I agree with you. I just wish cooking felt more meaningful pre-50. Even right now though at 50 it isn't that great.
Printable View
Seriously.
So many times I get asked for food, and then when they ask for the price I'm forced to give a price that's roughly equivalent to what it costs me (often a few thousand gils for high level food) and 100% of the time they just decide not to buy anything, cause it's too expensive.
Crafting food is the only type of food that's worth making atm, because for a crafter, if eating food can make a difference between NQ and HQ it's totally worth it.
I've been mostly working on botany and weaving... and went to look for food for both classes. There wasn't anything being sold. I ended up making some low-level food items myself (my culinary is 11 to my 36 weaver/33 botany). As Vyniea put it, I bet there would be a stronger market for crafting and gathering food items - especially crafting as it can make a noticeable difference in HQ rates.
Food needs to not fade on death and/or most recipes need to craft 3-12 pieces of food(like FFXI), HQ food needs to last 1 hour(like FFXI) and the 1 and 2 star food needs to last 2-3 hours as well as not fade on death. There also needs to be some food that you only make 1 of per synth, but it lasts 2-3 hours(besides the 1-2 star food) just for fun/variance, and other 30 min food that you make 3-12 pieces of in a single synth. This would also make food more interesting/fun and you'd use different depending on the situation.
Food recipes REALLY need fixed, they are as expensive as a piece of armor yet fade on death and last 30 minutes.
I find this thread odd as I've just started leveling Culinarian. My FC wants someone to do it and the prices are stable across the server. Our FC uses them at End-Game across the board and as a perishable item they are always looking for more. From what I've been told they are the only stable prices on the server and as things get rolling there will be more and more demand for high quality food items.
I do agree with the idea that leveling Fishing/Botany is key to producing the goods cheaply. CUL synergizes with FSH very well and I've started producing my own higher level/quality bait. I'm leveling Fishing alongside it right now but it's much easier to level DoH than DoL.
The problem with something like high end food that costs a lot per piece is simply: The majority get to max level and then spend their level money on relic quest items. Most people end up with 15-50k after that. And we all know the meanings of income is limited currently. The best way is to get it from other players but that only re distributes the limited gold amount of players.
If you have around 20-30k and you know you probably break even with a dungeon run considering repps or maybe make a few gil win. You dont buy food for thousands of gil that fades away when you get a bad group.
So basically my point: I think most people just can't afford it currently and those who swim in gil probably either make their own food or have friends that make it.
Are Guildhests and Levequests no longer available at end-game? I've been making a fair bit off those but haven't really been thinking too much about end-game as there's so much to do at my current level. They seems to flush me with cash when I do all six of whats available in whatever particular region I happen to be in. Please understand I never went beyond lvl 20 in FFXI and haven't done any other MMOs.
Guildhests only really give money for doing them once then they give only peanuts. Levequests are ofc still around but 1. they are not much money still and 2. should be kept for leveling professions anyway imo.
Yes while leveling you get spammed with money. But i thought we talked about high level food here which i imagined gets used by people who to high level content ;)