Crafting in General - OMG Fix It

[Jinko]

Materia... Next you will learn in the storyline that the Garlian Empire is backed by ShinRa Co.

That would be so funny and awesome.

[Cleric]

I agree, please keep the name "Materia"...very awesome.

[Valen]

Dear SE,

I am very glad to hear the words "Materia System". I think that, if done right, this can add a whole new dimension to the game. Very glad as well that everyone here seems to be enjoying the idea also.

I hope you guys can do a materia system for FFXIV as awesome as the one found in FFVII (albeit I am sure it will be fundamentally different than that one, given the fact that FFVII character abilities were all defined by materia, whereas in FFXIV we have classes/jobs).

I strongly suggest that you guys look into the possibility of "leveling materia" (as we did on FFVII). I have no love for grinding, don't get me wrong (although it is very fun sometimes), but the idea of having materia that has different levels and different effects for each level (even if it is just extra bonuses) is compelling and engaging. It would give everyone a renewed sense of purpose, seeking new and rare materia, leveling them, watching them reach MASTER status and then having them multiply (if I remember well, once a materia reached MASTER level in FFVII it "reproduced" and gave off a new level 1 materia of the same type). Maybe MASTER materia would give access to some nice new skills and enhancements, something to truly look forward to.

Being able to customize weapons and armor with materia that fits the situation adds a nice strategic dimension to game, one that is much needed as things are. Please make materia somehow swappable after it is added to the weapon/armor, that way we can build more strategies around the system. Also, having to buy the same weapon and other materia again just because I decided the materia combination I put there isn't what I want would be awful (same would happen when you upgrade weapon: you would lose all the materia that is "glued" to the previous weapon). Swapping and customizing materia on equipment (even if that requires a crafter) is a must for the system to be enjoyable.

With the leveling of materia we would also have to think about finding room in weapon/armor slots for the materia we want to work upon, even if it is not ideal in the combat situation. Maybe some will say "I don't want to spend endless nights grinding AP for 20.000 different materia", but I remember clearly the sense of accomplishment I had in FFVII when I my first materia reached MASTER level (of course it was a Cure materia hehe). I would very much like to feel that excitement again, to look forward to it. Hopefully others will feel the same way.

In closing, thank you for the wonderful news about the Materia System. I hope you guys can perfect the system soon and bring it to Eorzea!

Yours sincerely,
Valen

[Aldarin]

I read this email and went, OMG, YES!!!!!

honestly the issues being addressed will make the game much more interesting and user friendly.

I also like the idea of having different levels of "Materia" as well as the highest level add some sort of unique ability or trait, allowing even more distinction between characters.

[Reika]

It is all good and all, but I hope all that also includes *Fixing success rates and making crafting stats matter more*. Bold and rapid synth still have crappy success rates compared to standard, for no apparent reason either. So we get this materia to create, but blow it up at random.

[Lavinia]

I Kinda liked what Valen said but not exactly like leveling the materia.
Why no make stuff like if you add this stone/materia to the crafting process you get certain aditional stat
But make it something like at start you can only add base materia/stone then you can add a more advanced materia afterwards /this can add different status/ then another until you reach a Master/Elite/S Rank whatever you want to call it

So we can have different gear witch varying levels of quality/status/abilities(ie double attack)
This way people can think twice about using gems also since you dont want to spend all the nice stuff on basic gear you will toss after a few days once you need new gear.

Or you can make long lasting personalized gear to match each player play style

[Zaireeka2025]

Yes... YES!! This all sounds great. Please call it the Materia System... calling it anything else will only perpetuate a non-Final Fantasy feel (and we all know how that feels like).

To top it off, I totally asked for something like this just a few weeks ago in a post about adding slots to the gear itself for (and I used this term) MATERIA and capes (it was a pro-capes thread):

Great ideas guys! How about if certain gear came with slots where capes and "materia-like" boosts could be equipped. This would add an extra layer of customization to gear stats whilst maintaining that specific flavor to each class/job's uniqueness. This would be available for mid-high levels and would be something more for higher ranked players to show-off a bit. I also love the idea about propping hoods up or down in the same way we hide headgear, giving 2 looks with one accessory.

I'm drooling at the image of my cape flowing while riding on my chocobo into the sunset in full plate armor (choco in plate too!)

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...ut-capes/page3

I must have ESPN or something.

[Biggs]

I really like the materia name, who doesn't? But lets be honest here, if you're gonna throw around a name like that, you had best be prepared to back it up or risk cheapening your image. I don't mean this in a negative way, i love these ideas, but I don't want to see what many of us see as the staple system in the FF brand cheapened to be used as parlor tricks for a system that isn't implemented well. Don't just boost 1 or 2 points of dex or add plus 1 to evasion, give us something inspiring. When you call a system materia, it conjures up images of me infusing my breastplates with skills like permenant protect and shockspikes. Making my boots randomly have the chance to activate featherfoot at no stamina cost to me each time I am attacked would be the business. Lets see some skill and magic infusion! How about making it so I can pick out materia that would allow me to make my own theme armor. Maybe I want to make hands, feet, and chest pieces all boost me with evasion and speed style defenses. Or a mage set that protects me from physical attacks. The skys the limit, and I have complete faith in your teams abilities Yoshi, just be remember whats in a name sometimes drives up expectation.

[Shinra]

materia system... very very nice name...
i also hope to see something such as socketing materia in ff7...
just that it sounds like it will goes well with the new crafting system name...

[Zaireeka2025]

Well said Biggs! NO on just stat boosts. YES on skill boosts/upgrades/etc. Perhaps even a super boost when a complete set of gear meets specific Materia combinations to pump out a major skill bonus like Biggs mentioned in his list of superb ideas, i.e. If certain materia split up into family types that, if equipped in certain combinations, could produce very interesting effects on certain skills and stats for various classes/roles.