It is a Support Gem.
Support
Projectile
Tier: 3
Cost Multiplier: 110%
Requires: Level 1
Support Reqirements: +5 Dex
Supports Projectile skills, making their Projectiles Fork.
Skills can be managed in the Skills Panel.
The Fork Support Gem is a unique gem in Path of Exile 2 designed to enhance Projectile skills by making their projectiles split into two after they hit a target, effectively "forking" them into additional projectiles. This gem is perfect for builds that rely on Projectile-based skills and want to increase their coverage and area of effect.
In this article, we’ll explore the mechanics of the Fork Support Gem, its advantages and disadvantages, and how to integrate it into your build effectively.
Category: Support
Type: Projectile
Tier: 3
Cost Multiplier: 110%
Required Level: 1
Support Requirements: +5 Dexterity
Effect:
Place into a Skill’s Support Gem socket in the Skills menu to apply its effects to that Skill.
The Fork Support Gem alters the behavior of Projectiles fired by Projectile skills, causing them to Fork after hitting an enemy or reaching a specific point. Here’s a breakdown of how it works:
Projectile Forking:
The most notable effect of Fork is that it causes projectiles from the supported skill to split into two after hitting an enemy or obstacle. This increases the number of projectiles in play, which helps cover a larger area and increases the chance of hitting additional enemies.
Reduced Damage After Forking:
To balance out the increased coverage, projectiles that fork will deal 50% less damage. While this reduces the raw damage output of each projectile, it can still be highly effective when combined with skills that benefit from hitting multiple enemies or large area coverage.
Projectile Scaling:
The Fork gem scales with skills that already have projectile mechanics. For example, Fireball, Arctic Barrage, or Elemental Hit can be greatly enhanced by this gem, multiplying the number of projectiles without significantly altering their initial purpose. It’s important to consider the synergy between Fork and other projectile modifiers, such as Projectile Speed, Projectile Damage, and Area of Effect.
Here are the key advantages of using the Fork Support Gem:
Increased Area Coverage:
The main benefit of Fork is that it effectively doubles the number of projectiles from your supported skill. This increases the coverage area significantly, making it easier to hit multiple enemies in a single shot, especially in crowded areas or during boss fights where you need to maximize the number of hits in a short period.
Synergies with AoE Builds:
For Area of Effect (AoE) focused builds, Fork is invaluable. Projectiles that fork can potentially hit multiple enemies, ensuring that your damage reaches as many targets as possible. This is particularly useful for clearing packs of enemies or boss fights where multiple adds might spawn.
Better for Targeting Multiple Enemies:
The splitting of projectiles means that you can attack multiple enemies at once, even if they’re spread out. This is particularly effective when combined with projectile-oriented skills such as Rain of Arrows, Arctic Barrage, or Ice Shot.
Flexibility in Builds:
Fork can be used in a wide variety of Projectile-based skills, from Elemental Projectile skills to Bow builds. It is highly adaptable and can be incorporated into many different types of projectile-focused builds, increasing their offensive potential.
While the Fork Support Gem offers many benefits, there are a few things to consider:
50% Less Damage After Forking:
The 50% reduced damage after forking can be a significant drawback for builds that rely heavily on single-projectile damage. Skills like Charged Arrow or Lightning Arrow, which focus on high-damage hits, may see a noticeable drop in damage output after forking. This trade-off between increased area coverage and reduced damage needs to be carefully considered when using the gem.
Mana Cost:
The Fork gem has a cost multiplier of 110%, meaning it will increase the mana cost of the supported skill. This can make it harder to maintain a consistent flow of attacks if your build is mana-intensive. It is important to balance mana regeneration or management when using Fork.
Limited Synergies with Certain Skills:
Fork only supports Projectile skills, so it cannot be used with melee, spell, or other non-projectile-based skills. Additionally, certain Projectile skills that already have complex mechanics (e.g., Elemental Hit or Tornado Shot) may not synergize perfectly with the gem, as they might already have increased projectile counts or other modifiers that make the forked projectiles redundant.
To maximize the effectiveness of the Fork Support Gem, consider pairing it with the following support gems and mechanics:
Projectile Speed and Area of Effect (AoE):
When you increase the speed of the projectiles using Projectile Speed support gems, the forking projectiles will travel further and faster, potentially hitting even more enemies. Similarly, combining Fork with Area of Effect (AoE) modifiers or skills like Greater Multiple Projectiles (GMP) or Lesser Multiple Projectiles (LMP) can further amplify the number of projectiles that land on enemies.
Increased Projectile Damage:
While the 50% reduced damage after forking may seem like a drawback, you can compensate by enhancing Projectile Damage with gems like Greater Projectile Damage or Added Fire/Cold/Electricity Damage. This will ensure that each projectile still hits hard even if their damage is slightly reduced after the fork.
Critical Chance and Critical Damage:
Fork is particularly effective when used with critical strike-based builds. If you’re focusing on Critical Chance and Critical Damage, the forking projectiles give you a higher chance of landing critical hits on multiple enemies, multiplying your overall damage output. You can support this with Critical Damage, Critical Strike Chance, and other related gems.
Elemental and Status Effects:
Fork also synergizes well with Elemental Builds. If you are using Fireball, Arctic Barrage, or Lightning Arrow, for example, each of the forking projectiles can apply Elemental Status Effects (e.g., Ignite, Freeze, or Shock) to enemies, making the skill even more effective in both damage output and debuffing enemies.
Physical and Chaos Builds:
For Physical-based projectile builds, using Fork with Physical Projectile Attack Damage can still provide a decent increase in coverage, even though the damage is reduced by the fork. Chaos builds can also benefit from Fork when using skills like Contagion or Puncture that rely on Chaos Damage.
The Fork Support Gem is a powerful tool for Projectile-based builds, providing increased area coverage by causing projectiles to split into two after hitting a target. This allows players to hit multiple enemies at once, increasing the effectiveness of skills that rely on hitting as many targets as possible.
While the 50% reduced damage after forking is a significant trade-off, Fork can still be an excellent choice for AoE damage, Critical Strike builds, and Elemental/Projectile skills that benefit from multiple hits. It is especially useful for crowd control and boss fights where you need to target multiple enemies at once.
If you’re running a Projectile-based build and want to increase your overall damage potential by hitting multiple enemies, Fork is a support gem that should not be overlooked. Just make sure to balance the increased area of effect with the damage reduction to ensure your build remains effective.