Path of Exile Item Upgrades

Item upgrades are a common and important way to improve the performance of numerous items in Path of Exile. They can be a great source of extra damage and more AD or even more affixes.

In most cases, however upgraded Common and Magic gear is often surpassed by Rare-grade equipment due to their requirements.

Armor

Armor upgrades are a kind of upgrade that can be used on armor and weapon items. They boost the performance of the item that they are attached to. Armor upgrades are found in the world of the game and can be purchased from Blacksmiths at any bonfire. They can also be salvaged using a professional or higher salvage kits to recover upgrade components from items.

The amount of damage that an armored piece or weapon can absorb depends on the degree of upgrades. The absorption of damage by a piece armor will increase when it is upgraded to the maximum upgrade level. However, it's important be aware that this upgrade will increase its weight, causing it to be heavier than before.

There are several kinds of armor upgrades available in the game and they all have distinct effects. Some upgrades give armor a greater number of health points while others make it lighter and more powerful. The type of armor upgrade that an item can get will be identified by the name of the upgrade, as shown in the table below.

Certain upgrades require magic or a hybrid technology and magic, as indicated by the "Magic" and "Hybrids" entries in the table. Additionally, some upgrades require a charge to use, which are shown by the "Charges" entry in the table below. These charges are either continuously updated or never expire based on the upgrade.

The cheapest way to upgrade armor is to use Iron Ore, which can be gathered by exploring the environment and looting small loot chests. Titanium is more expensive however, it is available from the smelters in Orgrimmar and Stormwind City. Some upgrades, such as the Reforge and the Hot Potato Books, can only be applied to high level armor pieces. These upgrades can give significant boost to performance and are worth the cost, especially for single-handed weapons.

The player should be aware, however, that upgrading a piece to its max upgrade level will increase its defense values. However, it will also decrease its agility and its speed. It is not recommended to upgrade armor beyond +9. The boost in defense typically isn't worth the weight and power costs of the upgrades.

Weapons

Weapon upgrades allow players to increase the effectiveness of specific aspects of a weapon. Upgrades can boost the accuracy of a rifle or the damage that shotgun shells cause. Certain weapons come with special enhancements to enhance their intrinsic qualities. These include Frictionless Materials (improves stability and reduces the risk of weapon overheating) and Kinetic Coils (increases projectile acceleration for more damage).

The majority of upgrades for weapons require the use of a whetblade, or one of the three Power Dices and a different amount 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 fee of a set number of Bars. The higher the upgrade level, the more bars are required to complete it. The cost of upgrading will be lower if you have more than one of the upgrade materials.

In Chapter 2: Item upgrades Season 5 the way you upgrade items weapon and equipment sets has changed. Prior to Chapter 2 Season 5 you could upgrade your weapon or equipment by paying a specific number of Bars. You could do this until the weapon or equipment reached its maximum upgrade level and at that point, the upgrades would be reset.

You can still do this but the process is high on RNG and low on agency. You should consider buying equipment that has minimal upgrade levels but with high base scores and stat distributions. These items will have a better chance of giving you the highest level of blessings and perks.

Most players will want to make the most of upgrades to weapons they are most likely to use to make sure they are able to level up quicker. Players should also upgrade the weapons that their teammates use to make them stronger. Shepard, for example, should upgrade the M92F so that he can unlock the Beretta M93R. This will make the weapon more effective when accompanied with biotic specialists like Grunt and Tali.

Jewels

Jewels are utilized in the armor's sockets and weapons, enhancing a stat and providing secondary effects. Jewelry crafting is the process of making them, in which you combine gemstones with specific reagents on a jewelry table. The higher the quality of the gem, the greater the secondary effect. These reagents can be obtained around the world from Treasure Goblins, World Bosses and, sometimes, by salvaging Legendary gear. You can also buy 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. Depending on the tier of the jewel it will give different stat boosts when inserted into gear, weapons and jewelry.

All levels of jewels are crafted at the Jeweler, with the exception of the rare and legendary gems that require you to be at a sufficient level to obtain the privilege of having them. Jewels can be replaced by another one without damaging the original. You can only replace the gem only once in a piece of equipment.

It is typical to use more gems to enhance the appearance of. The jewels can also enhance performance and create a surface harder than steel, so that the repeated friction from pivots do not cause damage to them.

In addition to the above upgrades, the player can also acquire glyphs for their shields and weapons from a Glyphmaster. These provide a small bonus and are able to be swapped easily but aren't guaranteed to drop as loot. Glyphs can be upgraded like jewelry, at the Jeweler for gold and a scattered Crystal. Glyphs are also removed from the inventory, and they are returned to the inventory. Other upgrade components such as traits or aegis cannot be exchanged, and can only be retrieved with an Upgrade extractor, or salvaging with Black Lion Salvage Kit or Ascended Salvage tool.

Trinkets

Trinkets are pieces of equipment that offer an array of small but useful benefits 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 crafted by jewelers, and then found or purchased on the Trading Post.

The first trinket a player will unlock is the cloak. It gives a small, but useful bonus in speed of movement and evasion. The player can then acquire necklaces, rings, and amulets in a similar fashion similar to how they obtained weapons and armor. Each piece of gear comes with one upgrade slot that accepts either a universal upgrade or a jewel upgrade. Universal upgrades are smaller and are able to be used on any piece of equipment. Jewels cannot be upgraded or replaced and are only compatible with certain trinkets.

These trinkets provide additional buffs and abilities that are active even when the hero isn't in combat. This allows a hero to be more efficient while inactive. It can also compensate for the absence of excellent slots in the team or talent tree that are normally filled by the hero's optimal stats.

As a general rule trinket upgrades should be a priority BiS (Best item upgrade in Slot) items you won't replace anytime soon. Also, consider items with desirable stats that aren't as significant as the iLevel of the item that is to be upgraded. This is especially true when you are looking to upgrade multiple stats on an item. It's more beneficial to upgrade a single important stat than two less important ones.

Jungle players will often upgrade their yellow trinkets to a red one prior to the start of the game. Top and mid players on the other hand they will select a pink or green ward, depending on the matchup. These choices will have an impact on the hero's ability to manage the map.

Apart from the things mentioned above, players may also find other trinkets in the game in the form of trophies and awards. These can be obtained by completing certain milestones within the story. For instance, finishing the main quest for a chapter or defeating an opponent. You can view them by clicking on the achievement in the reward section of the hero's menu.