Now That You've Purchased Item Upgrade ... Now What?
WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader
Upgrades will give you a boost to certain stats. Each upgrade increases item level by 3. A random additional substat is also increased with each upgrade.
Upgraded gear generally sees higher trade value, unless it has inherently low requirements (like the FB shield of the sorc) or a very high stat variation (like Eth titan weapons). These types of gear get less value from upgrading due to the necessity to roll for a perfect version.
Recycle Points
The item upgrader lets players upgrade their gear by transferring the currency to an NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any kind of weapon or armor. The item used to upgrade the item will be consumed and cannot be used again. Upgrades can be used to create Enchantments.
The upgrader can be found in every major city, and can be visited at any time to upgrade your gear. To keep your gear up-to-date, it is recommended that you visit the upgrader every several weeks.
Upgrades can cost more based on the item upgrades level, however they'll always be cheaper than buying new gear. Upgrades like upgrading a Benthic chest to ilvl385 will cost you 20 recycle points. A similar item will cost you 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are functional items that are used to upgrade weapons tools, armor, and other items. They are purchased by players from NPCs that sell upgrades to items in exchange for different currencies, and may also be found in random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade can be used on any weapon, tool or armor. button, which will display an image of the item at its next upgrade level if the player has sufficient materials.
Upgrade costs vary depending on the slot for the item and the current level of the item. For example, weapons will cost more than gloves, bracers, or bracers. Each upgrade costs 15 Flightstones and a number of crests, with certain upgrades having a discount to reduce the cost of the Flightstones or the crests used. After an item has been upgraded to a certain level, it can be downgraded and sold to the upgrader at a lower cost.
A lot of locations offer upgraders for items in addition to the main island and a few outposts. The NPCs provide both an upgrade coupon and the possibility of getting an entirely new recipe. The upgrade discount increases as more items are upgraded. It can also be increased by having players complete certain achievements or quests.
Unlike Cromwell in Baldur's Gate II there is no upgrader for items available at the start of Icewind Dale. The NPCs that can assist with upgrades are available only via a variety of ways. This is both a positive and a drawback.
In Season 3, many new features have been added to the upgrade system. After a player has earned an upgrade to a specific level of an item level Upgrade for a specific armor slot, upgrading further items to that level will cost less even if they belong to another set of gear.
The discount is applicable to all accounts. The amount of Harbinger Crests required for upgrades is also reduced and is not available until players have reached certain milestones in their achievements.
Crests
When it comes to upgrading equipment in WoW players have a couple of options. Flightstones are an option that is accessible to everyone who wants to upgrade. Crests are more specific and are used for specific item level upgrades. Crests are an essential part of the Dragonflight gear progression system introduced in 10.1, and come in 4 ranks.
The first thing to remember is that crests can only be used to purchase equipment that is of a particular rank, and each rank has its own requirements for upgrading. The simplest and easiest upgrade is 15 crests. The most complicated upgrade can require up to 20 crests, contingent on the type or gear being upgraded.
Players can earn crests through finishing tasks at the appropriate level. This could be by doing outdoor activities or completing dungeons and raids in all difficulty levels to obtain equipment of lower tier or Mythic+ raid bosses or dungeons with heroic difficulty for gear in the endgame. The crests can later be exchanged at an item upgrader NPC, such as Cuzolth in Dornogal or Vaskarn in Valdrakken to obtain the appropriate upgrade pathways and steps.
The new currency system isn't too difficult to use, but it does bring some changes to the process of upgrading. For instance, when 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 allows players to upgrade their equipment to the highest possible level on all of their characters, instead of relying on seasonal loot.
Another important change is that crests have one usage, so it's important to use them properly. For instance it's best to use all of your Whelpling-rank crests with the Best item upgrade equipment available and then keep Drake and Wyrm crests to use for the next set of upgrades you plan to make. This is especially relevant for rings and trinkets that fill multiple slots on the character which will only be able to avail the account-wide discount when all of the slots are filled with top-quality equipment.
Upgrades will give you a boost to certain stats. Each upgrade increases item level by 3. A random additional substat is also increased with each upgrade.
Upgraded gear generally sees higher trade value, unless it has inherently low requirements (like the FB shield of the sorc) or a very high stat variation (like Eth titan weapons). These types of gear get less value from upgrading due to the necessity to roll for a perfect version.
Recycle Points
The item upgrader lets players upgrade their gear by transferring the currency to an NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any kind of weapon or armor. The item used to upgrade the item will be consumed and cannot be used again. Upgrades can be used to create Enchantments.
The upgrader can be found in every major city, and can be visited at any time to upgrade your gear. To keep your gear up-to-date, it is recommended that you visit the upgrader every several weeks.
Upgrades can cost more based on the item upgrades level, however they'll always be cheaper than buying new gear. Upgrades like upgrading a Benthic chest to ilvl385 will cost you 20 recycle points. A similar item will cost you 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are functional items that are used to upgrade weapons tools, armor, and other items. They are purchased by players from NPCs that sell upgrades to items in exchange for different currencies, and may also be found in random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade can be used on any weapon, tool or armor. button, which will display an image of the item at its next upgrade level if the player has sufficient materials.
Upgrade costs vary depending on the slot for the item and the current level of the item. For example, weapons will cost more than gloves, bracers, or bracers. Each upgrade costs 15 Flightstones and a number of crests, with certain upgrades having a discount to reduce the cost of the Flightstones or the crests used. After an item has been upgraded to a certain level, it can be downgraded and sold to the upgrader at a lower cost.
A lot of locations offer upgraders for items in addition to the main island and a few outposts. The NPCs provide both an upgrade coupon and the possibility of getting an entirely new recipe. The upgrade discount increases as more items are upgraded. It can also be increased by having players complete certain achievements or quests.
Unlike Cromwell in Baldur's Gate II there is no upgrader for items available at the start of Icewind Dale. The NPCs that can assist with upgrades are available only via a variety of ways. This is both a positive and a drawback.
In Season 3, many new features have been added to the upgrade system. After a player has earned an upgrade to a specific level of an item level Upgrade for a specific armor slot, upgrading further items to that level will cost less even if they belong to another set of gear.
The discount is applicable to all accounts. The amount of Harbinger Crests required for upgrades is also reduced and is not available until players have reached certain milestones in their achievements.
Crests
When it comes to upgrading equipment in WoW players have a couple of options. Flightstones are an option that is accessible to everyone who wants to upgrade. Crests are more specific and are used for specific item level upgrades. Crests are an essential part of the Dragonflight gear progression system introduced in 10.1, and come in 4 ranks.
The first thing to remember is that crests can only be used to purchase equipment that is of a particular rank, and each rank has its own requirements for upgrading. The simplest and easiest upgrade is 15 crests. The most complicated upgrade can require up to 20 crests, contingent on the type or gear being upgraded.
Players can earn crests through finishing tasks at the appropriate level. This could be by doing outdoor activities or completing dungeons and raids in all difficulty levels to obtain equipment of lower tier or Mythic+ raid bosses or dungeons with heroic difficulty for gear in the endgame. The crests can later be exchanged at an item upgrader NPC, such as Cuzolth in Dornogal or Vaskarn in Valdrakken to obtain the appropriate upgrade pathways and steps.
The new currency system isn't too difficult to use, but it does bring some changes to the process of upgrading. For instance, when 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 allows players to upgrade their equipment to the highest possible level on all of their characters, instead of relying on seasonal loot.
Another important change is that crests have one usage, so it's important to use them properly. For instance it's best to use all of your Whelpling-rank crests with the Best item upgrade equipment available and then keep Drake and Wyrm crests to use for the next set of upgrades you plan to make. This is especially relevant for rings and trinkets that fill multiple slots on the character which will only be able to avail the account-wide discount when all of the slots are filled with top-quality equipment.