The Woven Echo system allows alternate characters to benefit from corruption progress on your main. Running Woven Echoes on an alt syncs corruption to Last Epoch gold match your highest value across the account.

This prevents you from having to grind corruption from scratch on every character. If it feels too high afterward, remember you can always lower it at the timeline start.

Example Run

Here's how an efficient corruption push might look:

Enter Spirits of Fire.

Use glyph crafting on junk gear to build stability instantly.

Unlock and kill the timeline boss.

Equip Harbinger Needle idols and bank Gazes before fighting the Shade.

Defeat the Shade to gain a big corruption boost.

Repeat until Spirits of Fire is at ~800 corruption.

Switch to Age of Winter at 300 corruption. Kill its Shade once to jump straight to ~800 corruption.

Using this method, one strong timeline fuels rapid corruption growth across all others.

Why Push Corruption?

The benefits of corruption are clear:

Unlocks endgame bosses like Uber Aberration.

Grants access to Woven Echoes.
Boosts loot quality, increasing chances of legendaries and valuable uniques.

Accelerates leveling by raising XP gains.

Tests your build's limits, giving long-term replayability.

Final Thoughts

Pushing corruption is at the heart of Last Epoch's endgame. It's not just about making enemies harder-it's a key to unlocking bosses, farming rare loot, and keeping progression exciting. By leveraging stability tricks, banking Gazes of Orobyss, and using timeline catch-up mechanics, you can raise corruption much faster than simply grinding echoes. Having enough cheap Last Epoch gold can also help you increase your corruption very quickly.

Aim for 300–500 corruption for efficient farming, push higher if your build can handle it, and remember you can always lower corruption if things get overwhelming. Mastering these strategies ensures you'll always be progressing, farming smarter, and getting the most out of Last Epoch's endgame.

In Last Epoch, players must eventually choose between two trade-focused factions: the Circle of Fortune or the Merchants Guild. Each offers unique advantages, but if you're interested in player-to-player trade, the Merchants Guild is the obvious choice. Joining this faction grants access to the Bazaar, where items can be bought and sold using Last Epoch gold and a special resource called favor. This guide breaks down how the Merchants Guild works, its progression system, and strategies for making serious gold.

How to Join the Merchants Guild

You'll unlock factions in Chapter 9 of the campaign, specifically in Melka's Upper District during the Divine Era. Speak to Zerich, the NPC who introduces you to faction choices. Once you accept, you'll be directed to the Bazaar.

Inside the Bazaar, talk to the NPC nicknamed the "loot lizard," and confirm your choice. After this, you're officially a member of the Merchants Guild and can begin trading.

Merchants Guild Ranks

Progressing through the Merchants Guild is tied to ranks. There are 12 in total, each unlocking new categories of items that can be bought from vendors.

Rank 1 – Sell basic items

Rank 2 – Buy set items

Rank 3 – Buy specific uniques

Rank 4 – Buy idols

Rank 5 – Buy exalted weapons & off-hands

Rank 6 – Buy exalted armor

Rank 7 – Buy unique weapons & off-hands

Rank 8 – Buy all exalted items

Rank 9 – Buy all uniques (major milestone)

Rank 10 – Buy legendary weapons & off-hands

Rank 11 – Buy legendary armor

Rank 12 – Buy all legendary items

Essentially, the higher your rank, the broader the pool of items you can trade for.

Favor: The Guild's Currency

Favor is the lifeblood of the Merchants Guild. Every item in the Bazaar has two costs:

Gold – The seller's listed price.

Favor – A faction resource you spend when purchasing.

Favor prevents abuse of the economy. For example, an exalted body armor might cost 2,200 favor, a set armor piece 480 favor, and a legendary chest 15,000 favor. Without enough favor, you can't make the purchase, even if you have the gold.

This system also blocks market manipulation and flipping: once you buy an item, it's yours permanently-you cannot resell it.

How to Earn and Spend Favor

You earn favor primarily by:

Killing enemies – Rare enemies drop more.

Listing items for sale – Every listing consumes favor, which counts toward your progression.

Purchasing items – Spending favor directly advances your rank.

While enemy kills grant some favor, spending favor is the fastest way to progress. This is why so many Bazaar listings are filled with cheap Last Epoch gold free uniques-players use them as a method to burn favor and push their guild rank higher.