I second Jeto. I believe all opinions have made been sufficiently clear and the devs have plenty of valuable feedback to work with. So I am sure that Jeto would appreciate getting some rest in this topic, at least until we get to know the upcoming changes. We will be counting on all of you to evaluate those changes, so save a bit of your energy for then 
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Let’s be constructive while not being repetitive …
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I agree, I think that IF the rarity upgrades are done through followers, it should/could be based on their level, as it is with gear crafting abilities.
It could be based on follower level:
L5 common > uncommon
L10 uncommon > rare
And so on.
Agreed.
The key point - which seems to have gotten obscured in the discussion - is that if the gear-rarity-improving mechanic is re-introduced, it needs:
a) To be part of the gameplay experience from the start, and
b) Needs to be of use at all “levels” of play.
The reason for (a) is to attract more customers – not pivot completely to only appealing to those who favor gacha games.
The reason for (b) is to keep those new players engaged, to give them something to work towards, and also to make the game experience “richer” for all players (i.e. more return on investment for the coding work.)
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If rarity-upgrading is only available through followers then, yes, needs to be as you suggest, with the mechanism available at a very low follower level, otherwise (a) fails.
I’ve suggested, elsewhere, a mechanism where both honing and followers could upgrade rarity, the point of honing being to give a “basic” version of that mechanism for all players, including new ones, while the “follower version” would add features specifically to interest (and get $ from) mid- and especially end-gamers … but that would make gear progression a little more complicated.
And apparently devs and/or managers decided that the mechanism needed to be “simplified” for fear of confusing their new players. (Not that the new version of honing seems, conceptually, any simpler to me than leveling-up gear used to be. It just makes it less effective and interesting, not simpler.)
Personally, I liked the challenge of deciding on good gear sets and intelligently upgrading them … it was that aspect of old PQ3 that made me stick with the game.
Plus, I find it’s a lot easier to get bored with a simple game, I think, reducing the % of new players who become long-term ones… I don’t think the assumption that “simpler game means more customers” is necessarily valid. I think it’s more complicated and nuanced than that.
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Still, I expect that - for better or worse - if rarity-improving is implemented, it’ll be along the lines you outline above.
Let’s just hope that mechanism is “immediately” available to new players (for (a) above) and that it isn’t so expensive that doesn’t offer a viable route to regular geaar advancement… because, otherwise, they might as well not bother.
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I think the most sensible thing to do is have the followers level gear up to “[rarity]-capable”, based on follower level.
For example, if you have a legendary ring, at L50 Gemka can make it mythic-capable, adding enough empty pip slots to complete the honing experience in your own time. To simplify:
L10: Make item Uncommon-capable
L20: Make item Rare-capable
L30: Make item Epic-capable
L40: Make item Legendary-capable
L50: Make item Mythic-capable
This way, we can keep the honing system as it is, and evolve our gear as we used to, all the while still being able to get high-end items from chests as we do now.
@Jeto say yes.
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