The Reasons To Focus On Improving Item Upgrade
WoW Upgrades - The Item Upgrader
Upgrades will give you a an increase in certain statistics. Each upgrade boosts the item level by +3. Each upgrade also increases the random substatus.
The upgraded gear typically has a more value in trade, unless it has inherently low requirements (like the FB shield of the sorc) or has a high stat variance (like Eth titan weapons). Upgrades are not as useful for those with lower requirements due to the need to roll a perfect version.
Recycle Points
The item level upgrade upgrader enables players to upgrade their gear to a higher level by providing the appropriate currency to the NPC. Upgrades can be applied to any kind of armor or weapon. The item used to upgrade the Item Level Upgrade is discarded and cannot be used again. Upgrades can also be applied to enhancements.
The upgrader can be found in all major cities and is accessible at any time to upgrade your equipment. To keep your gear up-to-date, it is recommended that you visit the upgrader every few weeks.
The cost of upgrading will vary based on the current item level of the equipment being upgraded, but will always be cheaper than buying new equipment from other sources. Upgrades such as upgrading a Benthic chest up to ilvl385 will cost you 20 recycle points. A similar item will cost you 105.
Valorstones
Upgrades are items that can be used to purchase tools, armor, weapon, and accessory upgrades. Players can purchase them from item upgraders NPCs in a variety of currencies. They can also find them in random treasure lists. Once purchased, an upgrade can be used on any tool, weapon, or armor. The button will show the item's next upgrade level, if there are enough materials.
The upgrade cost depends on the slot of the item and current item level and the weapon's price is higher than bracers or gloves, for example. Each upgrade cost 15 Flightstones plus a set number of crests. Some upgrades offer a discount on the Flightstones. After an item upgrades has been upgraded to a certain level it is able to be degraded and sold back to the upgrader for a lower amount of both currency types.
Upgraders for items can be found in a variety of locations on the main island, as well as a few outposts. The NPCs provide both an upgrade coupon and a possibility of getting a new recipe. The upgrade discount increases according to the number of items being upgraded. It can also be boosted by having players complete specific achievements or complete quests.
In contrast to Cromwell in Baldur's Gate II there is no upgrader for items in the beginning of Icewind Dale. Instead, the NPCs that are available to help with upgrades must be acquired through various methods, which is both an improvement but also a drawback.
In Season 3, the upgrade system has been modified a bit, and numerous new features added. After a player has earned an upgrade to a specific level of an item for a specific armor slot, upgrading other items to the same level will be less expensive, even when they are part of another set of gear.
The amount of Valorstones needed to upgrade is reduced and the discount is account-wide. The amount of Harbinger Crests required for upgrades is also cut and is not available until players have reached certain milestones in their achievement.
Crests
When upgrading equipment in WoW players have a few options. Flightstones are an item that is available to all players for upgrading. Crests are more specialized and are used for specific item level upgrades. Crests are the main component of the Dragonflight gear progression system, which was introduced in 10.1 and are available in four ranks.
The first thing to be aware of is that crests can only be used to purchase equipment that is of a particular rank, and that each rank has different requirements for upgrading. The most basic and straightforward upgrade path costs 15 crests, while the more complex one requires as many as 20 crests, based on the type of gear being upgraded.
Players can earn crests through finishing content at the appropriate level, which involves walking around and engaging in outdoor activities for gear of lower tiers, raids or dungeons with all difficulties for higher-tier items, or Mythic+ heroic raid bosses and dungeons for gear that is used in the endgame. These crests can then be exchanged at an item upgrader NPC, such as Cuzolth in Dornogal or Vaskarn in Valdrakken, for the appropriate upgrade pathways and steps.
Utilizing these new currencies isn't too difficult however, the system will introduce a few changes to the overall upgrade process. For example, once an item upgrades reaches the highest upgrade level of any rank (Explorer, Adventurer, Veteran, Champion, Hero, or Mythic) it won't require Flightstones to be upgraded. This allows players to upgrade their equipment to the highest possible ilvl on all their characters instead of relying on seasonal loot.
Another important change is that crests only have one use, so it's important to use them properly. For instance, it's a good idea utilize all of your Whelpling rank crests on the best equipment available, and then save Drake and Wyrm crests for the next batch of upgrades you're planning to make. This is especially true for items like rings and trinkets that take up multiple slots on the character, which can only be eligible to avail the account-wide discount when all of the slots are filled with high-quality equipment.