PoE 2 Dawn of the Hunt: Should You Breachstone Farm in 0.2? Best Xesht Boss Breachstone Farming Guide

With the launch of Path of Exile 2’s 0.2 update, many players are revisiting farming mechanics, including the powerful but often unpredictable Breachstone runs. In this guide, we’ll take a detailed look at the profitability and mechanics of running Tier 4 Xesht Boss Breachstones, one of the most talked-about farming activities in the game. Should you invest your time and PoE 2 Currency into this activity? Is it worth it, or does it fall short? Let’s break it down.

What is Breachstone (Xesht) Farming in PoE 2?

Breachstone farming involves running high-tier Breachstones, which are essentially endgame maps where players encounter powerful bosses and clear challenging content.

The process requires players to defeat the Xesht boss, loot valuable items, and collect catalysts, which can be exchanged for currency in PoE 2. 

While it’s a lucrative activity for some, others find the mechanics and time investment a bit overwhelming.

In the 0.2 update, Breachstone farming offers unique rewards like Hand of Wisdom and Action Gloves, White Breach Rings, and Catalysts, but is it profitable enough to justify the time and currency spent?

Time Investment and Farming for Xesht Boss Breachstone Setup

Running 50 Tier 4 Xesht Breachstones costs 2000 Exalted Orbs, which equates to approximately 15 Divines. Don't worry, you can check out our guide to Farming Divines in PoE 2.

While this is a considerable upfront investment, it’s worth noting that the cost of farming these Breachstones has dropped compared to previous iterations of this activity.

This reduction is largely due to the fact that the value of some of the loot drops has decreased, making the overall cost lower than it might have been in the past.

It’s also important to keep in mind that Xesht Breachstones themselves do not grant any experience.

This means that while you’ll be spending time farming and fighting bosses, you won’t be gaining any additional experience from either the boss kills or the monsters throughout the area.

Therefore, the only profit you stand to gain is from the loot drops — primarily Catalysts, White Breach Rings, and other valuable items like Reliquary Keys and Hand of Wisdom, and Action gloves.

Given this, the focus of these runs is entirely on farming currency through loot, not experience.

Even without the added benefit of gaining experience, the loot drops from these runs can still offer a substantial return, making the cost of entry worthwhile if you are looking for an efficient and relatively lucrative farming method.

Xesht Breachstone Farming Cost Analysis

Running 50 Tier 4 Xesht Breachstones cost us 2000 Exalted Orbs, which is about 15 Divines.

While this is a significant amount of currency, the costs have decreased from previous iterations of this activity, mainly because the drops have been reduced in value.

Keep in mind that while Xesht Breachstones themselves don’t grant experience, they offer an opportunity to farm currency through valuable loot.

Given that no experience is gained from the boss or monsters during these runs, the focus is solely on loot drops.

Loot Breakdown for Xesht Boss Breachstone Farming

The loot you collect during a Xesht Breachstone farming run can significantly impact the overall profitability of the activity.

While the loot pool is diverse, the bulk of the profit comes from Catalysts and White Breach Rings, which are especially lucrative.

Here's a more detailed breakdown of what you can expect to earn.

Catalysts

Catalysts are an essential component of the loot, with each run dropping between 15 to 20 catalysts on average.

Over the course of 50 runs, we collected approximately 924 catalysts.

The majority of these were lower-value catalysts, but there were still a significant number of higher-value types that contributed to the overall profit.

• Esh Catalysts: We found around 117 Esh Catalysts, each worth 2.6 Exalted. These contributed approximately 300 Exalted in total.

• Reaver Catalysts: We acquired 94 Reaver Catalysts, with each one worth 6.6 Exalted. This brought in about 620 Exalted from Reaver Catalysts alone.

All together, the catalysts provided a total of 1,100 Exalted (around 8.2 Divines), which is a strong return considering the cost of the farm.

Hand of Wisdom and Action Gloves

We were fortunate to drop 6 Hand of Wisdom and Action gloves during the farm. While these gloves have seen a decrease in value recently, they still hold decent worth when sold unidentified.

Each glove sells for about 70 Exalted Orbs, so the 6 gloves we dropped were worth approximately 420 Exalted (3.2 Divines).

The drop rate for these gloves is around 13%, so this was a lucky haul. If you can land a decent quantity of these, they can significantly boost your profits. 

Want to accumulate Exalted Orbs in large amounts? Check out our guide on PoE 2 Unique Maps and Nodes for Exalted Orbs.

Jewels (Controlled Metamorphosis)

In terms of jewels, we dropped 4 Controlled Metamorphosis jewels, which are worth around 50 to 60 Exalted each.

However, these jewels are not as in demand as some other items, making them harder to sell. Given their niche appeal, it’s likely better to gamble on them rather than try to sell them outright.

Selling them at around 50 Exalted each brought in a total of 200 Exalted (or 1.5 Divines) for all 4 jewels. While not the most profitable loot, they do add some value to the overall haul.

Reliquary Keys

Another valuable drop during our Xesht farming was 2 Reliquary Keys.

These keys are important for unlocking additional loot and can add a significant boost to your earnings.

• Xesht's Reliquary Key: This one is valued at almost 2 Divines, which adds solid value to the total.

• Twilight Reliquary Key: While the Twilight version is much cheaper, it still contributes a bit to the overall haul, though it’s not counted as a significant part of the profit.

Even though the Twilight key isn’t a major moneymaker, Xesht's Reliquary Key alone helps to offset the more modest loot drops.

White Breach Rings

Without a doubt, White Breach Rings are where the real profit lies during Breachstone farming.

These rings are highly sought after for crafting, thanks to their Item Level 82, making them highly valuable.

We dropped 57 of them throughout the 50 runs, and each ring is worth around 15 Exalted.

This means that the total value from these rings amounted to around 855 Exalted (6.5 Divines).

What makes these rings so lucrative is their frequent drop rate. Since they drop in abundance, they form the cornerstone of the profit in this activity.

Whether you’re crafting or reselling, these rings are where most of your earnings will come from.

Miscellaneous Drops

In addition to the major loot items, we also collected some additional currency during the runs.

These included Chaos Orbs and a handful of Exalted Orbs. While these aren’t the most profitable drops, they still add up and contribute to the overall haul.

The miscellaneous currency came out to approximately half a Divine in total.

The overall loot breakdown for Xesht Breachstone farming reveals a solid profit margin, with the main sources of income being the Catalysts and White Breach Rings.

While other drops like Hand of Wisdom and Action gloves and Controlled Metamorphosis jewels provide additional value, it’s the frequent drops of valuable rings and catalysts that make the activity worthwhile.

Even with the time spent picking up loot and sorting items, the total profit of 7 Divines (after costs) for approximately 3 hours of work is a solid return.

Profit Calculation for PoE 2 Xesht Boss Breachstone Farm

• Total earnings from loot:

  • Catalysts: 1100 Exalted (8.2 Divines)

  • Hand of Wisdom and Action Gloves: 420 Exalted (3.2 Divines)

  • Jewels: 200 Exalted (1.5 Divines)

  • Reliquary Keys: 2 Divines

  • White Breach Rings: 855 Exalted (6.5 Divines)

  • Miscellaneous Currency: ~1 Divine

• Total profit: 22 Divines

Considering the cost of the 50 runs (15 Divines), the net profit comes to 7 Divines, which translates to around 2.3 to 2.5 Divines per hour.

This makes the activity moderately profitable, especially when factoring in the time spent sorting items after each run.

Conclusion

Breachstone farming in PoE 2’s Dawn of the Hunt update is not as spectacular as some other endgame activities, but it certainly has its merits. The White Breach Rings, Catalysts, and Hand of Wisdom and Action Gloves provide a solid profit, though many of the boss drops themselves are underwhelming. If you're a player who enjoys farming and has the gear to efficiently clear these bosses without significant issues, it’s definitely worth considering.

However, keep in mind that the real profitability comes from the catalysts and rings, and you'll need to be diligent about looting all hands on the floor. If you’re looking for consistent, semi-profitable farming and don’t mind the repetitive nature of these runs, this could be a viable alternative to traditional map farming.

In the end, Breachstone farming isn’t going to make you rich overnight, but it’s a fun and relatively safe way to generate a decent amount of currency with the right setup.