Introduction
The Blacksmith is an important NPC that helps players with their progression and adventures across Sanctuary. This guide covers the benefits of upgrading and salvaging items, and how to make use of the Blacksmith’s features in Diablo 4 to enhance equipment and extract valuable materials.
Every time a character dies, worn equipment also suffers a Durability blow, but paying a little bit of Gold to the Blacksmith restores its functionality.
How to Unlock the Blacksmith
Upon reaching Level 10, you will receive a priority quest objective to visit Zivek, the Blacksmith in Kyovashad, located within the Fractured Peaks. This quest requires the upgrade of a piece of gear, and completing it rewards you with experience.
However, the true value of meeting the Blacksmith lies in the core progression loop of upgrading gear and salvaging equipment or extra loot for materials, and in the ability to repair damaged gear. These loops are essential to your progression advancement throughout the world of Sanctuary.
After completing the intro quest and unlocking the Blacksmith, the NPC can be found throughout the world in various outposts, towns, and cleared Strongholds. This allows characters to access the Blacksmith’s services conveniently and efficiently, without having to return to Kyovashad every time.
How to Salvage
Salvaging a piece of gear grants you crafting materials necessary for upgrading items of the same type. The rarity of the item salvaged generally determines the quality of materials acquired.
- Two-handed Weapons can grant up to 2
Forgotten Soul from salvage, all other equipment types can grant 1.
Furthermore, salvaging upgraded gear enables you to get back some of the upgrade materials used on that item. For example, if an item has been socketed with a Gem, the Gem is returned to the inventory. Check out our Jeweler Guide for more information about Gems.
Jeweler GuideAdditionally, salvaging an item also unlocks its Transmog appearance for the Wardrobe.
All items in the inventory of the character can be quickly salvaged, but Legendary, Unique, and altered items (enchanted, socketed, transmogged) are excluded from this process. Individual items can be selected by using a hotkey (space bar on PC), and these can then be salvaged with a single click when visiting the Blacksmith. Effective inventory management is key to saving time between adventures.
How to Repair Gear
The Durability of gear decreases by 10% with each death, and at 0 Durability, item bonuses are partially disabled, making your character significantly weaker. Because of this, it is very important to repair equipped gear whenever necessary. Repairing an item requires you to spend Gold. The amount of Gold required is dependent on the items’ rarity and Durability level.
How to Upgrade Gear
In Diablo 4, upgrading gear plays a significant role in character progression. During your adventures, you will encounter a variety of items that can be upgraded a limited number of times depending on their rarity. It is not recommended to upgrade common and magic items due to the increasing costs of gold and materials. Instead, it is best to focus on upgrading Rare, Legendary, and Unique items.
We also have a dedicated in-depth Aspect and Codex of Power guide that you can check out for more information:
Legendary Aspect and Codex of Power GuideUpgrading gear provides several benefits, including a 5-point increase in item power, improved affix stats, and increased base armor and weapon damage. This is crucial in reducing incoming damage and boosting skill damage. Each item requires specific upgrade materials, and it is important to understand the purpose of each material.
Fiend Rose and Forgotten Soul are only required for Sacred or Ancestral items. Upgrades of non-Sacred or non-Ancestral items will not require these materials. The list below provides more information on each upgrade material and its function.
Iron Chunk (Tier 1): Weapon, Jewelry
Rawhide (Tier 1): Armor
Silver Ore (Tier 2): Weapon Jewelry
Superior Leather (Tier 2): Armor
Veiled Crystal (Tier 3): Weapon, Armor, Jewelry
Coiling Ward (Tier 4): Armor
Abstruse Sigil (Tier 4): Jewelry
Baleful Fragment (Tier 4): Weapon- Forgotten Soul (Tier 5): Weapon, Armor, Jewelry
