Upgrading

Upgrading or "upping" in Diablo II: Lord of Destruction changes an item's base type from basic to exceptional, or from exceptional to elite. This can be done with Rare or Unique armor or weapons, and can extend the usefulness of some items to higher levels. Furthermore, Rune Words are counted as Unique Items, though they cannot be upgraded nonetheless.

Rules Regarding Upgrades

 * Rares may be upgraded to exceptional or elite base types in any game mode.
 * Unique items can be upgraded to exceptional base types in any game mode, but can only be upgraded to elite base types in Single Player or on the Ladder of Battle.net.
 * Uniques will retain their properties, their sockets and the gems, runes and jewels used, if any. For example, Greyform will not become The Spirit Shroud, but will be a Ghost Armor with the properties of Greyform.
 * If the item was ethereal, it will remain so after being transmuted.
 * Armor refers to the following: Body Armor, Helmet, Gloves, Belt, Boots or Shield.
 * This will work on Orbs and Wands, although it would be of no benefit to do so.
 * When transmuting an armor, a random value of base defense will be chosen within the range of its item type. If someone was upgrading Steelclash to a Dragon Shield, it would have a base defense between 59-67 and then add its Enhanced Defense attribute based on that. Depending on the base item, you could wind up with an elite armor with a lower or only modestly higher defense than its exceptional counterpart.
 * There is a +5 modifier to the base level requirement when transmuting a normal rare/unique to the exceptional item type. There is a +7 modifier when a rare or unique is upgraded from exceptional to elite.

Horadric Cube Recipes for Rare items

 * To convert a Normal Rare armor to its Exceptional equivalent: Use a Thul, a Ral and a perfect Amethyst in the Horadric Cube with the item you wish to transmute.
 * To convert a Normal Rare weapon to its Exceptional equivalent: Use an Amn, an Ort and a perfect Sapphire in the Horadric Cube with the item you wish to transmute.
 * To convert an Exceptional Rare armor to its Elite equivalent: Use a Pul, a Ko and a perfect Amethyst in the Horadric Cube with the item you wish to transmute.
 * To convert an Exceptional Rare weapon to its Elite equivalent: Use an Um, a Fal and a perfect Sapphire in the Horadric Cube with the item you wish to transmute.

Horadric Cube Recipes for Unique items

 * To convert a Normal Unique Armor to its Exceptional equivalent: Use a Shael, a Tal and a perfect Diamond in the Horadric Cube with the item you wish to transmute.
 * To convert a Normal Unique Weapon to its Exceptional equivalent: Use a Sol, a Ral and a perfect Emerald in the Horadric cube with the item you wish to transmute.
 * To convert an Exceptional Unique Armor to its Elite equivalent: Use a Lem, a Ko and a perfect Diamond in the Horadric cube with the item you wish to transmute.
 * To convert an Exceptional Unique Weapon to its Elite equivalent: Use a Lum, a Pul and a perfect Emerald in the Horadric cube with the item you wish to transmute.

For example, Bonesnap is a Unique which has a hefty chance of crushing blow, resistance bonuses and can have excellent enhanced damage. For lack of a better item, someone can choose to upgrade the item type to a War Club. It will still have all the properties of Bonesnap, but have the War Club's damage, making it more useful for Nightmare and Hell Difficulty levels. That is not all, however. Bonesnap could be upgraded again to an Ogre Maul, making its base damage about 300% higher than the Maul item type and having its damage capabilities calculated off that. If this Bonesnap had 232% enhanced damage, as an Ogre Maul it would do between 255-351.

As another example, someone could decide that Tiamat's Rebuke rates being upgraded for them, and to boost their resistances, they asked Larzuk to install a socket and they put a perfect diamond to in it. They put a Lem and a Ko rune along with a spare perfect diamond in the cube with the shield. After hitting the Transmute button, they will have a Monarch shield with the properties of Tiamat's Rebuke, complete with the socket and the diamond installed. Its defense will range anywhere from 319-444.