Synthesis, Fragmentation and Metal Conversion: Is there any point?

• Fyois wrote on 2011-01-06 22:05
  So yeah, I consider these to be the core Alchemy skills in theory, as Alchemy is the study of Deconstruction, Conversion and Reconstitution of matter (i.e Chemistry without physics applied). Thing is, of these skill, I can only see synthesis as having an practical application in game. Metal conversion I can kind of see a use if you're looking for easier ways to get certain metals, but I cannot for the life of me think of a reason to bother with fragmentation. You can't deconstruct NPC items for the materials so you can use them for other skill, and beyond using it to reclaim the materials you used in synthesis to use for synthesis again for quick training, I really don't see a reason to use it. Is there something I'm missing? Am I more or less right that the only one of these worth using is Synthesis? I mean I have my doubts about even ranking that but if I'm going to do one I'm thinking it's going to be that one.
• radionoise wrote on 2011-01-06 22:10
  Synthesis - Lets you create rare items.
  
  Fragmentation - Easier ranking of life skills by recycling materials (it makes r8 Weaving a joke).
  
  Metal Conversion - It makes refining obsolete in terms of creating iron ingots for Blacksmith. It also gives incredible stats.
• Chiyuri wrote on 2011-01-06 22:19
  As someone said, Fragmentation is more of a support skill for life skillers. While most of the time you can only recycle about half the material, it's still materials you will not need to hunt down for again. The only probably with fragmentation is the training requirement.. it's pretty annoying.
• Zid wrote on 2011-01-06 22:25
  Synthesis is a... hmm, less laggy way to obtain some endgame equipment.
  
  Metal Conversion is actually a lot faster at producing Iron Ingots with less materials. It made a junk material become important when it debuted in G10.
  
  Fragmentation... Oh, wow, I'm not going to explain how useful this is to Blacksmiths and Tailors. My Blacksmith friend got this to nearly cap to help her Blacksmithing efforts.
• chaolin wrote on 2011-01-06 22:41
  Metal conversion gives decent stat bonuses too in my opinion.
• Sunureu13 wrote on 2011-01-06 23:04
  I'm not going into Synthesis and Metal Conversion because they've been explained.
  
  It's ridiculous how helpful Fragmentation is. Let's give an example:
  
  You're Blacksmithing. You're on rD making helmets. Oh, you've finished your Evil Dying Crown? What the hell are you going to do with that? No one wants to buy those. Oh that's right, I can fragment it. Hay thar 0-18 Iron Ingots :D. Alright that's slightly helpful. Now I'm on rB making boots. Wow those Spaika Boots take a decent amount of ingots. BAM! 0-35 Iron Ingots and 0-15 fine straps.
  
  Now you're on Weaving (why you're smithing before this, I have no idea). Wow, all these Cheap Leathers Straps T_T They give so much training, but what am I to do with them? ORITE, /frag. Sure, you may only get 1 leather per 2 straps, and with the success rate, 3-4 per 10 straps. But hey, that's .75 leathers more than you would've had. Now you're on r8. Here's where it gets tricky. The success rate of fragmenting Cheap Silks gets lower as fragmentation rank goes up. At rF, you'll have 47% with r1 Mastery. At r6, you'll have 42%. But that's about the only thing. Cheap Silk goes down 5%, but everything else goes up at least 15%. Have an alt with rF Fragmentation and r2/1 Mastery? Sure, why not. That's about the ONLY thing I'd condone using an alt for skills with. Everything else, don't even try, guy.
  
  Plus, you can charge people for fragging ;D It may not be much, but it builds up.
• Fyois wrote on 2011-01-06 23:32
  Ah ok, well now I see where it's useful, in life skills. ^^ I don't really touch them, though I guess I'm going to this time around so yeah I guess I'll go ahead and rank it. Thanks for the advice.
• NotAnElf wrote on 2011-01-07 00:10
  I did metal conversion for the dex.
• jking012 wrote on 2011-01-07 01:30

  Quote from Sunureu13;279530:

  I'm not going into Synthesis and Metal Conversion because they've been explained.
  
  It's ridiculous how helpful Fragmentation is. Let's give an example:
  
  You're Blacksmithing. You're on rD making helmets. Oh, you've finished your Evil Dying Crown? What the hell are you going to do with that? No one wants to buy those. Oh that's right, I can fragment it. Hay thar 0-18 Iron Ingots :D. Alright that's slightly helpful. Now I'm on rB making boots. Wow those Spaika Boots take a decent amount of ingots. BAM! 0-35 Iron Ingots and 0-15 fine straps.
  
  Now you're on Weaving (why you're smithing before this, I have no idea). Wow, all these Cheap Leathers Straps T_T They give so much training, but what am I to do with them? ORITE, /frag. Sure, you may only get 1 leather per 2 straps, and with the success rate, 3-4 per 10 straps. But hey, that's .75 leathers more than you would've had. Now you're on r8. Here's where it gets tricky. The success rate of fragmenting Cheap Silks gets lower as fragmentation rank goes up. At rF, you'll have 47% with r1 Mastery. At r6, you'll have 42%. But that's about the only thing. Cheap Silk goes down 5%, but everything else goes up at least 15%. Have an alt with rF Fragmentation and r2/1 Mastery? Sure, why not. That's about the ONLY thing I'd condone using an alt for skills with. Everything else, don't even try, guy.
  
  Plus, you can charge people for fragging ;D It may not be much, but it builds up.

  
  
  plus all for i know ... life skills get it but i dont know if synth and alchemy/life skills get it... the exp per use.. like 100 exp per thin thread make.. wonder if it applies to these alch skills too? hmmmm
• EndlessDreams wrote on 2011-01-07 01:57
  Metal Conversion = Important for dex, and converting ingots from various stuff is actually good. Good skill to have if you want to deal with ingots to have, or you are an archer of some kind. It is one of the easier +dex skills to gain.
  
  Synthesis = Kind of useful if you want to synthesize some stuff here and there. Personally, I don't use it at all.
  
  Fragmentation = Absolutely useless. In theory, it is supposed to help certain lifeskills, but the success rate and regain materials rate is so poor, you might as well not rank it.
  
  I have all three of the above skills capped. Fragmentation is the only one I regret ranking. Synthesis I use once a year maybe. Metal Conversion +dex is what I use all the time.
  
  You should save Synthesis/Fragmentation for when you are stuck in an Alchemy Mastery rank like rank 2 so you can rank AM at the same time.
• abc33kr wrote on 2011-01-07 02:14
  *frags a dragon shield at r1 frag. xP
  
  it's not that useful if you are talking about using it yourself.
  But if you intend on helping people, it's pretty nifty i guess.
• Sunureu13 wrote on 2011-01-07 03:08

  Quote from EndlessDreams;279672:

  Fragmentation = Absolutely useless. In theory, it is supposed to help certain lifeskills, but the success rate and regain materials rate is so poor, you might as well not rank it.

  
  
  Absolutely the opposite of true.
• Archibald wrote on 2011-01-07 03:09
  potion making + frag = save tons of money. This is where you get the most benefit IMO.
• Cryosite wrote on 2011-01-07 12:42
  The basic value of fragmentation is that many other lifeskills force you to make absurd amounts of garbage. Be it wound pots and hp/sp pots to evil dying crowns, plate gauntlets and random handicraft junk, you're going to end up making stuff that you either will end up NPCing or throwing away.
  
  If you work on only one lifeskill ever, and that lifeskill isn't potion, blacksmith, tailoring, handicraft, or weaving... then fragmentation might be useless indeed. But it is a really easy skill to train, and if you work on even one of those 5 skills (and refine, everyone does refine) you will end up making the bulk of the material to train fragment just doing those other skills. If you work on 2 or more of those skills then fragment will be helpful already. If you help any friend or guildy or even random stranger working on those skills, it will be helpful
  
  After letting people know I was even working on fragmentation, I was given quite a lot of requests that I fragment stuff for people.