Bosses & Endgame

The King in the Mists

The King in the Mists is a boss from the Ritual map mechanic. He is found in the Crux of Nothingness, accessible by locating it on the Atlas using An Audience

3 min read·Updated 2026-07-10·Editor score 80/100
The King in the Mists — Path of Exile 2 guide
Editor's TakeHard80/100

The King in the Mists broken into prep checklist, phase priorities, and loot expectations — what to do before you zone in.

Best for: Map runners and endgame progression

⚡ Pro Tips

  • Head of the KingHead of the KingTo bear the head of a king is to send amessage both concise and profound.Bring this proof of your victory to Aoife in Caer Tarth. (100%)
  • Flask charge management wins boss fights more than an extra support gem.
  • Learn one safe phase pattern before pushing damage — dead DPS is zero DPS.

✓ Quick Checklist

  • Review the core the king in the mists mechanics in this guide
  • Check requirements for your current character level
  • Apply one upgrade before your next boss or map push
  • Explore related guides in the same category
The King in the Mists
The King in the MistsThe King in the Mists
Level(s)78-82
Location(s)Crux of Nothingness
Resistance(s)(Phase 1)(Phase 2)

The King in the Mists is a boss from the Ritual map mechanic. He is found in the Crux of Nothingness, accessible by locating it on the Atlas using An Audience with the KingAn Audience with the KingOn the edge of existence, he watches with ire.Required to reveal the Crux of Nothingness on the Atlas.

Skills

Phase 1

Phase 2

The player is teleported to a very large arena covered in a maze of thick vines which cannot be crossed with cultist enemies scattered throughout. Players constantly receive stacks of Branching Affliction, a debuff that deals physical and chaos damage over time. Follow the Sacred Wisps' path towards the large purple portal back to the arena.

Unlike in Path of Exile, the maze phase cannot be bypassed by dying or logging out. Logging in to town/hideout will consume a respawn attempt.

Phase 3

Drops

Difficulty 1Difficulty 2Difficulty 3
Sample size50(+428)
GuaranteedUniqueBeetlebiteBeetlebiteVelour ShoesEvasion: (118-162)Energy Shield: (46-63)Requires Level 52, 38 Dex, 38 Int(20-30)% increased Movement Speed(60-120)% increased Evasion and Energy ShieldAggravate Bleedin40%
IngenuityIngenuityUtility BeltRequires Level 55Has (1-3) Charm Slots20% of Flask Recovery applied Instantly(-20-20)% increased Charm Charges gained(-10-10)% increased Charm Charges used(20-30)% increa23-34%
The Burden of ShadowsThe Burden of ShadowsChiming StaffStaffRequires Level 72Grants Skill: Level (17-20) Sigil of Power(20-30)% increased Cast SpeedSkill Mana Costs Converted to Life CostsSkills gain 8%
PragmatismPragmatismExplorer ArmourArmour: (342-456)Evasion: (303-404)Movement Speed: -4.0%Requires Level 52, 31 Str, 31 Dex(200-300)% increased Armour and Evasion+(10-20)% to all Elemental Resistance6%
From NothingFrom NothingDiamondLimited to: 1Radius: 2000Passives in Radius of <Keystone> can be Allocated without being connected to your treeCorruptedThey clawed their way up from the agonising depth11%
Ritualistic Reliquary KeyRitualistic Reliquary KeyThey knew the truth, but had no choiceGenerations hence, perhaps, one day,there would be a chanceOpen a Reliquary portal by using this item at The Rel~0.5%
AdditionaldropsRandom Ritual omens~3.5x
  • Head of the KingHead of the KingTo bear the head of a king is to send amessage both concise and profound.Bring this proof of your victory to Aoife in Caer Tarth. (100%)

Dropped Omens are weighted in roughly 4 rarity tiers:

Rarity tierOmensEstimated drop rate
CommonOmen of ResurgenceOmen of ResurgenceWhile this item is active in your inventoryfully recover your Life, Mana and Energy Shield when you reach Low LifeRight click this item in your inventory to set it ~35-40% each
UncommonOmen of Chaotic RarityOmen of Chaotic RarityStack Size: 10While this item is active in your inventory your nextChaos Orb will replace all Modifiers on a Waystonewith Modifiers that do not grant Item R~10-17% each
RareOmen of Catalysing ExaltationOmen of Catalysing ExaltationStack Size: 10While this item is active in your inventory your nextExalted Orb will consume all Catalyst Quality to increasethe chance of the ~2.5-4% each
MythicOmen of Dextral ErasureOmen of Dextral ErasureStack Size: 10While this item is active in your inventory your nextChaos Orb will remove only suffix modifiersRight click this item in your inventory to s<1% each

Version history

VersionChanges
0.5.3Followers of the King in the Mists have taken up residence within the maze in the Crux of Nothingness, and aim to kill you as you try to escape the maze.
0.3.0Currently, access to most Pinnacle Content requires the same key at the easiest, and most difficult version of the content. This creates a negative feeling where at lower difficulties, instead of want
0.2.0fPinnacle Bosses now have unlimited respawn attempts at Difficulty 0.
0.2.0All Bosses that are affected by Difficulty and Simulacrum can now drop all of their specific unique items at any Difficulty, however rare uniques are even rarer at lower difficulties. This also applie
0.1.1cAdded up to five respawn attempts for the Crux of Nothingness area, based on the area difficulty. If you die before killing The King of the Mists, reviving will place you inside the boss arena and beg
0.1.0Introduced to the game.

References

Related Guides