Path of Exile 2: Ekbab, Ancient Steed Guide

In the unforgiving deserts of Path of Exile 2's Act 2, few encounters test a player's resolve quite like the tandem boss fight against Ekbab, the Ancient Steed, and Iktab, the Deathlord. This duo resides in the shadowy depths of The Bone Pits, a sprawling, randomly generated wasteland teeming with skeletal horrors and nomadic threats. As players delve into the A Theft of Ivory questline, they uncover a ritualistic arena where these ancient foes await, guarding secrets tied to the Mastodon Badlands. Mastering this fight is crucial not just for progression but for amassing early-game resources, including valuable POE 2 Currency that can jumpstart your build's economy. Ekbab, with its massive, tusked frame evoking a primordial mammoth warped by exile's curse, embodies raw physical fury, while Iktab channels necrotic lightning from afar. Together, they force players to juggle melee chaos and elemental barrages, demanding precise movement, smart targeting, and gear tuned for survival. This guide dissects their mechanics, strategies, and rewards, equipping you to claim victory and push toward the league's deeper mysteries.

Navigating to the Blackrib Pit

Reaching Ekbab and Iktab begins with Act 2's core progression. After allying with the nomadic tribes in the Mastodon Badlands, you'll receive a Desert Map fragment directing you to The Bone Pits. This zone is a labyrinth of bone-strewn dunes and crumbling ruins, populated by low-level mobs like skeletal archers, bone golems, and roaming hyena packs. Farm these areas en route for basic loot-ores, essences, and vendor recipes-to bolster your resistances before the boss.

The layout randomizes each run, but key landmarks guide you: follow the bleached ribcage arches northward until you spot a ritual circle of necromancers chanting over ivory altars. Clearing this mob pack triggers the arena entrance, a jagged pit framed by mammoth skulls. Enter only when prepared; the fight seals behind you, with no easy escapes. If you're underleveled (recommended level 15-18), backtrack to side quests like scavenging lost caravans for experience. Mobility skills-dashes, leaps, or teleports-are essential here, as the pits' environmental hazards, like sand traps that slow movement, can spell doom if ignored.

Boss Overview: The Ancient Duo

Ekbab, the Ancient Steed, is a colossal beast infused with lightning essence, standing over twice the height of a Marauder. Its resistances skew heavily toward lightning (around 50-60% innate), making it a tank against elemental builds, but it falters under sustained physical or fire pressure. No glaring weaknesses exist, but stacking bleed or poison can chip away at its massive health pool (estimated 200,000-300,000 HP on normal difficulty). It deals primarily physical damage via tusks and slams, laced with lightning procs that shock and ignite on crits.

Iktab, the Deathlord, complements Ekbab as a ranged caster, a hooded skeletal figure wielding a staff crackling with azure energy. His lightning affinity mirrors Ekbab's, but he layers in fire meteors for hybrid threats. Health-wise, he's frailer (150,000-250,000 HP), prioritizing disruption over durability. The arena-a circular bone coliseum about 40x40 units-starts barren but fills with hazards as phases progress. Both bosses share a phase system: when one falls below 50% health, the survivor empowers, unleashing enhanced attacks. Ideal runs deplete their bars simultaneously to bypass this escalation.

Gear recommendations emphasize hybrid defenses: cap lightning resistance at 75% minimum, bolster life (1,200+ HP) and armor (500+), and slot flasks for quick movement speed. Fire resist helps against Iktab's meteors, while a stun threshold build counters Ekbab's mini-stuns. Passive trees favoring area damage (e.g., Monk's Tempest Bell or Mercenary's grenade clusters) shine here.

Dissecting Attack Patterns

The fight unfolds in fluid phases, with attacks interleaving based on aggro and positioning. Ekbab pulls melee focus, charging disruptively, while Iktab peppers from afar. Telegraphs are generous but punishing-hesitation means one-shots.

Ekbab's Arsenal

Ground Slam: The steed rears on hind legs, pausing 1.5 seconds before slamming hooves. A radial shockwave erupts forward in a 180-degree cone, dealing 300-500 physical damage plus lightning DoT. Dodge laterally as the wind-up peaks; staying frontal invites ignite stacks.

Tusk Swipe: A sweeping horizontal arc with tusks, hitting in a 120-degree melee radius for 400-600 physical, often mini-stunning. It chains left-right if you're flanked. Best counter: circle to its rear or right flank, monitoring head tilts for tells.

Charge: Ekbab backs up 10 units, bellows, then barrels forward 30 units in a straight line at medium speed (evadable with a side-roll). Impacts for 500 physical plus knockback; repeated charges can pin you against walls. Use arena edges to bait and evade.

Empowered Phase (Post-Iktab Death): If Iktab falls first, Ekbab summons twin "Ghost Orbs"-roaming green spheres. One pulses radial lightning bolts every 3 seconds; the other trails the player, exploding on proximity for 600 lightning. They persist 45 seconds, forcing constant kiting. Position between pulses, using pillars for line-of-sight breaks.

Iktab's Barrage

Lightning Volley: Iktab channels for 2 seconds, marking 5-7 blue runes on the ground in a spread pattern. Strikes hit after 1 second, dealing 250-400 lightning per bolt. Safe zones form natural gaps-strafe to them preemptively.

Sigil Meteor: Orange sigils bloom in clusters of three, summoning flaming meteors after 2.5 seconds (300-450 fire damage, ignite risk). They chain-explode in waves; avoid by hugging arena periphery.

Ghost Nova: A central spinning orb manifests, firing 8-12 green projectiles in a rotating spiral every 4 seconds (200 lightning each). It accelerates mid-fight; evade by orbiting clockwise at max distance.

Teleport: Instant repositioning every 20 seconds, often to your flank, resetting aggro.

Empowered Phase (Post-Ekbab Death): Iktab buffs all skills-volleys double projectiles, meteors form denser grids, nova spins 50% faster. New addition: Bone Tendrils, five circular AoEs (radius 8 units) that pulse outward after hand-raise telegraph, exploding sequentially for 400 physical/fire.

Phases sync if healths align: at 50%, both amp briefly, but killing one triggers the solo empowerment. Audio cues-Ekbab's trumpeting roars, Iktab's ethereal chants-signal escalations.

Strategies for Victory

Success hinges on multitask mastery. Prioritize Iktab first: his death neuters Ekbab's phase, leaving only dodgeable melee. Use AoE skills to tag both-Sorceress ice comets or Warrior cleaves excel. Lure Ekbab near Iktab with taunts or proximity, clustering for burst windows.

Build synergies:

Stun-Focused Monk: Tempest Bell builds stack vulnerability, interrupting charges. Pair with evasion for slam dodges.

Ranged DPS Mercenary: Grenade barrages melt bars evenly; ice grenades freeze orbs.

Melee Warrior: Shield charges bait Ekbab, freeing shots on Iktab. Bleed passives amplify physical swaps.

General Tips: Maintain 20+ movement speed; flasks on cooldown for bursts. If overwhelmed, focus survival-arena has no adds, so regen passively. On higher difficulties (Cruel/Merciless), scale resists to 80% and HP to 2,000. Practice in lower zones via map echoes if available.

Common pitfalls: Overcommitting to one boss triggers empowerment too early, flooding the screen. Tunnel vision on Ekbab ignores Iktab's setups. Solution: Alternate aggro every 10 seconds, using ground marks as positioning guides.

Rewards and Progression Impact

Clearing yields Mastodon Tusks-key quest items for assembling the Horn of Vastiri, unlocking desert traversal and Act 3. Drops include Act 2 uniques like the Bone Helmet (boosts minion damage) or early lightning wands. Expect 500-1,000 POE 2 Currency in raw orbs, plus vendor fodder for upgrades. First-time clears grant bonus XP (10,000-15,000), accelerating level-ups. Farmable on repeat runs via zone echoes, this fight nets consistent early currency for gem socketing or flask enchants.

Beyond loot, victory advances the narrative: reclaiming ivory exposes Oriath's exiled cults, deepening PoE2's lore of betrayal and undeath. For min-maxers, Ekbab's tusks craft into talismans enhancing charge skills, ideal for mobility archetypes.

In wrapping up this gauntlet, remember that Ekbab's thunderous legacy lingers in every charge dodged and tusk evaded. With these tactics, you'll not only survive but dominate, paving your path through Wraeclast's trials. For those eyeing efficiency, sourcing cheap POE 2 Orbs can streamline your gearing, letting you focus on the hunt rather than the grind. Charge forth, Exile-victory awaits in the pits.