Is it worth crafting?

[Adrian74]

Hi again, dear people of the forum!

I have been some days crafting with all the classes and... Getting headaches with the retainers, the items needed, the space of my inventory... And a lot of things more to the point I don't know what to do sometimes because I have everything overloaded with items I need for crafting.

But, what I want to ask is....Is all this mess worthy? I usually obtain much better equipment in the dungeons and easier way than crafting, without so much pain, getting more fun with the FC members and others of the linkshells, etc...

So far the only one that seems to make things you can't obtain in dungeons is the culinarian. (In my opinion the most annoying of all them).

Another question.... Is it really needed or will give you any bonus to complete the crafting log? Because it is usually easier to just use levequests and spam recipes with the items you obtained with the Disciples of the Land (Example: You get 50 noble grapes, you do a lot of them, and the HQ use them in levequest).

It is maybe an annoying question and not easy to reply, but after being crafting a little I just felt like "Eh, wait... Is it worth?"

[Kyoskai]

Depends on what you want out of it and if you have the patience to wait for crafting updates.
Culinary from what I've heard, is about the only good craft.
I've heard from different people that Yoshi P. specifically said crafted gear will never beat dungeon gear.
The crafting log is a to-do list that might give an achievement, pretty good extra EXP for making new things though.

[Shirai]

It depends, if you enjoy doing it, know how to play the market a bit and don't mind having to wait a bit for your gil crafting can be quite profitable.

If you don't enjoy it, don't do it.
As you say yourself, you can make plenty by doing quests, dungeons and treasure hunting and as it stands right now, there's little reason to carry loads of gil at this point in the game.

Culinary from what I've heard, is about the only good craft.

I'd like to debate this, although I can't speak for other server economies at the moment I wouldn't say it's the only good craft.
I am making plenty of gil by diversifying and selling items from different crafts, although I do agree that the finished products market is a very slow one and most profit is to gain from prefabricated materials.
In that regard Culinarian is the most stable craft, even though you have to be careful there too as the culinarian market is getting quite saturated too.

[Adrian74]

Thanks everyone for your replies!... So.

For what I see, crafting is more or less profitable for those who sell their items in the market instead than for your own use, isn't it, N'yankoro-sensei?

In that case I suppose crafting is not for me after all. Maybe something I'd level up with the levequests and for not wasting the items I like to gather with the DoL.I rarely use the market, most of my crafter items that are not useful for me end discarded or sold 15 gil in the closest NPC. Other items because are needed for crafting are taking all the inventory.

I think I'd probably be the one of those that would make money in dungeons instead of selling items.

[Kyoskai]

Forums say most server economies are garbage that barely allow you to break even.
Bottom line is: If you like it, put a ring on it
If not: Wait for things too change. (or don't)
(max everything for street-cred or get shanked in the shower for dropping the soap)

[Shirai]

Thanks everyone for your replies!... So.

For what I see, crafting is more or less profitable for those who sell their items in the market instead than for your own use, isn't it?

It depends on the item and how you do it.
As apart from shards I farm/gather almost all the ingredients, everything I make pretty much turns into profit for me.
It just depends on how fast it sells, sometimes I have to hang on to items for a bit if people just aren't buying at that point or if a couple of morons are starting an undercutting war on that item again.

There are some things I make for personal use though, like food and other situational consumables like STR/VIT potions.
But as the only places right now where I use food is in Coil and on Primals that is only a marginal profit.

In that case I suppose crafting is not for me after all. Maybe something I'd level up with the levequests and for not wasting the items I like to gather with the DoL.I rarely use the market, most of my crafter items that are not useful for me end discarded or sold 15 gil in the closest NPC. Other items because are needed for crafting are taking all the inventory.

I think I'd probably be the one of those that would make money in dungeons instead of selling items.

Toss or sell everything.
Especially when crafting at lower level it is not worth farming or gathering and keeping all the materials as the Guild NPCs sell most, if not, all of the items you need for leveling up to 20 for under 10 gil each.

If you want to take up crafting, even as just another means to waste time I'm happy to give you a few pointers here and there.
(Keep in mind though, I genuinely enjoy crafting, so I am very biased. )

[Adrian74]

Good to know that, N'yankoro-sensei!

Maybe this thread will become a good one with some tips for those who start at crafting... Despite I'm not the typical person that would sell items, I enjoy crafting. Especially after unlocking the item conditions. For example, my combo right now is using inner quiet, then steady hand and...Then try to catch the item in 'good' or 'excellent' condition, so I use hasty touch all the time and if a good condition comes I use basic touch, standard touch if it's excellent for ensuring 100% success. Then I follow with a master's mend and continue like that.... It's kind of awesome trying to obtain a HQ item without HQ ingredients just by 'fighting' against the conditions of the item.

Probably the only bad thing I don't like of crafting is that I have a shitload of items I don't know what to do with... Maybe, as you said, I should just get rid off them, upgrade crafters to level 20 even if paying for some expensive items and then going with my gatherers to obtain more.

Ones small question, assuming that level 20+ most of the items for crafting are taken with DoL (I love gathering, even more if I can do things later with what I gather, or improve gathering and perception with crafted items)... The amount of items is reduced later?

I mean... In higher levels I don't need to hold in the inventory around 40 different items?

Sorry about keep extending this thread, but I like a lot this game, and because that I want to enjoy everything it can gives you (profitable or not) Disciples of the Land and Disciples of the Hand are also an option.

[Peptaru]

-snip-

My name is Tarragon.... and I'm a packrat. I wanted to have everything on hand to craft every item conceivable! ....but.... This is not a very viable option. I found it best to hold onto the key things. Namely, things you cannot buy from a vendor, but must gather (like walnuts). I will also hold things that must be crafted to use in other recipes (like walnut bread for la noscean toast). I just make a lot when I make it so it'll be ready for when I need it. I do the same with the timed resources like darksteel and twinthreads, but to try to hold everything, I think, is folly.

You'll just need to pay attention to what is bothersome for you to obtain, and hold onto that. Everything else is kinda wasting space, I have finally started making some room in my retainers according to this ideology... I think I'm up to 50 free slots now among all sources of storage.... packratting; she's a fickle mistress.

[Shirai]

No problem!

What I did first was get all my DoL jobs to 50, at lower levels they don't benefit crafting very much but they can provide you a decent source of income by themselves and will be very helpful once you reach the later crafting levels.

As for crafting itself:
For 1-15 (or 20) pick up an exp scroll at the local Grand Company, get some cheap crafting food (I recommend getting some Frumenty from a local vendor for 7 gil each) use some of the rested bonus and pick a stackable item to craft like ingots, yarns, etc and spam the crap out of them.
Just constantly repeat the craft, over and over, and if you are able try to get a few touches into boosting the quality, while you won't HQ off the bat every bit in quality will increase the exp you get for finishing the craft. (Do not autocraft! The EXP loss just isn't worth it.)

As I said earlier, most, if not, all ingredients for the lower levels can be bought at the guild suppliers or vendors closeby for very little gil so this can be done fairly cheap.

Once you are done with a craft, sell off all remaining materials you have left and move on to the next.
As for the items you made, look at the marketboards and see if they are worth something you may be able to sell for break even (keep used shards in mind as well!) or even a little profit.
If not, just sell everything back to the npc.
(Tip for selling materials, don't sell at stacks of 99 but rather at little usable chunks, people are willing to pay a little more if it is closer to the amount they really need.)

At level 15 you can start doing Leves.
Why level 15? At level 15 you get all kinds of useful cross class skills which make HQing items a lot easier!
HQ items give +100% exp per turn in, so you get double the exp for one leve.

The following blog made it very easy for me to choose which levequests suited me the best.
http://www.gameskinny.com/27qul/just...pcoming-listed

Oh and lastly, to save yourself the headaches of an insanely cluttered inventory and retainer, level one craft at a time.
Apart from that, the more crafts you have at 50, the more abilities you have on hand to make HQing even easier.

@Tarragon;

Yes, indeed I agree about key ingredients.
This however is only viable after you have certain crafts up and know which items you are making on a regular basis.
For leveling it is more viable to have just the ingredients you need.

[Adrian74]

It has sense, and by now your comment made me think of a good idea, Tarragon.

Right now I just divided my items in two. Crafting items for culinarian (All food, seafood and some reagents), because only culinarian items could take all the inventory. And crafting items for the rest of craters (Because some things are useful for other crafts, for example leather and hard leather, bronze rivets & ingots, etc...)

What I think I'm going to do is just play FFXIV windowed next time and visit all the guild suppliers, make a doc with everything they sell (For knowing where to take it when needed and for avoiding keeping that in inventory). That way whenever I take an item with my gatherers I'll check if appears in the list. (Maybe this is a little more expensive, having to buy in the suppliers... I should also notice the price... Geez)

Extra - Edit (I didn't read N'yankoro-sensei's last post when writing this one)

That's why I'm leveling them more or less at the same time! For using some items and also obtain cross class skills, I'll later see how to combine them and which one use in each case!

A guide with the levecrafts is all what I needed! That way I can know which items I should take with my gatherers for leveling up the gatherers...

Now I only wonder if doing all the recipes at least one is needed or not and... If I can gather okayish with my DoL until level 50 despite not using crafted HQ items with them. If i wouldn't need to complete the crafting log at all then the items of my inventory would be highly reduced to a few just for crafting-spam an item a lot for getting exp. As you said, I try to craft only one item for leveling up. My culinarian, unlike the others, became 22 in.... Few hours, doing maiden carps. (I had around 70 thanks to fisher) So I just made a lot of those, and the HQ were used in the levecrafts.