Deciding whether to sell or use Ancient Crisis Fragments in Path of Exile 2 depends largely on your personal goals—whether you prioritize progressing through endgame content or accumulating wealth through trading.
Ancient Crisis Fragments are one of three essential Pinnacle Keys needed to unlock the Arbiter of Ash fight in the Burning Monolith, the game’s pinnacle boss encounter. If your goal is to challenge this boss and experience the toughest content PoE 2 offers, holding onto and using the Ancient Crisis Fragment is necessary. Collecting all three fragments—Ancient, Faded, and Weathered—unlocks access to this high-stakes fight, which offers substantial rewards and progression opportunities.
On the other hand, Ancient Crisis Fragments are highly valuable on the player market. Their rarity and importance make them sought-after commodities, often trading for hundreds of Exalted Orbs. Selling your fragments can provide a significant influx of currency, which you can reinvest into gearing, crafting, or other in-game needs. This option suits players who either do not wish to face the Arbiter fight immediately or prefer to accumulate wealth before tackling pinnacle content.
It’s also worth noting that you can acquire Ancient Crisis Fragments via farming Citadels or purchasing them from the Currency Exchange NPC after reaching Cruel difficulty, providing alternative paths to obtain them if you decide to sell yours.
If you’re eager to progress and challenge the Arbiter of Ash, use your Ancient Crisis Fragment to unlock the fight. If you prefer to build your currency reserves or focus on other aspects of the game first, selling the fragment can be a lucrative choice. Many players balance both approaches—selling duplicate fragments to fund their builds while keeping enough to unlock pinnacle content when ready.