Diablo 4 Masterworking Guide

Masterworking Overview

1. What is Masterworking?
• Masterworking is an advanced crafting system introduced in Diablo 4. It enables players to enhance the value of existing affixes on their items.
2. How It Works:
• Upgrade Ranks: Masterworking offers 12 upgrade ranks for improving item affixes.
• Crafting Materials: Special materials required for Masterworking can be obtained from The Pit of the Artificers.
3. System Changes:
• Masterworking replaces the previous Blacksmith’s Gear Upgrade system and the Jeweler’s Ring and Amulet Upgrade system.
4. Where to Apply:
• All Masterworking upgrades are performed at the Blacksmith.

Masterworking Basics

1. Affix Buffs:
• Base Affix Increase: Each Masterworking rank boosts an item’s base affixes by 5%.
• Milestone Ranks: Every fourth rank (totaling three milestone ranks per item) provides a 25% increase to a single random affix.
2. Total Buffs:
• Base Affixes: Completing all Masterworking ranks grants a 45% total increase to the base affixes.
• Single Affix Buff: You will receive a 75% boost to one affix, which can be spread across three randomized affixes or a combination of 1 or 2 affixes.
3. Tooltip Information:
• The Masterworking rank of an item is displayed at the top of the item's tooltip, just below its Item Power.

asterworking Application and Milestone Affix Buffs

1. Eligible Items:
• Masterworking can be applied to Ancestral Legendary Items that already have two Tempered Affixes, as well as to Unique items.
• Note: Tempered Affixes are included in the Masterworking rank upgrades.
2. Milestone Affix Buffs:
• Milestone Ranks: The milestone affix buffs occur at ranks 4, 8, and 12.
• Tooltip Highlights:
• Blue Highlight: Represents one milestone upgrade.
• Yellow Highlight: Represents two milestone upgrades.
• Orange Highlight: Represents three milestone upgrades.
3. Possible Buff Combinations:
• Single Affix: It’s possible for a single affix to receive all three milestone upgrades.
• Combination of Affixes: Alternatively, upgrades can be spread across a combination of one or two affixes.
• Individual Affixes: There may also be three distinct affixes each receiving a milestone upgrade.
• The exact distribution of buffs is random and depends on luck.

Masterworking Upgrade Process

1. Upgrade Location:
• Masterworking upgrades are performed at the Blacksmith.
2. Upgrade Animations:
• Non-Milestone Ranks: Ranks 1-3, 5-7, etc., do not feature an animation, allowing for a faster upgrade process.
• Milestone Ranks: Ranks 4, 8, and 12 include a special animation. There is a Skip button available if you prefer to bypass this animation.
3. Upgrade Details:
• The effects and required materials for each upgrade rank are outlined in the table below.

Unlocking Masterworking

1. Accessing the System:
• The Masterworking system becomes available through materials gathered in The Pit of Artificers, an endgame activity introduced in Season 4.
2. Unlocking Process:
• Run Completion: Completing a run in The Pit will reward you with Masterworking materials and unlock the next tier of this endgame activity.
3. Masterworking Crafting Materials:
• The three primary crafting materials required for Masterworking are:

• Obducite

• Ingolith

• Neathiron

• These materials can only be obtained through The Pit of Artificers.

1. Material Requirements:
• Ranks 1-4: Requires the initial set of Masterworking materials.
• Ranks 5-8: Requires a subsequent set of materials.
• Ranks 9-12: Requires the final set of materials.
2. Material Transmutation:
• At the Occultist, you can transmute crafting materials as follows:
• 1 Neathiron can be transmuted into 3 Ingolith.
• 1 Ingolith can be transmuted into 3 Obducite.

These conversions can be useful for obtaining the necessary materials for Masterworking
Masterworking Reagents and Their Slots/Ranks

• Veiled Crystal: Used for all slots, applicable for ranks 1-8.
• Rawhide: Used for Armor slots, applicable for ranks 1-8.
• Iron Chunk: Used for Weapon and Jewelry slots, applicable for ranks 1-8.
• Coiling Ward: Used for Armor slots, applicable for ranks 9-12.
• Abstruse Sigil: Used for Jewelry slots, applicable for ranks 9-12.
• Baleful Fragment: Used for Weapon slots, applicable for ranks 9-12.

Masterworking Upgrade Costs

• Rank 1:
• Effect: All affixes increased by 5%
• Cost:
• 10 Obducite
• 10 Rawhide
• 10 Iron Chunk
• 3 Veiled Crystal
• 100,000 Gold
• Rank 2:
• Effect: All affixes increased by 5%
• Cost:
• 20 Obducite
• 10 Rawhide
• 10 Iron Chunk
• 3 Veiled Crystal
• 150,000 Gold
• Rank 3:
• Effect: All affixes increased by 5%
• Cost:
• 30 Obducite
• 15 Rawhide
• 15 Iron Chunk
• 4 Veiled Crystal
• 200,000 Gold
• Rank 4:
• Effect: A random affix has been upgraded by 25%
• Cost:
• 40 Obducite
• 15 Rawhide
• 15 Iron Chunk
• 4 Veiled Crystal
• 300,000 Gold
• Rank 5:
• Effect: All affixes increased by 5%
• Cost:
• 20 Ingolith
• 25 Rawhide
• 25 Iron Chunk
• 6 Veiled Crystal
• 400,000 Gold
• Rank 6:
• Effect: All affixes increased by 5%
• Cost:
• 40 Ingolith
• 30 Rawhide
• 30 Iron Chunk
• 8 Veiled Crystal
• 450,000 Gold
• Rank 7:
• Effect: All affixes increased by 5%
• Cost:
• 80 Ingolith
• 40 Rawhide
• 40 Iron Chunk
• 10 Veiled Crystal
• 500,000 Gold
• Rank 8:
• Effect: A random affix has been upgraded by 25%
• Cost:
• 120 Ingolith
• 50 Rawhide
• 50 Iron Chunk
• 15 Veiled Crystal
• 600,000 Gold
• Rank 9:
• Effect: All affixes increased by 5%
• Cost:
• 50 Neathiron
• 20 Veiled Crystal
• 10 Abstruse Sigil
• 10 Baleful Fragment
• 10 Coiling Ward
• 3 Forgotten Soul
• 800,000 Gold
• Rank 10:
• Effect: All affixes increased by 5%
• Cost:
• 100 Neathiron
• 30 Veiled Crystal
• 10 Abstruse Sigil
• 10 Baleful Fragment
• 10 Coiling Ward
• 5 Forgotten Soul
• 1,000,000 Gold
• Rank 11:
• Effect: All affixes increased by 5%
• Cost:
• 150 Neathiron
• 40 Veiled Crystal
• 15 Abstruse Sigil
• 15 Baleful Fragment
• 15 Coiling Ward
• 7 Forgotten Soul
• 1,500,000 Gold
• Rank 12:
• Effect: A random affix has been upgraded by 25%
• Cost:
• 250 Neathiron
• 50 Veiled Crystal
• 20 Abstruse Sigil
• 20 Baleful Fragment
• 20 Coiling Ward
• 10 Forgotten Soul
• 2,500,000 Gold
  
  
  

Resetting Masterwork Ranks

Players have the option to reset their Masterwork Ranks if they are dissatisfied with the roll on a particular affix. This feature is available in the Blacksmith's Masterworking tab. The reset costs are as follows:

• 30 Iron Chunk
• 30 Rawhide
• 20 Veiled Crystal
• 5 Forgotten Soul
• 5,000,000 Gold

Resetting Masterwork Ranks is quite costly and will return the item's rank to zero, regardless of its previous level. Note that there is currently no way to reset individual ranks or retain any progress made in the specific affix being reset.

The system appears to be designed to help players maintain their Best-in-Slot (BiS) items, particularly those with exceptional Greater Affix rolls. However, whether the cost justifies this benefit is still under debate. While Patch 1.4.1 significantly reduced the gold and material costs for upgrading Masterworking ranks, the cost for resetting ranks remains unchanged. Future updates may potentially adjust these costs.

Salvaging Masterworked Gear

Players can salvage unused pieces of Masterworked gear at the Blacksmith to potentially receive a portion of the materials used during the Masterworking process as a refund. This mechanic has not been officially confirmed by Blizzard, and details are based on player experiences rather than official sources. For the most accurate and up-to-date information, keep an eye on official announcements and updates from Blizzard.

Salvaging Masterworked Gear

Salvaging Masterworked gear at the Blacksmith will refund materials used for all ranks except the current one. For example, salvaging Rank 6 Masterworked gear will return materials up to Rank 5. The specifics of this refund system, particularly regarding the return of Pit materials based on item or power level, are still not fully clear. However, community findings provide some insight:

 

• Rank 1 Masterworked Gear: Refunds 4 Iron Chunk, 4 Rawhide, 3 Veiled Crystal, and 3 Forgotten Soul.
• Rank 2 Masterworked Gear: Refunds approximately 33% of the total invested Pit materials.
• Rank 3 Masterworked Gear: Refunds approximately 50% of the total invested Pit materials.
• Rank 4 Masterworked Gear: Refunds around 60% of the total invested Pit materials.