U4GM What the Ctrl Key Really Does in PoE2 Vaal Temple Runs

At some point in Path of Exile 2, you'll open the Vaal Temple console, hover over "Run Temple," and realise the game's not letting you do a thing. The button's greyed out, the interface nags you to place a room, and you're left wondering if your instance is busted. It isn't. It's one of those rules you only learn after a few annoyed minutes, right up there with figuring out where to stash your loot and when to trade for PoE 2 Currency so your build doesn't stall out at the worst time.

Why The Button Gets Locked

The restriction is intentional, and it's been around since the Fate of the Vaal league design pass. The dev idea is basically "no empty temples." They didn't want players fat-fingering a launch and wasting a run on a blank layout. So the UI checks for at least one placement in that session before it'll call the temple "valid." It sounds sensible on paper, but in practice it's awkward. Especially when your current tiles are trash, your paths are already delicate, and you don't want to jam a dead-end room in just to satisfy a checkbox.

The PC Workaround People Miss

On keyboard and mouse there's a quiet override: hold Ctrl while clicking "Run Temple." No fanfare, no big tooltip, but it lets you start without adding anything new. It's handy when you're trying to preserve a clean chain, or when you're waiting for a better roll and don't want to lock in a mistake. Controller players get a different flow, usually a confirmation prompt that makes it clearer you're choosing to run "as is." On PC, if you don't already know the modifier, you can sit there staring at "PLACE A ROOM" like it's the only quest in the game.

No Reset, Just Workarounds

The rough part is there's still no proper reset button. If your temple's become a mess, you can't just wipe it and start over. You either let the layout drift over time, or you push ahead with what you've got. That's why the Ctrl-click matters more than it should. It's not about speedrunning the UI; it's about having a choice when you're playing for long-term planning instead of short-term panic. If you're trying to keep your layout intact while you farm and tweak gear, it can save you from a pointless "throwaway" placement, and it pairs nicely with the usual prep like sorting flasks, pricing drops, and deciding whether to buy PoE 2 Currency before you commit to the next round of upgrades.