WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader

Upgrades give a guaranteed boost to specific stats. Each upgrade increases the level of an item level upgrade by 3. A random substat is also increased with every upgrade.

Upgraded gear generally sees higher trade value as long as it meets low requirements (like the FB sorc's shield) or has a high stat variance (like eth titan weapons). Upgrades are not as valuable for those with lower requirements due to the need to roll an exact version.

Recycle Points

The upgrader for items allows players to upgrade gear to a higher item level by supplying the appropriate currency to the NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any type of armor or weapon. The item used to upgrade the item will be consumed and cannot be used again. Upgrades can also be used to create enhancements.

You can upgrade your gear anytime by visiting the upgrader in any major city. It is recommended to visit the upgrader every few weeks, to ensure that your equipment is up-to-date.

The cost of upgrades will be based on the current item level of the item upgrading being upgraded, but will always be less expensive than buying new gear from other sources. For example, upgrading a Benthic chest to ilvl 385 will cost 20 recycle points while purchasing the same item level upgrade from a different player will cost 105.

Valorstones

Upgrades are useful items that are used to upgrade weapons, tools, armor, and accessories. Players can purchase them from item upgraders NPCs for various currencies. They are also available on random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade is able to be used on any weapon, tool, or armor. The button will show a preview of an item's next level of upgrade, if there are enough materials.

Upgrade costs differ based on the item slot, and the current item level. For example weapons are more expensive than bracers, or gloves. Each step costs 15 Flightstones plus a specific number of crests. Some upgrades offer discounts on Flightstones. After an item upgrader kit has been upgraded to a certain level and is degraded, it can be sold and returned to the upgrader for a lesser amount of both currency types.

A lot of locations offer upgraders for items, including the main Island and some outposts. The NPCs provide both an upgrade discount as well as a chance to get a brand new upgrade recipe. The upgrade discount increases according to the number of items that are being upgraded. It can also be boosted by having players complete specific achievements or quests.

Contrary to Cromwell in Baldur's Gate II is no upgrader for items in the beginning of Icewind Dale. The NPCs who can facilitate upgrades are available only through a variety of methods. This is both a benefit and an issue.

In Season 3 the upgrade system was tweaked a bit, with numerous new features added. After the player has upgraded to a specific level for an armor slot upgrading other items to the same item level will cost less. This applies even if those items come from a different set of equipment.

The discount is available to all accounts. The amount of Harbinger Crests needed to upgrade is reduced too, but it is only available once certain milestones are achieved.

Crests

Players have a variety of options when it comes to upgrading their gear in WoW. Flightstones are an item that is available to everyone who wants to upgrade. Crests are more special and are used for specific item level upgrades. Crests are an integral component 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 different requirements for its upgrade path. The simplest and most straightforward upgrade path costs 15 crests, while the most complex may require as many as 20 crests based on the type of equipment that is being upgraded.

Players can obtain crests by working through content that is of the appropriate level, whether that involves walking around and performing outdoor activities for gear of lower tiers, 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. These crests can be exchanged with an upgrader for the item such as Cuzolth or Vaskarn in Valdrakken to upgrade the item in the proper steps and routes.

The new currency system isn't too difficult to use, but it brings some changes to the process of upgrading. Once a piece of gear reaches the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer or Adventurer), it will no longer require Flightstones. This allows players to upgrade their equipment to the highest level possible on all of their characters, instead of relying on seasonal loot.

Another significant change is that crests only have one purpose and it's crucial to make use of them in a responsible manner. For instance, it's best to utilize all of your Whelpling rank crests on the best equipment you have, and then keep Drake and Wyrm crests for the next batch of upgrades you're planning to make. This is particularly relevant for rings and trinkets that take up multiple slots on the character which will only be able to avail the account-wide discount if all slots are full of high-quality equipment.