WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader
Upgrades give you boost in certain stats. Each upgrade increases the level of the item by +3. A random extra substat is also added to each upgrade item.
The upgraded gear typically has a higher trade value as long as it meets low requirements (like the FB sorc's shield) or a very high stat variance (like Eth titan weapons). Upgrades aren't as important for those with lower requirements due to the requirement to roll a perfect version.
Recycle Points
The item upgrader lets players upgrade their gear by giving the currency to an NPC. Upgrades can be applied on any kind of weapon or armor. The item used to upgrade the item is discarded and cannot be used again. Upgrades can be applied to enchantments.
The upgrader can be found in all major cities and can be visited at any time to upgrade your gear. It is recommended that you visit the upgrader every few weeks to keep your equipment up-to-date.
The cost of upgrading will depend on the current level of the gear being upgraded but they will always be less expensive than buying new gear from other sources. Upgrades like upgrading a Benthic chest to ilvl385 will cost you 20 recycle points. A similar item will cost you 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are items that can be used for weapons, armor, tools and accessory upgrades. They are purchased by players from NPCs that sell upgrades to items in exchange for various currencies, and may also be found in random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade is able to be used on any weapon, tool, or armor. The button will display the preview of an item's next upgrade level if there are enough materials.
Upgrade costs differ based on the item slot, and the current level of the item Level upgrade. For example, weapons will cost more than gloves, bracers, or bracers. Each step costs 15 Flightstones plus a set number of crests. Some upgrades give a discount on the Flightstones. Once an item is upgraded to a certain amount it is able to be degraded and sold back to the upgrader for a lesser amount of both currencies.
Many locations have upgraders for their items in addition to the main island and some outposts. The NPCs provide both an upgrade coupon and a possibility of obtaining the latest recipe. The upgrade discount increases when more items are upgraded. It can be increased if players complete certain achievements or quests.
Icewind Dale does not have an item upgrader at start, unlike Cromwell from Baldur's gate II. Instead, the NPCs that are available to facilitate upgrades must be acquired through various methods that are both an improvement as well as a disadvantage.
In Season 3 the upgrade system was tweaked a bit, with some new features added. Once a player obtains an upgrade to a particular level of an item for a specific armor slot, upgrading other items to that same item level will be less expensive, even when they are part of a different gear set.
The amount of Valorstones needed to upgrade items is reduced and the discount is available across all accounts. The amount of Harbinger Crests required to upgrade is cut too, but it is only available after certain milestones are achieved.
Crests
Players have a number of choices when it comes to upgrading their gear in WoW. Flightstones are an item upgrades that is available to everyone for upgrading. Crests are more special and are used for specific item level upgrades. Crests are an important element of the Dragonflight Gear Progression System, which was introduced in version 10.1. They come in four ranks.
The first thing to be aware of is that crests can only be used to purchase gear of a specific rank, and every rank has different requirements for upgrading. The simplest and most straightforward upgrade process costs just 15 crests while the most complicated may require as many as 20 crests depending on the kind of gear that is being upgraded.
Players can earn crests through finishing content at the appropriate level, whether that involves walking around and performing outdoor activities for lower-tier gear, dungeons or raids of all difficulty for items of higher tier or Mythic+ heroic raid bosses and dungeons for endgame gear. These crests are then exchanged with an upgrader for the item, such as Cuzolth or Vaskarn in Valdrakken to upgrade the item in the proper steps and paths.
The new currency system isn't complicated to use, but it does bring some changes to the process of upgrading. When a piece attains the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer or Adventurer) it will no longer require Flightstones. This change lets players upgrade their equipment to the highest possible ilvl for all their characters rather than relying on seasonal loot.
It's also crucial to choose crests with care, since they only have one use. It's Best item upgrade to use your Whelpling-rank crests on the best gear you can find, and keep Drake and Wyrm Crests to be used for the next set of upgrades. This is especially true for items such as trinkets and rings that take up multiple slots. The discount on the account will only apply when all the slots on the character are filled with top-quality equipment.