Socketing lets a master crafter cut sockets into a weapon, shield, or piece of armor and then set socket gems into them for permanent bonuses. It is a high-skill, high-risk path to better gear: cutting a socket can destroy the item, but a fully socketed piece is among the strongest equipment a crafter can produce.
Socketing is a way to push your favorite gear beyond what the forge or workbench alone can make.
Contents
Overview
- What can be socketed: weapons, shields, and armor (helm, gorget, tunic, arms, legs, gloves).
- Who can do it: a crafter with 110+ skill in the trade that makes the item (see below).
- Up to 5 sockets per item; each holds one gem.
- The item must be in your backpack (not equipped) for every socketing action.
- The risk: a failed socket attempt has an 80% chance to destroy the item. Only about 1 failure in 5 leaves it intact.
Crafters Involved
Socketing draws on five trades, so it brings together a whole crafting community:
- Miner — mines natron from natron deposits found out in the world (pickaxe or shovel; requires Mining). Deposits hold a limited amount, so they are a scarce resource. The deposits can be found in the Desert of Compassion, the mountainous entrance to Wind, and the western coast of Nujel’m.
- Alchemist — refines natron into socketing flux, the fuel every socket attempt burns (Alchemy, 80.0–110.0).
- Tinker — crafts the charged socketing tool (Tinkering, 75.0–100.0) and the gem extractor (Tinkering, 55.0–90.0).
- Mage (Sundering) — combines raw gems into socket gems at the Sundering menu (Magery, 90.0–120.0).
- Socketer — the crafter (110+ in the right trade) who actually cuts the sockets and sets the gems.
Which Skill to Socket?
The required skill is the trade that makes that kind of item:
- Blacksmithy — metal weapons, metal armor, and metal shields
- Carpentry — wooden items, including wooden shields
- Fletching — bows and crossbows
- Tinkering — tinker-made weapons
- Tailoring — leather and scale armor
You need at least 110.0 in that specific skill to attempt socketing. Cutting sockets can also raise that skill — the more sockets an item already has, the harder (and more rewarding) the next one is to train.
Cutting a Socket
- Make sure the target item is in your backpack.
- Double-click your socketing tool and target the item.
- The attempt consumes one tool charge and an amount of socketing flux equal to 10x the socket number you are cutting (1st socket = 10 flux, 2nd = 20, … 5th = 50) — win or lose.
- On success, the item gains an empty socket. On failure, there is an 80% chance the item is destroyed; otherwise it survives unharmed.
Success Chances
Your odds depend on your skill and on which socket you are cutting. The table shows the chance (%) at the four skill breakpoints; between breakpoints the odds scale smoothly (for example, a 2nd socket at 113 skill is about 54%).
| Socket # | 110 skill | 115 skill | 120 skill | 130 skill |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 80% | 90% | 100% | 100% |
| 2nd | 30% | 70% | 90% | 100% |
| 3rd | 5% | 40% | 70% | 95% |
| 4th | — | 15% | 40% | 70% |
| 5th | — | — | 25% | 40% |
A dash (—) means your skill is too low to attempt that socket at all. In practice, a 110 crafter can reach 3 sockets (the third at a brutal 5%), while 5 sockets requires very high skill and a lot of nerve.
Socket Gems and Their Bonuses
Each socket gem grants a fixed bonus when set. The same gem may be set more than once on a single item; stacked bonuses are limited only by the normal combat caps.
| Socket gem | Bonus |
|---|---|
| Amber | +2 Strength |
| Tourmaline | +2 Dexterity |
| Sapphire | +2 Intelligence |
| Amethyst | +5% Swing Speed Increase |
| Ruby | +2% Hit Chance Increase |
| Citrine | +2% Defense Chance Increase |
| Emerald | +2% Lower Mana Cost |
| Star Sapphire | +5% Spell Damage Increase |
| Diamond | +2% Physical Resist |
Crafting Socket Gems
Socket gems are made with the Sundering tool under the Socket Gems category. Each recipe combines 50 gems of one type into a single matching socket gem and requires 90.0–120.0 Magery.
Setting a Gem
- Keep the socketed item in your backpack.
- Double-click the socket gem and target the item.
- If the item has an open socket, the gem is set and its bonus applies immediately. Setting a gem is safe — there is no chance of failure or loss.
Removing a Gem
Use a gem extractor (tinker-crafted): double-click it, target the socketed item, and choose which gem to pull. The gem’s bonus is removed and the socket is freed — but the gem itself is destroyed in the process. The item is never harmed by extraction.
Tips & Warnings
- Never socket an irreplaceable item unless your odds are very high. The 80% destroy-on-failure rate is unforgiving.
- Make sure you have sufficient flux before you start — each attempt burns flux equal to the socket number, so reaching 5 sockets on one item costs 10 + 20 + 30 + 40 + 50 = 150 flux if every attempt succeeds first try (more if you fail and retry).
- Train your crafting skill toward 120 before chasing the higher sockets — the odds improve dramatically, and so does the survival of your gear.
- Plan your gems. Removing a gem destroys it, so swapping a build can be expensive.