WoW Midnight Season 2 Gearing Guide: Mistcrests, Tracks, Vault

Quick summary

• Season 2 has five upgrade tracks, each 1/6 to 6/6: Adventurer (266–282), Veteran (279–295), Champion (292–308), Hero (305–321), and Myth (318–334). The top items reach 344: Very Rare Mythic loot and drops from the last two Venomous Abyss bosses.
• Each track upgrades with its own Mistcrest: about 20 per rank plus gold, since Valorstones are gone. Warband achievements halve crest costs for alts, and matching a slot you've already upgraded is cheaper.
• The Great Vault jumps a track: LFR → Champion 1/6, Normal → Hero 1/6, Heroic → Myth 1/6, Mythic → Myth 6/6.
• 12.1.5 changes: the crest cap lifts the week of October 20, and Ascendant Venomstones push one fully upgraded weapon, trinket, or necklace past its cap.

The five upgrade tracks

Every Season 2 item shows its track and step on the tooltip, such as "Hero 3/6". The tracks overlap, so the top of one equals an early step of the next:

Track	1/6	6/6	Crest	Mainly from
Explorer	n/a	n/a	None	Leveling and early outdoor rewards
Adventurer	266	282	Adventurer Mistcrest	Outdoor content, low Delves, Normal Prey
Veteran	279	295	Veteran Mistcrest	Heroic dungeons, Raid Finder, Delves 5–6
Champion	292	308	Champion Mistcrest	Normal raid, Mythic 0, low keys, Delves 7–10
Hero	305	321	Hero Mistcrest	Heroic raid, +4 to +8 keys, Tier 8+ Delve vault
Myth	318	334	Myth Mistcrest	Mythic raid, +9 and higher keys, high vault picks
Beyond Myth	n/a	344	None	Very Rare Mythic items, the last two Venomous Abyss bosses on Mythic, Mythic Kith'ix

Because tracks overlap, a Hero 6/6 item and a Myth 2/6 item are both 321. The difference is headroom: the Myth piece keeps climbing to 334, but the Hero piece is finished.

Every Mistcrest source

Higher difficulty gives higher crests:

Mistcrest	Sources
Adventurer	Repeatable outdoor events, outdoor treasures, Tier 4 Delves, Normal Prey hunts
Veteran	Heroic seasonal dungeons, Raid Finder, World Lairs, Delves Tiers 5–6, Trovehunter's Bounty 4–5, Hard Prey
Champion	Weekly outdoor events, Mythic+ +2 to +3, Normal raids and Lairs, Delves Tiers 7–10, Trovehunter's Bounty 6–7, Nightmare Prey
Hero	Heroic raids and Lairs, Mythic+ +4 to +8, Trovehunter's Bounty 8+, Nightmare Prey
Myth	Mythic raids and Lairs, Mythic+ +9 and higher, Tier 6 Ritual Sites, Tier 11 Bountiful Delve Gilded Stashes

Wowhead's guide is from August, and its comments flag some lines as outdated, so treat this as a map, not a rulebook.

Upgrade costs and weekly caps

Item	What sources say
Cost per rank	20 Mistcrests of the item's track per rank (WGE)
Gold	Valorstones are gone. Upgrades also cost gold.
Weekly cap	Wowhead: the cap rose each reset early in the season. If you're capped on a crest type, content gives you the next lower crest instead (Wowhead)
Cap removal	Week of October 20, per Blizzard's 12.1.5 notes

Until October 20, a 100-crest cap equals one full upgrade per track per week. That's why upgrade order matters more now than it will in two weeks.

Upgrade vendors and discounts

Two NPCs near the Sanctum of Light in Silvermoon City handle upgrades:

• Cuzolth upgrades your gear for Mistcrests.
• Vaskarn exchanges one Mistcrest type for another, after you complete his two introductory quests.

Two discounts reduce costs:

1. Slot matching. Wowhead says upgrading another item up to the highest item level you've already reached in that slot costs no extra crests. Either way, upgrading slots evenly is cheaper.
2. Warband "of the Mist" achievements. Reaching a track's top item level in every armor slot unlocks a 50% crest discount on that track for your other characters:

Achievement	Requirement
Adventurer of the Mist	282 in every armor slot
Veteran of the Mist	295 in every armor slot
Champion of the Mist	308 in every armor slot
Hero of the Mist	321 in every armor slot
Myth of the Mist	331 average item level

What each activity gives

Activity	Drop track	Great Vault	Crests
World quests, Normal Prey, Delves 1–4	Adventurer	World row (by tier)	Adventurer
Heroic dungeons, Raid Finder, Delves 5–6, Hard Prey	Veteran	LFR raid row → Champion 1/6 (292)	Veteran
Mythic 0, Normal raid, Delves 7–10, Nightmare Prey	Champion	Normal raid row → Hero 1/6 (305)	Champion
Heroic raid, +4 to +8 keys, Tier 8+ Bountiful Delves	Hero	Heroic raid row → Myth 1/6 (318). The Delve vault caps at Hero 1/6 (WGE)	Hero
Mythic raid, +9 and higher keys	Myth	Mythic raid row → Myth 6/6 (334). Very Rare and last two bosses → 344	Myth
Labyrinth of Kindo'jan (12.1.5)	Hero 2/6 (308) from soul fragments. Chosen-slot Hero 1/5 and Myth 1/6 (318) armor	Vault credit every 3 chambers	Double from Heavy Trunks
Kith'ix	Drops at 3/6: LFR 285, Normal 298, Heroic 311, Mythic 324	Raid row	By difficulty

The vault is the best value in the system. A raid row jumps a whole track above what that difficulty drops. Fill your raid, dungeon, and world rows every week so reset day gives you a real choice.

Tier set slots in The Venomous Abyss

Tier slot	Boss
Hands	Entombed Sentinels
Shoulders	The Lost Explorers
Chest	Vashnik the Malignant
Legs	Sszorak
Head	The Twin Fangs
Curio (tier piece of your choice)	Ula'tek

Crafting and the Catalyst

• Crafted gear is the targeted option. Wowhead lists epic crafts at 305–318 with Hero Mistcrests and 318–331 with Myth Mistcrests, depending on craft quality. You pick slot and stats, which drops can't do. Max-quality Tidal crafts are also eligible for Venomstones.
• The Catalyst in Silvermoon converts eligible pieces into tier set items. Use it for a missing tier slot rather than waiting on one boss.

Ascendant Venomstones (from October 20)

Ten Ascendant Venomstones raise the item level of a fully upgraded Season 2 Hero, Myth, or max-quality Tidal crafted weapon, trinket, or necklace. Our 12.1.5 catch-up guide covers the unlock quests.

What to upgrade first

1. Weapons, trinkets, and your necklace you'll keep. They're Venomstone targets, so they need 6/6 anyway.
2. Hero pieces in your weakest slots. That's lasting item level.
3. Don't finish a Hero item in a slot where a Myth drop or vault pick is likely. Those crests buy item level you'll soon replace.
4. Don't fully upgrade Champion pieces if you're about to run Heroic raid or +7 keys.
5. Spend your crests. Until October 20, unspent crests don't help you, and the cap stops you from saving your way out of a slow start.

Example: you have Hero 2/6 boots, a Champion 6/6 cloak, and a Hero 5/6 trinket, and you run Heroic raid weekly. Finish the trinket first (a future Venomstone target), then the boots. Leave the cloak, since a Heroic drop or Myth 1/6 vault pick will likely replace it.

Plans by player type

You are...	Plan
New or returning	Renown milestone gear, Mythic 0, and the Labyrinth for Hero and Myth armor, then Heroic raid or +7 keys. Use the catch-up guide's checklist
Solo	Bountiful Delves up to Tier 8 for the Hero vault, then Tier 11 for Myth crests from Gilded Stashes and Venomstones. Nightmare Prey for Champion and Hero crests. See our Delves guide
Mythic+	+4 to +8 for Hero crests, +9 for Myth crests, +10 for the Myth vault and Venomstones. Start with our Mythic+ beginner checklist
Raider	Heroic raid weekly for the Myth 1/6 vault pick. Use the tier-slot table to aim your Catalyst charges
Alt	Earn "of the Mist" achievements on your main first, then upgrade alts at half crest cost

Review your gear plan each reset

At each reset, list your three lowest slots and the source most likely to fill each one, and spend crests on the slot no drop is likely to replace soon. Our Midnight weekly checklist puts the vault, crests, and caps into one routine.

Want a hand with this?

If you would rather not grind this part yourself, World of Warcraft gearing services are listed on FullBoosts. Read Blizzard's End User License Agreement before you buy any service from anyone, FullBoosts included — a marketplace listing isn't publisher permission.

Frequently asked questions

What are the Season 2 item levels in WoW Midnight?

Adventurer 266–282, Veteran 279–295, Champion 292–308, Hero 305–321, and Myth 318–334.

How much does it cost to upgrade gear in Midnight?

About 20 Mistcrests of the item's track per rank, plus gold, since Valorstones were removed. A full 1/6 to 6/6 upgrade costs about 100 crests before discounts.

What is the Mistcrest weekly cap?

Blizzard lifts the cap the week of October 20 with 12.1.5's mid-season refresh.

What does the Great Vault give in Season 2?

Raid rows jump a track: LFR → Champion 1/6 (292), Normal → Hero 1/6 (305), Heroic → Myth 1/6 (318), Mythic → Myth 6/6 (334). The Delve row caps at Hero 1/6.

How do Mistcrest discounts work?

Reaching a track's top item level in every armor slot unlocks a 50% crest discount for that track across your Warband. Separately, upgrading an item up to the level you've already reached in that slot costs fewer or no extra crests.

Where do Myth Mistcrests come from?

Mythic raids and Lairs, Mythic+ +9 and higher, Tier 6 Ritual Sites, and Tier 11 Bountiful Delve Gilded Stashes.

Should I upgrade Champion gear?

Only in slots you won't replace soon. If you're about to run Heroic raid or +7 keys, save Champion crests for pieces that will last.