How gems work

Three types of uncut gems

Uncut Skill Gem (level 1-20) → an active skill. Level = required character level.

Uncut Support Gem (T1, T3, T5) → a modifier attached to a skill. T5 = endgame.

Uncut Spirit Gem → a persistent buff. Herald, aura, minion, meta gem. The one beginners forget to cut.

Right-click any uncut gem, pick from the list of skills your attributes allow. Done.

Activate a Spirit Gem

Cutting it doesn't turn it on. You also need to assign Spirit.

1. Open Skills panel (G).
2. Drag the cut Spirit Gem into a Spirit slot.
3. Set the reservation. Minimum 30 Spirit per gem.

Buff stays on until you toggle it off or change loadouts.

Where Spirit comes from

• Base character: 100 by end of campaign through quest bosses.
• Sceptre: 100 to 250+ on the base stat. The Spirit weapon.
• Body armour suffix: up to ~70.
• Amulet suffix: up to ~50.
• Some Ascendancy nodes (Stormweaver, Infernalist).

Most Spirit Gems reserve 30+. Base 100 = one Herald + one small aura, no sceptre needed.

Support gems: 4 rules

Each active skill holds up to 5 supports. Start with 2 unlocked, open 3-4-5 via Jeweller's Orbs (Lesser → Greater → Perfect).

Supports have a colour: red = Str, green = Dex, blue = Int. Your character's attributes total cap how many of each colour you can socket. Roughly 5 attribute = 2 supports.

A support gem is used once across your entire loadout. If Spell Echo is on Spark, it can't also be on Fireball.

Drop an Uncut Skill Gem of higher level on an existing skill to upgrade it.

Default loadout

9 active skill slots. Most builds run 2-3 actives + a few Spirit buffs. More than enough.

Patch 0.5: Kalguuran gems

The Runes of Aldur league added 23 Kalguuran Skill gems and 7 Kalguuran Support gems, crafted from Remnants. They cost Runic Ward instead of mana and have no attribute, weapon or colour requirement, so any class can slot them.

Runic Ward is a second life pool you add to armour by Runeforging with Verisium. Kalguuran skills spend it, so you manage it like a resource.

Caster-relevant skills: Frostflame Nova (latches onto Ignites, stacks Freeze), Grim Pillars (cold spears), Conductive Runes (lightning runes + Electrocution), Voltaic Barrier (converts physical to lightning), Triskelion Cascade (empowers your next area spell), Leylines (stationary spell-damage buff that drains Ward), Wardbound Minions.

Caster supports: Scouring Flame (extra Ward cost, +50% Ignite magnitude), Healing Runes (drains Ward to heal allies), Runic Infusion (+20% max Ward cost for added physical damage).