It seems that the professions have become less and less relevant to the game play. A tailor is only good for bags. An alchemist is good for some potions. Jewel crafting is useful for little. At present the profession system has little to motivate a player to spend hours leveling the profession. As the shadowlands approaches:
What is the focus of professions?
How will they be relevant during the leveling process?
How will they be relevant in the end game?
Can you contribute to the covenants with your professions?
Can a crafting system like Guild Wars 2 be implemented where some patterns, for example, are discovered through research?
How can professions interact more with each other?
Can orders be placed in the auction house for items? Sort of like a bulletin board at the coffee shop?
I liked the previous expansions where my professions contributed to the player base. I could make gems via Jewel crafting, glyphs via inscription, etc. It felt like something worthwhile investing time to level up and improve. Now I am look at it and just feel like I have a new goal without a real purpose.
While conquering the final bosses is fun it would be nice to see professions renewed as an important and deep area of game play.
Professions are a time sink. The only exceptions make consumables for raiders (Herbing, mining, alchemy, and enchanting).
They have never really been relevant during the leveling process.
They seem to be slowly integrating cross profession interactions (mostly with mounts).
As for the other items on your list that is up to the devs.
I wish they would bring back sockets instead of making them rng, return inscription to it’s former glory (heck make it better), and make all crafting professions great again.
I do it for mutual support of alts. All my characters can be fully enchanted, gemmed, tricked out with potions and elixirs… my leveling alts can have decent weapons instead of quest trash.
Really, if you ask enough questions, the whole game is pointless. It’s ones and zeros in Blizzard’s database, rented for the passing amusement of a few minutes.
I rolled alts to cover all the professions because I could not always get a guild mate to be online at the same time. I agree that it is currently a time sink. I do hope that the developers can take the time to improve professions.
My Hunter and this character just have herb and mine. I do it in passing, to have stuff to sell on the AH.
It is fun to have while farming Bee jelly, for the mount; At least I bump into herb and mine nodes, even if the bee jelly ones are rare. So then I made 3000 gold on the AH, to then buy more bee jellys from the AH.
My priest still has tailor, for bags, and disenchanting just because she is stubborn.
Except they have been stating profs will be removed in shadowlands. Static vendors for flasks poitions and other consumeables will be instituted. Heavy player feedback against professions and wanting to spend the time on M+ and raiding were key factors.
What? really?..source? Not saying you are lying, but if that is true I definitely won’t be around for Shadowlands. I’m not a raider, m+, or PvPer. My endgame was farming and crafting. Which they’ve ruined through Pathfinder and awful changes to professions.
I really hope this isn’t true. Part of me isn’t surprised though since herb/alch were the only lucrative professions in bfa. All the rest were gutted, especially JC/inscription.
Been pretty clear they were never intended to be endgame. No on in the game really wanted this distraction. Most of the pruning has increased game play and satisfaction metrics so they are on the right path.
Got to be thankful can focus more time on mythic + and gearing not picking herbs for flasks. Now it will be a simple gold purchase away.
Pay no attention to this guy, he’s trolling or wildly uninformed. They discussed their plans for professions in Shadowlands at the Blizzcon panel, there aren’t many blue posts about it because we know blues forget professions exist but the devs don’t.
SYSTEM AND REWARDS
With Shadowlands, one of our core design philosophies is providing players with a better sense of agency. We want players to feel they have a choice over the destiny of their character and the types of rewards they want to earn. To that end, here’s some of the systems and themes we’re exploring in Shadowlands:
Professions: We want to make sure that crafting professions have more options to create a specific item rather than making multiple items in the hope of one with just the right stats. Instead, you might craft an item with specific gems slotted in to make the item you want.
There is a fine line from making a game a single button smasher and making it so complex you don’t know how to start. I personally think there should be enough hints in a profession up to a certain skill point that tells a person how to craft items. After that it should be evident to the player. When there were profession epics they were never really viable as gear objective. They were often replaced far easier running LFR or normal.
As to the catch up mechanisms that shows there is little importance in experiencing the game prior to max level. Original players would understand the need to go through multiple level appropriate zones to just get the next level band.
Professions should be a optional but viable part of the game. You don’t have to do them. You can gain some items cheaper that way. I just would like to see a far more enriching experience that incorporates something like Guild Wars 2 Mastery system. There are goals I can work towards after reaching my max level. In that similar vein to have further profession goals after reach max skill level (profession mastery)?
The catchup mechanisms show there is little encouragement to experience the game AT max level
why are you rep grinding ? they’re pointless in next patch
why are you AP grinding ? AK will make it all pointless
why are you doing raid progress and high M+ keys for gear ? we’re going to bump things up by 30 ilvl and make it pointless
why are you grinding this higher difficulty when something stupid with a TF from a lower difficulty will beat it ?
Blizz thinks the opposite that such measures will retain players. Instead at best you have a vicious cycle of 1-2 months on, 3-6 months off which has destroyed the retail playerbase, among all the other systematic issues ignored like class/spec balance and design and azerite traits
A quick fix would be to allow Blacksmiths to make gem sockets that can be applied to any piece of gear. Good for blacksmiths, and then good for Jewelcrafters who can fill those slots with gems.
Also reduce the availability of base materials so they are actually worth something. It seems like there are herb and mining nodes every 2 feet. And materials from skinning are going for a small amount of silver.
Also, They need to get rid of the silly Rank 1, 2, 3 system, and get rid of the scrapper.
Cooking patterns that ask for Vendor mats like, 10 wheat, 5 of this and 2 of that in addition to a fish are annoying. What is the point of the added complexity? I know those vendor cooking mats aren’t expensive, but its just an annoying hurdle and a waste of bag space.
I certainly see that if they are always releasing patches that changes the max level. It will happen as they expand the world to tell the story that they want us to experience.
I agree that rep grinding can seem a bit boring and a punish as the only way to unlock a part of the game (e.g. new races). As someone commented on a youtube video the rep grinding is pretty much the same. There is no uniqueness between them. In Mist of Pandaria you had a story that would expand as you reach a certain level. That would be nice but also grow into the future so as a more important member of the faction there would be new missions that require your aid.
I agree that AP grinding is boring. You have to do island expeditions, warfronts, and world quests to get AP. Yes you can do regular quests but there are some, like the tortolians, that are just a grind if they are a faction for that day. I like the lore of learning things about legendary things in the game or working a chain of quests to find a specific item or improve it. Mini goals are nice to have when I don’t have time to raid.
As to raid progress if you blitz through leveling, gearing up, and raiding the complete mythic you can think now what do I have to do? I see that blitz focus for those guilds that want the world first in a raid boss kill. Most of the people I have played with worked towards the raids at a more reasonable pace. I think I see your point, if I can paraphrase it a bit, that there is not much to keep me here once I reach this points. Sort of like finishing Mario World. What then? There is not a lot of time to enjoy the max level before I have another grind.
Yes there have been a lot of changes that have tried to balance the experience, make it less complicated for new users, and give people an opportunity to see the end game. I personally like the LFR, minus the lack of coordination, to allow me to experience the end story. Now if I wanted a harder challenge for better gear then I will have to return to raiding and leave other things out of my life.