The fastest farming in Minecraft Dungeons 2 is boss rematches for XP, dungeons and rifts for echo shards, and Soul Storms for Uniques. Most of the numbers below come from players in launch week, so treat them as reported until we have tested them ourselves. The list of every reported figure sits at the end.
| Goal | Where to farm | What to bring or know |
|---|---|---|
| XP | Boss rematches, latest boss you can beat | Bosses scale with campaign progress, so later bosses pay more |
| Echo shards | Dungeons, rifts, blue mobs, Soul Storms | A ranged option for blue mobs |
| Uniques | Soul Storm reward chests, bosses | Play on Normal or Hard |
| Emeralds | Salvaging spare gear, bosses, dungeons | Spend before the 9,999 cap |
| Better drops | Loot gear and talismans | See the loot gear section below |
How do you farm XP fast?
Re-fight bosses. Players report every boss can be fought again after you beat it, and boss kills are the best XP source for both your hero and your talismans. Boss XP scales with how far into the campaign the boss sits, so the latest boss you can reliably beat is the best one to repeat. Players say the final story boss gives roughly one full level per kill.
The first re-kill of some bosses gives a special reward. After that, rematches drop regular gear, emeralds and echo shards, so the same run also feeds your other goals. The boss guide has attack patterns, and Howling Woods has the Witch boss you can rematch at will.
Where do you get echo shards?
Clear dungeons and rifts. Tough blue soul-empowered mobs also drop shards, and the empowered mob guide covers how to handle them. Dungeons and rifts are the steady source: finishing one gives you an obsidian chest with gear, echo shards and enchantment books.
Players report that only a few dungeons are open per map session, and each can be completed once per session. Rifts are different: they spawn at random around the map, so keep an eye out as you travel. Overworld bosses and Soul Storms pay shards too. Players report 25 or more shards from a single storm swarm, with bosses spawning at intervals while you break generators.
Shards level your merchants and pay for enchanting, so they go fast. The Enchantsmith guide shows what each merchant level unlocks.
How do Soul Storms work?
A Soul Storm is a timed event over one area of the map: destroy its storm generators to end it and claim the reward. The map shows the active storm with a countdown timer and the area it is in, which is how you find it. Our map guide lists the icons, including the storm generator.
Players report a storm appears roughly every hour and lasts about 40 minutes, with generators spawning at random spots. Destroying 3 ends the storm. Items dropped during a storm get an extra Soul Storm modifier, and storms are the only reported way to get Uniques and special items with 3 modifiers. Bosses can spawn while you work on the generators, so bring a build that can handle them. The build lab can help you pick one.
How do you farm emeralds?
Salvage every item you will not use. Salvaging turns spare gear into emeralds with no other cost, and bosses and dungeons drop emeralds as well. Do not hoard: the emerald cap is 9,999 and anything past it is lost.
Emeralds buy merchant stock, and echo shards level the merchants so better stock appears. If you are near the cap, spend on gear or enchanting first, the Enchantsmith guide has the costs we have so far.
Where do Uniques drop?
Uniques come from random loot, and players report you need to play on Normal or Hard, because Easy does not drop Uniques from random loot. Merchants never sell them.
Players put rough drop chances at about 20% for a Soul Storm reward chest, about 17% for bosses, about 10% for fancy chests and mini-bosses, about 5% for regular mobs and about 4% for quest rewards. That makes storms and boss rematches the best places to look.
Each region has its own Unique pool, so farm the region whose gear you want. The regions hub links every region page, and the map’s “View Area Items” list shows what is left in an area. Players also report that rerolling a Unique’s reroll-able effect needs a level 3 Blacksmith, and that its signature effect cannot be changed.
Which gear boosts your loot?
Players report a handful of pieces that raise drops. The Monarch Crown gives a big chance of extra drops. The Emerald Hammer and Oracle Sandals give a small chance of higher-rarity drops. Two talismans help as well: the Lucky Clover for extra loot, and the Looter’s Charm, whose drop rate scales with its level. Look up Emerald Hammer, Lucky Clover and Looter’s Charm in the gear database.
Do not build your whole loadout around luck. A farming build that cannot survive a storm boss loses more time than a crown saves. The tier list shows which builds players favor for clearing content quickly.
What are Sift Tides?
Sift Tides are modifiers on rifts. Players report three: Flow, Thrive and Endure. Thrive means more soul generation and affects artifact cooldowns. Endure makes monsters stronger and turns off passive soul regeneration. Flow is the third, and we have no detail on it yet. Pick a rift whose tide suits your build, for example Thrive if your artifacts need souls, and skip Endure on an underpowered character.
Quick FAQ
What is the best way to level up quickly? Re-fight the latest boss you can beat. Boss XP scales with campaign progress, and players report the final boss gives about a level per kill.
Can you buy Uniques from merchants? No. Players report merchants never sell Uniques, so you have to find them in the world.
Do you need to finish the campaign first? Not for dungeons, rifts or emeralds. Soul Storms and some boss rematches are easier once you are further in, since you have better gear.
Does farming work in co-op? Merchant levels and stock are per player, so each friend levels their own. See the co-op guide for how parties work.
Not confirmed yet
Everything below is reported by players and we are verifying it in-game. We will update this page as we test each item.
- Every boss can be re-fought; final story boss gives about one level per kill
- Only a few dungeons open per map session, each completable once per session
- 25 or more echo shards from one Soul Storm swarm
- A Soul Storm about every hour, lasting about 40 minutes; 3 generators to destroy
- Soul Storms are the only source of Uniques and items with 3 modifiers
- Easy does not drop Uniques from random loot
- Unique drop chances: Soul Storm chest about 20%, bosses about 17%, fancy chests and mini-bosses about 10%, regular mobs about 5%, quest rewards about 4%
- A level 3 Blacksmith is needed to reroll a Unique’s reroll-able effect
- Monarch Crown, Emerald Hammer, Oracle Sandals, Lucky Clover and Looter’s Charm loot bonuses
- Sift Tide effects: Flow, Thrive, Endure