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Status in October 2026: Dawncrests Were the Season 1 Currency

12 October 2026. The sections below date from October 2025, when the crest system was only visible in Midnight alpha builds. Midnight launched on 2 March 2026. Season 1 (17 March to 11 August) upgraded gear with Dawncrests, and Season 2, live since 18 August on patch 12.1, uses Mistcrests.

Item Season 1: Dawncrests Season 2: Mistcrests
Adventurer item level 224 to 237 266 to 282
Veteran 237 to 250 279 to 295
Champion 250 to 263 292 to 308
Hero 263 to 276 305 to 321
Myth 276 to 289 318 to 334
  • Track names. The live tracks are Adventurer, Veteran, Champion, Hero and Myth. Each has six upgrade ranks and a crest of its own, so a Hero item only ever takes Hero crests.
  • Season 2 limits. One upgrade step costs 20 crests of the matching type, and the Warcraft Wiki lists a weekly limit of 100 per type. Patch 12.1.5, live from 13 October, lifts that limit in the week of 20 October.

The Midnight gearing guide and the Season 2 preparation guide explain where each crest comes from this season.

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In earlier alpha builds of Midnight, Blizzard planned to continue the existing “herald / rune / carved” crest system for upgrading gear. However, recent tests show the developers have reimagined the structure entirely, simplifying the system and introducing a new crest type. 🔍

Midnight. New Crest System Revealed. Introducing Dawncrest Types

📦 Meta shift: Instead of dual-use crest types, each gear “track” will now use a dedicated crest series.

🛡️ Crest Types & Renaming

In the past, a single crest type could upgrade two different gear tracks. For example, Champion gear might first use Carved Crests, then Runed Crests for higher tiers.
In Midnight, that changes: Champion gear uses only Champion Dawncrests. As a result, all crests are being renamed to match gear types, and a fifth crest is added: Adventurer Dawncrest.

🔄 Crest Types for Midnight Season 1

During Season 1, the following crests will exist (names in English / current knowledge):

  • Adventurer Dawncrest – for “Adventurer” gear (ilvl ~224–237). Earned via repeatable world events & low-level delves.
  • Veteran Dawncrest – for “Veteran” gear (ilvl ~237–250). Earned via world events, raids (in various difficulties), seasonal dungeons, delves & treasure hunter rewards.
  • Champion Dawncrest – for “Champion” gear (ilvl ~250–263). Earned via weekly world events, raids in normal mode, Mythic+ 2-3, delves 7–10, treasure hunter levels.
  • Hero Dawncrest – for “Hero” gear (ilvl ~263–276). Earned via heroic raids, Mythic+ (4–8), delves 11+, etc.
  • Myth Dawncrest – for “Myth” gear (ilvl ~276–289). Earned via Mythic raids and high-level Mythic+ (9+).
🔢 Ranks: Every gear track has exactly 6 upgrade ranks (1/6 to 6/6).
Source on Dawncrest usage: The Dawncrest system is the seasonal upgrade currency in Midnight Season 1.
Renaming context: Crests formerly known as Carved, Runed, Gilded etc. are being rebranded.

🧭 Usage & Gear Progression

Each type of crest now aligns with a specific gear track. You will no longer mix crest types to upgrade the same slot across tracks. This makes the system clearer and avoids confusion over which crest to use for which gear piece.

🔍 Takeaway: Midnight’s new gear-upgrade design shifts toward clarity, ensuring each gear track has its own dedicated crest. The addition of Adventurer Dawncrest broadens options for entry-level progression without mixing multiple currencies.
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