Path of Exile Item Upgrades
Item upgrades are a common and important way to improve the performance of many items in Path of Exile. They can be a good source of damage or more AD or even more attachments.
Rare-grade equipment can be superior to modernized Common or Magic gear due to their higher requirements.
Armor
Armor upgrades are a kind of upgrade that can be applied to armor and weapon items. They improve the stats of the item they are connected to. Armor upgrades 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 within them by using an expert or greater salvage kit.
The amount of damage an armored piece or weapon will absorb is contingent on the extent of its upgrades. A piece of armor upgraded to maximum upgrade level will increase its damage absorption. It is important to keep in mind that this will increase the weight of the armor, therefore it must be heavier.
There are many different kinds of armor upgrades available in the game. Each one has a distinct impact. For instance, some upgrades will give the armor a certain amount of health points while others make it stronger and lighter. The name of the armor upgrade will tell you the kind of upgrade that an item will be given, as illustrated below.
Some of the upgrades also require magic or a combination of technology and magic, which are shown by the "Magic" and "Hybrids" entries in the table. Some upgrades also require charges for use. They are referred to as "Charges" entries in the table. These charges are either continuously updated or never expire, depending on the upgrade.
The cheapest method to upgrade armor is by using Iron Ore, which can be gathered through exploring the surroundings and looting small loot chests. Titanium is more expensive, but it can be obtained from smelters located in Orgrimmar and Stormwind City. Certain upgrades, like the Reforge and the Hot Potato Books, can only be applied to higher level armor pieces. These upgrades can provide a significant improvement in stats and are a worthwhile cost, especially for single-handed weapons.
Upgrading a piece of armor to its maximum upgrade level will significantly increase its defense capabilities but the wearer must be aware that putting on weight will drastically reduce its agility and speed. This is why it is typically not recommended to upgrade most armor pieces above +9, because the increase in defense is typically not worth the extra weight and power costs of the upgrades required.
Weapons
Weapon upgrades allow players to increase the effectiveness of certain aspects of a weapon. For instance an upgrade could increase the damage dealt by the shells of a shotgun or the accuracy of the rifle sniper. Certain weapons also come with upgrades that improve their innate characteristics. These include Frictionless Materials (improves stability and decreases the chance of the risk of overheating) and Kinetic Coils (increases the speed of projectiles to cause more damage).
The majority of upgrades for weapons require a whetblade, one of three Power Dices and a different amount of Minerals and Erons. These can be gained by completing Side Quests or by killing a certain amount of bosses and monsters.
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 cost of a set number of Bars. The higher the upgrade level, the higher the number of bars are required to complete it. If you have multiple upgrade materials The cost of upgrading will be less.
In Chapter 2: Season 5, the ways to upgrade your equipment and weapon sets was a bit different. Previously, you could seek out an Upgrade Bench and pay a set amount of Bars to upgrade your weapon or equipment to an increased rarity. You could continue to do this until you reach a max upgrade level of the equipment or weapon, following which upgrades would reset.
It's possible, but it is dependent heavily on RNG. You should consider buying equipment with low levels of upgrade, but high base scores and stat distributions. These gears have a higher chance of granting you the highest tier advantages and benefits.
Most players will want to prioritize upgrades to the weapons they most often use to help them level up faster. Players should also upgrade the weapons that their teammates use to boost their strength. Shepard, for example, should upgrade the M92F in order to unlock the Beretta M93R. This will make the weapon more effective when used with biotic specialists like Grunt and Tali.
Jewels
Jewels can be used to improve a stat or provide secondary effects on weapons and armor. Jewelry crafting is the process of making them, where you combine gemstones with specific reagents on a table. The higher the level of the jewel the better the secondary effect. These reagents can be obtained from Treasure Goblins and World Bosses around the world, or through finding Legendary Gear. You can also purchase them from The Jeweler for gold and a Scattered Prism.
The Jeweler can enhance the quality of gemstones in stages ranging from Crude up to Royal. Based on the level of the jewel it will give different stat boosts when it is inserted into weapons, gear and jewelry.
The Jeweler can craft the highest levels of gems except for the rare and legendary ones that you must be at certain levels to gain. Unlike other upgrade components, jewels are able to be swapped with a jewel of the same kind without destroying it. You can only replace the jewel once within an item of equipment.
It is normal to use more gems for aesthetic reasons. The jewels also improve performance and make a harder surface than steel so that repeated friction caused by pivots does not cause damage to them.
A Glyphmaster can provide glyphs that can enhance the appearance of your shields and weapons. These glyphs give a slight boost in power and can be swapped, but they are not guaranteed to be available as loot. Glyphs can be upgraded, like jewelry, at the Jeweler for gold and scattered Crystal. Glyphs can also be removed, which returns them to the inventory. Other upgrade components like traits or aegis can't be exchanged, and can only be recovered by using an Upgrade extractor or salvaging with Black Lion Salvage Kit, or Ascended Salvage tool.
Trinkets
Trinkets are small pieces of equipment that bestow an array of small, but beneficial advantages to your hero. They are available in the start-up area as loot or as personal story rewards. They can also be obtained through vendors and after completing road interaction. They can be found on the Trading Post, or crafted by jewelers.
The first trinket players will be able to unlock is the cloak. It gives a small but beneficial boost in movement speed and the ability to escape. Then, they can acquire rings, amulets, and necklaces in the same way to how a player obtains weapons and armor. Each piece of equipment comes with one upgrade slot that can accommodate either a universal or a jewel upgrade. upgrade item are smaller and can be used on any device. Jewels are not upgradeable or replaced, and can only be used with certain trinkets.
These trinkets also grant additional buffs and skills that remain active whenever the hero 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 good slot in the talent tree or team which are usually filled by a hero's top stats.
A good guideline for trinket upgrades is to prioritize BiS (Best-in-Slot) items that you will not replace in the near future, then any items with desirable stats but less important than the iLevel of the item to be upgraded. This is especially true if an item has multiple stats you wish to upgrade, as it's often better to upgrade a single crucial stat than two subpar ones.
Jungle players will often upgrade their yellow trinkets to a red one prior to the beginning of the game. Mid and top players on the other hand, will choose either a pink or green ward, depending on the matchup. These choices will have a significant impact on the hero's abilities to control maps.
In addition to the items listed above, players can also find other trinkets that form trophies and rewards throughout the game. item upgrade can be earned by completing certain milestones within the story. For instance, finishing a chapter’s main quest or beating the boss. They can be viewed by selecting the appropriate achievement in the reward tab of the hero menu.