New 70 crafter

[Frizze]

You can check the marketboard in game to see what food is available and how much of a stat boost that can get you. As far as i know there are only 3 types of tea(with nq and hq versions), easy enough to see those numbers. I imagine you know whether or not FC buffs are an option for you, and in which tiers if yes. Look at your full set of gear, add those bonuses in and see where you stand. My guess is that you wind up short. However, you might not need a full-set upgrade(i dont have the stats in front of me). When you see how short you are, look at the stats on the newest crafting gear and you can do the math on which pieces will get you over the hump.

And while i can understand not wanting to meld gear, if you already have all your master books then materia is one of the best uses for red scrips. A weeks worth of custom deliveries is typically more then 10 materia grade V worth of scrips. Even just melding the base-slots can get you further then you might think. And keep in mind, they added materia recovery so you can take them back off your gear when youre ready to upgrade(100% chance grade 1-4, 80% grade 5, 40% grade 6). Considering how much materia is just thrown at you by end-game, its really not as painful to get into as you might think.