How many of us can be bothered with the endgame crafting

[Alahra]

I don't quite remember it that way. I remember crafted 50 being 30 to 50 iLevels below reward stuff and all the tomestones coming from the same places, making crafted gear outside crafting an objective you had to go out of your way to do and with lesser gear.

You remember entirely incorrectly, then. In 2.0, Tomestone gear came in i70 (Philosophy) and i90 (Mythology). Raid gear was i90. Crafted gear was i70 (twenty levels below). In 2.2, Tomestone gear was i90 and i100 (upgradable to i110), raid gear was i110, and crafted gear was i90 (twenty levels below). In 2.4, tomestone gear was i110 and i120 (upgradable to i130), raid gear was i130, and crafted gear was i110 (again, twenty levels below).

At every point in the 2.0 patch cycle, the crafted alternatives to the lower-end tomestone gear was always superior; with melds, that gear was effectively about 10 item levels higher on average. In 2.4, the crafted gear had such well-itemized stats that it was as good as i130 for a handful of pieces. The gear was always relevant and desired, though locked behind a somewhat arduous grind.

Now, the crafted gear is 30 item levels below the i210 raid gear/best upgraded tomestone gear, and incredibly more difficult to procure than the low-end tomestone gear, heavily devaluing it.

[Sibyll]

Now, the crafted gear is 30 item levels below the i210 raid gear/best upgraded tomestone gear, and incredibly more difficult to procure than the low-end tomestone gear, heavily devaluing it.

It doesn't help that you'd need a decent supply of tier V materia to get an appreciable amount of stats out of the gear pieces, which we currently do not have a cost efficient way of acquiring.

The thing I don't get is the convoluted design. They could've just made the crafting mats (puri coke, dryad sap etc.) cost 2 Red Rowena Gathering Tokens and 1 Red Rowena Crafting Token (3 for HQ) and achieved the same effect without the tedious grind. I mean, you could maybe argue it was designed this way to increase supply of materials from the associated level 60 nodes but I generally find myself harvesting crystals instead of Citrite and Dandelions.

[Irving]

It doesn't help that you'd need a decent supply of tier V materia to get an appreciable amount of stats out of the gear pieces, which we currently do not have a cost efficient way of acquiring.

Speaking of Tier V Materia, has there been any word AT ALL about this? The entirety of getting these pieces of gear and praying to god you get any Tier V from transmutation (or paying a fortune) so you can put the guaranteed slots to use is really horrible.

[Alahra]

It doesn't help that you'd need a decent supply of tier V materia to get an appreciable amount of stats out of the gear pieces, which we currently do not have a cost efficient way of acquiring.

The thing I don't get is the convoluted design. They could've just made the crafting mats (puri coke, dryad sap etc.) cost 2 Red Rowena Gathering Tokens and 1 Red Rowena Crafting Token (3 for HQ) and achieved the same effect without the tedious grind. I mean, you could maybe argue it was designed this way to increase supply of materials from the associated level 60 nodes but I generally find myself harvesting crystals instead of Citrite and Dandelions.

It's convoluted enough that every time I get the crafting itch and think "Maybe I'll give it a try," I look at the requirements to get the mats and shrug and give up again. As a main ALC, I can't even be sure anyone will buy any Grade 2 Dissolvents, which makes it incredibly hard to justify the effort.

[Sibyll]

It's convoluted enough that every time I get the crafting itch and think "Maybe I'll give it a try," I look at the requirements to get the mats and shrug and give up again. As a main ALC, I can't even be sure anyone will buy any Grade 2 Dissolvents, which makes it incredibly hard to justify the effort.

They should've just made the Grade 1/2 Dissolvents a single material, like terminus putty was, then they could've applied it to non-combat classes too. Making 5 different versions of effectively the same thing splits the market up too much. Alchemy is one of my specialists as well and it's the most useless currently because no one will buy the overpriced i180 gear, at least not for a price that makes it worth crafting.

I'd like to craft, but there are so many other things I'd rather do than gather nodes for 5 hrs.

[Alahra]

I'd like to craft, but there are so many other things I'd rather do than gather nodes for 5 hrs.

I may have BTN to 50 but I can't really stand gathering here. It just doesn't appeal to me. I love the crafting system, but with things as they currently are, I can't enjoy it at all. I'm actually playing a lot less these days--I had no idea how much time I used to fill crafting when I was done with Roulettes and the like until HW hit and I had no more satisfying incentives to craft.

[Sibyll]

I may have BTN to 50 but I can't really stand gathering here. It just doesn't appeal to me. I love the crafting system, but with things as they currently are, I can't enjoy it at all. I'm actually playing a lot less these days--I had no idea how much time I used to fill crafting when I was done with Roulettes and the like until HW hit and I had no more satisfying incentives to craft.

It'd be one thing if the Favors were a mini-game that required thought. But it isn't. It's on par with mining shards.

[Ksenia]

It'd be one thing if the Favors were a mini-game that required thought. But it isn't. It's on par with mining shards.

That's the trouble with all the time sinks in this game. They are blatant and obviously aimed at making the game as cumbersome as possible to buy development time. It's why I stay one patch behind them in progression.