WP

This is my first post on the forum so... Hello there!

I think the rewards from BODs aren't very attractive and don't fit the shard fully, I'll try to explain. Here is the reward list (copy/pasted from the "Blacksmith BODS" in the New player forum).

0 = 50% SturdyShovel, 50% SturdySmithHammer
25 = 50% SturdyPickaxe 50% SturdySmithHammer
50 = 90% SturdyShovel , 10% ArmorOfCrafting +1
200 = 90% SturdyPickaxe , 10% ArmorOfCrafting +1
400 = 90% ProspectorsTool , 10% ArmorOfCrafting +1
450 = 50% PowderOfTemperament 25% GargoylesPickaxe 25% Deco
500 = 30% Dull Copper Runic Hammer , 30% GargoylesPickaxe , 30% Deco
550 = 60% Dull Copper Runic Hammer , 40% Shadow Runic Hammer
600 = 50% Shadow Runic Hammer , 50% ColoredForgeDeed
625 = 75% Shadow Runic Hammer , 25%, ColoredAnvil
650 = 50% Copper Runic Hammer , 50% Deco
675 = 25% ColoredAnvil , 75% Copper Runic Hammer ,
700 = 50% Bronze Runic Hammer , 50% Deco
750 = 50% AncientHammer, 10 , 50% ArmorOfCrafting +3
800 = 50% GargoylesPickaxe , 50% ArmorOfCrafting +3
850 = 50% AncientHammer, 15 , 50% ArmorOfCrafting +3
900 = 50% Gold Runic Hammer , 50% ChargedDyeTub (Weapon, or Armor Tub??)
950 = 50% Gold Runic Hammer , 50% ChargedDyeTub(Weapon, or Armor Tub??)
1000 = 50% AncientHammer, 30 , 50% ChargedDyeTub(Weapon, or Armor Tub??)
1050 = 50% Agapite Runic Hammer , 50% SmithersProtector
1100 = 50% AncientHammer, 60 , 50% SmithersProtector
1150 = 50% Verite Runic Hammer , 50% ArmorOfCrafting +5
1200 = 50% Valorite Runic Hammer , 50% ArmorOfCrafting +5
1250 = 50% Blaze Runic Hammer , 50% ArmorOfCrafting +5
1300 = 50% Ice Runic Hammer , 50% BagOfResources
1350 = 50% Toxic Runic Hammer , 50% BagOfResources
1400 = 50% Electrum Runic Hammer , 50% SharpeningBlade
1450 = 50% Platinum Runic Hammer , 50% SharpeningBlade

All the rewards from 0 to 1050 are pretty easy to get (max score from a small BOD platinum 20 exceptionnal) so I wouldn't expect anything so good in there. Although there are a few completly useless items in there (on this shard of course):
- All the runic hammers
On this shard, the runic hammers are easy to get and take much less time than filling BODs, reaching a score of 1450 is very very hard (there is only one possibility: large BOD, platinum platemail 20 exceptionnal) considering the amount of different ores. I'm not against this, but the reward is a bit disappointing. By the time I fill this BOD I would have killed thousands of platinum elementals (which also makes all the lower runic hammers useless).

-Dyes
We have the awesome hue field for this.
(I'm not sure about the anvils/forges, but I suppose we can get the same thing crafting anvils with colored metal)

-Smithers protector

a pickaxe the behaves like an axe (you can chop trees with it, not mine) and has Use Best Weapon Skill.

I have one and kept it but I really wonder why. This thing has no purpose at all.

A few okayish:

-PowderOfTemperament : It's an awesome item on a normal shard, but not so much on a shard where you can buy +5 self repair deeds, but I suppose it could be a good item to keep on the low rewards.

-Bag of ressources

a bag that has a weight of 100, but can hold any amount of ore, logs and hides (not ingots, boards or cut leather though) without any additional weight. Essentially a Bag of Holding for raw materials.

This one isn't so bad for people without a large bag of holding and/or keys so I guess it's ok.

Considering the amount of BODs (money invested in buying BODs because there are so many different ores) needed to complete any interesting large BOD (to get more than 1050 points), I would expect a better alternate reward than a 70 charges runic hammer.

I'm not against difficulty at all, I love having long term goals, but it looks like the only must haves in this list are the armor of crafting (+1/3/5 blacksmith or mining) and/or ancient hammers to reliably craft stuff (100% chance exceptionnal) with platinum runic hammers. I'm not sure about the sharpening blade, I suppose it could enhance an item that lacks damage increase, if it can bypass the 50% damage increase limit on a weapon, it really is an awesome item (maybe a bit overpowered if it's the case! hehe)

I didn't talk about the tailor BOD rewards, but they are experiencing the same problem: they are mostly (like blacksmith) built around runics.

I don't have any precise idea on what could replace these rewards though. Having something balanced and interesting isn't easy.

Anyway, feel free to comment, agree or disagree etc.

Thank you!
PS: I love this shard!

i agree with you, the main reason i steared away from blacksmith BODs was due to the time and commitment to fill the bods for a reward that there are numberous easier ways to aquire. The list could use a revamp but it could potentialy take alot of extra coding and become a huge project like when BODs were first added to UO in the beginning. But id be all for some more defined rewards based on how WP runs.