Path of Exile Item Upgrades
The performance of many Path of Exile items can be enhanced by upgrading the performance of them. They can also provide additional damage, AD or even affixes.
Sometimes, however upgraded Common and Magic gear is beaten out by Rare-grade gear due to their higher requirements.
Armor
Armor upgrades can be applied to both armor and weapon items. They improve the stats of whatever item they are attached to. Armor upgrades can be found in the world of the game and can be purchased from Blacksmiths at any bonfire. Alternatively, they can also be rescued from items with upgrade components in them with a professional or higher salvage kit.
The amount of damage an armored piece or weapon is able to absorb is dependent on the level of its upgrades. The ability to absorb damage of a piece armor will increase when it is upgraded to the maximum upgrade level. It's important to remember that this will increase the weight of the armor, therefore it must be more heavy.
There are a variety of armor upgrades available in the game. Each one has a distinct impact. For example, some upgrades will grant the armor a certain number of health points while others will make it stronger and lighter. The kind of armor upgrade an item can get will be indicated by the name of the upgrade, as illustrated in the table below.
Certain upgrades require magic or a combination of technology and magic, as identified by the "Magic" and "Hybrids" entries in the table. Certain upgrades require charges for use. These are identified as "Charges" entries in the table. These charges are continuously updated or never expire based on the upgrade.
The cheapest way to upgrade armor is to use Iron Ore, which can be found through exploring the surroundings and looting chests of minor loot. Titanium is more expensive however, it is available in the smelters of Orgrimmar and Stormwind City. Certain upgrades, like the Reforge and the Hot Potato Books, can only be applied to high-level armor pieces. These upgrades can give significant improvements in stats and are worth the cost, especially for single-handed weapons.
The player must be aware that upgrading a piece up to the maximum upgrade level will boost its defense. However, it will also decrease its agility and its speed. more info is why it is typically not recommended to upgrade most armor pieces beyond +9, since the defensive boost gained is typically not worth the extra weight and power cost of the improvements required.
Weapons
Weapon upgrades allow players to increase the effectiveness of specific aspects of a weapon. Upgrades can increase the accuracy of a rifle or the damage that shotgun shells do. Certain weapons also come with upgrades that improve their innate qualities. These include Frictionless Materials (improves stability and minimizes the risk of overheating) and Kinetic Coils (increases the velocity of projectiles for greater damage).
The majority of upgrades for weapons require a whetblade. It's one of three Power Dices and a different amount Minerals and Erons. These can be obtained by completing side quests or by killing a certain amount of monsters and bosses.
To upgrade an equipment set, weapon piece, or Whetblade you need to visit the NPC [ArmorBoboko. Boboko located in Central Flarine, and pay her an upgrade fee of a specific amount of bars. The higher the upgrade level, the higher the number of bars you will need to complete the upgrade. The cost of the upgrades will be less if you have more than one of the upgrade materials.
In Chapter 2: Season 5 the way you upgrade weapon and equipment sets has changed a bit. Prior to Chapter 2 Season 5, you could upgrade your weapon or equipment by paying a certain number of Bars. You could continue to do this until you reach a max upgrade level of the equipment or weapon, after which the upgrades would be reset.
more info can still do this, however, the process is high on RNG and low on agency. It is better to purchase gear with low upgrade levels, but high base scores and stat distributions. These items have a greater chance of granting you the most prestigious tier of blessings and perks.
The majority of players will prioritize weapon upgrades for the weapons they most often use to make sure they are able to level up 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 to enhance its effectiveness when paired with experts in biotics like Grunt and Tali.
Jewels
Jewels can be used to increase the effectiveness of a skill or provide additional effects in weapons and armor. They can be created through the process of jewelry crafting, in which you combine a gem and a number of specific ingredients at a table for jewelry. The higher the quality of the gem, the greater the secondary effect. These reagents are obtained in the world through Treasure Goblins, World Bosses and occasionally by salvaging Legendary equipment. You can also purchase them from The Jeweler in exchange for gold and Scattered Prisms.
The Jeweler can boost the quality of gemstones in stages ranging from Crude up to Royal. The stat boosts will vary depending on the level the jewel is in when it's slotted into jewelry, weapons, or gear.
All tiers of jewels are crafted at the Jeweler, with the exception of the rare and legendary jewels that require you to be at a sufficient level to be able to get these. Jewels can be replaced with another jewel without destroying the original. You can only replace the gem only once in a piece of equipment.
It is typical to use more jewelry for aesthetic reasons. The jewels can also enhance performance and make a harder surface than steel, so that the repeated friction from pivots do not cause damage to them.
A Glyphmaster can offer glyphs to improve the appearance of your weapons and shields. These provide a small bonus and can be swapped freely however they aren't guaranteed to drop as loot. Glyphs can be upgraded as jewelry, by visiting the Jeweler for gold and scattered Crystal. Glyphs are also removed from the inventory, and they are returned to the inventory. Other upgrade components, such as aegis or traits cannot be exchanged, and can only be retrieved with an Upgrade extractor or salvaging with the Black Lion Salvage Kit or Ascended Salvage tool.
Trinkets
Trinkets can be used to provide your hero with various small, but useful advantages. They can be obtained in the areas of starting as loot, personal story rewards, from vendors, or by completing road interactions. They can be purchased from the Trading Post, or crafted by jewelers.
The first trinket a player can unlock is the cloak, which grants an unimportant but beneficial boost to speed of movement and the ability to escape. The player can then acquire necklaces, amulets, and rings in a similar manner as they did with weapons and armor. Each piece of equipment comes with an upgrade slot which can be universal or jewel. Universal upgrades are smaller and can be used on any piece of equipment. Jewels cannot be upgraded or replaced, and can only be used with certain trinkets.
These trinkets can provide additional bonuses and abilities that are active when the hero isn't fighting. This enables the hero to be more effective when not active, and can also help to compensate for the absence of a strong team or the absence of any talent tree slots which would normally be filled with the hero's ideal stats.
A good guideline for trinket upgrades is to prioritize BiS (Best-in-Slot) items that you will not replace soon, followed by any items with desirable stats that are less important than the iLevel of the item that is being upgraded. This is especially true if you want to upgrade multiple statistics on an item. It is best to upgrade just one crucial stat instead of two subpar ones.
Jungle players will often upgrade their yellow trinket to a red one at the beginning of the game. Top and mid players, on the other hand, will choose a green or a pink ward, depending on the matchup. These choices will have a significant impact on the hero's map control abilities.
In addition to the items listed above, players can also discover other trinkets in form trophies and rewards throughout the game. These can be earned by completing certain milestones within the story. For instance, completing the main quest of a chapter or defeating a boss. These achievements can be seen by selecting the appropriate achievement from the reward tab of the hero menu.