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Path of Exile 2

Identifying Magical Items for Free

By
Nathan Garvin

You’ll find plenty of loot during your adventures in Path of Exile 2, and harkening back to loot-grind ARPGs of yore, the rarer, more mystical gear you find can’t be blindly equipped. First it must be identified before its properties are known to the player and, more importantly, it can be equipped. This page will cover how to identify magical items in Path of Exile 2, including where to buy Scrolls of Wisdom and how to get free identification from The Hooded One.

Page Breakdown

Identifying Items with Scrolls of Wisdom

When you find your first magical items (quite possibly after defeating [The Bloated Miller] - the game’s first boss) you’ll quickly run into an issue - these items can’t be used until they’re identified! You’re going to want to use magical and rare gear, too, because these items have random modifiers on them that boost various gameplay parameters - more damage, health, armor, skill bonuses, etc., the rarer the item, the more modifiers. Fortunately you’ll also find Scrolls of Wisdom, single-used items that can be consumed to reveal the properties of magical gear, which can then be equipped. These will drop fairly regularly from all sorts of enemies, so you should have a constant supply of them.

(1 of 2) Eventually you’ll start finding magical (and rarer) gear,

Eventually you’ll start finding magical (and rarer) gear, (left), and these must be identified before they can be equipped. (right)

Buying Scrolls of Wisdom

Path of Exile 2 isn’t the most generous game when it comes to loot drops, but the game will still drop more magical items than Scrolls of Wisdom. At some point you’re going to end up with a surplus of magical gear that needs to be identified, and relying on RNG to solve your problems will likely just exacerbate them. Fortunately you can visit Una in Clearfell Encampment and purchase new Scrolls of Wisdom from her for 25 gold each. This will eat into your profits a bit, but not as much as not identifying magical items and selling them would, to say nothing of keeping your power level up by being able to equip these new items.

(1 of 2) You can get Scrolls of Wisdom from most loot sources,

You can get Scrolls of Wisdom from most loot sources, (left), but when your unidentified gear invariably starts to outnumber your Scrolls of Wisdom, you may have to buy more from Una. (right)

The Hooded One Free Identification

We’re all friends here, so we can hopefully speak candidly - individually identifying gear sucks. The less time you spend in your inventory screens in a loot-grind APRG, the better it probably is. This is something we should have all learned back in 2000 when Diablo 2 sidestepped the issue by allowing Deckard Cain to identify all the magical gear in your inventory free of charge, once you rescued him. Fortunately for us all, Path of Exile 2 is clearly inspired quite heavily by the aforementioned heavyweight of the ARPG genre, and has provided an awfully similar workaround to the tedium of manual identification.

(1 of 2) Eventually you’ll start the quest “Sorrow Among Stones”, where after defeating a boss you’ll obtain Count Lachlann’s Ring.

Eventually you’ll start the quest “Sorrow Among Stones”, where after defeating a boss you’ll obtain Count Lachlann’s Ring. (left), Bring this ring to Una, and afterwards The Hooded One will identify your gear free of charge. (right)

Advance the main questline until the quest Sorrow Among Stones begins, where you’ll need to head to the Cemetery of the Eternals and do some busywork there (read: defeat several bosses). After vanquishing [Lachlann of Eternal Sorrow], reclaim Count Lachlann’s Ring and return to Una in the Clearfall Encampment. After some chatter you’ll be able to talk to The Hooded One, who might not have the same iconic voice as ol’ Deckard Cain, but he will identify your gear for you for free going forward. Just talk to him in town and select the option for him to identify your gear (or press Square if you’re on PlayStation) and he’ll identify every unidentified item in your inventory, no fuss, no muss, no pay.

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Guide Information
  • Guide Release
    6 December 2024
  • Last Updated
    21 December 2024
    Version History
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Following the success of the original Path of Exile, Grinding Gear Games is back with a sequel to the 2013-released free-to-play action role-playing game. Play as one of six classes as you hunt down the Seed of Corruption and indulge in a bit of treasure hunting on the side - kill enemies, get loot, kill stronger enemies, repeat as necessary! This guide will cover the following aspects of the game:

  • Every type of in-game currency
  • How to defeat every boss, story and optional
  • Best starter skills for each class
  • How to complete the Trial of Ascendancy and unlock Ascendency Classes
  • Information about core gameplay mechanics
  • Tips and tricks to help get you started

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