Reforging is one of the cheapest, fastest ways to power up your armor in Hypixel SkyBlock — but the ‘best’ reforge depends entirely on your build and progression. This guide breaks down the top armor reforges by use case so you don’t waste coins applying the wrong one.
The short answer
For pure damage at endgame, Ancient (applied with a Precursor Gear) is the best armor reforge — it grants large Strength and Crit Damage and beats Renowned and Fierce for most melee/crit builds. But it’s not the right pick for everyone.
Best reforge by build
Endgame damage — Ancient
If you’re Catacombs 30+ and running a Strength/Crit build, Ancient is the standard. The Strength and Crit Damage it adds scale extremely well once the rest of your stats are high. This is the go-to for most melee damage setups.
High base stats — Renowned
Renowned boosts your stats by a percentage, so it only pulls ahead when your base stats are already very high. For most players Ancient wins, but a fully geared endgame profile with huge multipliers can prefer Renowned.
Mage builds — Necrotic (and Loving)
Mages don’t want Strength. Necrotic on the helmet boosts Intelligence and ability damage, and Loving is sometimes used on the chestplate. Build around Intelligence, not Crit Damage.
Tank/survivability — Giant
If you just need to not die (slayer bosses, dungeons as a support), Giant grants flat Health and is the best defensive reforge.
Niche — Submerged
For fishing builds, Submerged increases Sea Creature Chance — irrelevant for combat but the best choice when you’re farming the ocean.
Early/mid game — Pure or Fierce
Before you can access Ancient, stick to Blacksmith reforges. Fierce (Strength + Crit Damage) is the better DPS option; Pure is a balanced all-rounder. Both are cheap and easy to apply early.
How to apply each
- Ancient — requires a Precursor Gear (reforge stone) at the Reforge Anvil.
- Renowned — requires a Rare Diamond reforge stone.
- Necrotic — requires a Necromancer’s Brooch.
- Giant / Pure / Fierce — available directly from the Blacksmith (no stone needed for the basic ones).
Bottom line
Don’t blindly chase ‘the best reforge’ — match it to your build: Ancient for melee/crit damage, Renowned only with very high base stats, Necrotic for mages, Giant for tanking, and Fierce/Pure while you’re still working up to the reforge stones. Reforges are cheap to redo, so experiment as your stats grow.