Buzzwords De-Buzzed: 10 Other Ways To Deliver Item Upgrade

WoW Upgrades - The item level upgrade Upgrader

Upgrades can give you boosts in certain stats. Each upgrade increases item level by +3. A random additional substat is also added to each upgrade.

The upgraded gear typically has a more value in trade as long as it meets low requirements (like the FB sorc's shield) or very high stat variance (like eth titan weapons). Upgrades are not as important for those with lower requirements because of the requirement to roll a perfect version.

Recycle Points

The item upgrader enables 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 is discarded and cannot be used again. Upgrades can also be applied to the enchantments.

The upgrader is located in all major cities, and can be accessed anytime to upgrade your gear. To ensure that your equipment is up-to-date, it is recommended that you visit the upgrader every several weeks.

Upgrades can cost more based on the item level, however, they are always cheaper than purchasing new equipment. Upgrades like upgrading a Benthic chest up to 385 ilvl will cost you 20 recycle points. If you purchase a similar item upgrades, it will cost you 105.

Valorstones

Upgrades are items that are used to improve the quality of weapons tools, armor, and other items. They are purchased by players through NPCs who sell upgrades for items in exchange for different 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 display the preview of an item's next upgrade level if there are enough materials.

Upgrade costs vary depending on the slot for the item upgrades and the current item level. 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 reduce the cost of the Flightstones or crests used. After an item has been upgraded to a certain degree it is able to be degraded and sold back to the upgrader for a lesser amount of the two currencies.

Upgraders for items can be found in a variety of locations on the main island and some outposts. The NPCs provide both an upgrade discount as well as a chance to acquire a new upgrade recipe. The discount for upgrading increases when more items are upgraded. It can be increased if players finish certain achievements or quests.

Icewind Dale does not have an item upgrader at beginning, unlike Cromwell from Baldur's Gate II. Instead, the NPCs that are available to facilitate upgrades must be acquired through various methods which is both an improvement as well as a disadvantage.

In Season 3 the upgrade system has been modified a bit, and numerous new features added. When a player has an upgrade to a specific level for an item upgrades in an armor slot, upgrading additional items to the same level will be less expensive, even in the event that they are part of a different gear set.

The discount is available to all accounts. The amount of Harbinger Crests required for upgrades is also reduced and is not available until players have reached certain milestones in their achievements.

Crests

Players have a variety of options when it comes to upgrading their equipment in WoW. Flightstones are an option that is accessible to everyone who wants to upgrade item. Crests are more special, and are used during specific item level upgrades. Crests are the main component of the Dragonflight gear progression system introduced in 10.1, and come in four ranks.

The first thing to note is that crests can only be used on equipment of a particular rank, and every rank has different requirements for its upgrade path. The easiest and most straightforward upgrade is 15 crests. The most complicated upgrade requires up to 20 crests, depending on the type or equipment that is being upgraded.

Players can earn crests by finishing content at the appropriate level, which involves walking around and performing outdoor activities to get lower-tier gear, raids or dungeons of all difficulties for higher-tier items, or Mythic+ dungeons or heroic raid bosses to obtain endgame gear. Crests can be exchanged at an item upgrades upgrader NPC like Cuzolth in Dornogal, or Vaskarn in Valdrakken to get the appropriate upgrade pathways and steps.

The use of these currencies isn't too complicated, but the system does introduce some modifications to the upgrade process. For instance, once an item reaches the highest level of upgrade for any rank (Explorer, Adventurer, Veteran, Champion, Hero, or Mythic) it won't require Flightstones to be upgraded. This change is designed to allow players to get their equipment up to the highest ilvl possible for all their characters instead of relying on seasonal loot.

It's also crucial to choose crests with care, since they have only one purpose. For instance it's a good idea to utilize all of your Whelpling rank crests on the top gear you have available, and then save Drake and Wyrm crests for the next round of upgrades you're planning to create. This is especially true for items such as trinkets and rings that fill several slots. The discount on the account is only applicable when all the slots on the character are filled with top-quality equipment.