Craft Skill Limitations

[RushLynx]

I would like the development team to take a good close look at the multiple threads here outlining your crafting community's utter disgust with the effects that the Synergy system has had on all of us...
Being able to level another craft to 100 will do nothing to restore the vitality of the crafting community... what needs to be done is to be able to push a craft PAST 100... Please, for all our sakes, stop giving synergy everything. I, like so many others have expressed whole-heartedly in these forums, find synergy to be monotonous and completely defeating of the "fun" associated with crafting... It's laggy and stressful and we have no desire whatsoever to level it; but alas, it seems ever more apparent that you, the development team, wish to force us all to level it in order to get anything out of our years and tireless efforts toward leveling our crafts to veteran.
From a personal standpoint I have lost many good friends in this game over the past couple of years due to the mismanagement of game balance, especially the addition of synergy. A great many of us do not like synergy, we don't find it fun at all, in fact, quite the contrary... I can't think of anything I'd rather do less than sit in front of a furnace feeding fewell endlessly for skill ups to use a craft I have already leveled.
Take a close look at your servers. Please note that there are a very small handful of synergists on each server making obscene amounts of gil selling synergy items that they have monopolized. This is not because synergy is difficult to level, or even because many people have not figured out how synergy works. It's because we detest it SO much that even the vast quantities of gil associated with it will not drive us to leveling it.

I have all but deleted my character due to my disappointments with the latest developments in FFXI... I've played for many, many years... I've noticed a large decline in player's interest lately due to unbalanced gameplay, lost many good friends in game that have become fed up with it all. Do not let this trend continue; please, tread lightly when making these decisions... Perhaps before increasing the skill allotments for crafts you should, first, address the catastrophe that has befallen said crafts... For all our sakes, please bring the fun back to your crafting system... Not just keep pushing us towards synergy... Ultimately, what you'll be doing is pushing us to ending our subscriptions.

[RushLynx]

Oh... And additionally, with regard to synergy...

The idea of synergy was very exciting to most crafters when it was first announced... Being able to craft things as a team effort really does sound neat... But the current Synergy system is incredibly undesirable, which is what has caused the dramatic unrest amongst crafters. Nobody wants to navigate frantically through a large series of laggy menus under the pressure caused by time-based events trying to make something. Often times lots of time is lost waiting for the lag, or the wrong option is selected accidentally, etc. It's very very frustrating and entirely unnecessary.
My suggestion is that synergy should be completely re-examined and overhauled... it should not be something that you must "level" like another craft, and if skill must be developed in it I would suggest another means of progression through the skill levels than traditional skill up. Crafters have progressed through the crafting levels because they enjoy the crafting system, they have no desire to grind their way through a totally foreign system... It's kind of insulting; they've learned their trade, why should they have to learn an entirely different one just to be able to use their skills?

When I first read about synergy it was my impression that everyone would have something to do in the synthesis operation... I was rather disappointed to discover that only one person controlled the furnace while the others merely needed to be in the party... Likewise, I suspected that such operations would take place somewhere... unique... like a laboratory, or a large magical contraption somewhere deep within the Horutoto Ruins or something, where everyone would need to stand somewhere and channel their skills into the final result... Instead we got furnaces... and menus... lots and lots of menus... Oh and worthless rewards, which brings me to my final point...

I understand the need for a reward for the rest of the party members that contributed to the sythesis, but the "ponzes" yielded from synergy really aren't worth much currently in the game... I suppose that could change, but the whole etching aspect of synergy is incredibly limited currently. I'm beginning to get the feeling that Synergy is potentially supposed to be a stand-alone craft, where one player might have Synergy and they simply need players of the other crafts... I feel that Synergy should be an inherent skill. While it might require practice a proper party should be able to do it without the need for a certain skill level in Synergy. But back to the rewards issue: Thus far, I have discovered maybe 3 potentially useful evoliths in the game... All of them are incredibly difficult to obtain and require time and usually others to assist in their acquisition. I would assume that any additional evoliths added are going to be just as hard if not harder to obtain, and getting anyone interested in evolith with all of the Abyssea equipment floating around is near impossible... So just what is the point of all of it? And what's in it for the other crafters that help in the synergy operations? I think the rewards need to be enhanced... Etching is another neat idea that just doesn't seem to go anywhere with its current restrictions... it all just seems very... unorganized.

Thanks if you read all this! :3

[Maquis]

With over 800 crafting levels under my belt, I think I'm qualified to give an honest opinion on the subject.

1. Get rid of material losses for synths where I'm above the cap. These are just incredibly frustrating. I think this is why breaks were (thankfully) completely removed from Synergy. (I understand that part of the game is luck, but bad luck is a lot more frustrating than a lack of good luck.)
2. Give HQ results for more crafts. What I mean by this is that there are a lot of low level crafts like Sheep Leather or Cotton Cloths where you get HQ animations, but don't get any extra materials. These always seemed like a slap to the face especially when followed by a critical break of a synth where I'm 100+ over the cap. I think adding some extra HQs might give high level crafters an incentive to keep the materials on the AH stocked. Conversely, it could hurt the profits on NQ synths so it may not be win/win all around.
3. Show me the crystals! The other day I sat down with a nice cup of tea to do some synthing, but I found out there wasn't a single earth crystal available on an auction house anywhere on my server so I was out of luck. Crystal prices today are even higher than they were in the midst of the great inflation period. This change would only put more pressure on the already minuscule supply.
4. Show me the synths! I can't think of a single worthwhile non-Synergy synthesis that has been added since Abyssea was released.

With over 160 crafting levels under my belt, I might be a good candidate to give "retired crafting before reaching 100" feedback on this.

1. If I was sure that all my crafting yielded at least NQ, I might be enticed to give it a try again.
2. On another note for this comment, I would like all items used in crafting to be stackable. Together with added HQ to current low level crafts that do not have them, the stocking issues might get resolved.
3. Some time ago, I suggested hybrid weather conditions. Having one weather element flowover to another. I would really like to see weather effects to be populated more frequently and for longer periods. Perhaps Crystals Stacks or Cores can have a "Mog Crystal Pouch" like the Satchel and Sack and can only carry crystals. This might cause people to not toss crystals they obtain and put them on the AH when they get stacks complete. It also helps crafters to keep their inventory managable. Next to this, would like Crystals to get excluded from your 7 limit on the AH and lower the cost to put them on the AH.
4. Very true, there needs to be a clear line for what is done with Synergy and what is done with solo crafting.

[Cljader1]

I would like the development team to take a good close look at the multiple threads here outlining your crafting community's utter disgust with the effects that the Synergy system has had on all of us...
Being able to level another craft to 100 will do nothing to restore the vitality of the crafting community... what needs to be done is to be able to push a craft PAST 100... Please, for all our sakes, stop giving synergy everything. I, like so many others have expressed whole-heartedly in these forums, find synergy to be monotonous and completely defeating of the "fun" associated with crafting... It's laggy and stressful and we have no desire whatsoever to level it; but alas, it seems ever more apparent that you, the development team, wish to force us all to level it in order to get anything out of our years and tireless efforts toward leveling our crafts to veteran.
From a personal standpoint I have lost many good friends in this game over the past couple of years due to the mismanagement of game balance, especially the addition of synergy. A great many of us do not like synergy, we don't find it fun at all, in fact, quite the contrary... I can't think of anything I'd rather do less than sit in front of a furnace feeding fewell endlessly for skill ups to use a craft I have already leveled.
Take a close look at your servers. Please note that there are a very small handful of synergists on each server making obscene amounts of gil selling synergy items that they have monopolized. This is not because synergy is difficult to level, or even because many people have not figured out how synergy works. It's because we detest it SO much that even the vast quantities of gil associated with it will not drive us to leveling it.

I have all but deleted my character due to my disappointments with the latest developments in FFXI... I've played for many, many years... I've noticed a large decline in player's interest lately due to unbalanced gameplay, lost many good friends in game that have become fed up with it all. Do not let this trend continue; please, tread lightly when making these decisions... Perhaps before increasing the skill allotments for crafts you should, first, address the catastrophe that has befallen said crafts... For all our sakes, please bring the fun back to your crafting system... Not just keep pushing us towards synergy... Ultimately, what you'll be doing is pushing us to ending our subscriptions.

Please speak for yourself, alot of us loves synergy and took the time too master it and understand it, plus it is a much better system than old school crafting which took no skill and no talent to make items, not to mention tons of gil to skill it. I have exactly 1200 crafting skill pionts with those being 3 lvl 100 characters with all subs capped at 60 with also 160 synergy skill pionts, I been crafting for nearly 9 years and needed a better system to allow crafters greater control over making and HQing items, and synergy was perfect. If you don't understand, that is your problem it not even remotely as hard to skill up as traditional crafting. I'm tired of newbie crafters crying about synergy, most of us synergist are hardcore crafters and this system is made ESPECIALLY for us

SE I would encourage you too please keep enhancing synergy it still need too be giving greater power in the equipment and items in can make. Currently the best gear is acquired 1st by rare/ex nm drop, 2nd magain trials and 3rd synergy/crafting. We should not be 3rd in line for producing gear we should be a direct alternative to rare/ex nm drops. The Goldsmithing earring and ring line up is especially embarrassing, there are countless numbers of earrings and rings out there that beats our best line up please fix this. Moreover, please keep enhancing and empowering synergy because us most dedicated and hardcore crafters really love and appreciate the system, for it is us who have the ability and talent to produce the most difficult of synthesis.

[RushLynx]

Can you not notice that you're the small majority that is so happy with this system? I'm happy for you, I really am, but I think it's important that SE hears the rest of us who the system is killing the game for... It's really easy for you, who have had great success with Synergy, to say "oh, yes! please, continue to give me everything." While the rest of us are being suffocated by this system's poor design.

[Cljader1]

Can you not notice that you're the small majority that is so happy with this system? I'm happy for you, I really am, but I think it's important that SE hears the rest of us who the system is killing the game for... It's really easy for you, who have had great success with Synergy, to say "oh, yes! please, continue to give me everything." While the rest of us are being suffocated by this system's poor design.

How is it so difficult? Its easy to level, you only need fewell which is dirt cheap if you have a alchemy sub. The recipe elements is not even a mystery, your given the elemental recipe all you have to do is match it up. God how hard is that it cant be any simplier.

[GlobalVariable]

While I hate the laggy menu the things I really like about synergy is the fact I don't lose materials when I fail and the small measure of control I have vs regular crafts random "oops you lose!" crystal explosion. I can be 40 levels above a recipe and just randomly lose everything for no reason. That is a huge deterrent that doesn't happen in synergy. Taking regular crafts past 100 does not help anything. Say the cap is moved to 150. You grind away to reach 150 and then you get all the exact same problems we had at 100 and you'll be suggesting a new cap of 200. I want regular crafting revitalized but a higher cap isn't going to accomplish that. Once its taken care of maybe in the future it can go up, but no point increasing the cap on a broken system.

[annewandering]

I would not like to see the overall cap increased. I dont see much purpose to that. However it would be great if we had some synths that were usable besides consumables.
Everytime we get one a new r/e shows up that kills it. The Thallisocrat is a very good example. It was a great money maker yet it wasnt long before it became useless because a r/e showed up that didnt need to be crafted.
It would be so fun, for me, to have the possibility of all my gear signed by me and be sought after items. Now it only happens when leveling low level jobs. Not exactly what I had in mind at all.
The biggest problem in crafting is not synthing. Its synergy. The idea of people working together was great and intriquing but it has been too clumsy and quirky to carry out the promise. As others have said the menu is laggy. The principles are not difficult to get but the speed to do it with the laggy menu is difficult.
In my opinion, not speaking for others at all, more work needs to be done on the mechanics of synergy before dealing with other possibilities. My friends do synergy but as one said this morning when I asked if they liked it they said "Does anyone like it?" Its like cleaning out the toilet. It needs to be done but few enjoy it much. This is a game. How about if it becomes more enjoyable?

[Godofgods]

I like the idea of having all crafts to level 100, myself, but what would make me even happier is stopping the curse of item loss when crafting items I've already leveled to. I can remember wanting a Halcyon Fishing Rod. There was one for sale on the auction house, but I had materials to make one on my mules. So I muled to two characters and got just enough materials to make a Halcyon Rod. I was way over the level for the rod, but it broke! I had to mule again to get replacement materials. I restocked my stuff, again having just enough to craft it, thinking surely I wouldn't get two breaks in a row, but I got a SECOND break and lost even more materials. This time I didn't have enough materials to replace what I'd lost and I ended up buying the darned thing off the auction house! I was so mad my eyes wanted to roll back 180 degrees and expose the nerve connections. It's so senseless. A similar thing happened just a few weeks ago, except it was just one break. I still had to mule more materials, but the second attempt succeeded. Again, I was well over the cap.

Most of the time I send more than enough materials just in case something breaks, and much of the time nothing breaks and I end up muling it all back anyway. So whether I prepare for possible failures or not, multiple mulings to make one item seems to be the biggest annoyance of all in crafting.

Removing breaks for items you've capped just seems like the most sensible thing to do. That I can break a Level 1 cooking recipe with Lv.91 cooking says that I'm able to make fantastic Lobster Thermidor, but I still mess up a pot of boiled water.

As for the problem of procuring items needed for crafting, I recommend another Guild Point Item, maybe make it a key item, or something you could equip, like an earring. It would increase the drop rate for all items needed in that craft. So in Alchemy, you'd be guaranteed at least one, maybe two beehive chips for every kill, in addition to what would have normally dropped without the equipped item.

Honestly, if I need beehive chips, I get them from low-level bees, popping them off one at a time with a crossbow bolt. It's pretty fast, but since I don't like killing mobs where others are trying to level, I often run to unoccupied areas to farm. If higher level monsters would drop higher quantities of items, it might be worthwhile to farm them. But I don't want to go kill bees in the Temple of Uggalepih when they don't drop any more than the bees in Giddeus. If higher-level bees dropped plain old beehives (working like a lighting cluster: break the beehive and get 12 beehive chips), and the drop rate was comparable to one-hitting low-level bees, I'd be more inclined to farm them. The bees in the Crawler's Nest seem like good candidates for dropping beehives.

Windblade on Odin

I was wondering when i would see you on here WB!!

[Kluaf]

Well i skimmed through a lot of peoples opinions and seen several great points. But i cant really complain after the fact the system has changed if i dont voice my opinion now. I started this game in Dec 09 so i havent played that long jus a lil over a year. But I LOVE Crafting and i have several friends that are hardcore crafters and have been for years.

High Level Skilled Crafters having low level recipe busts...
I gotta say having busts on synths were players are 80 levels above the recipe is jus dumb. Maybe not HQin every synth i can see but breakin sheep leather ok even ram leather being 60 levels above is dumb at some point there should be an update to where the breaking is cut way way way down for people with skills thats way over the recipe level.

New Synths ...
Synergy or no synergy its in the game its not coming out and i hardly ever see anybody using the synergy pots on Phoenix. But u cant take abysea out of the game and u cant take synergy out as well. But what happened to new synths??? They really hasnt been any But with new level caps you introduce new higher level sub requirements for new synths at least. So insted of the 100 60 60 you can introduce a whole plethora of new synths. And needs to be new synths added.

Synergy...
Now again you cant give kids candy and let them eat it for awhile and then all of a sudden take it away and tell em they will never get it again. Basically no matter if people complain about synergy or not its part of the game. What need to be done is a further emphasis on the combining of the 2 systems. Obviously there has been some of that done but it needs to be a bigger part imo.

Farming Mats...
Idk what yall was thinking by giving hard attainable materials away in abyssea like free cheese that was previously gotten from other more challenging means. To mean that was jus dumb. But in order to save the crafting and synergy systems as they are yall need to make USABLE and NEEDED items used in combination of using both abilities!!! also yall need to make the lower level items more readily needed as well...

Neways jus my opinion LOL