How Many Primals Can You Equip at Once? A Comprehensive Guide
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The question of how many Primal Ancient items you can equip in Diablo 3 is a common one, often leading to confusion among both new and experienced players. The short answer is: you can only equip one crafted Primal Ancient item at a time. This limitation specifically applies to Primal items created using Kanai’s Cube with the “Upgrade Legendary” recipe and 100 Primordial Ashes.
While there’s no limit to the number of naturally dropped Primal Ancients you can hold, only one cube-crafted Primal can be equipped at any given time. This distinction is crucial for understanding the game’s itemization system and optimizing your character build.
Understanding Primal Ancients
Before diving into the specifics of equipping Primals, it’s important to understand what they are and how they differ from other items in Diablo 3:
- Primal Ancients are the rarest tier of items in the game. They are essentially Ancient Legendary items with perfectly rolled affixes.
- They do not inherently possess more powerful stats than other items, but their maximum stats mean they are very desirable.
- Primals can drop from any source where Legendaries drop, albeit with a very low drop rate (approximately 0.25%).
The Crafting Limitation
The “catch” with Primals lies in the Kanai’s Cube recipe. When you use 100 Primordial Ashes to upgrade a non-crafted Legendary item into a Primal, it becomes a very special item. While the stats are always maxed for the given item and type, only one of these crafted Primals can be equipped at a time. This limitation is intended to prevent players from creating excessively powerful builds.
Not All Primals Are Limited
It is essential to remember that this restriction only applies to cube-crafted Primals. Naturally dropped Primals from enemy kills, Kadala, or other sources are not restricted, and you can equip as many of them as your character’s available equipment slots allow. This distinction is vital for understanding the game’s mechanics.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here are some frequently asked questions to further clarify the topic of equipping Primals:
1. Do Followers Benefit from Primal Items?
No, followers cannot equip cube-crafted Primals at all. Their ability to benefit from such items is disabled, ensuring that only your character is affected by this restriction. Followers can equip regular Primals.
2. How Can I Obtain Primordial Ashes?
Primordial Ashes are obtained by salvaging a Primal Ancient item at the Blacksmith, Haedrig. Salvaging a Primal will grant you 55 Primordial Ashes.
3. Can You Get Primal Ancients from Kadala?
Yes, Kadala can indeed give you Primal items. In fact, with the “double primal” effect active from the Altar of Rites, you can receive two Primals at once from her without incurring additional shard costs.
4. What Torment Level Do Primals Start Dropping?
While you can find most items at any difficulty, Primals become available after completing a Greater Rift 70 Solo. After unlocking Primal drops, they can appear on any Torment level, but higher torment levels improve the drop rate for all items, including Primals.
5. Is There a Guaranteed Primal Drop?
In Season 16, and many subsequent seasons, you are guaranteed a single Primal drop upon completing a Greater Rift 70 Solo for the first time on a character. Additionally, with the Altar of Rites you can eventually get a second primal when a primal drops.
6. Can Set Items Drop as Primal Ancients?
Yes, any legendary item, including Set items, can drop as a Primal Ancient.
7. Are There Any Items That Can Never Be Primal?
There is only one guaranteed recipe that will never produce an Ancient or Primal, and that is the “Convert Set Item” recipe in Kanai’s Cube. Also, Reforging a set item does not ensure a primal.
8. How Often Do Primals Drop?
Primals have a very low drop rate, approximately 0.25%. This translates to roughly one Primal per 400 Legendary drops. This means that they can be considered extremely rare and shouldn’t be actively farmed with expectation.
9. What is the “Law of Kulle”?
The Law of Kulle refers to the recipe in Kanai’s Cube that allows you to reforge a Legendary or Set item, potentially changing its stats and transforming it into an Ancient or Primal Ancient version. This recipe does not guarantee a Primal, however.
10. Can I Reforge a Primal Item?
Yes, you can reforge a Primal item using the Law of Kulle recipe. However, this process does not guarantee that you’ll get another Primal, and it could result in a non-Ancient version.
11. Does Difficulty Affect Primal Drop Rate?
While Primals can drop on any Torment level once unlocked, the overall number of Legendaries increases on higher difficulties. Higher difficulties will indirectly help you in your chase for primals.
12. Do Primal Ancients Have Better Stats Than Regular Ancients?
Primal Ancients have perfectly rolled affixes within their stats, but the stat range is not inherently higher than a regular Ancient with good rolls. Sometimes a regular ancient can be better than a primal with bad stats.
13. What Are Augments and How do They Relate to Primals?
Augmenting is the process of adding main stats to your items using gems in the 10th recipe slot in Kanai’s Cube. Both Ancient and Primal items can be augmented to increase their power significantly.
14. Do Primal Ancients Unlock on Each Character?
Primal Ancients unlock separately for Normal, Hardcore, Seasonal, and non-Seasonal characters. You need to complete a GR 70 Solo on each mode to unlock Primal drops in that particular mode.
15. Can You Trade Primal Chaos Between Characters?
While not directly related to equipping, Primal Chaos (from WoW) can be transferred between characters on the same account using the Satchel of Coalescing Chaos, which is available at Rabul at the Artisan’s Consortium in Valdrakken for a price. Primal Chaos and Primordial Ashes are not the same item.
Conclusion
In summary, while you can collect and equip numerous naturally dropped Primal Ancients as the game permits, only one cube-crafted Primal can be equipped at any given time. Understanding this limitation is crucial for strategic character building and item management in Diablo 3. Focus on maximizing your gear through a combination of naturally dropped items, smart crafting choices, and efficient farming strategies, but most importantly have fun. Happy demon hunting!