The blacksmith is likely the first villager to join the player in Tainted Grail: Conquest. Unfortunately for those still getting accustomed to the game, he's also the most complicated and has the most tabs to understand of any of the professionals that assist.
It can take a while to understand exactly what he offers, but players should know ahead of time exactly what he does, why he's important, and how to make the best use of his services. He's a key character that will need to be spoken to in any successful run in Tainted Grail: Conquest.
Collect Runestone Dust
The blacksmith deals in wealth simple wealth for a few items, but his most important contributions require upgrades with runestone dust. It's these different currencies for each villager that make the RPG genre so immersive and give each villager a personality.
To get these upgrades, merge runestones together; the higher the quality, the more runestone dust is collected. Before finishing off a run, merge all runes together so that none of the runes go waste, since they don't survive through multiple playthroughs but the runestone dust they provide lives forever.
Start With His Last Three Upgrades
Many of the best RPGs on Game Pass can be conquered by starting out with the low-hanging fruit and moving up from there. But in the case of the blacksmith, it's his last three upgrades that make the biggest impact on a player's run.
Extra wealth turns into golden tokens to be used with the scientist, so the less spent on runes, the better. By upgrading the chance and quality of getting random runes, players will be able to find what they need instead of shelling out their hard-earned cash for it.
Do Not Exchange Runestones
Of the many RPGs getting exciting sequels, don't be surprised if Tainted Grail: Conquest makes the list with an impressive first game. However, if there is another video game coming up, gamers will be hoping that they revamp the exchange system at the blacksmith.
Just avoid this tab entirely. For one-hundred coins, players can turn in a runestone and get a random one in return. However, the odds of getting a needed runestone are beyond bad. Keep in mind that every one-hundred wealth is a guaranteed golden token, so each gamble trades away one potentially valuable currency.
Get Second Slots For Armor And Weapons
With a steady supply of runestones coming in, it's a good time to upgrade armor and weapon slots for runes. By doubling the runestones players can equip, they can double the effectiveness of the runes they receive. Although nobody can guarantee which runes will pop up each run, they're all at least moderately useful.
For example, armor slots often force players to choose between healing, barriers, and armor. A second slot makes it so two of these can be selected. And, with a little luck, characters will be offered by NPCs during the run to add a rune slot for a third choice.
Spend To Merge, Not To Use
As mentioned already, wealth translates to golden tokens, so going on a spending binge is unwise. Players don't need to be misers, but they should spend with purpose and refrain from buying something from the blacksmith that they could very likely find for free later.
There is, of course, a wise time to spend. At the end of a run, if the player has two matching runes and the blacksmith offers a third in the shop, buy it. This runestone dust is generally considered more valuable than golden tokens, so don't feel bad about spending to make a merge happen.
Transmutations: The Final Step
The blacksmith will turn any three runestones into one of the same rarity with the transmute ability. The transmute result is the player's choice, so it's far better to go this route than gambling. However, gamers won't know how many merges they can complete until the end.
Therefore, it's best to hold off on transmuting until the very end. Select three runes with no matches and turn them into the third match on runestones that have two of a kind. Even if the rune never gets used, it's the process that matters since that's what makes the runestone dust.
The Special Card: Hard Steel
Gamers would be wise to look up what the blacksmith's secret special card does before buying it. To preview it here first, Hard Steel provides 75 armor and takes away 25% damage for three turns. Armor is important, but is it worth giving up damage?
For most players, that answer is going to be no. Even if it might be close, remember that buying the card itself costs wealth which will take away from the number of golden tokens players get to spend at the scientist. Until she's maxed out, definitely pass on this card.
Tainted Grail: Conquest was released on May 27th, 2021, and is available for PC.