I still feel that crafters and gatherers are missing out on a lot and that Yoshi doesn't respect them as much as the combat classes. Until DoH and/or DoL based FATE's and/or quests (outside of the run errands quest that any discipline can do and outside the the one every 5 levels guild quests) get implemented, I really won't be able to consider us to have fully fledged classes.
There are so many things we as crafters and gatherers can do to help the world around us (actually helping as crafters and gatherers, not as runners), yet we're only called upon incidentally or every 5 levels to fetch something we probably already have? I don't think that's quite right when the other classes get called upon for their speciality (combat based quests and FATE's) for almost the entirety of their levelling progression. Crafters and gatherers have to grind hard to get anywhere, whereas combatants get interesting storylines the whole way and Yoshi's already indicated he thinks the traditional repetitive grind is inferior to the quest grind.
Even if we only get one or two quests/FATE's per level with storylines where we have to make/gather things (and not just hand in second hand goods or things bought off the market), that would be a huge improvement. I love the stories and characters that the FF world is famous for and do not appreciate the fact that we're excluded from 99% of them because we don't want to pick up a weapon and pursue battle, when we can help in other ways.
I'm not saying let us save the world. I'm not saying to even give us as many quests as the combat classes get. I'm saying let us repair a boiler or roof at that outpost, let us help an NPC restock their wears, let us clear a massive fallen tree in the road, let us excavate a collapsed mine to rescue the NPC's within, and possibly open up new areas or services or other benefits for our troubles. Little things that only we can do but that have a positive impact on the NPC's and greater world around us.
Final Fantasy XIV: Crafting and Gathering
With all of the systems getting rebuilt in A Realm Reborn, what do crafters and gatherers have to look forward to?
Conclusion
I've seen some games attempt the more in-depth crafting system. Vanguard made crafting a mini-game with random events crafters have to react to. Firefall and Star Wars Galaxies let you pick different materials for recipes to change the stats of the finished product. In each of those cases, however, they really have only a piece of the puzzle for making crafters feel like they're a full-fledged job and progression path. Gatherers had it even worse, since other than Firefall's Thumper events or WildStar's random events, gathering has been regulated to just right-clicking a vein/plant/etc. until depleted and moving on. From what I've played of FFXIV:ARR so far, it feels like they've actually made these two activities not only full-fledged paths of progression, but given them the ability and gear progression they've needed for players to be able to choose a crafting or a gathering class and not feel like they're only playing half of a game.
After a weekend jumping between Miner, Goldsmith and some dabbling in Alchemist, I'm looking forward to seeing what else FFXIV:ARR has to offer me as a crafter and gatherer. Now they just need to let me back in so I can see what recipes are on that next page.
Michael "Ragar" Branham
