When an item upgrade is unsuccessful, I lose both the item itself and the items and gold used to upgrade it. According to the wiki (https://wiki.playm2m.com/index.php/Equipment_Upgrade), I should be able to keep the item:
if it fails, only the item and gold needed for upgrading are lost, not the item
This bug already occurred during the Limited Access beta.
I hope this is a bug and not working as intended - it is very frustrating trying to upgrade gear at the moment. In fact, it is easier to keep the gear at levels 3-4 because it is too punishing trying to upgrade to 6-7+.
Example:
I want to upgrade "Ghost Shoes +3" to "Ghost Shoes +4".
This costs 1 Element Shard, 1 Blue Wolf Fur and 1150 gold.
It has a 69% chance to be successful.
I upgrade the item but it fails.
Expected result:
I lose the 1 Element Shard, 1 Blue Wolf Fur and 1150 gold, but get to keep the "Ghost Shoes +3".
Actual result:
I lose the 1 Element Shard, 1 Blue Wolf Fur and 1150 gold, and I also lost the "Ghost Shoes +3".