Can You Quality a Corrupted Item in Path of Exile?
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The short, direct answer is: No, you cannot directly increase the quality of a corrupted item in Path of Exile (PoE). Once an item has been corrupted by a Vaal Orb, it becomes locked in its current state. This means that standard crafting currencies, including those used to improve quality, cannot be applied. This is a core mechanic of the game, designed to add risk and reward to the process of corrupting items. The act of corrupting an item is a gamble, a commitment to its current form with a chance of powerful, albeit unpredictable, benefits. Understanding this limitation is crucial for any PoE player delving into end-game item manipulation.
Understanding Corruption in Path of Exile
What Does Corrupting an Item Mean?
Corrupting an item is achieved by using a Vaal Orb, a currency item with the power to alter an item in unpredictable ways. This process often modifies an item’s existing properties, adding implicit modifiers, changing socket colors, and potentially even upgrading or downgrading its rarity. However, with these possibilities come the limitations. The most significant of these is that a corrupted item cannot be modified by most crafting currency—including those that increase quality.
Why Corrupt Items?
Despite the risks, players corrupt items for a variety of reasons:
- Implicit Modifiers: Corrupting an item can grant a powerful new implicit modifier, a stat that is innate to the item and often provides substantial bonuses.
- Socket Color Changes: While unpredictable, the ability to change socket colors on a corrupted item (with a Tainted Chromatic Orb) is highly desirable for builds that require “off-color” socket combinations.
- Increased Power: In some cases, corrupting an item can lead to an overall improvement in its stats, making it stronger than its uncorrupted counterpart.
- The Gamble: The unpredictable nature of corruption is a thrill for many players. There’s the potential for a highly sought-after result, even with the risk of complete ruin.
The Trade-off: Permanence
The trade-off for the potential benefits of corruption is that items become largely permanent in their modified state. This means that you can’t easily fix any undesirable outcomes. Quality, a stat that increases the effectiveness of a piece of gear or a gem, is one area where corrupted items are permanently fixed at their current value.
Implication for Quality
The fact that corrupted items can’t be improved through traditional quality methods makes pre-corruption quality incredibly important. If you are planning to corrupt a piece of gear or a gem, ensure it has the maximum quality you can achieve before using the Vaal Orb. For example, before corrupting a gem, ensure it is at 20% quality, a process typically achieved through the use of Gemcutter’s Prisms or through vendoring a level 20 gem with a Gemcutter’s Prism. This means planning and foresight are critical to successful corruption outcomes.
Related FAQs
Can I use a Gemcutter’s Prism on a Corrupted Gem?
No, you cannot. Once a gem has been corrupted, it can no longer be modified with standard currency items like Gemcutter’s Prisms (GCPs). This means any quality enhancements need to be done before the corruption.
Can I use Armor Scraps or Blacksmith’s Whetstones on Corrupted Armor/Weapons?
No, these are also standard quality increasing currencies that cannot be used on corrupted items. The quality has to be maximized before corruption.
Can I Anoint a Corrupted Item?
Yes, you can. Using Tainted Oils, you can now anoint corrupted items, adding a special modifier. This is a unique avenue to improve corrupted items, though it doesn’t involve changing the quality of it directly.
Can a Corrupted Gem Level Up?
Yes, corrupted gems can still gain experience and level up as normal. The corruption only prevents the application of currency items to the gem.
Can I change the Sockets on a Corrupted Item?
Yes, you can, using the crafting bench in your hideout. However, this requires an additional Vaal Orb on top of the normal Orb of Fusing cost.
Can I Use an Oil Extractor on a Corrupted Item?
No, an Oil Extractor is a currency item and therefore cannot be used on corrupted items.
Can I Use a Tainted Chromatic Orb on a Corrupted Item?
Yes, a Tainted Chromatic Orb is specifically designed to reforge the colors of sockets on a corrupted item. This is one of the only ways to alter sockets after corruption.
Can You Use a Mirror on a Corrupted Item?
No, you cannot mirror a corrupted item. Mirrored items also can’t be corrupted and mirrored items can’t be enchanted.
Can You Enchant a Corrupted Item?
No, corrupted items cannot be enchanted. Enchanting must be done before corruption. Mirrored items also cannot be enchanted.
Can I Remove Corruption from an Item?
No, there is no way to remove the corrupted status from an item. Once corrupted, it is permanently marked as such. This emphasizes the finality of the Vaal Orb process.
What Happens If I Vaal a Gem That Is Already Level 20 With 20% Quality?
Corrupting a level 20, 20% quality gem with a Vaal Orb has several possible outcomes:
- No Change: The gem could stay the same level and quality, with a possible implicit added.
- Quality Change: The gem could gain or lose quality (for example, become 23% quality or 18% quality).
- Level Change: The gem could gain or lose a level (for example, become level 21 or level 19).
- Vaal Skill Gem: The gem can become a Vaal Skill gem, this can be very powerful but can also make the gem useless for your build, depending on your build needs.
These outcomes are all random, so understand the risks.
Can I Use Currency Items on Items Found in Corrupted Strongboxes?
No, any item found within a corrupted strongbox is automatically corrupted, and thus, cannot be modified by most currency items.
How do I Get a 20% Quality Gem Efficiently?
The common methods include:
- Buying Them: Purchasing 20% quality gems is a direct way, though costly.
- Leveling & GCPs: Level a gem, use Gemcutter’s Prisms (GCPs) to reach 20% quality.
- Vendor Recipe: Level a gem to 20, sell it with a GCP for a fresh level 1 gem at 20% quality and repeat.
Can I Anoint Rings, Amulets, and Blighted Maps with Tainted Oils?
Yes, you can use Tainted Oils to anoint corrupted rings, amulets, and blighted maps. This gives players flexibility, allowing the use of anointments on items that were previously restricted.
Can I Get White Sockets without Corruption?
Yes, through Vorici’s research safehouse missions. Leveling up Vorici’s research safehouse increases the chance of receiving items with white sockets when raiding it.
Conclusion
While you cannot directly improve the quality of a corrupted item in Path of Exile, understanding the full implications of the corruption process is vital to making informed decisions when using Vaal Orbs. You must carefully consider the risk-reward aspect. Always ensure items are at their maximum achievable quality before corrupting. It is important to plan ahead and weigh the options, using resources available to optimize your gear before committing to this transformative process. Remember that while corruption may come with permanent consequences, it can also provide unparalleled power, making it an exciting and integral part of the Path of Exile experience.