Geerlock vs. INT item for skill up

[Sywyn]

Ok, I bought a geerlock hammer, and used it religiously while smithing. My prime stat for smithing is INT and I just aquired my first Primary hand weapon with an INT bonus (although at this time my STR is not lagging much behind) when it dawned on me that for trivial combines the geerlock is fine, but for skill ups I should have a prime stat enhancing item.

This is correct thinking isn't it? After all skill ups are as likely to happen upon failure as they are success and the geerlock won't give me any bonus to bettering my skill. If anyone has information to the contrary I'd love to hear it.

So my new line of thought is Geerlock for the trivial combines, stat gear to skill up.

[kuronekosama]

Geerlok will not help skill up rate at all. What a geerlok will do is help you save money heh. If cash is not a concern I'd suggest getting a set of smithing gear. For example I have a seperate set of ugly armor that puts me at 255 str. Since I am in it for the long haul, my expenditure here certainly has paid for itself. Anyhow a straight answer is that no geerlok doesn't help skill progession at all.

[Annu]

Geerlock does not help skill progression, but if you are like me, and money is an issue, I would go with the geerlock. Right now I am smithing FS plate with 157 smithing without the geerlock, 164 with. Each fail costs me 26plat, but each success only costs me a couple silver. With the geerlock and 186 INT, I got 5 skillups on my last run of 26 combines, and only 3 failures of the final combine, and 2 on the extremely trivial combine on the folded sheet. That adds up to a (comparitively) cheap 5 skillups.

When I have worked smithing a bit more, and am in the dreaded post-188 range, I might try to go with more int, assuming that money will not be as much of an issue, but right now, the geerlock is a good compromise between skillups and plat drain.

Annu

[Fallwell]

Re: Geerlok vs Int

Not really helpful probably, but sometimes I forget to equip the proper gear when doing smithing runs. Like equipping my charisma mug instead of +8wis primary weapon.

So yesterday....

252 wisdom plus geerlok making HQ folded metal sheets at 218 skill. I failed on 8!! out of 40 attempts. (410 plat)

and a week ago.....

236 wisdom (forgot to equip a few items...again) at 211 skill without geerlok. 60 attempts at old human cultural. 6!!!! skillups! :shock: and no failures to boot.

So next time i do smithing I might hold my fishing pole and wear resist gear again......lol....who know's? Truth is, I have tried geerlok/no geerlok....missing gear, etc and I think most of the time skillups just come down to plain ole dumb luck.

~Fallwell

[Altanis Blazewielder]

Actually, if you believe that the skillup surveys that indicate you are twice as likely to skillup on a success than a failure, geerlocks do help, as combining at a higher effective skill will make you more likely to succeed at the combine. Whether or not it is moreffective to use a geerlock or an int item, however, has yet to be seen.