Valor Mortis: How to Upgrade Transmutations at Louis’s Laboratoire

Transmutations are the magic side of William’s kit in Valor Mortis, and you will pick up Transmutation Materials long before the game ever shows you what to do with them. The bench that upgrades these abilities stays hidden for a good stretch of the early game, which is exactly why so many players assume they missed it.

Quick answer: Finish the Rendezvous main quest by finding Louis in the Fallen Village and choosing to go back with him, talk to Louis at his lab bench in the Abandoned Church, then use Louis’s Laboratoire beside him with Transmutation Materials in hand. You also need a Transmutation to upgrade, such as Fire.

Louis in a green waistcoat working at his lab bench under chalk-covered blackboards, with the E TALK TO prompt — Louis at his lab bench in the Abandoned Church. Talk to him after Rendezvous to open the Laboratoire.

Unlock the Transmutation bench by finishing Rendezvous

The ability to upgrade Transmutations is tied to the Chapter 3 main quest, Rendezvous. James asks you to track down his comrade Louis, who went to the Fallen Village and never came back. You need to find Louis and bring him back to the Abandoned Church to open up the bench.

Journal Quests tab showing Chapter III Rendezvous completed, with a card of crossed sabres on a burning pyre — Rendezvous ticked off in the journal once Louis is back.

Until that quest wraps up, there is no way to spend Transmutation Materials, so hold onto anything you find while exploring. Nothing is lost by stockpiling them.

Upgrade Transmutations at Louis’s Laboratoire

Find Louis in the Fallen Village: clear the enemies around his shed, open its barred door, and when he asks, choose Go together. The game then loads the Abandoned Church at once, and the journal marks Rendezvous complete.

Talk to Louis at his lab bench under the chalk-covered blackboards in the church. When the conversation ends, the Upgrading Transmutations tutorial appears: “You can upgrade your Transmutations with Transmutation Materials at Louis’s Laboratoire.” You do not need to speak with James first; his conversation afterwards starts Chapter IV.

Upgrading Transmutations tutorial box showing the Fire Transmutation upgrade screen and a Continue button — The Upgrading Transmutations tutorial appears when Louis’s conversation ends.

Press E at USE on Louis’s Laboratoire, the bench to his right, and pick UPGRADE (TRADE is his shop). Switch between Transmutations with Q and E, point at the top node of the tree (the icon for your current level), and hold the left mouse button on (HOLD) UPGRADE for about three and a half seconds to spend the materials listed under Upgrade Requirements.

Louis's Laboratoire menu with Upgrade, Trade and Exit buttons — Louis’s Laboratoire: UPGRADE for Transmutations, TRADE for his shop.

If you have not picked up a Transmutation yet, the upgrade screen shows placeholder text instead of a real entry. Get the Fire Transmutation first: it lies at the fire altar with a dead soldier near the Onslaught Arch Lantern in The Battlefield.

A dead soldier inside a thicket of red plague roots near the Onslaught Arch Lantern, with the E TAKE prompt — The Fire Transmutation altar near the Onslaught Arch Lantern in The Battlefield.

Each upgrade is a node on the Transmutation’s tree. For Fire, Brittleness is the next upgrade at level 1, and each node below it shows the level it unlocks at. A node you cannot pay for shows Unavailable: Insufficient Materials with the count you hold against the count needed, for example 1/2. The Transmutation’s level and damage values climb with each upgrade you buy.

Transmutation Materials you need for each tier

Every Transmutation upgrade runs on Transmutation Materials, and the tier you need rises with the level. The same four materials cover all three Transmutations (Fire, Stasis, and Shield), so plan your stock around whichever ability you lean on most.

Material	Price	Fire level	Qty
Crude Transmutation Material	2,000 Catalysts	Level 2	x2
Pure Transmutation Material	4,000 Catalysts	Level 3	x2
Distilled Transmutation Material	8,000 Catalysts	Level 4	x2
Quintessential Transmutation Material	—	Level 5	x1

Louis’s Laboratoire stocks these as you progress. Crude Transmutation Material is on sale as soon as the Laboratoire opens, but only one is in stock (2,000 Catalysts) and it leaves the list once bought, while Fire’s first upgrade needs two. Get the second in the Caverns, or buy it after the Sphinx, when it is back in the list (see below). Pure Transmutation Material opens up in Chapter 5 (Crime), and Distilled Transmutation Material arrives in Chapter 9 (In Ruins). You will also find all of them in chests and lying around the world, with the higher tiers concentrated in later areas like the University, Fortress, and City of Orphans.

Louis's shop Buy tab with Crude Transmutation Material selected at 2,000 Catalysts — Crude Transmutation Material at Louis’s Laboratoire: 2,000 Catalysts, one in stock.

Enemies drop Transmutation Materials too, though at low rates. Carrion and Spewer can drop Crude, while Abomination, Eternal Guardsman, and Volunteers can drop Pure, so farming them while clearing areas adds up over a run.

Where to get Crude Transmutation Material

In the Caverns

One Crude Transmutation Material lies in the Caverns (Chapter IV, see the Chapter IV walkthrough), in a timber-propped gallery on the lower level of the Old Mine, a short way from the Old Mine Lantern. This pickup is one-time.

A pair of BURNING FLESH MASSES blocks the gallery. These glowing, flaming heaps of fused corpses each have a small red health bar. Get close to either one and you will catch fire; the ongoing burn drains your health and can kill you.

A burning flesh mass in a timber-propped Caverns gallery with a white pickup light behind it — A burning flesh mass blocks the gallery; the pickup’s light is behind it.

Hit each mass with your melee weapon until it collapses, about a dozen swings, and each mass gives 580 Catalysts. Attack in short bursts and step back out of the flames between them, and drink a flask when the burn gets low. A Cleansing Vial (“Use it to cleanse yourself of Ignite and Stasis statuses.”) clears the burn if it stays on you.

Behind the masses, two white shafts of light mark pickups on the gallery floor. The nearer one on the right is an Oil Grenade (“[E] TAKE”). The far one on the left is the Crude Transmutation Material (“[E] TAKE”), with the toast “Crude Transmutation Material 1”.

At Louis’s Laboratoire

TRADE at Louis’s Laboratoire sells Crude Transmutation Material for 2,000 Catalysts (“Use it to upgrade Transmutations.”). When the Laboratoire first opens in Chapter III, it has only one, and it leaves the list once bought.

Defeat the Sphinx at Chapter IV’s end and Crude Transmutation Material returns to the list at 2,000, remaining available after a purchase. Pure Transmutation Material also appears there for 4,000; it is needed for the following Fire upgrade.

For the fastest level 2 upgrade, combine the Chapter III purchase with the material in the Caverns. If you didn’t collect the Caverns one, purchase another after the Sphinx.

How to upgrade the Fire Transmutation to level 2 (step by step)

Level 2 is the Brittleness upgrade, “Ignited enemies take more damage from Melee Attacks.” It costs 2 Crude Transmutation Material.

Carry 2 Crude Transmutation Material before you start. The section above covers where to get them.

In the Abandoned Church, use the bench beside Louis on his right, Louis’s Laboratoire. Press E when “[E] USE” appears. A small marker appears beside UPGRADE when an upgrade is affordable; select that option.

Louis's Laboratoire menu with a marker beside UPGRADE — The marker beside UPGRADE means you can afford an upgrade.

The page opens on FIRE TRANSMUTATION, and Q and E switch between FIRE TRANSMUTATION and STASIS TRANSMUTATION. The header reads “Lvl 1 Fire Transmutation”. With both materials in hand, Brittleness shows “Available” in green and the Upgrade Requirements line reads Crude Transmutation Material 2/2. With only one, it shows “Unavailable” and “Insufficient Materials” with 1/2.

Lvl 1 Fire Transmutation with Brittleness Available and Crude Transmutation Material 2 of 2 — Brittleness “Available” with Crude Transmutation Material 2/2.

On the tree at left, place the pointer over its highest node—the Fire icon for your current level. Keep the left mouse button pressed for roughly three and a half seconds, following “(HOLD) UPGRADE” at the bottom right. Holding the button over any other node has no effect.

The header changes to “Lvl 2 Fire Transmutation” and Brittleness now reads “Active”. The material counter drops to 0. The next node, Back-Burner (“Prolonged use increases damage and Status Effect buildup.”), shows “Unavailable” and “Insufficient Materials” with Pure Transmutation Material 0/2, where before level 2 it said “Unlocks at level 3”.

Lvl 2 Fire Transmutation with Brittleness Active — After the hold: “Lvl 2 Fire Transmutation”, Brittleness “Active”.

Fire Transmutation stats at every level

The Fire Transmutation sets foes and world objects ablaze, while affected enemies lose health gradually. It reaches a ceiling of level 5; each rank boosts base damage, direct damage, and ignite damage.

Level	Base damage	Damage	Ignite damage
1	5	15	4
2	7	17	4.5
3	8	18	5
4	9	19	5.5
5	10	20	6

Passive effects you choose as Fire levels up

Beyond raw numbers, reaching certain levels lets you add passive traits to the Fire Transmutation. Brittleness and Back-Burner come one after the other, while levels 4 and 5 each offer a pair of options, joined by a swap icon on the tree. Every node costs Transmutation Materials of its tier.

Fire Transmutation upgrade screen at level 1 with Brittleness selected, needing Crude Transmutation Material 0 of 2 — The Fire upgrade tree. Brittleness, the first upgrade, needs two Crude Transmutation Materials.

Unlocks at	Upgrade	Effect
Level 2	Brittleness	Ignited enemies take more damage from Melee Attacks. Costs Crude Transmutation Material x2.
Level 3	Back-Burner	Prolonged use increases damage and Status Effect buildup. Costs Pure Transmutation Material x2.
Level 4	Fireworks	Increases the range of the flame. Costs Distilled Transmutation Material x2.
Level 4	Wildfire	Widens the spread of the flame. Costs Distilled Transmutation Material x2.
Level 5	Never-Ending Inferno	Melee Attacks extend the duration of the Ignite effect. Costs Quintessential Transmutation Material x1.
Level 5	Unstable Blaze	Ignited enemies explode when shot at. Costs Quintessential Transmutation Material x1.

Fireworks and Wildfire sit opposite each other at level 4, and Never-Ending Inferno and Unstable Blaze do the same at level 5. Pick the one that suits how you fight. Brittleness pairs naturally with a melee-heavy build, since it makes your saber hit harder against anything already burning.

Fire Transmutation screen showing Unstable Blaze, unlocks at level 5, needing one Quintessential Transmutation Material — Unstable Blaze, one of the two level 5 options.

Stasis Transmutation’s first upgrade

The STASIS TRANSMUTATION tab reads “Lvl 1 Stasis Transmutation” and “A Stasis Transmutation that can stop enemies and moving gears. Attacking enemies frozen in Stasis deals massive damage.”, with the traits Complex / Can stop enemies in their tracks. / Focused on controlling the flow of battle. Its first upgrade, “Termination” (“Heavy Attacks shatter Stasis regardless of how much has been accumulated.”), also costs 2 Crude Transmutation Material. Stasis’s tree is laid out differently from Fire’s, since after Termination it offers a choice of two nodes already at level 3, then pairs at levels 4 and 5.

Lvl 1 Stasis Transmutation tab showing the Termination upgrade — Stasis’s first upgrade, Termination.

Once the bench is unlocked at the Abandoned Church, it stays available for the rest of the run, so you can keep returning to Louis’s Laboratoire to spend materials as the higher tiers come into stock. Keep feeding your preferred Transmutation and it will stay relevant deep into William’s journey.