The crafting system needs breakpoints between (at least one) tier(s). The current system requires most professions to farm absolutely astronomical amounts of tier 1 resources in order to level the profession and make level appropriate gear. To get any meaningful progress past level 100 in weaponsmithing for example requires thousands of iron ore.
This pyramid approach to resource requirements for crafting is resulting is some pretty tedious gameplay and is causing low level players to be forced out of the market. You see high level players farming out low level zones for mats, meaning they can’t play in the level appropriate zones they want to play in, and low level players are left with extremely few resources that are appropriate for them.
The requirement for t1 resources throughout the game is also leading to astronomical prices, making the resources essentially unaffordable at the quantities needed, which in turn forces you to farm your own t1 resources in the hundreds of thousands.
A breakpoint at tier(s) 3 (and beyond) would resolve these issues. Alternatively you could drop lower tier resources from high tier nodes or simply reduce to low tier resource requirements for high tier crafts.
Leaving Starmetal behind because you don’t have the iron to use it feels pretty bad.
Pretty much have to agree.
Even leather is a pain beacuse high level animals o longer drop rawhide but only higher tier leather, so to actually process for example thick hide, you have to give back and farm low lvl animals.
I understand, that this is done to keep low level zones relevant later in, but I think the ratios are too out of whack.
The current ratios have ensured that demand vastly outstrips supply. As a result, tier 1 resources are so expensive they are essentially unaffordable in the required quantities so there is no market…
My guild and I were just talking about this tonight! Tiers 1 and 2 = iron; Tier 3 = iron + additives to get steel (just like it works now). However, Tier 4 should = JUST starmetal; and Tier 5 = starmetal + orichalcum. That’s how it should work with a break between Tiers 3 and 4.
My biggest frustration is that by the time I can actually craft a Tier 3 or 4 set for myself, my character is 10 levels higher than what I can craft (Tier 3 is early 20s, Tier 4 is early 40s to equip). I was outgrowing my gear, so I just bought an entire level-appropriate set for a few hundred gold. It’s aggravating that I could have just saved myself dozens of hours of gathering, refining, and crafting, along with thousands of gold paid in taxes alone, not to mention tens of thousands of gold had I just sold all of the mats on the auction house instead.
As you can see from the attachment, I’ve put in some serious time gathering, refining, and crafting. My character’s 52 and I’m several hundred pairs of gauntlets away from being able to craft anything for me now at this level. By the time I gather all and refine all the mats for that, I’ll be level cap and then the real grind of 150-200 in a craft begins.
While i’ think it’s a good thing using lower ressources in higher crafts, this is way too much. End game ressources, should cost more than iron, as it is now, it’s cheeper to make charcoal out of wyrdwood than green wood. Doesn’t need to be a rocket scientist to understand something’s wrong. Same situation with starmetal and iron.
