src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/67006">
style="margin-bottom: 12pt;">One of the finer points
in the
great gear bonanza that is World of Warcraft is item enhancement. Item
enhancements come in several forms and are available both for purchase
from
reputation vendors or from your fellow players in the form of
tradeskill items.
Some pieces of armor feature gem slots that allow you to socket in
extra
attributes. These gem slots can often make the difference in whether a
piece of
gear is a substantial upgrade or not. Because the druid can fill many
roles you
may find yourself accruing many pieces of gear to
better suit you for each
archetype, the astute player will make sure it is all properly gemmed
and
enchanted before switching roles.
Each item slot has different rules as to what can or can not
be added to
it. There are currently only three inventory slots in the game that can
gain no
bonuses and those are the trinket and ammo/relic/libram/totem/sigil
slots.
border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2">
* = not seen in current end game items. ² = only
available
to enchanters.
Your specific needs will change based on the gear you receive and the
stats you
compile and the role you are filling. The one thing that should never
change
however is your vigilance to finding the best possible enhancement for
each
slot to maximize your potential. If you are wearing a green item then
you most
likely shouldn’t spend your energy maximizing it, your much
better served
replacing it. Many will tell you that you should hold off on the top
end
enchants and enhancements until you have a best in slot item or at the
minimum
a nice level 200 or better epic. I couldn’t disagree more. If
you can afford it
then you should optimize each upgrade with the best item available.
Resto
Some of the better Gems and item enhancements to consider -
Lustrous Sky Sapphire
+7 Mana every 5 seconds
"Matches a Blue Socket.”
Energized Forest Emerald
+8 Haste Rating and +3 Mana every 5 seconds
“Matches a Yellow or Blue Socket."
Sparkling Sky Sapphire
+16 Spirit
"Matches a Blue Socket."
Intricate
Emerald
+8 Haste Rating and +8 Spirit
"Matches a Yellow or Blue Socket."
Brilliant Spellthread
Requires Level 70
Use: Permanently embroiders spellthread into pants,
increasing spell power by 50 and Spirit by 20.
Greater Inscription of the Crag
Binds when picked up
Requires Level 80
Requires The Sons of Hodir – Exalted
Use: Permanently adds 24 spell power and 6 mana per 5 seconds
to a shoulder slot item.
Arcanum of Blissful Mending
Binds when picked up
Requires Level 80
Requires The Wyrmrest Accord – Revered
Use: Permanently adds 30 spell power and 8 mana per 5 seconds
to a head slot item
Balance
Rigid Autumn's Glow
+16 Hit Rating
"Matches a Yellow Socket."
Veiled Monarch Topaz
+9 Spell Power and +8 Hit Rating
"Matches a Red or Yellow Socket."
Runed Scarlet Ruby
+19 Spell Power
"Matches a Red Socket."
Potent Monarch Topaz
+9 Spell Power and +8 Critical Strike Rating
"Matches a Red or Yellow Socket."
Brilliant Spellthread
Requires Level 70
Use: Permanently embroiders spellthread into pants,
increasing spell power by 50 and Spirit by 20
Greater Inscription of the
Storm
Binds when picked up
Requires Level 80
Requires The Sons of Hodir - Exalted
Use: Permanently adds 24 spell power and 15 critical strike
rating
to a shoulder slot item.
Arcanum of Burning Mysteries
Binds when picked up
Requires Level 80
Requires Kirin Tor - Revered
Use: Permanently adds 30 spell power and 20 critical strike
rating
to a head slot item.
Feral
Rigid Autumn's Glow
+16 Hit Rating
"Matches a Yellow Socket."
Bright Scarlet Ruby
+32 Attack Power
"Matches a Red Socket."
Pristine Monarch Topaz
+16 Attack Power and +8 Hit Rating
"Matches a Red or Yellow Socket."
Delicate Scarlet Ruby
+16 Agility
"Matches a Red Socket."
Greater Inscription of the Axe
Binds when picked up
Requires Level 80
Requires The Sons of Hodir - Exalted
Use: Permanently adds 40 attack power and 15 critical strike
rating
to shoulder armor.
Icescale Leg Armor
Requires Level 80
Use: Permanently attach icescale armor onto pants
to increase attack power by 75 and critical strike rating by
22.
Arcanum of Torment
Binds when picked up
Requires Level 80
Requires Knights of the Ebon Blade - Revered
Use: Permanently adds 50 attack power and 20 critical strike
rating
to a head slot item.
Remembering to keep your items maximized to their full potential will
show
others that you are striving to do your best and will help insure those
raid
invites. If you aren’t doing it, rest assured the other guy
vying to get that
final raid spot is and with the WoW armory just a click away, your raid
leader
is looking. This stance may sound harsh to the more casual
minded player
and it is. If you fall into the more relaxed category you may not feel
the need
to spruce up your gear to this extent. However if you find yourself
coming up
just short or running out of resources to quickly in a fight, this may
be the
bump you need to gain that edge.
However you chose to play the game being aware of the available item
enhancements is a smart play and adds another dimension of objectives
to strive
for in this hamster on a wheel adventure. Until next week, stay safe
and have
fun in Azeroth!
To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our World of Warcraft Game Page.
