Flinx�s Guide to Armorsmithing
Like all of the professional crafting classes the manual that comes with the games is next to useless. This is just a FAQ of questions that I have asked (as I beat my head against the monitor) or others have asked of me.
Like the other crafting professions this is not a class you want to take unless you have a great deal of patience for repetitive and monotonous work. As you are grinding through to eng 4 of the artisan profession keep in mind that this is what crafting is about. There are not a lot of Armorsmiths in the game so be prepared to pay for training from a npc trainer.
Things you will need (at least access to):
A Tailor (take special attention of this)
A wearables factory
Lots and Lots of Hide and Bone
Chemical and Mineral Harvesters
A Good Crafting Station
Tailoring and Armorsmithing:
Ok, you have now ground through eng 4 and are ready for Novice Armorsmith, right? Well maybe not.
Before you spend all that crafting xp you just grinded to get make sure you have a Tailor as a friend/supplier. All armor requires cloth only Tailors can make. You have two options 1) buy it from a friend. You will need Synthetic Cloth and Reinforced Fiber Panels by the crate load��. or 2) become a Tailor and grind up to Field Gear 2. Both options have their advantages and disadvantages.
A Wearables Factory:
Ok, if you have gone Tailor and now can make your Synthetic Cloth you will need the factory starting at Novice Armorsmith (metalweave jackets require 3 identical synthetic cloths). Also the armor plates for ubese and up will need to be identical. I strongly recommend making the armor plates several hundred at a time from the start. They are not worth the little xp they give to grind by hand and you can assure a standard of quality for the armor you choose to sell while grinding by doing factory runs.
Lots, and Lots, and Lots of Hide and Bone:
All armor uses hide and chitin and tantel use bone. You will need thousands of units of hide. You have three options. Gathering it yourself is great if you are also chasing a combat class. Have a friend(s) gather it for you and trade them armor. Find a hide/bone merchant and buying it in bulk. I have used a combination of the three with varying success. Keep in mind you will need a ton of hide (mostly leathery and wooly).
Chemical and Mineral Harvesters:
If you want to keep your operation small I suggest you gather your polymer, fiberplast, steel and iron on your own and buy the aluminum and special mineral requirements from others. It will take a fair amount of the four listed ingredients to become master (although you can do it with out iron, when I discuss ubese you will see why you want to gather it).
A Good Crafting Station:
A good crafting station cuts down on critical failures and helps with the success of the experimentation of the item being made. While you can use the public armor and clothing stations it is far more convenient to acquire one for your house. When you do make sure the efficiency is at least 30% to make it worth it.
Armor Types:
Armorweave: This is the cheapest of all of the armor to make. With minimal resources requirements you can grind (with multiple stations and factory run plates) 10k of xp every 10 minutes. The draw back is that it does not sell well.
Chitin: One of the coolest looking armors (in my opinion) chitin is actually a fairly decent armor. It does require bone and more hide, but you can sell it on the bazzar. I suggest making this for income until you get ubese.
Tantel: This three-piece set of armor requires avian bone to create. If you are on Tattoine (like me) this can be very difficult to get your hands on. Naboo is ideal for gathering materials for tantel armor, as it has abundant creatures with avian bone and bristly hide. Tantel armor sells at about the same rate as chitin.
Ubese: This is the best bang for the buck in my opinion. It does require identical plates but the resource requirements are worth the extra boost in xp. Also ubese sells very well. This is where you start making money. Without krayt tissue or similar enhancements I am able to get the kinetic resistance up to 60% and I hope to break that soon. I actually enjoy making ubese. This armor does require Nuetronium Steel.
Padded: This armor is a pain. It has large resource requirements (including corellian fiberplast, lokian leathery hide, and other specific metals). While it gives a huge amount of xp compared to ubese (which you will be making at better quality) it simply is not worth it, however; it will sell when you can make it well for quite a bit.
Composite: This armor is like padded in that it is expensive to make. Also the drawbacks (encumbrance) are not always outweighed by the benefits. If made well this is great armor and sells for a fortune. By the time you get here you will no longer need this guide.
RIS: I have not found it yet but again once you are a Master you will not need this guide.
Field Gernerators:
These nifty little gadgets earn you next to nothing xp-wise. They are good for secondary armor, but only a Master Artisan can make some of the parts. If you did not choose to get Master Artisan general armor crafting xp will count for this branch.
FAQs: (all answers are based on my own experience)
Q: What should I learn First?
A: I suggest tackling Armorsmith in the following way
1) Get personal armor 3 (for ubese)
2) Get Layers 1 (for kinetic layers � for the ubese)
3) Walk experimentation (4)
4) Then get field generators (4)
5) Then get layers 2 (for blast layers � for padded)
6) Then get personal armor 4
7) Then finish it off
Q: Does quality of materials really matter?
A: Yes, Yes, Yes�. As an armor smith you are mainly going to be concerned with
Overall Quality (OQ), Shock Resistance (SR), and Malleability (MAL). The quality of your materials not only effects the base construction and critical failure rate, but how much experimentation can be done on a category. MAL is the stat used for encumbrance while SR is the stat used for effectiveness. They are averaged with (OQ) to determine the armor�s construction stats. Ideally you want materials in the 900s on all three (good luck). Practice will let you know what you can get with the materials you are using.
Q: When experimenting which bar does what?
A: Durability (hit points) of the armor is governed by the top bar in the experimentation
screen. When you increase this it also changes the encumbrance stats. Standard
resistances (the resistances under special but above vulnerabilities) are controlled by the middle bar. The bottom bar modifies special resistances.
Q: I put a lot of chest plates on the bazaar and they just stopped selling?
A: If you dump 25 ubese jacket on the bazaar for 3k a pop, while that is a great price
there are rarely 25 people lined up to buy them. When stocking the bazaar make
sure you put bracers, helmets, pants, etc out there. People like to buy in sets.
Chest plates are good for xp but sets of bracers and pants sell better.
Q: How much does tissue sell for?
A: It is an open market. There is no generally consensus on the subject. Price is
determined by the type, integrity and effectiveness of the sample, but there are no
set prices or even set price ranges.
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