How to unlock the blacksmith in Nioh 3

If you’re wondering how to unlock the blacksmith in Nioh 3, don’t worry, you’ll get there eventually. Despite the blacksmith being a core component of the game, you can spend hours upon hours exploring the Warring States region without getting access to them, which also means you can’t do much with your unwanted equipment except sell it.

So here’s a full explainer on how the blacksmith works in Nioh 3 and how to gain access to them.

How to unlock the blacksmith in Nioh 3

You’ll unlock the blacksmith once you complete the first crucible dungeon and kill Jakotsu-baba, the boss at the end of the “Hamamatsu Incident” quest. This is when you’ll gain access to the Eternal Rift — Nioh 3’s central hub — which is home to a few different NPCs.

The Fox-masked Blacksmith is found in the building to the south of the region, and after talking to her, she’ll grant you the ability to forge weapons, armor, and tools from scratch, alongside remodeling equipment and disassembling it, which grants you various resources in exchange. This is usually better than selling it, because the crafting materials you’ll get are more valuable than coins to spend at a Sudama merchant, at least in my experience.

How to unlock soul matching and extraction in Nioh 3

Image: Team Ninja/Koei Tecmo via Polygon

When you first visit the blacksmith, the “Soul Match” and “Soul Extraction” options will be greyed out. This is because you need to engage in dialogue with her to start her myth (side quest), called “A Fierce Flame.”

Everything you need to complete this myth is signposted in-game, so simply follow the objectives, which includes visiting Lake Sanaru in the Warring States period, then eventually you’ll find a Scampuss that will take you to loot Kagutsuchi’s Magatama. Bring this back to the blacksmith and the ability to soul match and extract will be available.

Soul matching allows you to raise the level or +value of any given weapon or armor, but to do so, you’ll need yellow, azure, or viridian soul cores. These are obtained by using the “Soul Extraction” to disassemble your unwanted gear, but instead of crafting materials, you’ll receive soul cores. When the option is unlocked, “Soul Extraction” is by far the best way to dispose of your unused equipment because you can enhance the stats of the equipment you do use by a considerable margin.

For more help with Nioh 3, check out our guides on how to change appearance, how to get Glory, Yokai Teardrops, and the best weapons in the game. If you’re struggling to explore the Warring States, make sure to check out our tips!