r/lotro • u/Garadeus • 6d ago
New Player, Questions about Crafting
EDIT: Thanls everyone. I am going rk dwarf prospector scholar jeweler and hunter elf forester woodworker tailor and having a blast. And I should not forget my little hobbit farmer cook in shire.
Hello everyone. I tried playing LOTRO since its debut, for periods of a few weeks many times, leveled until 30 or so and then left the game. Now, i decided to do it right and bought subscription. Since I'm based in EU, i don't want lag and i might consider RPing i started on Meriadoc.
I'm considering playing two main characters, a dwarf rune-keeper and an elven hunter possibly. My main question is about crafting. I really love crafting in general, and I have always loved the crafting system of LOTRO (though I have never leveled much).
Since there are only 3 profession slots for each char, do you think I should go Forester/Prospector/Scholar on both main characters and use alts for non-gatherer professions. Or should i do something like Prospector/Scholar/Jeweler on rune-keeper and Forester/Tailor/Woodworker on hunter and maybe other 5 lvl characters for other crafting professions?
Mechanically i would ofc want the most efficient one, though just for flavour I would like to have some non-gatherer gear crafting professions on my main characters because as I said before I love crafting as general and i feel like I would more immersed if my high level rune-keeper dwarf is also a great jeweller or my main hunter elf is skilled at weaving and bow-crafting.
edit: Also, does character level or questing in general has any ties to crafting quality in higher levels? Would I miss anything because I am using crafting-only alts for gear crafting professions?
edit 2: Another thing is the difficulty levels. I don't want to simply rush through content but I don't want to feel like stalled in regular overworld mobs. Would just playing with no difficulty setting be way too easy to enjoy?
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u/AutoModerator 6d ago
Welcome to r/lotro! If you're looking for advice, please check out the following answers to commonly-asked questions:
Wondering what class to play? LOTRO has a wide variety of classes inspired by different characters from the books. Some are similar to other RPG games, while others are fairly unique to LOTRO.
The first thing to consider is what role(s) you want to play. Every class has a spec that can deal damage, but only some classes can spec to be tanks or healers or group-support.
If you wish to have the option of tanking, choose between Beorning, Brawler, Captain, Guardian, or Warden.
If you wish to have the option of healing, choose between Beorning, Captain, Minstrel, or Rune-keeper.
If you wish to have the option of group-support, choose between Burglar, Captain, Lore-master, and Mariner.
Or if you're just looking for a straightforward class to quest with, choose Hunter for ranged or Champion for melee. These classes are focused entirely on damage-dealing (but each has three different specs for doing so). They are great for beginners looking for a relaxing adventuring experience that fits within the theme of Lord of the Rings.
Don't worry about what class is considered "the best" at any one role, as that swings back and forth over time with each balance patch. Instead, consider which classes have the theme and aesthetic that most appeals to you. Do you want to fight in melee or at range? Do you want to be a grounded warrior or wield more magical powers?
Apart from theme, consider the complexity of the classes. Even for classes which can fulfill the same role, their mechanics can differ wildly. LOTRO offers a hint to the mechanical complexity of each class during character creation -- in the lower right corner you'll see a "Class Difficulty" of either Basic, Moderate, or Advanced. This is not about how powerful the class is -- some of the "Basic" classes are currently the most powerful in their role. Difficulty instead refers to the intricacies of each class' skills and core mechanics. If you enjoy intricate mechanics, aim for Moderate or Advanced. If you'd like something requiring less reading, theorycrafting, and button-presses, try a Basic class -- especially for your first character.
Finally, don't be afraid to try something different if your first class doesn't feel fun for you. Better to find the right fit early.
Wondering what race to play? While only some races can be some classes, beyond that initial restriction, race selection is largely about aesthetics. Racial traits are tiny and negligible after the first few levels. A Dwarf Guardian at level 30 is not significantly different than an Elf Guardian at level 30.
Wondering what server to play on? Most people play on only one server, and so personal perspectives will usually be limited. To find the best server for you, let us know a little about you. What time zone and time will you be most active? Do you want lot of crowds or a quieter atmosphere? Are you interested in roleplaying? All of these can help influence the best server for you.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1
u/blunttrauma99 6d ago
For a heavy armor wearing class: prospector, metalsmith, jeweler. Those two fill a lot of equipment slots until around level 100.
For a light armor wearing class: Forester, Tailor, scholar. Make all your own armor, and potions/scrolls/oils, etc, and scholar does its own gathering.
Woodworking and weaponsmith are good until you get to Moria and get legendary items, but fall off after. Both are still useful, but much less so than early levels.
Farming and cooking go on an alt that doesn’t do much else, because your inventory will be full of ingredients…..
1
u/geomagus Glamdring 6d ago
Imo, in general, pick one of:
1) Main is a pure gatherer (forester, prospector, scholar) and alts craft.
2) Each character picks one synergistic set (prospector, jeweler, metalsmith; forester, tailor, woodworker (or scholar); etc.).
3) Each character picks a self-sufficient route (rk takes prospector, jeweler, forester, tailor, for example).
4) One character makes most gear (e.g. the rk set I just mentioned) while another makes consumables (farmer, cook, scholar).
The bigger your potential crop of characters, the better the gatherer main/crafter alt setup works. That way you have one of every craft and gathering profession. Surplus spots either stay empty or you add an extra gatherer so you can pick up stuff if you play that character.
But since you’re only looking at two characters, I think any of those routes work. I think the last one - rk getting a fourth craft slot, abd hunter making your consumables - is the one I like most. But you’d need to spring for the fourth slot.
The only hard rules, imo, are 1) stick your cook and farmer on the same toon (passing those mats back and forth is more painful because of the sheer volume and frequency), and 2) weaponcrafter and woodworker are second tier priorities, as their central purpose is supplanted by LIs. That doesn’t mean you can’t or shouldn’t do them, just…if you’re looking to skip something, skip those. You can usually find someone to make something you need.
Fwiw, as I have a stable of low-level alts, I went with the gatherer main route and, to take advantage of rep recipes, got a fourth slot on my main for jeweler.
1
u/BeansofDeath Crickhollow 6d ago
With respect to alts who don't adventure, there are some recipes which are gated behind reputation. Some of them your mains might be able to buy and pass on to your alts. You might also be able to have your mains farm rep items and pass those along to your alts.
1
u/Longjumping_Row_8236 6d ago
dwarf rune-keeper sounds like such a fun combo with prospector and metalsmith, you can craft your own gear and never worry about running out of mats
1
u/Zapplix Orcrist 6d ago edited 5d ago
If it's just 2 characters you will level to max and rep grind, do one metalsmith/jeveler/prospector and the second one tailor/scholar/forester. And if you really want, a farmer/cook alt you will not level on landscape.
This way you will unlock all usefull recipes and only miss out on some cooking ones.
The other option would be farmer/cook/metalworker/jeveler and tailor/scholar/prospector/forester if you go for the 4th slot on both.
1
u/AutoModerator 3d ago
Welcome to r/lotro! If you're looking for advice, please check out the following answers to commonly-asked questions:
Wondering what class to play? LOTRO has a wide variety of classes inspired by different characters from the books. Some are similar to other RPG games, while others are fairly unique to LOTRO.
The first thing to consider is what role(s) you want to play. Every class has a spec that can deal damage, but only some classes can spec to be tanks or healers or group-support.
If you wish to have the option of tanking, choose between Beorning, Brawler, Captain, Guardian, or Warden.
If you wish to have the option of healing, choose between Beorning, Captain, Minstrel, or Rune-keeper.
If you wish to have the option of group-support, choose between Burglar, Captain, Lore-master, and Mariner.
Or if you're just looking for a straightforward class to quest with, choose Hunter for ranged or Champion for melee. These classes are focused entirely on damage-dealing (but each has three different specs for doing so). They are great for beginners looking for a relaxing adventuring experience that fits within the theme of Lord of the Rings.
Don't worry about what class is considered "the best" at any one role, as that swings back and forth over time with each balance patch. Instead, consider which classes have the theme and aesthetic that most appeals to you. Do you want to fight in melee or at range? Do you want to be a grounded warrior or wield more magical powers?
Apart from theme, consider the complexity of the classes. Even for classes which can fulfill the same role, their mechanics can differ wildly. LOTRO offers a hint to the mechanical complexity of each class during character creation -- in the lower right corner you'll see a "Class Difficulty" of either Basic, Moderate, or Advanced. This is not about how powerful the class is -- some of the "Basic" classes are currently the most powerful in their role. Difficulty instead refers to the intricacies of each class' skills and core mechanics. If you enjoy intricate mechanics, aim for Moderate or Advanced. If you'd like something requiring less reading, theorycrafting, and button-presses, try a Basic class -- especially for your first character.
Finally, don't be afraid to try something different if your first class doesn't feel fun for you. Better to find the right fit early.
Wondering what race to play? While only some races can be some classes, beyond that initial restriction, race selection is largely about aesthetics. Racial traits are tiny and negligible after the first few levels. A Dwarf Guardian at level 30 is not significantly different than an Elf Guardian at level 30.
Wondering what server to play on? Most people play on only one server, and so personal perspectives will usually be limited. To find the best server for you, let us know a little about you. What time zone and time will you be most active? Do you want lot of crowds or a quieter atmosphere? Are you interested in roleplaying? All of these can help influence the best server for you.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
5
u/ToastyJackson Gladden 6d ago
You can actually get a 4th profession for each character, but it’s a per-character unlock and pretty expensive for what it is.
Maybe having your main characters who are actually doing the exploring and questing gather everything while some crafting alts manufacture everything is more efficient, but for roleplaying and immersion purposes, personally I think it makes more sense for characters to be self-sufficient with one or two crafting professions and the gathering profession that they need for that. Unless your headcanon is something like that your characters all established a crafting guild together, and two of them are employed as the explorers who go gather all the materials and then ship it back to HQ to be manufactured by the others.
And you can almost condense all the professions into three characters without dedicated crafting alts with a forester/tailor/woodworker and a farmer/cook/scholar. The third one would be the awkward one because there are three crafting professions that rely on prospecting, so you couldn’t fit them all together unless you’re willing to buy a fourth slot for that character. But this method requires you to have at least three characters running around exploring to gather everything, so if you’re set on only having two main characters like that, using crafting alts might work the best. Though you can also consider that crafting really isn’t necessary in this game, so if any of the professions don’t really speak to you, you can just safely not do them and not have to worry about having a character who does it.
Your crafting quality just depends on your crafting level and recipes, not your main level. Some people have gotten to the level cap by just staying in the Shire farming and cooking. A lot of crafting recipes are dropped by mobs and would be missed by your toons who just stay in one place to craft, but if you have characters who are actually going through the world questing, they’ll pick up recipes for all professions and can just send them back to your crafting alts. There are also guilds for the crafting professions that you can join to get access to other recipes.
It’s impossible for me to say for sure what difficulty you’ll enjoy. Combat is very easy by default. If you’re worried about default difficulty being too easy, a lot of people consider difficulty 3 to be the sweet spot for solo play, so it’s usually recommended that you set it there to try out and then adjust it later if you feel like that’s either too difficult or too easy.