Every player looking forward to the endgame in Last Epoch surely paid attention to the winged boots icon on the map, near dungeons. This icon shows alternate leveling paths, which are different ways you can go during the campaign to skip parts of it.
Last Epoch’s alternate leveling paths explained
In Last Epoch, alternate leveling paths let you skip the campaign and level up your character faster. Instead of doing every quest in the story, you can take these paths through dungeons that have a higher area level than the normal game. This way, you move ahead in the story quicker, level up faster, and reach the endgame sooner. There are three alternate paths:
- The Lightless Arbor path begins in The Surface in the Ruined Era and goes north to the Corrupted Lake. Its area level is 22.
- The Soulfire Bastion path starts in The Felled Wood in the Imperial Era and leads north to The Soul Furnace. Its area level is 24.
- The Temporal Sanctum path begins in The Shining Cove in the Imperial Era, goes east to the time rift, and ends in The Sanctum Archive, in the Ruined Era. Its area level is 55.
These paths help you level up faster because the dungeons have a set level and lots of enemies. Instead of going through the normal campaign, which gets harder slowly, these paths make you face high-level monsters right away. They test both your character’s build and your mechanical skills.
While these paths are great for leveling up fast, they’re mostly for your second or third characters. You need a key to enter each of these dungeons, and you usually find these keys in the Monolith of Fate after finishing the campaign. For instance, I found the Lightless Arbor dungeon key late in chapter seven during my first playthrough. Some players might not find any keys during the campaign. So, you’ll likely need to complete the campaign first, collect keys in the Monolith of Fate, and then give them to another character to use these alternate leveling paths.
Are alternate leveling paths worth it?
Using alternate leveling paths in Last Epoch is worth it. These paths are harder than the main campaign, but they let you skip a lot of quests and level up your alternate character quickly to start the Monolith of Fate sooner. It’s important to equip your character well for these challenges. Try to have some low-level Rare and Unique items with high-tier affixes. Your character will be lower level than the dungeons, so good gear and affixes can help bridge that power gap. Be clear about your character’s build and choose gear that fits it. With the right setup, you can quickly level up just by defeating groups of enemies and match the dungeon levels.
When taking alternate leveling paths, remember to do side quests on your way. Skipping the main campaign means you’ll miss out on some side quests that give you Idol slots and Passive Points. These are crucial for making your character stronger. So, when you’re heading towards these alternate paths, make sure to complete any side quests you come across. This way, you won’t miss out on important boosts to your character’s power.
