Augmentation
Augmentation Overview
Augmentation is not a skill itself, but is an important mechanic, with 4 different secondary Augmentation skills. It can be confusing at first, Augmentation as a mechanic involves breaking down Magic gear for materials, as well as Extracting or Adding specific mods on gear. There are 4 different types of Augmentation: Jewelry, Weapon, Armor, and Ancillary. Each one is a skill with levels and experience that breaks down different gear types, and each is leveled independently of each other. Details are listed below.
While Transmutation lets you change the treasure effects (mods) on your gear, Augmentation lets you add one additional treasure effect (mod) to a piece of gear. With Transmutation you distill items into phlogiston and use a transmutation table to make changes. With Augmentation you decompose items into beads and baubles in order to extract a mod from one item and place it on a different item.
Along with Transmutation and Shamanic Infusion, Augmentation forms the mechanism for enchanting gear in Project Gorgon.
For additional information, see the Lorebook Augments for Everyone.
Learning Augmentation
Learning augmentation is a multi-step process. Visit Nightshade at the Kur Mountains Outpost to begin a series of quests that allow you to augment gear. There are four subcategories of augmentation taught by the following NPCs:
Training Augmentation
- Jewelry Augmentation - Neck Augments and Ring Augments
- Learn from Poe in the Myconian Cave. Requires 25 Alchemy, 25 Toolcrafting.
- Weapon Augmentation - Main hand Augments, Glove Augments, and Off-Hand Augments
- Learn from Malgath in the Wolf Cave. Requires 25 Alchemy, 25 Blacksmithing.
- Armor Augmentation - Chest Augments and Leg Augments
- Learn from Syndra in a barn in central Kur Mountains. Requires 25 Alchemy, 25 Leatherworking.
- Ancillary-Armor Augmentation - Helm Augments and Boot Augments
- Learn from Gribburn in the basement of Hogan's Keep. Requires 25 Alchemy, 25 Tailoring.
- Jewelry Augmentation - Neck Augments and Ring Augments
Some challenges must be completed before receiving skills from these sub-trainers. For example, Malgath is reached after defeating multiple Wolf Cave mobs; Poe is in an obscure corner of Myconian cave; Gribburn requires learning Goblinese and gaining favor with Hogan; and Syndra requires resolving a problem.
To learn Weapon Augmentation, for example, a player travels to Malgath in the Wolf Cave and gains his favor in order to train the first level skill called "Decompose Main Hand Weapon". This skill will allow the player to take any enchanted (green or above) main hand weapon and break it down into "beads". The level and rarity of the weapon determine how many beads the player receives. Decomposition also occasionally results in the creation of a Prism, which are reagents used in Transmutation.
Using Augmentation
Augmentation skills also allow you to extract "mods" from that specific equipment type. As an example, Weapon Augmentation teaches the player to extract "mods" from weapons. Extracting a specific mod effect requires materials gained during the Decompose process. This material is usually specific to the equipment type. Weapons, as an example give beads, while jewelry gives ornaments. The exact materials for each augment extraction are listed on their respective wiki pages. The crafting menu says it costs up to one material per level of the effect(e.g. a staff that requires level 60 fire magic would cost up to 60 beads for a successful extraction of a fire magic effect).
Extracting a specific effect requires a "crystal" as well. Putting the wrong type of crystal(e.g. using a redwall crystal because they're more readily available) will result in the item and crystal being destroyed, and the player will receive a message stating that they used the wrong type of crystal.
Using the right type of crystal requires matching up a specific gem's primary and/or secondary effect with the effect of the item. These effects are notated on the gems page.
For instance, extracting a psychology effect from a sword, the player uses tourmaline as the crystal in the extract augment recipe. The weapon and crystal are both destroyed in the process, but create an augment that can be placed on another weapon. The player's augmentation skill level determines the success of the extraction; the skill level should be within 10 levels of the weapon's level.(A player with level N Augmentation has a 100% chance of extracting a level N+10 power, but only a 10% chance of extracting a level N+20 power, and a 0% chance of extracting anything higher.) If you fail to extract an augment, the item is lost anyway. Even if the weapon and crystal are destroyed, the player still receives Weapon Augmentation experience
Assuming everything went right, the player receives an augment which can be applied to a different weapon. (In the past, augmentation resulted in oils, which are no longer used in the mechanic.)
Only one augment can be added to an item at any one time. If you want to remove an augment from a piece of gear, see Ancillary-Armor Augmentation/Recipes.
Augmentation Loot
“Augments can now be found in loot from monsters. Augments are much more likely to drop from animals (e.g. bears and wolves) than from sentient enemies such as goblins. The skills you have active will influence the types of Augments you find (e.g. you'll find more Ice Magic augments while using Ice Magic), but there is also a large randomness factor.
The goal of adding augments to loot is to make augments more available to low-level players. For this reason, augments are more likely to be found on low-level monsters than high-level monsters. (At higher level we expect player-augmenters to make up the difference; the plan is that when we eventually have level 125 monsters, they won't drop augments at all -- only player augmenters will be able to make max-level augments.)
— ""
Applying Augmentation
The next step of augmentation is applying the extracted mod to another item. The attachment skills are learned from Nightshade once you have sufficient favor. The recipes for attaching items fall under the lore skill-line. You can apply only one augment to an item using the lore recipe. Applying an augment to an item costs 100 points on the item, which is max points for normal loot items (120 for crafted). For additional enchanting options, please see Transmutation.
Note that applying an augment will bind the item to your account, although the item says it is bound to the character that augmented it. Your other characters will be able to equip it. You can (currently) not augment an item that is bound to another character on your account. If you want to augment items without using the NPC install service you should make sure that all items are bound to the character that can apply augments, by using that character to transmute the item for the first time (other characters can then transmute the item without rebinding).
Augment-Installation Services
Some NPCs can now install Augments for you! By using one of these NPCs, you do not need to have learned the various Augment Installation recipes from Nightshade. Learning Nightshade's recipes will eventually be a cost-savings for max-level players who do a lot of augment-installing, but at the current max level of 80, most players will find it cheaper to just use these NPCs. The following NPCs can install Augments for you:
NPC Name | Zone | Install Cost and Requirements. |
---|---|---|
Amutasa | Rahu |
Amutasa can install Level 0-60 Augments for 650 Councils. You must be [Friends] or better. |
Joeh | Serbule |
Joeh can install level 0-20 Augments for 50 Councils. You must be [Comfortable] or higher. |
Kalaba | Eltibule |
Kalaba can install Level 21-40 Augments for 250 Councils. |
Kib the Unkillable | Red Wing Casino |
Kib the Unkillable can install Level 21-50 Augments for 350 Councils. |
Nightshade | Kur Mountains |
Nightshade can install Level 0-100 Augments for 2000 Councils. |
Preta | Sun Vale |
Preta can install Level 0-50 Augments for 350 Councils. You must be [Close Friends] or better. |
Rick Snapley | Gazluk |
Rick Snapley can install Level 61-80 Augments for 1000 Councils. |
Torgan | Gazluk |
Torgan can install Level 61-80 Augments for 900 Councils. |
Tyler Green | Serbule Hills |
Tyler Green can install Level 0-25 Augments for 0 Councils. You must be [Friends] or better. |
Urzab | Ilmari |
Urzab can install Level 41-60 Augments for 650 Councils. |