How to unlock Masterworking in Diablo 4

Diablo 4 Masterworking
(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

Masterworking in Diablo 4 provides a way to increase the affixes you have on each piece of gear, though you won't be able to access it until the endgame. By following the process you can incrementally improve the stats by a percentage as your work through each rank of Masterworking, taking you through the higher levels of Diablo 4. This system provides a way to really maximize the power you can develop, but as a fresh addition for Diablo 4 Season 4 it isn't quick or easy to understand at first. If you want to know how to unlock masterworking in Diablo 4, I've laid out all of the details below.

How do you unlock Masterworking in Diablo 4?

Diablo 4 Masterworking The Pit

(Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment)

The Diablo 4 Masterworking option in Season 4 is unlocked through the following process:

  1. Complete a Tier 46 Nightmare Dungeon by reaching World Tier 4.
  2. This will unlock the Pit of the Artificers, a new kind of timed dungeon.
  3. Complete a round of the Pit. This involves killing a set amount of enemies in ten minutes, then killing a random boss.
  4. If you're successful, you'll come away with Obducite, a Masterwork material.
  5. As you complete the Pit at different tiers, you'll unlock Obducite (1-20), Ingolith (21-40) and Neathiron (41+).
  6. Head to any Blacksmith and select the "Masterworks" option.
  7. Here, you can upgrade Unique or Ancestral Legendary items. This costs a variety of Gold and materials, including the special Pit resources mentioned above.

Masterworking a piece of gear buffs the affixes on it each time, either boosting all affixes by 5% or increasing one random affix by 25%. You can also reset Masterworks at the Blacksmith for free.

As you work through the tiers of Masterworks on a piece of gear, they'll become more expensive, as well as cycling from Obducite to Ingolith and Neathiron, in that order - providing you with the motivation to keep completing the Pit at higher levels.

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission

Joel Franey
Guides Writer

Joel Franey is a writer, journalist, podcaster and raconteur with a Masters from Sussex University, none of which has actually equipped him for anything in real life. As a result he chooses to spend most of his time playing video games, reading old books and ingesting chemically-risky levels of caffeine. He is a firm believer that the vast majority of games would be improved by adding a grappling hook, and if they already have one, they should probably add another just to be safe. You can find old work of his at USgamer, Gfinity, Eurogamer and more besides.

With contributions from
Read more
Diablo 4 Coven's Favor
How to get Diablo 4 Coven's Favor fast
Diablo 4 lunar event
Blizzard came up with Diablo 4's most powerful item modifiers at the last minute: "Literally, we had 2 weeks left in the development schedule"
How to get the Tempest Roar in Diablo 4
How to get the Tempest Roar in Diablo 4
Diablo 4 Pets
How to unlock Diablo 4 Pets and what they do
Diablo 4 season 8 boss
Diablo 4 season 8 is revamping the boss ladder system with new mechanics and bosses, including one of the best from Diablo 3
Diablo 4 season 7 screenshot
Blizzard disables Diablo 4 season 7 Witchcraft power that was being used to deal "very egregious numbers" and plans to bring it back "next week"
Latest in Diablo
Diablo 4 lunar event
Blizzard came up with Diablo 4's most powerful item modifiers at the last minute: "Literally, we had 2 weeks left in the development schedule"
Diablo 4 season 8 boss
Diablo 4 season 8 is revamping the boss ladder system with new mechanics and bosses, including one of the best from Diablo 3
Diablo 4 Goblin event
What is the Diablo 4 Goblin event and how to claim rewards
A demon towers over its foes in some Diablo 2: Resurrected concept art
Diablo 2 creator says players treated the action RPG like a "lifestyle game" because it was fun, and MMOs like World of Warcraft had more to do with starting the live service trend
Diablo 4
Diablo 4 boss would push for patches to have more fun stuff to balance out unpopular but necessary nerfs: "Lots of medicine, don't see much sugar"
Diablo 4 The Butcher
Diablo 4's second expansion won't come out until 2026
Latest in Guides
FC 25
FC 25 Dreamchasers tracker and full UEFA promo guide
Assassin's Creed Shadows Naoe "justice must be served" or "killing them isn't justice" Yaya and Mistumune choice
Should you side with Mitsumune or Yaya in Assassin's Creed Shadows?
Pokemon TCG Pocket Shiny Cards
How to get Shiny Pokemon in Pokemon TCG Pocket
Assassin's Creed Shadows money naoe and merchant
How to get money in Assassin’s Creed Shadows
Pokemon TCG Pocket Shining Revelry
Pokemon TCG Pocket Shining Revelry release date and details
Assassin's Creed Shadows Naoe in outfit
Best Assassin’s Creed Shadows armor for Naoe and Yasuke