U/U Gear not compatible with Crafting and the Materia System.

As it stands now, the two different types of gear, Unique Untradeable and Unmeldable gear, which I will just call Ungear, and the Crafting/Materia system are simply not compatible. Meaning they will not mesh together into a great system, as they are in direct conflict with one another.

Here's why...

With the current implementation of Raids/Dungeons offering Ungear, in order to offer better rewards from these sources, you must undoubtedly increase the potency of this type of gear as more challenging encounters are released. Now, as more Raids and Dungeons are released, there will be a point where Ungear will exceed Crafted/Melded gear and will eliminate any purpose for crafting or materia.

In this situation, the most likely quick fix would be to add more potent crafted gear and materia. However, this itself also undermines crafting and melding. Given the significant cost to the player for engaging in melds exceeding 2 materia, only a player who knows this investment will have some permanency will even engage in such an attempt. Knowing that there is Ungear available by simply being victorious in a dungeon or raid or there being new crafted gear or materia on the horizon, a player will likely not take the crafted/melded gear.

There are a numerous number of ways capable of fixing the current situation, and I in no way seek to exaggerate the scale of the problem. Most players will likely be focus on the next greatest item to add to their arsenal without a care of where it comes from or what form it takes, but I just wanted to point out this conflict between the two types of gear and suggest an alternative.

Suggestion

My alternative is very simple, and I will attempt to explain it as sufficiently as possible. There is no need to completely remove Ungear as a possibility for other purposes, but for Raids and Dungeons I would see it removed.

In the place of direct item drops, Raids and Dungeons would simply drop materials instead. However, the number of materials would be enough to supply the party with more than just a few pieces of gear, and their recipes can incorporate already existing materials. In doing so, recipes can be more similar to each other, as was the purpose of the crafting recipe reform awhile back. A Mythril Barbut for example has similar materials and number of materials as a Cobalt Barbut with the exception of one using Mythril Ingots and the other using Cobalt Ingots. A comparable item from a Raid or Dungeon would be something like a Behemoth Barbut, making use of similar materials excepting a Behemoth Hide and Horn found from within the dungeon. Aside from offering additional materials for more gear, materials can be used for multiple recipes which give the victorious party the flexibility to reward their members with the approprate gear. There would no longer be an issue of getting the "wrong drops."

Furthermore, the gear from dungeons, now being craftable, would also be meldable as well. Due to the ability to choose what gear you wish to craft and an increased volume of rewards, raid and dungeon parties would be likely to pursue the melding of materia by default. They would not be grinding a dungeon over and over, with the majority of them being mindless, boring, and fruitless, it would be a steady build up of materials for their hopes in the melding process. With each victory clearly getting closer. Each player can choose what point they would like to reach, double meld, triple meld, but they can stop along any point they feel and can still end up coming out on top.

Now, as new dungeons are added, the potency of gear form these new encounters will likely increase as well. But it is not necessary that the older dungeons become instantly pointless, an unavoidable outcome when rewarding Ungear. Because dungeons and raids would be using materials they too can be incorporated along with the materials from the new dungeons. Perhaps Behemoth is released, and Behemoth Horns were the pinnacle of crafting materials. A few months later, Hydra comes out and its parts are now the best. If the Behemoth materials were incoporated into the recipes of the new Hydra gear, the behemoth encounter would not be completely abandoned forever.

Finally, the issue of permanency of gear and the desire to meld. As I stated before, if gear does not have some degree of permanency, there will be no desire to spend resources and time melding the gear if it were to be trounced in the near future. The reason for this action is solely based on the cost of melding, and the decision as to the number of multi-melded equipment wanted in the game is somewhat of an arbitrary decision on behalf of the developers. However, the system I am suggesting is still superior, as it gives players, especially the very most active and best players, the ability to acquire a significant amount of materials to make such attempts. As new dungeons and raids are released, a sign of a prestige/skill/playing too much - whatever you want to call it, would simply be multi melded gear instead of the Ungear.

To summarize, my suggestion to fix the unavoidable conflict between the different types of gear is to simply eliminate the least interesting one - Unmeldable Uncrafted Untradeable Ungear. In place of the Ungear would be crafting materials to create a higher volume of crafted equipment that could then be spirit bonded, formed into materia, or melded itself. The materials from each raid or dungeon can be incoprorated into new dungeons or raids. In doing so, dungeons can be relevant for as long as the developers desire. A direct result of this change would eliminate much frustration with players feeling forced to grind fruitlessly in dungeons until they get the one or two drops they actually wanted. Instead it will be a continual build up of materials for however long they wish to participate - each victory contributing to their goal.