Returning player needing info

[Onshki]

So Im coming back from a very long hiatus. Last time I tried to come back to this game I had two problems that stopped me from trying. 

 

1. I had a hard time finding info on good builds. Most of the stuff I found was out dated due to patches changing the game.

 

2. there was an issue with my weapon. Apparently they removed/changed how the weapons/gear you got when the game released stateside. There was supposed to be some sort of box that offered to do something with the weapon I had. I never got it and it was really discouraging because I then encountered the same issue as number 1. Outdated info. 

 

Just want some help with these things before I get in over my head.

 

I'm a lvl 49 blade dancer. my gear is as follows 

 

weapon : Oathbreaker lynblade stage 5

other gear: all of it is Ivorymoon. Ring/earing/belt/necklace. all of it is Ivorymoon. Aside from cosmetic I have nothing else equipped.

 

as far as story quest and how far along I am the current quest is chapter 23 dochun's memory.

 

Basically just want some clarification on where to look for good builds, and how to handle my gear. 

[SomeCrackhead]

salvage the weapon. as im also a returning player, it's what i had to do to get the ivorymoon one

[LunaticAzure]

I don't quite remember when the story gives you certain items, but keep doing the story quests. They'll give you everything you need to update your gear. You'll get new weapons, accessories, gems, souls, pet auras and soul shields from the main story. You can buy Lucent Accessories from the Grand Harvest square shop, in case you already passed that point in the story, for a quick boost in power.

 

Skill builds aren't very necessary anymore, as the skill tree has been heavily simplified. Skill points are no longer a thing. You can just click and apply the skill mod of choice.

 

There's no longer any evolving weapons before legendary. You straight up get a Baleful/Seraph stage 1 weapon chest from the Act 7 story quest. If you don't get 6 gem slots on it, keep buying new chests with Naryu Silver from the Naryu coin merchant in Hogshead Hamlet, Grand Harvest Square, etc. until you get 6 gem slots.

 

Once you hit lvl 55 and start getting hongmoon levels, you can get stat points. You can put them into attack or defense and every number of points will give you a big bonus.

 

If you still have any Flawless Sparkling Hexagonal gems, when you unequip them, you'll get an option to exchange them for stronger new gems. Once you start doing the daily challenge, you'll get Solar Energy, you can exchange that for the new Hexagonal Gem. Hexagonal gems can be broken down into 4 gem powder, which you can use to buy a different type of gem. Meaning you can swap out endlessly for free or send them to your alts for cheap. Also, don't ever fuse gems below Pentagonal in the transmute menu. It's a complete waste of gem powder.

 

Also, just to clarify, I don't know what box your referring to, that was supposed to be offered for your weapon. Every time the weapon system changed, all you had to do was just extract/exchange it in the antique menu to get a new weapon. The old weapon would have a symbol on the icon and information about what you would get.