Are You Getting The Most Value From Your Item Upgrade
WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader
Upgrades provide a guaranteed boost to specific stats. Each upgrade increases the level of an item by +3. Each upgrade also increases a random substat.
The upgraded gear is usually more valuable, unless it has low requirements by nature (like FB sorc shields) or has a large variance in stats (like eth Titan weapons). The latter are less valuable from upgrading due to the requirement to roll for a perfect model.
Recycle Points
The item upgrades level upgrade (check out the post right here) upgrader enables players to upgrade gear to a higher item level by supplying the appropriate currency to the NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any type of armor or weapon. The item used to upgrade the item will be consumed and can't be used again. Upgrades can be used to create Enchantments.
The upgrader can be found in all major cities, and can be accessed at any time to upgrade your equipment. To keep your gear up-to-date it is recommended that you visit the upgrader every couple of weeks.
Upgrades will cost more depending on the item level, but they will always be cheaper than buying new equipment. For instance, upgrading a chest piece from Benthic to ilvl 385 will cost 20 recycle points, while buying a similar item upgrading from another player will costs 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are items that can be used to purchase weapon, armor, tool, and accessory upgrades. They can be purchased by players from item upgraders NPCs for a variety of currencies. They can also find them on random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade can be applied to any weapon, tool or armor. The button will display a preview of an item's next level of upgrade, when there are enough materials.
The cost of upgrading varies based on the item slot, and the current item level. For example, weapons will cost more than gloves, bracers or bracers. Each step costs 15 Flightstones and a few crests, with certain upgrades having a discount to lower the cost of Flightstones or crests used. After an item has been upgraded to a certain amount it can be re-downgraded and sold to the upgrader at a lower price.
Many locations have upgraders for their items in addition to the main island and a few outposts. The NPCs offer an upgrade item coupon and a possibility of obtaining an entirely new recipe. The discount on upgrades increases as more items are upgraded. It can be increased by having players finish certain achievements or quests.
Icewind Dale does not have an upgrader for items at the beginning unlike Cromwell from Baldur's Gate II. The NPCs that can assist with upgrades are available only through a variety means. This is both a positive and a drawback.
In Season 3, a number of new features were added to the upgrade system. Once a player obtains an upgrade to a certain level of an item for a specific armor slot, upgrading additional items to the same level will cost less even in the event that they are part of another set of gear.
The amount of Valorstones required for upgrades is decreased, and the discount is affixed to all accounts. The amount of Harbinger Crests required for upgrades is reduced too, but it is only available after certain milestones are achieved.
Crests
When it comes to upgrading gear in WoW players have a few choices. Flightstones are an option that is accessible to everyone who wants to upgrade item. Crests are more special and are used for specific item level upgrades. Crests are an important component of the Dragonflight Gear Progression System that was introduced in version 10.1. They come in four ranks.
The first thing to be aware of is that crests can only be spent on gear of a specific rank, and that each rank has its own requirements for upgrading. The simplest and most straightforward upgrade path costs 15 crests, while the most complicated may require as many as 20 crests, based on the type of equipment that is being upgraded.
Players can earn crests through completing content of the appropriate level, which means walking around and doing outdoor activities for gear of lower tiers, raids or dungeons with any difficulty for higher-tier items, or Mythic+ heroic raid bosses and dungeons for endgame gear. These crests can be exchanged with an upgrader, such as Cuzolth or Vaskarn in Valdrakken for the appropriate upgrade steps and pathways.
The new currency system isn't complicated to use, but it will bring some changes to the upgrade process. When a piece attains the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer or Adventurer) it will no longer require Flightstones. This allows players to upgrade their equipment to the highest level possible on all of their characters, instead of relying on seasonal loot.
It's also crucial to choose crests in a wise manner, as they are only used for one purpose. For instance it's a good idea utilize all of your Whelpling rank crests on the top equipment available, and then save 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, that will be able to take advantage of the account-wide discount when all of the slots are full of high-quality equipment.