Goal-Based Farming Guide: XP, Gold, Upgrade Materials, Boss Keys, and Mythic Materials
Choose a Diablo IV farming route from the one resource you currently lack, not from a permanent fastest-route ranking. Start with base-game routes, layer in Lord of Hatred War Plans and Season 14 Mythic-material routes, then rotate as soon as the goal is met.
For XP, run dense activities at a Torment you clear reliably, then overlap War Plans and Whispers if you own the expansion. Center Gold farming on the Infernal Hordes Gold chest, supported by Whispers and selling selected gear. Use Nightmare Dungeons for Obducite and other Masterworking returns, and Helltide chests, salvage, and current conversion routes for Forgotten Souls. Reverse-lookup boss keys from the Unique you want. In Season 14, center Pandemonium Fragment farming on Corrupted Reaper and repeatable Reputation.
Five Steps Before Farming
51. Choose One Shortage
Choose the single shortage blocking your next upgrade: XP, Gold, Masterworking materials, gems, boss keys, or Pandemonium Fragments. Advance secondary goals only when they naturally overlap.
2. Confirm the Sink and Cost In Game
Read the live cost at the Blacksmith, Jeweler, Hoard, or Horadric Cube. Do not set a farming target from an old article's cost or key count.
3. Use a Reliably Clearable Difficulty
Higher Torment improves XP, Gold, and material returns, but drop one step when deaths or failed clears interrupt the loop. Consistency matters more than the maximum tier.
4. Separate Expansion and Seasonal Routes
War Plans and the Horadric Cube require Lord of Hatred; Pandemonium Fragments and Corrupted Reaper belong to Season 14. Without that access, stay on the base-game primary routes.
5. Recheck the Shortage Every 30–60 Minutes
When you can afford the upgrade, craft, or Hoard opening, spend the resource and rotate to the next shortage. Do not keep looping one activity without using its returns.
Six Goal-Based Farming Routes
6Experience and Post-70 Progression
Advance levels, Paragon, and War Plan progression without stalled clears
Primary: At a reliably clearable Torment, run the dense activity your current build clears quickly. Choose among Infernal Hordes, Nightmare Dungeons, and Helltide by low travel time and low failure risk.
Secondary: Overlap Whispers only when they match the activity or region, then turn in the cache and continue. If Glyph upgrades are the only goal, separate that work into the Pit.
Expansion: Lord of Hatred owners can chain needed activities in War Plans and layer Whispers, Activity Points, and the final War Chest into one loop.
Season: In Season 14, layer Ruptures or seasonal objectives only when they match the current route. Do not treat a seasonal activity as permanently fastest leveling.
Rotate when: Rotate when deaths, timeouts, or inventory management break consecutive clears, or when gear and materials—not XP—become the next blocker.
OPEN RELATED GUIDE →Gold
Fund Masterworking, Enchanting, and crafting costs
Primary: Collect Burning Aether in Infernal Hordes and spend it on the Gold chest. Patch 3.1 scales its Gold with Aether spent, so decide the Gold-versus-gear chest split before a Gold-focused run.
Secondary: Supplement with matching Whisper caches and gear retained for sale by the Loot Filter. Separate sale items from salvage candidates so needed Aspects and materials are not lost.
Expansion: When a War Plan overlaps Infernal Hordes and Whispers, combine normal rewards, activity progression, and the War Chest. Do not build a long five-node chain for Gold alone.
Season: Treat Season 14 Reputation and Season Rank caches as supplemental income, not a fixed payout per run.
Rotate when: Stop after funding the next upgrade, or when Obducite or Forgotten Souls—not Gold—become the blocker.
OPEN RELATED GUIDE →Obducite, Forgotten Souls, and Upgrade Materials
Refill the material currently blocking Masterworking or gear upgrades
Primary: For Obducite, run Nightmare Dungeons and collect chests, events, and interactables rather than only the completion cache. For Forgotten Souls, center the route on Helltide chests and salvaging unwanted gear.
Secondary: Supplement with Infernal Hordes material rewards, Whisper caches, and Season Rank caches. Patch 3.1 also allows Baleful Fragments to be converted into Forgotten Souls at the Alchemist.
Expansion: In War Plans, select Nightmare Dungeons, Helltide, or Infernal Hordes around the missing material. If Cube materials are needed, label War Chests or Undercity as a separate goal.
Season: Read current Season Blessing bonuses in the live UI. Do not count them as permanent baseline drops for the evergreen route.
Rotate when: Stop when the Blacksmith can complete the planned ranks, then recheck whether Obducite or Forgotten Souls is now the smaller stock.
OPEN RELATED GUIDE →Gem Fragments and Crafting Materials
Supply sockets and crafting recipes
Primary: Farm them in reliably clearable, elite-dense activities instead of one permanent location. Patch 3.1 increases Gem Fragments at Torment X+, but do not force the tier upward if clear consistency collapses.
Secondary: Use the Jeweler's current conversion recipes to turn surplus fragment types into needed ones, reducing time spent farming an already-full category.
Expansion: Lord of Hatred Horadric Cube materials have a separate supply network—Elites, Cube Spoils from War Plans, Undercity Tributes, and Whisper caches—and should not be treated as Gem Fragments.
Season: Season 14 caches are supplemental. Treat the Jeweler UI as authoritative for current conversion pairs and costs.
Rotate when: Stop when the gems for the planned gear can be crafted, then return to upgrade materials, keys, or item targeting.
OPEN RELATED GUIDE →Lair Boss Keys
Farm the key that opens the Hoard for a targeted Unique
Primary: Pick one desired Unique from the finished build and reverse-lookup its key. Center Living Steel on Helltide, Distilled Fear on Nightmare Dungeons, and Exquisite Blood on Blood Maiden, Legion Events, and World Bosses.
Secondary: Convert Stygian Stones from Initiate Hoards at the Alchemist into the Greater key you need. After the kill, each player opens the Hoard with their own keys.
Expansion: Check ownership before targeting Vessel of Hatred or Lord of Hatred bosses. Use a War Plan Lair Boss node when its target matches your key stock.
Season: Season 14 Corrupted Reaper uses Superior Lair Keys; high-Torment Deathtoll Chambers are the current route with a minimum-one guarantee.
Rotate when: Stop when you can open the planned number of Hoards. Spend the keys and review the item result instead of endlessly stockpiling them.
OPEN RELATED GUIDE →Mythic Uniques and Pandemonium Fragments
Secure Season 14 Mythic chances and Cube conversion materials
Primary: Open Corrupted Reaper's Hoard with Superior Lair Keys for direct Mythic Unique chances and up to two Pandemonium Fragments scaling with Torment.
Secondary: Repeat Glints of Hope Reputation after the final rank for the one guaranteed Pandemonium Fragment added in Patch 3.1.1. Use Resplendent and other seasonal caches as supplemental sources.
Expansion: Lord of Hatred owners can spend four Pandemonium Fragments and a spare item-power-850+ Unique in the Horadric Cube for a random Mythic in the same gear slot. Do not consume a valuable original item.
Season: Pandemonium Fragments and Corrupted Reaper are Season 14 content. Do not promise them as permanent Eternal routes; spend the seasonal materials before rollover.
Rotate when: Stop at four fragments for a Cube conversion or when Superior Keys run out. Recheck the target slot and fodder Unique before confirming the recipe.
OPEN RELATED GUIDE →Five Rules for Rotating Routes
5Spend as Soon as the Cost Is Met
Perform the Masterwork, gem craft, Hoard opening, or Mythic conversion first, then observe the actual next shortage. Do not overfarm from an assumption.
Prioritize Clear Consistency over Tier
Even when higher Torment improves rewards, lower it if deaths, timeouts, or long bosses reduce completed runs. There is no permanent ideal tier.
Overlap Only Natural Matches
Layer Whispers, War Plans, and Season 14 objectives only when they match the primary route. Do not stop the main resource loop for a distant detour.
Separate Item Targeting into Boss Lookup
When a specific Unique becomes necessary, leave general loot-volume farming and switch to its boss and key. Process one target at a time from the finished build.
Do Not Assume Seasonal Materials Roll Over
Spend Season 14-only materials such as Pandemonium Fragments after checking recipes and rollover messaging. Do not stockpile them like evergreen materials.
Farming Guide Boundaries
6- No hourly rate, fixed drops per run, ideal tier, or exact Mythic drop chance is guaranteed; build, Torment, Sigil modifiers, and live events change the result.
- Nightmare Dungeons are a current Obducite, gear, and material route—not the primary Glyph-upgrade route. Use the Pit for Glyphs.
- War Plans and the Horadric Cube require Lord of Hatred. Base-game-only players use individual activities and the Blacksmith, Jeweler, and Alchemist routes.
- Pandemonium Fragments, Corrupted Reaper, and repeatable Glints rewards are Season 14 routes and are not permanently guaranteed for Eternal or future seasons.
- Confirm Lair-key costs and Hoard rules in the live Patch 3.1.1-or-later UI. Keys are spent on the post-kill Hoard, not on summoning the boss.
- Gear hidden by the Loot Filter also disappears from sale and salvage candidates. Verify a test drop after switching between Gold and material presets.
Important Corrections as of Patch 3.1.1
6- The Infernal Hordes Gold chest currently scales its Gold payout with Burning Aether spent.
- Helltide chest loot was improved, and Baleful Fragments can be converted into Forgotten Souls at the Alchemist.
- Gem Fragment drops increase at Torment X+, and that increase should not be applied to lower tiers.
- High-Torment Deathtoll Chambers guarantee at least one Superior Lair Key.
- Corrupted Reaper drops up to two Pandemonium Fragments by Torment, and repeatable Glints rewards guarantee one.
- The Horadric Cube's Upgrade to Mythic recipe uses four Pandemonium Fragments and creates a random Mythic for the same gear slot.
Continue From Here
9Endgame Activity Comparison
Compare the roles of the Pit, Nightmare Dungeons, Helltide, Tower, and War Plans.
Boss and Key Reverse Lookup
Work backward from a desired Unique to its boss, Hoard, and key source.
War Plans Guide
For expansion owners, combine activities, Whispers, and the War Chest.
Loot Filter Guide
Switch visible drops for selling, salvage, and gear upgrades.
Corrupted Reaper Guide
Review Superior Keys, the Hoard, and Pandemonium Fragment flow.
Glints of Hope Reputation
Follow Reputation through its repeatable Fragment reward.
Mythic Uniques 3.0
Review direct drops, Fragments, and Cube-conversion boundaries.
New and Returning Player Progression
Follow campaign, level 70, Torment, and gear-upgrade progression.
Current Build Index
Choose targets from current expansion-inclusive finished builds.