Item Bases

In Last Epoch, the 'base' of an item refers to its fundamental type and the inherent stats or properties it possesses before any affixes are applied. Understanding item bases is crucial for crafting powerful gear, as they dictate the potential for high-tier affixes, unique properties, and the overall role an item can fulfill in your build.

Item bases come in various rarities: Normal, Magic, Rare, and Exalted. Each rarity can have different base types. For example, a 'Steel Sword' is a Normal base, while a 'Steel Sword' with a special affix might be an Exalted base. The base type also determines the item's level requirement and its potential affix tiers. Higher level bases generally allow for higher tier affixes.

Types of Item Bases:

Weapons: Swords, axes, maces, daggers, bows, staves, wands, spears, etc. Each weapon type has different attack speeds, damage ranges, and potential affixes. For instance, daggers often have higher crit chance, while maces might have higher base damage.
Armor: Helmets, body armors, gloves, boots, shields. These provide defensive stats like armor, resistances, and block chance. Different armor types (e.g., heavy, light, cloth) offer different base defensive values and potential affixes.
Jewelry: Amulets and rings. These typically offer a wide range of offensive and defensive stats, including resistances, attributes, and spell damage.
Relics: Off-hand items for spellcasters or specific class items. These can provide spell damage, mana, or unique class-specific bonuses.
Idols: Special slots for smaller items that provide unique bonuses, often related to specific skills or stats.

Understanding Item Base Properties:

Item Level: Higher item levels generally allow for higher tier affixes to roll on the item.
Implicit Affixes: Some item bases come with inherent, non-removable affixes. For example, a 'Steel Helm' might have a base armor value, while a 'Crystal Helm' might have a base mana regeneration.
Affix Slots: The number of affix slots an item has (1-4 for Magic/Rare/Exalted) determines how many modifiers it can roll with.
Unique and Set Items: These items have fixed base types and unique properties, often defining entire builds. They cannot be crafted in the same way as Rare or Exalted items.

Crafting and Item Bases:

When crafting, you'll often be looking for a specific item base that has the implicit affixes and potential for the explicit affixes you need for your build. For example, if you need high lightning resistance, you might look for a base armor piece that naturally rolls with lightning resistance or has a high chance to roll defensive affixes. Understanding the base type is the first step to creating powerful, customized gear.

Example: A 'Runic Sword' (a magic base) might have a higher base critical strike multiplier than a 'Short Sword' (a normal base), making it a better choice for a critical strike-focused build, even before considering other affixes.