WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader
Upgrades can give you an increase in specific statistics. Each upgrade boosts the level of an item by 3. Each upgrade also boosts an unspecified substat.
item upgrading upgraded gear is usually more valuable, unless the item has a low requirement by nature (like FB sorc shields) or a high stat variance (like eth Titan weapons). These types of gear get less value from upgrading due to the requirement to roll to get a perfect version.
Recycle Points
The item upgrader allows players to upgrade their gear to a higher level by providing the appropriate currency to the NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any kind of weapon or armor. The item used to upgrade the item will be consumed and can't be used again. Upgrades can also be applied to enchantments.
You can upgrade your equipment at any time by visiting the upgrader in any major city. It is recommended that you visit the upgrader every few weeks, to ensure that your equipment is up-to-date.
The cost of upgrading will be based on the current item level of the equipment being upgraded but they will always be less expensive than purchasing new equipment from other sources. Upgrades like upgrading a Benthic chest to 385 ilvl will cost you 20 recycle points. A similar item will cost you 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are items that can be used to purchase tools, armor, weapon and accessory upgrades. They are purchased by players from item upgrader NPCs in exchange for different currencies, and can be found in random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade can be used on any weapon, tool, or armor. button, which will display a preview of the item when it is upgraded if the player has sufficient materials.
Upgrade costs vary depending on the item slot, and the current level of the item. For example weapons cost more than gloves, bracers or bracers. Each upgrade cost 15 Flightstones plus a specific number of crests. Some upgrades offer discounts on Flightstones. Once an item has been upgraded to a certain level it is able to be degraded and sold back to the upgrader for a lower amount of both currencies.
A lot of locations offer upgraders for items which include the main island and a few outposts. The NPCs offer both an upgrade discount as well as a chance to acquire a new upgrade recipe. The discount on upgrades increases as more items are upgraded. It can also be increased by having players complete certain achievements or quests.
Contrary to Cromwell in Baldur's Gate II is no item upgrader available at the start of Icewind Dale. The NPCs who can facilitate upgrades are only available via a variety of ways. This is both a benefit as well as an issue.
In Season 3, many new features were added to the upgrade system. Once a player obtains an upgrade to a particular level of an item for a specific armor slot, upgrading additional items to that same item level will cost less even when they are part of an entirely different 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 to upgrade is reduced as well, but is only available after certain milestones are reached.
Crests
When it comes to upgrading gear in WoW, players have a few choices. They can choose to use Flightstones, which are a general upgrade currency that is accessible to all players, or crests, which are more specialized and used to upgrade specific levels of the item. Crests are a key element of the Dragonflight gear progression system, which was introduced in 10.1 and are available in four ranks.
First, you should know that Crests are only available to equipment that is of a certain rank. Each rank has a different upgrade path. The simplest and easiest upgrade is 15 crests. The most complex upgrade can require up to 20 crests, contingent on the type or gear that is being upgraded.
Players can earn crests through finishing content at the appropriate level, which involves walking around and performing outdoor activities for lower-tier gear, dungeons or raids of all difficulties for higher-tier items, or Mythic+ heroic raid bosses or dungeons to obtain endgame gear. These crests can be exchanged with an upgrader for the item like Cuzolth or Vaskarn in Valdrakken for the appropriate upgrade steps and paths.
Using upgrade item isn't too complicated, but the system will introduce a few modifications to the upgrade process. Once a piece of gear attains the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer or Adventurer) it will no longer require Flightstones. This allows players to upgrade their gear to the highest possible level on all of their characters, instead of relying on seasonal loot.
Another important change is that crests have one purpose therefore it's essential to make use of them in a responsible manner. For instance it's best to make use of all your Whelpling-rank crests on the top gear you have available and keep Drake and Wyrm crests for the next batch of upgrades you're planning to make. This is particularly true for items such as trinkets and rings that take up several slots. The account-wide discount will only apply when all slots on the character are filled with high-quality gear.