Architect Archive
Thread: Another old-time Architect bids fare thee well
My name is Phal, and I'm a craftaholic. "Hi Phal!"
I can eat tedium for breakfast, lunch, AND dinner, and still come back for more, which makes my dropping architect even that much more strange, but that's what I'm doing. This profession is just too much work and too little reward, and seems to be getting worse. Here's my feelings as to why.
First, all my fellow old time architects are gone. We used to set up our own chat rooms and just jabber and talk and rant when we crit failed. It wasa blast. We could share resources when we needed some, share waypoints of decent pops, and refer customers depending on our needs and what we liked. It was a blast, a community, and now its gone. I'm the last of that great group. Everyone else has dropped the profession or the game altogether. Why is that?
Second, the profession is increasingly difficult for a single account to perfom well. I've been an architect since release (or as closely as one could grind to it on their own), and because I got in on the ground floor, I'm well known and get SOME steady business. Even that has slowed to a trickle, and I have no idea how a newer architect could possible make it solo. I know of only one other player on the server who plays an architect as his MAIN char, and literally THREE in my PA who are secondaries. This profession is much more condusive to a secondary role than a primary thing to play. We have no role in the GCW, as well as my next major problem.
Third, we're required to collect massive amounts of resources, and now collect high quality massive amounts of resources. This is not what I think of for fun, this is what I think of for work. The funny thing, we as a group approved of experimentation!?!? By a two to one margin!?!? And I eat tedium, go figure. My problem isn't the resources so much actually, I could handle that. But the fallout is that the customers STILL won't pay resonable prices for these new and impoved products. They want the SAME prices for these, and LOWER prices for the older, lower extraction rate products. Ok, well, the heck with that, I just won't sell for less right?
Fourth, someone else will. I know one secondary architect on the server (outside of my PA), who is more than happy to meet this need. He has 3 accounts, and many lots. He also has a plus 25 skill tape, which means he can make MUCH better harvesters than I can, and he's also got merchant skills, so SOME of his structures cost him less to maintain. He has a lot of intelligent cost cutting methods in place that I can't compete with, so more power to him. The best part is, he's about to buy ANOTHER plus 25 skill tape. Will that work? Possibly, since he's at 80 now and the cap for the other professions is 120. *shudder*
Fifth, what about that 55 cap? Why has this taken so long to be fixed? Speaking of which, how long was it to get the harvesting mechanism fixed? Or how many of us had to redeed our factories time after time (and that was after they were fixed). Factories are now finally working better than ever before, and we STILL can't make walls in them without putting in 10 crates of bricks. I know you might say be patient, hang in there, and this will be resolved and improved, but I've been as patient as I can, and it is now way too little, way too late. I also don't trust them. I don't trust them to do it right, and I don't know why I'm making harvesters now that might (we don't know, they haven't told us, AGAIN) end up being obsolete as well after the next publish. Or it might have a max capacity of 2k (I still have 2 solar deeds like this).
Nope, I don't trust them to fix it because they've proved that they can't. Or they've proved that they won't in anything considered a reasonable amount of time. So I'm going to join my original architect chat group and abandon the way of the ore. To continue my path of enlightenment I must master tailor! Ok, that should be an amusing diversion. Don't ask me how I'm going to afford another holocron though, perhaps the force will provide.
-Phal
Did you ever say it, man it is tough in this business as I have now been reduced to nothing more than a resource collector. I hardly ever get too craft and I run from 900+ site to site planet to planet too feed those who can craft better then I ever could. Now you my ask why do I go after 900+ well as everone and his brother has harvesters med-large whatever I can't compete on the grind resources...Duh
And the bazzar have you seen it full of 3 to 1 pages and pages so I can't sell there anymore...I bet if you did a poll most of that stuff was not mined byCRAFTERS but by players who have eight lots just sitting around and it is easy cash so now the can buy the uber armor,guns and they don't have to do missions anymore too get paid...How do I know this well I buy from many and know quite a few.
So brother I too feel your pain and I don't see the powers that be will ever bring about change...just look at how they messed up the ratio of Imperials vs Rebels....ha
But will I cave, throw in the towel I'm not sure I have worked so hard to get here by hand no macros for me just plain hard work...only time will tell but it's running out I can tell each day I have to login out of fear that one or more of my six vendors will QUIT on me and I will lose millions of potental credits in inventory.....
Sorry about the rant but for once I just couldn't help myself so please forgive me...
Daedreuv Waveflier
yeh... its the architects that hurts architects mostly, due to some are so rich they probably sell for very cheap... forcing fellow architects out of business..etc..
i guess the architect profession is based on who does it first, and thats it, the 100th architect will be poor broke and be under the shadow of the earliest architects..
due to no decays in the items..etc...
Some of us are just now getting rich selling fairly cheaply. Understanding of business can help. I have so many orders I can hardly keep up. And I didnt do it first, I am a fairly late comer to the architect ranks.
The problm is a vast number of architects dont understand the businiess very well. The way to talk to a customer, they way to set a price, they way to provide service so spectacular that the customer seeksyou out for everything they need.
Some architects ( I am not alone ) are doing very well.
The problm is a vast number of architects dont understand the businiess very well. The way to talk to a customer, they way to set a price, they way to provide service so spectacular that the customer seeksyou out for everything they need.
Some architects ( I am not alone ) are doing very well."
The "street trash" troll of the architect boards (above)does not know of what he speaks. Pay no attention to the child trolling the boards. No one's seen him as far as I know, with the title master architect over his head. He never backs up his claims.
I would say I felt your pain, and for a short time I did, but I no longer do. I figured out real quick just to keep my prices up and &%*$ what everyone else thought. Funny thing is, now I'm the only one of my server's original group I see logging on anymore. I make more in a day than the above troll makes in a weekend.
LuciferMullins wrote:
The "street trash" troll of the architect boards (above)does not know of what he speaks. Pay no attention to the child trolling the boards.
I've found that if you ignore Dayln, he'll go away. His business comments are at least amusing, considering what I've actually accomplished in the field in the past 10 years. The thing is, that's work, not fun. The game is supposed to be fun, not work. But I trust him to do what is best for him.
And feel free to rant here. Venting to others who feel the same is very therapudic. I didn't even get into how much more painful it is now to crit fail on something that needs 1) high quality resources and 2) experimentation on sub components. That doesn't help.
Regardless, one of the great things about this game is I do have the ability to go and try something else for fun. It's just disappointing because I really wanted to be an architect, and for a while there, it was possible. Oh well. Things change, and I'll change with it.
-Phal
I have pretty much quit the profession altogether too. I am DE also, so I inflicted double the pain on myself. The whole chasing resources has gotten old real quick. they should have made the shifts every two weeks to give us a break. I have gone to a different server to get away from all the tells and peeps wanting things now. I'll go back to make a couple city structures for some friends. However, I do not see player cites as a long term solution to our profession. They really need to allow crafters to make items related to the GCW according to faction. It would add so much more to the game.
To prevent all the dabblers from playing as an architect they should reverse the skill requirements between starter and elite professions, but that makes too much sense.
We'll never beat players with two or three accounts. That is why I have three.
The best way for a non crafter to make money these days is by selling energy. I am making a fortune playing as a MCM selling energy. Plus its more fun!
A tip for tailor... ribbed shirts and a macro.
Good luck and may the force be with you