Good point, and something I've started to try to do as well. In my opinion, the trait values will vary a bit by intended use. Exploration XP, for example, is worthless to an end game player, but may be desirable for an alt. So that said, I will throw out a rough order of what I consider to be the more desirable traits for end(ish) game gear that is likely going to last more than 9 hours of leveling.

Obviously this is all very subjective. I've done absolutely ZERO math on any of this, so it's very possible a min/maxer could prove a more clear cut 'best' for dps or mitigation... But for now I've lumped them into subjective 'high' and 'low' value groups that can be ordered within them based on role (tank/melee dps/heals/etc).

Weapons:

High Value:
Sharpened (+armor/spell pen), Weighted (+attack speed), Precise (+crit value), Infused (+Enchant effect), Powered (reduce enchant cd), Defending (+armor/resist)

Low Value:
Training (+experience with weapon line)

Armor:

High Value: Impenetrable (crit resist), Reinforced (armor), Infused (+enchant effect)

Medium Value: Well-fitted (reduce sprint cost), Divines (+mundus stone effect)

Low Value: Sturdy (reduce decay on death), Training (experience with armor line), Exploration (exploration experience)

Afraid I don't know the answer to that question... but that's a fair point that crossed my mind, and could impact the value of some of those for pvp vs pve. I guess my assumption was that NPCs could crit... but that was purely based on past mmo experience and nothing else.

Another thing to consider in research order is the rarity of the trait.

For example, like 90% of medium armor that drops is well-fitted, while heavy armor tends to be reinforced, sturdy or impenetrable, and light armor is usually infused or divines.

If you find a piece of heavy armor with the divines trait, you should research it early because others will want you to make such pieces for them. You can either sell pieces with that trait or trade for other pieces with traits you still need to research.

I've been making standard equipment... the issue is drops. Unless someone is really unlucky, reward gear is good enough at the pre-vet level to get you through without needing a purchased item.

robertsian87b14_ESO wrote: »

I've been taking the approach of stockpiling my materials, and just leveling my professions without trying to produce items to sell.

The upgrade mats, since there's really no reason to upgrade anything, or apply a trait. Chewing my way through metal bars like they were candy, though.

clocksstoppe wrote: »

*** question but what is a mundus stone and how does it work

They're the stones that give you a bonus buff until you activate a different one. The Lady, The Serpent, etc. Most of them are +2%crit rating, +2% Spell Resist, something to that nature. Small but meaningful semi-permanent buffs.

I haven't tried creating anything trade/sales-worthy yet (too low level for that). I have, however, found it useful to buddy up and create low-level items with a trait I've researched and swap for the same with someone who has researched a trait I need. That way, I don't need to keep items in my bank just because they have a trait I might not be researching for some time to come.

For medium armor I would say "Well-Fit" is a high priority because of the medium armor passive that gives you a 4% sprint speed increase per piece (28% cap with 2 points). This the passive you can sprint faster than most horses run. Well worth in my opinion.

@Phranq‌
Most of the heavy your going to be finding early is going to have either reinforced or impenetrable on it in my experience. I've found the other traits for heavy armor to be kind of a mixed bag over the course of leveling. I wouldn't get too frustrated if you can't find more than 1-2 traits on your gear early in levels.

join a crafting guild if you're looking for specific trait items.

i've learned a few from trading traits with fellow crafters, if we both have something the other desires...tho u might run into someone who will try to trade the desired trait for 2 of yours...which is just weird and funky but highly MMO-esque.

currently lvl 13 and i have found varying traits for all forms of blacksmithing desires. can't say there's one i find more over another