Heraldry Synergy: Unleashing the Power of Frost and Storm

Mastering the Double Herald Strategy in Path of Exile 2

Path of Exile 2's Double Herald setup combines Herald of Ice and Herald of Thunder for devastating screen-clearing potential. This guide details how to implement this powerful technique. Understanding the interplay between these skills is beneficial, especially for advanced build crafting.

Implementing the Double Herald Setup

Four key elements are required:

1. A Herald of Ice Skill Gem linked with a Lightning Infusion Support Gem.
2. A Herald of Thunder Skill Gem linked with a Cold Infusion Support Gem (Glaciation is highly recommended).
3. 60 Spirit.
4. A method to inflict Cold damage.

Remember to activate both Heralds in your skill menu.

Effective Cold damage sources for initiating the chain reaction include:

• Monk's Ice Strike (highly effective).
• Passive skills boosting Freeze buildup.
• Weapons/gloves with flat cold damage.
• Against the Darkness Time-Lost Diamond Jewel (+Cold damage%).

Understanding the Synergistic Effects

Herald of Ice activates upon shattering a frozen enemy, creating an AoE cold damage explosion. Crucially, Herald of Ice's cold damage cannot freeze, preventing self-perpetuating chain reactions.

Herald of Thunder activates upon killing a shocked enemy, unleashing damaging lightning bolts. Similarly, Herald of Thunder cannot inflict shock independently.

The synergy lies in the damage conversion: Lightning Infusion on Herald of Ice converts some damage to lightning (which can shock), while Cold Infusion on Herald of Thunder converts some damage to cold (which can freeze).

Ideally, this creates a continuous chain reaction: Herald of Ice shocks, triggering Herald of Thunder, which then freezes, triggering Herald of Ice again. In practice, the chain often breaks after one or two cycles due to enemy density. Breaches are particularly effective due to their high enemy concentration.

To initiate, freeze and shatter an enemy using a cold skill (like Ice Strike). This triggers Herald of Ice, which shocks, starting the chain reaction. Prioritizing Herald of Ice is advantageous because Freeze is easier to inflict than Shock, and Herald of Thunder's lightning bolts have greater range.