[Zyrkael]

what would be the best profession for a chanter to master or lvl to 399 first

[Bronx]

bomb making

[blackboy424]

lol @ bronx umm i guess armor is good and the one for potions. There is a guide on how the profession work and which ones benefit who.

[Kandrah]

My choices:

Alchemy: To have my own pots and scrolls handy - specially mana pots and running scrolls
Handicrafting: To be able to make my own staffs and jewelery (which is 6 slots covered)

I assume that most fighters will go armor crafting so there will be enough to buy armor from if needed. On top armor is easier to come by in quests or instances then jewelery.

[Serendipity]

A would never say that a certain job is best for a certain class. All in all, it does not really matter what profession you choose. Every profession has something your class profits from.
Handicrafting is nice for Staffmaking;
Alchemy is nice for those crit stones since all the assassins and glads role them out from under your nose;
Armorsmith is nice for ...you guessed it...Armor ^^
and so on and so forth...

Just Read the Profession Guides and pick one thats suits you and not your class! ^^

[Eikoi]

To answer the OP's question, Armorsmithing. Here's why:

While leveling to about 45 (where the level cap was at one time, and I consider the beginning of 'end-game' content), the gear that is craftable is superior to gear obtained via quests or mobs of about the same quality and level. This means that you can grind skill on work orders (highly recommended) to get to the point where the can create gear that matches your level. If you're lucky, you can proc better rarity items while crafting that can stretch your gear even farther.

This also depends on how you're spending your Abyss Points (or the amount you can earn). Abyss gear (since it is earned through the PvPvE system) is about the same quality as crafted gear, but weighted differently than crafted (considered by many to be PvE) gear.

Chanters are VERY gear dependent, since our abilities are diversified (we have mantras that help others much more then they help us). So, on that note, I would say that handicrafting (staves are the only 2H weapon not crafted via Weaponmaking) and armorcrafting (for chain armor) will be able to cover your gear needs. In Aion, you can take one profession all the way to cap of 450. Most of the really strong weapons and gear start at 400, and work orders stop about 390. Expect to level slowly to the cap and the costs to be steep. This means that alchemy and cooking may be useful to take to 399, but not choose to level all the way to the cap.

Handicrafting is good too, but many players in China and Korea report that is very expensive to level by comparison to Armorsmithing. We, as Chanters, get a little lucky at Handicrafting, as the other weapon created is bows, which is a HUGE part of Ranger damage. It's very possible that Hunters will focus their attention to handicrafting to level as they level, since damage has much more to do with their downtime (in a solo sense) than we do.

[Ego]

as of 1.5 you can master two. so you could for example spend a stupid ammount of cash and time getting handicrafting and armoursmithing to 450 as well as getting alchemy to 399. now for a little bit of info from my own research and perceptions...


Cooking

realistically cooking is the cheapest to level but not worth doing unless you are going to master it for the DP food (2000 and 4000 dp heals respectively so giving you access to your most powerful abilities instantly) the buffs it provides are nice, and worth using for levelling and pvp but not required to perform well. i tried this out on an assassin alt up to level 20 and its ok but meh since you can buy the stuff from vendors anyway until the dp food in the higher levels.


Alchemy

alchemy is the second cheapest to level but probably not worth mastering, once you get to 399 skill you can make all of the best manastones (from lower level white manastones, crit combines give top end green stones) you can make the best scrolls (flight/ground speed and attack speed) you can make the best shock absorbtion scrolls (absorb shield, defends against certain status effects such as gladiator aerial shackle) you can make the best flight time pots (+48 seconds) and the best healing/mana pots (not combined). the only "better" things you can make up to 450 are caster weapons and some slightly better potions (health and mana combined) i tried this out on a spiritmaster alt up to lvl 15 but with some spare cash i had floating about the last day before we got wiped and its currently my favourite for release.


Armoursmithing

armoursmithing is as mentioned above an excellent profession, moderately expensive, but annoying as hell. you can make armour, shields and helms, however the best items you can craft are either "craftmans" or "experts", to make these items you need a higher quality of refining stone than the basic dropped ones of your level. for example a regular refining stone probably drops once per 7-10 mobs, a craftmans regular refining stone probably drops once every 7-10 regular refining stone drops. to make the best gear you need to crit your craft to make a shining item, the level 23 craftmans armour which is made from the above stones will crit on average once every 3 attempts (sometimes your lucky sometimes your not, like i had 7 goes at my chest in beta but my shoulders boots and gloves all critted first time)

i averaged about 8 craftmans regular accessory refining stones (for the helm), 40 craftmans regular armour refining stones, 600 titanium ore, 20 ore of high purity (rare gathering result from titanium ore, one in 20 at a guess) and about 35 aether of high purity (rare garthering result from skill 100-200 aether nodes). crafting the titanium bars alone cost a huge ammount of kinah on charcoal. not to mention in order to get those designs you have to repeat the crafting quests over and over to get the design as a reward, have them randomly drop from a mob (thanks guild for getting me 2 of the designs) or buy them from the broker (thanks to the guy who sold me the last one i needed cheap)


Handicrafting

i did not try this one out personally, however my guild mate playing a ranger levelled it up to get a blue bow (which was sweet) and made me a blue staff (which was sweeter). he lucked out on these crafts as they critted on the first attempt for my staff and the second attempt for his bow, however its similar to weapon crafting in that you have to make a shining version of the standard weapon to make the craftmans version of the weapon, so you need to craft an average of 3 times to get a shining craftmans and an average of 3 times for each of those tries to make a shining none craftmans bow/stave to even try at the craftmans (along with the normal hassle of getting the design). one of my guildies on a glad spent most of the end of beta 5 and all of beta 6 farming and crafting to attempt to make a shining craftmans dagger and a sword to test out his dual wield stigma (he finished without either of them, failed crafts so many times he logged off in frustration on sunday evening)

the same goes for all of the jewelry, so if you think about how hard i found crafting shining craftmans armour to be, times that by 9, cause you have to crit a standard jewelry to even have a shot at the craftmans jewelry.

above 400 skill you have to make a shining craftmans (from a shining none craftmans) to make an experts staff so on average (3 goes to get a shining experts, 9 goes at craftmans to make the staves to try experts, 27 goes at normal staves to make the staves to make the craftmans). thats all before you hit the draconic items which are harder to make.


all in all crafting is rewarding but very hard work, so if your looking to be slack at crafting do cooking up to mastery and take alchemy as a secondary up to 399, this will give you the most useful crafting options for about the same price as either handicrafting or armoursmithing.

if you want to be serious focus on either armoursmithing or handicrafting but either way expect to spend a lot of time (and money) at the crafting station making things in order to make things you need in order to make better things. to make the boards and bars for handicrafting you have to buy a lot of sandpaper, same goes for charcoal for armoursmithing.

if your a bit of a masochist then do both armoursmithing and handicrafting, but please roll on my server and make my armour and weapons for me please :p

edit: wall of text crits you for 9000

[Dastion]

While I don't mind reanswering these questions, I'm on my iPhone so I'll just paste my reply from last week.

Dastion said:

The two best for a Chanter are easily Handicrafting & Alchemy.

Handicrafting offers you a unique opportunity to fill out 6 or so (I can't remember if helmets are armor/tailor or handicrafting) of your inventory slots in 1 craft, this includes your weapon. The ability to craft so many of your own items while leveling a profession that has a potential clientele of everyone is really an opportunity that you'd be crazy to pass up.

Alchemy is pretty self explanatory, it offers you the ability to do some very unique things, including crafting caster weapons and maintaining your own supply of potions and manastones as well as selling them..which will always be a lucrative business.

Supposedly you can have two Mastery professions now, so choose those two and you'll be rather self sufficient as well as having a lucrative supply of craftable items to sell. The only place you're really lacking is armor crafting, but from what I've seen so far it seems way too expensive to deal with, especially when Abyss point armor has such incredible bonuses.

I'd definitely suggest using search though, as when I was looking for that quote I found some other threads with good answers.

I really don't suggest armor smithing, a good weapon is better for leveling and harder to come by, as are specific stats on accessories. A good staff, crit jewelry, and consumables will do you better than trying to craft a full suit of armor that you'll replace sooner than you would a staff, and Abyss armor has those nice -dmg from players stats.

[Xenphire]

So, mainly you should put armorsmith, and handicrafting to 450. Then alchemy to 399?

[Hanso]

lol you are all talking about maxing crafts like it's a matter of days :D

[Dastion]

Well, technically it is....

:D

[Kandrah]

Hanso said:

lol you are all talking about maxing crafts like it's a matter of days :D

It IS fast compared to other games as a matter of fact. Also because you don't actually have to gather just to level up. But I am not planning on mastering Alchemy for example. If I am going to try it will be Handicraft.

The expert quests is the big roadblock - specially since you have to crit twice for Handicraft.

[Hanso]

Kandrah said:

It IS fast compared to other games as a matter of fact. Also because you don't actually have to gather just to level up. But I am not planning on mastering Alchemy for example. If I am going to try it will be Handicraft.

The expert quests is the big roadblock - specially since you have to crit twice for Handicraft.

yea and that there's no way to level cheap 420+, or i havent found yet :cry:

[Kandrah]

Yeah that is certainly true :/
Leveling the actual expert level is a real pita

[Bastor]

Hmm....im defiantly going to go for Alchemy and Handicrafting.....too bad i can't make furniture for the "housing system" that is bound to arrive sooner or later :) Those potions for flight are just too....nice to miss....they will also help in aether gathering (which needs to be fucking nerfed so we don't loose flight time while collecting ffs!!!). Also a Chanter who can supply their friends and legion m8s with pots is a nice guy ;)

[Senryth Kurai]

Personally I have a strong hate for crafting in all MMOs (mainly because I was never good at it and have no patience)

So I will just level alchemy to 399 and be done with crafting forever! Yay!:skip:

[Teslavi]

Just pay someone else to do it! It's what I'm doing.

[Kinks]

Alchemy, if you are fortunate enough to have friends or legion-mates to make armor for you... if you collect the supplies.

Chanters have huge mana problems and to power your group and be useful you need mana... so having mana pots is a good enough reason to go alchemy.

[Cloudie]

Best thing is to just sort it out with your legion to be able to use all of the professions.
Cooking has a nice title when you master it though.
Alchemy is always nice as well... these 2 stay usefull for yourself after fully gearing yourself.
Handycrafting is nice for selfgearing and good to make money from as everyone needs ***.
Armorcrafting is once again good for selfgearing but really... its not easy at all to gear yourself alone. You pretty much need help for that :P