Respec should be Free, Always

The only thing respec costs do is reduce build crafting and creativiy.
The only thing limiting what build you can play should be the items. If you have them you should be able to change your passives and play it.

Not allowning players to change builds does not create "meaningful decisions" but reduces it to "Use the Meta Build of someone else or risk being punished".

Not being able to change builds gives people two options:
-stick with it and try to make it work(not fun and causes people to give up)
-create a new character and try again(not such a meanigful decision now is it?)

If not being able to change skills is such a problem for whatever reason than why can you change the active skills... the only difference between them is that active skills are even more important for character identity than passive ones but you are free to change them(as you should).

That seem to make sense to me. Free skill selection, auto skill path based on ascension, reduction of bloated skilltree would be the right path to experiment. I dont need these artificial restrictions like poe1. Thats why there are currently like 10k active in poe1 league - which is running right now ;) vs 550+k in modern poe2 which can be further improved here and is just beginning. I can enjoy it but gameflow wise it could help many of us..try to explain tree and respec your younger brother... let us smoothly play. Still respect to your team for tryng out so much to make us happy. :)

Devs you are awesome. You could probably just go live if you move the compute from poe1 (never got into poe1 like majority as its clunky,tedious and now old. And most known streamer seem to turn their back here too like i read in posts of seasoned players - they know how they earn money.. not with being sentimental but with demand).

Let me play.. i dont want to read books here.

I thought in skilltree -> why so complicated. First i select -> attribute and than strength? Why is attribite not sufficient as selection and on gear. I had to refund and update.. felt like poe1 erm minmaxing erm..outdated. at end i want to skill defense, offense, attribute.. maybe a support (ascension). Done. All other is bloated. You didnt want me to skill jewel and resistance as its far away. Still am fine but slight reduction and streamline.. awesome.

Game is a beauty.. not too slow or too fast.

Crafting is also great..dont change or complicate that. I think you could also merge transmute and augment, usually i want the best of both. Same as alcheny and regal.. one would have sufficed -> make item rare