I logged in this morning and watched the realm list stutter like it always does before a hotfix lands. Patch 0.4.0d is live (January 15, 2026), and if you've been living in the Fate of the Vaal endgame, you'll feel it fast. It's not some flashy "new toys" update, but it does smooth out a bunch of the stuff that's been quietly driving people up the wall. And yeah, if you're the type who's constantly tweaking gear and planning the next upgrade, you'll probably be checking prices and browsing poe 2 cheap currency while you queue up another run because progression still isn't exactly gentle.

Temple runs feel less like a punishment

The headline change, at least for me, is how Temple deaths are handled. Before this patch, getting clipped by Atziri or an Architect could turn a solid run into a complete waste, which felt harsh in that "why am I even here" way. Now the respawn flow is closer to how map portals behave, so you're still paying for mistakes, just not getting nuked out of the whole activity. That's the difference between "one more run" and logging off annoyed. It also means people will actually attempt harder rooms instead of playing scared and skipping anything risky.

UI tweaks that actually help mid-run

There's also a noticeable cleanup in the Temple interface. Room placement is clearer, and the pathing logic is easier to read at a glance. You don't have to pause and do mental gymnastics every time you're trying to connect a chain of rooms. The other small win: hovering over enemy buffs is more reliable, so when something deletes you, you've got at least a fighting chance of understanding what happened. It sounds minor, but it changes how you learn fights. Instead of guessing, you adjust.

The community mood is split, and that's putting it nicely

Forum vibes today are messy. Newer players are happy because boss access feels less locked behind perfect play, while long-time grinders are saying the patch is too thin for this stage of Early Access. The loudest argument isn't even about difficulty—it's about pacing. Some folks want the Temple loop to feel tighter, less like you're paying time tax between the interesting moments. Fixing bugs and polishing screens helps, sure, but it doesn't magically make a slow loop feel exciting. Still, I'd rather have solid fundamentals than a bunch of new systems stacked on top of shaky ones.

Build chatter is getting spicy again

Right after the patch hit, clips started circulating of Stormweaver setups shredding elites like it's nothing. The screen goes full fireworks display, and you either love it or you can't see a thing. That's kind of PoE, isn't it. What's interesting is how quickly people pivot once the endgame feels a bit less punishing—suddenly more players are testing greedier damage configs, taking sketchy rooms, and pushing levels they'd normally avoid. If you're trying to keep up with that pace—new crafts, new respecs, constant little upgrades—having a dependable place for items and currency matters, and plenty of players lean on U4GM for that kind of quick, practical support when they don't want to spend the whole night farming basics.