Is Shadowscream worth it?

[Rumadar]

Just looking for the advice of smiths that have already passed through this stage. Is it worth all the no rent and no drop farming for Shadowscream armor to get to 250?

I mean, I could spend lots and lots of plat on cultural (High Elven) armor all day, and then set it on the bazaar, hoping to sell it, for more cash to make more. But that may take awhile (especially getting people to buy the armor).

If Shadowscream Steel is the best way to go, where exactly are the best places for wailing and shrieking substances? In Paludal I found the grimy owlbear cubs, on a 10 minute spawn cycle, that drop wailing every now and then. Yelloweyes does too, but he's always killed immediately.

Owlbears in Hollowshade, I know drop them too but that's only when they control the zone, and seem very rare.

Shrieking substance: I guess its better to hunt wolves in Tenebrous?

Just want to see what you guys think.

[Jnash]

I haven't decided whether it's worth it or not, but I'm leaning toward yes. Pharming the no rent swirlies is a pain, but you can usually get newbies to pharm em for ya if you promise them some shadowscream armor. If you want to pharm yourself, swirling shadows drop 1 and 2 at a time off the shadows in TS, but they can be tough.. lifetap for around 300 dmg.

As for pharming the Shrieking and Wailing, I can usually get 4 or 5 stacks in a couple hours. What you need to do it get to Hollowshade right after a patch or at least make sure there's wolves and bears in the zone. Whichever faction owns the South Camp (normally grimling) will drop shrieking or wailing substance like crazy. What I'll do is set it to either owlbear or wolf, whichever attacks the grims first.. pharm 4 or 5 stacks .. then next time the other faction attacks camp, help them take over and pharm however many stacks I got of the other drop. Hope that makes sense. In case you're not familiar with the Hollowshade Zone War, you help a faction take over a camp by killing all of the defenders as soon as they pop, and before the raiding faction gets there. Be warned, all the defenders summon. I turn em with my 55 beastlord - just send in the pet, he tears em up, and as long as I don't join in the fight or cast, they ignore me.

As you can see, this is very very time intensive. With 1 skill up per 30 combines, well.. do the math.. gonna take FOR EVER to get from 188 to 250. But, time I have... 100k plat, well, no .. don't got that. Sure wish they'd make orbs stackable.
Good luck to all.
Jnash Razorpaw, Saryrn

[B_Delacroix]

We all know that hollowshade is broken, but perhaps I did this wrong.

I had a great time ph4rm1ng the wailing substance off the owlbears while they owned the village. Later that day the zone was reset, so I thought I'd help the owlbears take the worthless grimlings.

I killed the defenders and the chief, but the owlbears didn't win and never showed up. Did I kill the stuff too fast? Do I have to let the bears kill the chief?


Now, to answer the question. Shadowscream is worth it if you are a half-elf (thus no cultural path) and don't get a group often and don't have loads of money to spend on sickle attempts. Uh, which I am.

[Dvinn]

Just leave one defender alive. When the owlbears attack take his health down to about 20% and let the owlbears finish him off. The chief is not part of the equation, though I always kill any grimlings near the last defender so they don't assist or heal him.

[Radasar]

Worth it?

how would I know, I certainly hope so? I'm still working my way through getting the humming luiclinite hammer, spent 3 hours last night killing newbie bugs and shades At least the drop rate for the swirling shadows is relatively consistant, and they are no rent.. not no drop like the screeching and wailing substances are reported to be. as for worth it, plat wise I can sell dwarven cultural in the bazaar, but as it was pointed out, it is unlikely I will sell enough to match my combine/success rate. All shadow scream costs is time killing mobs, and that makes it exceptionally worth it. Ever sit 5 hours for an enchanter to enchant enough material to make 20 combine attempts? I have, twice..I am *still* trying to sell that stuff, shadowscream gives me the option to keep ~trying~ to move the skill up. what could be better?

[Flabbo McFattyfatfat]

I would lean towards yes. I have never gotten a single skillup on acrylia plate/chain, after doing several hundred combines. Shadowscream I could count on a point every 12 combines or so. It was a pita, but at least I wasnt trying to dump stuff on a flooded market, where my original customers were reselling it before I had cleared my stock :P

Perhaps its just superstition, but I know many who add their voice to mine when I say some recipes seem to give more skill ups than others.

[Rumadar]

Thanks for the input. I'll probably go after Shadowscream, which was what I was leaning towards myself. Now just to convince Verant to make humming orbs stackable. :|

And speaking of farming the swirling shadows. In Shadeweaver, I forget the exact loc. There is a region with approximately 9 spawn spots I think, divided into 3 little areas (all within sight). Those are the source of shade spawns. You can stand there and take every single shade that spawns for the zone. I easily get 10 shadows per hour there, at least.

The other skeleton spawns also spawn at those points, too.

[Arghargh]

Post fine steel, I skilled up on nothing but shadowscream and sickles. Worked for me.

Arghargh Grumble, Darkblood
57 Ogre Shaman of Rallos Zek
Alchemy – 160
Baking – 200
Brewing - 200
Fishing - 200
Fletching – 200
Jewelcraft –200
Potting - 200
Grandmaster Smith - 250
Tailoring – 159

[wold2]

re is shadwoscream worth it

Also as you probably know you don't have to take shadowscream all the way to 250. You can start sickles and break even or even make a profit around skill level 230 + geerlok...They will take you to 250

[Pisaster]

Shadowscream for skill points

Ok, given the quests to get what you need for the shadowscream combinations is irritating, BUT, it is an inexpensive way to raise your skill, and about the only inexpensive way out there. YES, you'll be farming green mobs til you're blue in the face to collect supplies. Any time you see owlbears controling the Grimling camp in Howling, ya have to farm the snot outta them for their substances, cause you can always go to TM for the sonic wolves.

Personally, I gather 2 - 3 stacks of supplies if either owlbears or wolves own the grimling camp in a couple hours, then when I feel like taking a break from xp/raids, head out to kill some shades for the no rent and start doing some combines. Decent point increase/combine ratio so far and only spent money on molds, ore for bits, water.

Haven't really looked at the market in Bazaar for them, I usually just sell the armor to merchants for some pp to reimburse my supplies. Was at 190 skill before the "night they nerfed smithing", and currently at 202 off the shadowscream (mostly cause my main is a tailor).

Good luck, it's a lil time consuming, but will save a TON of pp.

[Kingbobb]

The question of whether SS is worth it depends on what your other options are. As a human smith, I can advance to 236 or 237 on cultural, which is less time intensive to gather for a burn, but more expensive. After that, I'll switch to SS for burns, as my other options are BD cultural, acrylia, SS, and PoTC Sickles. Since I'm not in a guild, and am financing my smithing (and Emmoney's tailoring) with just the two of us and some help from a few friends, anything but SS is out of my pocketbook range for skilling up.

If you haven't checked your cultural options yet, I'd suggest looking into that, as it may be less time intensive.

[Rumadar]

So I was thinking, I should go SS until I hit 200. (Currently at 180. Slacked off smithing for a long time heheh). My cultural plate greaves, Koada'Dal Mithril Plate, goes trivial in between 230 and 237, and the breastplate, 237+.

I was definitely going SS the whole way, but then I realized that high elf cultural isn't THAT inconvenient. I can easily farm essence of moonlight, farm swirling mist from elementals in Twilight, or buy them since they usually go pretty cheap on this server. Morning dew is easily bought from the lower levels hunting in Gfay.

Then just get my mithril mass enchanted and have my friend imbue the emeralds. I could make greaves and BP's until they're trivial. Then go SS again for the final stretch, where being restricted to BD combines for the 250+ items would become too costly.

I don't think that's such a bad idea.