WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader

Upgrades give you boost in certain stats. Each upgrade increases the item level by +3. Each upgrade also increases a random substat.

The more modernized gear generally has a greater value for trade as long as it meets low requirements (like the FB sorc's shield) or has a high stat variation (like eth titan weapons). These types of gear get less value from upgrading due to the requirement to roll for a perfect version.

Recycle Points

The upgrader for items allows players to upgrade their gear to a higher item level by providing the appropriate currency to the NPC. Upgrades can be applied on any kind of weapon or armor. However, the item that is used for the upgrade will be consumed for the duration of time and cannot be used again. Upgrades can be applied to the enchantments.

You can upgrade your equipment anytime by visiting the upgrader in any major city. To keep your gear current it is recommended that you visit the upgrader every few weeks.

Upgrades will cost more, based on the level of the item however they'll always be cheaper than buying new equipment. Upgrades like upgrading a Benthic chest up to ilvl385 will cost you 20 recycle points. A similar item upgrading will cost you 105.

Valorstones

Upgrades are functional items which can be used to improve the quality of weapons and tools, armor and accessories. They can be purchased by players from item upgraders NPCs in a variety of currencies. They are also available on random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade items can be applied to any tool, weapon or armor. The button will display the item's next upgrade level, if there are enough materials.

The cost of upgrading is based on the item upgrader Mod slot and current item level as well as the level of the weapon, which is more than bracers or gloves, for instance. Each step costs 15 Flightstones plus a certain number of crests. Some upgrades give a discount on the Flightstones. After an item has been upgraded to a certain level it is able to be degraded and sold back to the upgrader for a lesser amount of both currency types.

A lot of locations offer upgraders for items which include the main island and a few outposts. The NPCs provide both an upgrade coupon and a chance to obtain the latest recipe. The discount on upgrades increases as more items are upgraded. It can also be increased by having players finish certain achievements or quests.

Icewind Dale does not have an item level upgrade upgrader at the start unlike Cromwell from Baldur's gate II. The NPCs that can assist with upgrades are only accessible via a variety of ways. This is both a positive and a drawback.

In Season 3, the upgrade system has been tweaked a bit, with some new features added. Once the player has upgraded to a certain level of item for an armor slot, upgrading other items to the same level, will cost less. This is true regardless of whether the items come from an entirely different set of equipment.

The amount of Valorstones needed to upgrade is reduced and the discount is account-wide. The amount of Harbinger Crests required for upgrades is also cut and is not available until players reach certain achievement milestones.

Crests

When it comes to upgrading gear in WoW players have a few choices. They can choose to use Flightstones which are a common upgrade currency that is available to everyone players, or crests that are more specific and consumed during upgrades on specific levels of the item. Crests are an essential part of the Dragonflight gear progression system that was introduced in 10.1 and are available in four ranks.

The first thing to note is that crests can only be used on equipment that is of a particular rank, and that each rank has its own requirements for upgrading. The easiest and most straightforward upgrade is 15 crests. The most complex upgrade requires up to 20 crests, based on the kind of gear that is being upgraded.

Players can earn crests through working through content that is of the appropriate level, which involves walking around and performing outdoor activities for gear of lower tiers, raids or dungeons with any difficulty for higher-tier items or Mythic+ dungeons or heroic raid bosses for endgame gear. The crests can then be exchanged with an upgrader such as Cuzolth or Vaskarn in Valdrakken for the appropriate upgrade steps and paths.

The use of these currencies isn't that difficult however, the system will introduce a few changes to the overall upgrade process. For instance, once a piece of equipment reaches the highest level of upgrading for any rank (Explorer, Adventurer, Veteran, Champion, Hero, or Mythic), it won't require Flightstones to be upgraded. This change allows players to upgrade item their equipment to the highest possible level on all of their characters rather than relying on seasonal loot.

Another important modification is that crests have one usage therefore it's essential to use them wisely. For instance it's a good idea make use of all your Whelpling-rank crests on the Best item upgrade equipment available and save Drake and Wyrm crests for the next round of upgrades you plan on making. This is especially true for items like trinkets and rings that occupy multiple slots on the character, that will be able to benefit from the account-wide discount when all of the slots are filled with top-quality equipment.