Gathering and Minions

[Sakii]

Since Minions are a primary way of gathering, would it be possible to swap how much Gathering you have to do to raise the level of a gathering profession?

Instead of a "Gathering" profession we could have a "Processing Raw Materials" Profession. I would still allow the ability to harvest material, but move the focus of gathering professions to processing raw materials.

I'm happy with the way you have incorporated minions and crafting rifts as a way to gather materials for crafting. It not only allows time to focus on the grind of gearing up, but adds a guild activity like crift night. And aside from getting BIS gear, playing MMOs are a way to socialize. The more you incorporate ways for guilds and players to come together and work on things, even farming mats, the more people will be invested in your game.

With that said I would like to add the idea of a minion rift. Why? For farming notoriety. Could mostly be a way to get old world notoriety, but after you max all those out what else could you gain? Minions that are mob drops, some type of faction currency that is needed to buy or upgrade gear, or more crafting materials...

Oh could we increase the number of minions we can send on missions?

Again keep up the good work and I look forward to seeing you progress this game.

[Aranka]

Minions were never intended as primary source for gathering mats....

For gathering... you can level gathering skills through processing the recipes till they turn grey, buy recipes and make those recipe items to gain skill levels, there is the crafting sphere, the guild perk to have a chance at extra skill level points

Also, gathering at lower profession skill means you get a skill level point for each gathering node that is way higher than your skill level is intended for.
You can gather everything, but need the skill level to process the mats... That's pretty much the focus in gathering already.

And there are the gathering runes to get extra mats from gathering.

[Sakii]

I understand that, but why is it that way?

From an RP stand point wouldn't the ascended have people following them helping them in their quest to save the realm?
I find it hard to believe that that the fate of the world lays in your hands and nobody wants to help you pick flowers, mine ore, ect.... to save the world they live in.

Why does gathering have to be a grind? Because that is the way it's always been. That really doesn't make it right. And it just follows other games. When minions came out other games started coping Rift. They touch on something the gaming masses have asked for and when you do that other games are going to follow suit. You set the standard.

The grind for upgrading gear could replace the mat farming grind easily. And using gathering skills as processing skill could deplete the mats farmed by minions. I'm sure regents/mats required could be adjusted to slow the process.

I would rather be grinding out stuff with guild members than running around looking for nodes.
Hence the reason I think crafting rifts are a great idea.

I spend 2 hours grinding dungeons for a guild mate's weapon, but the whole time we had fun and where bsing. The social activity draws and keeps people with a game.

You wouldn't keep going to a Bar/hangout spot if you where the only one there. After while you would like to hangout with someone. Trying to create a social environment by eliminating some of the unnecessary solo grinding only helps retain and buildup the game.

Once you level your professions how critical are they to endgame? Sure you need amenders for gear upgrades, but do you need to be out there farming mats?


Why stay in the cookie cutter mold of MMOs. Lets change the way things are done.

[Laeti]

You would rather farm crifts to get mats, other people would rather not. Your way of playing the game isn't necessarily the only way for everyone. Which is why we have more than one option.

Why the need to limit them? Because you personally don't like some of them and want them removed? uh, okay

[Sakii]

You would rather farm crifts to get mats, other people would rather not. Your way of playing the game isn't necessarily the only way for everyone. Which is why we have more than one option.

Why the need to limit them? Because you personally don't like some of them and want them removed? uh, okay

I understand that. I also understand that some people allow for more time to play Rift than I do and some people allow less time for playing Rift than I do. So how do you give those who maybe have 2 hours a night to play a way to experience the game? Assuming that you play for some endgame, by removing some of the wasted time.(Muda)

Now the current system for farming mats works great(Minions,Crifts, Manual gathering). I was asking for material processing to play more of a part in upping your gathering skill. No matter how you gather mats this benefits you as a player.

It benefits the guy running around manually picking nodes more that the guy using crifts and minions to gather mats. He gets the skill up from picking the nodes too.

Also since leveling your toon is pretty easy, if processing material was a viable way of upping your gathering skill, then wouldn't that increase the value of lower level content materials? Since minions don't give you materials that are below your level and crifts depend on what expansion they are from.

So a guy running around picking materials benefits more again. He/she spends the time doing it should they get the reward for it.

I'm not saying my way is the best way. I'm just debating my view.

[Poshy]

It's an interesting idea. I like the current set up for crafting materials, but notoriety (especially old world) is a pain to catch up on and this idea might help in that regard.

[Laeti]

I understand that. I also understand that some people allow for more time to play Rift than I do and some people allow less time for playing Rift than I do. So how do you give those who maybe have 2 hours a night to play a way to experience the game? Assuming that you play for some endgame, by removing some of the wasted time.(Muda)

Now the current system for farming mats works great(Minions,Crifts, Manual gathering). I was asking for material processing to play more of a part in upping your gathering skill. No matter how you gather mats this benefits you as a player.

It benefits the guy running around manually picking nodes more that the guy using crifts and minions to gather mats. He gets the skill up from picking the nodes too.

Also since leveling your toon is pretty easy, if processing material was a viable way of upping your gathering skill, then wouldn't that increase the value of lower level content materials? Since minions don't give you materials that are below your level and crifts depend on what expansion they are from.

So a guy running around picking materials benefits more again. He/she spends the time doing it should they get the reward for it.

I'm not saying my way is the best way. I'm just debating my view.

Now I am confused. Processing mats also counts towards the gathering skill, i.e. you're levelling butchering profession while you're turning hides into leather. What's wrong with the way it is now, that allows you to both gather and process for skill levelling? I am one of those people who only has a couple hours to play every now and then and honestly never had any issues levelling professions (granted I am not levelling past NT because the mat/marks costs are ridiculous and I refuse to support this system). If levelling a skill from 450 to 525 has changed dramatically then maybe I just don't know something but iirc it was never some major time investment unless you wanted to level all your skills in one day or something. I just don't understand why change something that is already working well. Pretty much all the "improvements" that have been done lately were a disaster and pissed off a lot of people, at this point I'd rather them focus on how to bring all those people back than work out a more social way of gathering ore.

[Femke]

""I was asking for material processing to play more of a part in upping your gathering skill. No matter how you gather mats this benefits you as a player. ""

Levelling up gathering skills.

Butcher..
start processing soft hide instead of gathering... easy 15 to 20 skill points
I believe thin hide starts at processing 35... So for 15 skill points, you level up or sidekick and go to stonefield/gloamwood and harvest thin hide... That will take you 15 to 20 kills, since your skill is below the adviced skinlevel and you will get 1 point per kill/skin.

You may want to kill a bit more for the extra mats to get some extra processing points..

skill 35, process thin hide.. easy 15 to 20 points.
Next... go to the big fire rift in scarlet.. the one between rock ridge north & south.
kill that rift 3 times, kill alll the trash before finishing the rift objective.. that way, you get more medium hide and wool to harvest from the mobs.

@ skill 60, with some artisan marks, you can buy a recipe from store that needs some cracked ribs... that recipe lasts for 30 points.
@skill 75, you can process the medium hide from the rift upto around skill 90

@ skill 115, you can get the next recipe... so harvest heavy hide in between. That's animals in scarwood.. so keen blade mill, perspice or around kain's command.

@ 120, you can buy a recipe in store, to gather skill points... use that to get to 145.
@145, you can go and process thick hide.. .harvest them in between around lantern hook.

processing thick hide should get you to around 160 easily. At that point, go to droughtlands south, carryon heights. harvest exotic hide there.

@185, process exotic hide.. should get you to 200 easily
@ skill 200, either get the level 180 recipe from store or go shimmersand (dragon motes) or stillmoor (mathosian hounds just a bit north east of zareph)

@ skill 225, process the soulhide
@ skill 240, get the recipe from store or go ember isle and harvest at the far south east corner the dragons that walk there.
@skill 270/280 there should be a recipe for steeled hide and a recipe for combined leather (soulhide +ironhide + vendor mat)
@skill 290, you can process dense leather. You can choose to farm dense leather @skill 270 from the wasps in city core.

@skill 300, you can get another 7 to 10 skill points from processing dense leather

@skill 300, get the recipe from store.. that lasts till skill 330,
@skill 320, go farm some striped hide..
@skill 330, process the striped hide ... it lasts till 450
@skill 340, go farm the wasps in shock forest, the lake north/north east of hailol

@skill 350, process truehide
@skill 365, start farming fabled leather (near the scudra portal)
@skill 375, process fabled hide
@skill 390 process on 20x fabled hide
@skill 400 go scat forest and farm starhide

@skill 450, process starhide
@skill 465, the real skill grind starts... and that lasts till skill 525

For each craft there is a similar system. And that is not taking into account making use of the craft skill rune.
Equipped with the craft skill rune, you can train higher level recipes, just not the higher tiers till your actual skill level reaches that tier.

Since at this point in game, several players already did the skilling up, there are mats from all tiers available, so you can opt to buy certain mats instead of farming them yourself.
In theory, you can reach fishing 451 with catching 400 fish, if you are willing to spend the plat for it.

As for the recipes from store.. they cost artisan mark. The easiest way to get enough marks is to take the artisan marks bag from the calender on day 4. When you reach 451 on one skill, the green marks for the recipes from other skills are easily obtained through the daily workorder.

Foraging, mining and butchering can be easily skilled up, if you farm above your skill level.. 1 skill point per node means 450 kills/farms to get to 450, without processing.
Processing at the right time takes away an easy 10 points per material when you have the correct mats. So farm upfront, at higher skill level to farm the needed mats.

I can already tell you that any crafting skill needs more than this to get enough mats to skill up.
Gathering skills are by far the easiest to skill up when you start with nothing.
Crafing skills are easier to skill up if/when you have enough of the required mats.

sidenote..

prepare a little before investing in levelling profession skills.
You get the 160% skill sphere at level 20 I think from ascended trove. Use it wisely.

1 Make sure you have the portals.
2 make sure you can sidekick.
3 make sure you have a summon if need be
4 make sure you have artisan marks from the reward calender

You can skill up some 3 to 4 skills to 375 on 1 skill sphere if you prepare a little
For crafting skills, make sure you have enough mats
for gathering, know where to go.

tip.. if lower level, sidekick and for levelling up mining and butcher, there is a sweet spot between fortune shore and the prison, with golems and some animals... you will be sidekicked 50, while the mobs are level 43/44.. it makes for easy kill if your own char level is not that high.