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EverQuest 2 Alchemy Guide

6.4. Alchemy Products and Choosing What to Sell
Once you’ve spent time monitoring the market and have begun making finished products in your tier you can start to sell them. When leveling I would normally make one of every finished product per level and put all those items up for sale. As long as I had the space to do so, I would replace each item as it sold, noting down the name of the item I had sold at the same time. At the end of each week, I would vendor whatever had not sold, and continue to sell only those items that were in demand.

6.4.1. Apprentice IV Essences
As I’ve mentioned already, most of the app4 essences in a given tier aren’t in great demand because adept I drops are common. There are a few per tier that will sell quite well however and I strongly suggest you monitor the market on your server to find out which those are. Essences provide a good profit margin and are definitely worth selling once you figure out which are in demand for your server and tier.

If you can level up quickly at the start of new expansions you’ll find that apprentice IV essences will sell well for the first few weeks, until adept I drops become more common.

6.4.2. Adept III Essences
For the most part you’ll only make Adept III skills to order for other people. If you build up a good-sized customer base this can earn you a lot of money, as making Adept III skills will yield dusts to use in making Mastercrafted potions and poisons. Building up a good working relationship with your customers will give you an advantage in new expansions as well, because they will tend to return to you when they need the new items.

You may wish to get into making various Adept III skills and selling them via broker. If you’re persistent and choose popular skills to sell, you can make a lot of money doing this. It does require a decent-sized initial investment, as you need to buy rare harvests to turn into Adept III skills.

If this is something that interests you, it pays to do your research first. Investigate fighter class message boards and find out what skills in the various tiers people are the most popular upgrades, and talk to people on your server as well to find out more, and then

EverQuest 2 Alchemy Guide

6.3.2. Selling Via the Broker
Live Update 24 has brought with it a revamp of the broker system, and some big changes in the way selling works. Instead of selling from your house, you now set up your vendor and sell items using the broker window. This means that you no longer have to have a home or inn room to sell, but as with the old system, owning a larger house gives you more space to sell from. A normal inn room gives you one slot, and you get one extra slot for each extra room in your house.

To sell items, select the sell tab in the broker window, drag a bag or box into a free
slot, and then drag the items you want to sell into the bag.
You can also fill a bag or box then drag the whole thing into the sell window.
Items that you put up for sale are priced automatically at the highest price an NPC
vendor will pay for them.
To re-price your items, click Set Price, and to put it up for sale, click List Item for
Sale.
Right clicking on the item and choosing Search will list items of the same type
being sold by other people, so you can compare prices.
Click the Take Coin button to receive the money you’ve made from selling items.

6.3.3. Monitoring the Market
When you enter a new tier it’s advisable to spend some time each day looking at what Alchemy products are already available on the market in that tier so you can begin to decide what you are going to concentrate on to sell.

This is especially important for essences. Many of these are commonly available as adept I drops so the app4 versions do not sell very well. There are a few essences in each tier that do not drop as adept I versions, and these tend to sell much more easily than those which have common adept I drops.

Those combat arts without common adept I drops are the only ones that I still make and sell. This is partly due to space constraints C I don’t often set up a merchant and usually only sell through my bank vault. If you are intending to have a merchant set up permanently then you’ll have the inventory space to sell more items and can try selling more than just the few essences in each tier that don’t have higher version drops.

EverQuest 2 Alchemy Guide

6.3.1. /LFW
The /LFW tag works just the same as /LFG. When you use this it lets people know that you’re available to do tradeskill work for them.

There are a few things to be aware of when you put yourself on the market in this way. The first thing is C decide on a price for your services before you even start advertising that you’re available for work. Go through your product lists and decide what you want to charge for each type of item that you can make (bearing in mind that people will usually expect to pay less for items made in this way than if you had them for sale on your vendor or vault).

Second, before you turn on the /LFW tag, it’s a good idea to make sure you have all the resources you might need. It’s best to consider every possibility because you never know what people are going to ask you for. I try to have a stack or two of each type of resource on hand for all tiers so I’m prepared for anything I might need to make.

Third, remember that it is always your right to say no. If you’re not interested in making low tier products, for example, then you don’t have to. I do not use the /LFW tag a lot, but I often get unsolicited requests anyway. If they are for adept III essences I will always do them, because making these yields the loams which are used in making rare potions and poisons. When I get requests for lower tiers and I’m particularly busy I will usually suggest to the customer that they ask a lower tier alchemist to make their items C an alchemist who can get experience for the combines will get more benefit than I will, so I am happy to give up some business to benefit them.

Also remember that you are free to set your own prices C but people are also free to refuse to pay them. If you’re uncertain of the value of your services, talk to fellow Alchemists to get an idea of what you should be charging. I usually base my prices on the amount of time I spend doing a combine, and the difficulty of the combine. I charge more for rare combines than handcrafted ones, as the combine is more difficult, and uses more fuel.

EverQuest 2 Alchemy Guide

6. Making Money as an Alchemist
Alchemists have several options for making money, some better than others, but they all serve a different purpose and all have their place, and you’ll probably end up doing them all at one time or another.

6.1. Vendoring
With the way crafting works as of Live Update 24, you’ll find yourself ending up with a glut of finished products, as all your crafting experience will come from making these (since refines and interims no longer exist). Vendoring is unfortunately the best way of getting rid of these items. However, you’ll likely be able to sell items on the broker albeit at a fairly slow pace. Once the market stabilizes it will become slightly easier to sell your finished products.

Because of the changes that came with Live Update 24, vendoring is probably be the only way to get rid of most of the handcrafted items that you make while leveling. Removing subcombines from the game means you’re only making finished products to level so you’ll end up making far more than you’ll be able to sell to other players. Unfortunately, vendor buy-back prices were also changed and now NPC vendors only buy items back for the
cost of the fuel that was used to make them. This means that when you vendor items you lose whatever it cost to buy the resources.

6.2. Tasks and Writs
Status writs and workshop tasks have been temporarily removed from the game C watch this space for updates when the system is revamped.

6.3. Selling to Other Players
Selling finished products to other players is one of the most fun parts of tradeskilling for me. It is great to know that there are people out there in Norrath using things that I’ve made! If you’re smart and figure out what people want to buy there is a lot of money to be made, too.

EverQuest 2 Alchemy Guide

5.3.3. Tier Five
Tier five nodes can be found in Rivervale, the Feerrott, Everfrost, and Lavastorm. I don’t really recommend trying to harvest in Lavastorm unless you are high enough level to avoid the goblins in the first field area, or unless you have a computer that’s good enough to reduce your lag to a manageable level. Lavastorm is my least favorite zone to harvest in simply because my frame rate is much slower here than in other tier five zones (I don’t harvest a great deal any more but when I do I usually go to Everfrost for tier five resources).

Rivervale is the easiest of the tier five zones to harvest in. In Rivervale there is a small area that is almost completely safe to harvest in no matter what your level is. If you take the right hand path from the entrance and follow it round a little way you’ll come to a ridge with some non-aggressive nymphs roaming over it. As long as you stay on that ridge and don’t cross the river or any bridges, you’re quite safe as there are no aggressive roamers in that area. The down side is that it’s a very small area and often there are only a few nodes up.

The Feerrott contains an abundance of nodes but it can be a difficult zone to harvest in if you’re low level because visibility is quite poor here. When harvesting here it’s good to get used to playing in third person view if you don’t do it already, as it will help you to avoid both creatures and obstacles such as trees. Look out for ? nodes in the Feerrott while you’re harvesting there. A completed Feerrott fern leaves collection will reward you with a massive 30 slot backpack, which is a fantastic thing for any tradeskiller to own. At level 50 you can harvest almost anywhere in the Feerrott in complete safety, but until then you need to be aware of roaming monsters as there are a lot of them in this zone. In general it’s best to stick to the western-most section of the map when you’re starting to harvest here, and work your way in as your adventuring level increases.

Everfrost is my favorite tier five zone to harvest in but it’s not at all the easiest, as only around half of the zone is grey at level 50. If you’re just beginning to harvest here and you’re in your late 30s or early 40s then the open tunnel leading from the evacuation point is the best place to start to harvest. The large open area full of lizards and sheep at the end of this tunnel is a good spot to move to once you’re high enough to survive there, and the leopard/numbfoot hunter area is a very nice area to harvest as well. All three have a high concentration of nodes and they’re great places to harvest if you’re well-practiced at avoiding aggressive creatures.

EverQuest 2 Alchemy Guide

5.3.2. Tier Four
Tier four zones include the Enchanted Lands and Zek, as well as one or two instanced zones which can be great places to harvest if you’re have problems with node competition. The Cove of Decay (in the Thundering Steppes) and Bloodskull Valley (in the Commonlands) both contain many tier four nodes which can be harvested safely from the mid 20s in Bloodskull Valley and mid 30s in the Cove of Decay.

In the Enchanted Lands there is a very safe area to the right of the docks (past the klakrok area) that contains no aggressive creatures at all (unless you’ve somehow ruined your fairy faction) which is ideal to harvest in if you’re a low-level adventurer. It also has a ? node spawn area so it’s a great first harvest spot for tier four, as you can collect enchanted maple leaves for a collection quest which rewards you with a 24 slot backpack. The rest of the land around the docks (up until the wall) is also relatively safe but does contain aggressive creatures that are around 30-35 in level.

The nightblood/lamia/nymph area in the north-eastern section of the map has a very high node concentration and is an excellent harvest spot for 40+ (or lower if you’re the brave type). This area is my favorite harvesting site in the Enchanted Lands. The creatures here are fairly widely spaced and have predictable pathing patterns so it’s relatively simple to learn how to harvest safely here.

In Zek there are two or three spots which make great harvesting sites. The area around the stockade is reasonably safe but has a low node concentration. Quite close by is a large open area with very few aggressive creatures, and in the north-western part of the map is a large grassy area which is also a good spot. The enclosed area next to Spirit Lake is another great place as long as you’re on the look-out for the snakes that roam in the area. This space also contains a ? node which frequently spawns glowing shards and unscathed bones of all types, as well as the occasional enchanted bone. This is my favorite Zek harvesting area, although it does become a bit too small to support one person once you are high enough level to avoid aggression from the snakes that live there.

EverQuest 2 Alchemy Guide

5.3. Harvesting in Tiers 3-5
The act of harvesting doesn’t change throughout the tiers but as your tradeskill level increases you’ll find yourself harvesting in progressively higher level areas. This can be a dangerous practice if your adventuring level is low. Luckily most zones have areas that are reasonably safe for those who are harvesting in areas they’re not high enough to fight in yet.

In addition, several instanced zones contain harvest nodes. These can be more dangerous to harvest in depending on your level C the advantage here is that you get to harvest by yourself in a secluded area with no competition for nodes. The Vale of Shattering (near Stormhold in Antonica) is one such place that contains tier two nodes.

5.3.1. Tier Three
Tier three zones include Nektulos Forest and the Thundering Steppes. In addition you can harvest in a zone in the Commonlands called Zarvon’s tower, which is a convenient place to harvest from the mid-20s.

Most people I know prefer to harvest in the Thundering Steppes when they need tier three items. In a sense it is an easier zone to harvest in. It’s full of wide-open space and light, so it’s easier to see and react to danger. However this means there’s a lot more node competition. In addition there are two or three medium-level heritage quests that require items harvested specifically in the Thundering Steppes. For these reasons I did most of
my tier three harvesting in Nektulos Forest, and once you get used to it, it isn’t much more dangerous.

As with all harvesting in areas with mobs that are aggressive, the key is to learn how close you can get to creatures before they decide to attack you. Once you figure that out it’s fairly simple. The best places I found to harvest in Nektulos Forest are close to the entrance of N`Marr’s Ascent. On either side of the bottom of the ramp are some smallish areas that have a high concentration of nodes and few wandering monsters, so they’re reasonably safe areas to harvest. River bank areas are also good places to harvest as there tends to be fewer trees in those areas so visibility is better. If you’re high enough level to avoid aggression, the best place to harvest is in the north-eastern section of the map C past the wisp area and along the road that leads to the Thexian camp.

EverQuest 2 Alchemy Guide

5. Leveling Strategies for Alchemists C Tier 3 and up
Tier three is where you will start to learn the techniques and strategies that will carry you through to the level cap. It’s the best time to learn the different ways of using your buffs to get the particular results you want and how to organize your crafting sessions to get the most out of the time you spend. Many of the things you do in tier three you will want to do again in subsequent tiers it’s good to note things down when you find techniques that work well for you in this tier.

5.1. The Fastest Way to Level
As usual the most efficient way of leveling is to get that all-important pristine bonus as much as possible. However at level 20 and above it takes considerably more experience to gain a level than it used to. It’s going to take a lot more combines to level in the 20s and even more as you level to new tiers.

This is where the second factor in maximizing experience gain becomes important. Just as you gain more experience from killing creatures close to your level, you get more experience from making items that are close to your tradeskill level. The downside to this is that fast leveling becomes something of a grind.

5.2. Leveling While Making a Profit
If you’re happy to level a little slower it’s possible to make a good profit in the lower tiers. It’s simply a matter of find out which of your products sell the best. I will explain this in more detail in section seven.

The main point is that if you prefer to level this way it’s going to be somewhat slower unless you have a very large amount of time to spend on tradeskilling (enough time that you are able to both keep up with customer demand and concentrate on making items for pristine bonus experience).

EverQuest 2 Alchemy Guide

4.5. Using Recipe Book Filters
You will want to use your recipe book filters as much as possible. As an Alchemist you’ll end up with hundreds of different recipes, and adding filters will save a lot of time when you’re looking for something specific.

To make recipe filters, open up your recipe book and click the Edit button. This takes you to a page with a number of different filters which you can use to divide your recipe book into different sections. All you do is choose your filters, give the section a new name, and click OK. There are four different categories you can use to filter your recipe books.

Level
By itself this one isn’t that useful; I use it in conjunction with other filters.

Technique
This one works the same as the Knowledge filter.

Knowledge
This one filters recipes by the knowledge type that is used to create them. This is a good one for tier 1-2 recipes as for these tiers you have a lot of different recipe types. For example, I have a section where I have set the Knowledge filter to Alchemy and the Level filter to 1-9 (use Ctrl-left click to select more than one option) C this section then contains only Alchemy recipes for those levels, and filters out all the other profession recipes that I almost never use.

Recipe Book
This filter is good for recipes that don’t appear in normal recipe books, like the Bloodlines Chronicles recipes, the Desert of Flames single-recipe scrolls, and the Kingdom of Sky quest recipes.

EverQuest 2 Alchemy Guide

A comparison of +progress/-durability buffs shows a different story C

Theory (level 1) decrease durability by 6
increase progress by 18

Assumption (level 20) decrease durability by 9
increase progress by 27

Clearly there are times when you’d want to use one over the other. Assumption is ideal to use when you’re doing low level combines that are easy to get pristine on, but Theory is the better choice when you need to have tight control of your durability level.

4.4. Increasing Efficiency with the In-game Macro System
Everquest 2 has a very user-friendly system which you can use to create macros to help you in crafting. Crafting is very repetitive and if you do it in large blocks of time you’ll want to use macros to ease the stress on your hands and wrists.

I have several macros that I use in different situations. Each of them activates one crafting buff and queues another one to go off afterwards. It doesn’t sound like much but over several hours spent crafting it saves a huge amount of clicking. They’re also useful in situations where I’m doing other things in addition to crafting C I can start a reaction, hit a macro then ignore it till the item is finished and it’s time to start the next one. Normally in these situations I’m doing low level recipes that don’t take too much effort to get to a pristine level. One hit of my progress macro and 90% of the time I’ll end up with a pristine product at the end of the crafting process.

When I’m doing low level combines (ten or more levels below my current level), I use a macro that activates my two biggest +progress buffs that don’t use power. Most of the time, using this macro and nothing else is enough to get pristine combines.