hexes, or one hex and one mark on a target, but never two marks.
Applying Hexes: Hextouch and Other Methods
Hexes can be applied in several ways:
- Direct Cast: You can directly cast hex spells at enemies, which will apply the curse.
- Hextouch Support Gem: The Hextouch Support gem is a cornerstone for many curse-based builds. This support gem links your hex spell to your active skill so that it applies automatically upon hitting an enemy with the linked skill.
- Unique Items and Passives: Certain unique items or passives can apply curses automatically under various conditions, such as when you hit an enemy or take damage.
- Triggered Skills: Skills like Herald of Thunder can trigger hexes with the support gem, this will also cost mana each time it triggers.
The Hextouch support gem is very powerful and allows for automated curse applications, but it also costs mana every time it applies a curse, and multiple procs on enemies may incur steep costs.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Hexes in Path of Exile
1. Can I have more than one mark on a single enemy?
No, you cannot. Regardless of your curse limit, you can only have one mark on any single enemy at any time. This limit is shared between all Mark skills. Applying a second mark will overwrite the existing one.
2. How do increased curse limits affect marks?
Increased curse limits allow you to apply additional hexes alongside your mark. For example, with a +1 curse limit, you could have one mark and one hex on a target, but not two marks.
3. Do curses stack in Path of Exile?
Curses that reduce resistance stack additively. That means if you have two curses that lower resistances, the reductions will be applied together.
4. Does Hextouch work with all skills?
Hextouch works with most active skills that hit enemies. Skills that do not hit cannot apply a curse with Hextouch. Triggered skills, such as Herald of Thunder, can also apply hexes when linked with Hextouch.
5. What is the +1 curse limit?
A +1 curse limit means you can have one additional curse on an enemy in addition to the base limit. This allows for a maximum of two active curses per enemy from the player.
6. Do curse effects stack from different curses?
Yes, most curse effects will stack, particularly reductions to resistances. This is what makes having a higher curse limit beneficial.
7. Do curses override each other?
Curses will only override each other if you are exceeding your curse limit. Applying a new curse while you are already at your limit will cancel the oldest curse.
8. What happens if I move away from a marked enemy?
Moving a great distance away from a marked target will cause the mark to expire. This is a mechanic to prevent marking and then “forgetting” about the target.
9. Can I use the same curse twice with an increased curse limit?
No, you cannot. Applying two copies of the same curse does not stack or override; only one instance of the curse is applied. You will need different curses to utilize the additional limit.
10. Are there unique items that increase the curse limit?
Yes, there are certain unique items that can grant an additional curse limit. These items can be incredibly valuable for builds that rely heavily on curses.
11. Can multiple players apply hexes to the same enemy?
Yes, multiple players can apply hexes to the same enemy, but the hex limit per enemy still applies to each player separately. It is not a shared limit.
12. Is there a maximum number of curses I can apply?
The theoretical maximum is 10 curses on a single enemy at once given the right Ascendancy and unique items. The player however must have the appropriate curse limit.
13. What is the best way to increase my curse limit?
The most common methods are using the Whispers of Doom passive skill and an Ascendancy like Occultist. Unique items that can also grant +1 curse limit.
14. Can my minions apply curses?
Yes, minions can apply curses if they are using an ability linked with a curse-applying support gem, though you cannot directly cast curses through your minions. Your curse limit applies to what your minions can apply to enemies as well, meaning that increasing your curse limit affects your minions if they are using curse abilities as well.
15. Does damage over time count as a “hit” for Hextouch?
No, damage over time (DoT) does not count as a “hit.” Hextouch requires a skill that hits the enemy to apply the linked hex. This is a key distinction when planning out your curse application method.