How to Get Plated Mace in Path of Exile 2

In Path of Exile 2, players dive into base items, crafting systems, and gearing strategies. Among the many sought-after base types is the Plated Mace, a reliable one-handed weapon ideal for Strength-based melee characters looking to deal solid physical damage early to mid-game.

Whether you're a returning exile or new to Wraeclast, understanding how to find, craft, and optimize a Plated Mace is essential if you're aiming to build a powerful close-combat character. In this guide, we'll break down everything you need to know about acquiring a Plated Mace, its stats, and how to use POE 2 Currency effectively to improve it.

What Is a Plated Mace

The Plated Mace is a one-handed mace base weapon in Path of Exile 2. As with most POE2 items in the game, its base stats determine its core potential, making it a solid starting point for characters focusing on melee or stun-based builds.

Base Stats:

    Physical Damage: 18–38

    Critical Strike Chance: 5.00%

    Attacks per Second: 1.40

    Weapon Range: 1.1 metres

    Required Level: 26

    Required Strength: 61

The Plated Mace offers a strong balance between physical damage output and attack speed, making it an attractive option for classes like the Marauder or Duelist that rely heavily on melee skills, stuns, and armor penetration.

Where to Find the Plated Mace

As a mid-tier weapon base, the Plated Mace typically begins appearing in loot tables around level 26 zones. You can acquire it in several ways:

1. Monster Drops

Monsters in zones level 26 and higher have a chance to drop Plated Maces as part of the regular loot pool. Farming areas such as:

    The Western Forest

    The Weaver's Chambers

    Act 3 early zones

You can yield decent chances of looting this mace base. Rares and bosses have a higher drop chance, so prioritize clearing elite packs and mini-bosses when possible.

2. Vendors

Sometimes, vendors will sell white (normal) Plated Maces when your character is around level 26–30. Visit weapon vendors in Act 3 towns or higher. If you're lucky, you might even find a blue or magic version that's already partially rolled with beneficial affixes.

3. Crafting or Upgrading Lower Base Items

If you find a lower-tier mace that's well-rolled but want to push into Plated Mace territory, crafting is a viable option. While you can't "upgrade" the base item directly, using the vendor recipe system (such as combining quality weapons) might help you craft a similar tier item. This is especially useful if you're not relying on RNG for base drops.

Using POE 2 Currency to Enhance Your Plated Mace

Once you obtain a Plated Mace, the next step is turning it from a basic weapon into a powerful tool for endgame content or at least mid-game dominance. That's where POE 2 Currency comes into play.

In Path of Exile 2, as in the original game, currency items are the foundation of crafting and upgrading gear. Here are the top ways to use your currency efficiently on your Plated Mace:

1. Blacksmith's Whetstones

Increase the quality of the mace to boost its physical damage. Apply up to 20% quality using these whetstones before you do any further crafting.

2. Transmutation and Augmentation Orbs

Turn your white Plated Mace into a magic item and add basic affixes. These are cheap and great for early-game boosts like increased physical damage or added elemental damage.

3. Alchemy Orbs

Convert a normal Plated Mace into a rare item with up to six modifiers. This is a great mid-game strategy if you want to skip slow progression and immediately roll the dice on useful affixes.

4. Essences

If you have specific essences (like Essence of Contempt for physical damage or Essence of Rage for attack speed), these can be used to guarantee a useful stat on your Plated Mace. Great for targeting early builds.

5. Regal and Chaos Orbs

Regal Orbs can upgrade a magic item to a rare, and Chaos Orbs can reroll rare modifiers. Both are helpful for fine-tuning stats on your weapon as you progress into harder content.

6. Crafting Bench (Hideout)

If you're later in the game and have access to your crafting bench, you can add or reroll specific modifiers to tailor the mace to your build. For example, attack speed or % increased physical damage.

Pro tip: Always check whether your base item is worth investing heavy POE 2 Currency into, or if it makes more sense to wait for a higher-tier mace down the line.

Best Builds That Use Plated Mace

The Plated Mace is ideal for the following archetypes:

    Stun Lock Marauders – Capitalize on the mace's natural synergy with stun thresholds and physical damage.

    Earthshatter Juggernauts – The slow-but-heavy nature of the Plated Mace pairs well with Earthshatter, which thrives on single-target burst and AoE.

    Bleed Gladiators – Use the base damage and modifiers to scale bleed effects effectively.

If you're planning to build around raw physical might and resilience, the Plated Mace is a great stepping stone.

Final Thoughts

Whether you're gearing up for endgame or just trying to crush through Acts 3 and 4, the Plated Mace is a strong, accessible weapon for Strength-based builds. With solid base stats and the flexibility to be upgraded through POE 2 Currency, it's a weapon that shouldn't be overlooked.

As Path of Exile 2 continues to expand on its predecessor's legacy, learning how to leverage base items like the Plated Mace and the currency system that powers their upgrades will be key to mastering the new challenges ahead.

MMOexp POE 2 Team