Materia System

[Physic]

Problem SE have to consider is they aren't going to want to exclude low rank gatherers from the content, as much as I'd like to see it made rare by being grade 6 only. More likely it should go into grade 4 and above. They could balance current areas to fit it in but I'd much rather they use the opportunity to add new areas. It just makes sense to be able to mine in a mine. Who's idea was it to put grade 4 in Nophica instead of Nanawa anyway?

I don't think deaspected crystals will be used as the catalyst since battle classes can get them too. Though it would be interesting if you needed one of these crystals plus a catalyst to create the materia.

it should be available to all levels, if they want to make different materials for different levels of weapon thats fine, but this is something a player should definitely have available as soon as possible. It shouldnt be a system only for rich players, its customization.

[Rowyne]

They can call it whatever they want, it's still colored gems that have some property going into slots of weapons and armor. Why not call it something people are familiar with and have attached good associations to?

I agree, so let's not call it Materia. Because not everyone liked FFVII.

[SuzakuCMX]

Let's call it Bling.

[Teknoman]

We could still call it materia, since other terms do show up elsewhere. Magicite has popped up in multiple places.

[origamikitsune]

As long as they address the inventory issue at some point, having R10, R20, R30, R40, R50 Catalyst makes sense. A simple mechanic of catalyst used must be higher rank than the item receiving the materia, and it might just be simple enough to be elegant.

EDIT: Also, given the speed at which a person can rank through the lower levels, making the lower ranking catalyst more common with the higher ranking catalyst being rarer and rare seems to make sense. This would provide something for lower ranks to do and sufficient supply will keep the costs down for them. Likewise, if its cheap and easy, it won't keep people from avoiding socketting lowbie items because the cost isn't justified for such a short time period (after all, who will pay 5mil to socket an R10 weapon that won't be used in two hours?). Like wise, keeping the supply low at higher grade catalysts keeps the prices on par with what higher ranking players can afford. Obviosuly, it would need to be balanced in such a way so that low level DoL aren't totally SoL. Honestly, I'm not sure if that balance could be reached at all at low ranks.

[Physic]

I agree, so let's not call it Materia. Because not everyone liked FFVII.

how about calling it sephiroths. I would be amused by the number of people raging

[Peregrine]

Yeah you can't necessarily exclude lowbie gatherers from getting catalysts but for christ's sakes you can't give rank 28 amateurs access to any catalyst that is supposed to have any worth at all...otherwise it won't. At all.

Rank 30 miner: not able to participate in Rank 40+catalyst economy.
Rank 40 miner: not able to participate in Rank 50 catalyst economy.
Rank 50 miner: The guy you go to to get catalyst for your rank 50 epic piece.

Bad: Scrub miners selling best catalysts for cutthroat glutted prices. IE the entire mining industry to date.

A rank 28 miner should be about as relevant as a rank 35 crafter. That is, not very relevant at all. A rank 28 miner should max out their catalyst power at about a Ironclad Cavalry bow, then be completely irrelevant to any higher materia activity. They should have NOTHING to do with what is done to crab bows. Not even close, they need to come back when they're a REAL miner, not a dabbler.

Rank 35 crafters have nothing to do with R40+crafting markets, and yet R35 gatherers can spam R60 level materials that crafters can't even use yet. No. Not more of that.

Or R30 miner: you dabble in piddle str point additions that no one cares about.
R40 miner: you dabble in better attributes like attack bonuses that destroy R30 miners.
R50 miner: you own the catalyst that gives double attack, and % bonuses that destroy R40 miners.

[Xenor]

Making it available to all ranks is nice in theory but then you make it more likely that the catalysts will be added to current gathering nodes rather than create new ones. I mean let's say they created new areas for catalysts. Where could you suitable place more grade 1, 2 or 3 areas? It's easy to find more locations for higher rank grades and at the end of the day you can take a gathering class to 28 to scan grade 4 in about two weeks.

[Cairdeas]

Ever think that the Catalysts will have ranks as well?

[ZephyrAM]

I agree, so let's not call it Materia. Because not everyone liked FFVII.

Just disconnect the system from the game it's referenced to?

You don't have to like VII in all aspects in order to like, or at least be indifferent to, 'some' aspects of it.