At the conclusion of the Volcano Dungeon on Ginger Island, players will encounter a unique forge designed for the popular farming simulation game, Stardew Valley. This isn’t your typical forge; it allows players to apply exciting magical enhancements to their weapons and tools, albeit at the cost of precious gemstones and cinders. The advantages gained through this process are well worth the investment, tapping into a whole new level of gameplay.
While it may initially appear daunting, the Volcano Forge offers a straightforward user experience. Once players grasp how to apply various enhancements to their items, they unlock a plethora of opportunities for progression and skill enhancement. This comprehensive guide serves to illuminate each possible effect and identify which options yield the greatest benefits in your Stardew Valley adventure.
Updated January 6, 2025, by Demaris Oxman: The recent Stardew Valley 1.6 update introduced numerous enhancements, from quality-of-life improvements to new features such as the Mastery system. The weapon forging mechanics have expanded, allowing players to apply enchantments to the Pan along with their standard tools. This guide has been revised to reflect all the latest changes related to the Volcano Forge, providing players with updated strategies for customizing their gear.
Acquiring Cinder Shards
Essential for all functions at the Volcano Forge, players will need to gather Cinder Shards, which can be procured from various locations within the Volcano Dungeon. For enchanting and fully upgrading a weapon or tool, a minimum of 65 Cinder Shards per item is required, so spending some time farming these valuable crystals is advisable. Here’s how players can find Cinder Shards:
- Mining Cinder Shard Nodes: Players can spot these nodes throughout the Volcano Dungeon, identifiable by their distinctive pink-orange specks.
- Defeating Enemies: Several enemies within the Volcano Dungeon drop Cinder Shards, with varying probabilities:
- Magma Sprite: 50% chance
- Magma Duggy: 40% chance
- Magma Kicker: 50% chance
- False Magma Cap: 50% chance
- Fishing Ponds: When containing 7 or more Stingrays, fishing ponds have a 7-9% daily chance to produce 2-5 Cinder Shards.
Note that Cinder Shards cannot be replicated in the Crystalarium, as they are classified as a resource rather than a gemstone.
Introducing the Mini-Forge
Upon achieving Combat Mastery, players can simplify the forging process without making returns to the Volcano Dungeon. Mastering this skill grants the crafting recipe for the Mini-Forge, which operates in an identical manner to its larger counterpart and can be conveniently placed anywhere. Here’s what players need for crafting the Mini-Forge:
- 5
- 10
- 10
- 5
Forging Weapons
With sufficient Cinder Shards in hand, players can enhance their weapons and boost their stats. Each weapon can undergo the forging process up to three times, with each foray producing increasingly powerful effects. However, note that forging is exclusive to weapons; tools like Axes, Hoes, and Watering Cans are not eligible.
As the enhancement levels progress, so do the costs. The cost for forging a weapon is as follows: 10 Cinder Shards for the first upgrade, 15 for the second, and 20 for the third. Each upgrade requires a specific gemstone for an enhancement:
-
Amethyst: Boosts knockback—each level adds +1 knockback. -
Aquamarine: Increases critical hit chance (+4.6% per level). -
Emerald: Enhances weapon speed (+2 for the first forge, +3 for the second, +2 for the third). -
Jade: Boosts critical hit damage by 10% per level. -
Ruby: Increases total damage by 10% per level. -
Topaz: Provides a defense boost of +1 per level.
Players may also opt to use a Diamond to randomly add three enhancements at once for a cost of 10 Cinder Shards.
Selecting Optimal Upgrades
When deciding which gemstones to forge into weapons, it’s crucial for players to align the upgrades with their gameplay style and overarching objectives, especially in combat scenarios. For instance, aspiring monster hunters will benefit from the Emerald and Ruby enhancements, which collectively accelerate attack speed and damage, significantly enhancing DPS. Pairing this setup with either Aquamarine or Jade maximizes critical hit chances.
Conversely, if your focus is survival—such as during Qi Challenges—consider utilizing Topaz and Amethyst to improve resilience and maintain distance from foes.
Reversing Forging Effects
Should players wish to revert their weapons to their original state, the unforging process is simple. Place the weapon into the leftmost slot of the forge and select the red X symbol. This action negates all forging, restoring the item to its unmodified appearance. Some Cinder Shards will be recovered, but gemstones cannot be reclaimed. This process will exclusively remove forged upgrades, while enchantments remain intact.
Transforming into Infinity Weapons
Players equipped with the Galaxy Hammer, Galaxy Sword, or Galaxy Dagger can evolve these standard weapons into powerful Infinity Weapons at the Volcano Forge. The transformation requires three Galaxy Souls and a total of 20 Cinder Shards. The upgraded weapon will retain all previously applied forging upgrades and enchantments.
Acquiring Galaxy Souls
Galaxy Souls are rare commodities that can only be acquired by facing some of the game’s toughest challenges. As detailed in the Infinity Weapons guide, players have several options to acquire Galaxy Souls:
- Purchase from Mr. Qi in Mr. Qi’s Walnut Room for 40 Qi Gems each.
- Defeating a Big Slime in scenarios where Dangerous Monsters spawn; these can yield Galaxy Souls. They are found in the Dangerous Mines, accessed through the shrine on Level 120, as well as during Mr. Qi’s “Danger in the Deep”and “Skull Cavern Invasion”quests.
Once players defeat at least 50 Dangerous Monsters in the Mines or through the aforementioned quests, additional methods to procure Galaxy Souls become available:
- Purchase them from the Island Trader on the last day of the season for 10 Radioactive Bars each.
- Galaxy Souls may also drop from Dangerous Monsters.
Unlocking Enchantments
Enchantments are distinct from forging, as they enhance a weapon or tool’s functionality rather than its statistics. They can bestow various effects, from heightened efficiency to resource conservation. To enchant a weapon or tool, players must use a Prismatic Shard along with 20 Cinder Shards.
Unfortunately, players don’t have control over which enchantment will be applied. Should one be unsatisfied with the result, they can re-enchant the item, although this will consume additional materials, so it’s wise to use resources carefully.
Weapon-Specific Enchantments
Players can randomly receive one of the following weapon enchantments:
- Artful: Reduces cooldown for special moves by 50%.
- Bug Killer: Doubles damage to bugs and grants the ability to defeat Armored Bugs.
- Crusader: Doubles damage against mummies and ghosts, allowing for their permanent destruction.
- Vampiric: Grants a 9% chance of healing upon defeating a monster, equating to 10% of the monster’s health.
- Haymaker: Cuts weeds with heightened chances of fiber and hay dropping.
Among these, Bug Killer and Crusader are often deemed the most advantageous, while Haymaker typically ranks lower in utility due to the commonality of its resources.
Inherent Enchantments
Similar to forging upgrades, innate enchantments can also provide various benefits. Players may apply these unique upgrades to melee weapons using a Dragon Tooth at the forge. Each weapon can accommodate one inherent enchantment from the primary set:
|
Enchantment |
Effect |
|---|---|
|
Slime Slayer |
Enhances damage against Slimes. |
|
+25-75 Crit Power |
Boosts Critical Power. |
|
+1-5 Attack |
Increases overall Attack stat, thereby increasing dealt damage. |
|
+1-X Speed |
Augments the swinging speed of the weapon. |
A secondary set of enchantments may also be applied, though they are not guaranteed:
|
Enchantment |
Effect |
|---|---|
|
Slime Gatherer |
Increases Slime drops upon defeat. |
|
+1-2 Defense |
Enhances player’s Defense statistics. |
|
–1-5 Weight |
Reduces Weight, decreasing knockback effects. |
Enchanting Tools
There are twelve distinct tool enchantments, though not all can be applied across every tool. The axe, pickaxe, watering can, hoe, fishing rod, and pan can receive enchantments in the forge, yielding effects relevant to their use. Below are the available enchantments:
|
Enchantment |
Compatible Tools |
Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Auto-Hook |
|
Automatically hooks fish or junk, triggering the fishing minigame. |
| Archeologist |
|
|
| Bottomless |
|
Provides an endless supply of water. |
| Efficient |
|
Precludes energy drain during usage. |
| Fisher |
|
Grants a 10% chance of catching a fish in the pan. |
| Generous |
|
Doubles chances of finding items when digging or panning. |
| Master |
|
Increases Fishing proficiency by 1. |
| Powerful |
|
Augments power levels for the axe and pickaxe. |
| Preserving |
|
50% chance of not using bait or tackle when employed. |
| Reaching |
|
Extends maximum area of effect to 5×5 tiles. |
| Shaving |
|
Increases drops when harvesting wood, crops, and plants. |
| Swift |
|
Enhances tool usage speed by 33%. |
Optimal Enchantments per Tool
While all enchantments have merit, preferences can vary based on player style. If the current enchantment isn’t serving the player well, translating to the Volcano Forge for adjustments is always an option:
- Axe: The Shaving enchantment proves especially beneficial for resource gathering. Players may also opt for Swift or Efficient to maximize wood chopping without exhausting energy.
- Watering Can: Bottomless is the most advantageous choice, eliminating the need for refills.
- Fishing Rod: Although Master is useful, Preserving stands out as it reduces consumption of bait and tackle.
- Pan: To enhance treasure hunting, Generous and Reaching are excellent choices for maximizing item collection and area coverage.
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