The Pit of Artificers

The Pit of Artificers is a challenging endgame activity in Diablo 4, introduced with the 1.4.0 Update for Season 4. It is intended to be the most difficult content in the game, scaling up to Tier 200. While it does not have a level requirement, you should be Level 100 and equipped with a well optimized build.

Unlocking The Pit of Artificers

The Pit of Artificers is available in World Tier 4 in Cerrigar. After completing a Tier 46 Nightmare Dungeon you can acquire Runeshards by completing different Endgame activities. You can consume these Runeshards at the Obelisk in Cerrigar to open the portal to The Pit of Artificers.

The Pit of Artificers Basics

In the Pit of Artificers you need to slay enough monsters before the 15-minute timer runs out to summon a final boss. Each player death removes time from the clock. The first death removes 30 seconds, second death removes 60 seconds, and third and subsequent deaths will remove 90 seconds.

After you defeated enough monsters, a portal materializes, transporting you to the boss arena. Afterwards, slay the boss before the timer expires to earn coveted Masterworking materials. Consequently, this also unlocks the next brutal tier(s) of The Pit of Artificers. If you can manage to kill the boss with time left on the clock, the benefit increases. With 4-6 minutes to spare, you skip a level and unlock an additional Tier of the Pit. Killing the boss with 6 or more minutes to spare grants you two additional Tier unlocks. The Pit has 200 total levels of difficulty to try and conquer, if you dare face the challenge.

After completing a Tier, you unlock the next Tier along with rewards which we touch on in the next section.

Rewards

The Pit can be entered in groups of up to four players. Only the opening player has the chance to receive Stygian Stones.

Stygian Stones are used for summoning Tormented Echoes. These are Level 200 variants of the summonable bosses you can find in Diablo IV. Descending into deeper levels of The Pit rewards you with more of these Stygian Stones and Masterworking Materials.

You can find three different Masterworking Materials in the Pit of Artificers:

• The first one is Obducite which is required to Masterwork items through Ranks 1 to 4. You are granted these in Tiers 1 to 30.
• The second one is Ingolith which is required to Masterwork items through Ranks 5 to 8. You get these for clearing Tiers 31 to 60.
• The final one is Neathiron which is required to Masterwork items through Ranks 9 to 12. You only are rewarded with these in Tiers 61 and above.

The Boss Fight

At the end of every Pit Run is a Boss. The toughest and most time consuming part of the run, what boss you encounter will heavily influence how long the fight takes. Additionally, once you hit Tier 61, there are Echoes of the major bosses, such as Lilith. These Echoes have significant background effects mimicking their attacks in their own fight. For example, Echos of Lilith can cause the spikes on the ground to appear and potentially damage you. As of Season 5, Pit Bosses now cause the same debuff that you encounter with Tormented Bosses, causing you to take more damage. This debuff is capped at three stacks.

The Bosses

As of Season 5, there are at least 10 different bosses, each with their own attacks. Some bosses have more HP than others and some have annoying mechanics that can ruin a pit push, so when you're farming, figure out what bosses feel best for your build and which ones feel easy or difficult.

• Blood Bishop
• Bramble
• Den Mother
• Hivemaster
• Mother's Judgement
• Resurrected Malice
• Scourge
• Seahag
• Slither
• Spiritcaller

Echoes

The Echoes are seemingly triggered by the HP breakpoints of the boss and there are up to three different ones during each boss fight. The third Echo is always the Echo of Lilith and happens around the 50% Boss HP mark. These Echoed bosses are invulnerable lurk in the background, but there are cues to their attacks, so pay attention!

The Echo attacks can come in a variety of forms, depending on the echo that shows up. Elias's Echo attacks can include targeted fireballs or cones of fire. Lilith's Echoes mimic her boss fight and can include the spikes in the floor and the wave patterns. Stun ball mechanics and tornados are other possible Echoes for other smaller bosses. Keep an eye out - dodge like your life depends on it, because it might!

Strategy & Mechanics

• Layout - The Pit always consists of two finite floors that are connected with a portal. On both of these floors, the layout and the monsters are randomized.
• Progression - Elite Monsters give the most amount of progression, so focus on hunting these down. To avoid backtracking, try and kill as many small monsters as you can as you travel, to avoid backtracking.
• Shrines - In the Pit, shrines can appear after reaching certain progression thresholds. However, Artillery, Greed, and Blast Wave shrines are not available. Save the shrines you do find for when you need them - you've got tough fights ahead.
• Monster Level Scaling - Monsters scale with the Pit Tier you selected. In the first Tier the monsters you face will be Level 100, so every Tier increases a monster's level by 1 up to Level 199 until Tier 100. With the scaling of their level, monsters grow stronger in terms of their Health and damage they can deal to you.
• Selecting Tiers - You can decide to quickly breeze through lower tiers to stock up on Masterworking materials. These materials can be converted downwards at the Alchemist. Alternatively, you can choose to take more time to push into higher tiers for better rewards in future runs.
• Death Penalty - If you die in the Pit of Artificers, you will lose time on the event timer. The first death removes 30 seconds, the second death removes 60 seconds, and third and subsequent deaths will remove 90 seconds.

Additional Tips and Tricks

With all this information, here are a few more key tips to keep in mind when attempting the Pit:

• Bring Your Best Build - This is not just another Helltide run, this is a challenging, timed Event. If your build is really tanky, but you can't defeat enough enemies in time, you still lose!
• Go in Maxed Out - Make sure your current Glyphs are at least Level 15 if not 21. Also, Temper and Masterwork your gear at the Blacksmith and have your best Gems from the Jeweler.
• Kill Fast & Stay Safe - Death is your biggest enemy, so keep a good pace in killing enemies. Rushing into a small room with defensive cooldowns unavailable can be a recipe for disaster.
• Boss Fights - The type of Boss you summon after filling the progression bar is random. You need to remember their patterns well, so prepare yourself to dodge their abilities!
• Unlock the Pit Early - The Masterworking materials are invaluable, so rush to complete a Tier 46 Nightmare Dungeon as fast as possible on your first character!

Summary

• Complete a Tier 46 Nightmare Dungeon to be able to collect Runeshards.
• Bring your best build with the best gear that you have fully tempered and maxed out.
• Ensure your current Paragon Glyphs are at least Level 15, if not Level 21 to have their maxed effects active.
• You have 15 minutes to defeat enough enemies to fill the progression bar and then the summoned Boss to successfully complete the event and move to the next Tier.
• Bosses have dangerous mechanics that you need to remember well and dodge in a timely manner.

Credits

Written by M1PY, ehtoka
Reviewed by wudijo