The gates to Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is now open to all, but for those that have already experienced the mayhem that awaits in Tertium, chances are, there is already an extensive list of weapons and curios in the armory that can be put to better use. This is where the crafting system comes into play in Darktide, allowing Rejects to better customize these items to suit an ideal play style.
Such a technical effort will require the help of a master, and Hadron Omega-7-7, the Mourningstar’s resident Tech-Priest, stands at the ready. Once the trust of the warbands is earned, the path to improving equipment becomes available.
The Shrine of the Omnissiah
Found on board the Mourningstar, the Shrine of the Omnissiah is where players will need to head to access the customization options for their arsenal. Be it weapons or curios, as long as there are the necessary resources available, they can be further upgraded and modified with the help of Hadron Omega-7-7.
The two main resources needed are Plasteel and Diamantine, which can be salvaged from Tertium. The rarer the weapon and the more extreme the customization required, the more resources the process will demand. The crafting system in Darktide consists of the following five aspects:
Consecration
Consecrating a weapon or curio increases its sanctity in the eyes of the Emperor, improving its effectiveness, and adding a random Perk or Blessing, depending on the item type and its new sanctity level.
Earn Blessing
Surrendering a weapon to Hadron will result in a Votive Offering dedicated to one of the weapon’s Blessings. This allows players to extract the ideal Blessings from unneeded weapons, and collect them for use with the Combine or Re-Bless crafting actions in Darktide.
Combine Blessings
At the Shrine, Rejects may choose to combine three Votive Offerings into a single upgraded Votive Offering. Currently, most Votive Offerings have a maximum Tier of IV, but there are some exceptions to this. Fatshark is currently testing a few different options with the requirements and the results of combining these Votive Offerings, so expect changes to the Darktide crafting system in the future.
Re-Bless
By Re-Blessing a weapon in the Shrine, a weapon’s existing Blessing can be replaced by expending a Votive Offering from the collection, further tailoring the weapon to a play style. The weapon gains the Blessing associated with the chosen Votive Offering and the original Blessing is lost in the process.
Refine Item
To refine weapons and curios, Hadron takes the item and attempts to scour away the corrosion and damage of its long use, uncovering its true nature and altering its strengths. These strengths take the form of the item’s Perks. Accordingly, each time an item is Refined, one Perk is discarded in favor of another random Perk uncovered by Hadron’s repairs. Multiple refinements on the same item attract increasing costs – the deeper a weapon’s true character lies, the harder it is to reach it.
Having learned from the experience of the Vermintide series, Fatshark is hoping to expand and improve crafting in Darktide to become a central pillar of player progression, as well as provide more options to enjoy whichever play styles one might choose to follow. This means more meaningful choices within the system itself, while resources are obtained both from pickups and mission rewards, so crafting will always remain an option.
While the foundations of the system are now set, the studio will continue to take player feedback into consideration and make any necessary changes. For now, Tertium awaits, and players can count on Hadron Omega-7-7 to create that perfect combination of melee and ranged weapons to deal with the threat of Chaos.
