Is crafting really worth it?

[BaconMage]

Now selling in the markets aside, for all the endless hours of running around, harvesting, and crafting is it really worth our time to make gear? Can you literally make better gear than you will get through adventuring or dungeons, especially at endgame?

[tuseroni]

yes and no. by crafting you can make high quality forms of the item which maxes out the stats on the item (so if it had +1 int but could be increased to +2 the HQ will be +2...this all has to do with maximum stat allowances on items...which sucks) when you get to a high enough level you can meld materia which is ok, again you can only take it to it's max stat so an HQ which has a bonus on int won't take an int materia but you can still increase stats it doesn't normally increase like giving a bonus to vit on mage gear to get some more HP or a bonus to piety on tank gear to give more mp for flash, or just increasing spell speed, skill speed, or determination.

crafting exists in an odd state, if it's really useful dungeon runners will complain because they don't want to do it but they need to to do [some useful thing crafting does] so the game goes out of it's way to make this less important and will likely get less and less important as time goes on.

[BaconMage]

But in the end what's better, HQ crafted gear or dungeon run gear at endgame?

[Evandis]

You both are too narrow-sighted. Just like in FFXI, the crafters will benefit the most in the end.

[Laume]

But in the end what's better, HQ crafted gear or dungeon run gear at endgame?

Potentially, crafted gear. Due to forbidden melding and grade 4 materias. Granted, these can be harder to do than some dungeon runs. But, potentially, crafted gear.

[NoctisCaelus]

Think of having Classes/Jobs as High School. And Crafting as College. After you graduate from College, you have more opportunities to make money. Unless you're lazy or horrible at your job.

[Kahlane]

Plus, crafting and harvesting are extremely addictive. Proceed with caution.