You can also add slots and cut weapon levels on certain weapons but Indy21 and Acclaim didn't make this process quite as simple as they could have. Someone must have the idea that "complicated is better", and I'm going to try to make this as simple as possible.

First of all there are a couple of annoying rules. You can only add slots or cut levels on the [NEW] or Bloody Dragon weapons. Slots cannot be added to the usual collection of weapons and you can't cut them down a few levels either. And worst of all, you cannot add slots or cut weapon levels on a weapon that is already refined.

I find that so annoying.

The problem is that the [NEW] and Bloody Dragon weapons count as colored weapons and those have a much lower refining success rate. Slotted weapons also have a lower refining success rate and the combination of the two; colored and slotted, well let's just say that your refining success rates are pathetic.

Are you listening Acclaim?

[NEW] and Bloody Dragon weapons without slots are a fairly common drop in the game. The only trouble I have is to get a weapon that is usable by my characters; spears, axes, or bracers. I always seem to get daggers, polearms, and occasionally gloves. You can normally spam the map chat during an event to get what you're looking for. Usually someone in your own party will get what you're looking for, and hopefully they'll just give it to you. A weapon without slots isn't worth much.

It is simple to add a slot and cut levels on non-slotted, non-refined [NEW] or Bloody Dragon weapons, but here is where it gets more complicated than it has to be. You have to "add a slot" and "cut levels" at the same damned time.

Here is how it works:

You add the slot with a Bronze Separator and that too is a fairly common drop in the game, for now. I'm saving my drops in case we get the golden thread treatment, and these drops disappear.

You can cut 4 levels from a weapon with a Narrow Groove Cutter which can be bought from the General Store NPC in Hefei.

You can cut 8 levels from a weapon with a Double Groove Cutter which is a fairly common drop in the game, for now. Again, I'm saving my drops in case we get the golden thread treatment, and these drops disappear.

It is also possible to cut a weapon 12 levels, but it costs a Blood Essence. If you have both of a Narrow Groove Cutter and a Double Groove Cutter and one Blood Essence, you can take them to the Craft Merchant NPC (beside Wan Daye) and trade those items for a Triple Groove Cutter which will allow you to cut your weapon down 12 levels all at once.

You take your non-slotted and unrefined [NEW] or Bloody Dragon weapon to any Blacksmith in any village. For some reason Hefei doesn't have a blacksmith so I usually run back to my clan map. Talk to the blacksmith and "combine" your weapon by adding the weapon, the bronze separator and the cutter of your choice. You'll pay the Blacksmith 400,000 gold for this and what you get back is a [NEW] or Bloody Dragon weapon with one slot. The Refining Bitch will be happy to break it for you.

I went through this process recently in order to build a new Axe for my hybrid character. I bought or picked up 4 of the GL12 Bloody Dragon Kunwu Axes and made all of them into CS12 one slot weapons. I took them to the Refining Bitch and she quite happily broke two of them at +4, once of them at +5 and the last one is now +6. I didn't use dragon scales on these so this didn't cost me any real world money. I'll need this weapon when I move this character to the Ice Map and +6 with an HP ornament should be enough to take on the reindeer. We'll see.

-RedCross- and SpearDriver