Item Modifiers, Item Level, and Prefix vs Suffix in Path of Exile 2

Every item in Path of Exile 2 shows its stats in a tooltip, but the default view hides a lot of useful detail. Pressing the advanced modifier key (Alt on PC, or the controller toggle) expands the tooltip to show each modifier's tier, whether it is local or global, and the item level of the base.

Learning to read this expanded tooltip is the single most useful crafting skill. It tells you not just what an item has, but how strong each roll is and whether a currency could ever push it higher given the item's level.

• Implicit modifiers are inherent to the base type and appear on every version of that item.
• Explicit modifiers are rolled or crafted onto non-normal rarities.
• Enchantments come from a separate source, such as Runes socketed into the item.
• The advanced view reveals per-modifier tiers, which are hidden by default.

Item rarity defines how many affix slots an item can hold. Normal (white) items have no rolled affixes and only a single implicit modifier. Magic (blue) items can hold up to 1 prefix and 1 suffix. Rare (gold) items can hold up to 3 prefixes and 3 suffixes.

Unique (orange) items have fixed, designer-defined modifiers and are not normally produced through the standard currency-orb crafting path. Special base types may behave differently, so treat the 3-plus-3 Rare cap as the common case rather than an absolute rule for every base.

• Normal: 0 rolled affixes, 1 implicit.
• Magic: up to 1 prefix and 1 suffix.
• Rare: up to 3 prefixes and 3 suffixes.
• Unique: fixed mods, not normal-craftable.

Item Level and Required Level are easy to mix up but control completely different things. Item Level gates which modifiers can roll on the item and the maximum tier those modifiers can reach. Required Level gates when your character is allowed to equip the item.

Because of this, two items can have the same Required Level but very different Item Levels, and therefore very different modifier potential. The level of the area or monster that dropped the item determines its Item Level, not your character level.

• Item Level: controls the available modifier pool and max tier.
• Required Level: controls when you can equip the item.
• Area and monster level set the drop's Item Level.
• They are independent — raising one never raises the other.

The base type of an item decides which modifiers can ever roll on it. A bow cannot roll armour modifiers, and a piece of armour cannot roll weapon-specific damage modifiers. Choosing the right base is the first step of any serious craft.

Base type also sets the implicit modifier and the item's base stats, both of which feed into how local modifiers are calculated. Always start a craft by confirming the base supports the mods you want before spending currency.

• Base type defines the entire available modifier pool.
• A weapon base and an armour base share almost no mods.
• The implicit is fixed by the base, not by rolling.
• Match the base to your build before crafting.

Modifiers come in several flavours. Local modifiers affect the item itself — for example, local percent physical damage on a weapon scales that weapon's base physical damage. Global modifiers apply to your character as a whole. Local modifiers show in blue text in the tooltip.

Implicit modifiers are inherent to the base type. Explicit modifiers are rolled or crafted onto non-normal rarities. Enchantments come from a separate source such as Runes or Distilled Emotions, and socketable Runes add their own modifiers on top.

• Local: scales the item's own stats (blue text).
• Global: applies to the whole character.
• Implicit: fixed by base type.
• Explicit: rolled or crafted.
• Enchantment: from Runes, Distilled Emotions, or similar.

The advanced modifier view is where tiers become visible. On PC, hold Alt while hovering an item. On controller, toggle the advanced modifier display. This reveals each modifier's tier, whether it is local or global, and the affix group it belongs to.

Using this view lets you compare two items of the same base at a glance and decide which is worth currency. It also explains why a currency sometimes shows 'no available modifier' — the item's level or base pool simply has nothing valid left for that currency to add.

• PC: hold Alt to reveal tiers and details.
• Controller: use the advanced modifier toggle.
• Tiers, local/global tags, and affix groups become visible.
• 'No available modifier' means the pool has nothing valid to add.