PoE Crafting for Beginners: Essential Techniques Every Player Should Know

Ben Author

Created - 30.01.2026 Updated - 30.01.2026

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Crafting in Path of Exile is a very complicated endeavor, but I would argue that every player must know how it is done. Why? It is the only way for you to get those highly coveted mirror-tier items. These are things that you’d want to use a Mirror of Kalandra on to copy its modifiers.

Although crafting in this game can be very daunting, there are some things that beginners can learn to start dabbling in this system. So, if you are interested in learning how to craft items in PoE, then read further.

I am not going to discuss advanced crafting in this article. Instead, I will focus only on the essentials so that you can dip your toes into PoE crafting and try it out for yourself.

What Crafting Means in Path of Exile (Beginner Overview)

Crafting could mean many things in games. However, in Path of Exile, it is a way for you to improve an item until it has all of the properties that you’d want for your specific build.

It is basically the process of using certain PoE currency to try to get modifiers that would be perfect for your build. For example, the Righteous Fire Inquisitor benefits from having gear with high amounts of life and energy shield. If you want to get those things, you can do it with crafting!

Now, there are some common misconceptions about PoE crafting that still exist to this day. Some people say that crafting is only reserved for advanced players, but that is just far from the truth. You can definitely craft items even if you still have limited knowledge of the game. All you need to know is what currency you should use, and you’ll be able to craft your starter pieces of gear.

Another common misconception is that crafting in Path of Exile is largely based on RNG. While RNG is indeed involved in the process, there are actually some ways to enforce certain modifiers on gear. As to how this is achieved, it will be explained later in this guide.

Most importantly, beginners often think that crafting requires an advanced understanding of the game’s mechanics. However, there are facets of this system that are pretty straightforward. You can employ basic crafting methods by using an Orb of Transmutation, followed by a Regal Orb, and then some Exalted Orbs to finish the item. Of course, that is just a rudimentary example of what crafting is in Path of Exile, but you should get the gist.

Item Level and Rarity: Why They Are Important in PoE Crafting

While PoE currency plays a major role in crafting items in this game, you also have to learn what item level and item rarity are, since they are equally important.

When you hover over an item and press the Alt Key, you will see the item level of a particular weapon or a piece of gear.

Item level is important because it influences the tier of mod that will appear when utilizing different crafting currencies. For example, the “35% increased movement speed” modifier is a T1 mod on boots. It will only appear as a possible modifier if the boots you use for crafting are at least item level 86. If the boots have an item level of 85, then you can only get as high as 30% increased movement speed (or Tier 2).

How about item rarity? The rarity of the item dictates how many modifiers it can have. For “Normal” rarity items, it cannot have any explicit modifier whatsoever. Normal items are those that have white-colored text.

Magic items are denoted by the blue-colored text. These things can have at least one modifier and a maximum of only two mods.

Finally, rare items can have up to six modifiers. You can typically achieve that by using Chaos Orbs or Exalted Orbs, depending on your preference. Rare items are denoted by the yellow-colored text.

In summary:

• Item level: Influences the tier of the modifiers that can roll on an item
• Item rarity: Is an indicator of how many modifiers can be placed on an item
• Normal Items: No mods
• Magic Items: 1 to 2 modifiers
• Rare Items: 3 to 6 modifiers

Prefixes and Suffixes: It’s All About Getting the Right Ones

Pressing the Alt Key while you are hovering your mouse over an item will reveal not only its item level but also the exact prefixes and suffixes that it has.

Generally, prefixes are modifiers that have something to do with life, mana, attack, and spell modifiers. Suffixes, on the other hand, are more about resistances, attack/cast speed, critical strike chance, and critical strike multiplier, among others.

Here is a list of prefixes that can roll on an item:

• Life
• Mana
• Attack modifiers
• Spell modifiers
• Elemental damage modifiers (Flat/Added)
• Armor
• Evasion Rating
• Energy Shield
• Minion damage
• Trap/Mine damage

Here is a list of suffixes that can roll on an item:

• Elemental Resistances
• Chaos Resistance
• Attributes (Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence)
• Increased mana regeneration rate
• Increased attack speed
• Increased cast speed
• Increased fire/cold/lightning/chaos damage
• Accuracy rating
• Critical strike chance
• Critical strike multiplier
• Additional physical damage reduction
• Spell suppression

On a crafted rare item, it can only have six modifiers in total, which means three prefixes and three suffixes. However, some items, like the Helical Ring, can have up to four suffixes, though this comes at the cost of having two fewer prefix mods.

Essential PoE Crafting Currency Every Beginner Should Know

In this section, I will go over the many different PoE currencies that you can utilize to begin crafting your starter items.

Orb of Transmutation

The Orb of Transmutation is the most basic PoE crafting currency available in the game. It does one thing, and that is to upgrade an item of Normal rarity into a Magic one.

Orb of Alteration

When you have a Magic-rarity item on hand, you can use the Orb of Alteration to reroll its modifiers into random ones.

The reason why people call the process of using it “alteration spam” is that the Orb of Alteration is an inexpensive currency that can be utilized to gain a good prefix or suffix.

The Orb of Alteration is found abundantly even during the campaign. Once you have a good supply, use it on a magic item until you acquire modifiers that your current build actually needs.

Regal Orb

If you use the “alteration spam” method of crafting in PoE, then you should follow that up with a Regal Orb once you are happy with the modifiers on the Magic-rarity item. The Regal Orb’s job is to turn that magic item into a rare item and add a random modifier (either prefix or suffix) as a result.

Orb of Alchemy

If you don’t care about spamming Alteration Orbs on a magic item, then you might be interested in using the Orb of Alchemy instead.

The Orb of Alchemy essentially turns a normal item into a rare item in just a single use. Of course, the modifiers that you will get from using the Alchemy Orb are most likely not beneficial to your current build. Hence, the need to use the next PoE currency, which is…

Chaos Orb

The Chaos Orb is quite similar to the Orb of Alteration, albeit it can only be utilized on a rare item. If you want to spend Chaos Orbs to find the right set of mods, you must use an Orb of Alchemy first to transform your normal item into a rare item.

Exalted Orb

The Exalted Orb is simply to “finish” your basic crafting. It just adds one random modifier with each use until you reach the limit of six on a rare crafted item.

In most cases, the Exalted Orb is utilized mainly as a currency for trading items in a PoE league start scenario. However, it becomes a solid currency for endgame crafting about a week or two into the new league.

Orb of Scouring

As mentioned earlier, there is still some RNG involved in basic PoE crafting. So, in case you don’t like the modifiers that are on your crafted item, you can start all over by utilizing the Orb of Scouring.

Take note that the Orb of Scouring does not remove fractured mods or modifiers that are protected by meta-crafting, such as Prefixes Cannot Be Changed or Suffixes Cannot Be Changed. Advanced crafting is a topic for another time.

Orb of Annulment

If the Orb of Scouring is the “nuclear” option that removes every modifier on your crafted item, the Orb of Annulment goes for a more surgical approach. By this, I mean that it only removes one random mod on the item when used.

Realistically, the Orb of Annulment is utilized as a means of perfecting your crafted item. This means that if there’s only one mod that prevents the item from achieving greatness, then it is the only time when Orb of Annulment should be used.

Crystallised Lifeforce

When you defeat monsters in The Sacred Grove, you will receive PoE currency called the Crystallised Lifeforce. There are several types of Crystallised Lifeforce, these being the Wild (Red), Vivid (Yellow), Primal (Blue), and Sacred (white). You only need to concern yourself with the first three, as they are used as fuel for the Horticrafting Station (aka the Harvest Bench).

Essences

Essences are a good way to force a particular modifier on an item. The Deafening Essence of Woe, for example, can put the mod “Increased Spell Damage” if used on a weapon.

There are many tiers of Essences available in Path of Exile, but the only ones worth using are the Screaming, Shrieking, and Deafening Essences. Use Screaming for your starter pieces of gear, Shrieking for relatively good gear early on, and then Deafening Essences for endgame crafting.

Here are the various crafting currencies in a nutshell:

Basic Crafting Methods for the Early and Mid Game

For me, the only reason why crafting seems daunting in Path of Exile is due to the many different methods that can be used to get the item of your dreams.

The good news is that you don’t have to study all of them. You only need to acquaint yourself with these basic crafting methods for early- and mid-game crafting:

Alteration Spam

The “alteration spam” is the most basic form of crafting in Path of Exile. This typically involves the use of the Orb of Transmutation to transform a normal item into a magic item, then spamming Orb of Alteration until you get a good prefix and suffix for your particular build.

Whether you just want a competent item for leveling or a good base for endgame crafting, the Alteration Spam method of crafting is definitely useful in a lot of scenarios in Path of Exile.

Essence Crafting

As you can tell by the name, “Essence Crafting” refers to the use of various Essences until you can get the modifiers that you desire on the item. What’s good about essence crafting is that you can force one modifier to always roll on the item.

For example, the Essence of Zeal will always give you the “increased attack speed” modifier when utilized on a weapon. Although Essence Crafting is still a basic method, it does require you to spend a lot of PoE currency if you wish to buy certain Essences from other players. Better have your Divine Orbs ready if that’s the case.

Harvest Crafting

You can utilize the Horticrafting Station in your hideout to craft items in Path of Exile. Be sure to place it anywhere in your hideout where it’s convenient.

Once it is set up, interact with it to reveal the various crafting options that it provides. You will need a rare item in hand before you can use the Harvest Bench for crafting.

Aside from that, you must have some Crystallised Lifeforce on hand since the Horticrafting Station will require some of them, depending on the crafting option you have selected.

The way the Harvest Bench approaches crafting is that it adds one specific modifier based on its type. For instance, you can reforge a pair of boots to have a defense modifier if you want to. As to what this mod is, it could end up being increased armor or increased energy shield (depending on the base item).

Bonus: Crafting Bench

The Crafting Bench, as far as beginner crafting in PoE is concerned, is just about adding the finishing touch to your crafted item. You can obtain various crafting recipes by progressing through the campaign.

Just like the other crafting methods, you will need certain PoE currency to avail of the various options in the Crafting Bench. Putting the “increased movement speed modifier” on your boots requires four Chaos Orbs, for example.

When to Craft vs. When to Buy Gear

Craft gear if:

• You’re still starting out in the new league
• You want a specific set of modifiers on an item to make your build work
• You want to dabble in advanced/endgame crafting

Buy gear if:

• You have little time to waste (because crafting is time-consuming)
• You don’t want to deal with the RNG
• You’re not lucky in getting the desired modifiers

Common Crafting Mistakes Beginners Should Avoid

• Not using Armourer’s Scrap or Blacksmith’s Whetstone: Before you begin crafting your item, it’s always a good practice to increase its quality by using Armourer’s Scrap (for armor) or Blacksmith’s Whetstones (for weapons). This is because the increased quality allows you to have a higher chance of getting the desired modifiers.
• Using an Item with a Low ilvl: Always remember that item level dictates the maximum tier the item is capable of. For basic crafting, use things that have an item level of 82 to 85. For endgame crafting, always go beyond ilvl 86.
• Spamming Chaos Orbs: Orb of Alteration is a cheap PoE Currency that drops like candy. Therefore, it’s more economical to craft an item using the Orb of Alteration instead of the Orb of Chaos. If anything, just save your Chaos Orbs for acquiring Essences or other crafting currencies instead.
• Spending Exalted Orbs on Worthless Items: Exalted Orbs are quite expensive nowadays, so it’s definitely a waste to use them on low-level gear. If you obtain one during your journey to Wraeclast, save them up for advanced crafting later on.
• Disregarding Item Limits: Another common mistake beginners make when crafting items in PoE is that they disregard the six-mod limit on items. Press the Alt Key while hovering over an item to see how many open prefixes or suffixes are left on it before proceeding.

FAQ

What is the Best Crafting Method for Beginners in PoE?

The Alteration Spam. Orb of Alteration is cheap and readily available. Don’t forget to use a Regal Orb and a few Exalted Orbs to finish the crafting project.

Which PoE Crafting Currency Should I Save?

Chaos Orbs and Exalted Orbs. They are not only used as currency for bench-crafting, but also for obtaining relatively good gear or other crafting currencies (like Crystallised Lifeforce and Essences).

Should New Players Craft or Buy Gear?

If you just want to play the game with some respectable pieces of gear, then buying gear off other players is fine. However, I would argue that you should know some basic crafting, at least, to dip your toes into advanced crafting in the endgame.

Can Crafting Ruin an Item Permanently?

Not necessarily. You can use the Orb of Annulment to remove a random modifier. If you want to start over, there’s the Orb of Scouring for that.

When Should I Stop Crafting and Use Trade?

If you feel that you’re not lucky in crafting, then trading for certain items is acceptable.