Wow, People are so negative. I have nothing against gathering. In fact I love it and one of my highest jobs was BOT. The point is here the Dev team is trying to appeal to as many people as possible. Not all of which like gathering. So while all the gatherers are out shopping trees and picking rocks, those people that would rather kill mobs and do quests can send their NPC out and do it for them. In the end it is your choice what you want to do. SE is just giving us as many choices as possible to make the game that much more enjoyable for everyone. Honestly I loved the Alpha gathering and hope not much changes about it. Keep up the great work SE you're on the right track(chocobo track, hint hint ).