Masterwork Upgrade

Masterwork Upgrade
Attributes
Type	Upgrade System
Description	Upgrade weapons and armor to Masterwork status

Masterwork Upgrade is the system in Destiny 2 that allows players to enhance Legendary weapons and armor to their maximum potential through a tiered progression system.

Overview

The Masterwork Upgrade system enables Guardians to improve their favorite legendary gear by investing materials to unlock additional benefits. Weapons gain kill tracking, orb generation, and stat bonuses, while armor receives increased energy capacity and stat boosts.

Tier System

Weapons

• 10 Tiers total (Tier 1-10)
• Each tier increases a specific stat by +1
• Tier 10 represents full Masterwork status
• Visible in the weapon's mod section

Armor

• 10 Energy Levels (1-10 energy)
• Each level increases mod capacity
• Tier 10 (Masterwork) grants +2 to all stats
• Total of +12 stat points when fully masterworked

Upgrade Materials

For Weapons

Tiers 1-7:

• Enhancement Cores
• Legendary Shards
• Glimmer

Tiers 8-10:

• Increased Enhancement Cores
• More Legendary Shards
• Higher Glimmer costs

For Armor

Energy 1-5:

• Glimmer only

Energy 6-7:

• Enhancement Cores
• Legendary Shards
• Glimmer

Energy 8-9:

• Enhancement Cores
• Enhancement Prisms
• Glimmer

Energy 10 (Masterwork):

• Ascendant Shard
• Enhancement Prisms
• Glimmer

Benefits

Masterworked Weapons

• Generate Orbs of Power on multikills
• Track total kills or Crucible kills
• Random stat bonus (+10 at Tier 10)
• Can reroll stat bonus
• Gold border on icon

Masterworked Armor

• +2 to all stats (Mobility, Resilience, Recovery, Discipline, Intellect, Strength)
• 10 total energy for mods
• Reduced mod costs for certain builds
• Can slot high-cost mods

Dismantling Returns

Weapons

• Tier 4+: 1 Enhancement Core
• Tier 5: 2 Enhancement Cores
• Tier 6: 3 Enhancement Cores
• Tier 10: 7 Enhancement Cores

Armor

• Energy 7: 1 Enhancement Core
• Energy 8: 2 Enhancement Cores
• Energy 9: 3 Enhancement Cores
• Energy 10: 6 Enhancement Prisms + 6 Enhancement Cores

Obtaining Materials

Enhancement Cores

• Dismantle high-tier gear
• Vendor purchases (30 Legendary Shards = 1 Core, limit 5/day)
• Ghost mods (Lesser Core Harvest)
• Finest Matterweave consumable
• Activity completions

Enhancement Prisms

• Master Rahool: 10 Cores + 10,000 Glimmer = 1 Prism
• Nightfall: The Ordeal (Higher difficulties)
• Season Pass rewards
• Vendor rank rewards

Ascendant Shards

• Master Rahool: 10 Prisms + 50,000 Glimmer = 1 Shard
• Master/Grandmaster Nightfalls
• Trials of Osiris flawless
• Season Pass (limited)

Strategy Tips

Prioritization

• Masterwork frequently used weapons first
• Focus on high-stat armor pieces
• Consider exotic armor for builds
• Save materials for god rolls

Efficiency

• Use Ghost mods for passive Core farming
• Complete higher-tier Nightfalls
• Buy from vendors during sales
• Plan upgrades around seasonal goals

Historical Changes

• Originally called "Masterwork Cores" (now Enhancement Cores)
• Cost requirements adjusted multiple times
• Armor 2.0 introduced energy system
• Material economy rebalanced in various updates

Current State

• Weapon crafting introduced enhanced perks as alternative
• Some weapons drop already masterworked
• Adept weapons provide similar benefits
• System remains core to gear progression

Notes

• Exotic weapons cannot be masterworked through this system
• Some weapons have curated masterwork stats
• Upgrading is permanent and cannot be reversed
• Materials are account-wide, not character-specific

See Also

• Enhancement Core
• Enhancement Prism
• Ascendant Shard
• Rework Weapon
• Masterwork

References

• Bungie Help - Legendary Masterworks Guide
• TheGamer - Enhancement Cores Guide
• DualShockers - Masterwork Guide
• Shacknews - Enhancement Cores Guide