Proposal: HQ mat-to-HQ mat conversion of 100%

[Peregrine]

Currently:
Iron Ore+3*4--->10% chance of Iron Nugget+3
Iron nugget+3*5----> 10% chance of Iron Ingot+3
Total chance of Iron Ingot +3 from Iron Ore+3: 1%

Proposed:
Iron Ore+3*4--->10% chance of Iron Nugget+3
Iron nugget+3*5--->100% chance of Iron Ingot +3
Total chance of Iron Ingot +3 from Iron Ore+3: 10%

Something's got to improve with the HQ materials equations. Just throwing a few ideas out there. What about this?

[Rentahamster]

The only problem with that is that it kinda renders the strength of high rank crafters and their high rank abilities moot.

If all you need is HQ mats to HQ something, then there's really no need to get such skills as Hand of the Gods, or Clean Slate, or Masterpiece, etc.

I agree, however, that the HQ process has to be less random and more consistent.

Perhaps something like:

0-99 quality: 100% NQ

100-299 quality: 70% chance of NQ, 20% chance of HQ1, 10% chance of HQ2

299-499 quality: 20% chance of NQ, 50% chance of HQ1, 20% chance of HQ2, 10% chance of HQ3

500+ quality: 0% chance of NQ, 50% chance of HQ1, 30% chance of HQ2, 20% chance of HQ3

[Peregrine]

I'm ok with rank playing a big part in the ore to nugget and ingot to blade steps, but the more steps in between, the more all roads lead to NQ.

Conceptually speaking it takes talent to make HQ metal from raw and HQ blade heads from metal, but HQ ingot from nuggets? HQ rings from HQ nuggets? Should come like second nature to a crafter, not luck.

[Xenor]

This is why I wouldn't use +3 nuggets to make an ingot. Just seems like a waste.

I don't mind it the way it is, if it were easy to make an HQ ingot or HQ weapon head then HQs would be devalued and everyone would have them. People wouldn't even want +1s any more and they'd drop down the same way NQs have.

[Alise]

HQ+3 weapon never exist yet because of the trouble to make HQ parts. They need to make it easier, but not too easy so everybody can make it. just for server to have some +3 weapon only. (I mean R40+ weapon+3)

[Xenor]

There's a +3 Jade Crook on my server, which is R48. I agree +3 high rank weapons are incredibly rare but they should be considering how powerful they are. Some HQ weapons are better than the weapons made from NM drops.

I think the main reason we're not seeing more +3 40+ weapons is most crafters don't have all of the good HQing skills yet. A lot are also lazy and don't try to get every mat +2/3. Unfortunately weapons like the Jade Crook have an advantage over a lot of other weapons because it's easier to get +3 mats off mobs than make them.

[Peregrine]

Using +3 nuggets on synth mats shouldn't be a waste. They're rare. Rarer than R50 smiths without a gathering job that's for sure. The current system actually allows for more devaluation of +3 materials, as any random R50 smith can +3 something on accident, as opposed to being rewarded with +3's predictably because they have both the level and the mats to earn them.

Smiths with the resources to consistently pump out 550 quality Ingots because they have HQ materials deserve +3 ingots reliably, and they should be able to do so much more easily than a smith who only has their level to back them up, pumping out 250 quality ingots.

This change would improve the value of +3 materials, which is sorely needed, and reward smiths with both the levels and resources. It would also let lower-level smiths with high quality resources to be on an even playing field with high level smiths with low-quality materials.

And honestly I think that's fair. But the lion's share of benefit should go to smiths with both high levels and the +3 ores to back that high level up.

[origamikitsune]

This example is a short of explanation that I expanded on in the thread: http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...g-Improvements

IN short it says: IF you are high enough above a synth that you get no SP or XP, and you are totally maximized in all regards to make HQ (best gear for your rank, max support, bold synth, foods, attributes tweaked perfectly, guild abilities, new moon, remembered to sacrifice your goat, sold your soul, and your first born child to the powers that be) then you should have about 75% chance to HQ +1, and you balance rarity of +2, +3 from there. Basically, if you go balls to the walls hardcore, you should HQ SOMEHOW. IN 100 synths, that is 75 +1 items, which if you think about it, is a lot. But it is also a LOT of effort to get ALL your variables maximized. (this % would need to be adjusted to reflect things like... can we see our guild marks on local leves, allowing us to selectively maximize our abilities... will pumping our class specific or elemental stats ACTUALLY help us instead of just looking cool... will food actually be worthwhile... etc.,)

Whereas if you have the baseline gear at rank, no support, no buffs, bold synth, neutral moon, no abilites, etc., you should have about 5% chance to HQ +1 (that's about 1 in 20) and decrease from there. So that in 100 synths you have five +1, say two +2, and one +3.

[Peregrine]

The Jade book is a joke compared to the monumental effort needed to +3 other items, which Xenor has already hinted at. ANd even then this crook is 10 million gil.
Brass nugget+3: Easy.
Nephrite+2: Difficult
Walnut branch+3: Easy
Acidic secretion+3: Easy
Spoken blood+3: Easy

The difficulty of a +3 synth is really the multiplication of the difficult rate limiting steps of the item.

Now let's look at: Thermal Alembic. Its alchemic equivalent.
Iron plate+3: Difficult. Iron ore->iron nugget->iron ingot->iron plate. Most roads lead to NQ at every step.
Steel plate+3: Extremely difficult. Doubt this has existed in the history of the server. To make one Steel plate+3 would burn 30 million gil worth of steel product.
Iron rivet+3: Moderately difficult. Iron ore->iron nugget->iron rivets. But if you HQ3 one of these you're set for a month.
Silver Ingot+3: Difficult. Silver ore->silver nugget->silver ingot. Chance of HQ3 of a 500+ ingot synth: 15%? 10%? less? Less.

Jade Crook+3: 10 million gil.
Thermal Alembic+3: A full set of every faction gear is a fair price.

There's hard to make, and there's why are we spending the effort of a relic weapon on this **** again?

[Peregrine]

Basically, if you go balls to the walls hardcore, you should HQ SOMEHOW.

Essentially, yes. A goldsmith without a miner should not be, and should not expect to be, competitive with one who is either in cahoots with a miner or a smith who IS a miner. A smith who prepares for success should not have so many of their materials degraded to poorer quality to the point where it doesn't functionally matter.

Currently (and I'm making this up, but I think the proportions are appropriate): Time it takes a smith to +3 an Iron ingot without +3 iron ore: 1 hour 20 minutes. Time it takes a smith to +3 an Iron ingot with +3 iron ore: 1 hour.

That's not acceptable.

Instead of leaving iron ingot+3's up to a lottery of a bunch of random smiths trying to get lucky, design them to be the property of the smiths who deserve them because of true effort. Not mere time and mat spam.