Crafting on Multiple Toons

lyx10679

NOTE: I want to clarify that I am not asking about Master Crafting Writs.

I have reached level 50 for Blacksmithing, Clothing, and Woodworking on all my toons. I am finding that many of the daily crafting writs have rapidly depleted my materials, mostly my ancestor silk. It seems I always get daily writs for light apparel which is strange. I could essentially farm but it is tedious or purchase from a guild trader but it could get expensive. I am wondering if I could reallocate my skill points (bring it back down to 1/10) or should I just keep it and not do the daily writ for some of my toons. What do you think?

Firstmep

Just do your crafting surveys, in the long run you should still come out with a surplus.
Processed mats are also pretty cheap, so don't feel bad about buying some.

tmbrinks

The biggest reason, and most valuable reason to do daily writs, is for the gold improvement materials that drop. Those have the highest drop rate doing them at maximum level. (30% at maximum versus about 3% at lowest tier)

Yes, you will slowly use up your reserves of Ancestor Silk/Rubedo/Rubedite/Ruby Ash as you do your writs. It is a slight negative even if you collect your surveys and deconstruct the intricate gear (Platinum will go even faster since you get less and none from hirelings). It is still very much worth it, to either farm or buy those top tier materials to replace them and to keep doing your writs at maximum level.

etchedpixels

You can also sell sealed crafting writs so there is no point not getting them even if you sell some. The low value ones are also quite popular with folks trying to get to 100 master writs completed to unlock the rest of the plans and the like.

lyx10679

Firstmep wrote: »

Just do your crafting surveys, in the long run you should still come out with a surplus.
Processed mats are also pretty cheap, so don't feel bad about buying some.

@Firstmep I usually do my surveys. It's just lately that I have been getting more light armor daily writs that have been eating at my ancestor silk surplus. It is possible that I was only looking at just guild traders in Vivec City. I do my writs here since the quartermaster is not that far away. It seemed like they were price gouging in Morrowwind.

lyx10679

tmbrinks wrote: »

The biggest reason, and most valuable reason to do daily writs, is for the gold improvement materials that drop. Those have the highest drop rate doing them at maximum level. (30% at maximum versus about 3% at lowest tier)

Yes, you will slowly use up your reserves of Ancestor Silk/Rubedo/Rubedite/Ruby Ash as you do your writs. It is a slight negative even if you collect your surveys and deconstruct the intricate gear (Platinum will go even faster since you get less and none from hirelings). It is still very much worth it, to either farm or buy those top tier materials to replace them and to keep doing your writs at maximum level.

@tmbrinks I was just thinking that. Thanks.

tmbrinks

lyx10679 wrote: »

Firstmep wrote: »

Just do your crafting surveys, in the long run you should still come out with a surplus.
Processed mats are also pretty cheap, so don't feel bad about buying some.

@Firstmep I usually do my surveys. It's just lately that I have been getting more light armor daily writs that have been eating at my ancestor silk surplus. It is possible that I was only looking at just guild traders in Vivec City. I do my writs here since the quartermaster is not that far away. It seemed like they were price gouging in Morrowwind.

The clothing daily writs are on a 3 day cycle. 2 days will require Ancestor Silk, and the 3rd day will be Rubedo Leather. So yes, you will use up more silk than you do leather.

lyx10679

tmbrinks wrote: »

The clothing daily writs are on a 3 day cycle. 2 days will require Ancestor Silk, and the 3rd day will be Rubedo Leather. So yes, you will use up more silk than you do leather.

@tmbrinks I did not know that was the cycle. Good to know that now and I feel much better about it! Thanks.

FlopsyPrince

I don't sell the mats I gain, but I still believe it is a very net positive for doing dailies at a consistent max level.

I do have to buy them regularly, though I can push that out if I do the gather writs which I pile up.

(Gathering those should be a lot easier - Let me do them all at once!)

I have found it much easier to find mats on the guild vendors for max level mats rather than lower level ones, so keep that in mind as well!

lyx10679

tmbrinks wrote: »

The biggest reason, and most valuable reason to do daily writs, is for the gold improvement materials that drop. Those have the highest drop rate doing them at maximum level. (30% at maximum versus about 3% at lowest tier)

Thank you, @tmbrinks! I think this is the most compelling incentive to keep my crafting level at maximum (i.e. allocate all 9 skill points per crafting type) for each character I have. I have decided to keep my skill point allocation as is.

To all the other posters, I thank you all for your comments although my OP was not about trying to sell mats or writs. I was debating the incentives of keeping my skill at max because I wanted to re-allocate my skill points to my build. At this time, I have decided or at least feel satisfied of my decision to keep my crafting skills at max.

Ackwalan

Depending on how many max level crafters you have, don't max out the skill level. Leaving a few to craft at level 1 skill, they use much less mats but still get the surveys. You will earn enough low level mats to supply the level 1 crafter while still getting surveys. Have your max crafter do the survey and you will get plenty of mats. I do writs on 5 characters, 3 at max 2 at level 1 skill. I have well over 20K max level mats.

joerginger

Like you, @lyx10679 , I considered removing skills from skill lines to save normal crafting material. I decided against doing this even though I hardly ever find the time to do surveys these days. Whenever materials are about to run out, I go shopping. Especially platinum ouncers aren't exactly cheap, but nevertheless I have steadily earned earned enough money to buy all the houses that are available for gold and to afford my new hobby, i.e. each weekend getting all the items missing from my "stickerbook" from the Golden in Cyrodiil. Previously I only bought monster set items I might in fact use.
For me personally getting more upgrade materials seemed more attractive than (perhaps) not having to buy materials ever again.

The only skill in which I moved skill points down again from 10 is the provisioning skill. I realized this by accident and later saw it confirmed here by tmbrinks that there is even a benefit to this. The provisioning rewards include a recipe each day and the recipe quality is linked to the skill level the character has. So characters at max level in provisioning usually (or always?) get max level recipes. Since I like to collect recipes, I reallocated several characters' skill points in provisioning in order to get recipes of all levels. This means less provisioning master writs, but they're usually not that great anyway and can even be quite expensive to do if they require perfect roe - unless you do a lot of fishing, of course.

wolfie1.0.

Ackwalan wrote: »

Depending on how many max level crafters you have, don't max out the skill level. Leaving a few to craft at level 1 skill, they use much less mats but still get the surveys. You will earn enough low level mats to supply the level 1 crafter while still getting surveys. Have your max crafter do the survey and you will get plenty of mats. I do writs on 5 characters, 3 at max 2 at level 1 skill. I have well over 20K max level mats.

While this may keep you positive in mats your leaving more valuable resources at the table. Because first your max level crafters have the same chances at surveys as your lower ones and two tou lose out on additional chances of more valuable resources.

FlopsyPrince

It takes time, but you can get enough Skyshards and dungeon quest runs to get both areas covered.

I usually keep the combat skills up because it makes hunting for skyshards easier.