In Path of Exile (PoE), Path of exile currency items are the core of crafting, trading, and progression. Among the more specialized and valuable ones is the Harbinger's Orb, a currency item that upgrades a map into a Tier 14 to Tier 16 Beachhead unique map, which provides excellent experience, loot, and a reliable way to farm Harbinger currency shards like Exalted Shards, Ancient Orbs, and more.

This guide will explore everything you need to know about how to get Harbinger's Orbs, how to maximize your farming efficiency, how to use them properly, and which builds and strategies work best when grinding for this powerful currency.

 What Is a Harbinger's Orb?

A Harbinger’s Orb is a currency item that upgrades a red-tier map (Tier 14–16) into a Beachhead map of the same tier. Beachhead maps are unique maps with a Harbinger-themed layout, enemy waves, and a final boss encounter that drops Harbinger loot and currency shards in abundance.

Important note: The base map must already be Tier 14 or higher. Applying the Harbinger’s Orb transforms it directly into a Beachhead of that exact tier, making it one of the few guaranteed ways to farm the map for profit and crafting value.

 Why Are Harbinger’s Orbs Valuable?

Harbinger’s Orbs are prized for several reasons:

Access to Beachhead maps for shard farming (Exalted, Ancient, Chaos, etc.)

Consistent experience and loot runs from fast-paced enemy waves

Strong value in trade leagues (used to generate sellable maps or loot)

Great synergy with Atlas strategies focused on Harbinger nodes and map duplication

Due to the rarity of natural Beachhead map drops, Harbinger’s Orbs are the primary way to farm them reliably.

 How to Get Harbinger’s Orb

Here are all the known and consistent methods to obtain Harbinger’s Orbs in Path of Exile:

1. Defeating Harbingers in Maps

Harbingers are blue-colored ghostly enemies that summon waves of minions. They can appear in maps through various sources:

Atlas Passive Tree: Allocate Harbinger passives in map regions like Valdo's Rest or Glennach Cairns.

Delirium Orbs: Some orbs increase the chance of spawning Harbingers when applied to a map.

Map Device Crafting: Certain league modifiers (via Kirac or Voidstones) may force Harbinger content.

Sextants: Watchstone or Voidstone modifiers can include Harbinger pack size or additional Harbinger spawns.

Scarab of Harbingers: Use these Scarabs to guarantee Harbingers in a map. Higher-tier Scarabs (Gilded, Winged) add more.

Drops: Harbingers can drop currency shards, Fracturing Shards, Ancient Shards, and rarely Harbinger’s Orbs.

Tip: For better drop chances, use Sextants, Scarabs, and run maps with high pack size and juice (Breach, Abyss, etc.).

2. Beachhead Maps – Boss Drops

Running a Beachhead map itself may reward Harbinger currency, including a Harbinger's Orb at the end chest or boss drop.

You’ll have the most success running T16 Beachheads, where drop pools include:

Exalted Shards

Ancient Orbs

Fracturing Shards

Harbinger's Orbs (rarely)

Stacked decks and chaos orbs

Farm Beachheads with a fast-clearing build to maximize value-per-hour.

3. Harbinger Currency Shards – Combine to Form

You can assemble a Harbinger’s Orb from 20 Harbinger’s Orb shards. These shards:

Drop from Harbinger bosses

May appear in Delirium Simulacrums, Legion encounters, and Rogue Metamorphs if they contain Harbinger loot rewards

Can be found in Delve, Ritual, or Blight chests with Harbinger rewards

Are possible loot from Incursion temples, especially Currency rooms like "Apex of Ascension"

4. Trade with Other Players

In trade leagues, Harbinger’s Orbs are sold in bulk. You can buy them using:

Chaos Orbs

Exalted Orbs

Bulk currencies (Divine Orbs in modern PoE economy)

Visit sites like poe.trade, Pathofexile.com/trade, or in-game trade boards. Buying orbs in bulk can be more efficient than farming if your build excels in other profit-generating strategies like Heist, Expedition, or Delve.

5. Other Sources (Rare but Possible)

Strongboxes (Currency Boxes): Have a very low chance to drop Harbinger's Orbs

Heist Contracts (Currency rooms): Rare rewards inside Smuggler's Caches

Expedition Logbooks: Harbinger-themed remnants or reward nodes may contain Harbinger’s Orb shards

Divination Cards (indirect): There is currently no known Div Card that directly rewards a Harbinger’s Orb, but currency-themed cards may provide them indirectly.

 How to Use Harbinger’s Orb

Once you have a Harbinger’s Orb:

Get a Tier 14–16 normal map (white background, unmodified)

Right-click the Harbinger’s Orb

Left-click the map

It will convert into a Beachhead Map of the same tier

You can now:

Run it solo or in a party

Use Scarabs (such as Harbinger or Cartography) for extra rewards

Modify it with Vaal Orbs, Fragments, or Crafting Bench mods to increase difficulty and loot

Duplicate it using Mirror of Kalandra (if you're extremely rich)

Best Builds to Farm Harbinger’s Orbs

Harbinger encounters are wave-based, so fast-clearing, AoE-heavy builds excel.

Recommended Builds:

Lightning Arrow Deadeye: Excellent map clear, high range, great for beachheads

Corrupting Fever Champion: Screen-wide DoTs destroy Harbinger waves fast

Tornado Shot Deadeye: Fast, efficient, and reliable

Poison Spark Occultist: Great screen-clearing in tight Harbinger wave clusters

RF Inquisitor: Tanky, consistent wave clear with righteous fire AoE

 Profit Potential – Is Farming Worth It?

Harbinger’s Orb (Solo Drop) – 10–15 Chaos Orbs in trade

Beachhead Map (Tier 16) – ~25–40 Chaos POE orbs worth of loot

Ancient Orbs (from shards) – High-value (~2–4 Chaos each, used for Headhunter gambles)

Fracturing Shards – Rare, but extremely profitable for crafting meta

Conclusion: Running a Harbinger-focused strategy with high-map investment (Alva, Sextants, Scarabs) is a very profitable endgame strategy, especially if your Atlas tree supports Harbingers.

Harbinger Atlas Strategy (2025 Season Tips)

Region: Glennach Cairns or Valdo’s Rest

Keystones to take:

“Storm’s Path” (more Harbinger influence)

“Unspeakable Offensive” (empowered Harbingers)

“Wealth of the Sea” (extra Harbinger currency)

Run with:

Gilded Harbinger Scarab

Sextants: “Your Maps contain 2 additional Harbingers”

Kirac mod: Harbinger modifier if available

Maps with +pack size and Delirium (for shard multipliers)

Final Thoughts

The Harbinger’s Orb is one of the most sought-after mid-tier currencies in Path of Exile, especially for players looking to run Beachhead maps, farm valuable shards, or sell content in trade leagues. While it’s not the easiest currency to acquire, understanding the mechanics of Harbingers, leveraging Atlas strategies, and optimizing your builds will put you on a steady path to farming them efficiently.

Whether you’re chasing an Ancient Orb for a Headhunter gamble or just want steady profit from Beachhead maps, Harbinger’s Orbs are a powerful tool in your currency farming arsenal.