AAAA's a step by step guide?

[GrimwoodCT]

I have checked the many, very helpful, links for AAAA's and they are great but what I am seeking is something very dumbed down.

As is, let's save as much traveling as possible. Buy all THIS at this vendor, buy all THAT at the next, buy the OTHERS at THESE vendors now go to THIS zone and buy the rest.

Get THIS, THAT, OTHER in BAZAAR.

Now, do all your smithing here, your tailoring here and then do final combines. I know it is lazy for me to ask this but I just can't wrap my head around this stuff.

[Zaltak]

The bottleneck used to be gnomish clockwork bolts but they drop like crazy now in FM:-)

[Druegar]

Crescent Reach is your friend. All the vendor-purchased ingredients are in that zone, most of which are on the 2nd floor—there's even a bank up there. So I'd recommend just heading up there and trying one or two. You'll form a pattern that works well for you in no time.

My main is in the 2100 club, so I like to do all the non-tinkering combines on him first, then shared-bank-pass them to my tinker alt who makes the final combines.

I've attached a zipped Excel file I made with combine breakdowns, color-coded by tradeskill. I've found that having that sheet to reference while I'm working on AAAAs is helpful. YMMV.

[Aldier]

Crescent Reach or POK works now for the smithing as both zones contain all the needed parts for smithing.

I personally prefer to smith the Blocks of (XXX) High Quality Steel. From there I can store them easily if I need and then just take a hammer and file and can pound out any sized sheets needed for the combines. For the final smithing combines and tinkering combines, I like to use the bazaar as my tinkerer is on a separate account from my main (primary tradeskiller) and tinkerer would get weighed down if he left the bazaar. PoK is also just a zone away for all the JC and any other vendor sold parts as well.

After doing a box, you get all the recipes in your saved lists and it goes so much faster. My tinkerer also keeps a fairly good supply of all the tinkering parts, the gears, and screws, and shafts that are needed.

[Catweazel]

I have modified this based on feedback from Squeaky and to provide a "pure" Crescent Reach option. I'll let Squeaky figure out whether one guide with both locations was what he was looking for and he can amend as necessary

As others have suggested, this is not necessarily the cheapest route to make a 4A box (which would use Large Bricks in smithing).

Personally, I do all the work myself, and do the majority in about 15 to 20 minutes depending on how my clicky finger is doing. If you can free up more than 45 slots in inventory you will have slightly less trips between the Jeweller and Smith.

1. Enter Blightfire Moors, kill Gnolls until 4 Small Brick of Unrefined Ore drops (also collect emeralds)
2. Enter Crescent Reach
3. Go to the second floor
4. Go to Banker Qeb and remove 16000plat, Smithy Hammer, Chisel and File (Tradeskill Trophies if you need). Make sure you have 45 slots free in inventory and one top level inventory slot free.
5. Go to Smith Gyasi in the Foundry - purchase Large Brick of refined high quality ore, or /say assistance, decline the quest and receive the container, combine unrefined ore and return to restock. Purchase all 100 Large Bricks. Purchase 300 HQ Carbon Powder.
6. Go to Jeweller Nailah and purchase as many Gnomish Heat Source as you can leaving one slot in inventory free (for the first combine) (You need 699)
7. Return to the Foundry and make Large Bricks of High Quality Steel.
8. Repeat steps 6 and 7 until you have made 100 Large Bricks of HQ steel - and you need 99 Gnomish Heat Source remaining in inventory.
9. Make 33 Blocks of HQ Steel
10. Make 4 small pieces of HQ steel (from the remaining Large Brick)
11. Return to Smith Gyasi and purchase 100 Small Bricks of refined HQ ore and 100 HQ Carbon Powder.
12. Return to Jeweller Nailah and purchase 432 Gnomish Heat Source
13. Return to the Foundry and make 100 Small Bricks of HQ Steel, followed shortly after by 11 Blocks of HQ Steel. If you had no mistakes, you should now have 44 Blocks of HQ steel and over 40 inventory slots free.

The Crescent Reach Option - if you are like me and make many many AAAA boxes, you might learn to keep the following items in your bank inventory or available on your favourite Shadowrest Corpse or Mule: 3 blue diamonds, 1 Clockwork gear, 5 Clockwork Gnome bolts, 2 Clockwork Gnome shafts, 1 Clockwork Gnome spring, 9 Clockwork Pinion gears,1 Coiled spring, 2 Corathus entrails, 1 Diamond, 1 Glowgem, 1 Glowstone, 1 Innovative Clockwork gears, 1 Glowstone, 1 Shadowmane pelt, 1 Shiliskin bones, 1 Small Clockwork screws, 2 Small clockwork shafts, 9 Tiny Clockwork shafts. Of course I keep many stacks of these handy, and I also pre-produce Vegetable Oil, Infused Gears, Vials of Purified Mana and Purified Water, however your mileage may vary.

13a. CR Vendor shopping commences....you are still on the second floor right??
13b. Before you leave the second floor, stop by your bank and remove 3 Blue Diamonds, your glow/rock/gem/stone, 1 Diamond, 1 Shiliskin Bones, your collapsible Jewellery Bag, Gem Cutter, 2 Corathus Entrails, Skinning Knife and Collapsible Mixing Bowl. You will also need another 5000plat.
13c. Return to Jeweller Nailah and purchase 4 Platinum Bars, 17 Rubies and 1 Emerald.
13d. Move to Tailor Panya to purchase 3 Platinum Thread and make 2 Epicthieck's Power Belts and convert one into 5 small power belts.
13e. Next head to Fletching Merchant Tahirah to purchase a planar tool (and fletching kit if you need it).
13f. Next stop on your circuit of the second floor is Poisoner Salihah to purchase 2 scents of Marr, 2 Celestial Essence and 4 poison vials.
13g. Our final stop is to Potter Subira and purchase 2 Jars of Acid. Right next to her is the Kiln where you will dissolve the blue diamonds in the jars of acid to make Blue Diamond Powder. You can also make your Darkhollow Burrin Bundle and free up your top level inventory slot ready for some mixing and brewing.
14. It's time for the elevator!!
14a. Head to the Vegetable Merchant Halima and purchase 1 carrot/1 Turnip/1 Lettuce
14b. Head into the Bar. Purchase a stack of water from Brewmaster Ishak. If you are ready, brew up your Purified Water while you are in the bar. You can also make your Vegetables, Vegetable Oil and Celestial Temper.
14c. Go to the tinkering merchant behind the bank (Geerlok Clockwork Merchant IV) and get 1 metal shaft, one Mana Battery Class 6 and 6 gears. Open your Toolbox and make some Infused Gears. While you're at it, make your Clockwork pinion gear bundle in your toolkit.
15. Complete the JC combines at this time. Make 4 vials of purified mana, make your powdered glowrock and your glowstone fragments. Make your indicator mounts. Make your red, blue, green and clear indicators.
16. At this stage you have everything completed for pre-production. You can either return upstairs in CR to the forge or head to POK for final completion.


I keep Vegetable Oil and Purified Water in stock along with Vials of Purified Mana. I make power belts and bundles in advance and keep them in stock too.

Over time, I just whip off 33 blocks of HQ steel as I am passing thru CR and put them in stock too.

As far as I know, this is the least amount of running around. 90% of the work is on the 2nd floor between the Banker, the Jeweller and the Smith. The addition of the bag to token vendor was added in the 16/Jan patch (Raelnyna in Crescent Reach will now offer the same bag exchange services that Caerlyna in the bazaar offers.)

[GrimwoodCT]

NOTE: Much of this is shamelessly kipped from Cat's wonderful guide but I made it PoK friendly. Please feel free to post corrections, edit, mistakes, miscounts etc. Let's make this "sticky-able" for those getting started in the AAAA's. I suspect that some of my numbers are off on the shopping spree area.


Making Ambleshift's Amazing Automated Amalgamators: A Primer

Pre-Production. Make sure you have your file, smithy hammer, skinning knife. Collapsibles will save some time so ideally have your collapsible JC kit, fletching kit, mixing bowl, brewing kit. Have at the very least your tinkering trophy though it may be helpful to have your smithing, fletching, brewing and JC trophies if you have lower skill in some areas. Have at least 45 open inventory slots and the top bag slot open for the ore quest and collapsibles.


1. Enter Blightfire Moors, kill Gnolls until 4 Small Brick of Unrefined Ore drops (also collect emeralds)
2. Enter Crescent Reach
3. Go to any banker and remove 16000plat.
4. Go to the second floor.
5. Go to Smith Gyasi in the Foundry - purchase Large Brick of refined high quality ore, or /say assistance, decline the quest and receive the container, combine unrefined ore and return to restock. Purchase all 100 Large Bricks. Purchase 300 HQ Carbon Powder.
6. Go to Jeweller Nailah and purchase as many Gnomish Heat Source as you can leaving one slot in inventory free (for the first combine) (You need 699)
7. Return to the Foundry and make Large Bricks of High Quality Steel.
8. Repeat steps 6 and 7 until you have made 100 Large Bricks of HQ steel - and you need 99 Gnomish Heat Source remaining in inventory.
9. Make 33 Blocks of HQ Steel
10. Make 4 small pieces of HQ steel (from the remaining Large Brick)
11. Return to Smith Gyasi and purchase 100 Small Bricks of refined HQ ore and 100 HQ Carbon Powder.
12. Return to Jeweller Nailah and purchase 432 Gnomish Heat Source
13. Return to the Foundry and make 100 Small Bricks of HQ Steel which yield 33 Large bricks of HQ steel which in turn make 11 Blocks of HQ Steel. Make 23 Small high quality steel plates, 4 Large high quality steel plates. Purchase the molds for and make 2 high quality hinges and one high quality latch.
14. Last stop in CR go toTailor Panya and buy 3 platinum threads.
15. Go to PoK. Get up, stretch your legs, get a glass of water.
16. Vendor shopping commences. Go to the tinkering merchant near small bank and get 1 metal shaft and 6 gears. Head towards the fishing pond getting 1 planing tool at fletching merchants, 2 scents of Marr and 4 poison vials at the poison merchant, a stack of water at the general merchant, 2 celestial essences at the reagent merchant, 2 jars of acid at the smithing merchant.
17. Go to the JC merchant and purchase 1 emerald, 17 rubies, 4 platinum bars.
18. Go to the tinkering merchant near the JC locale and get one Mana Battery Class 6.
19. Time to hit the bazaar to round out your materials for anything you have not farmed, begged, borrowed or pick-pocketed. You will need the following sundry goods: 3 blue diamonds, 1 Clockwork gear, 5 Clockwork Gnome bolts, 2 Clockwork Gnome shafts, 1 Clockwork Gnome spring, 9 Clockwork Pinion gears,1 Coiled spring, 2 Corathus entrails, 1 Diamond, 1 Glowgem, 1 Glowstone, 1 Innovative Clockwork gears, 1 Glowstone, 1 Shadowmane pelt, 1 Shiliskin bones, 1 Small Clockwork screws, 2 Small clockwork shafts, 9 Tiny Clockwork shafts.
20. Leave the bazaar and go to the kiln and make 2 blue diamond powders.
21. Go to the baking merchants and purchase one vegetables. Since we are here will dispense with some preliminaries. Open your mixing bowl and make 2 celestial essences. In the nearby brew barrel make 2 purified waters followed by 2 celestial tempers. Also make one vegetable oil in the brew barrels. In your toolbox, make 2 infused gears.
22. Let's get the JC style stuff out of the way. Make 4 vials of purified mana, make your powdered glowrock and your glowstone fragments. Make your indicator mounts. Make your red, blue, green and clear indicators.
23. If you do not have a collapsible fletching kit, go to the fletching vendors and get a planar kit. Make your darkhollow burin bundle.
24. In loom make 2 Epicthieck's Power Belts. Convert one into 5 small power belts.
25. Make your Clockwork pinion gear bundle in your toolkit.
26. Pre-production is basically done. Go to the nearest forge. Open your toolbox and begin making the 7 assemblable pieces for the AAAA.

[Aldier]

I would only recommend a change with the Refined ore you use.

First, I would use the Large bricks of refined HQ ore.

Next, I would buy the 50 Blocks of Refined HQ Ore, use your Chisel to make 2 Lg Bricks per Block. This will give you 200 Large Bricks of HQ Steel.

Also, the Small Bricks of Refined HQ Ore should be combined to make Large Bricks of Refined HQ Ore before you make HQ Steel out of them.

Large Brick of Refined HQ Ore = 3 Small Brick of Refined HQ Ore + 1 Water Flask

vs

Large Brick of HQ Steel = 3 Small Bricks of HQ Steel + 2 Gnomish Heat Sources.

Considering 1 Water is much cheaper than 2 GHS. Also, to prevent waste, I tend to only use Large Bricks of HQ Ore -> Large Bricks of HQ Steel -> Blocks.

When you break down Large Bricks into Small Bricks, you lose material. So Instead of taking that 100th Large Brick of HQ Steel to make the Small Pieces for the latch and hinges, use 2 of the Small Bricks of Refined Ore -> Small Bricks of HQ Steel -> Small Pieces of HQ Steel.

This again, is a small savings and only works if the vendors have all sizes of refined ore, but if you do the restocking quest, that is a non-issue, unless someone vendor mines the refined ore while you are working with it.

Also, I have found SolA to be a good place to farm the unrefined bricks. Since they do not stack, you can get the task from a vendor and combine them in the box and store just the box if you need more bank space and don't want to have to go farm them each time you want to make an AAAA.

[Roanne]

15. Get Thurgadin out of the way. Go there, get platinum thread, heck get 2 stacks of it. It is the only reason to leave PoK/CR/bazaar unless you are doing some additional farming.

Tailor Panya in CR sells platinum thread. The entire AAAA can be made in CR. Platinum thread is the only component missing in PoK and it would be nice if it could be added to a merchant there.

[GrimwoodCT]

Ty Roanne!! Will change that.

[Aldier]

14. Last stop in CR go toTailor Panya and buy 1 platinum thread

You need 3 threads.

Corathus Entrails (2)...first makes the Epicthiek Power Belt used in final combine (1 thread)... second make the power belt and then make small belts from it (2 threads) to use in the mechanoinstruction reader.

[GrimwoodCT]

Changed, thank you Aldier.