Every Torchlight: Infinite season includes new mechanics that change how you can play the game. Season 1 introduced Dark Surge which contains additional monsters in every map, new pinnacle encounter - Tidemaster Keegan and new crafting system called Corrosion. By reading this guide you are going to learn how to encounter and use Dark Surge to get rewarded with special loot like Familiar Nexus and Seed of Worry.
Encounter
When you reach Chapter 4 every zone from that point on has a chance to contain Dark Surge.
Every zone that has Dark Surge displays a purple progress bar on your screen with some of the monsters marked with a purple icon on the minimap.
After killing some of the marked monsters, the bar fills up. Once it's full you can press the button ("V" is the default bind for PC version) to summon additional monsters to kill. The more monsters you kill, the more waves you summon. Magic and rare monsters give more progression.

Pro Tip: Summon Dark Surge monsters during other long encounters like trials or map bosses to save yourself some time!
Trait and Confusion Cards

Trait and Confusion Cards are a great way to add additional content to your maps. Season 2 introduced many new Trait Cards including Transformation - Dark Surge which lets you encounter Dark Surge more often by drawing 2 of the new Dark Surge themed Confusion Cards. Here is a list of all new Dark Surge Confusion Cards:
- Brutal - Dark Surge
- Compass - Dark Surge
- Reckless - Dark Surge
- Addicted - Dark Surge
- Commodities - Dark Surge
- Fluorescent - Dark Surge
- Gear - Dark Surge
- Rampant - Dark Surge
- Fallen - Dark Surge
Each one of these Confusion Cards increases the chance to encounter Dark Surge in the maps affected by them. These Confusion Cards also benefit from a new keyword called Dark Surge Undercurrent which means that after completing 1 map with Dark Surge Confusion Card active you can continously draw more of them until the end of Chaos Invasion round.
Learn more about Trait and Confusion Cards in our Chaos Invasion Guide.
Rewards
When you summon Dark Surge monsters an icon appears next to the progress bar that determines what type of rewards the current wave of monsters drops. Possible rewards are:
- Weapons
- Armor
- Trinkets (Belts, Amulets, Rings)
- Compasses
- Crafting Materials
- Memory Cards
- Hero Relics and Memories
The first summoned wave of Dark Surge monsters after the map boss has died has a chance to include a mini boss. After you kill it it drops one of the Seeds - special types of Compasses that affect Dark Surge map mechanics and one of the Edicts - special keys needed to face the Dark Surge pinnacle boss Tidemaster Keegan. They are very valuable so make sure to save up and use at least 1 wave after killing the map boss.

Keegan

To encounter Tidemaster Keegan you need to go to the Void Rift at the Netherrealm and place 3 Edicts - Edict: Dart, Edict: Dive, Edict: Ruin to start the fight.
You can also add 4th, much rarer Edict: Doom to summon "Uber" Tidemaster Keegan which is far harder but with improved rewards.
Corrosion
Corrosion is a special way of crafting items that requires Corrosion materials - Aemberon Core or Familiar Nexus. Aemberon Core is acquired by killing monsters summoned by Dark Surge in maps. Familiar Nexus is a Tidemaster Keegan specific drop and provides a new possible outcome when you are Corroding an item.


Here is a list of possible Corrosion outcomes:
- Mutation - Adds a random Aember base affix.
- Chaos - Randomizes values of the modifiers on the item.
- Arrogance - Upgrades 1 explicit modifier by 1-2 tiers.
- Void - Nothing happens.
- Desecration - Upgrades 2 explicit modifiers by 1-2 tiers. This outcome can only happen if you use Familiar Nexus to Corrode an item.
After Corroding an item it is put in Corroded state which prevents it from being Corroded again. When a T1 explicit modifier is being upgraded by 1 tier it turns into a new T0 Aember modifier which is usually extremely powerful.
WARNING: Corroded items require double the amount of Embers and Flame Fuel for crafting.
Summary
- You start encountering Dark Surge at the Cathedral Front Hall in Chapter 2.
- Kill infected monsters to fill the bar.
- Summon Dark Surge monsters and kill them to get extra rewards.
- Use at least 1 wave of Dark Surge after killing a map boss for a chance to summon another one.
- Use Edicts to summon pinnacle boss Tidemaster Keegan.
- Use Aemberon Core and Familiar Nexus to Corrode your gear.
- Getting an Aember modifier on your item by Corroding it can completely change how you use it.
Credits
Written by Zen_M.
Reviewed by Xtra37, Raxxanterax.
Changelog
- 12 January 2023
Article Published for Season 2