Trial of Ascendancy

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The ancient Azmerians constructed complex Trials, to test aspiring leaders; body, mind and soul. To select candidates for his Labyrinth, Emperor Izaro revived this tradition with his own sinister designs.

Description on the official Path of Exile website

The Trials of Ascendancy are areas to be discovered as the player travels through Wraeclast. Each trial showcases a specific type of trap, acting as a form of tutorial for the Labyrinth. Only when all trials are completed will the player be able to enter the Labyrinth of the specified difficulty. Cruel, Merciless, and Endgame Labyrinth's also require completion of the previous Labyrinth in addition to completion of the specified trials below. Progress through the Trials of Ascendancy is shared between all of a player's characters in each league.

The trials are always located within the listed zones, but have a variable location within the zone.

List of trials

Trial Plaque for the Normal Labyrinth

Provides access to the Normal Labyrinth:

• The Lower Prison, Act 1, showcasing Spike traps
• The Crypt Level 1, Act 2, showcasing Spinning blades
• The Chamber of Sins Level 2, Act 2, showcasing Sawblades
• The Crematorium, Act 3, showcasing Furnace traps
• The Catacombs, Act 3, showcasing Blade sentries
• The Imperial Gardens, Act 3, showcasing Dart traps

Provides access to the Cruel Labyrinth:

• The Prison (Act 6), showcasing Spike traps
• The Crypt (Act 7), showcasing Spinning blades
• The Chamber of Sins Level 2 (Act 7), showcasing Sawblades

Provides access to the Merciless Labyrinth:

• The Bath House, Act 8, showcasing Furnace traps
• The Tunnel, Act 9, showcasing Blade sentries
• The Ossuary, Act 10, showcasing Dart traps

Trials for the Eternal Labyrinth are randomly found in maps:

• Trial of Piercing Truth, showcasing Spike traps
• Trial of Swirling Fear, showcasing Spinning blades
• Trial of Crippling Grief, showcasing Sawblades
• Trial of Burning Rage, showcasing Furnace traps
• Trial of Lingering Pain, showcasing Blade sentries
• Trial of Stinging Doubt, showcasing Dart traps

Eternal trials

Endgame Trial Plaque

The Eternal trials randomly appear in maps and showcase a new type of trap, the Sentinel trap. Completing a trial rewards the player with an Offering to the Goddess. Each run for the Eternal Labyrinth consumes an Offering.

The Dream Trial prophecy greatly helps to discover trials in maps. Not only does it greatly increase the frequency that Eternal Trial portals spawn in maps, the Prophecy only closes if you ENTER the trial portal. If a trial portal is in a map the Prophecy note also immediately shows up in the Quests quicklist the instant you enter the map, so you will immediately know if a Trial has spawned in the area. You can then quickly find it and check the Trial Plaque against the portal to see if it is one you have completed yet, and if not just move on leaving the Prophecy active and still improving the chances of Trial portals spawning in future maps.

Joining the global chat 820 community may help in finding the missing trials.

Version history

Version	Changes
3.0.0	Access to The Lord's Labyrinth has been reworked. Once unlocked, each Labyrinth can be accessed from the Aspirants' Plaza. Each of the four Labyrinths are named after the old difficulties: The Normal Labyrinth, the Cruel Labyrinth, the Merciless Labyrinth and the Endgame Labyrinth. The Cruel and Merciless Labyrinths now each require the completion of three trials, as well as the earlier Labyrinths. Access to the Endgame Labyrinth now requires completion of the three earlier Labyrinths. To access the Cruel Labyrinth, you must complete the Normal Labyrinth and 3 prerequisite trials, and be at least level 40. To access the Merciless Labyrinth, you must complete the Cruel Labyrinth and another 3 prerequisite trials, and be at least level 50. Access to the Endgame Labyrinth requires that you complete the Merciless Labyrinth and the 6 Map trials, and be at least level 60. All Labyrinths are now accessed via the Aspirants' Plaza. A new user interface allows you to select which Labyrinth you wish to enter. This UI shows which trials you have and have not completed.
2.3.0	Progress through the Trials of Ascendancy is now shared between all your characters in the league.
2.2.2	Fixing various placement issues related to Strongboxes, Perandus chests and Rogue Exiles, where they could spawn inside Trial of Ascendancy traps.
2.2.0	Introduced to the game.