The Dilemma: Alchemy vs EnchantingFollow

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#1 Aug 18 2006 at 2:12 PM Rating: Good

Wondroustremor

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5,103 posts

This isn't exactly a post to ask what I should be. Not quite.

I recently dropped mining to take up herbalism. I currently do skinning as well (it's capped at 300), but the market seems to be getting flooded with leather on my server. I decided that, like mining, skinning is no longer profitable enough for me to keep. Besides, it seems like I have to compete with a number of people for skinning rights whenever I group now.

I decided upon (surprise, surprise) either alchemy (since I have both herbalism at 214 and fishing at 287) or enchanting (which is virtually a standalone profession, and can be supplemented by running instances and d/eing everything of lesser value). I weighed the pros and cons of each, and came up with a list:

Alchemy
Pros

Already supplemented by herbalism and fishing

Some potions are always in high demand

Potions are finite and thus people will always come back for more

Some potions sell for considerably more than the cost to make them

Cons

Potions are finite and thus always require farming for mats or buying them off the Auction House

Demand may fluctuate wildly (some potions are in high demand only during WSG bonus time, or a guild may buy a massive amount of potions before an MC run, only to not buy more for some time)

Advanced potions require a visit to an alchemy lab- not easy to get to

By taking up Alchemy, I cannot enchant my own gear

Enchanting
Pros

Enchanting is standalone- does not need a gathering profession to supplement it

At high levels, some instances can be soloed, giving green & better items to be disenchnted for cheap mats

As long as there are people getting new gear (always), there will always be a demand for enchants

I can enchant my own gear, cutting out the overhead of getting enchants from other people

Cons

Many mats for enchanting appear to be more expensive / harder to find than most alchemy mats

Artisan enchanting trainer is in Uldamann- semi-remote and, while not dangerous for higher-level players, still a pain

Enchanting is not a tangible good, and thus not sellable for fixed amounts at the Auction House

Also, since enchants are basically sold via trade, people often want them done for free if they have mats, or for the cost of mats, and often seem to dispute the value of enchants

I was wondering if I've missed anything obvous out of the equation here. I'm still leaning towards alchemy, but I'd really appreciate any feedback from people that have some experience with either (or preferably both) of these professions!

Many thanks! Smiley: boozing

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Longtail | Evilynne | Maevene | Kornakk | Steelbelly

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#2 Aug 18 2006 at 2:46 PM Rating: Good

__DEL__1592271237219

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4,877 posts

I always have to chime in, even though I am bias.

Alchemy
Pro's
Makes you extra usefull for any party, even if a oopsie happens, when parties get re arranged and things are lookign tough, the ability to whip out some pharmies to help folks boost conficde. My example is loosing a LOTP druid on a AQ run, beign able to whip out a stack of mongoose pots re energised the raid, we were able to move rogues in to parties with locks, this way they got the STA and 2% cirt.

Have you seen the Flasks ?
I just lost a roll on FOSP last week but it is ok, went to a rogue buddy who is more likely to get to the alchemy lab than I, so i can get some, but Sheesh, those flasks are worth a trip to the lab. The upside is that you can acutaly buy mats on the AH, take them to a lab and sell the flask when you get back, and acualy make money!!!!!

Transmutes!!!!!!
This is like money in the bank, you start off with arc transmutes, with a painfull 48 hr cooldown. but eventualy you can get some good elemetnal ones with 24 hr cooldown, also the heart of fire to elemetnal fire(to make more and more fire portect pots) is only on a 10 min cooldown.

Con
Enchanting makes wizard oil, not alchemest? ya who knows .......

Enchanting
Pro's
You can make posts on Alla how you get the short end of the stick, how everybody is out to get you and they do not understand the trade. you can explain how you deserve any enchanting mats so you can sell them for a proffit.

Wizard and Mana oils rock as long as no shaman gets it in his mind that the casters want a windfury totem layed down to eat your oil.

You can tell folks to "Go level enchanting yourslef if you do not like the price" and other snooty comments when you demand a fee when players bing there own mats for a enchant you will get a skillup off of.

Enchanting mats have no AH fee accoiated with them!!!!!

There are no Cooldown items in enchanting(acuatly this is a grey area, it is the cooldown stuff that makes the best money).

Con's
The Freeking rep grinds. in addation to the painfull farmed plans, you have to farm distrubing amounts of rep to get the faction based enchants, While i have already mocked the whinyness of enchanters in general(since i am a enchanter, i do qualify, just watch me) Some of theese are freeking painfull, and realisticly requrie the aid of a guild(or just a lot of your time).

Nothing for your alt, as a alchemest you can brew up potions to make leveling a alt a breeze. My shaman was buffed silly form level 16-60, i never was without something to beef up my kill rate. Sure you could nuke some stuff and try and get a second enchanter to hook you up on a trade(like you will enchant his alts stuff), but that is a pain.

the ROI(Retrun On Investment) is realy low, even my druid enchanter who has been 300 for over a year now, acutaly nets the LEAST money of my other toons. Mostly becasue i can find more stuff to do than sit arround spamming a macro that i want to sell a enchant.

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I have a few alts for melting items for the AH or so i have what i need when I want enchatnts. the kicker is that most enchanters are happy with extra mats over cash any day of the week, so i usualy tip them in extra shards, orbs, essense, dust. usualy they are happy to do biz with me again. I have also tiped enchatners in stuff like Kingsblood(for TB rep), or Dark iorn(TB rep again).

I say alchemy!!!!!!!

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#3 Aug 20 2006 at 7:45 AM Rating: Decent

__DEL__1592277934734

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1,606 posts

I'd say alchemy is both more profitable than enchanting and more useful to the average person. However, it's herbalism that really makes the money. Generally alchemy just lets you make some useful things for yourself/guildies/friends before you sell the rest of your herbs on the AH. There are, of course, a few exceptions to this (which you'll have to find).

The one nice thing, like you said, is potions are consumed once and then they are gone. Most servers have a decent amount of raiding guilds. As an alchemist for one such raiding guild, I can assure you, that we consume a truck load of potions each week of raiding. Between flasks, DPS buffs, Healing and Mana pots, etc... we're spending 1000s of gold quite frequently. And, I don't know about you, but I'm not buying 2 crusader enchants each week. I myself probably go through 50-100g of pots a week... now I make my own... but many of my guildies have to buy their herbs and have them made by me (which I do for free of course). However, many of them just buy pots straight off the AH (I know b/c I sell pots from an alt and I see their names on the mails hehe).

The other nice thing about alchemy is there is little rep grinding to be done. You'll gradually get the ZG rep to get the pots associated with them, but other than that, possibly TB to friendly is all you need. Pots that sell VERY well (Major health and mana, mongoose, greater agi, giants, etc...) require little work to get. Others, like the greater resistance potions, can be solo farmed (with the exception of fire resistance wihch is expensive but worth it in many cases).

I personally chose to drop skinning to take up alch as I was 300 in both herb and skinning for money while leveling. Once I got to 60 and bought my epic mount I powerleveled alchemy in a day with herbs I had saved on a alt. We already had a guild alchemist that has every recipe in game. However, he's not on all the time, and I end up making a lot of crap for the guild. In my spare time, I farm for herbs as my principle source of income. Selling 1 stack of dreamfoil on my server is good for 2 full repairs... and while I'm farming that dreamfoil, I also get mats to make mongoose, brute force, and health pots for raiding.

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