In Path of Exile 2, the game continues to introduce challenging and unique boss encounters that push players' tactical and combat skills to the limit. One of the first major hurdles players will encounter in the new PoE 2 campaign is the Bloated Miller. This formidable boss, which appears during the early acts of the game, combines intense mechanics with overwhelming aggression. Understanding the patterns of this fight and how to counter its attacks is essential to overcoming the challenge.

In this guide, we'll walk you through the Bloated Miller boss fight, offering detailed strategies on how to prepare, avoid lethal attacks, and effectively deal damage. Whether you're playing solo or in a group, we'll help you figure out how to take down this bloated monstrosity and claim your hard-earned victory. This will help you earn more rewards such as POE 2 Currency.

Understanding the Bloated Miller Boss Fight

The Bloated Miller is a massive, grotesque enemy with multiple forms and abilities. This boss fight is characterized by high health pools, area-of-effect (AoE) damage, and debilitating status effects. The Bloated Miller's size and disgusting appearance match its brutal attack patterns, which are designed to overwhelm players who aren't prepared. The encounter takes place in a dense, enclosed arena filled with obstacles that can either be a boon or a bane, depending on how you manage the fight.

Bloated Miller Fight Phases

The Bloated Miller fight can be broken down into several phases, each with unique challenges. Understanding these phases and learning how to handle each one is key to beating the boss.

1. Phase One: The Initial Assault

When the fight begins, the Bloated Miller will charge at the player, swinging its bloated body and attempting to crush anything in its path. It will also slam the ground, causing shockwaves that affect the entire arena. Players need to focus on dodging the shockwave and staying behind the pillars or environmental obstacles to avoid damage. At the same time, the boss will launch a few range-based toxic projectiles that deal poison damage if they hit.

How to Handle Phase One:

Movement is Key: The Bloated Miller's shockwave attacks are telegraphed, meaning you'll have a moment to move out of their area of effect. Keep moving and use your mobility skills (like dashes or teleports) to dodge the attacks.

Positioning: Stay behind obstacles like rocks or columns to break line of sight with the Bloated Miller's ranged attacks. These pillars can also serve as protection against the shockwave.

Dealing Damage: At this stage, focus on dealing consistent damage while maintaining a safe distance. If you're using ranged attacks or spells, keep your distance, and avoid being too close to the boss to prevent being hit by its sweeping melee attacks.

2. Phase Two: The Poison Pools

As the Bloated Miller's health drops below 50%, the fight will enter its second phase. The Bloated Miller will start to spew toxic pools of vomit across the arena. These pools will spread slowly but cause significant poison damage over time if you step into them. The challenge here is not just avoiding the pools, but managing the space effectively as the arena becomes increasingly cluttered with poison clouds.

How to Handle Phase Two:

Evade the Poison Pools: Watch for the animation where the Bloated Miller regurgitates its poison onto the ground. These areas will remain toxic for several seconds, so make sure you move to the edges of the arena as the pools grow in size.

Use Poison Immunity: If you have any items or passive skills that grant poison resistance or immunity, now is the time to use them. They will help you stay alive longer while you focus on damage-dealing.

Spread Out: In group play, avoid clumping together, as the poison pools will affect multiple players at once. Spread out to ensure that if one of you is hit, the others can continue the fight unhindered.

Keep the Pressure On: While avoiding the poison is crucial, don't let up on your damage output. If you're playing a summoner build, make sure your minions are positioned to continue attacking while you focus on evading.

3. Phase Three: The Toxic Vortex and Summoned Adds

At about 30% health, the Bloated Miller will enter its final phase, where the difficulty ramps up considerably. The boss will now summon toxic vortexes that move across the arena. These vortexes will deal constant poison damage to anyone caught within their radius and will move unpredictably. Alongside this, the Bloated Miller will summon adds (smaller enemies) that should be dealt with immediately to avoid being overwhelmed.

How to Handle Phase Three:

Avoid the Toxic Vortexes: The vortexes move across the arena and leave behind lingering poison zones. Watch their paths and plan your movements accordingly. If you get caught in a vortex, use any poison cleansing abilities or potions you have to mitigate the damage.

Focus on Adds: The Bloated Miller will summon poisonous slimes or maggot-like enemies that deal substantial damage if left unchecked. Use area-of-effect (AoE) attacks to clear these adds quickly before they overwhelm you.

Save Your Best Damage for the Boss: While the adds are important, the Bloated Miller remains the primary threat. Focus on maximizing your damage output to finish the fight quickly while managing the vortexes and adds.

Use Mobility and Defensive Skills: Skills that allow you to dash through the vortexes, teleport, or shield yourself from the poison damage are essential during this phase. If you can maintain your distance and keep dodging the vortexes while taking down the Bloated Miller, you'll be able to win the fight.

General Tips for Beating the Bloated Miller Boss

Poison Resistance and Immunity: The Bloated Miller's toxic attacks can deal devastating damage over time. Equip gear with poison resistance or look for flasks that grant temporary poison immunity. Items such as Flask of Staunching or Divine Life Flasks can be lifesavers in this encounter.

Keep Moving: The Bloated Miller's attacks require you to be constantly on the move. Standing still will quickly result in you being hit by devastating AoE attacks, poison pools, or vortexes. Use movement-based skills (like dashes or leaps) to keep repositioning throughout the fight.

Timing Your Potions: Use your life flasks and mana flasks wisely. Don't wait until you're on low health to pop them, as the toxic pools and AoE attacks can easily drop your health. You should be proactive with your flasks, ensuring you're topped off with health when you're about to enter a dangerous phase of the fight.

High DPS Build: As with most boss fights, a high damage-per-second (DPS) build will help you overcome the Bloated Miller quickly, especially before the battle becomes too chaotic. Focus on maximizing your single-target damage and use skills that don't require too much setup (such as summons, totems, or direct-damage spells).

Communication in Group Play: If you're tackling this boss with a group, communication is key. Make sure that everyone is aware of the poison pool locations, and assign roles for dealing with the adds. The tank should focus on taking damage and holding the Bloated Miller's attention, while DPS players should focus on the boss.

Conclusion

The Bloated Miller boss fight in Path of Exile 2 presents a unique challenge that requires players to dodge, manage poison damage, and deal with additional adds. With the right preparations, knowledge of the boss's attack patterns, and some clever positioning, you can defeat this terrifying monster and continue your journey through the PoE 2 campaign. Making good use of poe2 trade can help you become stronger faster and complete tasks.

Remember to focus on mobility, use your poison resistance to mitigate the damage, and keep your eyes on the environmental hazards. Whether you're solo or in a group, this fight is a test of skill, patience, and strategy-good luck, Exile!