It is a Support Gem.
Support
Tier: 1
Requires: Level 1
Support Reqirements: +5 Dex
Supports skills that can Empower skills other than themselves, causing skills they Empower to Cull damage.
Place into a Skill’s Support Gem socket in the Skills menu to apply its effects to that Skill. You cannot have multiple copies of the same Support Gem socketed at the same time.
The Empowered Cull Support Gem is a unique addition to the Support Gem lineup in Path of Exile 2. This gem is designed to work with skills that Empower other abilities, giving those empowered skills the ability to Cull enemies, making them perfect for players focused on finishing off powerful foes with highly efficient damage. By adding Culling Strike to the empowered skills, this gem is an excellent option for builds that want to ensure the swift defeat of rare, unique, or boss enemies.
The Empowered Cull Support Gem grants a powerful mechanic that revolves around Empowering other skills and giving them the ability to Cull enemies. Here’s how it works:
Empower Other Skills:
The main purpose of the Empowered Cull gem is to enhance skills that already empower other skills. This synergy is particularly useful in builds that use Empowering skills as part of their rotation. Once the skill that is empowered is activated, Culling Strike is applied, which allows you to instantly kill enemies that are below 10% health.
Culling Strike on Empowered Skills:
The Culling Strike effect is what sets this gem apart. When you empower a skill with Empowered Cull, any empowered skill gains Culling Strike, meaning enemies below 10% health will be executed instantly. This is extremely useful for high-health enemies, such as bosses, rare enemies, or unique mobs that might otherwise take more time to bring down.
Instantly Finish Off Low-Health Enemies:
The Culling Strike ensures that any enemies that are weakened and brought below 10% health will be instantaneously killed, making it easier to deal with high HP targets that may otherwise take longer to finish off. It’s a great way to clean up enemies that are on the verge of death without having to waste time finishing them off manually.
Empowered Builds:
Naturally, the Empowered Cull Support Gem is most effective for builds that use skills which empower other abilities. These builds tend to focus on the synergy between empowerment and added effects. If your build revolves around a core skill that empowers or modifies other abilities, this gem allows you to apply Culling Strike to those empowered abilities.
Bossing and High HP Targets:
Since Culling Strike is triggered on empowered skills, Empowered Cull is particularly effective in bossing or clearing high-health mobs. With this gem, you’ll be able to finish off rare or unique bosses quickly, especially in scenarios where their health is near depletion.
Skill Empowerment Builds:
Builds that use skills which inherently support the empowerment of other abilities (for instance, support gems that amplify other skills or specific classes that empower allies) can benefit greatly from Empowered Cull. This gem maximizes the value of Empowered effects, turning your empowered skill into a Culling Strike machine.
Instant Boss Kills:
The core benefit of Empowered Cull is the instant kill for enemies under 10% health. This makes it particularly useful in boss fights and against rare/unique mobs, where the final few moments of the battle can often take longer than necessary. With Culling Strike, you can quickly finish off these high-health enemies, saving time and effort.
Synergy with Empowerment Skills:
If your build uses skills that empower other abilities, Empowered Cull is a natural fit. This gem amplifies the Empowered mechanic by granting Culling Strike, which can dramatically speed up your ability to defeat powerful enemies.
Efficient Use of Damage:
When dealing with tough enemies, often the final stages of a battle can feel like a slog. Empowered Cull ensures that once an enemy’s health dips below 10%, you don’t have to waste another hit. This makes it more efficient to deal with bosses and tough enemies in both endgame and regular play.
Requires Empowering Skill:
The Empowered Cull Support Gem can only be effective if your build already has an empowering skill. This means that for players who don’t already use empowering abilities, this gem may not be useful. You’ll need to adjust your playstyle or skill selection to make the most of it.
Limited to Empowered Skills:
The gem does not apply Culling Strike to all skills but only to those that are empowered. Therefore, builds that do not rely on empowering mechanics will not benefit from this gem at all.
Additional Investment:
Since this gem requires skills to be empowered to work, you may need to invest additional points into your skill tree or use specific support gems to empower skills. This can result in a slightly more complex build compared to more straightforward damage setups.
Combine with Bossing Skills:
If you’re designing a build for bossing or raiding, consider combining Empowered Cull with empowering abilities to ensure quick kills. Empowered skills like Power Siphon or Heralds of Power are good candidates for this gem.
Use in Multiplayer Builds:
If you’re playing a multiplayer support build, Empowered Cull can be a great addition to buffing and empowering allies, helping them finish off tough bosses or rare mobs quickly with Culling Strike.
Use in Endgame Content:
Empowered Cull shines in endgame scenarios like boss fights, delve content, and maps with powerful enemies. The ability to finish off high-health enemies with Culling Strike allows for more efficient farming.
The Empowered Cull Support Gem is a powerful tool for empowered builds focused on high-health enemies like bosses and unique mobs. By adding Culling Strike to empowered skills, it ensures that any enemy reduced to 10% health or lower is instantly killed, saving time and making your damage output more efficient.
While its full potential is tied to builds that focus on empowering other skills, Empowered Cull is a fantastic choice for bossing builds or those who want to make the most out of their empowered abilities. The synergy between Empowered skills and Culling Strike provides a reliable, fast-paced solution for clearing tough enemies in Path of Exile 2.