I like this idea, if only because I'd love to see a return of the rare/ex class-specific crafting gear. But would it come with the same limitations (daily item change/set amount you can trade in for credit) it had in XI? And even if not, once the rewards have been gained, there would be little point to continuing to use this system - unless there were some type of consumable reward also available, like the autograph crystals - though the only time I used one of those was to try to sign a cheese sandwich. :P But others might find them useful.

I think I like the you break it-you bought it sorta thing with gear becoming untradable once it's been damaged the first time. It was also suggested in the thread the OP is quoting. The gear could still be vendor-able though, and perhaps to make up for some of the lost gil for the customer, a guild shop could pay more for the item if its of their trade.

That would also benefit crafters churning out items when they grind, if they aren't of the mind to use their retainers, they could get at least a better price from the merchants in the guild they are grinding for.

But, even with this problem, I still find it a little hard to find the exact gear I want. Likely cause I'm not in the 40-50 range yet. I imagine its even more difficult for folks who are just starting out to find decent gear - especially in the color they want.