Currency

Beginners Guide - Currency System

The currency system in Path of Exile revolves around a variety of different orbs and scrolls. Each currency item serves a specific function in the crafting and enhancement of a character's equipment, or allowing restructuring of the character's passive skill tree.

Currency items are used to pay for items in player trading.

Currency items

Currency items can be found as drops from monsters or chests, bought directly from different vendors in town, or received through the use of the vendor recipe system by trading specific configurations of items to any town vendor. Currency items play a large role in the player to player trading system, with rare orbs able to be traded for powerful equipment, or even for other types of orbs that a player might want for crafting.

Basic currency

Basic currency items are those that have no specific drop restrictions (in-game wording: non-league), such as which areas or monsters they can drop from.^[1]

Item	Drop Level	Stack Size	Tab Stack Size	Help Text
Armourer's ScrapArmourer's ScrapStack Size: 40Improves the quality of an armourRight click this item then left click an armour to apply it. Has greater effect on lower-rarity armours. The maximum quality is 20%.	1	40	5000	Right click this item then left click an armour to apply it. Has greater effect on lower-rarity armours. The maximum quality is 20%.
Blacksmith's WhetstoneBlacksmith's WhetstoneStack Size: 20Improves the quality of a weaponRight click this item then left click a weapon to apply it. Has greater effect on lower-rarity weapons. The maximum quality is 20%.	1	20	5000	Right click this item then left click a weapon to apply it. Has greater effect on lower-rarity weapons. The maximum quality is 20%.
Blessed OrbBlessed OrbStack Size: 20Randomises the values of the implicit modifiers of an itemRight click this item then left click another item to apply it.	35	20	5000	Right click this item then left click another item to apply it.

Shards and fragments

Shards and fragments of currency items are obtained primarily by selling items to vendors and by defeating Harbingers. These can be combined to form complete currency items by stacking them.

Item	Drop Level	Stack Size	Tab Stack Size	Help Text
Alchemy ShardAlchemy ShardStack Size: 20A stack of 20 shards becomes an Orb of Alchemy.	N/A	20	N/A	A stack of 20 shards becomes an Orb of Alchemy.
Alteration ShardAlteration ShardStack Size: 20A stack of 20 shards becomes an Orb of Alteration.	N/A	20	N/A	A stack of 20 shards becomes an Orb of Alteration.
Ancient ShardAncient ShardStack Size: 20A stack of 20 shards becomes an Ancient Orb.	35	20	N/A	A stack of 20 shards becomes an Ancient Orb.
Annulment ShardAnnulment ShardStack Size: 20A stack of 20 shards becomes an Orb of Annulment.	35	20	N/A	A stack of 20 shards becomes an Orb of Annulment.
Binding ShardBinding ShardStack Size: 20A stack of 20 shards becomes an Orb of Binding.	25	20	N/A	A stack of 20 shards becomes an Orb of Binding.

Endgame currency

Endgame currencies are drop-restricted, and do not drop in regular areas while leveling or in maps.

Item	Drop Level	Stack Size	Tab Stack Size	Drop Monsters	Additional Drop Restrictions
Awakener's OrbAwakener's OrbStack Size: 10Destroys an item, applying its influence to another of the same item class The second item is reforged as a rare item with both influence types and new modifiersRight click this item, then left click the item you wish to take the influence from, then left click an item of the same item class you wish to apply it to.	1	10	5000	Sirus, Awakener of Worlds	N/A

League currency

League currencies were introduced with their corresponding temporary League. They are typically only available through their corresponding league mechanics.

Essence currency

Essences are items that upgrade a normal item to a rare item with a predetermined modifier that varies depending on both the essence type, as well as the item slot. Higher tier essences can also reforge rare items.

Breach currency

Breach enemies can drop Breach Splinters of their Breach element. 100 Breach Splinters can be combined to form a Breachstone. A Blessing can be used to upgrade Breach unique items, as well as transform Breachstones into the Flawless variant.

Harbinger currency

Harbinger currency items are usually dropped as shards by Harbingers. Shards of both Harbinger currencies and basic currencies can be dropped this way.

Bestiary currency

Bestiary OrbsBestiary OrbStack Size: 10Stores a Beast in an itemRight click on this item then left click on a Beast in your Menagerie to itemise the Beast. are a currency item that can store a captured beast. This allows the beast to be traded with other players. Bestiary orbs cannot drop naturally, and can instead be purchased from Einhar, Beastmaster.

Incursion currency

Vials drop from the The Vaal Omnitect in the The Temple of Atzoatl, and can be used to upgrade specific unique items to make them more powerful.

Delve currency

Delve currency is divided into Fossils and Resonators. Fossils are socketed into a Resonator, which can then be used on items to allow for more deterministic outcomes. Some fossils grant access to modifiers that are otherwise unobtainable through other methods.

Legion currency

Legion enemies can drop Legion Splinters of their Legion. 100 Splinters of the same type can be combined into an Emblem, which can then be placed in a map device with at least one other emblem to access the Domain of Timeless Conflict.

Blight currency

Oils can be used to anoint Blighted maps, amulets, rings, and certain unique items, giving them an enchantment that grants an additional bonus.

Delirium currency

Delirium orbs are currency items that can be applied to maps to add layers of Delirium and grant specific rewards. Delirium Monsters can drop Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Simulacrum Splinter" on a map with layers of Delirium, while splinters are dropped in a single stack at the end of a Delirium encounter started via a Mirror of Delirium. When 300 splinters are combined, they create the Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Simulacrum" map fragment.

Heist Currency

Heist currency items can appear in Curio Displays while running Blueprints with the heist target Unusual Gems or Enchanted Armaments. Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Prime Regrading Lens" and Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Secondary Regrading Lens" are used to change a gem's quality modifier, and Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Tempering Orb" and Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Tailoring Orb" gives weapons or armour a Heist enchantment. Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Rogue's Marker" are used to enter the The Rogue Harbour, start Contracts, or reveal Blueprints.

Ritual currency

Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Ritual Splinter" are a possible reward option in the Ritual Favours interface. Combining 100 Ritual Splinter will create a Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Ritual Vessel", which then can be used on a Ritual altar to create a Blood-filled VesselBlood-filled VesselCan be used in a personal Map Device alongside a Map to add the monsters stored from a previous Ritual Altar to a Ritual Altar in that Map..

Ultimatum currency

Catalysts increase the quality of jewellery items, increasing the magnitude of related modifiers.

Expedition currency

During an Expedition encounter, Runic Monsters and Excavated Chests have a chance to drop expedition currency that can be used to either purchase items, or refresh the vendor inventory of their corresponding NPC. Only the items used to refresh vendor inventory are tradable.

Tainted currency

Tainted currencies drop from Beyond monsters. They can only be used on corrupted items, usually at the cost of being more unpredictable than their standard equivalents.

Sentinel currency

Sentinel currencies dropped from Sentinel reward types. They include only the three types of Recombinators. Currently, there are no ways to obtain them outside of trading with other players in the permanent leagues.

Ancestor currency

A Module Error: No results found for item using search term "page = Silver Coin" is used to open a portal to the Halls of the Dead and is used as an entry fee for a round of the Trial of the Ancestors. Tattoos are applied to specific types of passive skills on the passive skill tree to transform the passive into a different one. Omens activate an effect when the condition is met while one is in your inventory. Only one Omen can be activated per combat zone. Both of these can show up as a rewards.

Currency exchange resources

Exchange rates between different currency items is largely dependent on the item's scarcity and the demand for it by players willing to trade, and differ between the Softcore League Trade, Hardcore League Trade, Standard Trade and Hardcore Trade leagues. Due to the continuously fluctuating nature of the Path of Exile economy, it is impractical to keep an updated table of currency exchange rates here. Instead, please refer to these tools and resources:

pathofexile.com/trade (official player-to-player trade site)
poe.ninja (third-party tool with single-page overview and value-over-time tracking)

Vendor prices chart

A number of orbs are purchasable at vendors, and can thus be ranked like coins in normal currency. There are several progression tables below showing who sells what and what their equivalent value is in (Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Orb of Alteration"). Once a given recipe is made available from an act vendor, all subsequent acts will also have that recipe available.

Currency items that have shards are italicized.

Some Masters sell currency in bulk:

Master Progression
Orbs	Price	Master
1x Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Orb of Unmaking"	2x Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Orb of Regret"	Commander Kirac
20x Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Cartographer's Chisel"	8x Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Chaos Orb"	Commander Kirac
1x Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Surveyor's Compass"	1x Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Chaos Orb"	Commander Kirac
1x Bestiary OrbBestiary OrbStack Size: 10Stores a Beast in an itemRight click on this item then left click on a Beast in your Menagerie to itemise the Beast.	1x Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Chaos Orb"	Einhar, Beastmaster

Vendors and player economy

Vendor prices are a base value for comparisons, player market value will vary. Since players can't downgrade one Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Orb of Fusing" into eight Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Orb of Alteration", they may be willing to sell them for less. High-level players will tend to forgo picking up less valuable currencies in favour of more efficiently clearing maps, instead relying on player trading to acquire currencies such as Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Scroll of Wisdom" and Module Error: No results found for item using search term "item_name = Orb of Transmutation" in bulk.

Don't forget that barter trading is not just what it is worth, it is also what you are willing to pay.

Version history

Version	Changes
3.23.0	You can now shift-click currency items in your main inventory to only sell or trade a partial stack.
3.22.0	Holding Alt on a Currency item or stackable Fragment will now show the count of that Currency or Fragment within the same inventory, including trade windows.
0.9.3	Completely rebalanced the drop rates of all the currency items. Increased the currency item drop rate, but added a penalty to the rate of currency item drops if you're playing in areas far under your level. Adjusted the rarity of all currency items to make the common ones more common and the rare ones rarer.
0.8.6	Reduced chance of currency items dropping by 25%. Instead, scrolls are more common.
0.8.3	Set up new currency item icons (colour shifted for now) so that they are easier to distinguish.
0.8.1	Biased currency item drops towards the common ones more.
0.6.8	Nerfed currency item drop rates substantially.
0.6.7	Increased stack size of many currency items.
0.5.13	Made all currency items stackable and increased stack sizes of previously stackable ones.
0.5.6	Fixed descriptions of stackable currency items.
0.5.1	Increased drop rate of some currency items.

References

↑ Bex_GGG (January 10, 2021). "Atlas Passive Trees in Echoes of the Atlas". Reddit. Retrieved January 11, 2021.

ru:Валюта

[Basic_currency_items-1] Bex_GGG (January 10, 2021). "Atlas Passive Trees in Echoes of the Atlas". Reddit. Retrieved January 11, 2021.

[1]