World of Warcraft Item Upgrades
Upgrades to items can be used to increase the stats of an item. Depending on item upgrades can boost an item's Mark Level or Rarity and boost additional stats.
The process of upgrading gear in The War Within requires a specified number of Flightstones and Crests and each item comes with an upgrade track. Each upgrade increases the cost of the next one by a set amount.
Item Level
The value of an item's basic stats increase when it is upgraded. The value is the sum of the perks that are leveled up (attack magic attack and defense). Upgrading items can be expensive, depending on the upgrader you choose and the type of upgrade you choose to perform. This is due to the sheer number of perks that have to be modified to upgrade an item.
Item level is a commonly used measurement of power and can be found on all item tooltips. It can also be used as a gating requirement while waiting for dungeons, raids and scenarios, and to limit the amount of PvP gear that a player can wear (since PvP is restricted to an lower level). The average level of the item can be found on the character sheet.
When deciding whether to purchase or sell gear players can look at the item level. It's a good gauge of an item's worth and how much damage it will be capable of causing. Comparing items in the inventory of a seller can be done using the item's level.
On PC, you are able to view the item level using ALT, or by using the left stick on XB1 or PS4. This will show the full item description, including its value. It is also accessible by hovering over an item using the mouse cursor, and then typing /itemlevel in chat.
There are several theories about how the item level calculation is carried out. One theory is that the level is a number that comes from a formula that calculates the value of an item's stats are worth. It considers the fact that various perks have different value and that sockets have gems that increase the overall value of the item. This could result in an item's ilvl which is calculated and is often very close to Blizzards actual level of the item.
It's not the only factor that affects the level of an item. The level of the area where the item was dropped can change its stats. For example it can increase the item's haste or crit rating. Items that drop in higher-level situations will have higher ilvl.
Item Stats
Stats on an item are a significant part of what makes or breaks an item for players. The game makes use of a lot of them in a variety of ways to encourage players to play with multiple weapons, and to prevent one weapon from being "the most effective." The base stats on a weapon are enhanced by the weapon's stat modification that are in turn enhanced by the player's level.
The upgrades to an item can increase the stats of an item. The rarity of an item determines the upgrade cost. For instance, a gray or white item can only be upgraded once, while an item with rare tiers will be upgraded several times at higher prices.
Another method to alter the stats on an item is through affixes. They are stat boosts which can be added by the player to an item. The affixes could be used to give the item additional damage, add a special ability to the item (such as reviving dead or reducing the cooldowns), or make the item unique by adding an exclusive name to the item.
Presently, all affixes are able to be changed by selecting them from the upgrade window and pressing the green button with circling arrows. This will cost a certain amount in gold and other items. They can also be used as upgrade gauges, just like the other methods of rerolling.
In addition to the possibility of rerolling affixes, players may select which of the available stats to keep on an item when it is upgraded. The range of stats is determined by the item's level. However every item will have at least one stat in the same range, unless it's an exclusive item, or an item that has a God Roll from a boss in a raid.
Another thing that could change is the possibility of upgrading equipment without having to roll the attachments, or pick which stats to enhance. But, like base equipment, this would need to be carried out on a per-item basis, and the item compare interface would not display all the possible stats that were gained or lost at the same time.
Item Luck
The Luck stat of a player can increase the likelihood of locating items as well as the properties spawned by loot and the intensity of these properties. However, it does not directly affect damage or the ability to upgrade item s. It gives the player a chance to upgrade their gear in earlier waves and is thus more valuable in early game runs than in later ones, as most players prioritize more powerful weapon scaling and defenses over raw damage gains.
In addition to influencing the discovery of items, Luck also increases the chances of being successful when upgrading items using the Blacksmith. This is not to be confused with the Blacksmith's overall upgrade chance which increases with each level and can be further enhanced by using an anti-material, such as a Scroll of Strength or a Jewel of Blessing.
The shields, armor and weapons come with an initial Luck value of 40. These items can then be enhanced with golden ingots, spined leather or oak boards (depending on the item's material type) to grant an additional +40 Luck or to boost the luck of an item up to 140.
Certain items, such as the Hollow-infused weapon can also be outfitted to increase the damage of any ability that deals damage by 5percent. These items can be purchased in the shops or made with the right ingredients.
Item Failure
Not all upgrades work. Cash shop items can be used to boost the success rate of an upgrade, or to protect players from losing their items if it fails.
The success rate of an upgrade is displayed in the Honing UI. The percentage represents the probability of successfully upgrading the item and it can be increased by adding Additional Materials or Special Materials. There are limitations to how much success rates can be increased and the chance of a failed upgrade cannot exceed 100%.
The success of an can be affected by the luck of the item. Every item has an initial success rate of 25%, and every item that has Luck increases the chance of success by 5%.
The item upgrade overlays are rendered above the items in the inventory. This may cause obscurity to enchantment effects or other effects. If you wish to disable the upgrade overlays, the config option decoration.renderUpgradeOverlays can be set to False in the Item Upgrader CORE client config.