Last Epoch is an incredible ARPG, one of the best in the genre, directly competing with the likes of Diablo 4 and Path of Exile. And since there’s a lot of similarity in the genre, it stands to reason that these games would share some amount of DNA when it comes to gameplay and mechanics. There are a lot of systems to learn, and hopefully, this little guide will answer one burning question in particular. One of the more common questions I see when perusing communities around this game is whether to pick Cycle or Legacy in Last Epoch.
When creating a new character in Last Epoch, after you’ve chosen to play either Offline or Online, you will be presented with the option to choose what mode to play in. While they use different terminology, the concept of what Cycle and Legacy represent is the same if you played any of the aforementioned titles—they’re seasons and are meant to be played in cycles. See what the devs did there? Keep reading to learn more.
What do Legacy and Cycle Mean in Last Epoch?
When the game launched into 1.0, two gameplay modes were added to both offline and online play: Cycle and Legacy. Trade and Hardcore, as well as SSF modes, are all available in both modes. So choosing one version won’t lock you out of the core gameplay loop. The overall experience between the two options is pretty similar, but there are some key differences.
And much like Path of Exile, new content is added into the game on a very regular schedule. New bosses, story elements and more are pretty constantly added in. So why make a distinction? You’re right to question it, and it shouldn’t matter, but it does. Keep reading to learn more about what differences the Cycle Realm and the Legacy one hold, and which one you should choose.
Should I Choose Cycle or Legacy in Last Epoch?
The version of the game you choose to play is entirely up to you, although there are some clues as to what to expect when you dive into the world with one of these gameplay options toggled. As we said before, Legacy and Cycle are both akin to the Leagues from POE, or seasons from D4. Both of them have most of the same content, acts, missions and more. It’s also entirely likely that the developers will add more content over time, with a focus on Cycles getting new shiny toys. But there are legitimate reasons to pick Legacy, and we’ll go into those below.
The most important thing to keep in mind is that this choice is all your own to make. This guide is just meant to help you pick the right mode for your playstyle, not to give the overall best option for all cases.
Should I Make A Cycle Character?
The biggest reason to start a Cycle character is to keep pace with the bulk of the community. Most people are playing on this version, so if you have friends that regularly play, you will probably end up jumping on to fight new bosses in Cycle with them. When it comes to new content, Cycle characters get access right away. The new Pinnacle Bosses added in 1.1 are the core of these new content updates, and are a ton of fun to fight. The problems arise when you get into the grind in Cycle, though, as stashes are limited to Cycle characters only. That means if you didn’t have another Cycle character to help farm, you need to do it all from the ground up.
And if you’re interested in trying to vie for the top spot in the leaderboards, you have to play a cycle character. When the cycle resets, so too do the rankings, so keep that in mind.
When a run ends, your character is transitioned to Legacy, and can be played there from that point forward. All your old pre-1.0 characters can also be found in Legacy in case you were wondering. Although if you haven’t touched one in a while, expect to have to respec your build. But it can’t be overstated how powerful it can be to have an amazing character ready to fight right away.
There are some downsides though to playing Cycle.
- No access to shared stashes with old characters
- Much faster-paced economy, so later in the Cycle, prices for items can get weird.
Should I Make A Legacy Character?
There is one big advantage to picking Legacy in Last Epoch, the ability to keep your progress. If you don’t want to start over every four months, this is your option. Sure, you won’t have access to other new content like Pinnacle Bosses, but you have everything else that’s been added to the game ahead of you. This is also helpful if you want to test builds without grinding too much, as Legacy Characters all share the same stash, crafting materials, and cash. That makes it a lot easier to take Uniques and use them for strange builds, as you no longer have to go hunting for them as long as you have one stashed away.
Other benefits to using Legacy mode include the ability to keep faction rep intact between resets. This is a huge boon to high-level characters as the bonuses can stack to insane levels. Since you have to wait one week to access the pinnacle boss, you can use that time to grind.
But as we did with Cycle, we need to review some downsides. Here are the things that you might have trouble with when playing Legacy in LE:
- Fewer players makes co-op play and trade a lot slower.
- A stale economy means inflation is a problem if you’re playing trade.
- The delay for the Pinnacle boss can be annoying.
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