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PDFRecently I got a chance to talk with Elrar and the Rift Team about what we as crafters can expect for Storm Legion. As always our devs and the Rift Team are hard at work to find more ways to not only improve the crafting experince for the player base but to ensure crafting remains a key part in game play including the end game. Below are the things we discussed!
1. How many new trade skills are we getting?
[Rift Team] Storm Legion will not introduce any new trade skills, instead it focuses on making the existing trade skills more compelling and integrated with the overall game. We debated a new trade skill specifically for the dimension feature but realized it would be better if we could get ALL of the current crafters involved with Dimensions instead of making them start all over with a new skill.
2. Any chance you will expand the number of trade skills a single toon can learn? A lot of crafters have learned them all across many different toons but it would be nice to learn more or all of them on a single toon if we choose. Alternatively are there any plans to allow us to learn at least one Manufacturing trade skill if we have all 3 gathering and vice versus?
[RIFT team] Right now we’re keeping the number of trade skills per character the same as the current live game.
3. Crafting related PA? stuff like making harvesting faster, chance of getting a double harvest with one attempt, small chances to retain material during crafting, and increasing the duration of crafted item buffs like from 30 mins in survival buffs to 1hr, for example.
[RIFT Team] Storm Legion does not introduce a new crafting PA system, however harvesting, augmenting, and salvaging have all gotten many improvements in order to make them more enjoyable. We want to see how these play out before we add anything on to the system.
4. Crafting related epic quest? something like a Crafting Saga that in the end could grant a special crafting prefix and a item (like a trinket or cloak) that gives a chance to get back some of the materials used when crafting or some other crafting related bonus?
[RIFT Team] Storm Legion won’t introduce any long custom quest lines for crafting, but what we do after launch is still completely open. However, crafters should prepare to be more involved with existing quests, dungeons and raids b/c many players will be seeking you out after playing through the Storm Legion content.
5. Will there be new nodes to mine, flowers to pick (different ores, flowers, lumber, etc) or will the new recipes continue to use current end game material?
[RIFT Team] Yes, we’re adding two new continents so of course we’re adding new things to harvest from them. While the majority of new recipes will require new materials there are a number that also use materials harvested from the original game.
6. Will new vendor recipes continue to use Master Craft marks or will there be a new currency?
[RIFT Team] Still working out all the exact details on how the Artisan store will work in Storm Legion, however it is safe to say all of the artisan and master craftsman marks you have saved up will be used in the expansion.
7. Since we will now be Grandmaster Craftsmen, will the mark reward for crafting dailies be increased from 21 to 30 or something along those lines?
[RIFT Team] Yup there will be more Grandmaster crafting quests and they will award people with Grandmaster quality rewards.
8. Any plans to allow us to be able to craft some survival related MEEEEADDDDD? Or any drinks really? While the foods do the same or better then current in game drinks, adding some drink recipes can add flavor for Role Players and give a different way to provide different buffs then what the food offers.
[RIFT Team] Survival is still mainly food based, but there is some possibility that we’ll be adding some thematic drinks and recipes, especially when our seasonal holidays roll back around.
9. If you could, tell us a little about how you are going to keep crafters a important part of gearing up in Storm Legion. A example would be can we expect that new seals for lvl 60 will still be crafter made only and that the top of the line ones will come from mats obtained in the new raid zones?
[RIFT Team] Improving the integration of crafters into the overall game (especially endgame) has been a big goal for us in Storm Legion. Crafters will still be one of the easiest ways to get full suits of gear while leveling up, and thanks to Augments crafted items will stay relevant longer. Speaking of Augments, we’ve made acquiring augments significantly easier for crafters. Instead of having to scour the world to find them we’re allowing different trade skills to craft different augments using salvaged materials. So while your skilling up you might want to break some of those items down so you can make more powerful gear for your friends.
In addition we’ve spent a good deal of time making sure that various crafted items slot better in the overall game progression. While crafters will remain the only source for seals, they will also find that certain item slots are pretty tough to fill without a crafter even for expert and raid content. In addition crafters will be one of the sources for materials to further upgrade certain special items players obtain via quests, events, dungeons and raids.
Finally we’re taking a look at consumable items. Certain highly desirable consumables such as temporary item enchants will become more readily available and require more traditional resources. This means you won’t have to break down 1000’s of items to supply your guild for raids. Instead you can make use of the big stacks of materials you’ve harvested that have been gathering dust in your bank.
As you can see a lot of changes are coming our way for Storm Legion. While we will be getting new materials it would seem it would be wise to hang on to current top tier mats. A big thanks to Elrar and the Rift Team for taking time out of their busy schedules to answer these questions! If I receive any more crafting information I will be sure to post it here. In the mean time I will be counting down the days to Storm Legion launch!
