WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader
Upgrades will give you a boost to certain stats. Each upgrade boosts the level of an item by +3. A random additional substat is also boosted alongside each upgrade.
The upgraded gear is usually more valuable, 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 for a perfect version.
Recycle Points
The upgrader for items allows players to upgrade gear to a higher level by supplying the appropriate currency to the NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any kind of armor or weapon. However, the item that is used for the upgrade will be consumed forever and cannot be used again. Upgrades can also be applied to enchantments.
The upgrader is located in every major city, and can be visited anytime to upgrade your gear. To keep your gear current it is recommended you visit the upgrader every few weeks.
The cost of upgrades will vary based on the current item level of the equipment being upgraded however, they will always be less expensive than buying new equipment from other sources. For example, upgrading a Benthic chest piece to 385 ilvl will cost 20 recycle points, while purchasing the same item from a different player will cost 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are items that can be used to purchase weapons, armor, tools, and accessory upgrades. They can be purchased by players through NPCs who sell upgrades to item level upgrade owners for a variety of currencies. They are also available on random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade can be used on any tool, weapon, or armor. The button will display the preview of an item's next level of upgrade, in the event that there are enough materials.
The cost of upgrading varies based on the slot of the item and the current level of the item. For example, weapons will cost more than gloves, bracers, or bracers. Each step costs 15 Flightstones and a variety of crests, with certain upgrades offering discounts to lower the cost of Flightstones or crests that are used. Once an item is upgraded to a certain amount it can be re-downgraded and sold to the upgrader at a lower cost.
A lot of locations offer upgraders for items which include the main island and some outposts. The NPCs provide an upgrade discount as well as a chance to obtain a new upgrade recipe. The upgrade discount increases depending on the amount of items that are being upgraded, and can be boosted by having players complete specific achievements or quests.
Icewind Dale does not have an item upgrader at the start, unlike Cromwell from Baldur's gate II. The NPCs who are able to facilitate upgrades are available only through a variety means. This is both a benefit as well as an issue.
In Season 3 the upgrade system has been altered a bit, with several new features added. After a player has earned an upgrade to a certain level for an item upgrader kit in an armor slot, upgrading further items to that level will cost less even if they are part of another set of gear.
The amount of Valorstones needed to upgrade is reduced and the discount is affixed to all accounts. In the same way, the amount of Harbinger Crests needed to upgrade is also reduced and is not available until players have reached certain achievement milestones.
Crests
Players have a variety of options when it comes to upgrading their equipment in WoW. Flightstones are an item that is available to everyone for upgrading. Crests are more specific and are utilized during specific item level upgrades. Crests are an essential part of the Dragonflight gear progression system that was introduced in 10.1, and come in 4 ranks.
First, you must be aware that Crests are only available to equipment with a certain rank. Each rank comes with a different upgrade path. The simplest and simplest upgrade route costs 15 crests while the more complex one may require as many as 20 crests, based on the type of gear that is being upgraded.
Players can earn crests by completing content of the appropriate level, whether that means walking around and doing outdoor activities for lower-tier gear, raids or dungeons with all difficulties for higher-tier items, or Mythic+ heroic raid bosses or dungeons for gear that is used in the endgame. Crests can be exchanged at an item upgrader NPC like Cuzolth in Dornogal, or Vaskarn in Valdrakken, for the appropriate upgrade routes and steps.
The new currency system isn't too difficult to use, however it will bring some changes to the upgrade process. For instance, when a piece of equipment reaches the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer, Adventurer, Veteran, Champion, Hero, or Mythic) it will no longer require Flightstones to be upgraded. This change lets players upgrade their gear to the highest possible level on all their characters instead of relying on seasonal loot.
It's also essential to use crests in a wise manner, as they only have one use. For instance, it's best to utilize all of your Whelpling rank crests on the Best item upgrade gear you have available and save Drake and Wyrm crests for the next batch of upgrades you're planning on making. This is especially true for items like rings and trinkets that fill multiple slots on the character, that will be able to avail the account-wide discount when all of the slots are filled with top-quality equipment.