Synergy Reborn: Revisit Evolith System?

[Kari]

I'd like to be able to level all crafts to 100. Most players don't level any at all.
It would also allow Synergy to require more high level crafts without forcing you to drag 5 people to do Synergy.

...but more than anything I just want to be able to level more than one to 100. =P

[Seriha]

At present, skilling Synergy from 70 to 80 can be difficult if your main crafts don't favor the various synths available. I imagine this will be remedied for things 81+, but for whatever the next cap is, please strive to make sure there is at least one non-guild item reliant synth for each craft to cap off with.

While meant to be group synthesis, the allure isn't really there. Please be cautious about the elemental requirements for future items as while the materials might not be hard to come by, actually having the bodies to man the furnace and handle all the little this and thats can be problematic. The alternative is better rewards for successful synergies for all participants, but I can't really think of what. Bribing others with gil doesn't always work, especially if they want more than you're willing to give for a small amount of their time. Simply adding more good items will just leave people grumbling about the system if left unchanged, too.

On the whole, Evoliths were way, way, way too specific. If you can't outright change all the "Vs. Vermin: Attack +7" stones and the like out there, at least offer some synths where they can all be combined to an eventual universal Attack +7 equivalent.

From there, I'd like to see it possible for all gear to be augmented at least once. In terms of general craft goods, NQs can have 1 slot, HQs can have 2, (H)NM drops could have 1-3, and gear specifically meant for synergy customization could have anywhere from 3-6 slots. Using the earlier Attack +7 idea, if someone wanted to put 6 of those into a corresponding item, let them.

Awesome evoliths can, in turn, come from more difficult content. More average ones can be chanced upon by other means like synthesis, basic NM drops, caskets in FoV/GoV/Abyssea, and so on. They shouldn't be stupid rare, either. Pretty much any mod in the game should be able to be found somewhere, and hopefully not in uselessly paltry amounts. If need be, level restrictions can be placed on specific evoliths that could change the receiving item's level requirements. However, proper scaling throughout player levels should still be considered so it isn't suddenly like "Oh hey, I'm level 60, time to make some synergy gear!" It should be an option from level 1 onward.

Try to avoid negative mods.

More specific to the synergy process, the menu is slow and clunky. This'll probably be a PS2 limitations moment, but I'd like to instead have a graphically based menu representing the furnace where navigating controls would hover over options like Thwack and so on. Meanwhile, all the fewell options would be set overhead for easy access. Click whatever and it primes the command for a confirm/cancel button. Minimum cooldowns can be placed on confirmations to maintain similar difficulty, or emphasize being slowed/stunned by overloads. If you're confused on this, I can make a cheesy photoshop representation.

I'll leave things at that for now, partially out of curiosity to see what others may think on things.

[Zirael]

It’s been quite a bit of time since our last post about synthesis and synergy. With one update about to occur and future update planning taking place now, we’d like to get some good hard feedback about the synergy system. What would you like to see happen with synergy going forward? What kind of adjustments/changes/new things are you interested in? Let us know!
[...]
Looking forward to all of your ideas and requests!

For now I have only one gripe with Synergy and that is menu lag. When I get 'explosion message' I have enough time to select 1 action before explosion occurs, if I chose remote/deserted area, I can do 2 actions at most. From what I understand, people living close to servers (Japan) are able to select up to about 4 actions? Also, jumping between all the menus is a bit cumbersome.
What I would propose: Make furnace operation possible through macros. There aren't really that many commands to be done (Feed Fewell x8 for each element, End Synergy, Thwack Furnace, Operate Pressure Valve, Operate Safety Lever, Repair Furnace, Recycle strewn fewell).
Why do I have to fight with menus and wait for menu reload after each action taken? I's the same as asking people to type in all battle comands through chatlog, etc. Macro it all already, please.

[Atomic_Skull]

Just DON'T make upgrading Limbus and Salvage gear Synergy related and I will be happy.

[Vxsote]

As a level 99 goldsmith and 79 synergist, and student of the economy of FFXI, here are my thoughts on synergy:

First and foremost, synergy must be considered as part of the overall FFXI economy, where the health of one will always affect the health of the other. Strengthening the overall economy will give synergy more room to grow, and strengthening synergy will boost the economy. I hope this relationship will become more apparent as I discuss some of the more detailed points.

Next, I'd like to state that I generally like synergy. There are a lot of haters out there, but my general feeling is that many of them will complain no matter what, especially about anything that actually requires effort. Please do not cave to demands that essentially amount to people wanting something for nothing. The purpose of synergy must be to add value to items/gear/materials, and that value must come at a price. The trick is to find the right balance.

Moving on, there are several specific issues with synergy itself that can be addressed to improve the system:

Relevance
This is a problem with both synergy and crafting in general. It seems over the last several years, there has been a distinct shift from much high end gear being crafted to most of it being ra/ex drops or quested items. Take rings as an example. Once a staple of goldsmithing, it is now rare to see a high-end DD wearing one crafted ring, let alone two. Items such as the Rajas Ring, and more recently Epona's Ring, have become the standard to meet.

Weapons and visible armor face similar challenges, as Magian and Empyrian items are quite exceptional. Even slightly older synergy items, such as the level 77 weapons, are now completely obsolete... especially those that can be found in abyssea chests with significant augments on them.

One possible solution would be to return to having more high-end crafting materials drop from NMs, which must be then synergized into quality, must-have gear. Think of something like the Noble's Tunic (back when it was worth 15M gil). Another possibility would be to require synergized items to be turned in to an NPC to complete high-end gear, similar to salvage gear (but at lower cost, please).

Time and Difficulty
One of the reasons that synergy is unpopular is that the time required to complete a single recipe is much greater than that of a traditional craft. Sometimes superior yields reward the investment of time, but not always. While you listed mass production as a positive aspect for synergy, that is offset by the fact that recipes take longer to begin with.

At the same time, the maximum time allocated to complete a single recipe is way too short. I understand that part of the idea behind synergy is to use teamwork, and that the time limit is intended to present a challenge. But synergy should not be a race to complete the recipe before the furnace craps out, especially given that client performance and menu latency play a significant role. Some recipes are difficult to balance, and I am ok with that difficulty, but we should be given more time to fine-tune our results so that we don't have to start over so often after a single error. I would suggest that you at least double the amount of time available to complete a recipe. Quickness in operation of the furnace is its own reward, as time is our most valuable commodity.

Interface
I agree with what Kalilla posted regarding the chat-and-menu-based interface. It sucks. I know this probably falls into what would normally produce either an "it's too hard" response, or a "PS2 limitations" response - but the chat-based interaction is a severe weakness in the synergy system. Please try to come up with something better.

Marketplace
I consider it a positive aspect of synergy that I can make ex items for people. But that requires crafting on demand, and is not always convenient. Please use caution before implementing too many of these recipes.

Along with my previous statements about the economy, something I want you to consider is the Auction House. The Auction House always has been the primary means of trade in FFXI, and should remain so. However, the AH system has not expanded to accommodate the vast increase in the number of materials since its inception. I believe this deserves its own entire thread, so I won't go into too much detail here. I also know that some ideas have previously been rejected as too difficult, such as allowing customers to place "wanted" orders to be fulfilled. Please reconsider that, and other suggestions, from the perspective that improving the AH will also lead to increased trade, a healthier economy, and aid in the rejuvenation of crafting and synergy. After all, we MUST have an easy way to buy and sell our goods.

I will give a few quick suggestions for the AH though:

• Allow "wanted" orders to be placed and fulfilled.
• Extend the time for an item to sell to more than 3 days.
• Expand the number of slots that each player can use on the AH.

Thanks for reading my suggestions.

[Thala]

Personally, I think the general crafting system of crystal -> recipe -> success/failure is fine. Crafting has very few factors, more skill than anything else. Meanwhile, Synergy seems to have about a dozen factors, and it all seems to be just unnecessarily complex, leaving me with absolutely no interest in pursuing it. In my own perfect little world, Synergy would be abolished entirely, but I know that's an unreasonable request. Instead, I would like to see Synergy as a means of perks. For each Synergy recipe, have an equivalent recipe via general crafting. If you go by way of Synergy, there could be benefits. For example: lower skill requirements, easier recipe, more frequent HQ, greater quantities, etc. That way, Synergists can be properly rewarded, while players like myself who don't want to touch Synergy with a 39.5 foot pole aren't penalized. Let me make use of my high level Woodworking without requiring me to invest time and effort in an unnecessary secondary craft.

[MarkovChain]

Use synergy to craft future endgame gear. Existence of HQ gear with noticable improvements. Requires one high level (~100) specific craft to build.

Example :

Imagine the next endgame gives RDM "D'Artagnan Redingote" and the +1 version. In order to obtain it you need to obtain a rare/ex ingredient "shining redingote".

Level 90 synergy + level 100 clothcraft + shining redingote = D'Artagnan Redingote with chance of HQ(s).


I liked the concept of crafting gear involved with salvage however obtaining the gear was basically trading stuff to an NPC. This time you could imagine the same system but players themselves would craft it. They would also farm the ingredient themsleves (rare ex ingredient). This concept has the merit to benefit people that don't want to get involved in endgame (crafters). If you are hardcore enough you level your own craft/synergy and try many times for the HQ, if not you try your luck for HQ by hiring a crafter . Of course you need to balance NQ/HQ stats.

[Juilan]

It’s been quite a bit of time since our last post about synthesis and synergy. With one update about to occur and future update planning taking place now, we’d like to get some good hard feedback about the synergy system. What would you like to see happen with synergy going forward? What kind of adjustments/changes/new things are you interested in? Let us know!

There are already a lot of you that have posted on this, but for good measure I have a couple requests before you submit feedback:

•If you haven’t already read the post I made previously about the future of synthesis and synergy, please do so.
•Please give us constructive feedback.
•Please avoid any abstract expressions and post specific content.
•We’d appreciate it if you would post suggestions as a set with problems and not just the points you feel are problematic.

Also, just one more personal request…

I will be sure to read each and every one of your posts, so there is really no need to change the font size or color to make it stand out more. Just be sure to not create huge walls of text because that makes it pretty tough for me to get through it when there are a ton of posts to read. With that said, just consider little old Camate, so I can better convey your feedback to the development team.

Looking forward to all of your ideas and requests!

Anyone comment about not wanting another armour system that requires synergy to upgrade it by killing some what tricky NMs for a chance at a drop with a ~2% drop rate?
I also would love to see synergy being able to skill a base craft simultaneously, I haven't seen my gold skill up on it, or anything else... I do think that would be a nice touch to it.

[SpankWustler]

I really like the use of synergy to produce tatters and augment Sky and Abjuration equipment. For the first time, something seemed to fit the synergy system perfectly. I know several people who leveled synergy for this sole purpose. If Homam, Nashira, etc. equipment received similar augments through a similar system I think that would be perfect.

I really dislike expendable items, such as ammunition, only being produced through synergy. I understand the advantages of synergy in terms of making ammunition (or food), but synthesis should also be an option. This would allow players to choose between quality (Synergy) or ease of use (Synthesis). I live in fear that new food will be added with synergy-only recipes.

Also, you have my condolences, Camate. I can't imagine having to read "BLARGARGARGH! I HAET SINERGI I WANT 2 MAEK TROUSERS USING SINTHISES!" four hundred times and possibly tally every one.

[Tezz]

Evolith where do i start?

Fields of Valor & Grounds of Valor + Elite Regime -
Upon completion there is a random chance of obtaining evolith (stats commensurate with difficulty of the page). The bosses of course being more suited for good evolith.

Dungeon Crawlers & Daily Reward System -
The more powerful Evolith should come from here. Maybe not so random stats & 100% chance at obtaining an evolith for completion. Even rarer evolith from the bosses.

Combining Evolith -
High level Synergy can combine evolith that are eligible for combination (marked with an icon on the evolith or a color around the border). Can do away with the "eligible only" if the Devs feel it's ok to be able to combine any evolith.

The process below(may need a few adjustments):
Step 1: Obtain a "Blank Evolith"
Step 2: Etch the Blank Evolith for the desired Evoliths you want combined
Step 3: Place the no longer "Blank Evolith" in the furnace for completion.

Now, the player will have a single evolith with combined stats.