Artifacts—also classified as Relics in game menus and Asian server releases—serve as foundational gear pieces in Game of Thrones: Kingsroad. Developed by Netmarble Neo, this action RPG gives characters access to both Active and Passive artifacts that grant core attributes such as Momentum, Attack Power, Defense, and HP, while unlocking game-changing active skills and passive conditional triggers.
Understanding how to acquire cards, manage your Estate workers, enhance durability past 100% with wax, and match artifacts to classes like Knight, Sellsword, and Assassin is critical for pushing high-difficulty content.
How to Get Artifacts and Manage Expeditions
Artifact acquisition relies primarily on two main avenues: sending out expeditions via the Messenger Raven at your Estate, and spending reward tickets in the Altar of Lost Memories.
To maximize rewards from expeditions, players should establish their Estate base before burning high-tier cards:
- Level up your Estate to Level 28 (Estate Level 5), which unlocks the ability to recruit epic (purple) workers in the Tavern.
- Recruit three epic workers using your daily free Tavern roll or wood resources before dispatching green or blue cards.
- Run basic gray expedition cards on cooldown while saving higher-rarity expedition cards for your fully optimized workers.
- Collect completed expeditions after their 8-hour timers conclude, or unlock the third expedition slot via the monthly membership to stack collections up to 24 hours.
Beyond Estate expeditions, the Altar of Lost Memories serves as the primary dungeon source for relics. Claiming rewards from the Altar requires spending entry tickets: the standard Trainee's Map (recharging once daily) or the premium Scholar's Scroll (obtained from regional token shops and events).
Additional artifact cards, master scrolls, and selection boxes can be acquired through:
- The Regional Token Exchange and Silverwork shops
- The Amber Exchange Shop under the Trade Ship menu
- The Inheritance Shop, which offers premium artifact selection boxes for top-tier relics like Twin Axes
- Chapter milestones in the Guide Book (up to 150 green cards across three characters)
- Repeating seasonal Wormwalks and completing limited-time event challenges
Artifact Types and Key Stats
Artifacts fall into active and passive slots. Active artifacts provide a triggerable skill on your hotbar (Skill 4) that generates buffs, crowd control, or burst damage, while passive relics boost stats conditionally based on status ailments or class-specific mechanics.
| Artifact Name | Type | Notable Stats & Effects | Primary Use Case / Class Synergy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Twin Axes | Active | Attack Power, Crit Damage, HP; grants 200 Rage on activation | Universal top-tier burst; massive offensive active skill |
| Bloody Towel | Active | Attack Power +10% for 20s, heals 0.5% damage; +12.5% flat Attack at 5-Star when HP >80% | Tutorial guaranteed relic; dominant sustained DPS in early and mid game |
| Warrior's Son Skull | Active | Trades 20% Defense for +18% Attack for 20s; adds Crit Rate and Crit Damage on stars | Aggressive burst window active for high-damage rotations |
| Crown of Winter Roses | Active | Defense-focused stats, active defensive scaling | Defensive survival builds; scales higher at Refinement 7 |
| Dark Sister | Passive | Attack Power, HP, damage taken reduction; boosts damage, Crit Rate, and Crit Damage against burning targets | Primary Knight relic; also viable for any class utilizing Ignite Weapon |
| Valyrian Steel Shard | Passive | Attack Power, HP, Crit Rate; boosts damage, Crit Rate, and Crit Damage during Fighting Spirit | Knight-specific alternative focused on Fighting Spirit upkeep |
| Broken Sword | Passive | Attack Power, Defense, massive Crit Damage; boosts active skill damage and reduces active cooldowns | Spamming active skills; meta pick for seasonal Wormwalks |
| Andal Tunic | Passive | Attack Power, HP, Crit Rate; increases damage against Destruction targets | Sellsword class synergy; compensates for low baseline Crit Rate |
| Rhaegar's Ruby | Passive | Attack Power, Defense, damage increase; scales heavily with Poison application | Assassin class synergy; pairs with Cutting Mutilation and Bloodburst |
| Tattered Scroll | Passive | Grants 1 Fury/Rage on hit; improves active skill cycling | Universal bridge passive when class-specific relics lack star levels |
Enhancing Artifacts and Durability Mechanics
Upgrading artifacts requires specific types of Wax (such as History Wax or Legendary Wax) and significant amounts of copper. Artifact enhancement features a strict durability threshold system that changes once you cross 100% restoration.
Durability and Restoration Rules
Before an artifact reaches 100% restoration, lost durability can be repaired using reinforcement tools and copper. However, once an artifact surpasses 100%, its durability can no longer be restored normally. When durability hits zero above 100%, no further upgrades can be applied unless you perform a costly reset back to 100%.
Upgrading Over 120% Enhancement
Reaching peak bonus stats requires pushing enhancement between 120% and 126%:
- Purple Wax Method: The safest way to guarantee high rolls involves saving high-grade purple waxes until the artifact reaches 100%, then applying them in bulk to finish the remaining percentage.
- Green Wax Bulk Method: Community testing shows that gathering 200 green waxes from Ferocious Beasts (which drop 12 green waxes per 30 RP at World Level 2) and spending them all at once gives an estimated 85% chance of pushing an artifact over 120%. Applying green waxes individually one-by-one is strongly discouraged, as premature durability depletion will strand the relic around 115%.
Ascension and Bonding System
Artifacts scale up to 7 stars, requiring 10 enhancement levels within each star before ascending with duplicate blueprints. Beyond pure ascension, the Bonding system unlocks additional stat slots on equipped relics:
- Slot 1 unlocks by default.
- Additional bonding slots unlock when the equipped artifact reaches 3 stars, 6 stars, and 7 stars (up to 4 bound artifacts total).
- The bonus stats gained from bonding depend directly on the grade and star tier of the slotted relics.
Meta Breakdown: High-Grade vs. Low-Grade Legendaries
Data from the Asian server release highlights a crucial progression detail: star levels frequently outperform base rarity tiers.
High-Grade Legendaries (distinguished by radiant background frames) feature superior base stats at identical star ranks. However, because duplicate blueprints for low-grade legendaries are far easier to acquire, low-grade options often pull ahead in practical gameplay:
- Smiling Knight's Chipped Sword vs. Valyrian Steel Fragment: While Valyrian Steel Fragment wins at 0-star rank, a 1-star or 2-star Smiling Knight's Chipped Sword outscales it in both raw base attributes and passive skill values.
- Bloody Towel: Guaranteed from the Altar of Memories tutorial, its 5-star passive delivers an unconditional, permanent 12.5% Attack bonus whenever health stays above 80%, outperforming lower-star high-grade active relics.
- Class Specifics: Dark Sister remains one of the strongest general damage choices due to its universal condition—every class can ignite weapons. In training ground boss dummy tests over two-minute intervals, a Refinement 2 Dark Sister achieved approximately 1.93 million DPS, compared to 1.57 million DPS from an equivalent Refinement 2 Valyrian Steel Shard.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens to durability if an artifact drops to zero after 100%?
Once an artifact exceeds 100% enhancement, standard durability restoration tools cannot be used. If durability drops to zero, the artifact remains locked at its current percentage unless you utilize a reset mechanic to return it to 100% and restart the push.
Can non-Knight classes use the Dark Sister artifact effectively?
Yes. Dark Sister requires targets to be burning to activate its critical strike, critical damage, and general damage bonuses. Because the Knight, Sellsword, and Assassin all have access to skills or weapon ignites that apply burning, its passive bonuses can be utilized across all three classes.
How do I unlock epic workers for artifact expeditions?
You must level your Estate to Level 28, which upgrades the Estate to Level 5. This unlocks epic worker recruits in your Tavern, allowing you to maximize expedition success rates before dispatching blue and green expedition cards.
Which active artifact is best for burst Rage generation?
The Twin Axes active artifact stands out as a primary offensive choice, granting a flat 200 Rage immediately upon activation alongside substantial Attack Power and Critical Strike bonuses.
