WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader
Upgrades provide a guaranteed boost to specific stats. Each upgrade increases item level by +3. A random substat is also increased with every upgrade.
The upgraded gear is usually more useful, unless the item has a low requirement by nature (like FB sorc shields) or has a high variance in stats (like the eth Titan weapons). The latter are less valuable from upgrading due to the requirement to roll to get a perfect version.
Recycle Points
The item upgrader allows players to upgrade gear to a higher level by supplying the appropriate currency to the NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any type of weapon or armor. The item used to upgrade the item will be consumed and can't be used again. Upgrades can also be used to create enhancements.
You can upgrade your equipment anytime by visiting the upgrader in any major city. It is recommended to visit the upgrader every couple of weeks to ensure that your equipment is up to date.
The cost of upgrades will be based on the current level of the item being upgraded but they will always be cheaper than buying new gear from other sources. For example, upgrading a Benthic chest piece to 385 levels will cost 20 recycle points while purchasing the same item from another player will costs 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are items that are used to upgrade weapons, tools, armor, and accessories. They can be purchased by players from item upgrader NPCs in exchange for a variety of currencies, and may also be found in random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade is able to be used on any tool, weapon or armor. button, which displays a preview of the item at the next upgrade level when the player has enough materials.
Upgrade costs differ based on the slot of the item and the current level of the
Best item upgrade. For example weapons cost more than gloves, bracers, or bracers. Each step costs 15 Flightstones and a few crests, with some upgrades having a discount to reduce the cost of the Flightstones or the crests used. Once an
item upgrades is upgraded to a certain degree, it can be downgraded and sold to the upgrader at a lower cost.
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 the possibility of obtaining a new recipe. The discount for upgrading increases when 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 beginning, unlike Cromwell from Baldur's Gate II. Instead, the NPCs that are available to help with upgrades are acquired via a variety of means that are both an improvement as well as a disadvantage.
In Season 3, several new features were added to the upgrade system. Once a player obtains an upgrade to a certain
Best item upgrade level for a particular armor slot, upgrading further items to that level will cost less even when they are part of another set of gear.
The amount of Valorstones needed to upgrade is reduced and the discount is available across all accounts. The amount of Harbinger Crests required for upgrades is reduced too, but it is only available once certain milestones have been reached.
Crests
Players have several options for upgrading their equipment in WoW. Flightstones are a currency that is available to all players for upgrading. Crests are more special, and are used during specific item level upgrades. Crests are an essential part of the Dragonflight gear progression system introduced in 10.1 and are available in four ranks.
The first thing to be aware of is that crests can only be used to purchase equipment of a particular rank, and that each rank has its own requirements for its upgrade path. The simplest and easiest upgrade is 15 crests. The most complex upgrade could require as much as 20 crests, contingent on the type of equipment being upgraded.
Players can obtain crests by working through content that is of the appropriate level, whether that means walking around and doing outdoor activities to get lower-tier gear, dungeons or raids of all difficulty for items of higher tier or Mythic+ heroic raid bosses and dungeons to obtain endgame gear. These crests can be exchanged with an item upgrader like Cuzolth or Vaskarn, in Valdrakken for the appropriate upgrade steps and paths.
Utilizing these new currencies isn't too complicated however, the system will introduce a few modifications to the upgrade process. When a piece attains the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer or Adventurer) it is no longer required to purchase Flightstones. This change is intended to allow players to upgrade their equipment up to the highest level possible for all their characters rather than relying solely on seasonal loot.
Another significant change is that crests only have one purpose and it's crucial to use them wisely. For instance, it's a good idea use all of your Whelpling-rank crests on the top equipment you have and then save Drake and Wyrm crests to use for the next set of upgrades you plan on making. This is particularly applicable to items like rings and trinkets that occupy multiple slots. The discount on the account will only be applicable if all the slots on the character are filled with high-quality gear.