Artisan Archive
Thread: Korlan's Bone Armor Giude: How to Craft, Price and Sell v 1.5 UPDATED 11/05/04 (NEW SECTION ADDED)
Good job with this!
I've added it to the Useful Artisan Postings list in the sticky area.
Take care,
Guru
INTRODUCTION
When talking about armor, more often then not, you will hear veteran players refer to Bone Armor to as “crap” or “waste of money”.But the fact is, Bone armor is more useful to the “New” or “Casual” player then most Armorsmith’s would care to let you know.
With its special resistance against energy weapons, a good set, proves to be an assent when taking on “grinding” mobs. Even in some advance missions or quests a good set of bone armor, along with some entertainer and doctor buffs, can hold it’s own on the PVE battlefront.
As a veteran player myself, i understand the workings of the various types of armor, and I have com to know that some "protection" is better then no protection at all. I know that there are a few out there wthat would disagree but if you don't take my word for it, I found an "offical" quote that I feel supports this. (The follow insert is taken from the “Advanced Guide Armor Fundamentals")
Q: Is bone armor with 20% energy better than composite with 5% energy?
A: Protection ratings are absolutes. A higher value is a higher value. Their meanings don't change based on the armor type. So in this case, the bone is better against energy. Although the maximum potential protection for composite is higher than bone, it is possible for lighter superbly made armor to protect better than a poorly made heavy one.
Still not convinced that some armor is better then no armor? Well then, let me point out to you that even force users wear bone armor lol.In all seriousness, bone armor is worth the investment in your early stages of combat advancement no matter how you look at it.
So lets get to it, in this guide I’m going take you threw my process for finding the material necessary for crafting great Bone Armor, and how to sell it on the private and public markets. Also at the end of the guide I will provide what information I can on some special looted items involving bone armor.
PART ONE
GATHERING RESOURCES
In order to make just ONE suit of Bone Armor (Including crafted Bone Segments and Panels) you will need the following components:
Hide 445 units
Bone 311 units (*437 w/ segments)
Metal 197 units (*274 w/ segments & panels)
Fiberplast 400 units (*w/ panels)
Inert Petrochemical 73 units
Crafted Bone Segments 9 (*Optional as this can be replaced with looted segments)
Fiberplast Panels 25
TOTAL MATERIAL USED = 1426 units (w/ crafted segments 1629)
The collection of metal, fiberplast and inert petrochemical is fairly easy to gather, just look for a nice spot on some planet and drop a harvester on it. The gathering of hide and bone is a little trickier.
It would help if you were a scout (which I am not) because then at least you would be able to gather bone/hide yourself at cost. BUT for those of us who don’t have the skill points to pick this profession up, we rely on the kindness of scouts and rangers.
Please remember that when gathering the resources make sure to CHECK too see that “Overall Quality” and “Shock Resistance” is of a high grade (800-900+ rating is reasonable) this will be further explained in Part Four of this guide where I talk about crafting.
If you’re not into the idea of gathering resources yourself, then I would suggest searching the private vendors as there are plenty of people out there selling resources. A little command I find useful is “ctrl+V”, which brings up your over head map. This will become your friend pretty quick, because under the vendor tab to the right of the screen you will find a LARGE list of places to shop from, select the ones you want and get ready to a lot of searching for the right stuff. Just keep in mind that the more you pay to MAKE the armor the more you will to CHARGE in order to break even.
Message Edited by Korlan on 08-06-2004 12:58 PM
Message Edited by Korlan on 08-06-2004 01:33 PM
Message Edited by Korlan on 08-06-2004 02:14 PM
Message Edited by Korlan on 08-18-2004 09:05 AM
Message Edited by Korlan on 09-13-2004 02:02 PM
Message Edited by Korlan on 10-27-2004 02:55 PM
Message Edited by Korlan on 11-05-2004 08:28 AM
Korlen’s Tips for gathering resources:
Know what spawns are good for you. Check the bazaars and use this helpful site swgcraft.com
Enlist the help of a novice scout. Most new scouts enjoy the company of others; offer to lend a hand in missions for exchange of hide or bone (or other services 
).
Join a guild. A lot of guilds out there are looking for crafters, find one that is willing to help you better yourself and them.
Make a business partner. If you know of an honest scout or ranger, make arrangements for them to supply you with hide and bone on a regular bases (get them to drop it off at your vendor if you can for easy pick up and money exchange).
Try not to pay more the 3cpu for good bone and hide... shop around… because your end cost will determine the sale.
PART TWO
SHOPPING FOR COMPONENTS
Before jumping right into buying components to help enhance your product. I think it is important to know what to look for. Not all components out there will work with this armor; so to save you a bit of time I will list all the components that I can used in the making of bone armor.
The following can be utilized for better enhancement:
Voritor Segments
Rancor Hide
Kimogila Segments
Krayt Scale
Janta Hide
Interwoven Bone Armor Segments**
Night Sister Shards**
** I have yet to experiment using this component
These seven components are the only ones that “I” know of that can be used in bone armor at the moment (if this changes I will update). Now I will attempt to explain what each component adds.
Voritor Segments: These will add Kinetic, Electrical and Base effectiveness to your armor. Most will add 500 ++ integrity and reduce the Health, Action, and Mind costs. Sample
Rancor Hide: These will add Heat, Cold, and Base effectiveness to your armor. Most will add 600++ integrity and reduce Action and mind costs. Sample
Kimogila Segments: These will add Heat, Cold and Base effectiveness to your armor. Most will add 700++ integrity and reduce the Health, Action and Mind costs. Sample
Krayt Scale: These will add Heat, Kinetic, Acid, Energy, Blast and Cold effectiveness to your armor. Sample
Janta Hide: The most common Janta hide will add a base effectiveness of 3%.
Interwoven Bone Armor Segments: This is a crafted item that only MASTER ARMORSMITH’S can make. The schematic for the said Segment can be looted from the “Acklay” at the Geonosian cave. A master Armorsmith can up too two layers of protection to this segment. The most popular choice is a STUN layer. It has 5 uses per schematic. Sample
Night Sister Shards:These will greatly reduce your Health, Action and Mind costs. As for bonuses I have yet to see any that offer any such bonus to protection stats. Sample
Hope this list makes it a little bit easier on what each component will add to bone armor.
Korlen’s tips for Bone Armor components:
Don’t over pay for Segments!
-When buying off the public bazaar you have to have patients. Not all deals will just pop out at you. Use the “Entire Galaxy” tab and search under “Misc + Armor components”. Try not to pay over 1500 credits for more advanced segments.
Read the information.
-This goes for anything you buy really. BUT for segments its really important. You need pay close attention to the “integrity” and “percentages” of the segment or hide. Rule of thumb is “higher the integrity, better the end results”.
Know your segments
-Refer to section two for more details on components
Don’t over pay for segments and hide!!
-Rule of thumb I use is, don’t pay higher then the “base” integrity for “common” segments and hide. AKA if Voritor has integrity of 500, don’t more then 500 cr for it.
-For higher grade segments and hide, look for bargains.
Use your over head map to find vendors
-There are bargains to be had for those who look for them. When on a planet I like to look for Scouting or BE vendors. Here I usually fine better then public bazaar prices on all the segments I want.
When in doubt do it yourself.
-All of these segments and hide are“Loot” items. So if you have the guts and skills to hunt such creatures yourself (or in a group), then do so. You will save in the long run on both ends of the scale.
Message Edited by Korlan on 08-06-2004 01:21 PM
Message Edited by Korlan on 08-18-2004 09:03 AM
PART FOUR "A"
THE PRICE IS RIGHT
Pricing is another key factor when selling this armor because lets face it, this armor is aimed at “starting” professions to help while you grind. It is for this reason that I have suggested several times to look for bargains when compiling the items needed to make the armor, otherwise you won’t get your money back.
In order to make a profit from this armor you need to make sure that your cost doesn’t’ exceed the limits of the customer. What I have done to keep my cost down is to harvest all the resources myself, that way I can charge about 3cpu and still cover my harvester cost. For bone and Hide I have networked a few good friends that gather them for me at same rate of my inorganic resources. And last and not least for Components I gather most of them myself while continuing to look for bargains on vendors.
I’m no expert when it come to math or accounting so I just keep it simple. This is what works for me so I will pass it on to you and it hope that it works for you as well. I use this equation to figure out what to charge for a full suit of armor:
My Cost: Material Used x #cpu + (Component x 9 parts)= Cost
My Price: Cost + % Mark up = Retail Cost
My Profit: Retail – Cost = Profit
One important note here is that your markup will have to be 100% ++ in order to turn a profit… why because 100% will only cover your cost in this case. Other then that, it’s fairly basic and simple to use.
To show you how this works I will use a full suit “Voritor” Bone armor as an example, with components purchased for 500 cr each.
1426 x 3cpu + (500 x9) = 8778
8778 x 275% = 24139
24139 – 8778 = 15361
I like rounder number so I would charge 24200 for a full suit (in a container). Which would leave me with a profit of 15422cr from one full suit or armor. (To figure out what to charge for just "parts" of armor, just apply the same calaculation)
This may sound expensive at first but you have to remember that I am allowing for fluctuation in component cost as it is the one variable that you can’t really control.
Now there are other factors that I could add into this equation like, factory cost, shop cost, vendor cost, etc… but why bother!! The profit made from this should cover those expenses anyway, as well as leave you with enough room to purchase more components for your next batch of armor and keep the creditors off your back.
Here is the price list for “individual” prices for my Bone Armor, each of which is 99% experimented on (keep in mind that I use my connections to gather components which keeps my prices down). NOTE: I also charge a 50 cr fee to cover the cost of the travel pack that the armor is in.
Advance Bone Armor – For Full Suit =$ 17 000
- Gloves - 1500
- Boots - 1680
- Rt. Bicep - 1500
- Lt. Bicep - 1500
- Legging - 2270
- Helmet - 2270
- Rt. Bracer - 1680
- Lt. Bracer - 1680
- Chest - 2870
Janta Bone Armor – For Full Suit =$ 17 400
- Gloves - 1550
- Boots - 1730
- Rt. Bicep - 1550
- Lt. Bicep - 1550
- Legging - 2320
- Helmet - 2320
- Rt. Bracer - 1730
- Lt. Bracer - 1730
- Chest - 2920
Voritor Bone Armor – For Full Suit =$ 19 250
- Gloves - 1750
- Boots - 1930
- Rt. Bicep - 1750
- Lt. Bicep - 1750
- Legging - 2520
- Helmet - 2520
- Rt. Bracer - 1930
- Lt. Bracer - 1930
- Chest - 3120
Rancor Bone Armor – For Full Suit =$ 23 750
- Gloves - 2250
- Boots - 2430
- Rt. Bicep - 2250
- Lt. Bicep - 2250
- Legging - 3020
- Helmet - 3020
- Rt. Bracer - 2430
- Lt. Bracer - 2430
- Chest - 3620
Kimogila Bone Armor – For Full Suit =$ 28 250
- Gloves - 2750
- Boots - 2930
- Rt. Bicep - 2750
- Lt. Bicep - 2750
- Legging - 3520
- Helmet - 3520
- Rt. Bracer - 2930
- Lt. Bracer - 2930
- Chest - 4120
Krayt Bone Armor – For Full Suit =$ 37 250
- Gloves - 3750
- Boots - 3930
- Rt. Bicep - 3750
- Lt. Bicep - 3750
- Legging - 4520
- Helmet - 4520
- Rt. Bracer - 3930
- Lt. Bracer - 3930
- Chest - 5120
Nightsister Bone Armor - Suggested price unavailable
Interwoven Bone Armor - Suggested price unavailable
PART FOUR "B"
THE WAY OF THE SELL: GETTING YOUR ARMOR KNOWN
So now that you have your own price worked out. Its time to focus on the most important aspect of ARTISAN... and that is the "SELL" Just setting up a show and making armor is not going to sell your product, WHY? because who cares if you got the best stats around if no one knows about it? You have to take steps to GET people to come to you or your shop and the following easy to follow tips will help you on your way! 
-
Use the Public Vendor -
You can place up to 25 items on a public vendor -Thats enought for 2 full suits of bone armor. So use this to your advantage. -
CHOSE your public vendor wisely -After all, this is a noivce armor (for the most part
) and the best public vendors are in the cities that has alot of noivce people looking for good items. Mos Eisley, Bestine, Theed, and Coronet should be your top choices. -
Include your shop name and loc in the title - Plan ahead and work your name and location into the title of the crafted armor. this way people will have a wp to your shop handy. -
Keep an item on the Public Vendor - Try to keep atleast one item on the public vendor at all times. Yes it will cost you 20 credits everytime, and yes it only lasts a few days. BUT it will works as a perfect ad for your shop. BUT.. KEEP IT UP AS AN AUCTION... PLACE THE WORD "AD" IN THE TITLE.... MAX OUT THE LIMIT TO 6000.... and that should be it. -
Send Mail to those who send tells: -
If someone you don't know ask a question, be nice, try to answer it THEN send them a mail with a WP to your shop. -
Create a "Chain Mail Ad": -
Do up a nice ad, include prices and what you sell. -
Send it to everyone on your list. -
Ask them to pass it on to their friends or someone who might be looking for a good shop. -
Enlist the help of friends: -
Ask your friends to pass the word on about your shop to people who ask for their help See tip 2
Message Edited by Korlan on 08-05-2004 04:53 PM
Message Edited by Korlan on 08-06-2004 02:16 PM
ActonNar wrote:
Good job on the guide! I always have some bone armor on my vendors for new players.
One thing you might consider adding is to get a Master Armorsmith to make Advanced Bone armor segments for you, using your own materials. As with all armor types, using advanced segments greatly improves the final product. The draw back is that advanced segments always require specific named resources. This can add to the cost of the final product.
I thought Advance bone Armor Segements and Interwoven are the one of the same? At least that is what i have been told. I also couldn't find any information ont he Advance bone armor segments. 
thanks for the good word...
btw no star rating?? 
Message Edited by NinjaPizzaBoy on 08-08-2004 10:48 PM
AkiraX wrote:
OMG if I find out that anyone has used Kimo scales or Interwoven segments in bone armor, I will find them at their home and chastise them until my throat is sore.
But if you feel the need,my house is in the sigature, feel free to drop by anytime.... god knows i could use the company with all these people leaving the game ....(I blame holo grinders andpublic vendor scamers 
)Message Edited by Korlan on 08-19-2004 08:58 AM