Shadow of War - How to Upgrade Your Gear
Complete Challenges to upgrade Talion’s weapons and armor in Shadow of War.
Shadow of War has a straightforward system when it comes to upgrading Talion’s gear. Players can complete what are called Upgrade Challenges specific to the Weapon or Armor piece that they wish to improve and, if done successfully, will unlock that gear’s bonus, or bonuses. Some are more difficult than others, but all are worth doing if you wish to be a more effective warrior, which you should.
How to Upgrade Gear
Talion’s gear falls into several categories, with those being Sword, Dagger, Bow, Armor, and Cloak. Each of these five items can be beefed up by completing that item’s specific Upgrade Challenge, viewable by pausing the game and opening your inventory. Move your cursor over an item to see what the Upgrade Challenge is, what the bonus offered is, and if you’ve completed it.
For example, my Level 10 Rare Armor, taken when I killed Prak the Slaver, has an Upgrade Challenge that requires me to use a Ranged Weapon, such as my Bow, to kill a Captain. If I do this successfully, I’ll be given a bonus that replenishes my Elf-Shot each time I kill a Captain. Elf-Shots are the arrows that you use in your Bow, and since I’ve opted for a stealth and ranged combat build, anything that gives me free Elf-Shot is a bonus I can’t turn down.
Now that I know what the Upgrade Challenge is, I can look for a Captain on the game’s map and develop a plan to kill him. Of course, when I’m about to deliver the final blow, I’ll make sure that I’m using my Bow, thus completing the Upgrade Challenge and unlocking the bonus for my Level 10 Rare Armor. As you would expect, though, if you swap that piece of Armor out for something better, you’ll need to complete the Upgrade Challenge specific to that one to get its bonus.
There are the different levels of gear to keep in mind, with Rare, Epic and Legendary being the best of the bunch. If you get a piece of Legendary gear, know that it can be upgraded more than once, but it tends to get more difficult as you go. For example, I did the Upgrade Challenge for my Level 6 Legendary Bright Lord’s Armor, but I’ve since leveled up enough that, even with a bonus, it’s obsolete. However, there is a new Upgrade Challenge that I can complete that requires me to recruit a Tank that is Level 20 or higher. Once I do that, this piece of gear is likely to become relevant to my character again.
The Upgrade Challenges and bonuses offered by completing them will also have an impact on the Weapons and Armor you choose to wear. Say you have two pieces that are similar, but offer different bonuses when the Upgrade Challenge is complete. Naturally, you’ll want to choose the one that fits your character build and play style the most.
For more, visit the Shacknews Shadow of War walkthrough and guide. We’ve gone well beyond helping you upgrade your Weapons, Armor and gear.
