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The New Tradeskill Writs - The Other Time Sink

by: Tony "RadarX" Jones

You'll find few people who haven't spent an afternoon grinding out writs at one point or another, whether to level their guild, or gain personal status points to purchase things. Tradeskillers have had the same opportunity, but instead of hunting down basilisks in bonemire (don't lie like you take a different writ), they make chairs and stuff that makes my rent cheaper. While no more interesting than the adventuring, the tradeskill ones provided a meaningful way for those who spend most of their time crafting to contribute to their guild and buy guild reward items.

The writs made people that loved to craft happy, while they reminded those of us who crafted on occasion why we didn't like adventure writs either. Along came the glorious tradeskill revamp that made everything so much easier. Mysteriously as the revamp came, the writs disappeared. Many were aghast! What shall be done if we can't make a stack of leather straps for status points? Why dear Marr why?!? The reasoning was simple. According to lead content designer, Dymus, there were over 1500 exsisting writs when the tradeskill revamp went through. Due to the sheer amount of work it require to revamp the old system, and based on feedback they received on the forums and at the SOE block party, they removed it, and began brainstorming on a new more exciting system.

What did they come up with? I'm glad you asked. The answer is, timed writs. Is it that simple? Well, yes, it is. You'll find the writ giver, be tasked with creating a certain number of items relating to your tradeskill, and the clock will start. With timers being added, ne aspect I'm going to very interested to see is the wording from the writ giver. For adventure writs, there is a sense of urgency because there is actual danger from the creatures you're killing. It'll be difficult to swallow Lucan needs 20 wooden chairs for a war effort, but I've seen stranger things. Perhaps the owner of the tradehouse is interesting in hiring cheap labor to make Billy dolls cheaper than China. Either way, you'll only have a certain amount of time to complete the writ.

When is it coming? It's on the Test Server as I type this, and I've read through some feedback from tradeskill guru's like Niami Denmother, Calthine, and Adeste. The process seems to be coming along and should go live in GU#27. Personally, these writs sound like a great diversion from the constant grind you hit towards the upper tiers. This type of change of pace could breathe a little bit of life into what many consider a dying area. So keep your eye out for GU #27 and the addition of these writs, and remember, only you can provide Lucan with the statues he needs.