Path of Exile 2 builds upon the rich and complex systems of POE2 Currency the original game, offering players more ways to customize their characters and optimize their damage output. One such powerful passive skill available in the game is Storm Charge. Whether you choose to allocate skill points to it within the passive skill tree or apply it directly to an amulet, Storm Charge can provide a significant boost to your character’s elemental damage and critical hit chance.

In this article, we will explore exactly how Storm Charge works, why it is so valuable, and how you can obtain and anoint this passive skill onto your gear.

Storm Charge is a passive skill that provides two primary benefits:

40% increased elemental damage if you have dealt a critical hit recently

20% increased critical chance

The first bonus provides a substantial boost to your elemental damage output, but only under the condition that you have recently landed a critical hit on an enemy. The second bonus is a flat increase to your critical chance, which improves your ability to land critical hits more frequently.

Storm Charge is especially useful for players who rely on elemental damage but might not always deal critical hits with their main damage source. This makes it a flexible and powerful skill for hybrid builds that combine critical hits with elemental damage.

Understanding how Storm Charge works can help you maximize its potential in your builds.

The 20% increased critical chance is a constant passive bonus. As long as you have Storm Charge, your character enjoys this increased chance to critically strike. This alone makes it attractive for any critical-hit focused build.

The more unique aspect is the 40% increased elemental damage bonus, which is conditional. This bonus activates when you deal a critical hit to an enemy, and lasts for the next 4 seconds. The term “recently” in the game means within the last 4 seconds. During this time, all elemental damage you deal is boosted by 40%.

It’s important to note that this 40% elemental damage increase applies to all elemental damage, not just elemental damage that deals a critical hit. This means you can benefit from the damage boost even if your primary source of elemental damage doesn’t critically strike often — as long as you have another reliable way to deal critical hits.

Many elemental skills in Path of Exile 2 either have a low critical strike chance or don’t crit at all. With Storm Charge, you can maintain a strong elemental damage buff simply by landing critical hits with a different skill or attack.

For example, you might have a build where your main skill is a fire or lightning spell that rarely crits. But by using a fast-hitting weapon attack or a secondary skill with a higher critical chance, you can trigger the Storm Charge buff consistently. This synergy increases your overall damage without requiring every hit to be a critical strike.

How to Anoint Storm Charge in PoE 2
While you can acquire Storm Charge by spending passive skill points in the passive tree, another popular method is to anoint Storm Charge onto an amulet using the game’s infusion crafting system. This method frees up passive skill points for other parts of your build and allows for more customization.

What You Need: Distilled Emotions
To infuse Storm Charge onto an amulet, you need three special crafting items called Distilled Emotions:

Distilled Fear

Distilled Terror

Distilled Envy

These are rare items that drop randomly from Delirium enemies encountered in the Ultimate Delirium map. It’s important to note that monsters in maps accessed using an Infused Waystone will not drop Distilled Mood items, so plan your farming accordingly.

If you find farming these items challenging, you can alternatively purchase Distilled Mood from the Currency Exchange by talking to Alva in your Hideout. This currency can then be exchanged for the specific Distilled Emotions you require.

The Infusion Process
Once you have the required Distilled Emotions and the amulet you wish to infuse, follow these steps:

Open the Infuse Window
Right-click on any Distilled Mood item in your inventory. This action opens the infusion interface.

Place Your Amulet
Insert the amulet you want to infuse into the top slot of the infusion window.

Insert Distilled Emotions in the Correct Order
Place the Distilled Emotions in the row below the amulet in this specific order:

First: Distilled Fear

Second: Distilled Terror

Third: Distilled Envy

Confirm the Infusion
If the items are placed correctly, you will see the text box at the bottom display “Storm Charge”.

Complete the Infusion
Click the Infuse button to finalize the process. Your amulet will now carry the Storm Charge passive skill.

Equip Your Amulet
Whenever you wear this infused amulet, the Storm Charge effects (20% increased critical chance and the 40% elemental damage boost after a crit) will be active for your

character.

Maximizing the Benefits of Storm Charge
To get the most out of Storm Charge, consider the following tips:

Keep your critical hits consistent. The elemental damage buff lasts for only 4 seconds, so regularly landing critical hits helps maintain the damage boost.

Use a secondary skill or attack with high critical chance. Even if your primary elemental damage skill doesn’t crit often, a secondary skill can trigger Storm Charge.

Stack elemental damage increases. Storm Charge boosts elemental damage by 40%, so combining it with other elemental damage boosts can multiply your damage output.

Consider infusion if your passive tree is already full. Applying Storm Charge to an amulet allows you to benefit from it without allocating passive skill points, giving you more freedom in your build.

Storm Charge is a potent passive skill in Path of Exile 2 that greatly benefits elemental damage and critical strike builds. Its simple yet effective mechanic of boosting elemental damage after a recent critical hit enables hybrid playstyles and enhances overall damage potential.

Whether you invest points into the passive skill tree or infuse Storm Charge onto an amulet through Distilled Emotions, mastering this skill can elevate your gameplay and help you conquer the challenges that Wraeclast throws at you.

Understanding how to acquire and utilize Storm Charge is a valuable step in building a Path of Exile 2 Currency powerful and efficient character in Path of Exile 2.