Strategy
Patch 0.5.4 gave Expedition (Runes of Aldur) its own 24-point Atlas passive tree, and that single addition resets the farming meta — every Expedition run after the patch is meaningfully more rewarding than before it, much as the Abyss changes in 0.5.3 reshaped that mechanic. The tree lets you specialise into remnant encounters, regular expeditions, and grand expeditions. In practice you take almost all 24 points and simply juice; only a handful of nodes are genuine either/or choices, and you can respec them freely at any time.
The money strategy this tree empowers is a rarity-stacking propagation loop. You visit every Veridian remnant you can — even the weak ones — and arrange your detonation so the longest remnant chain resolves as late as possible, propagating a dozen or more runic modifiers onto the monsters at the end. Those over-juiced monsters are where the profit lives: with Atlas rarity passives allocated, a Tier 5 rare drop can upgrade into a Normal-rarity Exceptional item (boosted quality or an extra socket). Not every Exceptional is valuable, but enough are that chasing this upgrade is worthwhile.
Atlas Tree & Setup
Points are earned by killing the campaign Grand Expedition bosses out on the Sea of Reiklast, so if you’ve already cleared them you can claim most of the tree for free. Prioritise the high-impact nodes: the notable that reduces the number of monsters required before the explosive line proceeds (one of the strongest — far less time hunting stragglers), the Grand Expedition node granting a third modifier plus one area level, and the notable that lets remnants pass on two runic modifiers instead of one (the core of the over-juicing playstyle). Take ‘Feeling Lucky’ to unlock Farrul selling Liquid Veridian, then leave the 25%-life-missing and reroll-currency nodes for last — they’re lower impact. Note the percentage wording: “increased chance of expedition encounters” is a multiplier on a small base, not a flat add.
Investment & Returns
- Investment: mid — the tree itself is free if you’ve done the campaign bosses; cost comes from running rarity-juiced maps. Returns: mid and improving — more base-game drops plus the rare→Exceptional upgrade lottery. Because remnants and drops become more common post-patch, expect previously expensive items to fall in price, so value the throughput, not any single chase drop.
Step-by-step
- Clear the Grand Expedition campaign bosses to bank Atlas points.
- Allocate the reduce-monsters-required, Grand Expedition third-modifier, and double-propagation notables first.
- Run maps with Atlas monster-rarity passives allocated so Tier 5 rares can roll into Exceptional items.
- In each Expedition, hit every remnant and detonate so the longest runic chain resolves last, stacking modifiers onto the final monsters.
- Loot with a filter active (Exceptional armour/weapon chests are golden and easy to miss) and sell Exceptional bases.
Risks
- Several nodes are speculative on a fresh patch — exact value needs live testing, and the over-juiced packs can be lethal.
- Increased drop availability deflates prices, so margins on individual items shrink over the league.
- Pinnacle boss resistances were nerfed this patch, which is actually a damage loss for Rekiarda’s Flow builds against those bosses.
Credits & Source
Method credited to sirgog. See the source video for the full patch breakdown and farming analysis: POE 2 0.5.4 - HUGE WEEK 4 PATCH - Expedition Buffs, QOL, Low Level Uniques & More.