[Ysharros]

I despise this sort of post, but I've been slowly simmering for a few weeks now and I guess the camel's back just broke. Warning - It's hostile. It's angry. I need to vent. I've kept quiet for weeks because I want to support the game and I want to support crafting. Right now, if you took crafting OUT of the game entirely I'd probably heave a sigh of relief. As it is I can't craft without feeling cheated *and* humiliated by a crafting system that appears to be out to get me, so to speak -- so I won't.

I'm not a weekend crafter; I've crafted in most games that supported it in the last, ugh, almost decade now. I don't expect something for nothing, or to be handed rewards for minimal effort. What I DO expect is something for something, and not just vendor trash. Certainly not vendor trash for weeks on end, after dozens (scores? hundreds?) of work order. The work order system wins - I give up.

In the spirit of providing the info Silius asked for, some details on the WOs I managed to do today before I logged in disgust. (I hadn't crafted in a week, hoping time would heal the irritation. Guess that didn't work out.)



Char : Yvriel (Thestran Human)
Prof : Leatherworker 27
Loc : Fisher's Pen

Nekkid Stats:

PS 228 / Reas 245 / Ing 227 / Fin 242

Refining 270 --- Station 174 / Tools 229 / Utils 245
Finishing (LW 268 / Outf 270) -- Station 172 / Tools 212 / Utils 257

Modified Stats:

PS 247 / Read 245 / Ing 239 / Fin 245

Refining 270 -- Station 244 / Tools 290 / Utils 261
Finishing -- Station 242 / Tools 273 / Utils 273

First off, the stats are as they are because I'm wearing what I could buy, quest or borrow, and ONE piece I got from a work order reward (a +33 tools shirt that's maybe level 15). This char was unlucky enough to start crafting pretty much at the time the reward nerf hit, and I have had maybe 4 items of clothing in the last 15 levels. This is all well and good on live servers where people can buy other people's castoffs, but on Test, it blows. I'm still wearing the level 20 vendor-bought gloves I got at level 11.

Yeah, sure, I could quest for more gear. If I weren't so utterly hacked off with crafting, maybe I would. Right now, I don't even want to think about it. I'm one of the people who grinds because I know there will be goodies in the bags -- working my backside off to get As on batches and getting a couple of snot-green mosses and a smarmy statue isn't reasonable, it's telling me not only am I grinding over, and over, and OVER, I'm doing it for nothing. Levels, sure. I'm not entirely motivated by that, sorry. Maybe that'll change. There are few enough "smaller carrots more often", to quote the long-forgotten Vanguard FAQ, and the crafting ones have been yanked away; nice going there.

Anyway. Work Orders.

1 -- Refining -- Batch -- Easy. Item 1 : 7 comps, C / Item 2 : 3 comps, B / Item 3 : 4 comps, B / Item 4 : 3 comps, B / Item 5 : 5 comps, B

2 -- Refining -- Single -- Moderate (mid). Item 1 : 6 comps, C

3 -- Refining -- Set -- Moderate (low). Item 1 : 4 comps, C / Item 2 : 2 comps, B / Item 3 : 3 comps, B

4. Finishing -- Single -- Moderate (low). Item 1 : 1 comp, B

5. Finishing -- Single -- Moderate (low). Item 1 : 6 comps. Ran out of AP. Was at a whopping 25% quality when I did.

6. Finishing -- Single -- Moderate (mid). Item 1 : 7 comps. Ran out of AP somewhere in D grade.

If it's my stats, then fine, I guess I'm just unlucky that I don't get anything to bolster those stats. If it's something else - I hope this proves useful. I'm past caring whether it's fixed or not. As far as I can tell, crafting consists of the following "choices" : gear up as much as you can, and then gear up some more (if you can't, you're just SOL, sorry); and suck it up, because the RNG has more effect on your crafting than anything YOU can do.

As I said, I despise this kind of post. But to take a devout and enthusiastic crafting addict (me) and end up with a bitter, disappointed and angry crafting hater (also me, right now) takes some work.

In an effort to be positive, I'd say, bring back some rewards. Whatever was tweaked I guess I didn't get to partake in it. I've crafted since the supposed tweak away from NO rewards to SOME rewards, and I'm not seeing it. Ah well, not quite -- I do have a cartload of tools. Hrmph.

I've done batches till I'm blue in the face and I have nothing to show for it. No recipes, no gear (not even something I could pass on to someone lower, for God's sake), and most of all absolutely no fun and no feeling of accomplishment. I don't level JUST to level - and right now, the journey isn't work taking.