Weapon Shaping
Weapon Shaping, also known as Weapon Crafting, is a gameplay system introduced with The Witch Queen expansion. It allows players to use the Relic at the Enclave to create copies of certain weapons, which can then be leveled up through use and further customized with unlockable perks.
Access
Players gain access to Weapon Shaping after completing the first mission of the Witch Queen campaign, The Arrival, which does not require ownership of The Witch Queen expansion. The Relic is found in the Enclave on Mars, which is accessed from the Savathûn's Throne World map in the Director. The Relic quest will guide the player through a tutorial on how to shape new weapons. Through this process, players will craft The Enigma, a Glaive. Additional quests given by the Relic Conduit will further explain aspects of the crafting process.
Quests
This series of quests will introduce players to Weapon Shaping. These quests will also reward players with crafting materials and Weapon Patterns.
Free-to-Play
These quests are available for free to all players.
- The Relic (rewards
The Enigma Pattern)
- Shaping: Extraction (rewards
Syncopation-53 Pattern)
- Shaping: Resonant Alloys (rewards
Palmyra-B Pattern)
- Reshaping the Enigma (rewards
Ragnhild-D Pattern)
- Foundry Resonance (rewards
Ammit AR2 Pattern)
- Foundry Shaping (rewards
Taipan-4fr Pattern)
The Witch Queen
These quests require ownership of The Witch Queen expansion.
- Ascendant Alloy Requisition (rewards an
Ascendant Alloy)
Weapon Patterns
- Main page: Weapon Patterns
A weapon can only be crafted if the player unlocks that weapon's Pattern. Not every weapon in the game is available for crafting. All unlockable Patterns and their unlock conditions are viewable in the Patterns & Catalysts section of the Triumphs tab. Most Patterns are unlocked by extracting them from Deepsight Resonance weapons, while others are obtained from quests or activities.
Deepsight Resonance
- Main page: Deepsight Resonance
Some Weapon Patterns can only be obtained by extracting them from weapons with Deepsight Resonance. These weapons are marked by a red border around their icons. Only weapons that can be crafted can drop with Deepsight Resonance.
Shaping
Players have two options when crafting at the Relic: Shape, which creates a new weapon, and Reshape, which modifies an already-crafted weapon.
When shaping a Legendary weapon, players must slot in an Intrinsic, 2 weapon perks (usually a Barrel and a Magazine), and 2 Traits. These may vary depending on the weapon being crafted. Players can optionally slot in a Memento, which will unlock cosmetic bonuses when the weapon reaches specific levels.
Shaped Weapons
- Main page: Shaped Weapons
Shaped weapons have a Weapon Level, which can be increased by killing enemies or having them equipped when activities are completed. As the weapon increases in level, the player will unlock new perks and Intrinsics that can be applied during reshaping.
Players can shape as many copies of a given weapon as they want. This can allow for multiple versions of the same weapon. However, progress is not shared between these copies. If a shaped weapon is dismantled, its progress is not saved and is lost forever. The player can make a new copy of that weapon and start from level 1.
Reshaping
When Reshaping a weapon, players can reconfigure the weapon with different perks. However, there are some limitations. Previously crafted perks are not unlocked permanently; if a player swaps a perk out and wants to reapply it later, it will require the same material costs as it did before. It is also not possible to shape a weapon with more than one perk in each column, preventing players from toggling between different perk configurations.
At higher levels, Enhanced Traits will be unlocked on Legendary weapons. These are enhanced versions of other traits available on the weapon, improving the effect that a given trait provides. At Weapon Level 7, players can apply one of several Enhanced Intrinsics that provide a boost to one of the weapon's stats (e.g. Reload Speed or Stability). This replaces a weapon's usual Masterwork stat bonus, as shaped weapons cannot be upgraded like normal weapons.
Materials
There are a variety of materials used in Weapon Shaping:
Resonant Alloys are used to craft Intrinsics and Enhanced Intrinsics on most weapons. They are obtained by dismantling Legendary (and occasionally Rare) weapons. Note that dismantling Legendary weapons will not drop Alloys until the Shaping: Resonant Alloys quest is acquired.
Harmonic Alloys are used to craft Intrinsics and Enhanced Intrinsics on weapons obtained from raids. They are obtained by dismantling Legendary weapons obtained from raids.
Ascendant Alloys are used to craft Enhanced Traits while reshaping weapons.
- Mementos are consumables that unlock cosmetic bonuses when the weapon reaches certain levels. Only one memento can be inserted into a weapon at a time.