Diablo 4 Crafting Overhaul Preview & Community Wishlist: What is Changing Soon
09.01.2026 - 05:44:02
Diablo 4 , Game Guides
Crafting plays a major role in your character progression in Diablo 4. Season 11 has introduced quite a number of changes to endgame crafting, such as the ability to pick the Tempering Affix you want (leaving RNG behind) and being able to improve the base stats and values of your affixes via Masterworking.
Of course, Diablo 4: Season of Divine Intervention also introduced a new endgame crafting mechanic called Sanctification, which is the final process your gear will go through before making it unmodifiable. Sanctification can either lead to awesome results or a bricked item, but the potential for something great is there.
With Season 12 still a couple of months away, it is nice to speculate on how crafting will improve, especially when the game’s second expansion will be released shortly after the next season. So, join me as I talk about the crafting overhaul we might see in Diablo 4 in the near future!
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What Blizzard Has Confirmed So Far
In case you were unaware, Blizzard is set to launch Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred on April 28, 2026, though you can already pre-order the expansion to get early access to the new class, the Paladin.
Anyway, the company has confirmed two things so far that have something to do with crafting and character progression. They are the Horadric Cube and the Talisman.
Horadric Cube—Why This Thing Could Be Crucial to Endgame Crafting
The Horadric Cube is one of the most iconic items in Diablo 2 (and subsequently, Diablo II: Resurrected). First introduced to you as a crucial item for progressing through the campaign, the Horadric Cube has its place in the endgame as well.
You see, this thing is powerful because it can be used to transmute certain ingredients into powerful items. For instance, you can increase the tier of a piece of gear just by putting the base armor along with the jewels and other items needed for that Horadric Cube Recipe.
Now, it is still unclear what the Horadric Cube actually does in Diablo 4. Sure, we already know that it is used to transmute stuff, but can you do so with crafting materials, too?
A lot of D4 players have been clamoring for a way to upgrade or change materials in the game somehow. Obducite can be quite abundant in the later stages of the game, but it’s quite rare early on. If the Horadric Cube lets you upgrade a bunch of low- to mid-tier crafting materials into more valuable supplies (like Obducite), then that would be pretty awesome indeed!
If you are wondering what Obducite is for, it is used to upgrade the quality of your items through Masterworking. Each time you press the upgrade button, you get around 2-5% item quality, so you’ll definitely need a lot of Obducite if you are upgrading, say, three to five items in succession.
Another thing that the Horadric Cube could do is give players the chance to remove or upgrade an affix of their choosing. This might lead to a huge power creep because so many players will have access to some really powerful D4 items as a result. However, people are fine with this, especially those who do not have a lot of time to spend during weekdays playing Diablo 4.
Talisman
When you hear the word “Talisman,” what is the first thing that comes to your mind? If you were to ask me the same question, I would say that the Talisman in Diablo 4 is likely an item that also gets introduced via a particular quest in the Lord of Hatred expansion.
Once you have acquired it, you can equip it, and the Talisman will provide you with a means to enable certain set bonuses from various equipment. Well, at least, that is my interpretation of what it says on the tin.
Right now, there are no set items in Diablo 4 (unlike D2R, which has a wide assortment of starter and endgame sets). I admit, the Talisman is a cool concept because, by the looks of it, you can simply turn on whatever set bonus that you like.
Of course, that is not set in stone. We still have to wait until the expansion launches in late April, but I have my hopes up that it’s going to be a really powerful addition to the game, as far as endgame progression is concerned.
That said, I do believe that the Talisman has some sort of crafting component. If Blizzard does give you the power to choose whatever set bonus you want, you can expect that these bonuses require some very rare materials to complete.
Planned Changes to Crafting Systems
At the time of making this article, Blizzard has not announced anything new, other than what I have already stated in the previous sections. However, I think that it’s best to talk about what the community chatter is about in terms of what crafting changes players would like to see in Diablo 4 moving forward.
Here are some of the interesting recommendations I have found:
Permanent Sanctification System
The Sanctification Gear System is one of the new mechanics that is part of Season 11. That means that, theoretically, Sanctification will be removed in the next season. However, fans of the game actually love this feature, with many players begging Blizzard to keep Sanctification, albeit with some modifications.
Before that, the Sanctification Gear System allows you to make one final upgrade to a piece of gear or accessory. This requires a Heavenly Sigil, and the process of sanctifying an item is done on the Heavenly Forge.
Now, sanctifying your gear will result in one of four outcomes, including:
- A new sanctified affix.
- Upgrade a random normal affix into a greater affix.
- Add a new random legendary power.
- Increase item quality (from 8% to 25%). This effect is similar to the “quality” upgrade through Masterworking.
Obviously, one of the best outcomes that can result from putting your endgame item through the Sanctification Gear System is getting one of the highly coveted Legendary Powers.
For instance, you have the chance of adding the Legendary Power from the Harlequin Crest (20% damage reduction, +4 to all skills) if you are lucky. Because you can no longer modify a sanctified item any further, this is what players wanted Blizzard to change if Sanctification is here to stay.
Obtaining random affixes that your Diablo 4 build might not be able to utilize fully is definitely a waste of your Heavenly Sigils. Being able to rollback to a previous state is a welcome change, though it’s understandable that it may result in power creep.
Should the company be open to retaining the Sanctification Gear System in later seasons, maybe Blizzard can add a way for players to revert back to a pre-sanctified state, albeit with the use of rare currencies or crafting materials to justify redoing this endgame upgrade.
Resplendent Sparks are too expensive, but if players really want to get the best of the best, I think that they are a good place to start. Besides that, Blizzard can think of adding new materials in Season 12 (or beyond).
Tempering and Masterworking Uniques
The only items that you can upgrade via Tempering and Masterworking are regular legendaries and ancestral legendaries. For example, you have a 3-GA Ancestral Legendary Helmet that has strength, life, and armor. Since you are playing a Paladin Build, you need to have cooldown reduction, which you can add quite easily via Tempering.
Once that tempered affix is placed, you can take things a step further by Masterworking the said item until a 25% quality is achieved. When you reach that point, you will have enough cooldown reduction to make the Arbiter of Justice usable before its duration expires.
Unique items have pre-determined bonuses with no way of adding specific affixes that can benefit your build. Once you attach your fifth Paragon Board, the rare nodes inside those boards typically require more than 2,500 of your primary stat (like 2,520 strength or 2,520 intelligence).
Having said that, utilizing the Heir of Perdition is definitely one way of improving your character, but the problem is that it is devoid of any stat that could have unlocked that rare node on the last Paragon Board.
That is the reason why players want Blizzard to implement a feature that will enable them to add affixes to unique items in Diablo 4. It could be through Tempering or Masterworking, though the Sanctification Gear System is another way to do that as well (albeit, more RNG instead of a deterministic way).
It is also possible that the Horadric Cube could be used for such a purpose. However, Blizzard should think of clever ways to be able to add a particular affix instead of a random one if it’s going to be done this way.
Fully Upgrade Item Before Sanctification
Assuming that Sanctification is a gear upgrade mechanic that will become a permanent fixture in Diablo 4, there are certain quality of life changes that the community wants Blizzard to implement to avoid “bricking” their items before the process even begins.
Remember, sanctifying a piece of gear prevents you from doing any further modifications to it. So, if you were too excited to put two sockets on your helmet or if you have forgotten to imprint the necessary aspect for your build, you have no way of doing that once the helmet has been sanctified.
So, to address this, there should be a warning that tells players that they have not undergone the other item upgrades prior to Sanctification. This way, those who were too eager to sanctify their gear will take a pause and do the other things beforehand.
D4 Loot Changes and Itemization Updates
At this point, we know that the Horadric Cube and Talisman are two items that can influence the endgame performance of your character. However, there are certain things that Blizzard should address in terms of loot and itemization.
Here is a list of the things that the community wants the company to resolve:
Make Rare Crafting Materials More Accessible
I have leveled multiple characters to 60 and have reached Paragon Level 270 in Season 11. However, I still have a hard time getting Forgotten Souls. For the uninitiated, the Forgotten Soul is an item necessary for Masterworking, as well as imprinting various aspects on legendary and ancestral legendary gear.
The Forgotten Soul is such an important item at the moment, especially if you are going to put your item through the Sanctification Gear System. Sure, this material can be obtained from salvaging ancestral legendaries, completing the Undercity of Kurast multiple times, or engaging with the Infernal Hordes. Despite doing these activities, however, I still find myself struggling to have a healthy supply of Forgotten Souls.
Although I am fairly confident that the Horadric Cube may solve this issue somehow (by allowing you to transmute low-tier items to rare materials), I still think there is a better, more accessible way of getting those precious mats.
If Blizzard will not add any new activity or means to get yourself some rare crafting materials, perhaps the company could just have more of them drop by doing the same activities.
A Robust Loot Filter
Whenever you fight the World Boss or complete Pit Level 100+ in Diablo 4, you will be bombarded with so many items that it’s quite difficult to actually pick up what you need for your particular build. While it is good news that we will have a loot filter in Season 12 (as part of the Lord of Hatred expansion), a lot of people think that it should be more robust than a regular item filter.
By default, a loot filter essentially removes the low-level items from being seen on the screen. This not only helps address screen clutter (which has been a longstanding issue in D4), but it also helps beginners to see only essential items on the ground for them to pick up.
That said, the upcoming loot filter in Diablo 4 should be feature-rich because the game has evolved since it was released a couple of years ago. Here is a brief rundown of what the D4 loot filter should be capable of doing:
- Highly customizable: Players should have the ability to add prominent lighting effects to highlight valuable items on the ground. For instance, a Mythic Prankster nightmare sigil could drop from a World Boss, so having a light that shines on that specific item will make it easy for players to discern what it actually is.
- Control how strict it is: Additionally, people should have the power to customize how robust the loot filter’s ability is to sift through the junk based on their current character progression. For instance, the loot filter can be set to a more relaxed option, letting low-level items be seen early on. In the endgame, players can choose to make the loot filter obfuscate common items, leaving only the best equipment visible to them.
- Auto-loot certain items: Crafting materials, especially rarer ones like Obducite and Forgotten Souls, should be picked up automatically without the need for manual clicks. Blizzard should program its loot filter to be able to do just that.
Add New Items to Promote Build Diversity
Despite the addition of the Sanctification Gear System in Season 11, players still default to just a few builds for every class in Diablo 4. One of the reasons why this is the current state of the game is that most items only improve certain skills.
If Blizzard really wants people to try out various item, skill, and class combinations, the company should look into adding new uniques, legendaries, and mythics that improve all skills available in the game.
I understand that this is a monumental task, but it will be healthy for the overall health of the game if Blizzard is able to accomplish this.
Make the War Plans More Rewarding
The War Plans is a new feature in Diablo 4 that lets you customize your endgame experience in the Lord of Hatred expansion. I still do not know the specifics of this particular feature, but the current chatter is that the War Plans enable you to make the endgame activities that you want become more rewarding.
Personally, I love doing Undercity of Kurast and Infernal Hordes. Yes, they are already worth sinking so much time into, but the War Plans could make them even better as far as crafting materials are concerned.
D4 Crafting Overhaul: Conclusion
Season 11 of Diablo 4 has brought many changes to the crafting systems in the game. The Sanctification Gear System is definitely a welcome addition, and the tweaks to Tempering and Masterworking removed much of the frustration of RNG.
However, there is still so much to be done. The Horadric Cube could present new avenues for players to not only transmute their gear and make it better, but also enable them to upgrade basic crafting materials into the rarer ones.
Aside from the changes I have mentioned throughout the article, what other things do you like to see in Diablo 4 in the future?
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