How to Use Augments in Xenoblade Chronicles X

While equipment usually comes with its own array of bonuses, there will often be slots for you to add your own preferred modifiers for added customization. These mods are called Augments, and here’s how to make use of them in Xenoblade Chronicles X and its Definitive Edition.

How to equip Augments in Xenoblade Chronicles X

Augments can be equipped to any piece of weapon, armor, or Skell gear that has an empty Augment slot, indicated by the dotted circle below where it says “Additional Effects” on its information tab. By pressing the left trigger button (ZL) you can move to select any Augments and see their effects, and if there are any empty slots you can fill them by pressing A and selecting from your list of owned ones. You can also freely switch in and out any Augments you have placed in gear or remove them by pressing in the right stick. Note that you cannot remove any additional effects marked with a small white dot, as these are considered Battle Traits and not Augments.

How to get Augments in Xenoblade Chronicles X

Augments have a wide variety of effects in Xenoblade Chronicles X, from flat or percentage stat boosts to immunity from certain weather effects. They also often come in ranks or grades noting their power, based on the numeral in their name. A Potential Up V Augment, for example, will provide a bigger bonus than a Potential Up III Augment.

You can earn Augments in a variety of ways, including from loot drops and missions, but the most reliable way to get the specific ones is to craft them through the AM Terminal in Armory Alley. By going there and selecting “Engineer Augments” you can find a list of most Augments in the game and the materials required to craft them. You can even press Y to track them, which will place a purple and white Wing symbol next to any enemies that drop them and display their locations on the map. Note that some materials are not dropped by monsters at all, and will instead need to be farmed by using the FrontierNav and Probe system to mine them from certain spots out in the world. Finally, it’s worth crafting augments even before you get to late-game build-crafting, as you can use the AM Terminal to deconstruct craftable augments to get their resources back. Simply press the left trigger (ZL) while in the Engineer Augments section to deconstruct the selected Augment.

How to add Augment Slots to equipment in Xenoblade Chronicles X

While just getting started in Xenoblade Chronicles X you might only come across a few pieces of gear that have Augment slots naturally, limiting what you can do to customize your gear. Thankfully there is a way to add extra augment slots on to gear, but it won’t become available until you have at least finished Chapter 5. Once there you will have to complete a Normal Mission (marked with a green icon) called Booming Business, which you can pick up just along from the terminals in Armory Alley. The mission is fairly long but most of the time spent will be on the first step, which requires you to survey 30% of Oblivia. You can do this in any way you see fit, but it may be worth completing Chapter 6 beforehand so you can make use of a Skell to travel around. After that the rest of the steps are hunts for various materials that will all be marked on your map, followed by an instruction on how to use the shop itself.

Once completed you will be able to add up to 3 Augment slots to weapons and 1 Slot to any piece of armor, for a total of 6 Weapon Augments and 5 Armor Augments at a time. The same also goes for Skell equipment. To do so will cost a good chunk of Miranium so make sure you have a good network of probes mining for you passively, because you’ll need them if you want to seriously kit out your gear!

If you enjoyed this guide or found it helpful, you can also check out Siliconera’s guide on how to change classes or on the Best BLADE Division to join.

Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition is now available for Nintendo Switch. The original game is available on Wii U.