WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader
Upgrades will give you a boost to certain stats. Each upgrade increases the level of an item by 3. Each upgrade also boosts an unspecified substat.
Upgraded gear is generally more valuable, unless the item has low requirements by nature (like FB sorc shields) or has a large variance in stats (like Eth Titan weapons). The latter see less value from upgrading due to the need to roll for a perfect model.
Recycle Points
The item upgrader allows players to upgrade their gear to a higher level by supplying the appropriate currency to the NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any type of armor or weapon. However, the item upgrader mod used for the upgrade will be consumed for the duration of time and will not be able to be used again. Upgrades can be used to create enchantments.
The upgrader can be found in every major city, and is accessible at any time to upgrade your equipment. 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 vary based on the current item level of the gear being upgraded but they will always be cheaper than buying new equipment from other sources. Upgrades such as upgrading a Benthic chest up to ilvl385 will cost you 20 recycle points. A similar Item Level Upgrade will cost you 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are items that can be used to purchase weapons, armor, tools, and accessory upgrades. They can be purchased by players from NPCs of item upgraders in a variety of currencies. They can also find them on random treasure lists. Once an upgrade has been purchased, it can be used on any weapon, tool, or armor with an button, which displays an item's preview at its next upgrade items level in the event that the player has enough materials.
The upgrade cost depends on the item slot and current item level, with weapons costing more than bracers or gloves, for example. Each upgrade costs 15 Flightstones and a number of crests, with some upgrades having a discount to reduce the cost of Flightstones or the crests used. Once an item is upgraded to a certain amount it can be re-downgraded and sold to the upgrader for a lower price.
Upgraders for items can be found in many places, including the main island and some outposts. The NPCs offer both an upgrade coupon and the chance to obtain the latest recipe. The upgrade discount increases as more items are upgraded. It can also be increased by having players finish certain achievements or quests.
Icewind Dale does not have an item upgrader at the beginning unlike Cromwell from Baldur's gate II. 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 the upgrade system has been modified a bit, and several new features added. Once a player has upgraded to a certain level of item for an armor slot upgrading other items to the same item level, will cost less. This is true even if those items are from another set of equipment.
The amount of Valorstones needed for upgrades is decreased, and the discount is account-wide. The amount of Harbinger Crests required to upgrade is reduced also, but is only available after certain milestones have been reached.
Crests
Players have a variety of choices when it comes to upgrading their equipment in WoW. Flightstones are a currency that is available to everyone who wants to upgrade. Crests are more specific and are utilized during specific item level upgrades. Crests are an integral part of the Dragonflight Gear Progression System introduced in version 10.1. They come in four ranks.
The first thing to remember is that crests are only able to be used on gear of a specific rank, and that each rank has its own requirements for its upgrade path. The easiest and most straightforward upgrade is 15 crests. The most complicated upgrade items can require up to 20 crests, contingent on the type or equipment that is being upgraded.
Players can earn crests through working through content that is of the appropriate level, whether that means walking around and doing outdoor activities to get lower-tier gear, raids or dungeons with any difficulty for higher-tier items, or Mythic+ heroic raid bosses and dungeons to obtain endgame gear. The crests can later be exchanged at an upgrader NPC, like Cuzolth in Dornogal or Vaskarn in Valdrakken to get the appropriate upgrade routes and steps.
Using these new currencies isn't too difficult however, the system will introduce a few modifications to the upgrade process. When a piece reaches the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer or Adventurer), it will no longer require Flightstones. This change allows players to upgrade their gear to the highest possible ilvl for all their characters instead of relying on seasonal loot.
It's also essential to use crests in a wise manner, as they are only used for one purpose. It's best to use your Whelpling-rank Crests on the Best item upgrade gear that you can find, and keep Drake and Wyrm Crests for the next round of upgrades. This is especially applicable to trinkets and rings that occupy multiple slots on the character, which will only be able to take advantage of the account-wide discount when all slots are filled with high-quality gear.