If you’ve spent any time exploring the mist-covered biomes of Enshrouded, you’ve likely stumbled across magical staffs that pack way more punch than your average iron sword or wooden bow. But far too many new players leave these powerful tools gathering dust in their storage chests, because they don’t know how to charge staff in Enshrouded properly. I’ve spent over 120 hours in the game testing every staff type and charging method, so I’ve put together all the info you need to start using these magical weapons and utility tools to their full potential. You don’t need end-game gear to get started, either – even new players can charge basic staffs within their first few hours of gameplay.
What You Need to Charge Staffs Before You Start
Before you even attempt to charge your first staff, make sure you have all the required items and unlocks sorted. I missed one of these on my first playthrough and wasted 20 minutes running around my base confused, so double check this list first:
- Any tier of magical staff (common, uncommon, rare, legendary all work, though higher tiers require more rare charge materials)
- Corresponding charge resources matching your staff’s element (fire staffs need fire shards, frost staffs need frost shards, universal staffs work with any shard type)
- A crafted infusion station (unlocked once you rescue the Alchemist from the first shroud dungeon west of your starting base)
- At least 10 free inventory slots to hold the charged staff and leftover materials
You don’t need to have beat any main story bosses to unlock basic charging, which is a huge plus for new players. The only exception is legendary end-game staffs, which require you to beat the first major boss to access the higher-tier shards they need. If you’re still in the early game, stick to common or uncommon staffs first to get the hang of the process without wasting rare resources.
Step-by-Step Process to Charge Staff in Enshrouded
Once you have all your prerequisites sorted, the actual charging process is far simpler than most players expect. I’ve broken it down into simple steps that work for every staff tier, no matter what element you’re working with.
First, place your infusion station anywhere within your base’s claimed area – it won’t work if it’s sitting outside your base borders, even if you built it yourself. Interact with the station to pull up its crafting menu, then navigate to the Staff Charging tab on the far right of the menu. A lot of players miss this tab because it’s hidden behind the potion crafting options, so take a second to scan all the menu headers if you don’t see it right away.
Next, add your uncharged staff to the left input slot, then add your matching charge shards to the middle input slot. The menu will automatically show you how many shards you need for a full charge, so you don’t have to guess. Common staffs only need 5 shards for a full charge, while legendary staffs can need up to 50 of the highest tier infused shards.
Once you’ve added both items, hit the craft button and wait 3-5 in-game seconds for the charging to complete. You’ll see a small animation on the station, and your newly charged staff will pop up in the right output slot. You can pull it straight into your inventory, and it’s ready to use immediately.
That means you don’t have to do any extra steps like attuning the staff to your character or charging it with your own personal mana like in some other survival RPGs. The entire process takes less than a minute once you have all your materials gathered, which is a nice quality of life feature that a lot of players don’t know about. If you put the wrong shard type in the input slot, the station won’t let you start the charging process, so you don’t have to worry about wasting rare resources by accident.
Pro Tips to Optimize Your Staff Charging Routine
Now that you know the basic process, there are a few small tweaks you can make to save time, resources, and avoid common mistakes that I ran into during my first few weeks of playing. These tips work for both casual players who only use staffs for boss fights, and players who rely on magic as their main combat build.
First, always charge multiple staffs at the same time if you have the resources. The infusion station lets you queue up to 10 charging jobs at once, so you don’t have to stand around waiting for each one to finish individually. I usually charge 5 fire staffs and 5 frost staffs at the start of each play session, so I don’t have to run back to base mid-dungeon when one runs out of charge.
Another tip is to prioritize charging universal staffs if you find them. They work with any shard type, so you don’t have to farm multiple different elemental shards to keep them running. They have slightly lower base damage than element-specific staffs, but the convenience is well worth the small damage tradeoff for most players, especially if you’re still exploring and don’t have a steady farm for rare elemental shards.
You can also cut down on material costs by using partially charged staffs as input for new charges. If you have a staff that’s only 20% charged, you can put it in the input slot instead of a fully uncharged one, and the game will reduce the number of shards you need to fill it up. I used to throw away partially used staffs before I learned this, and I wasted hundreds of shards in my first playthrough as a result.
So don’t be afraid to experiment with different staff types too. Some staffs are designed for utility instead of combat, like the healing staff that revives downed allies or the building staff that lets you place blocks from far away. These utility staffs use way fewer shards per charge than combat staffs, so they’re perfect for new players who want to test out magic without investing a lot of resources.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Charging Staffs
Even with the right steps, it’s easy to make small mistakes that cost you time or resources. I’ve made all of these at least once, so I’m pointing them out to help you skip the frustration.
The most common mistake I see is players trying to charge staffs at a regular workbench instead of an infusion station. The game won’t give you an error message if you try, it just won’t show the charging recipe at all, so a lot of players assume they’re missing materials instead of using the wrong station. If you don’t see the staff charging option, double check that you’re using an infusion station, not a regular crafting bench or blacksmith table.
Another common mistake is hoarding rare shards for “better” staffs that you might find later. I did this for the first 30 hours of my playthrough, and I ended up with over 200 legendary shards sitting in my storage that I never used, because I kept waiting for a perfect staff that I never found. Use the shards you have on the staffs you’re using now – you can farm more shards whenever you need them, and you’ll get way more value out of using your staffs regularly than saving materials for a hypothetical future item.
You also don’t want to charge staffs that you don’t actually use. It’s easy to get excited when you find a rare staff, but if you never use frost attacks in your build, charging it is just a waste of frost shards that you could use for potion crafting or other upgrades. I keep a small note next to my gaming setup with the 2 staff types I use regularly, so I don’t waste resources charging staffs that will just sit in my storage.
In many cases, players also forget that charged staffs lose a small amount of charge over time if you leave them in your storage for more than 10 in-game days. You don’t have to worry about this if you use your staffs regularly, but if you’re saving a legendary staff for a specific boss fight, check its charge level before you head into the fight, because it might be lower than you remember.
Charging staffs doesn’t have to be a confusing, complicated process, even if you’re brand new to Enshrouded’s magic systems. Once you get the hang of how to charge staff in Enshrouded, you’ll unlock a whole new layer of gameplay that makes exploring shroud biomes, fighting tough bosses, and building your base way easier and more fun. Start small with basic common staffs first, test out different elements to see what fits your playstyle, and don’t be afraid to make mistakes as you learn. You’ll be slinging powerful magic attacks before you know it.