The questions to ask the player before planning anything, in one short message: their fantasy, league start or existing character, what the build is for (campaign, fast mapping, bossing, balanced), how far they realistically want to push (campaign … pinnacle bosses), how many buttons they want to press, budget, softcore/hardcore, and dislikes. Skip anything they already said. Pass the answers as goals to evaluate_build, compare_builds and optimize_build.

For an imported character (characterId from import_character): what each gear slot's mods are worth now (compared with a plain item of the same base), and which mods would help most on each slot — every mod is calculated on this character in Path of Building (a good roll at its level), counting damage, effective HP and the weakest max hit. Missing resistances (and chaos resistance when chaos is the weak spot) are always tested. Returns topUpgrades across slots and a trade search per slot with the best mods. Terms, defence and objective default from the character's main skill and gear, or from goals. Takes 5-20 seconds.

Rule-based checks for a planned build at a given character level: which skills are usable yet (and from what level), gem attribute requirements vs Strength/Dexterity/Intelligence from the class, passives and gear (and how to spend "+5 to any Attribute" passives), weapon attribute requirements (give weapons; Giant's Blood tripling is applied), Spirit for persistent skills vs Spirit from quests, passives and gear, the passive point budget, and skill/support rules (the same rules export_build enforces). Missing connecting passives are filled in and counted. Run it for each leveling phase (e.g. levels 12, 28, 45, 65, 90). For damage and survival numbers use evaluate_build.

Calculate 2–4 variants of a build the same way and compare them: e.g. two-handed vs one-handed + shield Titan, two ascendancies for the same theme, or a build with and without a key unique. Each variant is a full build (same fields as evaluate_build) with a label; usually they share most fields and differ in weapons, items, passives, skills or ascendancy. Returns damage, kill times, survival, life/ES, resistances, attribute shortfalls and verdicts per variant, the change against the first variant, and which is best for clearing, bossing and survival. Windows only for now.

Support gems that can support a skill, ranked: the game's own recommendations first, then tag matches. Each result explains why. Lineage supports are rare drops (expensive for a budget build).

Write a full build guide as a local web page and open it in the player's browser (like a Maxroll or Mobalytics guide): overview, strengths and weaknesses, a tab per phase (skills and supports, key passives with levels, ascendancy, gear to look for, quest rewards, a checklist before moving on, when to switch setups), automatic checks per phase, a zoomable passive tree highlighting each phase, and a downloadable Build Planner file per phase. When the Path of Building engine is available, each phase also gets real numbers and a verdict band at its last level. Use after planning; ask the player first. passivePlan is the plan_passive_tree output (id + takeAtLevel); phases split it by level. Give a phase its own passives only when it respecs. Gear slots use stat_priorities names (Ring, Wand, Focus…).

What the player did on the dashboard since you last checked: answers to your questions, tests or plans they marked keep or drop, comments, and messages. Act on them: follow their answers, drop what they rejected, and acknowledge their messages in the chat. Returns an empty list when there's nothing new.

Show the player what you're thinking on the live dashboard: a thought (what you noticed and why it matters), a plan (what you'll test next), a question (with answer options as buttons — use it for real choices, e.g. which of two directions to explore), a decision (what you settled on and why), or a status update. Keep each post short and plain. Test results appear on their own; don't repeat their numbers, interpret them.

Where the game data is cached, when each file was last checked, and whether it loaded.

Real numbers from Path of Building's calculation engine for a planned build at a character level: damage against normal monsters and against a boss, seconds to kill a normal/rare monster and a boss, hits you survive from monsters and bosses, life, energy shield, resistances (with the campaign's resistance penalty and only the quest rewards earned by that level), Spirit and attributes, plus a verdict band (Comfortable / Workable / Borderline / Not yet) with the weak point and what to fix first. Level 65+ is judged for early maps, T15 and juiced T16 (and pinnacle bosses when that's the goal). With goals (from build_intake) the targets follow the player's purpose and Hardcore, end-game gear follows their budget, and goalCheck says honestly whether the build is on track, rough or not realistic yet for what they want, with options to offer. setupGaps lists what the setup is missing (unused Spirit, no boss skill, no curse/mark/warcry/banner). At level 65+ the assumed rares get resistance mods added to cap resistances, as players do in maps. Damage is broken down into hits, ignite, poison, bleed and minions. By default it assumes budget rare gear for that level (a few mid-roll mods per slot, based on terms and defence), including a budget jewel in each allocated jewel socket; pass items to use specific uniques (by name) or pasted item text in their slots (jewels too), or gear: "none" for no gear. Missing connecting passives are filled in (and listed), and "+5 to any Attribute" passives are spent where the gems and weapon need them. gearTier sets how good the assumed rares are (budget, mid or high). Extras: an amulet anoint and a helmet instill (helmetInstill, via a Raven-Touched Shard), runes, soul cores and idols (socketables), a skill from a Lament/Portent/Absent Amulet with no Spirit cost (amuletSkill), unique flasks and charms (flasks, with flasksActive), and a weaponSwap set with its own weapons, passives and skills. Timeless jewels (Heroic Tragedy, Undying Hate) aren't calculated by Path of Building for PoE2 yet. To compare options side by side, use compare_builds. Numbers are estimates: assumed gear and heuristic bands, not guarantees. Windows only for now.

Write the finished build as a .build file into Path of Exile 2's BuildPlanner folder, where the game picks it up (passives with the level to take them, skills and supports with level ranges, and gear stat priorities per slot). Ask the player before writing. If the game folder isn't found, the file contents are returned to save manually. Gear slots: Main Hand, Off Hand, Weapon Swap Main Hand, Weapon Swap Off Hand, Helmet, Body Armour, Gloves, Boots, Amulet, Left Ring, Right Ring, Belt.

Notables, keystones and ascendancy notables whose text matches what the build scales. Give the class (and ascendancy) to get distances from the class start and that ascendancy's nodes. Terms are words from passive text, e.g. fire, spell, cast speed, critical, ignite, minion, projectile, area of effect, energy shield, life. Set listAscendancy to get every node of the ascendancy (no terms needed), to see all 8-point options. Small passives too: kinds ["small"] with near (a node) and within (points) lists the small passives around a node, with keys to use as plan_passive_tree targets (terms optional then). Passives that need an ascendancy node first (e.g. Oracle-only ones need The Unseen Path) show it in requires.

Unique items whose mods match what the build scales, with their full current mods, level requirement and where they drop. No prices here: treat boss-only drops (bossDrop: true) as likely expensive and prefer common uniques for budget builds. For a price, use trade_links (and, if this chat has a browser tool, offer to check a few prices with the player's OK). Slots: Helmet, Body Armour, Gloves, Boots, Amulet, Ring, Belt, Shield, Focus, Quiver, Wand, Staff, Sceptre, Bow, Crossbow, One Hand Mace, Two Hand Mace, Spear, Quarterstaff, Talisman, Jewel, Flask, Charm.

Everything about one skill, spirit or support gem: tags, skill types (what supports and passives key off), description, what it does at gem levels 1 and 20, Spirit cost, attribute weighting, weapon requirements, earliest character level, support family, and the supports the game recommends for it. Pass the exact name or gemId.

Load the player's real character from a Path of Building (PoE2) code: in Path of Building, Import/Export Build → Generate, then copy the code (or import their character into PoB first, then generate). Returns what the character is (class, level, skills, key passives, every item with its mods), its numbers on the same basis as evaluate_build (damage, kill times, effective HP, biggest hit of each damage type, resistances, verdicts and, with goals, an honest goalCheck), and a defenceAudit of where it's fragile (uncapped or negative resistances, the damage type most likely to kill it, one-shot risk, unused Spirit). It's saved under a characterId for character_upgrades. Use it for "why am I dying", "what should I upgrade" or to plan from their real gear. Windows only for now.

Current prices from the official Currency Exchange (the last full hour) for stackable items: currency orbs, runes, soul cores, idols, Liquid Emotions, omens, catalysts, essences, the Raven-Touched Shard and so on. Prices are in Exalted Orbs (and Divine Orbs for expensive items), estimated from what actually traded. Uniques and rares aren't on the exchange: use trade_links.

Campaign and end-game phases for a league-start character (Act 1 … Interludes, early maps, end-game), with approximate level ranges, a checkpoint level to run check_build at, passive points and quest Spirit by then, the highest gem level usable, and the quest rewards in each phase (resistances, Spirit, life, and choices). Level ranges come from quest area levels.

The .build files in Path of Exile 2's BuildPlanner folder (newest first, and whether this tool made each one) and the guide folders this tool created. Use before remove_builds, or to find the file names of earlier exports.

Characters imported earlier (characterId, label, when), newest first.

Playable classes with their released ascendancies and starting attributes.

Open a live dashboard in the player's browser (served from their own PC) that shows what you're testing and thinking as it happens: every evaluate_build, compare_builds, optimize_build, import and upgrade check appears automatically with its numbers and a "best so far" board, and your dashboard_post notes (thoughts, plans, questions) appear beside them. The player can answer questions with buttons, mark tests keep/drop, comment and send messages; you see those via dashboard_feedback (every tool result says when something is waiting). Open it at the start of a build or character session, and tell the player it's there. Calling it again reopens the same dashboard.

Tries likely changes to a build in Path of Building, one at a time, and keeps what measurably helps: support swaps on the main skill (or adding one to a free socket), notables that scale the build or its defences, Spirit skills, and an amulet anoint. damage lists changes that raise the objective (boss DPS, clear DPS or both) without giving up survivability (effective HP and max hit within 2%, resistances still capped); survival lists cheap survivability gains; spiritSkills shows what each Spirit skill measured; combined is the best compatible picks calculated together. Passive changes show their point cost and whether they fit the free points. Takes 10-40 seconds. A best-effort search, not a guaranteed best build; numbers are estimates. Use it after the first evaluate_build, and again after applying changes. Windows only for now.

Connect the class start to the chosen passives and say the character level each point can be taken at. By default targets are reached in the order given (priority order); order: "cheapest" takes the nearest first instead. Among equally short routes it prefers small passives matching terms and avoids avoid (e.g. terms ["spell", "fire"] picks Spell Damage smalls over Life Regeneration ones); to force a route, list small passives as targets too (find_passives with kinds ["small"] and near gives their keys). Notables passed on the way to another target are flagged (onTheWay). Passives gated behind an ascendancy node (e.g. Oracle-only passives need The Unseen Path) are only used when that node is in ascendancyPassives, and are flagged with the trial that unlocks them. Also paths the ascendancy nodes (8 points, 2 per trial). Pass passives by key, id or exact name.

Move superseded .build files (only ones this tool made) and guide folders out of the way, into Documents/PoE2 Build Planner/removed/. Nothing is deleted, so the player can move them back. Ask the player first and name exactly what will be moved. File and folder names come from list_builds.

Find active and spirit skill gems by gem tags, skill types, name words or description text. require terms must all match tags/types/name; text words must all appear in the skill's description (e.g. ["poison"], ["slam"]); prefer terms rank results. Useful terms: fire, cold, lightning, chaos, physical, spell, attack, projectile, area, melee, slam, strike, minion, bow, crossbow, mace, spear, quarterstaff, totem, curse, aura, herald, channelling, duration, persistent, buff. Each result has the gemId, tags, skill types, description, weapon requirements, earliest level and where it comes from (uncut-gem or item). Use gem_details for one gem's full details and compatible_supports for its supports.

For each gear slot (and jewels), the random modifiers that match what the build scales, best first, plus a defence baseline for the build's defence style. Terms are words from mod text (e.g. fire, spell, cast speed, critical, minion, projectile, area of effect, attack speed). Use avoid to rule out mods, e.g. ["attack"] for a caster. Give itemLevel for leveling advice: each mod then shows the best tier that can roll at that level, plus the end-game tier. Slots: Helmet, Body Armour, Gloves, Boots, Amulet, Ring, Belt, Shield, Focus, Quiver, Wand, Staff, Sceptre, Bow, Crossbow, One Hand Mace, Two Hand Mace, Spear, Quarterstaff, Talisman, Jewel, Flask, Charm.

Suggestions beyond the main skill at a character level: persistent skills (auras, heralds, buffs) that fit the build and what they cost against the Spirit available by then (quests plus any gear Spirit you give), with a pick that fits — and which ones a Lament, Portent or Absent Amulet grants with no Spirit cost (freeWithAmulet, and the amuletSkills section); the best jewel type and its mods, plus fitting unique jewels; the best life and mana flask for the level, useful flask mods, charms, and fitting unique flasks and charms; amulet anoints (notables and their Liquid Emotions recipe, with cost) and the helmet instill (a Raven-Touched Shard in the helmet allows a second notable); and runes, soul cores and idols per gear slot. Costs are in Exalted Orbs from the official Currency Exchange (last full hour) when it can be reached. Try any of these in evaluate_build (anoint, helmetInstill, socketables, amuletSkill, flasks).

Links to pre-filled searches on the official trade site that the player opens in their own browser (this tool never contacts the trade site). Rare items: give the slot or item class and the mods to look for (e.g. the assumed gear from evaluate_build or stat_priorities picks); each mod is searched at 80% of its value or better (strictness), cheapest first. Uniques: give names (e.g. Mageblood, Headhunter). Mods the trade site's stat list doesn't recognise are listed in leftOut. Share the links with the player; prices change constantly.