Oh boy... getting from 222 to 300+...

[PacerX]

I'm dreading this part...

Anyhoo, 42 Barbarian Shaman, Zek server 222 Smithing, 231 Alchemy, 172 Pottery, 210 Baking...

So, I'm now staring the 222-300 part of smithing square in the face.

I know this isn't supposed to be easy, but those Mistletoe cutting sickles and other combines are looking to require a LOT of farming.

Any advice?

Any alternate skill-up or less farming intensive paths?

Highest alt is a level 60 Druid.

[Bara]

Ummm, run away screaming? No thats not very helpful...

I am doing shadowscream till it caps out.. at 268 I think. Then I will probably be doing the MCS myself mixed in with whatever Master and Grandmasters armor I can get my hands on.

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Ummm, run away screaming? No thats not very helpful...

Thought seriously about that one...

Wanted to be able to GM armor though for my and my wife's warriors.

I am doing shadowscream till it caps out.. at 268 I think. Then I will probably be doing the MCS myself mixed in with whatever Master and Grandmasters armor I can get my hands on.

Farming...

Rats...

Guess I will have to figure out where to go...

Hey, any suggestions on where to PL a 42 shaman with a 60 Druid? Wifey will be using the Druid, and she needs some training. I'd like someplace relatively safe... Thought about doing it with Ice Giants in Everfrost, but at 42 the XP has started to suffer.

[Queletan]

Well, your cultural uses Pile of Gravel, so that's not a really viable option (although if you're PLing I might recommend trying the Hole since its a hotspot atm, and the gargoyles can drop it rarely). Shadowscream would be the cheapest but it takes alot of farming work as well, otherwise you might look into buying up Steppes ore from traders (or vendors if you happen to find it); that would get you to I think 262. Otherwise its sickles + the occasional Masters/GM/Seal/Aug combine really.

Q

[Liwsa]

60 druid can group with the 42 shaman so I would go somewhere the druid can quad effectively. Cobalt Scar is good and you can sell/save the pelts and furs. She won't get great exp but the level 42 will.

If you don't like quadding the druid can probably root/rot in Noble's Causeway. Do Murkgliders near either DS or WoS zonelines.

Other spots:
Seb - nodding blue lillies for Alchemy
Velks - Velium and Crystalline silks
Western Waste - Velium fur, Mastadon fur - Ice silks off Ice Burrows(these ar a little tough at 60)
Maybe undershore(not sure on levels of mobs there).

[Klotar]

I was glancing forward in preparation for maxing out smithing after finishing tailoring, and saw this post.

I hadn't considered MCS but I have to ask... er, what farming? Looks like all vendor stuff to me, what am I not seeing?

[GrimwoodCT]

Cultural aug.
Cultural armor.
Bite the bullet and farm.
Make runs as you materials and bank space allow.

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Alrighty, I'll seriously consider biting the bullet and farming for the cultural...

But the Pile of Gravel is an issue... Welp, I'll group up with the warriors and get to it...

Zek is odd... I bet on many servers folks rejoice when a zone they need to farm in becomes a hotzone. On Zek, it makes life more difficult.

[Bara]

Maybe on Zek they should make "cold spots" instead?

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Maybe on Zek they should make "cold spots" instead?

That's actually a good idea.

My days on that server are numbered. Just gotta figure out which one to go to.

[olhoss]

I know this isn't supposed to be easy, but those Mistletoe Cutting Sickles and other combines are looking to require a LOT of farming.

Mistletoe cutting sickles require NO farming, unless you count plat.

You do need someone to imbue emeralds, but most clerics can do this for you (your druid might be able to), and I used to find them or other subcombines (like Celestial Essence) cheap in the bazaar. They are a pain to make and expensive (about 350pp a combine) but I hate farming enough that it was worth it to me to bypass the Shadowscream stuff and go right from 220 to 300 on sickles alone. (you can usually sell them in the bazaar to recoup some of the loss, and they are great tribute items at 1312 each).

In addition, the three parts (blade, pommel, hilt) trivial at about 280 so you can skill part way up on those alone. Again, no farming required.

[Gorse]

In addition, the three parts (blade, pommel, hilt) trivial at about 180 so you can skill part way up on those alone. Again, no farming required.

Edit in bold added by me:

Blade 183,
Hilt 180
Pommel 182.


I would LOVE for the parts to trivial in the 280s.


Gorse

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Wait a sec...

I can go from 220 to 335 on MCS's?

I thought to get a skillup that you had to try a combine within 100 of the trivial.

Oh, and thanks for setting me straight on the no farming, at my level (42) and even at the Druid's level, farming is a pain.

[Queletan]

Wait a sec...

I can go from 220 to 335 on MCS's?

I thought to get a skillup that you had to try a combine within 100 of the trivial.

220-300 (current cap). There's no trivial cap for skillups that I am aware of, I started doing my sickles around 225 if I remember correctly. The only issue of concern is that you stand a greater chance of skilling up on a success than on a failure, so below ~250/260 you'll be doing more combines than you would of something closer to your skill level.

If you can pick them up for 300-350 (and enchant clay or buy it cheaply), I'd still recommend looking in to the Steppes Ore for the smithing seal, I've been doing that from 236-250 so far with my gnome, and I plan on taking it the whole way to 262 before I start wasting my higher end combine stuff.

Q

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Hmmmmm.... Smithing seal?

Lesse here... to do MCS's to 300 from 222...

~5 skillups per 150 combines...

78 * 150 = 11700 combines...

Dear Lord...