Path of Exile 2 Build Optimizer MCP

# Path of Exile Ailment Mechanics - Comprehensive Research ## 1. IGNITE ### Base Damage Formula ``` Ignite DPS = 50% of base fire damage of the hit Total Damage = 200% of base fire damage over base duration ``` ### Duration Mechanics - **Base Duration:** 4 seconds - **Minimum Effective Duration:** 0.3 seconds (300ms) - applications below this are discarded - **Scaling:** Duration increases extend the effect duration but maintain the same DPS (total damage increases proportionally) ### Damage Calculation Details - Ignite damage scales from base fire damage **before** increased/more multipliers or resistance calculations - The burning damage is calculated as: `50% of base fire damage per second` - Total damage dealt: `200% of base fire damage` over 4 seconds ### Stacking Mechanics - Multiple ignites **do not stack** cumulatively - Only the highest DPS ignite deals damage at any moment - Each ignite effect remains active until expiration - Exception: Certain unique items can grant additional simultaneous ignite stacks ### Modifiers That Affect Ignite Ignite damage is modified by: - Damage - Damage over Time - Elemental Damage - Fire Damage - Burning Damage - Ignite Damage - Damage over Time Multiplier - Fire Damage over Time Multiplier **Note:** Attack, Spell, Melee, and Ranged damage modifiers do NOT apply to ignite ### Application Chance - Critical strikes: 100% chance to ignite (inherent) - Only fire damage inflicts ignite by default (equipment can modify this) ### Version History - **Version 3.3.0:** Increased to 50% per second (from 40%) - **Version 1.0.2:** Originally dealt 20% per second over 4 seconds --- ## 2. SHOCK ### Core Effect Formula ``` E = 1/2 × (D/T)^0.4 × (1 + M) ``` **Where:** - **E** = Shock effect percentage (increased damage taken) - **D** = Lightning damage dealt in the hit - **T** = Enemy's ailment threshold (typically equals maximum life) - **M** = Attacker's increases to shock effect (as decimal, e.g., 50% = 0.5) ### Base Values and Constraints - **Base Duration:** 2 seconds - **Minimum Effect:** 5% (shocks below this are discarded) - **Maximum Effect:** 50% (can be exceeded with specific modifiers) - **Minimum Damage Required:** 0.32% of ailment threshold to achieve 5% shock ### Ailment Threshold Mechanics - **Standard monsters:** Ailment threshold = Maximum life - **High-life bosses:** Use reduced thresholds - **Example:** Sirus estimated at ~25 million damage threshold (~35% of boss life) ### Damage Scaling Examples For standard ailment threshold (T = enemy max life): - 5% shock requires: 0.32% of enemy max life as lightning damage - Higher shocks require exponentially more damage due to the 0.4 exponent ### Modifier Scaling Increases to shock effect reduce damage requirements proportionally: - With 100% increased shock effect (M = 1.0): minimum shock requires only 0.06% of ailment threshold ### Application Mechanics - Critical strikes: Always inflict shock (100% chance) - Applies **after** hit damage calculation - Only lightning damage inflicts shock by default (modifiable) - Sources applying shock without damage: 15% base effect --- ## 3. FREEZE ### Duration Calculation Formula ``` Base Duration = 0.06 × (% of target max HP dealt as cold damage) seconds ``` **Constraints:** - **Maximum Duration:** 3 seconds (achieved at 50% of target HP as cold damage) - **Minimum Duration:** 0.3 seconds (freezes below this are discarded) ### Minimum Hit Requirement ``` Minimum Freeze = 5% of enemy maximum life as cold damage ``` **Calculation:** - Freezes with duration < 0.3 seconds are discarded - This effectively requires hitting for at least 5% of enemy life - Example: Enemy with 20,000,000 HP requires minimum 1,000,000 cold damage ### Duration Examples ``` 1% of max HP dealt = 0.06 seconds (discarded - below minimum) 5% of max HP dealt = 0.30 seconds (minimum freeze) 10% of max HP dealt = 0.60 seconds 25% of max HP dealt = 1.50 seconds 50% of max HP dealt = 3.00 seconds (maximum) 100% of max HP dealt = 3.00 seconds (capped at maximum) ``` ### Duration Modifiers Freeze duration scales with: - Freeze duration modifiers - Ailment duration modifiers - These increase duration and lower the minimum damage threshold ### Application Mechanics - Critical strikes: 100% chance to freeze (inherent) - Non-critical hits: Require explicit "chance to freeze" mechanics - Only cold damage inflicts freeze by default (equipment can modify) ### Interaction with Chill - When frozen, targets are simultaneously chilled - Upon unfreezing, chill persists for an additional 0.3 seconds --- ## 4. CHILL ### Effect Magnitude Formula ``` E = 1/2 × (D/T)^0.4 × (1 + M) ``` **Where:** - **E** = Chill effect (percentage reduction to action speed) - **D** = Cold damage dealt in the hit - **T** = Enemy's ailment threshold (typically equals maximum life) - **M** = Sum of attacker's increases to chill effect (as decimal) ### Base Values and Constraints - **Base Duration:** 2 seconds - **Minimum Effect:** 5% action speed reduction (below this is discarded) - **Maximum Effect:** 30% action speed reduction - **Non-damage Chill:** 10% base effect (scales with modifiers) ### Damage Requirements for Chill Tiers For standard ailment threshold (T = enemy max life): ``` 5% chill requires: 0.32% of ailment threshold as cold damage 10% chill requires: 1.79% of ailment threshold 20% chill requires: 10.12% of ailment threshold 30% chill requires: 27.89% of ailment threshold ``` ### Modifier Scaling Increases to chill effect apply **before** minimum/maximum enforcement: - With 100% increased chill effect (M = 1.0): - Minimum requirement: 0.06% of ailment threshold - Maximum requirement: 4.93% of ailment threshold ### Application Mechanics - Applies **after** hit damage calculation - Multiple damage types can combine to determine chill magnitude - Only cold damage inflicts chill by default (modifiable) ### Interaction with Freeze - Frozen targets are considered chilled - When freeze expires, chill persists for 0.3 seconds --- ## SHARED MECHANICS ACROSS AILMENTS ### Critical Strikes - All ailments have 100% application chance on critical strikes - No additional "chance to" modifier needed for crits ### Ailment Threshold - For most monsters: Ailment Threshold = Maximum Life - Bosses and high-life enemies: May use reduced thresholds - Party scaling affects effective thresholds ### Duration Modifiers All ailments can be scaled by: - Specific ailment duration modifiers (e.g., "increased Freeze Duration") - Generic "increased Ailment Duration" modifiers - Skill effect duration modifiers (where applicable) ### Non-Linear Scaling Shock and Chill use the formula: `(D/T)^0.4` - This creates diminishing returns for effect magnitude - Doubling damage does not double the effect - The 0.4 exponent means large hits are needed for high-magnitude effects ### Minimum Thresholds All ailments (except Ignite) have minimum thresholds: - Freeze: 0.3 second duration (5% of max life) - Shock: 5% effect (0.32% of ailment threshold) - Chill: 5% effect (0.32% of ailment threshold) - Ignite: 0.3 second duration --- ## FORMULAS QUICK REFERENCE ### Ignite ``` DPS = 50% of base fire damage Total = 200% of base fire damage over 4 seconds Min Duration = 0.3 seconds ``` ### Shock ``` Effect = 1/2 × (Damage/Threshold)^0.4 × (1 + Modifiers) Min Effect = 5% Max Effect = 50% Duration = 2 seconds ``` ### Freeze ``` Duration = 0.06 × (% HP dealt) seconds Min Duration = 0.3 seconds (5% HP) Max Duration = 3 seconds (50% HP) ``` ### Chill ``` Effect = 1/2 × (Damage/Threshold)^0.4 × (1 + Modifiers) Min Effect = 5% Max Effect = 30% Duration = 2 seconds ``` --- ## MATHEMATICAL NOTES ### The Power of 0.4 Exponent For Shock and Chill formulas, the `^0.4` exponent creates specific scaling: - To achieve 2x effect, need ~5.66x damage - To achieve 3x effect, need ~15.59x damage - This heavily penalizes scaling to maximum effect ### Threshold Bypass Calculations To determine required damage for a specific effect: ``` D = T × (2E / (1 + M))^2.5 ``` Where you solve for D given desired effect E ### Example Calculation For 20% shock with no modifiers (M = 0): ``` D = T × (2 × 0.20 / 1)^2.5 D = T × 0.4^2.5 D = T × 0.1012 ``` Requires 10.12% of ailment threshold as lightning damage