Specialist again? Really?

[Niroken]

I see people say this a lot, but it's just not always true. Especially not in mmo style games were the developers must strive to balance there game so that everyone has a fun and fair experience. Sometimes they have to limit what some players can do, or can achieve, to keep the game competitive. Sometimes, like in combat, you can still allow your player base to learn all the skills, but not use them all at the same time. So yeah, you know everything, but you can't tank/dps/heal all at the same time, you pick a role.

Battle classes and Crafting/Gathering classes are entirely different worlds. I don't really want to go into lengthy detail on how combat classes have easier time gearing, that a person with multiple jobs are more valuable then a person with a single job in statics and Cleric Stance/Tank Stance. Having to party to run content in battle classes is quite different then side content like crafting.

This balances the people with a ton of free time, they get the advantage of being able to play any role, but still includes the people who can only level one. Crafting doesn't work that way, and being able too do it all, isn't an advantage, it's an win button. If you want to compete with your follow crafters, you need to do what they did, learn everything, or else you simply can't. And there's no way to fix that without limiting the options. At least, none i can think of. What would you do i wonder?

The reason that you were required to level every craft (or almost every craft) to 50 is because of cross class skills, if the speciality system was done right the skills granted with that system would be on par with the 50 cross class skills but currently they are not. If it did a WVR speciality should have the same competition as an Omnicrafter WVR, the advantage with omnicrafter WVR though is he can farm and craft materials like leather or gems that a specialist WVR can't make by himself. If a Omni WVR wants to compete with specialists in their specialty crafting recipes they will have to become specialtists as well. This would mean that the general materials are cheaper and plentiful while the advanced crafts are competitive.

If I were to change the system, i170 left and right side pieces would be a single set across classes while i180 would be more like the AF gear but they would have to be on par with max melded i170 gear. Specialist skills would be reworked to be as valuable as cross class skills, the soul of crafter would skill have it's bonus stats. New recipes would be specialist only until new recipes are added in a next patch, within reason (some housing items and glamour can remain specialist allowing their value to remain). Honestly imo the biggest drawback to this system is the gear requirement for multiple classes, the i60 crafting gear was a blessing for it's time.

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