With the arrival of Season of the Malignant in Diablo 4, a host of exciting new mechanics, enemies, items, and resources has joined the game’s already extensive roster of content. Among these fresh additions are the Malignant Monsters, scattered throughout Sanctuary, that drop a powerful new item to enhance your character builds – the Caged Hearts. In this article, we will delve into the depths of these intriguing items and explore the best ways to utilize Malignant Caged Hearts in Diablo 4! Let’s explore their potential and discover how to make the most of them.
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How to Use Caged (Malignant) Hearts in D4
Caged Hearts are powerful enhancements that bring new (or enhance existing) abilities to your character, similar to Legendary Aspects, significantly improving or even completely changing your playstyle for the better! Like imprinting aspects in your gear to boost your character’s offense, defense, or utility, you can slot different Caged Hearts into your equipped Jewelry, i.e., Amulets and Rings, to unleash potent effects in combat.
In Season 1, you can find 32 different Caged Hearts, some of which are general and can be used by all classes, while others are class-specific, much like the Legendary Aspects. Notice that all your Amulets and Rings now come with an “Infested Socket” this season. This specifies which type of Caged Heart you can slot into that specific gear.
There are primarily three types of Caged Hearts, and they can ONLY be placed in their respective colored sockets on Jewelry:
- Brutal Caged Hearts (Blue): These possess defensive or restorative properties, enhancing your character’s survivability with defensive or recovery-based perks.
- Devious Caged Hearts (Pink): These offer utility-based properties, aiding in dealing with Crowd Control effects and improving various aspects of your gameplay.
- Vicious Caged Hearts (Orange): These provide offensive properties, boosting your character’s damage and offensive potential.
Additionally, there is a special, rarer fourth type, the Wrathful Caged Hearts (White), that grant unique and even more powerful effects. They can be placed into any infested socket regardless of color. However, you cannot equip more than one Wrathful Heart at a time, while you can use multiple Brutal, Devious, or Vicious Hearts.
How to Salvage and Craft Caged Hearts in D4
Cormond’s Workbench is your go-to spot for all things related to Caged Hearts this season. You can find it in Kyovashad after completing the initial part of the seasonal storyline offered by your new friend, Cormond.
If you come across any Caged Heart that you don’t find useful or if it falls short compared to your current power, fear not! Head to Cormond’s Workbench and salvage those unwanted Caged Hearts to obtain Ichor of the corresponding type. You can then use this Ichor to craft new Caged Hearts, Malignant Invokers, or even Uncertain Heart/Invoker Caches.
Here’s the crafting cost pattern for each:
- Crafting a specific type of Caged Heart requires 35 Ichor of each of the other two types.
- Crafting a specific type of Malignant Invoker requires 50 Ichor of that type and 20 Ichor of each of the other two.
- Crafting an Uncertain Heart, which contains a random heart with a chance at a Wrathful Heart, requires 20 Ichor of each type.
- Crafting an Uncertain Invoker, which contains a random heart with a chance at a Wrathful Invoker, requires 40 Ichor of each type.
You can use a Malignant Invoker to summon a specific type of Malignant Enemy (Brutal, Vicious, Devious, or Wrathful), allowing you to target-farm the type of Caged Heart you need. Simply use your Invoker by interacting with the specific Pustule of the Malignant Outgrowth found at the end of the seasonal Malignant Tunnels mini-dungeons.
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Congratulations, you now know all there is to know about Malignant Hearts! From optimizing your endgame builds by slotting them into the right gear to salvaging useless ones and crafting powerful items, you’re fully prepared to tackle Season of the Malignant in Diablo 4!
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