Eridium plays a central role in Borderlands 4 once again, but its use has changed fundamentally. We explain what you need the rare crystals for.
No sooner have you landed on the new planet Kairos in Borderlands 4 than they catch your eye again: the unmistakable, purple-glowing Eridium crystals. The alien currency is back in the latest installment of the looter-shooter saga.
But if you want to stroll over to Crazy Earl to buy skins as usual, you’re in for a surprise: Gearbox has significantly revamped how Eridium works in Borderlands 4, making it a pure endgame currency.
In this guide, we summarize exactly what this means and where you can invest your hard-earned Eridium to take your Vault Hunters to the top.
How to spend Eridium in Borderlands 4
Once you’ve completed the main story of Borderlands 4, the true endgame begins – and with it, the real use for Eridium. Forget colorful weapon skins or silly heads, because now it’s time to get down to business. From now on, your Eridium reserves will go directly into optimizing your build and hunting for the best equipment.
Moxxi’s “Big Encore”: Boss farming with better drops
One of the most important and probably also most expensive new features is Moxxi’s “Big Encore” machine. While you can repeat boss fights early in the game for a small cash fee, you unlock the “Big Encore” option after the campaign.
For a hefty Eridium price, you can restart a boss fight with significantly increased drop rates for legendary items. This makes hunting for a specific legendary item much more time-efficient. So plan your Eridium budget wisely, because this feature will become the main source for farming your desired equipment and is likely to be your biggest Eridium drain.
You can see how to use the machine in the following video:
Firmware Transfer: Build your own set bonuses
A completely new feature in Borderlands 4 is the “Firmware” system: Certain pieces of equipment (such as shields, grenade mods, or artifacts) have what is known as firmware, which acts as a set bonus. If you equip multiple items with the same firmware, you unlock powerful bonuses.
In the cities of Kairos, you’ll find a machine operated by Zane that allows you to extract the firmware from one item and transfer it to another item of the same type in exchange for Eridium. For example, you can transfer the powerful firmware of an otherwise weak shield to your favorite legendary shield. This opens up completely new possibilities for min-maxing your builds, but it is also a costly endeavor.
Resetting specializations
In addition to your regular skill tree, you unlock “specializations” in the endgame, an additional progression system with powerful passive bonuses. If you’ve misplaced your skills or want to try out a completely new build, you can reset your allocated points at a respec station.
However, this process costs a flat fee of 5,000 Eridium. So think carefully about your skill allocation, but rest assured that no decision has to be final – as long as you have the necessary funds.