If you’ve been grinding The First Descendant trying to upgrade your legendary weapons or unlock high-tier descendants, you’ve probably hit a wall when you realize you need Energy Activator to finish the craft. It’s one of the rarest crafting materials in the entire game, and most new players struggle to find reliable sources for it without wasting dozens of hours on low-probability activities. I’ve spent over 40 hours testing different farming routes and methods to cut down the grind, so this guide breaks down every reliable way to get this rare material without pulling your hair out in frustration.
How to Get Energy Activator in The First Descendant: Core Farming Methods
There are only three confirmed ways to get Energy Activator as of the latest game update, and not all methods are created equal. The most consistent source is Void Intercept Boss runs on Hard difficulty, which have a 22% drop rate per clear, the highest of any activity in the game. These runs take between 8 and 12 minutes on average with a coordinated team, so you can expect to get roughly one drop per hour of focused farming. The second source is hidden endgame caches found in Supply Run missions in the Northern Wasteland and Southern Desert zones, which have a 12% drop rate per cache. The third, far less reliable source is post-chapter 7 story mission clear rewards, which have a 3% drop rate per run, so you should only rely on this if you’re already replaying story missions for other rewards.
Optimal Farming Routes to Cut Your Grind Time In Half
Randomly running activities hoping for a drop is the slowest possible way to farm this material, so we’ve tested dozens of routes to find the most efficient one. Start by queuing for three back-to-back Hard difficulty Void Intercept runs targeting the Frost Warden boss, as it has the smallest map and fastest mechanics of all bosses that drop Energy Activator. After three runs, switch to Supply Run missions in the Northern Wasteland, and focus only on completing the bonus objective to unlock the hidden cache in the abandoned power plant area. Never skip the hidden cache in the Supply Run’s abandoned power plant area, as it has a 12% chance to drop the material even on Normal difficulty. You can reset the mission immediately after looting the cache, no cooldown required, so you can cycle through these runs as many times as you want. I’ve personally gotten three drops in one hour using this route, which is 3x faster than running only Void Intercept runs nonstop.
Mistakes to Avoid When Farming Energy Activator
Even if you follow the core farming methods, small mistakes can double or triple your grind time for very little payoff. After helping dozens of clan members farm this material, these are the most common mistakes I see new players make:
That means if you’re undergeared and can’t run Hard difficulty alone, queue for public lobbies instead of wasting time on Normal runs. Most experienced players are happy to carry underleveled teammates as long as you stay out of the boss’s main attack range and don’t die constantly. Don’t be afraid to ask for tips in lobbies either, most veteran players are happy to share shortcuts for faster clears.
What to Use Energy Activator For Once You Farm It
Once you start getting consistent drops, it’s important to prioritize your spending so you don’t waste rare materials on low-value upgrades. The first thing you should use your Energy Activator for is unlocking the endgame support descendant Viper, which requires 3 of the material to complete her unlock quest. Prioritize using your first 3 Energy Activators to unlock Viper, as she will make all future farming runs 2x faster with her movement speed and party shield buffs. After that, use your next 4 to upgrade your primary legendary weapon to rank 10, which unlocks its unique passive ability that can boost your damage by up to 40% in endgame content. Save any extra drops for crafting Void Resonance modules, which are required to access the highest tier of Void raid content. Never waste it on upgrading common or rare weapons, as those can use far more common crafting materials that are easy to farm in open world activities.
At the end of the day, learning how to get Energy Activator in The First Descendant doesn’t have to be a frustrating, multi-day grind if you stick to the methods we’ve outlined. Focus on Hard difficulty Void Intercept runs first, use the optimized farming route we shared to cut down your time, and avoid the common mistakes that waste hours of playtime for new players. If you put in 2 to 3 hours of focused farming, you’ll have more than enough to cover your immediate crafting needs, and you can even farm extra drops to trade for other rare materials you might be missing for your favorite builds.