A couple simple questions

[Daeneb]

I mistakenly bought a stack of MQ Sheets of Metal. As it cost me around 96 plat for the stack, I'm trying to figure out what it's even used for. I haven't found a recipe yet that involves it, though admittedly I could have missed it in the long list . Am I out 100 plat? It's a trivial sum, but I hate waste.

My second question regards the steps into the 200's. As a human cleric of Emarr, I have a VERY cheap imbued gem. Would I be better doing imbued field plate than Shadowscream or the like? It certainly seems like the ingrediants would be easier to obtain, but the market would obviously be smaller to sell it off. Any thoughts?

-Daeneb

[Zeralenn]

1. Only recipe I know that uses medium quality sheet metal are shields, which don't sell. Just sell the darned things back to the vendor.

2. Your imbued field plate is far more likely to sell than Shadowscream. Shadowscream sucks. Only reason I recently sold all of mine was in the Great Frog Twinkfest of 2003.

...Zera

[Farmer Mage]

I just finished human cultural with rose quartz imbues and I'd have to recommend it over Shadowscream for a few reasons. 1)none of the items are difficult to get albeit mugs can be rare on occasion. 2)If you have a few friends that are willing to help you, none of the items are NO DROP or NO RENT as they are in SS so you end up getting more of the items you need quicker and without the worry of losing them. 3)The seafuries are a good camp in that they not only give up mugs of seafoam but are a decent plat farm as well offering many times up to 5p per kill along with the occasional medium quality gem giving you a means to pay for the HQ ore (which I don't recommend farming. it's an incredible timesink) 4) Paddings are not difficult to get your hands on even if you farm the materials yourself.
Now I don't know your financial status or your level, I am going only on my experiences as a 61 mage in what I have stated here. Have fun whatever route you take and I hope the RNG was as kind to you as it was to me

Farmer mage at 244 smithing

[Farmer Mage]

I just finished human cultural with rose quartz imbues and I'd have to recommend it over Shadowscream for a few reasons. 1)none of the items are difficult to get albeit mugs can be rare on occasion. 2)If you have a few friends that are willing to help you, none of the items are NO DROP or NO RENT as they are in SS so you end up getting more of the items you need quicker and without the worry of losing them. 3)The seafuries are a good camp in that they not only give up mugs of seafoam but are a decent plat farm as well offering many times up to 5p per kill along with the occasional medium quality gem giving you a means to pay for the HQ ore (which I don't recommend farming. it's an incredible timesink) 4) Paddings are not difficult to get your hands on even if you farm the materials yourself.
As far as making money off the successes, I just sold it all back to the vendor. You will get about 60% of your costs back. It will not sell well in bazaar.
Now I don't know your financial status or your level, I am going only on my experiences as a 61 mage in what I have stated here. Have fun whatever route you take and I hope the RNG was as kind to you as it was to me

Farmer mage at 244 smithing

[Angelsyn]

On a related note: Innothule Swamp is spiderling silk heaven.

It's just loaded with spiderlings and they're always dropping tons of silk.

It's so bad that you can often find tons of spiderling silk on the merchants in Gukta!

[Daeneb]

In looking at it.. would it be easier (if not cheaper) to try and skill up on Acrylia? All I've read here is about how mugs of sea foam are abysmally scarce now, and how I'll need 1800 or so of them . That is a bit daunting. I seem to have fairly good luck on Acrylia blocks lately, though I've never tried for Windstones or Essences.

-Daeneb

[Zhorn]

Windstones are absurdly rare.

People selling them in the bazaar know this and on some servers charge 300 to 400 plat each.

And you need TWO of them per combine!

Forget Acrylia as a valid skill-up path I would say.

Shadowscream is not that bad. Seriously!
If the war gets bugged, just go do something else til it gets reset....

[Cavel]

Cultural is the way to go. The less expensive the better. You may be able to sell the stuff you can imbue in the Bazaar but if you are in a guild try asking others in the guild to imbue other stones. Make any and all that you can. Heck some of your guildies may even be willing to help you out for the promise of some armor, I have posted it before but here it is again... ask folks to give you twice as much raw material as you need. if they do this then you have either 2 attempts at what the customer wanted OR you get additional skill up attempts yourself.

[Lupoman]

cultural is the way to go for all races 190 - 250 EXCEPT Barbarians I could be wrong on other races, but am POSOTIVE for barbarians.