The Best Tradeskill to Grandmaster Is ...

[loramin]

The subject pretty much says it all: every toon gets just one grandmaster tradeskill, and I'm curious which one everyone thinks is best.

Feel free to adjust your answer by race since some cultural tradeskills are better than others.

*EDIT*
Just to clarify by "grandmaster" I mean get a skill higher than 200 in that tradeskill. For those that didn't know, you can get every tradeskill up to 200, but the moment one of them goes over 200 you become a "grandmaster" in that tradeskill and can't raise any others above 200 (kinda like specializations for casters).

[Daldaen]

JC -> Smithing (if you can make decent cultural) -> Tailoring (come Velious and only if you want to spend a lot of time and hundreds of thousands of plat getting to 250) -> Baking/Brewing/Pottery/Fletching are all equally useless.

TSes are largely useless until Luclin and PoP. Its one of the reasons those were two of EQ's best expansions. TSes were finally made relevant for all types of players.

[loramin]

TSes are largely useless until Luclin and PoP.

Oh I completely understand (and let's be honest, they weren't all that useful even in those expansions). But some masochistic part of me wants to GM a tradeskill anyway, so I'm wondering which of the (all useless) tradeskills is the least useless to have 200+ skill in this era.

[Daldaen]

Oh I completely understand (and let's be honest, they weren't all that useful even in those expansions). But some masochistic part of me wants to GM a tradeskill anyway, so I'm wondering which of the (all useless) tradeskills is the least useless to have 200+ skill in this era.

It was extremely useful. People were able to make bank on TSing alone. Here you can make a little doing JCing or Cultural armor. But not anything compared to camping sebilis or HS.

But during Luclin/PoP you could rack in solid money.

Luclin - The Earring of Solstice alone, was reason enough to TS. FT1 Earring that was 9 items, gave reason to do many TS. Also worth mentioning is the cultural revamp that introduced more powerful cultural armor with level recs.
PoP - Everything. Even fricken Pottery became useful with focus items. Fletching was useful with EP bows that were BIS for any non-PoTime raider. Baking/Brewing yielded some very solid stat food (BPP etc.). Smithing/Tailoring had armor lines in many zones, the EP ones were as good as or better than Ornate armor in some cases, again a very saught after/hard to obtain tradeable item made with crafting is great for the economy. JC created some very rare items (EP Rings) that were damn near raid stats, and some very common items that were great stats for any-old noob (Valor rings)

Etc.

[Messianic]

TSes are largely useless until Luclin and PoP. Its one of the reasons those were two of EQ's best expansions. TSes were finally made relevant for all types of players.

Taking this server to PoP would be pretty darn awesome.

::Cue firestorm of vitriolic debate about why cats on the moon stunk::

[azeth]

The subject pretty much says it all: every toon gets just one grandmaster tradeskill, and I'm curious which one everyone thinks is best.

Feel free to adjust your answer by race since some cultural tradeskills are better than others.

*EDIT*
Just to clarify by "grandmaster" I mean get a skill higher than 200 in that tradeskill. For those that didn't know, you can get every tradeskill up to 200, but the moment one of them goes over 200 you become a "grandmaster" in that tradeskill and can't raise any others above 200 (kinda like specializations for casters).

The coldain shawl is nice, needs a few different trade skills. Its not BiS though, so I guess your choice

[Yumyums Inmahtumtums]

http://i.imgur.com/KNsqG1m.jpg

Go pottery and never look back

[Portasaurus]

Yeah she should probably look forward... you know... at the pottery that she is doing.

Also, baking.

[Jarnauga]

Alchemy over anything

[captnamazing]

language: halfling

[Whirled]

Taking this server to PoP would be pretty darn awesome.

::Cue firestorm of vitriolic debate about why cats on the moon stunk::


It would ... even if on a 3-5 year rate per expansion

[fadetree]

F-F-F-F-F-FLETCHING!

Duh.

[zanderklocke]

http://i.imgur.com/KNsqG1m.jpg

Go pottery and never look back

It's actually impossible to go to 200 on pottery on this server. I don't know what Velious introduces, but currently, the highest you can go is 188.

[Yumyums Inmahtumtums]

Didn't stop swayze

[Daldaen]

It's actually impossible to go to 200 on pottery on this server. I don't know what Velious introduces, but currently, the highest you can go is 188.

I was pretty sure you can get 250 here. The Idol combines are Classic I thought.

http://eqtraders.com/items/show_item.php?item=3838

The Golden Idols obviously are not but I think those were. I don't see any reason why they couldn't be made, all of those components are sold or obtained in Kunark or Classic zones.

http://www.eqclerics.org/forums/showthread.php?t=9160&highlight=Idol+pottery

That post in September 2001 proves they functioned in Velious.

Now that I think about it... WTB Idol of Inny and Idol of Tunare.

[August]

I was pretty sure you can get 250 here. The Idol combines are Classic I thought.

http://eqtraders.com/items/show_item.php?item=3838

The Golden Idols obviously are not but I think those were. I don't see any reason why they couldn't be made, all of those components are sold or obtained in Kunark or Classic zones.

http://www.eqclerics.org/forums/showthread.php?t=9160&highlight=Idol+pottery

That post in September 2001 proves they functioned in Velious.

Now that I think about it... WTB Idol of Inny and Idol of Tunare.

If i remember correctly, it's the Celestial Essence (that is part of Unfired Idol Recipe?) that is non-classic? You can make it by combining a lot of different things but 'The Scent of Marr' is the easiest one IIRC.

I played on Fippy Darkpaw as first a master Jeweler and then I leveled up Pottery. There is a HUGE gap in terms of trivials to make these idols. I believe the Tunare one was pretty low and then all the others have crazy high trivials - most of them having a pretty massive failure chance even then.

It was also ridiculously expensive to level up as I believe it was Star Ruby Encrusted Steins? that required a 68p gem to make but sold for silvers.

FWIW idols were awesome in Fippy as they were by far the best ranged slot for... everyone with a deity.... I sold them for 10k a pop and they had a net cost of just under 3k assuming you could buy permafrost crystals, iron oxide, and find the right shamans/clerics to imbue your pebbles and you had a chanter that would make the vials.... oh yeah that's why i could charge so much. Glorious times.

[Messianic]

http://i.imgur.com/KNsqG1m.jpg

Go pottery and never look back

http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/community-sitcom/images/1/1f/BP_PS.png/revision/latest?cb=20120224204836

[Daldaen]

Celesital Essence is Luclin. But it isn't utilized in the recipe I linked.

The GOLDEN XXXX Idols do use Celestial Essence. Not the ones I linked though.

[August]

Celesital Essence is Luclin. But it isn't utilized in the recipe I linked.

The GOLDEN XXXX Idols do use Celestial Essence. Not the ones I linked though.

Yes that's right. The regular idols don't use a gold bar, a celestial essence, and use a different form of crystallized mana (enchanter spell).

From what I can gather the components would be:

High Quality Firing Sheet - http://wiki.project1999.com/High_Quality_Firing_Sheet
Iron Oxide - http://wiki.project1999.com/Iron_Oxide
Permafrost Crystals - http://wiki.project1999.com/Permafrost_Crystals
White Lead - http://wiki.project1999.com/White_Lead
Water Flask (duh)
Large Block of Magic Clay - http://wiki.project1999.com/Enchant_Clay
Idol Sketch - http://wiki.project1999.com/Idol_Sketch
Sculpting Tools - http://wiki.project1999.com/Sculpting_Tools
Vial of Clear Mana - http://wiki.project1999.com/Vial_of_Clear_Mana / http://wiki.project1999.com/Clarify_Mana
Imbued Gem - http://wiki.project1999.com/Imbue_Emerald

Everything appears to be in game, so pottery should be able to GM.

[Daldaen]

All those spells are in game.

I have the Imbue Emerald on my druid.

I have the Clarify Mana and Enchant Clay on my chanter.

It is just a matter of whether the combines are active currently.

July 2001 Patch (http://www.tski.co.jp/baldio/patch/20010724.html)

Repaired some class/deity combinations on two of the deity specific pottery Idols.

Proves they were in before July 2001.

MAYBE was this Velious patch though?

March 2001 (http://www.tski.co.jp/baldio/patch/20010314.html)

There are a ton of new recipes for trade skill users out there. Check your books.

[Cecily]

Leveling pottery up on a rogue was miserable. Brewing to 248 on a rogue sucked pretty bad too. Fletching and Poison (Dex based) were pretty easy and I doubt Smithing (STR) will be very tough either. Druid WIS is overpowered and made getting 217 tailoring fun in comparison to those first two.

[Nuktari]

Killing innocents is a tradeskill, no?

http://media1.giphy.com/media/MohKkszQwz9ba/200.gif

[loramin]

Alchemy over anything

Does alchemy actually "compete" with the other tradeskills (in the sense that if you GM it you can't GM another tradeskill)?

[Daldaen]

Alchemy, Research, Poison Making and Tinkering are all on their own.

It's just the main 7 that are able to grandmaster in.

People overemphasize the use of stats to increase skillups.... WAYYYYY too much. WIS/INT or STR or DEX will ONLY influence skill-up chance if you fail the combine (you're learning from your mistakes. You will do it better with higher stats).

However if you succeed the combine, if you have 50 in the stat or 255, your chance to skill up is identical. Most every Tradeskill has a pretty linear progression you are able to follow. JC is the best because every 2-3 points there is a new gem combine you can do. Meaning if you are always just 2-3 skill less than what the combine is trivial at, you will maintain a 95% chance of success on those combines. Meaning 95% of your combines your stay plays no role in determining a skillup.

The only time stats are very relevant is something like Brewing, or Pottery. Where you may be going from 188 skill to trying something that is 248 skill, leading to many fails. It isn't a huge money cost just a big time sink for those TSes.

[August]

Alchemy, Research, Poison Making and Tinkering are all on their own.

It's just the main 7 that are able to grandmaster in.

People overemphasize the use of stats to increase skillups.... WAYYYYY too much. WIS/INT or STR or DEX will ONLY influence skill-up chance if you fail the combine (you're learning from your mistakes. You will do it better with higher stats).

However if you succeed the combine, if you have 50 in the stat or 255, your chance to skill up is identical. Most every Tradeskill has a pretty linear progression you are able to follow. JC is the best because every 2-3 points there is a new gem combine you can do. Meaning if you are always just 2-3 skill less than what the combine is trivial at, you will maintain a 95% chance of success on those combines. Meaning 95% of your combines your stay plays no role in determining a skillup.

The only time stats are very relevant is something like Brewing, or Pottery. Where you may be going from 188 skill to trying something that is 248 skill, leading to many fails. It isn't a huge money cost just a big time sink for those TSes.

What is your source for this? This is directly contradictory to everything I have ever modeled.

=IF(SKILL_LEVEL-TRIVIAL>=0,0,((((STAT*10)/SKILL_DIFFICULTY)*(SUCCESS_RATE/100))+(((STAT*10/(2*SKILL_DIFFICULTY))*((100-SUCCESS_RATE)/100))))/1000*MIN(0.95,(200-SKILL_LEVEL)/200))

Where SUCCESS_RATE = MAX(5,MIN(SKILL_LEVEL-0.75*TRIVIAL+51.5,95))

[Orruar]

http://i.imgur.com/KNsqG1m.jpg

Go pottery and never look back

http://i.ytimg.com/vi/XRUuahxSKN0/maxresdefault.jpg

Go brewing and never back flip

[Daldaen]

What is your source for this? This is directly contradictory to everything I have ever modeled.

=IF(SKILL_LEVEL-TRIVIAL>=0,0,((((STAT*10)/SKILL_DIFFICULTY)*(SUCCESS_RATE/100))+(((STAT*10/(2*SKILL_DIFFICULTY))*((100-SUCCESS_RATE)/100))))/1000*MIN(0.95,(200-SKILL_LEVEL)/200))

Where SUCCESS_RATE = MAX(5,MIN(SKILL_LEVEL-0.75*TRIVIAL+51.5,95))

The difficulty tier of the Tradeskill was some very early on EQ stuff. That was nuked some time like Velious-Luclin I believe.

That being said, I'm almost positive it was never implemented on this server. Because the exact equation was never really explained.

I'll see what I can do to dig up posts about it. But this is my experience having hit 250 in every skill before LoY and 300 eventually in every one on live.

Stats mattered a lot if you were doing combines way over your skill. If you were just doing something a few skills above it didn't matter.

Where did you dig that equation up from?

[August]

This recipe comes from EQTC and I have used it as a model for 5 years - I'd have to go back and look.

TS difficulty is DEFINITELY in place on this server. JC is a mod of 4 and it's very obvious compared to tailoring, blacksmith as far as successful skillups.

Chance to skillup is double on a success than on a failure, and is linearly dependent on how high your stat is. Furthermore, the stat is actually a modified stat (stat-15).


Based on how this works, you'd have double the chance of skilling up with 200 INT than 100 int depending on what recipe you're making.

The upside of that is that you want to make things that are extremely close to your trivial level, and you want as high of a modifier as you can get on your stats. If you're not over 200 you're throwing money down the drain.

Here's my spreadsheet where I modeled the entire JC line: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1QHkJpZ5vLP9-7tUXDtyCrFNufcWlRKoIFtMPRTv7uFA/edit?usp=sharing


Here is one post talking about it from 2004: http://mboards.eqtraders.com/eq/showthread.php?15638-skillup-formula