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This article is a personal guide. Information expressed in this guide is one player's opinion and may be more opinion than fact. Strategies and information contained herein may not work for everyone. No non-minor changes should be made without consulting the author. Changes or questions should be discussed on the talk page. |
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Welcome to my guide. Smithing has a reputation for being one of the more expensive crafts to level, especially to 100. While this is true, I created this guide with the aim of keeping that expense to a minimum, for myself and for anyone else who chooses to use it. To give the expense a bit of context, I have been able to take Smithing to level 50 at a cost of 300k. I had to invest 1.2m of which i have managed to recoup 900k. At levels 51-60, the expense rises significantly and i've yet to full account for the amount.
As you can see, the expensive part of smithing is having the gil to invest. This can be somewhat negated if you're willing to take it slowly and level it at a reasonable rate. I was able to hit level 50 within a week of starting. Everyone has different goals and you should choose whichever route suits you most. Good luck!
Level 1-10[]
(4) Bronze Sheet: A simple start, buy your ingots from the guild if possible. Save the sheets for the next recipe. Stop this synth at level 2.
(10) Bronze Scales: You can now turn your sheets into scales. Make sure to use advanced synth support until at least level 4. Buy/make more sheets if you don't manage to hit level 6, at which point you can move onto the next recipe. Dump them with a vendor when you're done as you're unlikely to sell them on the AH and will have no further need of them.
Test Item[]
- Xiphos: You can take the time to craft one yourself but it'll be easier to just grab one off the AH.
Level 11-20[]
(14) Bronze Bolt Heads: Again, a simple recipe. Ingots from guild vendor if possible. Keep those costs low. You can stop this recipe at 12 or continue with it as depending on AH prices/if you're a miner, it may or may not be cheaper to do so. You will have no further need of the bolt heads so NPC/AH them as you wish.
(18) Aspis: You might find that skillups on Bronze Bolt Heads start to become a little slow around level 10. Aspis can be a fairly cheap bridge synth. All materials should be purchased from guild vendors and at base price (the ash from the woodworking guild) to keep those costs right down. As with the boltheads, you may switch to Iron Ingots from level 12. If you decide to stick this recipe out, I recommend desynthing them from level 13. Save an aspis for your next test item.
(20) Iron Ingot: The first expensive recipe you will encounter. I recommend buying your ores from the AH unless the price goes over 8.1k/stack, at which point the base guild price will be cheaper. Keep ahold of your ingots as they will be re-used. I would craft 4 and a half stacks of these in total and keep advanced guild support on at all times to reduce breakages. Stop when you have the afore mentioned ingots.
- Fire Crystal
- Iron Ore x 4
Test Item[]
- Aspis: Hopefully you saved one earlier on but if not, these will usually be stocked on the AH.
Level 21-30[]
(22) Iron Sheet: Immediately synth your iron ingots into iron sheets. If for some reason you skipped ingots and need some, they can be bought from the guild vendor at 32.4k/stack or the AH if cheaper. You're looking for a total of 4 stacks of iron sheets minimum. Stop this recipe when you have the afore mentioned sheets.
(26) Iron Scales: ...and once again, your sheets will now turn into scales. You're looking to end up with 4 stacks of scales by the time you're done here. These will then be used a little later on down the line, and again, stop this recipe when you have the 4 stacks.
(29) Iron Mask: This is a bridge synth and only to be done under 2 cicrumstances: you didn't manage to hit 23 with the previous recipes or there's a shortage of Rusty Greatswords on the AH, which are used in the next recipe. Level 23 is the point to move onto the next recipe here. For anyone with deeper pockets, you may choose to desynth these from level 24 onwards.
Test Item[]
- Bilbo: This is an easy synth but you will need the Goldsmithing sub-craft. Alternatively, I would expect the AH to have some stocked.
Level 31-40[]
(31) Two-Handed Sword: This recipe can be a breakeven synth, if the AH price is right. Once crafted, these will sell to NPC vendors for 2,367 gil each. Stick them out to level 27 at a minimum but as long as they're the more cost-effective option. They can be desynthed from 26 for extra skill-ups, if you wish.
(35) Iron Cuisses: Remember those Iron Scales we crafted earlier on? Here you finally get to make use of them. The Leather Trousers can be bought from many vendors and the Cotton Thread from guild vendors, if you wish to save a little on the typically more expensive AH price. The cuisses themselves sell back to vendors for 4,015 gil so although they aren't likely to break-even, they're not bad. You want to use this recipe to hit level 30. Desynth from 30 at your gil peril.
(38) War Pick: Again, you're unlikely to break-even here. Try to snag some ingots from the AH as cheaply as possible. At smithing skill 28 and if you have the stomach for it, with guild support you will be T1 HQ rate on Iron Ingots. The HQ being Steel Ingots of course. It would be a lot of crafting, but it's an option. Ash Lumber can be bought from the Woodworking vendor, typically cheaper than the AH. The picks when made can be sold back to vendors of for the stinking rich amongst us, desynthed from 33. Make sure to save a pick for the test item.
Test Item[]
- War Pick: As luck would have it, we've just been crafting these.
Level 41-50[]
(41 (Leathercraft 10)) Iron Mittens: You will need to level your Leathercraft for this recipe but it's worth it. Cheap recipes are few and far between around these levels. Sheets we've made previously and Lizard Skins can be bought from the AH or farmed if that's your preferred method. The aim here is to reach 39 so we can move on to Mythril Picks however, you likely need to use the next bridge recipe to achieve this as skill-ups will slow right down at level 38. As has been mentioned earlier, desynth is possible from 5 levels below cap on all the suggested recipes 40-50.
(45 (Leathercraft 12)) Iron Subligar: Very similar to the last recipe but with Cotton Cloth thrown in as well. Again, we only need to hit level 39 on this recipe. Both mittens and subligars can all be sold to vendors.
(47) Mythril Pick: I won't lie, picks are a considerable investment, but, they resell to vendors highly as well. For some context, I spent 360k on materials but sold 300k worth if picks. The kicker to this recipe is the Mythril Ingots. If you can make your own, you can do so cheaper than their AH price (as crafters naturally want a commision) and save a little bit more. Regardless, you'll struggle to find a better recipe. Craft these until at least level 44 at which point it's time to move on. Make sure to save a pick for the test item.
Test Item[]
- Mythril Pick: Again, as luck would have it, we've just been crafting these as well.
Level 51-60[]
(52) Darksteel Ingot: Similarly to Mythril Picks, the investment here will be substantial. In fact, from here on out, you can expect the cost of smithing to remain high. Make liberal use of advanced guild support to reduce the amount of Darksteel Ore (and gil) lost. I recommend saving all the ingots you make for later on. I also recommend only using this recipe until level 46.
(54) Steel Ingot: A great recipe for the level we are at. It depends on AH prices but I was able to break-even here, even with breaks factored in. Ride this recipe as long as possible and use that advanced guild support all the while. Iron Sand is usually cheaper on the AH as the NPC price is really high. Bomb Ash can be purchased from the alchemy guild vendors but only in small supply. I would stick this out until at least 51, maybe even 52 if you're happy to wait on your ingots to sell on the AH.
- Fire Crystal
- Bomb Ash x 4
- Iron Sand x 4
(57) Gauntlets: ...and back to throwing our gil away sadly. Sheets we've already made previously and Leather Gloves can be bought from many city merchants. Sell the gauntlets you make to vendors for ~3,000g or alternatively, you can desynth these for the extra chance of a skill up. I personally recommend desynthing these from 52 as alternate recipes will cost far more.
- Fire Crystal
- Iron Sheet x 2
- Leather Gloves x 2
Test Item[]
- Nothing!: We don't want to uncap our smithing sub-craft, unless you plan on leveling Smithing as a main craft in which case you will need a Darksteel Falchion.
Level 61-70[]
Alright, you're ready for the final push. I will warn you now, no matter what route you take from here on out, it will cost you a large chunk of gil. The best advice I can give here - make Darksteel Chains and find someone to buy them from you directly. They sell pretty slowly on the AH but you might be able to cut a deal with someone, you make a good portion of your investment back and they get some cheap chains. Win win. Whatever you recipe you choose, the aim is to hit58.
(62) Darksteel Bolt Heads: One of the simplest recipes available at these levels which requires no sub-crafts. If your plan is to power through these last few levels of smithing, this is definitely a recipe for you.
(62 (Clothcraft 
) Haidate: These will vendor for around 4,000g so they could be considered a cheap recipe, comparitively to others around these levels. The downside is you will need the clothcraft and unfortunately, the required level is currenntly unknown. However, the fact that this recipe uses silk would lead me to believe that it would need to be as high as in the 50's, the level one can craft the silk itself. You can check out my clothcraft sub-craft guide if you wish to level it also.
(63) Darksteel Baselard: There's no denying that this recipe is really expensive. I have included it as the baselards can be desynth'ed, for at least double the attempts at skill-ups.
(64 (Clothcraft ) Sune-Ate: Basically the same recipe as Haidate as described above but with a fire crystal instead and caps 2 levels higher.
(66) Nodowa: This recipe will easily take you to the 60 cap and finish your smithing sub-craft. A cheap skill-up recipe for the level we are at so it's a real shame that the earliest you can realistically attempt it is around the level 57/58 mark. Expect lots of breaks at 57 but compared to the alternatives, it might be the cheapest route anyway. Nodowa's sell to vendors for around 2,700g. Congratulations, you've finished your smithing sub-craft!