What bothers you most about the current synthesis system?

[Biggs]

Slow leveling. Not so bad now since patch. But should be quicker still.

Traveling camp to camp for levequest gets old. Should make it fixed camps
per level of leve. just like DOW/DOM/DOL. Atleast that way you don't have to
spend all your anima or and hour travel time between going to all camps.

Either that or make it so you can go to the npc's for the leve you do for them. That way you could sit at drybone or wherever and just keep getting the leves there. I think the core of crafting in this game is there but the mechanics weren't done that well. The crafting game needs to be skill based and require effort. Yet that effort needs to be rewarded accordingly. This last patch really made crafting more bearable for me, but its still not fun yet. It is a tough topic to tackle, because to me, it is supposed to be a little like work. I mean, its emulating real life work! But there needs to be a rewarding feeling that comes from working hard, and risk envolved for those that are willing to risk more to gain more. Lets all keep this in perspective though, I haven't exactly played a TON of mmo's where the crafting was a lot of fun.

[TheVedis]

. Lets all keep this in perspective though, I haven't exactly played a TON of mmo's where the crafting was a lot of fun.

this right here is the main point in most stuff people bring up here

most if not all other mmos, for the most part, are point and click auto crafting, you dont really do anything

14 did something unique in giving it its own job


so anyone comparing it to the fun of other games is really just saying they want an auto crafting system usualy cuz they dont like spending actual time doing it

[Biggs]

this right here is the main point in most stuff people bring up here

most if not all other mmos, for the most part, are point and click auto crafting, you dont really do anything

14 did something unique in giving it its own job


so anyone comparing it to the fun of other games is really just saying they want an auto crafting system usualy cuz they dont like spending actual time doing it

Yeah, I definitly don't want auto-craft. That isn't a system then, its just a feature. I would be good with them doing away with the time bar while crafting and adding some better animations besides throwing my arms out while working on a hovering orb that changes color.

Part of the other problem with it of course is the total lack of economy in the game right now due to low population numbers on certain servers and the generally high level of the population. If items were selling like crazy and there was gil to be had and real competition, I think that would at least give the current system more purpose.

[TheVedis]

Yeah, I definitly don't want auto-craft. That isn't a system then, its just a feature. I would be good with them doing away with the time bar while crafting and adding some better animations besides throwing my arms out while working on a hovering orb that changes color.

Part of the other problem with it of course is the total lack of economy in the game right now due to low population numbers on certain servers and the generally high level of the population. If items were selling like crazy and there was gil to be had and real competition, I think that would at least give the current system more purpose.

i dont know about the timers
considering its so long now the only way itl run down is if you walk away from your computer

[Sephrick]

this right here is the main point in most stuff people bring up here

most if not all other mmos, for the most part, are point and click auto crafting, you dont really do anything

14 did something unique in giving it its own job


so anyone comparing it to the fun of other games is really just saying they want an auto crafting system usualy cuz they dont like spending actual time doing it

This goes back to the whole XI nostalgia issue some people here seem to have.

Spending time does not equate challenge/gameplay/content.

Like in XI, just because someone spent three hours waiting for Leaping Lizzy to spawn doesn't mean they were playing the game, they were merely waiting to play the game which was essentially a no-challange battle to be allowed to roll invisible loot dice.

Same deal with XIV crafting. All it takes is time, but just because you're putting in time doesn't mean you're actually playing anything.

The best example is the turbo controller issue. People on these forums seem to think 1.21 made things all fine and dandy. That because abilities are permanently available that all of a sudden it's an in-depth system requiring skill and know how.

But the fact remains that when it comes to crafting for exp, a piece of scotch tape can perform just as well as any player. Just that that scotch tape now needs to be changed every hour or so.

They definitely made things more interesting for HQ crafting. But that's not where most people are coming from. Average players are looking at a game where to be "good" you need gear with multiple melds, which generally means leveling multiple crafts and two -- if not all three -- DoLs.

The economy currently is a raw materials market. As someone who is leveling CRP and WVR, I can attest to the insane prices of materials. On Rabanastre it can cost me upwards of 10-20k per synth depending on the route I take.

I think those who want "one-touch crafting" are a very small minority. Most people I've talked to seem to have the same opinion. that the current system is fine, it's just leveling that sucks. But no one wants leveling to be any "easier," just cheaper. Which I feel is a fair request.

Which I again offer a simple, two-fold solution: Make static access to appropriate level leves and allow melding to be a one-class-does-all endeavor. Everyone wins, now one has to feel cheated.

[Emphrygian]

The economy currently is a raw materials market. As someone who is leveling CRP and WVR, I can attest to the insane prices of materials. On Rabanastre it can cost me upwards of 10-20k per synth depending on the route I take.

[snip]

Which I again offer a simple, two-fold solution: Make static access to appropriate level leves and allow melding to be a one-class-does-all endeavor. Everyone wins, now one has to feel cheated.

While I agree that costs like that for a single synth are a bit insane, I feel like I must also play the devil's advocate and point out that there is an option: level the appropriate DoL classes. As the current economy is, as you say, lopsided towards the raw materials this seems like a win-win situation. You get the materials you need and you can sell any surplus you get on the wards, which in turn can help lower the prices for materials overall (if more people do the same). I realize that you didn't really request lower material requirements for synths (or higher EXP gains per synth), but I still think this needed to be said.

That said, I do agree that leves should be static as I'm constantly annoyed by not finding the appropriate ones.

[Emphrygian]

this right here is the main point in most stuff people bring up here

most if not all other mmos, for the most part, are point and click auto crafting, you dont really do anything

14 did something unique in giving it its own job


so anyone comparing it to the fun of other games is really just saying they want an auto crafting system usualy cuz they dont like spending actual time doing it

I must say this is exactly why I enjoy the crafting in XIV. Yes, it can get tedious, but it sure gives me a much higher sense of accomplishment when I actually level a craft when compared to clicking a recipe, have my companion do it and wait for the RNG outcome. That's alot less fun.

[rant]
This is one of the many reasons I much prefer FFXIV to "that other recent MMO with a big brand license". Crafting there is mostly useless (apart from crafting consumables, but instead of buffing the other crafts, this has been nerfed several times, so it's getting there too) and the RNG of the Reverse Engineering system is astonishingly stupid. It all feels ill-conceived and very disconnected from the rest of the game.
[/rant]