WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader
Upgrades give a guaranteed boost to specific stats. Each upgrade boosts the level of an item by 3. A random substat is also boosted alongside every upgrade.
Upgraded gear is generally more valuable, unless the item has low requirements by nature (like FB sorc shields) or a high stat variance (like eth Titan weapons). Upgrades are less important for the latter due to the need to roll a perfect version.
Recycle Points
The item upgrader allows players to upgrade their gear by transferring the currency to an NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any type of weapon or armor. The item used to upgrade the item is discarded and cannot be used again. Upgrades can be applied to Enchantments.
You can upgrade your equipment anytime by visiting the upgrader in any major city. It is recommended to visit the upgrader every few weeks, to keep your equipment up-to-date.
Upgrades will cost more, based on the item level, but they will always be cheaper than buying new gear. Upgrades like upgrading a Benthic chest up to 385 ilvl will cost you 20 recycle points. If you purchase a similar item, it will cost you 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are useful items that can be used to level up weapons, tools, armor, and other accessories. They can be bought by players from NPCs who sell upgrades for items in exchange for various currencies, and may also be found in random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade can be applied to any weapon, tool or armor. The button will show a preview of an item's next upgrade level, in the event that there are enough materials.
The cost of upgrades varies based on the item slot and current item level as well as the level of the weapon, which is more than gloves or bracers, for instance. Each upgrade costs 15 Flightstones and a few crests, with certain upgrades having a discount to lower the cost of Flightstones or crests that are used. Once an item has been upgraded to a certain degree, it can be degraded and sold back to the upgrader for a lower amount of both currencies.
Upgraders for items can be found at many locations, including the main island and some outposts. The NPCs provide an upgrade discount as well as a chance to acquire a new upgrade recipe. The discount for upgrades increases with the number of items that are being upgraded. It is also possible to be increased by having players complete specific achievements or quests.
Icewind Dale does not have an item upgrader at beginning 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 and an issue.
In Season 3, the upgrade system has been modified a bit, and numerous new features added. Once a player obtains an upgrade to a specific level of an item for a specific armor slot, upgrading further items to the same level will cost less, even if they are part of a different gear set.
The discount is applicable to all accounts. The amount of Harbinger Crests needed for upgrades is reduced too, but it is only available after certain milestones are achieved.
Crests
When upgrading equipment in WoW players have a variety of choices. upgrade item are an option that is accessible to everyone who wants to upgrade. Crests are more specific and are utilized during specific upgrades to the level of an item. Crests are the main component of the Dragonflight gear progression system, which was introduced in 10.1, and come in four ranks.
First, you should know that the crests can only be purchased for gear of a certain rank. Each rank has an upgrade path that is different. The most basic and straightforward upgrade path costs 15 crests, while the most complicated can require as much as 20 crests depending on the type of equipment that is being upgraded.
Players can earn crests by finishing tasks at the appropriate level. This could be by doing outdoor activities or taking on dungeons and raids of all difficulty levels to obtain equipment of lower tier or Mythicbosses for raids, or dungeons with heroic difficulty to obtain endgame gear. These crests can then be exchanged at an upgrader NPC, such as Cuzolth in Dornogal or Vaskarn in Valdrakken to get the appropriate upgrade paths and steps.
Utilizing these new currencies isn't too difficult, but the system introduces some changes to the overall upgrade process. Once a piece of gear reaches the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer or Adventurer) it no longer requires Flightstones. This change allows players to upgrade their equipment to the highest possible level on all their characters rather than relying on seasonal loot.
It's also crucial to choose crests with care, since they only have one use. For instance, it's a good idea to use all of your Whelpling-rank crests on the best equipment available and save Drake and Wyrm crests for the next round of upgrades you plan to make. This is especially relevant for trinkets and rings that occupy multiple slots on the character, which will only be able to take advantage of the account-wide discount if all of the slots are filled with top-quality gear.