Bragtoberfest: Level 50 & How I Accidentally Made a Lot of Gold in ArcheAge
This will likely be my final brag for the month since I’m not sure what else I can do in ArcheAge to top what happened this weekend. I’ll be focusing on Halloween events (FFXIV, GW2, TSW, etc), and doubt there’s much to brag about there. Also have a trip IRL this weekend, so lots to keep me busy and away from blogging!
Ding 50!
So, I reached level 50 in ArcheAge yesterday. You know, it really isn’t even bragworthy. I haven’t quested for levels since the late 20s, aside from just compulsively wanting to finish up the zones I could. So, most of my leveling has come from just doing what I want to do – farming, fishing, gathering, gilda dailies.
In fact, I dinged 50 while finishing the Hearty Meal daily quest, which revolves around crafting an item at the Farmer’s Workbench, clicking on it in your inventory, then delivering it to the nearest auction house NPC. Oooh… strenuous!
So anyhow, I finished that, and switched out Battlerage for Songcraft so that I can level that and have the speed boost song. I was surprised at just how fast levels go when you do that. I’ve hardly done much at all and it’s already level 17.
Now, leveling proficiency? That’s another story all together.
Farewell to a Friend
A fellow blogger, who will remain nameless unless they wish to come forward in comments, has been playing alongside me on the Lucius server. They told me this weekend that the game’s not doing it for them, and they’re calling it a done deal. I was sad to hear this, but I understand.
So we said our goodbyes in game… and they promptly sent me all their stuff! I mean… my eyes boggled. This was obviously hard-earned stuff. And I just don’t know how to put my thanks into words because I really appreciate their total generosity on this.
So, in case you didn’t get my in-game mail in return… thank you. I will put this all to good use and not waste a drop of it!
The Gift Farm
One of the items gifted to me was none other than an aqua farm. My friend sent this to me knowing that I sold my previous aqua farm, and noted that I could sell this one, too. I found that idea difficult — I mean, it was a gift farm. You don’t just go sell gifts.
Previously, when I was attempting an aqua farm (a whole week ago), I didn’t have a boat, funds or fast means to move around to get to the farm. Part of my frustration was with travel to and fro. Also, sales of produce were slow, so I wasn’t sure how profitable it would be to maintain the farm.
Now, I’m in a much better position to take on another plot of land. I have a boat for water transportation. The selling price for aqua farm blueprints is dipping (along with the small housing blueprints). The coral is much more in demand as people start getting higher level alchemy.
To make it short, I decided to keep the farm. Found a nice spot to set it. Named it Giftfarm.
Thank you again.
Thunderstruck Adventures
In AA, any time you plant a tree, you have a rare chance for lightning to strike it. This is called a Thunderstruck Tree.
These are used to build things like the Fishing Boat (which I really want one day) and various other high-end stuff. On my server, they sell for over 800 gold each.
There’s all sorts of speculation on how to get one. I read that longer-growing trees, such as pine, increased the likelihood of lighting striking (makes sense). Since I’m done with growing trees for lumber now that I’ve finished my farmhouse, I decided it wouldn’t hurt to fill my farm up with pines.
The RNG rarely favors me. So, when I came to log my pines yesterday and I found a Thunderstruck Tree, I just lost it.
The first thing that crossed my mind was — I just needed one more for my fishing boat! I had no intention to sell it, and all intentions to save it in hopes I’d get lucky for a second drop sometime in the future (what’s the chance in that, though)?
Only, it wasn’t to be. Because I derp.
My ThunDERPstruck Moment
I was so excited about the tree, I wanted to share it in chat with someone. It wasn’t good enough to type “I got a Thunderstruck Tree,” though. No. I need to link it in chat.
I’m not familiar with the chat system here, and honestly have no idea how to link something in chat. Maybe you drag it to the bar? Dunno. So, I did the first thing I thought to find options for an item. I right-clicked the Thunderstruck Tree.
ArcheAge happily let me know that I had unintentionally chosen to cut my Thunderstruck Tree into Thuderstruck Logs.
I panicked! This was not what I wanted to do!
I tried to cancel the action by moving. However, my cursor was still in the chat window, dutifully typing “wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww”. By the time I thought to hammer the esc key, the damage was already done.
I was now the owner of four Thunderstruck Logs. And I was crushed!
So, let me put this here for all to see:
Warning: Right-clicking your Thunderstruck Tree will cut it into Thunderstruck Logs. Be careful!
Salvaging the Situation
It took me about 10 minutes to come to acceptance with the fact that my fishing boat was now just as far away as it was earlier.
Afterall, I still had the logs, and that was something. Right?
So I took to the Auction House to see what they were worth. Over 200 gold each!
“Okay,” I thought. “That’s quite a bit. But who is going to pay that kind of money for one log?”
Half an hour later, I’d sold two of them for over 200 G each.
The other two were sitting up there, but not selling yet. So I went to find out what in the world these logs were used for. Then I discovered…
The Farm Cart!
I was under the impression a farm cart required a whole tree, not a log.
I started to think about it. Farm carts are cute. I’m growing all the stuff I need for the eco-friendly fuel. So why not make one?
That’s what I did. I pulled one log from the AH, sold the last one and went to work on building my farm cart!
I was happy to see that Yny was about to go into peace mode, so I tried out the cart on a long journey up north. It’s a bit slower than I’d like it to be, but considering I’m taking two packs instead of one, I suppose it was worth it.
Elite Merchant’s Cushion
Finally, the last thing I splurged on was the downy yata fur I needed for the Elite Merchant’s Cushion. I’ve been raising yata in hopes of gathering the material, but don’t see it happening anytime soon. I decided I may as well buy the fur and make the cushion, that way I can sell whatever fur the yata produce from here on for a profit.
That’s what I did. It’s soooo very nice to have access to the Bank, Auction House and Merchant in my home! Worth every gold I spent!
And goal achieved — though not in the way I expected to achieve it.
In Closing
Though I was distraught about accidentally salvaging my Thunderstruck Tree, I think in the end, it was the most profitable and beneficial thing to do. I’m no where near the number of gilda stars I need for the fishing boat blueprint. And even if I did get it, I’d still need to hope that the RNG loved me enough to give me another Thunderstruck Tree (what’s the odds in that)?
So, saving the tree would have done me little good. While selling the logs and crafting a cart that can boost my earning potential was actually a good thing. At least… that’s what I keep telling myself…
So what’s my current goal in ArcheAge? I’ve come a long way in one month!
I have a farmhouse. I have a farm and aqua farm. I have a boat. I have farm cart.
I guess I need to focus on crafting and raising my skills. I’m enjoying fishing. I need to keep working up my gathering to reach the point where I can make seed bundles. I think I want to dabble in leather working, but I’m not sure yet.
