WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader

Upgrades give you an increase in specific stats. Each upgrade increases the level of an item by +3. A random extra substat is also boosted alongside every upgrade items.

The more modernized gear generally has a higher trade value, unless it has inherently low requirements (like the FB sorc's shield) or a very high stat variance (like Eth titan weapons). These types of gear get less value from upgrading due to the requirement to roll for a perfect model.

Recycle Points

The item upgrader allows players to upgrade their gear to a higher item level by supplying the appropriate currency to the NPC. Upgrades can be applied on any kind of weapon or armor. The item used to upgrade the item is discarded and cannot be used again. Upgrades can also be applied to enchantments.

You can upgrade your equipment at any time by visiting the upgrader in any major city. To keep your gear up-to-date, it is recommended that you visit the upgrader every few weeks.

The cost of upgrades will be based on the current level of the gear being upgraded but they will always be cheaper than buying new equipment from other sources. For instance, upgrading a Benthic chest to 385 levels will cost 20 recycle points while purchasing the same item from another player will cost 105.

Valorstones

Upgrades are items that can be used for weapons, armor, tools and accessory upgrades. They can be purchased by players from item upgrader NPCs in exchange for different currencies, and can be found in random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade is able to be used on any tool, weapon or armor. button, which will show an item's preview at the next upgrade level in the event that the player has enough materials.

The cost of upgrades varies based on the slot of the item and the current item level as well as the level of the weapon, which is more than gloves or bracers, for example. Each upgrade cost 15 Flightstones plus a specific number of crests. Certain upgrades provide a discount on the Flightstones. Once an item has been upgraded to a certain degree it is able to be downgraded and sold to the upgrader for a lower price.

Item upgraders can be found at many locations on the main island, as well as a few outposts. The NPCs offer both an upgrade discount and the chance to acquire a new upgrade recipe. The discount for upgrades increases according to the number of items that are being upgraded, and can be increased by requiring players to complete specific achievements or complete quests.

Contrary to Cromwell in Baldur's Gate II is no item upgrader available at the start of Icewind Dale. The NPCs that can assist with upgrades are only available through a variety means. This is both a benefit as well as an issue.

In Season 3, a number of new features have been added to the upgrade system. Once a player has upgraded to a certain item upgrading level for an armor slot, upgrading other items to the same item level will cost less. This is even if the items come from an entirely different set of equipment.

The amount of Valorstones needed for upgrades is decreased, and the discount is available across all accounts. The amount of Harbinger Crests needed to upgrade item is reduced also, but is only available once certain milestones are achieved.

Crests

When it comes to upgrading equipment in WoW players have a few choices. Flightstones are a currency that is available to all players for upgrading. Crests are more specific, and are used 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 Crests are only available to equipment that is that is of a particular rank. Each rank comes with an upgrade path that is different. The simplest and most straightforward upgrade process costs just 15 crests while the most complicated may require as many as 20 crests based on the type of gear being upgraded.

Players can earn crests through completing content of the appropriate level, whether that involves walking around and performing outdoor activities to get lower-tier gear, dungeons or raids of any difficulty for higher-tier items, or Mythic+ dungeons or heroic raid bosses for gear that is used in the endgame. These crests are then exchanged with an item upgrader like Cuzolth or Vaskarn, in Valdrakken for the appropriate upgrade steps and routes.

The new currency system isn't difficult to use, but it does bring some changes to the process of upgrading. When a piece has reached the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer or Adventurer) it is no longer required to purchase Flightstones. This is to allow players to upgrade their gear up to the highest level possible on all their characters rather than relying solely on seasonal loot.

Another significant modification is that crests have one usage therefore it's essential to use them properly. It is best to put your Whelpling-rank Crests on the top-quality equipment you can locate, and save Drake and Wyrm Crests for the next round of upgrades. This is particularly true for items like rings and trinkets that take up multiple slots on the character that will be able to take advantage of the account-wide discount if all of the slots are full of high-quality equipment.