Class: Ranger Witch Duelist Marauder Shadow Templar

In the PoE 3.18 Sentinel League, you may find a new type of rare currency: Recombinators. These allow you to apply the Sentinel Assembly process to your actual items, taking any two pieces of equipment from the same item class and combining them together. Through this new craft system, players can get more powerful equipment than ever before. Thanks to the research from TheDiabeetusKing, this PoE 3.18 Sentinel Recombinator Completed guide will detail the power of the new craft system.

 

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How do Recombinators actually work?

This guide contains all of the information you need in order to have the highest chance of success when Recombinating your items. But in order to understand why certain setups have the highest chance of success, you need to understand how Recombinators work behind the scenes. You don't need to know any numbers involved, but understanding how they work will help you understand why certain strategies work as well as they do. Plus, if you actually understand it, you're a lot less likely to message me, flaming me for lying to you. I'm going to explain with words how Recombinators work, and then I'm going to show a picture that has an example of an item being Recombinated.

1.1 Choose one of the two items being Recombinated. This will be the base of your final item, and anything tied to that base will be present on the final item. This includes: Influence type, Mirrored tag, Split tag, Corrupted tag, quality, implicits (Corrupted, Synthesized, Influenced), Enchants, and Anoints.

1.2 Combine all of the Prefixes of both items into one modpool, then combine all the Suffixes of both items into a separate modpool.

1.3 Choose a number of mods from each pool. The number of mods chosen depends on the total number of mods within that pool. To be clear - Prefixes and Suffixes are separate. They do not affect each other in ANY way. The number of mods chosen from the Prefix pool is based on the number of Prefixes in it. The number of mods chosen from the Suffix pool is based on the number of Suffixes in it. BOTH of these happen, not one or the other. The full list of the number of chosen mods at each modpool size (1 through 6 mods in the pool)

1.4 Combine the chosen Prefixes and the chosen Suffixes to make your final item.

1.5 After the final item is formed, a new mod may be added. The chance for this to happen depends on many factors. Generally speaking, mods are less likely to be added with larger Prefix and Suffix pools because the final item may not have room for any more mods.

Now that you've read these steps:


where they are accompanied by an example that shows each step happening to an item.

IMPORTANT NOTE

This process applies to both Prefixes and Suffixes independently. Anytime in this guide that I say Prefixes, the same is true for Suffixes.

For example, if Item 1 had 2 Prefixes, and was combined with Item 2 that had 1 Suffix with a success rate of 22%, the same is true for combining an Item 1 that had 2 Suffixes with an Item 2 that had 1 Prefix.

 

3 Prefixes, 3 Suffixes

Time to revisit some basic PoE item mechanics. With the exception of jewels a few special basetypes, rare items in PoE can have a maximum of 3 Prefixes and 3 Suffixes. We all know that, it's pretty basic PoE stuff.

What you probably don't know is how badly this can affect recombinators. Let's say that between both starting items you have 3 Desired Prefixes, and 1 Prefix that you don't want. It's a 35% chance for 3 of those Prefixes to be picked for your final item, but then it has to pick exactly the 3 Prefixes you want to keep as well. These are the steps it would have to take to do so.

You have 3 mods you want in a pool of 4 = 3/4. One is removed from the pool after being picked.

You have 2 mods you want in a pool of 3 = 2/3. One is removed from the pool after being picked.

You have 1 mod you want in a pool of 2 = 1/2

The chances of the game picking your 3 Desired Prefixes is (3/4)(2/3)(1/2) = 25% 

This lowers your overall odds from 35%, a good chance, to 8.75%. It should be pretty clear by now that EVER having more than 3 Prefixes if you want to keep Prefixes (and the reverse for Suffixes) is a very, very bad thing.

Right?

 

Doubling Mods

Depending on the scenario, having more than 3 Prefixes or Suffixes can actually be a good thing!

Doubling is the strategy of having 1 mod on each item that share a modgroup. For example, T3 Flat Life on Item 1 and T1 Flat Life on Item 2. Crafting mods work exactly the same as normal mods - Item 1 could have T5 Cold Res and Item 2 could have Crafted Cold Res.

The strategy of Doubling is used in two very different ways.

Doubling Mods you want to keep

Many people have already realized that by having the same mod (whenever I say this, tier and crafted vs. non-crafted DO NOT MATTER) greatly increases your odds that the Doubled mod is on your final item. This is true, and extremely useful! Now, you might be thinking that going over 3 Prefixes or 3 Suffixes is always bad, but that's not the case. What really matters isn't the number of Prefixes or Suffixes, it's the number of them that can be on the final item. For example, if both items have Strength as a Suffix, Strength cannot be on the final item twice! If you have Item 1 with Strength, Dex, Int, and Item 2 with Strength - It will keep mods as if it is a 4 Suffix item, because it is. But at the same time, the final item won't have 4 Suffixes competing to fit in 3 Suffix slots because only one of the two Strength mods can be picked.

While you still have a decent shot of getting 3 Desired Mods by just combining items with those mods on them and no optimization, this chance goes down drastically when you have 4 Desired Mods or higher. The following examples assume the items have exactly the stated mods, and no more.

If you have 3 Desired Prefixes and you combine [1 Prefix + 2 Prefixes], your chance of success is 20%.

if you have 3 Desired Prefixes and you combine [2 Prefixes + 2 Prefixes], where one of the Prefixes is on both items, your chance of success is 35%.

That's a huge difference! Let's jump ahead and look at the chances when you have 5 Desired Mods (3 Prefix, 2 Suffix)

If you combine a [3 Prefixes + 2 Suffixes], your chance of success is (20%)(33.3%) = 6.66%

if you combine a [3 Prefixes 1 Suffix + 2 Prefixes 2 Suffixes], where two Prefixes and one Suffix are on both items, your chance of success is 35%.

Doubling mods is very strong, and the best way to get a higher amount of Desired Mods on an item is by slowly going up the chain, combining 2 mod items to make 3 mod items, 3 mod items to make 4 mod items, and so on.

IMPORTANT NOTE

If you have T1 %Phys damage on a weapon, you cannot just craft %Phys damage. Your odds to have %Phys on your final item will go up, but half the time it will be the crafted version. If you care about the tier of your Desired Mod, you will need to roll a similar tier on the second item in order to properly utilize Doubling.

Doubling Mods you DON'T want to keep

I know this sounds counterintuitive, so bear with me. You're obviously not doubling a mod you don't care about in order to keep it, but in some scenarios there is a good reason to do so. Remember what we said earlier about Doubled mods and the 3 Prefix/3 Suffix limit? Doubled mods only count as ONE for that limit. The means if Item 1 has T1 Life and Crafted Mana, and Item 2 has +1 Frenzy Charges and T10 mana, the final item can only have 3 Prefixes. Mana can't be on the final item twice, so you aren't penalized by it being on both items.

Since Recombinators choose how many mods to keep based on the amount of mods in the Prefix pool or Suffix pool, this can be used to your advantage. With 2 total Prefixes, the chance to keep 2 Prefixes is 33.3%. With 4 total Prefixes (mana can only be on the final item once, but there are still two mana Prefixes!), the chance to keep 3 Prefixes is 35%. That's already higher than before! But there's also a chance to keep 2 Prefixes, and for those Prefixes to be T1 Life and +1 Frenzy Charges.

Adding everything up, the difference between 2 Desired Prefixes and 2 Desired Prefixes with the same additional Prefix on both items is 33.3% vs. 45%

IMPORTANT NOTE

Now, there is a final note here that's very important. This Doubled mod that you don't care about is very likely to be on your final item taking up a Prefix. Generally speaking, this is bad. The solution to this is to CRAFT the same prefix on both items. If it ends up on the final item, just use the crafting bench to remove all crafted mods, and your Prefix is now open.

 

Special Recombinator Mods and how to get them

Not everything is known about these mods yet, but we know a lot. They do not work like Synthesis did, and are not based on the mods of the items you're combining. The only requirements involved are a select few mods that can only appear when adding mods on certain basetypes.

  • Cold per Dex is limited to Evasion or Hybrid Evasion Boots.
  • Fire per Strength is limited to Armour or Hybrid Armour Boots.
  • Lightning per Int is limited to Energy Shield or Hybrid Energy Shield Boots.
  • Supported by Enhance is limited to Evasion or Hybrid Evasion Gloves
  • Supported by Empower is limited to Armour or Hybrid Armour Gloves.
  • Supported by Enlighten is limited to Energy Shield or Hybrid Energy Shield Gloves.

It's possible that some of the Keystones are limited as well, but it was difficult to track properly. If they are, please let me know and I'll update this section.

Besides the restrictions above, these special mods seem pretty random. However, there is one trick you can use to target them. If the special mod you want is a Prefix, then get two normal items of appropriate basetypes and craft the same Suffix on both of them. Having 2 Suffixes in the Suffix pool means the Recombinator will always keep at least 1 of them. Additionally, because both Suffixes are the same mod, when it tries to keep two of them, it will only be able to keep one. This ensures that your final item is always a magic item. 

Since adding a new mod is the final step in the process, it will have already been decided that your final item is magic. Magic items can only have 1 Prefix and 1 Suffix, and yours already has a Suffix. This means that every time a new mod is added, it will always be a Prefix.


Scenario: 3 Desired Mods

Finally, I'm going to cover some common scenarios Recombinators are used for. To start with, we have two versions of 3 Desired Mods: [3 Prefix] and [2 Prefix 1 Suffix].

Scenario: 3 Desired Prefixes

As we covered in the example earlier, the two ways of doing this are by combining [(Prefix 1 Prefix 2) + (Prefix 3)], or by combining [(Prefix 1 Prefix 2) + (Prefix 1 or 2, Prefix 3)]. Basically, using doubling or not using doubling.

Not using Doubling gives you a 20% success rate, while using Doubling gives you a 35% success rate. This seems pretty straightforward, but it isn't as clear as it seems.

To make use of Doubling here, you need to have two items, each with two of your Desired Prefixes. If you can buy these items easily, or already have them, then this is fine. However, if you have to make them yourself, combining Prefix 1 with Prefix 2 is only a 33% success rate (More with strategies used involving Doubling undesired mods)!

Since you have a 35% success rate for making a 3 mod item, that means you'll need on average 3 items with Prefix 1 + Prefix 2 and 3 items with Prefix 1 or 2 + Prefix 3! And then, for each of THOSE items, youll need 3 items with Prefix 1, 3 items with Prefix 2, 3 items with Prefix 3, and 3 MORE items with whichever Prefix you're doubling!

So yeah, the odds in a vacuum are a lot better. But are they better when you factor in what you'll have to do to acquire those two items to combine? Try to use your own judgment when making your items!

Scenario: 2 Desired Prefixes, 1 Desired Suffix

I'm not going to state every time how hard it would be to build up the doubled items used in these examples, so keep that in mind.

With no optimization, combining [2 Prefixes + 1 Suffix] gives you a 22% chance to keep all of them.

There are two options for Doubling here: [2 Prefix + 1 Prefix 1 Suffix], or [1 Prefix 1 Suffix + 1 Prefix 1 Suffix]. Basically, the question is do you Double the Prefix or the Suffix?

Doubling the Prefix [2 Prefix + 1 Prefix 1 Suffix] gives you a 46.5% success rate.

Doubling the Suffix [1 Prefix 1 Suffix + 1 Prefix 1 Suffix] gives you a 33% success rate.

 

Scenario: 4 Desired Mods

Here are some more scenarios that Recombinators are often used for involving 4 Desired Mods. The scenarios are: [3 Prefix 1 Suffix] and [2 Prefix 2 Suffix]. Keep in mind that if you have to create the items necessary to use Doubling here, it will involve even more combining than before.

Scenario: 3 Desired Prefixes, 1 Desired Suffix.

Once again, the success rate when combining [3 Prefixes + 1 Suffix] with no optimization is 13%.

Using doubling, you can either combine [3 Prefixes + 2 Prefixes 1 Suffix], or you can combine [2 Prefix 1 Suffix + 2 Prefix 1 Suffix]. The question is the same as before: Should you double two Prefixes, or one Prefix and one Suffix?

Doubling 2 Prefixes [3 Prefix + 2 Prefix 1 Suffix] gives you a 33.3% success rate.

Doubling 1 Prefix and 1 Suffix [2 Prefix 1 Suffix + 2 Prefix 1 Suffix] gives you a 35% success rate.

Pretty much the same odds, as long as you utilize Doubling!

Scenario: 2 Desired Prefixes, 2 Desired Suffixes

The success rate when combining [2 Prefixes + 2 Suffixes] with no optimization is 11%.

As before, is it better to double 2 Prefixes, or 1 Prefix 1 Suffix?

Doubling 2 Prefixes [2 Prefix 1 Suffix + 2 Prefix 1 Suffix] gives you a 30% success rate.

Doubling 1 Prefix and 1 Suffix [2 Prefix 1 Suffix + 1 Prefix 2 Suffix] gives you a whopping 49.5% success rate!

In the previous example the two different ways to utilize doubling were similar. In this case, there is a clear winner!

It's important to note that Doubling your Desired Mods isn't your only strategy here. If those mods are prohibitively expensive, instead you can choose to follow the strategy from 3b.

 

Scenario: Moving a single mod to a new base

Sometimes you just want to make a ring with +1 maximum Frenzy Charges. But what's the best way to do that? No matter what, you'll still have to deal with that pesky 50/50 of choosing the right base, but there are ways to boost your odds.

The success rate of moving 1 Prefix to a new base (counting the 50% to choose the right base) without any optimization is 33.3%. Not bad!

But what if we doubled? What if we simply crafted Life on both items?

Doubling a mod you don't want to keep [2 Prefix + 1 Prefix] gives you a 40% success rate. Admittedly, not a huge difference, but if you're working with a one of a kind base you want the odds in your favor.

 

Limitations of Recombinators

In closing, I'd like to tell you what NOT to use Recombinators for.

  • Recombinators are not good at removing a specific mod from an item. The odds are the same or worse than annulling, but in some cases you'll remove two Desired Mods at once, or successfully remove the mod you wanted to, but take a Desired Mod along with it!
  • Recombinators are not good at making 5 or 6 mod items. Now, depending on your item, they may still be the best way possible. But for many, a combination of Harvest, Aisling, and Crafted Mods is a much better way to finish off an item with those perfect 3 Prefixes you just Recombinated. If you had two perfect 5 mod items that you were combining into a 6 mod item, you'd have a 24% success rate. But those 5 mod items, which take minimum four perfect 4 mod items, have a 17% success rate. And those 4 mod items...