The*Artificer’s Orb is a vital crafting currency in Path of Exile 2 that allows players to add rune sockets to their weapons and armor, enabling greater customization and build flexibility. Unlike the original Path of Exile, where items could have up to six sockets, PoE 2 limits sockets more strictly—most gear can only have one socket, with exceptions like body armor and two-handed weapons, which can have two. The Artificer’s Orb is the key to unlocking these additional sockets, making it essential for players aiming to optimize their rune setups.
How to Use Artificer’s Orbs
Using an Artificer’s Orb is straightforward: right-click the orb in your inventory, then left-click the weapon or armor piece you want to enhance. The item will gain one additional rune socket, provided it hasn’t reached its socket limit. This socket allows you to insert runes or soul cores, which grant various bonuses such as increased elemental damage, resistances, or life. For example, martial weapons like bows, axes, and spears can be socketed, as well as armor pieces like helmets, gloves, boots, and body armor.
Where to Get Artificer’s Orbs
Artificer’s Orbs can be obtained primarily by salvaging socketed gear at the Salvage Bench, which becomes available after completing the "Finding the Forge" side quest in Act One. Salvaging gear with sockets yields Artificer’s Shards, and collecting ten shards crafts one Artificer’s Orb. This system encourages players to seek out and dismantle socketed items, especially those with multiple sockets, to efficiently gather orbs. Orbs also drop rarely from enemies, chests, and destructible objects throughout the game world, but salvaging remains the most reliable source.
For players short on time or resources, some turn to cheap poe 2 currency options to acquire Artificer’s Orbs quickly and keep pace with high-level builds.
Strategic Use and Build Impact
Because sockets are limited, using Artificer’s Orbs wisely is crucial. Adding sockets to high-quality or impactful gear early can significantly improve your build by allowing more runes or soul cores, which enhance your character’s abilities and defenses. For example, inserting a Soul Core of Jiquani into armor can boost your health pool, addressing one of the game’s early challenges. Elemental runes can shore up resistances, while offensive runes like the Iron Rune increase physical damage, synergizing with many attack skills.
The decision of where to use your orbs can directly affect progression, especially in trade-heavy leagues where
poe 2 currency is scarce and each orb represents significant value.
Limitations and Considerations
It’s important to note that not all weapon types can be socketed with Artificer’s Orbs. Specifically, caster weapons such as wands, sceptres, and staves currently cannot receive sockets, likely due to thematic or balance reasons. This limitation means players focusing on caster builds must rely on other forms of customization. Additionally, each item type has a maximum socket count—two for body armor and two-handed weapons, and one for other equipment—so orbs cannot be used indefinitely on a single piece.
The Artificer’s Orb system in*Path of Exile 2 introduces a fresh layer of strategic depth to crafting by controlling socket availability and emphasizing rune customization. By collecting shards through salvaging and carefully applying orbs to key gear, players can tailor their builds to their playstyle, enhancing both offense and defense. Mastering the use of Artificer’s Orbs is essential for anyone looking to unlock the full potential of their equipment and dominate the challenges of PoE 2.
Unlocking Rune Sockets: Artificer’s Orb Essentials
