There has to be a better way....

[Meirril]

Ok, a more direct answer to your question is that the Solstice Robes are the easiest of the combines to collect materials for (as most of the components you'll need are either vendor sold or dropped for low to mid level players). If you want to cut down your costs signficantly I suspect that the dracnids in DL might be a way to do that. They certainly drop silk, and plat coins. They also drop spell components. I'm not certain if they can be used for making CE but even if they are too high of a level for that, they could probably be traded for components that can be made into CE. Just make sure to copy the full list of known combinables (heck, try all the ones you get. List may not be complete) and have at. Trade C5 for a stack of imbuned emeralds (you provide emeralds) or better yet find a HE smith that will imbune emeralds if you'll imbune mithril. Even just shout "looking for a tunare cleric/druid" should get some response.

Chains?...everyone else here knows more about JC than I do. Good luck with those.

[Narith]

Aye I did have a nasty run on the chains, bought up material for 30 combines and at the worst point failed 9 in a row... ended up with 7 successes of 30 even with my eyeglass equipped.

Also you are all right I am impatient. I have 400kish to work with so that's why I said money was not a problem, but it was my own fault for assuming that since I GMed jewelcraft and brewing, hit 200 with smithing baking and fletching all on about 40k total that 40k was too much for 14 points.

Looks like robes are the way to go. Best bet seems to be just c5 a level 29 druid, hand em 5k, all the emeralds he can hold, and tell him not to stop imbuing til his fingers start to bleed. Ugh and I so hoped I was done silk farming, already bought out bazaar twice over on most of that stuff.

Well I appreciate all of your help . Just wish I could remember why I wanted to GM all skills :?

[Moraganth]

There was a post a bit back by a 250 tailor that bought their skillup.. as i remember they were into it for 900k to 1000k. The problem you have is not realizing from the start how much plat it would take going this route... hence your suprise.

I occasionally buy velium now, and pelts.. but i'm very patient with purchases. No more than 15pp per wyvern or raptor pelt... no more than 25pp per small brick. I don't bother with the large bricks or blocks, they're just one more click where the "less than intelligent" 5% minimum fail rate can spring up. I make my own ce, and tempers... costs around 200 a stack.

My suggestion is, "because you have money" isn't a good reason not to spend it wisely. Set caps on the costs you're willing to pay for items... and don't set them high. If someone is overpriced.. simply don't buy it.

[Vile]

Gem studded chains...

I can believe the bad luck here - the same happend to my 250 Jeweller.

I made 5 Chains in 30 !!! YES I was really pissed and nearly gave up.

BUT in my last run I made 16 of 20 !!!

Just that random thing again...

A word of warning on Solstice robes , once you start to hit the 210 mark you start to make LOTS more robes. Pre 210 I was making around 1 Robe per 40 combines , since getting to 210 I have been making about 1 Robe in 10 Combines

[Thuldorn]

Gem Encrusted Chains

I to am a 250 jeweler w/eyeglass and geerloc (I know it doesn;t help but does it hurt?). And am succeeding at about a 40-50% clip on making these. However after (2) 1/9 runs in 2 different sessions I decided that they sucked. I found a 250 JC Enc (i'm a necro) guildie to make the chains for me, enc with the JC AA skill that is. She made 18/20 for me.

Oh I'm 219 tailoring now and yes from 200 to 219 I'm averaging about 20 combines per skill up.

[Liwsa]

Only time my 250 jeweler made chains she went 7 out of 10.

If you want an easier route to skill up Othmir caps if you can kill them(never see furs for sell in bazaar on Terris-Thule. I average about 1 fur per 4 kills). Since you are an enchanter you can make your own vials. They use no velium or acrylia just store bought silver thread(around 1-2pp each).

Othmir cap = 2 othmir furs + silver thread + vial of clear mana(level 29 spell(emerald + poision vial)) + cap pattern.

Liwsa 60 druid
205 Tailor
Terris-Thule

[eqNichola]

I think the main lesson to be learned from this post is that taking up tailoring is a great way to learn you're not as rich as you think you are

If that comment about someone buying their way to 250 with 900k-1000k is correct, then I think it's something that deserves to go in the faq, maybe thusly:

Q: I have lots of money, can I just buy everything I need to skill up to 250?
A: When you say 'lots', do you mean 1,000,000pp? Because that's what you'll need. Yes, really.

[Karosi]

Re: There has to be a better way...

Well, have to say this thread has been very useful. My spouse was quite upset that it took 40 combines to go up just 2 skill points from 158-160 and wanted to know if there was a better way to do this. Well, I can explain that there isn't, we just have to tough it out like everyone else in the tailoring community. Probably won't be happy about it, but maybe more accepting.

We had managed to farm 2 stacks of superb hides and enough acrylia to do them all and then some. Talk about time consuming, but we are fortunate that we still get exp for hunting rockhoppers. Scarlet Desert has been kind to us.

Been looking into the velious armors and starting to collect skins/pelts for those. Also looking into farming the velium too. Already make our own coldain velium temper, so saving money there.

At least we agree that we should collect the items ourselves and only buy pelts/skins if they are cheap enough. We'll make it to 250 eventually.

[Delandril]

Well, the way the Solstice Robe market has died on FV, I think the days of skilling up on them has ended...especially past 210. I now have a backpack full of the things I can't sell for 500pp each. I think from now on I'm just going to stick with reinforced hopper to about 230, and then switch to Wyvern. I'm one of those weird people that believes that there is a sweet spot in skilling up on certain items at certain skill levels. Anyway....The DS hoppers are about as easy to quad as the wyverns as a druid at 52 since the wolves don't aggro on me...most of the time. The flawless aren't super uncommon. If you can get yourself kei you should be able to process the hoppers fairly quickly. The Flawless hides also drop in scarlet and mons letalis.

[Pisaster]

Throw more money at it...

ROFL....

MONEY... More Money... hehe

Solstice robes are your "quickest" way to get the number of combines you'd need to buy your way to GM status... but it is a HUGE pp sink, lucky for you money is no problem. Acrylia studded/reinforced armor is your best bet at skill points/per combine though, but as you said, hard to buy in quantity.

Note for helping you do reinforced acrylia:

Buy every pelt you see for sale in Bazaar, just keep buying them til you save up a few stacks. Spend your time farming the ore (I'll let you pick the spot). Use some relaxing time with a couple friends to farm certain spots for the ore and maybe a lil xp.

Good luck, some of us pp is a restriction... hehe

[rassy fleetfoot]

eep =p

now im really askeered of tailoring hehe..i knew it was bad before, i even made a cute little halfling named Stitchy to work on tailoring, but i havent worked on it since my last batch (well my only batch) of robes..i managed to make 8 of them..and have sold ONE. Im price matching in bazaar, i wont undercut just cos im price matching the guy who's already undercutting..and at a skill of 189 im afraid to do another batch of robes for fear i'll be stuck with a giant non stacking bunch of them i cant get rid of.

guess its time to farm some velium again...

yes its expensive, i cant imagine having 100k in the bank to play with in any event, let alone a million...**** you verant!

[Liwsa]

Tailoring is a long hard road of farming, farming, and more farming. Did I mention you need a lot of patience to farm. It takes time and energy to gather components to get tailoring to 250. Most people give up it is so hard but it sounds like you and your wife are determined so welcome to the club of tailoring addicts. The more things you farm yourself the better it will feel when you hit 250. Try to find spots that can get you exp while you farm and it will not seem like a chore. Not sure if you posted your chars' levels and classes but if you do I am sure people here can help you find good spots to exp and get a nice supply of tailoring items.

Liwsa 60 Druid
205 Tailor
Terris-Thule

[gnormy]

If you're just starting tailoring and are mid 40s, the Jagged Pine Poachers are a good place to get a variety of old world hides (HQ,MQ,LQ Wolf/Cat/Bear). So you'll get Exp and Hides for tailoring.

[bearcaller]

I wish I could get 14 points for 40k....I'm getting close to 30k for a single point, and that is farming 90% of components and ALL CE and temper subcombines.

[Sylphan]

On my server there are always a few people selling solstise robes in the bazaar for under 200 pp. On the weekend you can probably go vendor diving in PoK and find solstise robes on vendors for around 17 pp each. I'm afraid the solstise robe market is about as dead as the market for acrylia masks. You can make them but don't plan on selling them.

There are still some things that can be sold for break-even or better. Some of the cultural things sell well -- haversacks and many of the LoY robes. Acrylia tunics sell, and sometimes cloaks, leggings, sleeves, or whatever. Cobalt drake belts. Black pantherskin armor has sold surprisingly well for me. Ice silk caps or cloaks if you have a high enough success rate. If you stick to those sorts of items you can make most of your money back from sales, if you're very patient. But on the whole, you're really just looking for ways to reduce the costs from 300 to 200 or even to 100pp per combine most of the time. Farming components is very effective at that, but remember how much money you're losing from not selling those components in the bazaar.