Weaponsmith Archive

I'm a master architect, but I've toyed with weaponsmith and since you guys are hurt (yes I said hurt) by experimentation more than architects I figured I'd post here.

First let me say that I love experimentation. I think those who take the effort to find good quality resources and spend the skill points deserve the ability to make better stuff. Plus it's just more fun.

Second let me define grinding, since people seem to have differing opinions (especially the devs). To me, grinding is making something that you never have any intention of trying to sell or use. For example:

• Making a few hundred survey devices in practice mode to get to engineering 3 = grinding


• Destroying afwg5 because you didn't get good experimentation results = not grinding


• Building 20 walls to sell to another architect = not grinding

I got to master architect without ever having to grind (I did grind to get through artisan). I wouldn't dream of being able to do that in weaponsmith or armorsmith. Why? Because our experimentation was broken. In other professions no onein their right mind would buy anything from a novice crafter since a master can make it better, and can make it cheaper. Experimentation has no COST to use.

Right now architects are in an ok balance because novices still have something they can sell (not all our stuff is experimentable)but masters are rewarded for being masters, aside from being able to build a few more structures. But I have a better solution.

Experimentation should be limited on lower tier boxes. This is how I would do it:

• Novice level - uses artisan experimentation points (architectand de already do, not sure about ws)


• tier 1 boxes - can use up to 2 experimentation points


• tier 2 boxes - can use up to 5 experimentaiton points


• tier 3 boxes - can use up to 8 experimentation points


• tier 4 boxes - can use up to 10 experimentation points


• master - as many experimentation points as you can get (skill tapes)

That way a novice can get a tier 1 box and the first experimentation box and be able to make something just as good as a master, although they are more likely to have to try more times to get a great success on their experimentation results. This wouldmake the "get a tier 1 box then grind the whole experimentation line" philosophy unnecessary.

This would also help differentiate higher end weapons. It always seems wrong to me that the scout blaster is a staple for pistoleers and the laser carbine is the weapon of choice of carbineers when neither are "high level" guns.

Thoughts? Like I said, I've only dabbled in ws, so you guys have a better understanding of the issue than I do.

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ChunkOfCheddar wrote:

This would also help differentiate higher end weapons. It always seems wrong to me that the scout blaster is a staple for pistoleers and the laser carbine is the weapon of choice of carbineers when neither are "high level" guns.

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The fact that these 2 guns are good is nothing to do with experimentation, but totally the ingredients. These two guns contain no special resources that have bad quality such as plumbum iron or any Steel.

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ChunkOfCheddar wrote:

First let me say that I love experimentation.

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I guess architect was a pretty bad choice then

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• Novice level - uses artisan experimentation points (architectand de already do, not sure about ws)


• tier 1 boxes - can use up to 2 experimentation points


• tier 2 boxes - can use up to 5 experimentaiton points


• tier 3 boxes - can use up to 8 experimentation points


• tier 4 boxes - can use up to 10 experimentation points


• master - as many experimentation points as you can get (skill tapes)

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This, specifically, would a allow a rank novice to make D18 pistols and swords with really nice stats. But then as soon as they got to build scout blasters and curved swords, they would be abysmal.

I think part of the reason architects have less "grind" is because there's a lot more resources consumed (and xp earned) per unit of resale. That and, as you've mentioned, experimentation doesn't really matter, so novice stuff is sellable.

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EasyMcRhinopants wrote:

I think part of the reason architects have less "grind" is because there's a lot more resources consumed (and xp earned) per unit of resale.

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Even more so, they have less grind because, assuming you have plenty of resources, they can earn MUCH more XP per crafting session than a weaponsmith. The higher arcitect XP requirements do not make up for this disparity. See my thread on this at http://forums.station.sony.com/swg/board/message?board.id=weaponsmith&message.id=20254