Conquest Dark features four distinct currencies, each essential for strengthening your character in its dark and gritty universe. Every gaming session offers something new, but there are permanent upgrades you can unlock to make future runs more manageable.
Initially, the game may seem overwhelming, but there’s no need to stress. This guide will provide a detailed overview of every currency available, the upgrade systems, and the world nodes. You’ll discover how to acquire these currencies, their purposes, and how they can enhance your character between plays.
Types of Nodes
When you access the world map, you’ll notice various nodes. Each node represents a location you can explore.
There are two main types of nodes. Some are combat areas where you’ll face waves of enemies and bosses to earn currencies, while others serve as upgrade hubs where you can spend your rewards:
- You can earn currencies from Dark Rituals and Faction Reputation.
- You can spend currencies to unlock upgrades at the Altars, Obelisks, and The Stygian Archive.
How to Acquire Currencies
Completing Dark Rituals and boosting your Faction Reputation will grant you Corrupted Soul Fragments, Soul Coins, Primordial Soul Coins, and Shards of the Black Planet.
Dark Rituals
Dark Rituals are the primary missions in the game. During these events, you’ll battle waves of foes, elite enemies, and formidable bosses. Your performance directly influences how quickly you can level up and access upgrades.
The longer you endure and the more bosses you defeat, the higher the ritual tier ascends. Higher tiers yield considerably better rewards, including increased drop rates and larger amounts of currencies.
Completing Dark Rituals also grants Faction Experience.
Faction Reputation
- Type of currency: Soul Coins, Primordial Soul Coins
Every playable class in Conquest Dark belongs to a specific Faction. Using that class in Dark Rituals will automatically earn you Faction Experience. This progress accumulates over time, reflecting your commitment to that faction and unlocking ongoing rewards.
Each faction has a 25-level reputation track, and reaching certain milestones at levels 5, 10, 15, and 20 will reward you with valuable items, such as:
- Soul Coins and Primordial Soul Coins
- Passive stat boosts like increased critical hit chance, bleed resistance, or cooldown reduction.
- New weapons and abilities unique to that faction.
Most upgrades you unlock apply across all classes, not just one. For instance, leveling up to Level 20 with the Barbarian’s faction, Band of the Lion, grants a 25% bleed damage reduction applicable to all classes. This encourages you to progress through Factions, even if you prefer various characters.
Classes like Barbarian, Hunter, Thief, Oathkeeper, and Acolyte of Kuu each align with unique factions. By leveling up all classes and their respective factions, you’ll gain bonuses beneficial for every character. In time, this builds a strong foundation to bolster every gameplay session, regardless of the class you choose.
Spend Currencies to Improve Your Character
You can spend Corrupted Soul Fragments, Shards of the Black Planet, Soul Coins, and Primordial Soul Coins at the Altars, Obelisks, and The Stygian Archives.
Altars
- Type of currency: Corrupted Soul Fragments.
- Function: Permanently enhance your base stats.
Altars are vital for progression in Conquest Dark. Each Altar focuses on upgrading specific stats, such as damage, health, movement speed, cooldown reduction, projectile speed, and pickup radius.
These upgrades are permanent and accumulate, benefiting every class and session. However, the cost of upgrades rises as you advance. After level 7, the required amount of Corrupted Soul Fragments increases significantly. To avoid heavy grinding later, prioritize your upgrade choices early on.
Not all stat upgrades are created equal. Most altars provide minor increases per level, usually around +0.25% to +0.5%. However, some, like the Altar of Power, grant +2% damage per level, offering significantly better returns.
Focus your early Corrupted Soul Fragments on upgrades that substantially enhance your damage or survivability. Expand to secondary stats after stabilizing those primary ones.
Obelisks
- Type of currency: Shards of the Black Planet.
- Function: Increase the difficulty of your next ritual in exchange for better rewards.
Obelisks are special nodes enabling you to apply Corruption to your next Dark Ritual by using Shards of the Black Planet. These shards enhance resource gains and progression, making them one of the most efficient ways to boost rewards.
Each shard provides a percentage-based bonus active during your next ritual, and stacking multiple shards across various Obelisks amplifies the potential gains across multiple currencies. Common Corruption bonuses include:
- +X% Faction Experience
- +X% chance of obtaining extra Soul Coins
- +X% chance of earning additional Corrupted Soul Fragments
X represents the bonus value, which varies based on the shard. Different shards can offer a wide range of effects. For example, one shard might give you an +18% Soul Coin drop chance, while another boosts Faction XP by +52%.
Check your shard inventory and strategize to maximize your rewards for specific goals, whether leveling a faction or farming coins.
If a ritual has no modifier, a Corruption penalty will be applied. If you select a ritual with an inherent difficulty modifier, like increased enemy health, additional penalties from Obelisks won’t apply. You’ll receive the full corruption bonuses without an increase in difficulty.
This system lets you apply Corruption to simpler rituals for efficient farming or utilize it on modified rituals for extra rewards without added risk. In both scenarios, bonuses are always active, ensuring your shards are never wasted.
The Stygian Archive
- Type of currency: Soul Coins, Primordial Soul Coins.
- Function: Upgrade your weapons and abilities.
The Stygian Archive serves as your central hub for weapon and ability upgrades. Here, you can review all the skills and enhancements you’ve unlocked throughout your journey.
Each weapon or ability can be upgraded up to level 10, with each level providing a +5% damage increase for a total of +50% at max level. Upgrades require Soul Coins and become pricier at each level.
Primordial Soul Coins are essential for critical stages at levels 5 and 10. These coins are scarce, so focus on upgrading your most-used abilities and weapons.
Leveling up not only boosts damage but also unlocks Rune Slots at levels 1, 5, and 10, allowing customization with special effects. This enhances your build and playstyle.
Here are some tips for maximizing your progression:
- Start with Damage upgrades at the Altar of Power, as they offer the best early boost: +2% per level.
- Apply Corruption to difficult rituals for greater rewards without added risk.
- Level up all factions over time for significant global bonuses.
- Save Soul Coins for skills and weapons you plan to fully upgrade.
- Once you settle on a primary class or build, allocate your coins and upgrade investments accordingly for more effective growth.
- Level multiple factions for stacking global perks.
All Currency Types Explained
Each currency type can enhance world nodes and unlock permanent character upgrades in Conquest Dark. Some currencies are common and easily acquired, while others are rare and associated with specific challenges. Here’s a breakdown:
Corrupted Soul Fragments
Corrupted Soul Fragments are the red crystals. They serve as your primary currency for upgrading crucial stats in Conquest Dark. These fragments drop from nearly all enemies, but you’ll earn significantly more when taking down elite foes and bosses, especially in higher-tier Dark Rituals.
You can spend them at Altars to gain permanent stat improvements like increased damage, health, and movement speed. The higher your upgrade level, the more fragments you’ll need, so gather and save them for long-term advancement.
Soul Coins
Soul Coins, also known as Silver Coins, are a commonly earned currency from Dark Rituals and Faction rewards. They are crucial for upgrading weapons and abilities in the Stygian Archive.
These coins are needed for all upgrades from levels 1 to 10, with costs increasing at each level. Although they’re easy to collect early on, their value grows as you unlock more abilities and start diversifying your upgrades.
Primordial Soul Coins
Primordial Soul Coins are rare gold coins primarily obtained from high-tier Dark Rituals and Faction reputation rewards. They are vital for milestone upgrades at levels 5 and 10 in the Stygian Archive, which enhance weapons and abilities.
Since Primordial Soul Coins are limited, prioritize upgrades for your most utilized weapons or abilities to maximize each upgrade’s impact.
Shards of the Black Planet
Shards of the Black Planet are acquired by completing certain rituals. These shards are inserted into Obelisks to introduce Corruption, providing randomized bonuses for your upcoming ritual. For instance, you might receive effects like increased Faction XP or enhanced chances of obtaining Soul Coins.
