WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader
Upgrades will give you a an increase in certain statistics. Each upgrade boosts the level of an item by 3. Each upgrade also boosts a random substat.
The upgraded gear typically has a higher trade value as long as it meets low requirements (like the FB shield of the sorc) or has a high stat variance (like the eth titan weapons). Upgrades are less useful for those with lower requirements because of the requirement to roll the perfect version.
Recycle Points
The item upgrader lets players upgrade their gear by transferring the currency to an NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any kind of armor or weapon. The item used to upgrade the item will be consumed and cannot be used again. Upgrades can be applied to Enchantments.
You can upgrade your equipment at any time by visiting the upgrader in any major city. It is recommended to visit the upgrader once every couple of weeks to keep your equipment up to date.
Upgrades will cost more, based on the level of the item however they'll always be less expensive than purchasing new gear. Upgrades such as upgrading a Benthic chest up to the level of ilvl385 will cost you 20 recycle points. Buying a similar item will cost you 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are functional items that are used to improve the quality of weapons tools, armor, and other items. They can be bought by players through NPCs who sell upgrades for items in exchange for different currencies, and may also be found in random treasure lists. Once an upgrade has been purchased, it can be applied to any weapon, tool, or armor using a The button will show a preview of an item's next upgrade level if there are enough materials.
The cost of upgrading varies based on the Item Upgrader Kit slot, and the current level of the item. For example weapons cost more than bracers, or gloves. Each upgrade costs 15 Flightstones and a number of crests, with some upgrades offering discounts to lower the cost of Flightstones or crests used. Once an item is upgraded to a certain degree and is degraded, it can be sold and returned to the upgrader for a lower amount of the two currencies.
Many locations have upgraders for their items in addition to the main island and some outposts. The NPCs provide both an upgrade discount and a chance to obtain a new upgrade recipe. The upgrade discount increases with the number of items that are being upgraded. It is also possible to be increased by having players complete some specific achievements or complete quests.
Contrary to Cromwell in Baldur's Gate II, there is no item upgrader available at the start of Icewind Dale. Instead, the NPCs that are available to facilitate upgrades require several methods which is both an improvement and a drawback.
In Season 3 the upgrade system was altered a bit, with some new features added. After a player has earned an upgrade to a particular level for an item upgrading in an armor slot, upgrading further items to that level will cost less, even in the event that they are part of an entirely different set of gear.
The amount of Valorstones required for upgrades is decreased, and the discount is account-wide. Similarly, the amount of Harbinger Crests needed to upgrade is also reduced and is not available until players achieve certain milestones in their achievement.
Crests
When it comes to 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 specific and are used for specific item upgrader kit level upgrades. Crests are an important component of the Dragonflight Gear Progression System introduced in version 10.1. They are available in four ranks.
The first thing to be aware of is that crests are only able to be used on equipment of a particular rank, and that every rank has different requirements for upgrading. The easiest and most straightforward upgrade costs 15 crests. The most complex upgrade requires up to 20 crests, contingent on the kind of gear being upgraded.
Players can earn crests by working through content that is of the appropriate level, which involves walking around and engaging in outdoor activities to get 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 item upgrader, such as Cuzolth or Vaskarn in Valdrakken to upgrade the item in the proper steps and routes.
The use of these currencies isn't that difficult, but the system introduces some changes to the overall upgrade process. For example, once an item upgrading is at the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer, Adventurer, Veteran, Champion, Hero, or Mythic), it won't need Flightstones to be upgraded. This is to allow players to upgrade their gear up to the highest level possible on all their characters instead of relying only on seasonal loot.
Another significant modification is that crests have one usage therefore it's essential to use them properly. It is recommended to put your Whelpling-rank Crests on the top-quality equipment that you can find and save Drake and Wyrm Crests to be used for the next set of upgrades. This is especially applicable to trinkets and rings that occupy multiple slots on the character which will only be able to benefit from the account-wide discount if all slots are filled with top-quality equipment.