What bothers you most about the current synthesis system?

[Malakhim]

I'd like to think myself an avid fisherman, and while fishing hardly had any real benefit in my time in FFXI(hardly made money, no recipes for fish or what have you), the fact that it had its own unique minigame made it feel active and fun(but mostly just active). If SE doesn't want to touch crafting(which they should as that's beyond doldrums), then they should at least spice up the gathering classes.

As it is now, gathering is extremely slow, obtuse, and far, FAR too menu-based.

[Kinseykinz]

I think crafting is slowly being changed in the right direction for the game. This being said, there will ALWAYS be people who don't like crafting. That's okay. There are other ways to make money in game. I mean for those of you complaining about crafting, unless the reason for the complaints are because you bought the game hoping to be the Greatest Weaver on your server, if crafting isn't your thing...no worries just do something else. You can make just as much gil (if not more) with a battle class or DOH. Afterall, there are crafters who think exping/spiritbonding is tedious.

Really all they need to do is shave a little time off each basic synth. Meaning if it currently takes a player on ave 7 turns to complete a standard level 35 synth as a level 35 crafter, maybe shave it down to 4 or 5 turns per synth.

Mini-games, while I get how they sound like a good idea, will just add more unneeded layers to the already long system. Most people who support the mini game thing believe that solving puzzles will make it more fun. Please think about it...puzzles for EVERY synth from rank 1-50...that's a lot of puzzles, even if the exp is tripled, it will still take forever. Also, if they make crafting more complex, it'll make socializing while crafting much more difficult. I enjoy being able to talk with friends and ls mates while crafting, I think making the process much more active than it currently is, will cut off your ability to chat easily.
-I think the puzzle crowd mostly just wants it to 'feel like I'm doing something for a reason.' There are other ways they can do this, some are even already in the plans/works (Hamlets/Player Housing etc). I think if crafting had ALOT more quests and/or allow for apprentice-ship quest via your guild it'd already feel more productive.
-As to the rest, they seem to be tweaking the current system and making it more transparent. So now the buttons you push and the choices you make while synthing DO have a visable impact on the gameplay/crafting.

Lastly, I think people get frustrated with crafting exp gains because there really isn't a way to PL through them. Everyone is now use to seeing CRAZY (and in my opinion WAY to high/fast) exp gains in their battle classes that they expect to see the same in crafting. Sorry but crafting just doesn't get that kind of crazy exp.

PS: Working in a factory or knitting a shirt in rl is also repetitive and tedious, some people just find zen/solace in that repetitiveness....others would rather kill themselves.

[Forlorn]

What bothers me is a lack of content for DoH. There is literally no reason to level a DoH class, as you can simply purchase any of the goods a DoH can make, and have someone who's levelled a DoH repair and affix materia to your gear.

I feel that someone who has levelled a DoH should have an advantage over someone who hasn't, just like how any DoW/DoM gives an advantage. Maybe DoH could grant traits that are usable on battle classes, or perhaps they could introduce untradeable crafted equipment.

As Yoshida said a while back, when you think of an adventurer, you think of someone going out and fighting monsters, and so in a way it does make sense that the battle classes should be the "main" classes with the other classes supporting it. But DoL/DoH should actually support the battle classes, instead of how it currently is where you really don't miss out on anything by ignoring them.

I'm sure mentioning WoW is a bad thing but they do have a decent feature that you reminded me. When you leveling a profession, or in FFXIV's case a DoH/DoL you get a small benefit for your character as a whole. For example, if you leveling up Skinning WoW your character gets a small increase to critical hit chance. While the perks are not game breaking, it is still a nice little benefit from taking the time to level what is usually the most tedious part of any MMO, crafts/professions. SE could take a page from their book and put a little twist on it somehow, just a thought.

[HiirNoivl]

Kinseykinz is right.

Mini-games and other suggestions are coming about because outside of making gil, there's no real point to crafting. So we look to way to entertain ourselves through the mostly pointless drudgery.

Right now I make it a point to craft to eat up the excess mats that won't sell and sell the results. And I'm r40 on all my crafts except LTW (because LTW doesn't give mats from gathering classes)

But other than giving my inventory breathing room, why craft? Now if here were more quests and lore for crafting... I don't think I would complain so much. XD

[yialee]

i hate alot thing about this game being the fact that everything is hand to us like we are little kid.
yes even craft, you do leves get free exp, shard, materia, and gil to do it and out that exp is a joke in this game.
they might as well give everyone rank 50 job for everything at start of first day.

[Raagnar]

The people who hate the current craft system would probably hate any craft system unless it was 1 button press to make amazing gear. To each their own, you dont have to enjoy crafting, but dont ruin it for those that like it. I have seen people who say they enjoy it talked down to and even called stupid because they like something some of you consider boring. Running the same dungeon 100 times for a piece of gear is boring to me, but I have no problem with players who do it.

[TheVedis]

The people who hate the current craft system would probably hate any craft system unless it was 1 button press to make amazing gear. To each their own, you dont have to enjoy crafting, but dont ruin it for those that like it. I have seen people who say they enjoy it talked down to and even called stupid because they like something some of you consider boring. Running the same dungeon 100 times for a piece of gear is boring to me, but I have no problem with players who do it.

amazing, someone actualy agrees with me on this!

[Vaen]

First off, let it be known to all the angry crafting-haters; crafting got some HUGE improvements in 1.21. The exp is more than doubled if you play it right, even without rested exp, all the different skills are actually useful, and it takes strategy, carefulness, and experience with the flow of the system to maximize your quality and exp while not breaking your synth.

It's much less boring than it was before, it makes a lot more sense, and it's a lot more rewarding to those who can do it skillfully.

HOWEVER, I would agree with you that it's still somewhat boring. I would want to "gouge my eyes out" too if I did nothing but craft. But that's where you're doing it wrong by doing nothing else while you craft.

You see, the Big Secret to crafting is to watch stuff on Netflix or Youtube or Animeseason, listen to a podcast or audiobook or music, find SOME other way to entertain yourself WHILE you're doing your synths. It makes it so much more bearable and fun.

I know, it's not exactly an.. "orthodox" solution, but it works well and I rather like it. It allows me to tune in to other interesting, entertaining things while still not falling behind in FFXIV, which tends to consume so much of my time.

I'd be cautiously interested in synthing turning into a Bejeweled-like minigame, but I think that could get even more tedious over time, especially if I have to give it my full attention.

p.s. NEVER make synthing into a "sliding-tile" puzzle. I hate those damn things in Professor Layton so @&$#ing much



p.p.s.: I voted they should make more content for synthing and gathering; stuff like the group crafting a giant cake and hamlet defense synthing! And more lore and cutscene-quests. That would be great. Also, I totally agree that there should be much less running around for synthing leves. Make the ALL the same-level leves doable in the same places... or give us battleleve-like one-time teleports to our craft leve destination.

[HiirNoivl]

lol Or I could just log out and do something else besides craft.

I play FFXIV to entertain myself. If I had to entertain myself while I'm playing FFXIV, something is wrong.

If I hate crafting, something is wrong. CRAFTING IS CURRENTLY ONE BUTTON PRESS. I don't want it to be one button press. Let's make it interesting or at least more rewarding in the terms of content.

More EXP is not more interesting. Spam Careful is not more interesting than spam standard.

[Vaen]

lol Or I could just log out and do something else besides craft.

I play FFXIV to entertain myself. If I had to entertain myself while I'm playing FFXIV, something is wrong.

If I hate crafting, something is wrong. CRAFTING IS CURRENTLY ONE BUTTON PRESS. I don't want it to be one button press. Let's make it interesting or at least more rewarding in the terms of content.

More EXP is not more interesting. Spam Careful is not more interesting than spam standard.

But it's not just "Spam Careful." Standard, Rapid, and Careful are all useful now and all three can be used to maximize your quality if you use them strategically with the orb colors and crafting skills like Fulfillment. It IS more interesting now than it was before, but I do agree with you that it could (and hopefully will be) more interesting than this in the future.

I also really agree with you that it'd be much better if they actually let us look at the materials and items instead of a color orb.