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Ethereal KnivesSpell, Projectile, Physical, Duration
Level: (1-20)
Cost: (5-20) Mana
Cast Time: 0.60 sec
Critical Strike Chance: 6.00%
Effectiveness of Added Damage: 120%
Projectile Speed: 1300
Fires an arc of knives in front of the caster which deals physical damage.Per 1% Quality:1Superior2Anomalous3Divergent1% increased Projectile SpeedFires 0.1 additional Projectiles0.5% chance to Impale on Spell HitBase duration is 6 seconds
Deals (7-633) to (10-949) Physical Damage
Fires 9 additional Projectiles
Maximum 40 Lingering Blades can be left in the ground at a time
Leaves a Lingering Blade in the ground for every 3 Projectiles fired
Leaves 50% fewer Lingering Blades in the ground if you don't Cast this Spell yourself
(0-19)% increased Projectile Speed
Place into an item socket of the right colour to gain this skill. Right click to remove from a socket.
Ethereal Knives skill iconEthereal Knives inventory icon
Acquisition
Area level: 5
Vendor Prices
Normal1x Scroll of Wisdom
Vendor Offer
1x Scroll Fragment
Metadata
Item class: Active Skill Gems
Metadata ID: Metadata/Items/Gems/SkillGemEtherealKnives

Ethereal Knives skill screenshot


Ethereal Knives (often referred to as EK) is a spell that throws ten knives in front of the caster that deal physical damage. Multiple knives cannot hit the same target. The angle of the spell's arc is fixed and does not depend on where the cursor is, unlike other projectile skills.

Despite the fact that it does physical damage, Ethereal Knives is a spell and not an attack. It does not utilize weapon damage in any way.

Skill functions and interactions[ | ]

  • Lingering Blades: One in three projectiles from Ethereal Knives will leave a Lingering Blade on the ground. These blades can be detonated with Blade Blast inventory iconBlade BlastBlade BlastSpell, AoE, Physical
    Level: (1-20)
    Cost: (6-16) Mana
    Cast Time: 0.50 sec
    Critical Strike Chance: 6.00%
    Effectiveness of Added Damage: 50%
    Requires Level 16Deals spell damage in a targeted area. When this spell deals damage, if your Lingering Blades or Blade Vortex blades are nearby, it will detonate them, dealing damage again in an area around them. Up to 50 Blades can be detonated this way.Per 1% Quality:1Superior2Anomalous3Divergent4Phantasmal0.5% increased Area of Effect+0.5% to Chaos Damage over Time Multiplier0.5% chance to Impale on Spell Hit0.5% increased Cast SpeedDeals (11-210) to (17-315) Physical Damage
    80% more Area of Effect per Blade Vortex blade detonated
    Place into an item socket of the right colour to gain this skill. Right click to remove from a socket.
    Blade Blast skill icon
    Blade Blast inventory icon
    or animated with Animate Weapon inventory iconAnimate WeaponAnimate WeaponDuration, Minion, Spell, Physical
    Level: (1-20)
    Cost: (4-12) Mana
    Cast Time: 0.60 sec
    Animates a Melee Weapon Item or Lingering Blade to fight by your side. You cannot animate unidentified Weapons. Will not animate weapons with 6 sockets unless specifically targeted. Cannot be used by Traps or Mines.Per 1% Quality:1Superior2Anomalous3Divergent4PhantasmalMinions have 1% increased Movement SpeedMinions have 0.5% chance to Intimidate Enemies for 4 seconds on Hit1% chance to create an additional Animate Weapon copyMinions deal 0 to 5 Added Lightning DamageBase duration is 40 seconds
    Can use Items requiring up to Level (9-100)
    Minions deal (10-48)% more Damage
    Minions have (10-48)% more Attack Speed
    Minions' Attacks deal (5-126) to (8-184) additional Physical Damage
    Maximum (5-14) Animated Weapons
    Animated Lingering Blades deal (1-17) to (2-80) Added Attack Physical Damage
    Place into an item socket of the right colour to gain this skill. Right click to remove from a socket.
    Animate Weapon skill icon
    Animate Weapon inventory icon
    . Lingering Blades have a duration of 6 seconds.
  • Physical spell damage: Ethereal Knives is affected by modifiers to Spell Damage, Physical Damage, and Projectile Damage. Its damage can also be improved by Added Fire Damage Support inventory iconAdded Fire Damage SupportAdded Fire Damage SupportFire, Physical, Support
    Icon: F
    Level: (1-20)
    Cost & Reservation Multiplier: 120%
    Requires Level 8Supports any skill that hits enemies.Per 1% Quality:1Superior2Anomalous3DivergentSupported Skills deal 0.5% increased Fire DamageSupported Skills deal 1% reduced Fire Damage
    Supported Skills have +1% to Fire Damage over Time Multiplier
    Supported Skills have 1% of Physical Damage Converted to Fire Damage
    Supported Skills gain (25-39)% of Physical Damage as Extra Fire DamageThis is a Support Gem. It does not grant a bonus to your character, but to skills in sockets connected to it. Place into an item socket connected to a socket containing the Active Skill Gem you wish to augment. Right click to remove from a socket.
    Added Fire Damage Support inventory icon
    , Brutality Support inventory iconBrutality SupportBrutality SupportPhysical, Support
    Icon: U
    Level: (1-20)
    Cost & Reservation Multiplier: 140%
    Requires Level 38Supports any skill that deals damage.Per 1% Quality:1Superior2Anomalous3DivergentSupported Skills deal 0.5% increased Physical DamageSupported Attacks have 0.5% chance to cause BleedingSupported Skills Overwhelm 0.25% Physical Damage ReductionSupported Skills deal (25-39)% more Physical Damage
    Supported Skills deal no Elemental Damage
    Supported Skills deal no Chaos Damage
    This is a Support Gem. It does not grant a bonus to your character, but to skills in sockets connected to it. Place into an item socket connected to a socket containing the Active Skill Gem you wish to augment. Right click to remove from a socket.
    Brutality Support inventory icon
    , Physical to Lightning Support inventory iconPhysical to Lightning SupportPhysical to Lightning SupportLightning, Physical, Support
    Icon: x
    Level: (1-20)
    Cost & Reservation Multiplier: 120%
    Requires Level 18Supports any skill that hits enemies.Per 1% Quality:1Superior2Anomalous3DivergentSupported Skills deal 0.5% increased Physical Damage
    Supported Skills deal 0.5% increased Lightning Damage
    Supported Skills have 0.5% of Physical Damage Converted to Lightning DamageEnemies Shocked by Supported Skills take 0.5% increased Physical Damage
    Supported Skills have 50% of Physical Damage Converted to Lightning Damage
    Supported Skills gain (10-29)% of Physical Damage as Extra Lightning Damage
    This is a Support Gem. It does not grant a bonus to your character, but to skills in sockets connected to it. Place into an item socket connected to a socket containing the Active Skill Gem you wish to augment. Right click to remove from a socket.
    Physical to Lightning Support inventory icon
    , Hatred inventory iconHatredHatredAura, Spell, AoE, Cold
    Level: (1-20)
    Reservation: 50% Mana
    Cooldown Time: 1.20 sec
    Can Store 1 Use(s)
    Cast Time: Instant
    Radius: 36
    Requires Level 24Casts an aura that grants extra cold damage based on physical damage to you and your allies.Per 1% Quality:1Superior2Anomalous3Divergent2% increased Area of EffectYou and nearby Allies have 0.5% increased Chill and Freeze DurationYou and nearby Allies have 0.5% increased Movement Speed while on Chilled GroundYou and nearby allies gain (16-25)% of Physical Damage as Extra Cold Damage
    You and nearby allies deal (14-18)% more Cold Damage
    +(0-19) to radius
    Place into an item socket of the right colour to gain this skill. Right click to remove from a socket.
    Hatred skill icon
    Hatred inventory icon
    , and Herald of Ash inventory iconHerald of AshHerald of AshSpell, AoE, Fire, Herald, Duration
    Level: (1-20)
    Reservation: 25% Mana
    Cooldown Time: 1.00 sec
    Can Store 1 Use(s)
    Cast Time: Instant
    Radius: 10
    Requires Level 16Grants a buff providing fire damage based on your physical damage. While you have this buff, if you kill an enemy, other enemies near them will be burned based on the overkill damage. The burn inflicted by this skill can only be affected by modifiers to damage over time (burning damage is damage over time).Per 1% Quality:1Superior2Anomalous3DivergentBuff grants 0.75% increased Fire Damage1% reduced Area of Effect
    3% increased Burning Damage
    1% increased Area of Effect
    Gain 15% of your Physical Damage as Extra Fire Damage
    Base duration is 4 seconds
    Base Burning Damage is 25% of Overkill Damage
    (9-12)% more Spell Fire Damage
    (0-38)% more Burning Damage
    Place into an item socket of the right colour to gain this skill. Right click to remove from a socket.
    Herald of Ash skill icon
    Herald of Ash inventory icon
    .
  • Projectile speed: The projectiles move at an average speed of close to 120 units/s for roughly 0.25 seconds, putting their effective range at somewhere around 30ish units. Then inherently have a variation of +/−40% base speed, but the average will be around 30.[1] Modifiers to projectile speed will increase the average distance that Ethereal Knives projectiles travel before they fade, effectively increasing the maximum range of the spell.
  • Leech: Since it is a spell, Ethereal Knives is not affected by Physical Attack Damage Leeched as Life or Physical Attack Damage Leeched as Mana. However, unspecified leech such as Life Leech Support inventory iconLife Leech SupportLife Leech SupportSupport
    Icon: l
    Level: (1-20)
    Cost & Reservation Multiplier: 110%
    Requires Level 31Supports any skill that hits enemies, causing those hits to leech life based on damage dealt.Per 1% Quality:1Superior2Anomalous3DivergentSupported Skills deal 0.5% increased Damage while Leeching LifeSupported Skills deal 2% increased Damage when on Full LifeSupported Skills have 5% increased Maximum Recovery per Life LeechSupported Skills have (2-3.9)% of Damage Leeched as LifeThis is a Support Gem. It does not grant a bonus to your character, but to skills in sockets connected to it. Place into an item socket connected to a socket containing the Active Skill Gem you wish to augment. Right click to remove from a socket.
    Life Leech Support inventory icon
    will function with Ethereal Knives.
  • Can be used in left mouse button slot to cast and move.

Gem level progression[ | ]

LevelRequired LevelRequired DexterityRequired IntelligenceMana
Cost
Physical
Damage
increased
Projectile
Speed
Exp.Total Exp.
110057 to 10N/A00
220059 to 121%7070
3400510 to 152%308378
47140613 to 203%15541932
511190719 to 284%66678599
6162618828 to 425%2604734646
7203122938 to 576%4972584371
82437251049 to 747%95714180085
92842291164 to 968%169595349680
103247331182 to 1239%283759633439
1136523612104 to 15610%4539961087435
1240584013131 to 19711%7031281790563
1344634414164 to 24612%10612232851786
1448684815204 to 30713%20658704917656
1552745116253 to 38014%25071107424766
1656795517312 to 46815%579893613223702
1760845918383 to 57516%1508391928307621
1864906218470 to 70417%2779273556100356
1967946519546 to 81818%4386973999970095
2070986820633 to 94919%242081556342051651
21721007020698 to 104720%N/AN/A
2274N/AN/A21770 to 115521%N/AN/A
2376N/AN/A21848 to 127222%N/AN/A
2478N/AN/A21934 to 140123%N/AN/A
2580N/AN/A221028 to 154224%N/AN/A
2682N/AN/A221131 to 169725%N/AN/A
2784N/AN/A231244 to 186626%N/AN/A
2886N/AN/A231367 to 205127%N/AN/A
2988N/AN/A241502 to 225328%N/AN/A
3090N/AN/A241650 to 247429%N/AN/A
3191N/AN/A241728 to 259329%N/AN/A
3292N/AN/A251811 to 271630%N/AN/A
3393N/AN/A251897 to 284530%N/AN/A
3494N/AN/A251987 to 298131%N/AN/A
3595N/AN/A252081 to 312231%N/AN/A
3696N/AN/A252180 to 327032%N/AN/A
3797N/AN/A262283 to 342432%N/AN/A
3898N/AN/A262390 to 358533%N/AN/A
3999N/AN/A262503 to 375433%N/AN/A
40100N/AN/A262620 to 393034%N/AN/A

Item acquisition
Questionmark

Upgrade paths

This item can be acquired through the following upgrade paths or vendor recipes:

AmountIngredientGeneral
Notes
Type
8Divination card inventory iconDying AnguishDying Anguish card artDivination card frameDying Anguish8Level 19 Gem
Alternative Quality: +19%
Moribund, he gazed upon the journey taken as blood trickled down his chin. His eye closed on the city ahead that he would never call home.
Divination card inventory icon
random level 19 gem with 19% alternative qualityAutomatic
1Gemcutter's Incubator inventory iconGemcutter's IncubatorGemcutter's IncubatorAdds an incubated Quality Gem item to an equippable item
Item drops after killing # monsters
Quality GemRight click this item then left click an item to apply it. The Incubated item drops after killing a specific number of monsters.
Gemcutter's Incubator inventory icon
random superior gemAutomatic
6Divination card inventory iconThe FoxThe Fox card artDivination card frameThe Fox6Level 20 Gem"Masters of wit, strength and cunning. To survive the harsh winters, you must be like the fox."
- Ezomyte Proverb
Divination card inventory icon
random level 20 gemAutomatic
13Divination card inventory iconThe CataclysmThe Cataclysm card artDivination card frameThe Cataclysm13Level 21 Spell Gem
Corrupted
The mighty warriors traded in blows, the nimble archers in arrows, yet it was the brazen thaumaturgists who would bring catastrophe to all.
Divination card inventory icon
random corrupted level 21 Spell gemAutomatic
3Divination card inventory iconGemcutter's PromiseGemcutter's Promise card artDivination card frameGemcutter's Promise3Superior Gem
Quality: +20%
"I swore to use my position to help the people. What good is power when it just accumulates on the already-powerful?" - Erasmus, Imperial Gemcutter
Divination card inventory icon
random superior gem with 20% qualityAutomatic
1Divination card inventory iconThe VoidThe Void card artDivination card frameThe Void1Reach into the Void and claim your prize.Divination card inventory iconrandom divination card set exchangeAutomatic

Quest reward

This item is given as a quest reward for the following quests:

Class →WitchShadowRangerDuelistMarauderTemplarScion
Quest ↓
Enemy at the Gate
Act 1

Vendor reward

This item can be bought at the listed NPC vendors, after completing the following quests:

Class →WitchShadowRangerDuelistMarauderTemplarScion
Quest ↓
Enemy at the Gate
Act 1
Nessa
A Fixture of Fate
Act 3
Siosa
Fallen from Grace
Act 6
Lilly Roth

Threshold jewels

The following threshold jewels augment Ethereal Knives:

ItemLimitRadiusStats
Ring of BladesRing of Blades inventory iconRing of Blades
Viridian Jewel
Limited to: 1
Radius: Medium
(10-15)% increased Global Physical Damage
With at least 40 Dexterity in Radius, Ethereal Knives fires Projectiles in a circle
With at least 40 Dexterity in Radius, Ethereal Knives fires 5 additional Projectiles
At night, as a young Daresso shared his bed with a woman whose name he could not recall,
his thoughts remained in the one place he called his own: The Grand Arena.
Place into an allocated Jewel Socket on the Passive Skill Tree. Right click to remove from the Socket.
Ring of Blades inventory icon
1Medium(10-15)% increased Global Physical Damage
With at least 40 Dexterity in Radius, Ethereal Knives fires Projectiles in a circle
With at least 40 Dexterity in Radius, Ethereal Knives fires 5 additional Projectiles

Related helmet enchantments

The following helmet enchantments affect Ethereal Knives.

NameFor generated item/monster modifiers the minimum item/monster level respectively. Some generation types may not require this condition to be met, however item level restrictions may be raised to 80% of this value.StatsSpawn Weighting
Enchantment Ethereal Knives Damage 16625% increased Ethereal Knives Damagehelmet 100
default 0
Enchantment Ethereal Knives Damage 27540% increased Ethereal Knives Damagehelmet 75
default 0
Enchantment Ethereal Knives Number Of Targets To Pierce 175Ethereal Knives Pierces an additional Targethelmet 75
default 0
Enchantment Ethereal Knives Projectile Speed 16620% increased Ethereal Knives Projectile Speedhelmet 100
default 0
Enchantment Ethereal Knives Projectile Speed 27530% increased Ethereal Knives Projectile Speedhelmet 75
default 0

Alternate skill effects

Ethereal Knives has the following alternate skill effects:

ItemEffect(s)
Ebony Ethereal Knives EffectEbony Ethereal Knives Effect inventory iconEbony Ethereal Knives EffectSkill Gem EffectYour Ethereal Knives becomes a volley of ebony knives.Ebony Ethereal Knives Effect inventory iconYour Ethereal Knives becomes a volley of ebony knives.
Ethereal Stars EffectEthereal Stars Effect inventory iconEthereal Stars EffectSkill Gem EffectYour Ethereal Knives becomes a volley of spinning throwing starsEthereal Stars Effect inventory iconYour Ethereal Knives becomes a volley of spinning throwing stars
Illusionist Ethereal Knives EffectIllusionist Ethereal Knives Effect inventory iconIllusionist Ethereal Knives EffectSkill Gem EffectYour Ethereal Knives becomes a volley of Illusionist knives.Illusionist Ethereal Knives Effect inventory iconYour Ethereal Knives becomes a volley of Illusionist knives.
Sawblade Ethereal Knives EffectSawblade Ethereal Knives Effect inventory iconSawblade Ethereal Knives EffectSkill Gem EffectYour Ethereal Knives becomes a Sawblade Effect.Sawblade Ethereal Knives Effect inventory iconYour Ethereal Knives becomes a Sawblade Effect.

Version history[ | ]

Version Changes
3.10.0
  • Can now create Lingering Blades. These can be animated with Animate Weapon inventory iconAnimate WeaponAnimate WeaponDuration, Minion, Spell, Physical
    Level: (1-20)
    Cost: (4-12) Mana
    Cast Time: 0.60 sec
    Animates a Melee Weapon Item or Lingering Blade to fight by your side. You cannot animate unidentified Weapons. Will not animate weapons with 6 sockets unless specifically targeted. Cannot be used by Traps or Mines.Per 1% Quality:1Superior2Anomalous3Divergent4PhantasmalMinions have 1% increased Movement SpeedMinions have 0.5% chance to Intimidate Enemies for 4 seconds on Hit1% chance to create an additional Animate Weapon copyMinions deal 0 to 5 Added Lightning DamageBase duration is 40 seconds
    Can use Items requiring up to Level (9-100)
    Minions deal (10-48)% more Damage
    Minions have (10-48)% more Attack Speed
    Minions' Attacks deal (5-126) to (8-184) additional Physical Damage
    Maximum (5-14) Animated Weapons
    Animated Lingering Blades deal (1-17) to (2-80) Added Attack Physical Damage
    Place into an item socket of the right colour to gain this skill. Right click to remove from a socket.
    Animate Weapon skill icon
    Animate Weapon inventory icon
    or destroyed with Blade Blast inventory iconBlade BlastBlade BlastSpell, AoE, Physical
    Level: (1-20)
    Cost: (6-16) Mana
    Cast Time: 0.50 sec
    Critical Strike Chance: 6.00%
    Effectiveness of Added Damage: 50%
    Requires Level 16Deals spell damage in a targeted area. When this spell deals damage, if your Lingering Blades or Blade Vortex blades are nearby, it will detonate them, dealing damage again in an area around them. Up to 50 Blades can be detonated this way.Per 1% Quality:1Superior2Anomalous3Divergent4Phantasmal0.5% increased Area of Effect+0.5% to Chaos Damage over Time Multiplier0.5% chance to Impale on Spell Hit0.5% increased Cast SpeedDeals (11-210) to (17-315) Physical Damage
    80% more Area of Effect per Blade Vortex blade detonated
    Place into an item socket of the right colour to gain this skill. Right click to remove from a socket.
    Blade Blast skill icon
    Blade Blast inventory icon
    . These blades have a base duration of 6 seconds at all gem levels.
3.6.0
  • Mana Cost at gem level 20 is now 20 (was 23).
  • Now deals 7 to 10 Physical damage at gem level 1 (from 6 to 9) and 633 to 949 Physical damage at gem level 20 (from 457 to 685).
  • Now has an added damage effectiveness of 120% (from 100%).
3.3.0
  • Now deals 6-9 physical damage at gem level 1 (up from 4-6), up to 457-685 physical damage at gem level 20 (down from 459-688).
2.1.0
  • Damage increased by around 20% higher at level 20.
  • Now gains 1% projectile speed per gem level over 1.
2.0.0
  • Now grants 1% Increased projectile speed per 1% quality instead of increased projectile damage. Base Cast Speed has been decreased from a cast time of 800ms to 600ms, the mana costs have been reduced to compensate for the increase in cast speed. Critical Strike Chance has been increased from 5% to 6%.
1.1.5
  • Ethereal Knives casts 25% faster (from 1 to 0.8 seconds), the damage and mana cost have been reduced by 20% to compensate.
1.0.0
  • Ethereal Knives' mana cost is reduced.
0.11.4
  • Fixed a bug with Ethereal Knives that would cause you to walk closer than needed if the range was affected by projectile speed.
0.11.0
  • The damage progression of Ethereal Knives has been reduced.
0.9.12s
  • Damage increased by 10%.
0.9.12qq
  • From 1% projectile damage per quality point to 0.5%.
0.9.11i
  • Fixed the randomness of Ethereal Knives when used with traps.
0.9.9b
  • Fixed a problem where the character would not run into range of an enemy before using the skill.
0.9.9
  • Ethereal Knives has been added to the game.

References[ | ]

  1. Mark_GGG (July 19, 2016). "Mechanical Questions Thread". Official Path of Exile Forums. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
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