Request: Crafting From Retainers

[_Mandra_]

i think it's due to the way the game constantly updates and keeps track of inventory. constantly accessing a retainers inventory by keeping those kinds of inventory connections open and having multiple people doing that would increase server load and would probably highly likely crash the server.

I don't really understand why there would be constant "open connections", the inventory is only updated when you add to it, remove from it, sort it, and...that's it really. When you perform the action "check the number of items in all inventories", once the request is done it's done, there's nothing "left open", because those interactions are (supposed to be) event-based.

As a game developer myself, I don't understand why this wasn't implemented from the beginning since half the job is already done (and yes GW2 has it and it's awesome QoL)

I'd totally pay for that I don't care I NEED it now!

[Callinon]

I don't really understand why there would be constant "open connections", the inventory is only updated when you add to it, remove from it, sort it, and...that's it really. When you perform the action "check the number of items in all inventories", once the request is done it's done, there's nothing "left open", because those interactions are (supposed to be) event-based.

You'd think so (because that's how a normal person would design it) but no. We know from SE's previous communications that all inventory data is updated and written every 15 seconds with the auto save tick regardless of whether anything about it changed. Now I don't know exactly how their database is structured, but I promise you it makes no sense.

It should be a simple enough matter to load and edit retainer inventory during crafting. But given what SE has done lately, I'd expect there to be "technical issues" with doing it that magically disappear if you pay more for your subscription.

[Tridus]

You'd think so (because that's how a normal person would design it) but no. We know from SE's previous communications that all inventory data is updated and written every 15 seconds with the auto save tick regardless of whether anything about it changed. Now I don't know exactly how their database is structured, but I promise you it makes no sense.

Yup. It was a monumentally poor design decision in 1.0 that we've been stuck with ever since. Crafting actually locks your state while you're doing it. So, no retainer access, no accepting invites, no rearranging items in your inventory, no nothing. That's all due to the initial mistake of not using an event model for state.

Technical debt like that is hard to fix after so long. Important, but hard. I'm not sure they have the will to actually do it at this point given how many things it could affect and how it could caused reduced stability initially (even if it'd pay off massively in the long run).

It should be a simple enough matter to load and edit retainer inventory during crafting. But given what SE has done lately, I'd expect there to be "technical issues" with doing it that magically disappear if you pay more for your subscription.

Or they'll just put crafting itself into the phone app, which doesn't carry the same technical debt and would likely be easier. Plus then they can charge $2/crafted item for it.