Diablo 2: Resurrected is divided into different acts where you can complete quests. In the first act, there are 6 quests, with the penultimate being “The Right Tool” – eng. “Tools of the Trade.” MeinMMO reveals how to solve it and what to pay attention to.
What kind of quest is this? “The Right Tool” is the fifth quest in Act 1 of Diablo 2. It leads you further to the end of the act and is necessary for completion. During the quest, you will encounter one of the first tougher enemies, the Smith.
You start the quest when you speak to Charsi in the Hunter’s camp at level 8 or enter the Tamoe Highlands. However, you must have rescued Deckard Cain as part of the quest “The Search for Cain” beforehand.
For the quest, you are to find the Horadric Malus, an enchanted smithing hammer left behind by the smith Charsi in the monastery. As a reward, you may receive an item upgrade that allows you to obtain particularly valuable items.
You must complete the quest in order to subsequently receive the quest “Sisters to the Slaughter,” where you defeat the first boss of Diablo 2: Andariel.
Finding the Horadric Malus in the Barracks
Here you can find the Malus: The Barracks is part of the renegade monastery, which you can find behind the Black Marsh. Cross the marsh and look for the large monastery, which you can enter through the gate at the entrance.
There you will find the teleporter to the “Outer Monastery” and from there the passage to the Barracks through a door. No map change occurs. In the Barracks, you will have to fight through some Huntresses and skeletons.
Search the building for the smithy and do not enter the prison, which also has an entrance in the Barracks. The smithy is a distinct, unnamed location. You know you are in the right place when you find a large demon with a special name: the Smith.
The Smith is a so-called “super unique” that always appears there. Defeat him or lure him away and interact with the weapon rack next to the forge. The Malus will fall to the ground and you can pick it up.
This is how you defeat the Smith: The Smith is one of the first minibosses in the game and is considered one of the first hurdles. He and his minions deal up to 2.5 times as much physical damage as normal enemies, so good armor will help you. Tips for the fight include:
- use frost effects to slow the Smith
- fight at a distance, if possible
- equip your mercenary with a bow that has frost effects if you can’t do it yourself
With sufficient damage output, you should not have major problems. Be cautious, especially in hardcore mode, so that one of his attacks does not catch you off guard. Alternatively, you can let the Smith be and just take the Malus.
Afterward, bring the hammer back to Charsi and claim your reward.
Free Item Upgrade and Battle Against Andariel
This is how you upgrade an item: After completing the quest, Charsi offers to upgrade an item for you. This only works with non-magical items, which will then be improved – for free. However, keep in mind that this can only be done once per difficulty.
So it’s best to save the option until you have found better items later in the game, such as from Act 5. Travel back and speak to Charsi only then.
Otherwise, you can only upgrade items later using expensive resources with the horadric cube or, if you are lucky, turn them into legendary items through certain runewords. Some specific runewords you should definitely remember:
Particularly popular are Stealth upgrades because these items can have strong attributes. However, you can choose any non-magic item for the upgrade.
This is how you defeat Andariel: After the Malus is back in Charsi’s hands, Deckard Cain sends you on the hunt for Andariel. You can find her inside the monastery, which you can enter through the previously mentioned prison.
Andariel herself deals a lot of poison damage. Antidotes are a good option for your potion slots, and in case of emergency, you can portal back to town before the poison becomes too strong. The Lesser Evil is very vulnerable to fire damage. Use skills of this element or socket rubies into your weapons, if possible, to defeat Andariel faster.
Andariel is the first and probably the easiest boss in Diablo 2. As a newcomer, her poison attacks can overwhelm you quickly if you’re not careful. If you need general tips, you can find our guide for newcomers on MeinMMO:
Diablo 2: Beginner’s Guide – Everything you need to know as a beginner
