Got a little question

[Forsaken656]

how do you "up" an item on ladder? im just starting ladder and i have no clue how to do this....

 

[xxtallguyxx]

you take lem rune ko rune and P diamond an transmute in cube thats just 4 the decent unique items like shaft or viper magi not sure about low lvl gear stuff

 

[Forsaken656]

k thnx thats all i really needed to know

 

[dNiym]

The formula you need is based on the items BASE item, ie what kind of armor it really is. For example say some unique "light gauntlets" drop, if we identify them we will find that we have found a set of magefists. "Light Gauntlets" are "Normal Unique" items, they arent always the most sought after items but they can be good items and are quite easily traded for.

The term here before the item was identified is what tells us how far the item can be upgraded. "Light Gauntlets" in this case is our "Base Item".

When you "up" or "Upgrade" a unique item its "Base Item" type is upgraded the next step up from "Light Gauntlets" is "Battle Gauntlets".

First we take our Magefist "Light Gauntlets" and we place them in our cube, we then put in 1 Tal Rune, 1 Shael Rune and 1 Perfect Diamond, once you hit the transmute button you get Magefist "Battle Gauntlets"

Now you might be thinking hey unique "Battle Gauntlets" are Lava Gouts not Magefists! But this formula does NOT change "Magefists" into "Lava Gouts", it only upgrades the "Base Item" Stats, so lets look at the changes.

Magefists (Light Gauntlets):
Base Defense (9-11)
Req. Level -----23
Req. Strength --45


Magefists (Battle Gauntlets):
Base Defense (39-47)
Req. Level -----42
Req. Strength --88


Well our base defense improved quite a bit, with 11 being the best for "light gauntlets" we could have as much as 47 defense on our "battle gauntlets". Granted this doesn't sound so impressive but keep in mind these are only the "Base Item" stats, no magical bonus' have been applied therefore if the item had "enhanced defense" it would be considrably more. The downside to upgrading an item is the requirements go up. So our "Magefists" that were Level 23 requirements, and only 44 str now require us to be level 42 with 88 strength to wear them.

Now that we have upgraded our Magefist "Light Gauntlets" into Magefists "Battle Gauntlets" they are no longer in the "Normal Unique" catagory, they have been upgraded into "Exceptional Unique" items. We can upgrade "Exceptional Unique" items also by using the following formula: (LADDER ONLY)

Magefists "Battle Gauntlets" + 1 Lem Rune + 1 Ko Rune + 1 Perfect Diamond

The above formula gives us Magefists "Crusader Gauntlets" as the base item type has been upgraded from "Exceptional Unique" to "Elite Unique". If you look on the arreat summit under "Elite Unique Gloves" you will find no unique crusader gauntlets that will drop from any monster. After upgrading lets compare our stats again.

Magefists (Battle Gauntlets):
Base Defense (39-47)
Req. Level -----42
Req. Strength --88


Magefists (Crusader Gauntlets):
Base Defense (59-69)
Req. Level -----57
Req. Strength --151

Again our base defense has gone up as well as our level and strength requirements, so upgrading an item too far can very well render it unusable by your character. With 151 strength requirement a paladin could wear these gloves, however a sorc not wearing a monarch spirit shield could very well not posess the strength required to wear Magefists "Crusader Gauntlets"

Ok so now that we know what requirements we are going to be subject to lets compare to see if we would even want to do this. Lets say I am a fire sorc and am wearing a spirit monarch shield so I have at least 156 strength to wear the monarch. Well I obviously want the best balance of stats, defense and skills I can possibly have so my two canidates here for comparison are Magefists and Trang Gloves.

Both have 20% Faster Cast Rate.
Magefists have +1 to fire skills - trang have +2 curses (useless to a sorc)
Magefists add to fire damage - trang adds to psn damge (again useless for a sorc)
Magefists have +10 to defense - trang has +30
Magefists have 0 cold resist - trang has 30%
Magefists have 20-30 EDef - trang has zero
Magefists have 25% mana regen- trang has zero

Now maybe the obvious choice IS magefists for my fire sorc however, on another class it would probably be trang since they have alot better base defense. (29ish on magefist Vs. about 70 on trangs)

However after upgrading all the way to magefist "crusader gauntlets" here is how the two compare.

-

The choice is a bit harder now provided you have the strength to use the magefists isn't it?

These formulas will work for ANY unique item that is not already in its "Elite Unique" form, some items that CANNOT be upgraded are (Arkaine's Valor, Ormus' Robes, Leviathian, and Sandstorm Treks) a few popular canidates for upping are (Guardian Angel, Hoz, and Gore Riders). *There are many, many items that can be upgraded so just take a look at the "base item" type to find out if your item can be upped.