Focus Enhancement

Focus enhancement

Focus enhancement covers the component bonuses inherited by crafted Wands and staves. Both recipes combine Heartwood with a Cloth or Leather Strap: a wand uses one of each, while a staff uses two of each. That makes a staff's material bonuses twice the corresponding wand bonuses before later enhancements are applied.

This page compares the values recorded on SotAwiki's focus components and identifies the game release in which each recipe was last verified. A version is a verification date, not a guarantee that the value remains unchanged. Check the finished-item tooltip before committing rare components.

Quick recommendations

Goal	Components to consider	Why
Greatest recorded reagent conservation	Ashen Heartwood	Ashen records −12.5% Basic Magic Reagent Usage Chance per heartwood, compared with −10% on each standard timber heartwood. A two-heartwood staff records twice that contribution.
Spell damage	Hard Maple Heartwood	+7.5% Spell Damage and +10% Damage Resistance per heartwood, exceeding Maple's +5% Spell Damage while also adding defense.
Spell critical chance	Grey Pine Heartwood, optionally with Carapacian Cloth Straps	Grey Pine records +5% Spell Critical Chance and +1 Damage Avoidance per heartwood. Carapacian straps add a smaller spell-critical bonus.
Spell critical damage	Rock Maple Heartwood	+12.5% Spell Critical Damage and +10% Damage Resistance per heartwood.
Largest recorded Focus percentage	Ashen Heartwood	+15% Focus per heartwood. Crimson Pine records +5% per heartwood.
Additional flat Focus	Fustian strap	+15 Focus per strap, compared with +10 from Cotton. Flat Focus and percentage Focus should not be treated as the same unit.
Defensive focus	Hard Maple Heartwood or Rock Maple Heartwood for resistance; Grey Pine Heartwood or Simple Leather Strap for avoidance or dodge	These choices trade some offensive specialization for recorded defensive statistics.

These recommendations compare material bonuses only. The finished result also depends on whether it is a wand or staff, Masterwork and Enchantment results, socketing, artifacts, skills, and the rest of the build.

Heartwood comparison

Every listed heartwood reduces Basic Magic Reagent Usage Chance and may add further bonuses. Values below are per heartwood. A wand uses one; a staff uses two.

Heartwood	Recorded bonus per component	Wand total (one heartwood)	Staff total (two heartwoods)	Last recorded release
Ashen	−12.5% Basic Magic Reagent Usage Chance +15% Focus +5% Spell Damage	−12.5% reagent usage +15% Focus +5% Spell Damage	−25% reagent usage +30% Focus +10% Spell Damage	not recorded
Pine	−10% Basic Magic Reagent Usage Chance +2.5% Spell Critical Chance	−10% reagent usage +2.5% Spell Critical Chance	−20% reagent usage +5% Spell Critical Chance	R91
Maple	−10% Basic Magic Reagent Usage Chance +5% Spell Damage	−10% reagent usage +5% Spell Damage	−20% reagent usage +10% Spell Damage	R90
Crimson Pine	−10% Basic Magic Reagent Usage Chance +5% Focus	−10% reagent usage +5% Focus	−20% reagent usage +10% Focus	R41
Grey Pine	−10% Basic Magic Reagent Usage Chance +5% Spell Critical Chance +1 Damage Avoidance	−10% reagent usage +5% Spell Critical Chance +1 Damage Avoidance	−20% reagent usage +10% Spell Critical Chance +2 Damage Avoidance	R41
Hard Maple	−10% Basic Magic Reagent Usage Chance +7.5% Spell Damage +10% Damage Resistance	−10% reagent usage +7.5% Spell Damage +10% Damage Resistance	−20% reagent usage +15% Spell Damage +20% Damage Resistance	R41
Rock Maple	−10% Basic Magic Reagent Usage Chance +12.5% Spell Critical Damage +10% Damage Resistance	−10% reagent usage +12.5% Spell Critical Damage +10% Damage Resistance	−20% reagent usage +25% Spell Critical Damage +20% Damage Resistance	R41

The Ashen record comes from a salvaged or looted component rather than a recipe and therefore has no `lastseen` release. Its values are preserved as recorded, but deserve an in-game tooltip check.

Strap comparison

The focus recipes accept one cloth or leather strap for a wand and two for a staff. Values below are per strap.

Strap	Recorded bonus per component	Wand total (one strap)	Staff total (two straps)	Last recorded release
Simple Leather	+0.1 Combat Dodge Modifier	+0.1 Combat Dodge Modifier	+0.2 Combat Dodge Modifier	R77
Supple Leather	+0.2% Weapon Critical Chance	+0.2% Weapon Critical Chance	+0.4% Weapon Critical Chance	R51
Hardened Leather	+0.4% Base Weapon Damage	+0.4% Base Weapon Damage	+0.8% Base Weapon Damage	R41
Cotton	+10 Focus	+10 Focus	+20 Focus	R91
Carapacian	+0.2% Spell Critical Chance	+0.2% Spell Critical Chance	+0.4% Spell Critical Chance	R104
Fustian	+15 Focus	+15 Focus	+30 Focus	R56

These are strap bonuses, not the similarly named bowstring bonuses. Hardened Leather straps add Base Weapon Damage; Hardened Leather bowstrings instead add ranged weapon range.

Wand or staff?

Property	Wand	Staff
Hands	One-handed; can be equipped in either hand	Two-handed
Heartwood components	1	2
Cloth or leather straps	1	2
Material-bonus scale	One copy of each chosen component bonus	Two copies of each chosen component bonus
Recipe last recorded	R105	R105

A staff doubles both the desirable bonuses and the material cost represented by these component slots. A wand offers more equipment flexibility, including dual-wielding where the character's skills and other restrictions permit it. Compare the complete loadout rather than assuming that twice the component bonus always makes the staff the stronger choice.

After the focus is crafted

Masterworking and enchanting

The current Wand and Staff records both list compatible Carpentry Masterwork and Alchemy Enchantment recipes as of Release 105. This supersedes the older statement on this page that focus items could not be masterworked. Available choices, skill requirements, and success chances are separate from inherited material bonuses.

Gems and jewels

Crafted wands and staves can be socketed through their corresponding one- or two-handed Alchemy recipes. A socketed Gem or Imbued Gem may affect later enhancement choices. Because socket limits and gem behavior can change independently of material bonuses, confirm the current crafting interface before planning the final item.

How the totals combine

For a wand, add the bonuses from one chosen heartwood and one chosen strap. For a staff, add two copies of the chosen heartwood and two copies of the chosen strap. Statistics with different units—such as +15% Focus from Ashen Heartwood and +15 flat Focus from a Fustian strap—remain separate modifiers and should not be arithmetically merged.

Several component records were last checked many releases ago. The calculated wand and staff columns are therefore comparison aids, not substitutes for a current in-game tooltip.

See also

• Material Crafting Bonus
• Weapon Enhancement
• Armor Enhancement
• Jewelry Enhancement
• Crafting Component
• Recipe Book