WoW Upgrades - The item upgrades Upgrader
Upgrades provide a guaranteed boost to specific stats. Each upgrade increases item level by 3. Each upgrade also boosts a random substat.
Upgraded gear is generally more useful, unless the item is not required 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 need to roll to get a perfect version.
Recycle Points
The item upgrader enables players to upgrade gear to a higher item level by providing the appropriate currency to the NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any type of armor or weapon. The item Level upgrade used to upgrade the item will be consumed and can't be used again. Upgrades can be used to create the enchantments.
You can upgrade your equipment anytime by visiting the upgrader in any major city. To keep your gear up-to-date, it is recommended that you visit the upgrader every few weeks.
The cost of upgrading will vary based on the current level of the equipment being upgraded, but will always be cheaper than purchasing new equipment from other sources. Upgrades such as upgrading a Benthic chest up to ilvl385 will cost you 20 recycle points. Buying a similar item will cost you 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are useful items which can be used to improve the quality of weapons and tools, armor and other accessories. They can be bought by players from item upgrader NPCs in exchange for various currencies, and can also be found in random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade is able to be used on any weapon, tool, or armor. button, which will show a preview of the item at the next upgrade level when the player has enough materials.
Upgrade costs vary depending on the slot for the item and the current item level. For example weapons cost more than bracers, or gloves. Each upgrade costs 15 Flightstones plus a set number of crests. Some upgrades offer discounts on Flightstones. Once an item has been upgraded to a certain level it can be re-downgraded and sold to the upgrader at a lower cost.
Many locations offer item upgrades upgraders, including the main Island and some outposts. The NPCs provide both an upgrade discount as well as a chance to acquire a new upgrade recipe. The upgrade discount increases as more items are upgraded. It can be increased if players complete certain achievements or quests.
In contrast to Cromwell in Baldur's Gate II is no upgrader for items at the start of Icewind Dale. Instead, the NPCs that can be used to upgrade are acquired via a variety of means which is both an improvement as well as a disadvantage.
In Season 3, many new features were added to the upgrade system. After the player has upgraded to a certain item upgrader kit level for an armor slot, upgrading other items to the same item level upgrade level will cost less. This is true even if those items are from an entirely different set of equipment.
The discount is available to all accounts. The amount of Harbinger Crests needed for upgrades is also reduced and is not available until players achieve certain milestones in their achievements.
Crests
When upgrading equipment in WoW players have a couple of options. Flightstones are a currency that is available to everyone who wants to upgrade. Crests are more specialized, and are used during specific item level upgrades. Crests are a key element of the Dragonflight gear progression system that was introduced in 10.1 and are available in 4 ranks.
The first thing to remember is that the crests can only be purchased for equipment of a certain rank. Each rank has a different upgrade path. The easiest and most straightforward upgrade costs 15 crests. The most complex upgrade could require as much as 20 crests, contingent on the type or equipment being upgraded.
Players can obtain crests by finishing content at the appropriate level, which involves walking around and engaging in outdoor activities for gear of lower tiers, raids or dungeons of any difficulty for higher-tier items, or Mythic+ heroic raid bosses and dungeons for gear that is used in the endgame. The crests can then be exchanged with an upgrader for the item, such as Cuzolth or Vaskarn in Valdrakken for the appropriate upgrade steps and routes.
The use of these currencies isn't too difficult, but the system introduces some changes to the overall upgrade process. When a piece reaches the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer or Adventurer) it no longer requires Flightstones. This change is intended to allow players to get their equipment up to the highest ilvl possible on all their characters instead of relying on seasonal loot.
It's also important to use crests with care, since they only have one use. It is best to use your Whelpling-rank Crests on the best gear that you can find, and keep Drake and Wyrm Crests for the next set of upgrades. This is particularly relevant for items like trinkets and rings that take up several slots. The discount for the entire account is only applicable when all slots on the character are filled with top-quality gear.