Obducite has quickly become one of the most sought-after resources in Diablo 4, especially in Season 9 where crafting and upgrades are heavily dependent on it. Whether you're farming Nightmare Dungeons, taking on the Infernal Horde, or rushing through Caress Undercity, maximizing your obducite per hour is key to staying ahead of the curve Diablo 4 Items.

After running extensive tests across multiple dungeon types, sigils, and playstyles, we've gathered the best strategies and benchmarks to help you farm obducite efficiently. Below, we break down which activities are worth your time, how fast vs. slow builds affect drops, and the best per-hour methods for different content.

Fast vs. Slow Builds in Nightmare Dungeons

One of the biggest questions players ask is whether a faster, rush-style build yields less obducite compared to a slower, full-clear approach. To test this, we ran the same blue sigils with strong rooms under both playstyles:

 Fast Build: Ignored events, left some obducite drops behind, skipped opening chests.

 Result: 35,000 obducite per hour.

 Slow Build: Collected every drop, opened all chests, and completed side events.

 Result: 38,000 obducite per hour.

Conclusion: The difference is negligible. Whether you're zipping through dungeons or taking your time, the hourly gain is about the same. The takeaway? Play how you enjoy, because both approaches are equally profitable in the long run.

Regular Nightmare Dungeon Farming

Regular Nightmare Dungeons remain a steady source of obducite, but not all dungeon types are equal. Here are the results from multiple runs:

 All Types (Full Clear): 22,000 obducite per hour.

 Strong Room Dungeons (Full Clear): 27,000 obducite per hour.

 Strong Room Dungeons (Exit After Strong Room): 45,000 obducite per hour.

The best method for regular dungeons is clear: run only the strong room floors, then exit and jump into another sigil with a strong room. This strategy nearly doubles your per-hour return compared to full clears.

Escalated Nightmare Dungeons (Enhanced Tier)

Enhanced or "escalated" Nightmare Dungeons are the new four-level escalated content in Season 9. While these dungeons can offer excellent obducite drops, the profits vary wildly depending on the presence of strong rooms and floor bonuses.

Here are the test results:

 All Types (Full Clear): 40,000 obducite per hour.

 All Types Except Strong Room (Full Clear): 46,000 obducite per hour (but inconsistent).

 With Specific Floor Bonuses: Up to 55,000 obducite per hour.

 Without Bonuses: As low as 15,000 obducite per hour.

Why the Huge Variance?

Escalated dungeons feature three types of "strong room" bonuses:

1.Seal Bonus: Applies to the first floor only.

2.Floor Bonus: Exclusive to the current level.

3.Random Strong Room Spawns: Occur unpredictably.

A floor without resource affixes typically drops 600 obducite, while a floor with resource affixes drops around 1,700 obducite. Boss floors with resource bonuses can drop up to 3,200 obducite.

Key takeaway: Escalated Nightmare Dungeons are a gamble. When they roll the right bonuses, they can rival the best farming methods, but they're unreliable compared to regular strong room runs.

Infernal Horde Farming

The Infernal Horde has long been a go-to for farming, but how do different wave counts affect obducite per hour? The results might surprise you.

Wave Count Testing:

 10 Waves: 12 minutes per run, 21,000 obducite/hour.

 8 Waves: 9.5 minutes per run, 22,000 obducite/hour.

 6 Waves: 7 minutes per run, 22,000 obducite/hour.

Despite common community belief, running fewer waves doesn't hurt your hourly gain. In fact, the obducite per ether ratio improves when running shorter wave sets:

 10 waves = ~5-7 obducite per ether.

 6 waves = ~11-14 obducite per ether.

What About the 200 Ether Gear Chest?

The obducite-per-ether ratio scales better when you have a lower ether count. For example, opening a 200 ether chest at 800 ether yields slightly better returns than opening it at 1,000 ether.

Bottom line: 6 or 8 waves are just as profitable as 10. Don't be afraid to end early if you're pressed for time.

Caress Undercity Farming

Caress Undercity offers one of the fastest and most reliable obducite farms available. A single run takes roughly 2.5 minutes (including load screens), meaning you can complete around 24 runs per hour.

 Result: 48,000 obducite per hour.

This method rivals the best escalated dungeon drops without the RNG factor. If you want consistent gains, Undercity runs are the way to go.Comparing the Best Farming Methods

Here's a quick summary of obducite per hour from our testing:

 Regular Nightmare Dungeons (Strong Room Only): 45,000/hour.

 Escalated Nightmare Dungeons (Good Bonus Rolls): 40,000-55,000/hour (but inconsistent).

 Caress Undercity: 48,000/hour (stable).

 Infernal Horde: ~22,000/hour (regardless of wave count).

Best Overall Method?

If you want consistent profit, Caress Undercity or regular strong room skipping is king.

If you're chasing big spikes and don't mind the gamble, escalated Nightmare Dungeons with strong room bonuses can pay off-but the variance can be frustrating.

Understanding Seal & Tribute Drops

To optimize your farming loop, you'll also want to stockpile seals and tributes:

Seals:

 Found in Horde, Helltide, Nightmare Dungeons, Pit Ubers, random elite mobs, and whisper caches.

 Can be crafted at the jeweler from seal powder.

 Escalated seals can also drop from escalated dungeon bosses.

Tributes:

 Drop in Horde (from the council and obducite chest).

 Found in Nightmare Dungeon bosses, whisper caches, and sometimes random elites.

 Can be obtained from Caress Horde events and goblin encounters.

Final Thoughts: Build Smarter, Not Harder

Season 9 obducite farming is less about speed-clearing and more about choosing the right activity. Regular Nightmare Dungeons with strong room skips and Caress Undercity runs are the most consistent methods, while escalated Nightmare Dungeons are a high-risk, high-reward gamble.

Infernal Horde remains a steady backup, but it's roughly half as efficient as the top methods. Still, it's a fun and reliable alternative if you enjoy wave-based content.

Key Takeaways for Season 9 Farming:

 Don't overthink fast vs. slow clears-focus on dungeon type and structure.

 Prioritize strong room dungeons for regular nightmare seals Diablo 4 gold.

 Escalated dungeons are worth running if you land multiple strong room bonuses.

 Caress Undercity is pound-for-pound the best farm for stable obducite gains.

 Horde waves don't matter-profit per hour is nearly identical across 6, 8, or 10 waves.

By mixing these methods, you'll never run out of seals or tributes while maintaining top-tier obducite income.