Greetings, Adventurers.

Last week, we introduced an upcoming update regarding New Alchemy Stone Crafting & Effects through Black Desert Global Lab. We understand our Adventurers would naturally want more information and have concerns regarding these changes, so would like to share a more detailed explanation of the original intentions behind the update, as well as the adjustments that have been made since.

After Alchemy Stones were first introduced to the world of Black Desert in May 2015, they have steadily grown in value over time. From certain levels onward, the attack speed bonus they granted became even greater, hence becoming a significant goal for many Adventurers.

However, with too many growth levels and a lack of safeguards against growth failure, the Alchemy Stone system became one of the most burdensome systems in the content of Black Desert.

For a long time, this aspect prevented many Adventurers from fully enjoying the Alchemy Stone system, and we have received consistent feedback calling for change.

Since the initial difficulty of the Alchemy Stone system was set quite high, our top priority for the Alchemy Stone update was to lower the difficulty while preserving the value of existing Alchemy Stones as much as possible.

Moreover, we wanted to ensure that Alchemy Stones would no longer be “content difficult to properly enjoy” but instead become a type of content with clear and meaningful value. For this reason, unlike what we previously announced, we made adjustments so that Alchemy Stones could be used in combination with Vell’s Heart.

However, in the process of preparing the update, we placed too much weight on preserving existing value and failed in sufficiently reducing the burden for Adventurers. 

We have therefore decided to start from the beginning, by re-defining the very concept of the Alchemy Stone and decided to revise our update direction once more.

First, we plan on removing Alchemy Stone level downgrade and destruction when failing a growth attempt.
Previously, failed growth attempts would lower the Alchemy Stone’s tier or even destroy it. This system was kept in the original revamp plan, but will now be removed as we aim to reshape the Alchemy Stone system into content that many Adventurers can feel encouraged to participate in and challenge themselves. Growth failures will no longer destroy Alchemy Stones or cause growth levels to drop. However, the accumulated EXP will still decrease upon failure.

Second, following the removal of level downgrade and destruction, Cron Stones will no longer be required for growth. (The Ancient anvil mechanism will remain unchanged.)

As our direction for Alchemy Stones is for them to become content that more Adventurers can actively attempt, we decided that a revamp based on the current environment, rather than past standards, is necessary. The use of Cron Stones for growth will be removed accordingly, and the cost for one growth attempt at [Shining] level will be newly set to a value of approximately 3.3 billion Silver.

Through these changes we hope that Alchemy Stones will no longer be an item that Adventurers cannot attempt easily due to failure risk, but instead become content that Adventurers can steadily work towards and challenge themselves to achieve.

However, with this new approach, with the availability of sufficient core materials Alchemy Stones may also be content that could be quickly completed with currency alone. For this reason, we will continue to limit the acquisition of core materials for Alchemy Stone growth and maintain a structure that also requires a certain amount of time as an preventative measure.

Tiers and , have always been among the highest levels of difficulty, so we believe it would not be appropriate for and Alchemy Stones to be quickly and widely obtainable through a single patch.
Therefore, we plan to maintain the values of and Alchemy Stones via time.

That said, certain growth levels including will see a slight ease in success rates and Ancient Anvil values compared to what was introduced last week on Global Labs.

* Updated success rates and Ancient Anvil values will be shared via the Black Desert Global Lab.

We understand that the improvements shared today may not satisfy all Adventurers.
However, our goal is for Alchemy Stones to no longer be items that are burdensome, but rather enjoyable as one of the various content in Black Desert. We will continue to take this matter into careful consideration and strive to provide even better content for all Adventurers.

To apply the changes explained today, the Alchemy Stone revamp schedule will be postponed to Jan 22, 2026.
While we understand the disappointment from many of you who have been awaiting the update, we kindly ask for your understanding that this is a necessary step to ensure a stable and polished content update. We promise to prepare the update thoroughly so that the update meets your expectations.

We will continue to listen closely to your feedback, and strive till the very end to ensure that your adventures in Black Desert can continue to be rewarding for a long time.

Thank you for your understanding.