The stigma system explained

Two players of the same class, same level, same gear, can have completely different toolkits. The difference is stigmas.

This page is current as of Chapter 1 on the Korean server (1 July 2026). The system has changed three times since the November launch: if you find guides talking about four slots or a level 45 cap, they're stale.

What they are#

Stigmas are extra abilities grafted onto your class's base kit. You don't learn them by levelling: you equip them, and you can swap them whenever you want.

The current numbers:

The slots hold both stigmas and Mastery skills: the question is no longer "which five stigmas", it's "which five abilities out of everything available". More freedom, harder decision.

Pushing past level 20#

Up to level 20 stigma skills upgrade with normal resources. Beyond that you need a dedicated currency introduced in Chapter 1: Advanced Stigma Shards.

• You get one per character level from 45 onward.
• They're soul-bound: they can't be bought or traded.
• One shard per skill level above 20.

The arithmetic is brutal and worth doing before you plan a build. From 45 to 50 you receive 5 shards total. Taking a single skill from 20 to 25 consumes all of them.

Free resets change the strategy#

Before Chapter 1, changing your setup cost resources. Now it doesn't, which inverts the classic advice.

There's no longer "the build". There are setups per context, and switching between them costs nothing:

• Group PvE — survivability trimmed to the minimum, maximum damage or healing output.
• PvP and the Abyss — control, interrupts, mobility. Since PvP damage was cut 30% globally (8 July patch) fights last longer and utility beats burst.
• Solo — self-sufficiency: heals, damage reduction, multi-target handling.

If you run one setup for everything, you're leaving something on the table that's now free.

What's still expensive#

Resets are free, upgrades aren't. Advanced shards don't come back when you unslot a skill: they stay invested in that skill.

Hence the rule that actually matters:

Swap which abilities you equip freely. Think hard before deciding which ability to upgrade past level 20.

Common mistakes#

Spreading shards around. Five skills at level 21 are worth less than one at 25. The thresholds reward concentration.

Copying an endgame build mid-progression. Optimised builds assume gear stats and skill levels you don't have at level 30. Until 50, the right build is the one that gets you to 50.

Ignoring utility stigmas. Control, interrupts and mobility feel like wasting a damage slot. With PvP damage down 30%, in the Abyss they're worth more than damage.

Keeping your dungeon setup into a siege. Resets are free. There's no excuse.

What's still missing#

Full per-class stigma lists with costs and upgrade priorities land once western data is verifiable — Korean balance changes almost weekly, so publishing numbers now would mean publishing wrong numbers in September.

To plan a concrete build, with stats and items, the Tools page lists the external planners that keep the item archive up to date.