Ironworks Fishing Rod

[liev]

So, 2-4 does not equal one. That is the end of that.

33x3 = 99 which is still less than 104? That's three Lucis rods for less fish than Ironworks.

The fact remains that once got, the ironworks can be re-purchases ad nauseum for less than 4800gil each if ever needed.

The fact remains that you still have to catch 104 more fish to get the Ironworks Rod in the first place. And unless you're getting rods for four retainers, Lucis is less work and better in terms of stats anyway.

Fisher is the only gathering class to get a unique i80 main hand as a reward, no others did. Fisher, like all other gathering classes, have to upgrade their equipment through gil apart from their main hand. This makes the ironworks rod unique, and made it a very good reward from when it was introduced until patch 2.5. It is still highly relevant since it can eb given to retainers. MMO's work by upgrading and outdating previous equipment, fisher should not be an exception to this rule.

Handing out better gear for less work is apparently how MMOs work too?

I have never pretended that the first 3 stages only apply to lucis, you however seem to have down played all the effort into getting a lucis. Again, things become outdated in an MMO, no one should expect that fisher should be the only class to be exempt from this.

All of the effort that went into getting a Lucis is literally all of the same effort that went into getting Ironworks with the exception of the clams.

Let's make a road map.
20 Silver Sovereigns --> 3 Olgoi-Khorkoi --> Okay now you can catch 30 HQ clams, open every game day for 3 hours ET OR you can catch 104 more unique fish with time, weather, weather transition, and mooches.

That last one? That's Lucis vs. Ironworks. The only thing I've said is that Lucis is easier to get. Now, hopefully you can understand that 30 HQ clams is easier than 104 more unique fish with time, weather, weather transition, and mooches. I didn't downplay the process of getting a Lucis because it's the exact same process as getting an Ironworks Rod until the last part. I've said that Ironworks Rod is harder to get meaning that catching 30 HQ claims is literally nothing compared to 104 unique fish. This isn't a hard concept.

MMOs work through progression. You get the current best thing, and then you use that current best thing to work toward the new best thing.
Now, considering that you can catch everything you need to get a Lucis with a Forager's Rod and melded AF, Ironworks becomes the ultimate waste of time. It's not a glamour item (see: Luminary). And even if you want to stick to your "but retainers!" argument, that's pretty pathetic for the effort required.

Fisher was the ONLY gatherer class to get a special and unique upgrade to its main hand. This is a fact. Offhands on miner and botanist are, like all other gathering equipment, upgraded by making them or purchasing them. the ironworks rod is a unique achievement reward granted to fishers. There is no other equivalent with the other gathering classes.

We're not going to agree here. An upgrade is an upgrade. The Ironworks Rod was released alongside all of the Forager's upgrades. Giving fisher a new rod slightly better than Supra is the equivalent of giving miner and botanist a new offhand to go with their Supra. That Fisher had to actually work, and work hard, for the upgrade is just a testament to the fact that the rod should've at least had a unique appearance if its use was going to be limited to a single major patch. Supra lasted two patches and was necessary to progress to the Lucis. Ironworks, again, much harder to get than Lucis, is just left floating useless for any purpose other than "retainers!"

Edit 2/06
The crossed out argument is a red herring and not relevant to the argument presented in the OP.

I for one am grateful to have had the ironworks rod when it was relevant to me, but understand that 1) it was a unique reward to fisher that no other gathering class got an equivalent of and 2) that it would become outdated.

You got the Ironworks rod less than a month ago. You enjoyed it for so long. You had Lucis by at least week two. Very hard to get, obviously.