Path of Exile Item Upgrades
Item upgrades are a common and essential way to boost the performance of numerous items in Path of Exile. They can provide extra damage, AD or even affixes.
Sometimes, however, upgraded Common and Magic gear is outclassed by Rare-grade equipment due to their requirements.
Armor
Armor upgrades are a form of upgrade that can be used on armor and weapon items. They boost the performance of the item they are connected to. Upgrades to armor can be found in the world of the game and are available from Blacksmiths on bonfires. Alternately, they can be salvaged from items that have upgrade components in them using a specialist or more powerful salvage kit.
The level of an armor's or weapon's upgrade determines the amount of damage it can take on. The upgrade of an armor piece to maximum upgrade level will boost its damage absorption. But, it's important to note that this will also raise its weight, requiring it to be heavier than it was before.
There are several kinds of armor upgrades that are that are available in the game and they all have different effects. For example, some upgrades will grant the armor a certain number of additional health points, while others will make it stronger and lighter. The kind of armor upgrade an item will receive is indicated by the name of the upgrade, as indicated in the table below.
Certain upgrades require magic or a hybrid technology and magic, which is identified by the "Magic" and "Hybrids" entries in the table below. Additionally, some upgrades require a charge to use, which are indicated by an "Charges" entry in the table below. These charges are either continuously updated or never expire, depending on the upgrade.
The cheapest method of upgrading armor is with Iron Ore, which can be found through exploring the surroundings and looting minor loot chests. Titanium is more costly, but can be found at the smelters in Orgrimmar and Stormwind City. Certain upgrades, such as the Reforge or the Hot Potato Books can only be applied on armor pieces that are of high-level. These upgrades can give a significant improvements in stats and are worth the investment.
A piece of armor upgraded to its maximum upgrade level will significantly increase its defense capabilities but the wearer must be aware that putting on weight can drastically decrease its speed and agility. It is not recommended to upgrade armor beyond +9. The added defense typically isn't worth the weight and power expenses of the upgrades.
Weapons
Weapon upgrades allow players to enhance certain aspects of their weapon. For instance, an upgrade may enhance the damage caused by shotgun shells or the accuracy of a sniper rifle. Certain firearms also have enhancements that enhance their intrinsic characteristics. Frictionless materials (improves stability, and reduces the possibility of overheating) and Kinetic coils (increases the projectile's speed to cause more damage) are two examples.
The majority of upgrades to weapons require one of three Power Dices, a different amount of Minerals and Erons, and a whetblade. They can be obtained by finishing side quests, killing a certain number of bosses or monsters, or from the Weapon Upgrade NPC in Central Flarine.
The process of upgrading a weapon, equipment Set piece, or Whetblade requires visiting the NPC [Armor] Boboko in Central Flarine and paying her an upgrade price that is based on a specific number of Bars. The higher the upgrade level, the more bars you will need to complete the upgrade. The cost of upgrades will be lower if you have more than one of the relevant upgrade materials.
In Chapter 2: Season 5, the method of upgrading your equipment and weapon sets was a bit different. Before you could go to an Upgrade Bench and pay a set amount of Bars to upgrade your equipment or weapon to a higher rarity. You could do this until your weapon or equipment reached its maximum upgrade level, at which point the upgrades would be reset.
item upgrader can still do this however, the process is high on RNG and low on agency. You're better off buying gear that has low upgrade levels, but high base scores and stat distributions. These gears have a greater chance of giving you the highest tier advantages and benefits.
The majority of players will make the most of upgrades to weapons they are most likely to use to allow them to progress faster. Additionally players, they should think about upgrading the weapons favored by their squadmates to increase their power and effective. For instance, Shepard should consider upgrading the M92F to unlock the Beretta M93R, which will enhance its effectiveness when paired with biotic specialists like Grunt and Tali.
Jewels
Jewels can be used to increase the effectiveness of a skill or provide additional effects on weapons and armor. They can be made through a process called jewelry crafting, in which you combine a gem and a number of specific ingredients at a table for jewelry. The higher the grade of the gem, the greater the secondary effect. These reagents are obtained in the world through Treasure Goblins, World Bosses and sometimes by salvaging Legendary gear. You can also buy them from The Jeweler in exchange for Scattered Prisms and gold.
The Jeweler can improve the quality of a gem in stages ranging from Crude up to Royal. Depending on the tier of the gem it will give different stat boosts when inserted into gear, weapons and jewelry.
All kinds of jewels can be crafted at the Jeweler, with the exception of the rare and legendary gems that require you to be at a high enough level to obtain these. In contrast to other upgrade components, jewels can be swapped out by a different jewel of the same type without destroying the original one. However, you can only replace the jewels in an equipment piece once.
It is common to use more jewelry for aesthetic reasons. Jewels also enhance performance and create a surface harder than metal so that repeated friction from pivots do not damage them.
In addition to the above-mentioned upgrades additionally, players can acquire glyphs for their weapons and shields from a Glyphmaster. These glyphs provide a small boost and can be exchanged, however they are not guaranteed to show up as loot. Glyphs are upgradeable, as jewelry, by visiting the Jeweler for gold and a Scattered Crystal. Glyphs can also be taken out and returned to the inventory. Other upgrade components, like aegis and traits, cannot be swapped out, and can only be recovered using an Upgrade Extractor or salvaging them with the Black Lion Salvage Kit or an Ascended Salvage Tool.
Trinkets
Trinkets are small pieces of equipment that offer an array of small but useful advantages to your hero. You can find them in the starter area as rewards for personal stories or loot. They are also available from vendors and by doing road interaction. They can also be found on the Trading Post, or crafted by jewelers.
The first trinket players can unlock is the cloak. It grants a small but beneficial boost in speed of movement and the ability to escape. Then, they can purchase amulets, rings and necklaces in the same manner to the way a player acquires armor and weapons. Each piece of equipment has one upgrade slot that can accept either a universal or jewel upgrade. Universal upgrades are smaller and can be used on any equipment. Jewels cannot be upgraded or replaced and only work with certain trinkets.
These trinkets can also grant buffs and skills that remain active even when the character is not in combat. This allows the hero to become more efficient even when not in combat. It can also compensate for the lack of a strong team or talent tree slots which are usually filled by a hero's top stats.
A good general rule of thumb for trinket upgrades is to prioritize BiS (Best-in-Slot) items that you aren't planning to replace in the near future, then any items with desirable stats but less important than the iLevel of the item being upgraded. This is especially true when you're looking to upgrade several stats on an item. It is more beneficial to upgrade a single important stat instead of two subpar ones.
In the beginning of the game, players who are in the jungle will typically want to upgrade their trinket to a red, while top and middle players will usually opt for a green or pink ward (depending on the game's matchup). These choices will have a major impact on the hero's map control abilities.
In addition to the items mentioned above, players will also find other trinkets that form of rewards and trophies throughout the game. They can be earned through completing certain milestones in the story, for instance completing a chapter's main quest or killing a particular boss. You can view them by clicking on the achievement in the reward section of the hero's menu.