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A Misers Guide to Smithing to 188 - With Cost Analysis

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  • A Misers Guide to Smithing to 188 - With Cost Analysis

    A Misers Guide to Smithing to 188 - With Cost Analysis

    This is merely one way to smith, if you're trying to be somewhat miserly. Before you begin, I suggest you buy the following:

    - Smithy Hammer (10p5g)
    - Geerlok Automated Hammer (Check Bazaar, I got mine for 100p)
    - If you're a non-caster, as much STR gear as you can afford without being silly about it, eg Crusty Shell or Validus Custodus Plate. If you're a caster you should be trying to max your WIS/INT for the most part anyway. You may want to get a few WIS items to swap into slots that you have MANA items for instead.
    - Enough CHA gear to get you above 110 CHA. Encrusted Opal Steins with get you a total of +50 cha and can be had relatively cheaply for as low as 60plat a pair. People skill up on these so despite their relative difficulty, the market is pretty saturated with them. This guide is going to assume you have indifferent or better faction and 110+ cha in order to get best merchant pricing. If you don't, you may find your buying costs higher and your sellbacks lower. This is *really* important, because once you hit banded, combines take a few plat per attempt, but sell back for almost as much as it costs to make them, saving you a large amount of plat in the long run, and that's what this guide is about.

    For reference, I've never seen more than about 1.5k in my bank at the same time in my entire EQ career, my blacksmith is a Dark Elf Shadowknight and is only level 36, my STR is a mere 140ish, and some of the advice in this guide I haven't followed even for myself--most notably buying STR gear--and yet I've managed to get my smithing to a respectable 175 as well as make myself three pieces of Enchanted Adamantite Plate--Boots, Bracer, and Visor.

    Section 1: The Cheap, Carpal Tunnel Years

    Method 1: Bits'n'Banded

    Pros: Everything is merchant sold.

    Cons: You'll still burn a couple hundred plat at this stage, so if you're trying to be REALLY miserly scroll down to method 2.

    Step 1: Metal Bits to 18

    Since you're going to need a buttload of these things anyway, don't waste the training points and just make, oh, say, a backpack. Which means you'll need two backpacks worth of small pieces of ore (1.050 per stack) and a backpack of water flasks (0.210 per stack, if you buy with shift click). Combine two pieces of ore and a flask of water and pray the gods aren't laughing at you today. Repeat until you're out of ore.

    Once you've broken your wrist making all of that make yourself a file and hope you get a skillup.

    Metal Bits + File Mold + Water

    Step 2: Field Point Arrowheads to 41

    Field Point Arrowheads: Metal Bits + File + Water (Cost 0.114) (Sellback 0.100) (Success Cost 0.014)

    Once you hit 41 make yourself a skinning knife, you're going to want it for padding. Dagger Blade Mold + Hilt Mold + Small Brick of Ore + Water Flask (Cost 1.070)

    Step 3: Dairy Spoons to 74

    Dairy Spoon: 2 Metal Bits + Scaler Mold + Water Flask (Cost 0.290) (Sellback 0.136) (Success Cost 0.154)

    You'll probably lose a lot of the spoons here, but this is an "easy" and cheap way to get to 74. I ran out of metal bits at 72 when I was skilling up and just said screw it and moved on to Banded. I was sick of bits. Feel free to do the same.

    Step 4: Banded Gorgets to 92

    Banded Gorget: Sheet Metal + Gorget Mold + Water Flask (Cost 1.091)

    Step 5: Banded Bracers to 95

    Banded Bracer: Sheet Metal + Bracer Mold + Water Flask (Cost 1.375)

    Step 6: Banded Gauntlets to 102

    Banded Gauntlets: 2 Sheet Metal + Gauntlet Mold + Water Flask (Cost 2.425)

    Step 7: Banded Helms to 106

    Banded Helm: 2 Sheet Metal + Helm Mold + Water Flask (Cost 2.740) (Sellback 2.571) (Success Cost 0.169)

    Step 8: Banded Leggings to 108

    Banded Leggings: 3 Sheet Metal + Leggings Mold + Water Flask (Cost 4.210)

    Step 9: Banded Mail to 115

    Banded Mail: 3 Sheet Metal + Mail Mold + Water Flask (Cost 4.420) (Sellback 4.190) (Success Cost 0.230)

    Method 2: Condensed Shadow Arrowheads

    Pros: Cheap, cheap, cheap way to get smithing to 116 if you don't mind greenie farming.

    Cons: Greenie farming. 'Nuff said.

    Run over to Shadeweavers' Thicket and kill "shak dratha". They can drop multiple "Chunk of Condensed Shadows" at a time. Collect as many as you can stand. They stack.

    Then run to a forge and use the following recipe:

    Chunk of Condensed Shadow + File + Water: Condensed Shadow Arrowheads (yield 2) (Cost 0.010)

    You can try to sell these in the bazaar, they're for making acrylia arrows which trivial above 250, so people trying to GM fletching will want a lot of these.

    If you have a bit of money to burn, you can go merchant diving, the chunks sell for about 6 gold a piece of I recall correctly. Of course, even after that, selling the arrowheads at 5p a piece in bazaar you could make a nice little profit.

    Section 2: The Painful Years

    There are three ways you can go here. Which one you want to take is up to you, as they can all take a fair bit of farming.

    If you haven't already, buy yourself a smithing hammer.

    Method 1: Ornate Chain

    Pros: Good chance at success.

    Cons: Materials purchased at *three* different vendors scattered across PoK. The merchant has a *finite* supply of HQ ore and must be restocked periodically. HQ ore does not stack and is heavy as hell. The sellback rate on ornate chain sucks compared to what it costs to make if you buy the HQ ore off a vendor.

    If you are a mid level (35+ probably more like 40+) you can alleviate some of the pains of Ornate Chain by farming Fine Steel in High Keep, so long as you don't mind trashing your guard faction in HK, W/E Freeport, and Corrupt Qeynos. There's an excellent and detailed post on the EQTraders forums which I shall link http://mboards.eqtraders.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=142here</a> for those interested.

    However, for this guide, I am going to assume that you buy the HQ ore.

    Note that for chain combines that take an odd number of rings I'm going to list the costs as split, because of the fact that to use up all the materials you'd have to buy, you need to do two combines. First one is for two combines, second one is for one combine. Yes, I will list half coppers. I'm trying to be thorugh here.

    HQ Metal Rings (yields 2): Large Brick HQ Ore + File + Water (Cost 17.335)

    Step 1: Ornate Chain Gorgets to 119 (Note: When I skilled up I skipped Gorgets as first, so I don't have the sellback rate handy. Anybody who does?)

    Ornate Chain Gorget: 1 HQ Ring + Chainmail Gorget Pattern + Silver Bar + Water + Smithy Hammer (Cost 19.435/9.7175) (Sellback X/X) (Success Cost X/X)

    Step 2: Ornate Chain Bracelets to 122

    Ornate Chain Bracelet: 1 HQ Ring + Chainmail Bracelet Pattern + Silver Bar + Water + Smithy Hammer (Cost 20.485/10.2425) (Sellback 10.952/5.476) (Success Cost 9.533/4.7665)

    Step 3: Ornate Electrum Chain Gorgets to 126

    Ornate Electrum Chain Gorget: 1 HQ Ring + Chainmail Gorget Pattern + Electrum Bar + Water + Smithy Hammer (Cost 23.475/11.7375) (Sellback 12.876/6.438) (Success Cost 10.599/5.2995)

    Step 4: Ornate Electrum Chain Bracelets to 128

    Ornate Electrum Chain Bracelet: 1 HQ Ring + Chainmail Bracelet Pattern + Electrum Bar + Water + Smithy Hammer (Cost 26.805/13.4025) (Sellback 14.762/7.381) (Success Cost 12.043/6.0215)

    Step 5: Ornate Gold Chain Gorgets to 132

    Ornate Gold Chain Gorget: 1 HQ Ring + Chainmail Gorget Pattern + Gold Bar + Water + Smithy Hammer (Cost 39.385/19.6925) (Sellback 27.162/13.581) (Success Cost 12.223/6.1115)

    Step 6: Ornate Gold Chain Bracelets to 135

    Ornate Gold Chain Bracelet: 1 HQ Ring + Chainmail Bracelet Pattern + Gold Bar + Water + Smithy Hammer (Cost 42.545/21.2725) (Sellback 29.048/14.524) (Success Cost 13.497/6.7485)

    Step 7: Ornate Electrum Chain Coifs to 139

    Ornate Electrum Chain Coif: 2 HQ Rings + Chainmail Coif Pattern + Electrum Bar + Water + Smithy Hammer (Cost 24.170) (Sellback 12.381) (Success Cost 11.781)

    Step 8: Ornate Gold Chain Sleeves to 142

    Ornate Gold Chain Sleeves: 2 HQ Rings + Chainmail Sleeves Pattern + Gold Bar + Water + Smithy Hammer (Cost 32.045) (Sellback 19.524) (Success Cost 12.521)

    Step 9: Ornate Gold Chain Coifs to 146

    Ornate Gold Chain Coifs: 2 HQ Rings + Chainmail Coif Pattern + Gold Bar + Water + Smithy Hammer (Cost 32.045) (Sellback 19.524) (Success Cost 12.521)

    At this point you *can* move to Electrum Mail to 148 and Gold Mail to 155, but I figured the cost would be too prohibitive and moved on to Fine Plate at this point. If anybody wants to submit the sellbacks for Electrum/Gold mail I'll update the guide.

    I strongly suggest you skip Platinum altogether. 105 plat per attempt *just on the bar* is a lot to eat on a failure at this stage, and I have no idea what the sellback is like because I never bothered. Again, if somebody wants to submit the sellbacks, I'll update the guide.

    Method 2: Fine Plate

    Pros: Only one non-storebought component, better sellbacks than Ornate Chain. People might actually buy Fine Plate. Ornate Chain is an absolute bitch to sell to players.

    Cons: EVERY combine takes a leather padding, which you either have to farm yourself or buy in the bazaar for whatever ungodly rate people sell it for. (I've seen somebody trying to sell it for 50 plat a piece... what's sad is that I think they sold it.) The ore is pretty heavy and doesn't stack. Going straight to Fine Plate from Banded is a good way to burn stacks and stacks of padding as well as lose quite a bit of plat on failures.

    If you wish, you can skip Ornate Chain and jump straight to Fine Plate from Banded, but be aware that your success rate as first will be horrid and you'll probably lose a lot of plat. I worked up to 146 on Ornate Chain before I went to Fine Plate and had a fairly decent success rate with my geerlok.

    If you need leather padding, I suggest going to Marus Seru and slaughtering Greyhoppers. They drop LQ rockhopper hides about 60-70% of the time (I'm not kidding) which can be used to make padding. They're only a low 20s mob, so pretty easy to kill for somebody who's this serious about smithing. If you're a tailor too, the greyhopper hides that they also drop are an easy way to get tailoring to 95. Look up the recipe yourself, this is a smithing guide!

    After you've collected plenty of those hides, head for Shadeweaver's. In this zone, everything and it's mother drops shadeling silk. Two shadeling silks in a sewing kit makes a thread... combine the thread with the lq rockhopper hide and you get your padding. Regular silk threads also work for this. I have not tested if you can use shadeling silk with old world LQ pelts. Anybody know?

    MQ Folded Sheet Metal: 1 Block MQ Ore + Smithy Hammer + Water (Cost: 20.537)

    Step 1: Fine Plate Collars to 166

    Fine Plate Collar: 1 MQ Folded Sheet Metal + Plate Collar Mold + Leather Padding + Smithy Hammer + Water (Cost 21.282) (Sellback 21.143) (Success Cost 0.139)

    Step 2: Fine Plate Bracers to 168

    Fine Plate Bracer: 1 MQ Folded Sheet Metal + Plate Bracelet Mold + Leather Padding + Smithy Hammer + Water (Cost 26.487) (Sellback 26.571) (Success *Profit* 0.084)

    Step 3: Fine Plate Gauntlets to 175

    Fine Plate Gauntlets: 2 MQ Folded Sheet Metal + Plate Gauntlet Mold + Leather Padding + Smithy Hammer + Water (Cost 44.234) (Sellback 42.857) (Success Cost 1.377)

    Step 4: Fine Plate Helms to 179

    Fine Plate Gauntlets: 2 MQ Folded Sheet Metal + Plate Helm Mold + Leather Padding + Smithy Hammer + Water (Cost 51.584) (Sellback 51.429) (Success Cost 0.155)

    I have not yet reached 179, so I do not have the sellback on the BP. As soon as I get there I will update.

    Step 5: Fine Plate Breastplates to 188

    Fine Plate Gauntlets: 3 MQ Folded Sheet Metal + Plate Breastplate Mold + Leather Padding + Smithy Hammer + Water (Cost 82.621) (Sellback ?) (Success Cost ?)

    Method 3: Humming Orbs

    Pros: Cheapest way to get smithing to 168. When you hit 188 you're going to want these to make Shadowscream.

    Cons: The components are no drop and farmed off lower-level mobs which means a lot of boring greenie camping if you're above 40 or so. Unless you head to Tenebrous, the Dire Sonic Wolves there are 35ish and drop shrieking about 1 in 4. (This is where I get my shrieking.) The orbs are slightly heavy (2.5 each, it adds up.) and most importantly DO NOT STACK, which eats up a ton of bank space. Plus you have to do a series of quests in Shar Vahl before you can even make the orbs.

    Metal Ring (yield 2): 1 Large Brick of Ore + File + Water (Cost 1.585)

    Humming Orb: 1 shrieking substance + 1 wailing substance + 1 (regular) metal rings + (Humming) Luclinite Mallet + Vah Shir Anvil (Cost 0.7925)
    Tillomiki Makh - Wood Elf Rogue of the 52nd circle/stab/slice/pickpocket/pincushion
    Bane Sidhe - Fennin Ro
    Semi-GM Fletcher (202)
    Tradeskill Alts - Nietzrieche - Smithing 177 - Terbello - Jewelcraft 184 - Trinaindae - Tailoring 88 - Zakmaelian - Baking 163 - Huroya - Brewing 138

  • #2
    ..

    good guide..im all about doing it the cheapest way i can..and this is most likely how i would do it if i had to start all over well except that ornate chain stuff..thats entirey too much of a pain in the butt hehe

    Comment


    • #3
      Super cheap way to get to 116 in smithing - condensed shadow arrowheads.

      chunk of condensed shadow, flask of water, file

      The shadows drop off of &lt;20 mobs in Shadoweaver's Thicket - they're a very easy farm and you can dumpster dive the merchants in the area as well, plus, NO ONE is KOS to the NPCs there unless they've done something to hose them off.

      Bonus is that with a bit of patience, you can sell the arrowheads in the bazaar for a few plat to boot.

      Cost to do if you destroy/sell success to merchants - maybe 10 plat or so, cost to do if you sell results to players - my WE Ranger was about 200 plat in the black for her troubles.
      Cigarskunk!
      No more EQ for me till they fix the crash bug.

      Comment


      • #4
        Actually Sol A is the best place to get HQ ore.

        You kill the goblins, you can resell the loot that drops there (maybe, depends on server), you can use the unrefined ore to repop a vendor for later mining, as well as faction, plat and exp, and the fine steel weapons can be converted to HQ ore, as well as ore drops.

        Perma is good, but doesn't have da lewt (though it is farmable at lower levels, barbarians are rather anti-social), HH basement doesn't have the spawn rate for really good strip farming of the zone, drop rates in Runnyeye are low.

        If you want to be really cheap about it, Sol A should be your home (and it's close to Neriak for dark elves. Invest in a rallic pack and a large soiled bag (&lt;- must have for every smith).

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by Cigarskunk
          Super cheap way to get to 116 in smithing - condensed shadow arrowheads.
          I'd forgotten about these... thank you for reminding me. I updated the guide. I doubt I'd have used this, because I think it took me maybe 200 plat to get to 115, but for somebody who was being REALLY stingy, it works great.
          Tillomiki Makh - Wood Elf Rogue of the 52nd circle/stab/slice/pickpocket/pincushion
          Bane Sidhe - Fennin Ro
          Semi-GM Fletcher (202)
          Tradeskill Alts - Nietzrieche - Smithing 177 - Terbello - Jewelcraft 184 - Trinaindae - Tailoring 88 - Zakmaelian - Baking 163 - Huroya - Brewing 138

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: A Misers Guide to Smithing to 188 - With Cost Analysis

            Originally posted by Tillomiki
            A Misers Guide to Smithing to 188
            Here are some notes on making your learning even more "cost conscious".

            > Smithy Hammer

            No need to buy this until you are ready to make folded sheets.

            > Geerlok Automated Hammer

            No need to buy this until you are ready to make something "to keep". If you are 255 in your learning stat without your primary slot, get it. Otherwise, you buy this with the profits from your first sale and dont bother about it until then. 255 learning stat is more important.

            > If you're a non-caster, as much STR gear as you can afford without
            > being silly about it

            Want to save money? Get 255 in your learning stat before you ever start. For the really cost conscious, you choose a Warrior and use STR as your learning stat. Crustacean Shell and Validus Custodus Plate are good places to start; these should be very cheap. Remember, no matter what your learning stat is, increases to that stat are all that matters. Gear that is useless for grinding, like Bear Skins of Rage, become golden for learning. Don't forget to consider getting buffs and using stat increasing food as well.

            A real miser will grind his teeth at this stage; there is little way to get this gear cheap other than buying it at the lowest price in the bazaar. Since they added searching by stat, however, it easy to find the most stat for the least cash. Farming this gear yourself is an option if you have the levels. Begging is low, but perhaps the real miser would stoop to that... for a few pieces.

            > Enough CHA gear to get you above 110 CHA.

            Even more important than 255 in learning is 105 or more in CHA. You will be buying and selling things; best prices mean the difference between threadbare and just plain "tradeskill broke". Opal encrusted steins are huge payoffs. Even non-tradeskill people should have a pair.

            A real miser already has recognized the benefits of a high CHA and bought these long ago.

            > Step 3: Dairy Spoons to 74 (Cost 0.290) (Sellback 0.136) (Success Cost 0.154)

            For myself, nothing was cheaper than dumping 21 points into the skill at my guild trainer. This makes metal bits and files trivial. Then, I made stacks of bits. Then I did Dairy Spoons until I ran out of bits. Did I go to 74? No. I just got close to trivial and then moved on. This saves time and frustration without wasting money. So for me; trainer to 21, dairy spoon to 70ish.

            A real miser will get out there and convert rusty weapons to tarnished and tarnished to ore and use that ore to make bits and sheets. This is too much time and effort for me. Instead, it is easier to simply kill things for cash and buy the metal. Also, the real miser would do scalars between guild trainer and dairy spoons to take advantage of successes.

            > Step 4: Banded Gorgets to 92
            > Step 7: Banded Helms to 106
            > Step 9: Banded Mail to 115

            These are the only steps I used. I just spent about 200p on it, buying sheets of metal and molds from vendors.

            A real miser could make sheets from rusty weapons as noted earlier. Poor miser.

            > Method 2: Condensed Shadow Arrowheads

            I did not like this method when I tried it. It is too difficult and time consuming to acquire enough condensed shadow. A real miser will do this method, farming the condensed shadow in Shadeweavers. It will take a very long time. Note that doing this method can give you enough cash to set you up later; selling shade silk as well as the arrowheads can be profitable.

            > Method 1: Ornate Chain

            A real miser will do this step, but they will not buy HQ ore! They will farm fine steel weapons and convert them into ore. Need a good place to do this? There is nothing in the game better than the highland kobold camps in Stonebrunt Mountains. They drop fine steel very often. Also, they drop plat, bamboo splint, blue bamboo splint, and other trinkets you can sell for a few plat per piece. Sell the Etched Iron in the bazaar for a good profit. There is no meaningful faction hit and you get better with both Erudin and Paineel. There are merchants and a forge in the same zone, indifferent to almost all. If only there were a bank and a water vendor!

            SolA? Too tight, too slow, too many trains and too far away. I am too low to try much else; anyplace that takes a group to get you FS weapons will be a waste of time. The real miser doesn't want to share them. Also, things would have to drop FS weapons every time to be better than Highland kobolds.

            > Step 2: Ornate Chain Bracelets to 122
            > Step 6: Ornate Gold Chain Bracelets to 135

            These are the only steps I did. And I only made it to 131 before moving on to Fine Plate. The real miser will be addicted to cash at the highland kobold camps, so they can probably continue on gold armor, but I wince every time I buy a gold bar. Ten plat is a lot for a miser wannabe.

            > If you need leather padding, I suggest going to Marus Seru and
            > slaughtering Greyhoppers.

            The real miser agrees! This is the best access to low quality pelts. The real miser uses the Greyhopper pelts to skillup tailoring so that he can make his own leather padding. 1 Greyhopper pelts plus 1 boot pattern. Note that the Recuso and the guards will fight zelniak and lightcrawler adds and there is no need to track; you just look across the open plain and there is always another Greyhopper.

            > After you've collected plenty of those hides, head for Feerrott and slaughter jungle spider(ling)s.

            Bah! I have seen this advice over and over. It is "old school". "nU sK00l" is 'a lesser shade' on the northeast end of Shadeweavers. I picked up 12 stacks of shadeling silk in 2 hours. No tracking. No faction problems. Spawn faster than you can kill 'em, guaranteed. Plus, the real miser sells the other things they drop to vendors and gets extra money from the swirling shadows in the bazaar.

            > Step 2: Fine Plate Bracers to 168

            I went from 131 to 163 last night in 120 attempts at 255 STR with the Vah Shir +3% smithing cloak on. I succeeded about 5 times out 7 attempts and sold it back to vendors. I will put the cash back into it to try to make 188; I expect I should be able to do it.

            The real miser wishes something dropped medium quality ore. Instead, he does Humming Orbs. Don't forget to forge the metal rings from ore you converted from rusty weapons.
            Arou
            47th Vah Shir Warrior
            Ronin Caste Officer
            Lanys T'Vyl

            Comment


            • #7
              I found it very easy to do worked silver chains untill 111, then Embroidery needles till 122.


              Course, The 2 CE and bad sellback make Embroidery Needles kind of unmiserly.


              But 3p per attempt till 122 is nice.

              And if you are a halfling or Wood elf, dont forget Vale Sewing Kits and Koala'Dal Fletching Kits from 122-160ish


              -Lilosh
              Venerable Noishpa Taltos , Planar Druid, Educated Halfling, and GM Baker.
              President and Founder of the Loudmouthed Sarcastic Halflings Society
              Also, Smalltim

              So take the fact of having a dirty mind as proof that you are world-savvy; it's not a flaw, it's an asset, if nothing else, it's a defense - Sanna

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: A Misers Guide to Smithing to 188 - With Cost Analysis

                > Geerlok Automated Hammer

                No need to buy this until you are ready to make something "to keep". If you are 255 in your learning stat without your primary slot, get it. Otherwise, you buy this with the profits from your first sale and dont bother about it until then. 255 learning stat is more important.
                Plenty of need to buy this, in my mind. Sellbacks are a big part of keeping costs down, and if you take small steps, your effective skill will make everything stay trivial or nearly so, except during the painful Ornate Chain years.

                About the shadeling silk... I'd assumed that it wouldn't work to make padding. After checking the recipe again tonight and realizing that (before I'd seen your post), I fixed that part of the guide. Yes, this is much, much easier than running around in Feerrott.
                Tillomiki Makh - Wood Elf Rogue of the 52nd circle/stab/slice/pickpocket/pincushion
                Bane Sidhe - Fennin Ro
                Semi-GM Fletcher (202)
                Tradeskill Alts - Nietzrieche - Smithing 177 - Terbello - Jewelcraft 184 - Trinaindae - Tailoring 88 - Zakmaelian - Baking 163 - Huroya - Brewing 138

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by Lilosh
                  I found it very easy to do worked silver chains untill 111, then Embroidery needles till 122.

                  But 3p per attempt till 122 is nice.

                  And if you are a halfling or Wood elf, dont forget Vale Sewing Kits and Koala'Dal Fletching Kits from 122-160ish


                  -Lilosh
                  i bought condensed shadow in the bazaar, never paid more than 3p per chunk, 4 trips in there over an 8 hour period had me stacked full of them, i went from 42 to 116 on the arrowheads, i even had too do a stack or 2 after they triv'ed, just to get them out of my pack. (gave arrowheads to my warrior/fletcher alt).

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Oz's ultra cheap way to 163 AND get a lot of side benefits as well. Probably even easier with the tradeskill skillup patch.

                    Me, I'm the cheapest guy you ever met. I have a nasty habit of giving money/items away like crazy, and on a economy-free server like Test, I don't have anything to sell to get it back. So I'm constantly broke (which is fine because of the reasons =)). Anyway, this is what I did, as a 50+ necro.

                    Train 1-20 at GM. Cost: nada.

                    Make file. Cost ~1gp. Might even get a skill raise on it.

                    Head to Shadeweavers. Recommended to do this at NIGHT gametime. Seems to make the dark aliens spawn more. Enter tunnels. Kill the dark aliens. Loot "shade silk" and "chunk of condensed shadow". Lots of other stuff drops, you can sell this to the kitty vendors and come out ahead. EQ night lasts about 20 min regular time. Respawn in tunnels is 9-12 minutes, depending if you killed a named or normal one. You want to be sure to get a respawn before "night" ends. In ~3 hours of real time you'll have 2-3 backpacks of the condensed shadow and silk. Give the silk to someone you want to get up Tailoring on. They can make silk swatches to 15, then make shade silk armor to ~30, then make cured shade silk to 86.

                    Head to Shar Vahl (or wherever, books weren't in existance when I did this...). Sell the junk you picked up in Shadeweavers. Buy a bag or 2 of water (2 8-slotters is ~5pp). Combine your file, 1 chunk, and water in the forge. Keep your successes and either sell to a convient merchant or in the bazaar if there's a market for this stuff. Me, I gave a lot away, but even selling the few hundred I had left over (makes 2 per combine), I walked away 50pp in the good at this point.

                    You are now at 116 skill.

                    Head to Droga. Kill everything. Your target here is salts, brew, and deathsteel ore. Skins are nice to yourself (or selling, whatever) as you're working up Chardok faction anyway. Loot until you're full. Zone out to wherever. Combine 1 salt and 1 brew in brew barrel to make gobbie temper. Combine 2 blocks and 1 temper in forge to make sheet. Head back in (this will take a few trips). Make a big pile of deathsteel sheets and tempers. Combine dagger mold and hilt mold plus deathsteel metal and gobbie temper. Skills you to 131. Continue with other weapons to 163. Done.

                    You're still going to need to do FP after this, but doing it this way will be almost free, and assuming you loot incidentals, you'll actually make money this way. Selling off the creations/incendental loot will only help more.

                    Benefits of the Oz method:

                    Can go all the way to 163 with 50pp as you're just converting stuff back and forth, even counting all the failures.

                    Amazing faction with half of Luclin's aliens, so good you can sell and talk to them, and Chadok faction will be at least non KOS (assuming you saved skins, you could be over halfway to your ringy).

                    Can use the incendentals to skill tailoring to 82 as well (use the patended Oz method for cheap brewing - Skull Ale to 163 or whatever it is).

                    You can say you did it yourself, if you like that kind of thing.

                    Major drawback to the Oz method:

                    Takes time. Of course if you were planning on doing the Chardok ring anyway, here's a chance to do two things at one time. The time in Shadeweavers is not that bad. And it's kinda entertaining.
                    Ozmandias Prime - Usually Lost Shortie Healer
                    Dinomight The Questaholic - Tradeskilling QuestMaster
                    Prints Albert - The Cat In The Can

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Wow Oz, that looks easy.

                      I'm currently at 116 from the Arrowheads, I also came out ahead, even buying instead of farming them. Hard to do a cost benefit analysis when its entirely possible and very likely you'll profit on this stage.

                      I might just try the dagger etc. to get a bit higher in smithing now that I see this.

                      Only thing I saw wrong was that Skull Ale is 151 triv, not 163, and you need to go find an undead cyclops. Easier by far now to go 1-122 on fetid essence, then 122-188 on Faydwer shakers, then drink til you can't see and take a nap.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Train

                        I keep hearing about all these Bad Chain Years(Smithing 122-188). I'm closing in on it

                        And I ask? what about training? With your guild? I notice how many Combat Skills go up with fighting so I've Saved my Training. Mostly because I'm a newbe and I wanted to Learn what I wanted to put it in instead of Spending it as soon as I got it. Well My Smithing is 104 (not bad for a Ogre SK LVL9 newbe eh?) So I'm getting ready to go to The RathMT(closest Place to Oggok that sells MQ Ore) planing on Jumping into Fine plate because of the Location of HQ ore just doesn't make it Possable for my level. and I've 37 Training Points (spent on the stuff you had to spend to learn) and I'm thinking why not save these till I hit a Stopping Point with my Smithing and Fork out the plat to train instead eh. Has anyone done this or is there a cap on Learning from your Guild I haven't heard?

                        Zugwugger Lvl 9 Ogre SK Trade Skills: Smithing 104, Tailoring 41,

                        Only other Char Loiwdor 9lvl Human Monk 37 Tailoring 45 Swiming (that little Pool my the ashen order hay jump in and go watch a move take a nap make a sandwitch and Come back later and you learn just how High Your swiming can go.)

                        Zugwugger ShadowSmith
                        <Companions of the Dawn> Quellious
                        level 51 SK
                        Smithing 189
                        Brewing 151
                        Fletching 108
                        Tailoring 70

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                        • #13
                          There is a cap on learning from your guild you haven't heard.

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                          • #14
                            Guild Cap

                            Witch is?

                            Zugwugger ShadowSmith
                            <Companions of the Dawn> Quellious
                            level 51 SK
                            Smithing 189
                            Brewing 151
                            Fletching 108
                            Tailoring 70

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              21.

                              So you're plan, while based on good intent, won't work. Sorry =( Many many people have tried the same though.
                              Ozmandias Prime - Usually Lost Shortie Healer
                              Dinomight The Questaholic - Tradeskilling QuestMaster
                              Prints Albert - The Cat In The Can

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