Crafting Incentive?

Have just tried to craft a better longbow for my ranger, combining 4 Extraordinary to get a Legendary. It is a significantly worse bow than any of those combined, so I'm wondering where the incentive to craft is (apart from fulfilling a daily quest) - considering I ended up with a worse bow and it cost me to do so.

Also, I combined longbows and got a shortbow, and I'm a longbow specialist. So there goes another 25% in lost damage.

Supplementary question - my reward for the Weapons at The End Of Time quest is also set to be a shortbow, and again I'm a longbow specialist. What gives with that?

 

When crafting, there's no guarantees, except for the fact that if you combine 4 items of a kind, you're bound to get a higher rarity item of the same kind. If you combined longbows and got a short one, it means you threw at least one shortbow in the mix. If, say, you put 3 longbows and one shortbow, you have 75% chances to get a long one, and 25% for a short.

Incentive? No, not really any... it's expensive and not sure-fire, so it's a viable option only if you don't mind the cost or luck factor. If you're doing it for a daily challenge, just go to Swerdfield Pastures and get 4 green items - easiest and cheapest method for it.

About the EoT bow, it's a shortbow for everyone, you can't set it otherwise. The other classes also have one-handed EoT weapons, except the Steam Mechs, who have a two-handed heavy gun.

 

Hi Animus_Rex

1. Combining improved/magic/extraordinary items and crafting an item of higher tier doesn't grant you item with better quality. You will get higher tier item but the enchantments are random ... in many cases you will get worse item than those you combined. ATM the crafting system is broken and almost no one is using it. It was made that way by the devs intentionally ... they have had nothing better to do so they decided : "lets screw the sucker players bit more".
You can search the forum there are many threads on this topic.
Recently they announced crafting system 2.0 will be released in near future.

2. Combining different types of items is gambling. Best way to combine and get desired item is to craft 4 items of the same type ... the probability you will get any of those 4 items as a higher tier item is 25% ... meaning you might get short bow even if you combine 3 longbows and 1 short bow. (ex. combining 4 extraordinary longbows will always result in higher tier long bow)
Also note that combining items of different level will most probably result in getting an item on the level of the lowest combined item's level (ex. combining 2 level 43 and 2 level 45 items will most probably result in level 43 higher tier item).

3.I understand how you feel ... I am the long bow user myself. ATM the devs want all the rangers to play with the short bow ...
Rangers have crappiest 2H weapon in this game (though it is not even 2H it has stats of the 1H weapon). Devs perception how should rangers play is: longbow + quiver = long bow user (glass cannon) short bow + shield = shor tbow user (tank) ... of course there are few ... rare players in the game ... like me ... who oppose their perception. While any other class can successfully compete in the arena with 2H weapon ... rangers can't ... the devs want rangers to play in the arena only with short bow. Of course I say (selfedit) that ... the only way you can use longbow in the arena is to make sure you get certain type of long bow and certain type of items for your set up.
Developing character using long bow is very long and painful ... if you don't have a nerves I suggest you to play with short bow.
That EOT shortbow is not good (the old one was better) ... and all other quests are promoting short bow usage.
If you wan't to use long bow ... don't look for unique bows ... you need to find legendary long bow.

I hope this will help you.

 

Crafting is all about luck and persistance. I have DK and I crafter over 40 one handed sword and got only one decent and yet didnt get combination I want. But than I crafted 2h sword and from first atempt I scored premium, 2x dmg and 2x increase weapon dmg, overall 605 dmg/s on 47 lvl without gems. It is all about luck and resources.

 

There are all kinds of strategies to crafting. The best ones are based on applied statistics.

Dirty crafting is work benching unlike items. Since the mix of item features in not limited to one, pure, "desired" piece of gear, anything is possible. 4 extraordinary somethings turn into 1 legendary something. Usually you get melt.

In pure crafting, the odds of getting the desired item is 100%. When all the workbench items are the same type, you will get the same item at a higher level. 4 extraordinary swords turn into 1 legendary sword.
However, with 4 or 5 features possible on that item, the odds of getting all features to be the same is extremely low. (The mathematicians can volunteer the probability formulas and applications.) The odds against you are at least 25:1, maybe more than 200:1.
And, even worse, the range of each feature is not guaranteed either, even if you get features that work together. 4 lines of very low damage is still going to be no improvement for the average player, and the item is a melt.

It is a thrill to land a whale, but most people expect to be disappointed. It's a great topic of conversation.

Now, all that is assuming normal probabilities apply, but we know that this game is programmed, and workbench drops will depend on the program, and the programmer, and the system running at the time.
I personally have not gotten a worthy, final item, since level 45 was brand new. It was a dynamite level 45 skull with huge blocking stats; I still use it's upgrade. I used pure crafting from green, improved items, all the way up to legendary. 4 legendary items were bogus; 1 was golden and I was lucky.
The workbench has changed since then. I've given up on work benching, until the powers that be unlock some decent gear. Maybe they will in another year or so.
That's just my personal opinion, based on personal experience. Big Point could always say otherwise, if they want.

 

Thank you guys for the responses thus far and the information provided. Interesting stuff.

It looks like I made a newbie mistake based on false intuition and optimism that the crafting system guaranteed at least an improved item statistically, and not just a higher tier item that may or may not be better.

I think I'll leave crafting alone. It seems a waste of a feature to have in the game if it's just a raffle with the odds stacked against you, or at least not equating to the expense involved. Maybe the devs can change their name to Lucky Dip benches and put them next to the jesters.

Thank you all again.

 

Math nerd speaking:
On a weapon, there are 4/5 enchantments depending on if it is a 1H or a 2H. (Damage, % Damage, Crit, % Crit Damage, Attack Speed [1H only])
That means the odds of getting the combination you want on a 2h is between 1:256 and 6:256 and maybe 8:256 if you are looking for a crappy but well rounded one. (For example, if you want 4x +damage, that can only happen 1:256, but if you are looking for 2X % damage and 2X + damage, you could get that from 6 configurations, 1-2/3-4, 1-3/2-4, 1-4/2-3, 2-3/1-4, 2-4/1-3, and 3-4/1-2). Then there is the size of the enchantments... Odds are that even if you get the right enchantments, at least one will be too low and kill the usefulness of the item.

The odds for 1H weapons are even crazier due to the exponential growth of possibilities... 1:625 for the starting point.