In Path of Exile 2, managing your overflowing inventory is crucial for progression, and disenchanting and salvaging gear are essential mechanics for turning junk into valuable POE 2 Currency. As you slaughter hordes of monsters in Wraeclast, you'll amass piles of equipment. Rather than selling everything for meager gold, disenchanting magic and rare items at vendors yields shards that combine into crafting orbs, while salvaging at benches recycles quality and sockets into upgrade materials. These systems replace old vendor recipes, making every drop potentially useful. This guide covers everything from unlocking features to advanced strategies, ensuring you maximize loot efficiency.

Understanding Disenchanting and Salvaging Gear

Before diving into the specifics, it's important to understand what disenchanting and salvaging gear actually entail in Path of Exile 2. These processes revolve around breaking down unwanted or inferior gear to extract valuable resources, such as materials for crafting, enchantments, or currency. Salvaging and disenchanting are similar in that they both allow you to recover materials, but the specifics can vary based on the rarity, affixes, and item types you are working with.

Disenchanting Gear

Disenchanting gear involves extracting or "removing" the enchantment or magical properties from an item, allowing you to use these properties for crafting or upgrading your character's build. This system is mostly used for items that have powerful enchantments or mods that you want to reuse, rather than for the base item itself. In PoE 2, this might include items with unique mods or special effects that you want to transfer to a different item.

The disenchanting process may work differently depending on the tier of enchantment, the gear's rarity, or any additional system mechanics introduced by the new PoE 2 content. Disenchanting is a key element of the game's crafting system because it allows you to reallocate valuable mods and upgrade your gear in a more systematic way.

Salvaging Gear

Salvaging gear, on the other hand, typically refers to breaking down items to reclaim their raw materials, such as orbs, essences, or other crafting components. This process is essential for those who focus on crafting or trading, as salvaging allows you to extract valuable resources that can be used for crafting powerful new items. Salvaging is useful for lower-tier items, unwanted gear, or when you're looking to maximize your crafting resources by breaking down items you no longer need.

Salvaging may also involve breaking down items with a specific focus, such as:

Low-level items: These items may not be worth keeping but can be salvaged for crafting materials.

Items with valuable mods: If an item has a mod you want to reuse or upgrade, you can salvage it for crafting purposes.

High-tier items: Rare and unique items may also be salvaged, although doing so requires specific conditions and may yield greater returns when salvaged with certain tools or at higher levels.

How to Disenchant and Salvage Gear in Path of Exile 2

The specific methods for disenchanting and salvaging gear in PoE 2 are tied to the game's crafting system. To maximize the potential of your gear, you need to understand the following systems and how to interact with them.

Disenchanting Gear in PoE 2

Accessing the Disenchanting Station:

To disenchant items in PoE 2, you will need to visit the Disenchanting Station, which can be found in your hideout or any other location where crafting and item manipulation occur. This station is where the magic happens, allowing you to break down the enchantments on your gear.

Selecting the Gear:

Once you're at the Disenchanting Station, select the item you want to disenchant. This could be any piece of gear, from a ring or amulet to a weapon or armor. The key is that the item must have enchantments or mods that are reusable. You will be presented with an option to "Disenchant" the item.

Disenchanting the Item:

After selecting the item, you can disenchant it by using a special resource called Essence of Knowledge or other similar materials (depending on game progression). This will break down the enchantment into a reusable item. The higher the tier of the enchantment, the more valuable the resources you will get in return.

Disenchanting will not destroy the item entirely but rather strip it of its current magical properties, leaving you with the raw enchantment. You can then use this to apply to another item or further enhance your gear.

Reapplying Enchantments:

Once you've extracted the enchantment, you can use it to modify another item through the crafting station. For example, if you've disenfranchised an amulet with a powerful elemental resistance mod, you could then apply that mod to a new amulet of your choice.

Costs of Disenchanting:

Disenchanting is not always free. Some enchantments may come with a cost to the player, such as using Essences, Divine Orbs, or similar high-value crafting materials to perform the action. Be sure to consider the cost before disenchanting, especially if the item has a unique or rare mod.

Salvaging Gear in PoE 2

Salvaging Items for Resources:

Salvaging gear can be done at crafting stations or through specific vendors who specialize in salvaging. This process is primarily focused on extracting base crafting materials from unwanted gear, which are essential for progressing in crafting.

Salvaging Low-Level Items:

Lower-tier items, such as white or blue gear, can often be salvaged for basic crafting materials like Orb of Transmutation or Orb of Augmentation. These items may not be useful as-is, but the raw materials are invaluable when you're looking to craft a powerful item.

Salvaging Rare and Unique Gear:

Salvaging rare and unique items can yield much more substantial rewards, such as high-level essences, orbs, or even crafting tools that can be used on other items. These items are often broken down into the equivalent of higher-value crafting resources.

Vendor Salvaging:

In PoE 2, you can also salvage gear by selling unwanted items to specific vendors. These vendors will often give you orbs, essences, or other resources in exchange for unwanted gear. It's a great way to clear your inventory and turn old items into something useful.

Salvaging with Special Tools:

Some salvage methods require the use of special crafting tools or salvage stations, which can be found throughout the game. These tools may allow you to break down items with special properties, yielding rarer materials that can be used for crafting high-level gear or in combination with other high-tier resources.

Maximizing Salvage Efficiency:

To make the most of your salvaging efforts, focus on salvaging items with good modifiers. Gear with high-tier affixes, particularly rare or unique gear, can provide great returns when salvaged. If you're looking to upgrade your gear through crafting, salvaging becomes a key part of the loop.

Key Tips for Disenchanting and Salvaging Gear

Don't Salvage Everything: Not every item is worth salvaging. If you find a rare item with powerful enchantments, consider disenchanting it for future use rather than salvaging it immediately.

Stack Up Materials: Always have a good stockpile of common crafting materials, as you'll need them frequently. Salvaging lower-tier items will help you keep your crafting materials plentiful.

Check Vendor and Crafting Station Options Regularly: New recipes and tools become available at vendors and crafting stations over time. Make sure to visit these locations frequently to see if there are any valuable upgrades or salvage methods you've missed.

Focus on Item Mods: If your goal is to create a powerful character build, focus on disenchanting items with mods that complement your chosen build. This will give you valuable crafting resources that align with your goals.

Conclusion

Disenchanting and salvaging gear in Path of Exile 2 are key mechanics for any player looking to optimize their gear and make the most of their crafting materials. Whether you're working with high-end items, trying to improve your gear, or clearing out inventory space, understanding these systems will be crucial to success. By effectively managing your disenchanting and salvaging, you'll be able to craft the perfect items for your character and progress through the game's many challenges with ease.For players short on time or needing bulk resources, consider buying cheap POE 2 Orbs to skip grind and focus builds.