Question about people's finances and frame ratesFollow

This isn't another newbie money question (i hope)...but I just wanted to know what the average amount of coin you folks have in your pocket in-game. And how did you go about getting it mostly (i.e quests, farming)?

Also, my one complaint about Eq2 is on my computer I get horrific frame rates most of the time. Like i'll be holding on the run forward key and my character will stand still then suddenly be halway across the land area and stutter step/freeze and whatnot. Is there any way I can improve this without upgrading my video card? And just so you know I really don't want to tune down my graphics setting any more I like them how they are.

Well I have 760 RAM I dunno if that's good or not...

Well, assuming you have RL issues like changing diapers on your baby to block the "just blow a few hundred bucks on a better card, dude" gambit, here's what to do spending NOTHING:

in game, there is an OPTIONS menu, go into it and set video performance to HIGH PERFORMANCE or EXTREME PERFORMANCE, rather than QUALITY. I trust you've discovered that "quality" is subjective; I'd rather move without stuttering and save the eye candy for children with rich daddies.

768 MB ram is better than nothing; dollar for dollar your cheapest upgrade for performance really is to add more RAM; its far more important than a new video card. 1024 MB gives me very smooth runs through Qeynos; I used to pause 2 to 3 seconds near the bridge in Qeynos harbor then again in south qeynos near the alchemist icon on the map. Now I zoom past with no delay, whatsoever. Just from the RAM upgrade, video being detuned in both cases.

There is an excellent guide to tuning (and de-tuning) video settings in game for best performance to match YOUR system, in the Sony forums. Try HERE
http://eqiiforums.station.sony.com/eq2/board/message?board.id=tech_support&message.id=3265

Good Luck
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avg in game cash 1-3 SP, always from quests.
Easiest cash before level 9: Forest Ruins, talk to the guard
Easiest cash 9-12: talk to the carpenter in queynos harbor, then go to north qeynos and left of the claymore statue is the castle entrance. Go to the entrance and talk to the lieutenant there. No go straight past the claymore statue and you'll find the door to antonica. Go straight to the farmer's fields, and kill beetles. 9 silvers from the carpenter, plus a 6 silver tunic, plus 9 from the lieutenant, plus 2 from the farmer, and all in 40 minutes or less. The lieutenant is repeatable! Good luck

Level 28 Pally/32 Carpenter here.

Usually have anywhere between 20-30 gold in the bank. I make my money from harvesting items and using them to craft sub combines (WORTS) and then complete furniture. My Tier 4 Items are selling nicely @ 2 gold a piece.

Also, while harvesting I eventually pickup an uncommon item (sparkling stone, glimmering stone, etc...) that sells for anywhere between 1-10 gold depending on item.

You can make good money in EQ2 if you focus on doing certain things like harvesting and then using the items you harvested to craft sellable items. Worts (washes, oils, resins, tempers) can sell for 1-3sp depending on Tier and you can make a stack of them in minutes.

I have found that you make more money crafting then adventuring. This is just me. I don't usually group very often so I am never going after Mobs that aren't soloable. Therefore I never get any good drops.

hope this helps!

Bubspeed

Coming from EQ1 where the streets are paved in plat :) I had the same "omg" reaction when I first started EQ2 with regard to money.

First, realize that having 1 silver or 1 gold means a lot - it's not a pittance like in EQ1. I've seen enough comments such that having ANY plat in this game is a treat.

Second, I feel that you should take some time every now and then to make food and drink yourself (perhaps have a toon that is a provisioner). That will save you from having to buy the stuff. At tier 1 (the lowest/easiest level) you can make cabbage soup that lasts 4 hours, deer jerky that lasts awhile, etc. Drink, I've found, doesn't last as long... nutmeg fizzlepop is one that is an hour or so.

Third, I've found so far (i.e. in the early game) that you will tend to get (what I consider) decent equipment (well, armor) by doing quests. In Willow Wood, there is a higher level quest (the last I did) that gives you a pretty good weapon. I presume that other starting zones have similar quests.

Fourth, again, quests. They also give coin. Don't forget about wholesaler quests (i.e. tradeskill quests - you make stuff). They give SILVER and status in the guild (not sure what value status is really).

Fifth, is - as mentioned - selling stuff. You can get a "seller" board (can't remember exact name and where to get it right now). And you stick it up on the wall in your apartment. You CAN sell while you are offline!! There is a vault - try to get/make backpacks or elm strong boxes (I've made some... not hard, just tedious) so that you can put more than two things into the vault. Now, when you get some loot or quest item that you can't use, you can try selling it. I've found (on Everfrost server) that sometimes I don't feel like it's worth selling things. If undercutting by others means that I'd have to post an item at 5silver or less, I don't bother and sell it to vendor. The other tack I've taken is "to heck with it" and I post my stuff at the price I think it should be relative to other items. I've still sold stuff that way. The biggest money maker I've had so far is spells/abilities (adept III and IV I think). I sold one for 5gp (which I feel was under-priced but such is the market) and another for one gp. I've also sold armor pieces for 15-25 silver (again if you compare stats, underpriced but again the market).

Selling items is, so far, the best way I've made money. I've heard that as you level, loot becomes decent; I know for a fact that tradeskill quests for your guild get better (23silver now at tier 2); and if you raise your tradeskilling, you may be able to make and sell items.

As for performance, that's pretty much been said elsewhere. If you don't want to spend money, don't be too "proud"... drop those various video and sound, etc, options and play the game (even on high perf settings, the game graphics are way better than what I saw in EQ1). If you have money, try RAM upgrade first (to 1Gb), try video card second (but don't waste money on anything less than a newer card optimized for DirectX 9 meaning the nVidia Geforce 6xxx line and I'm not totally sure what cards for ATI - I have a 9800Pro which I believe is DX9 optimized).

PS: something else I'll mention. It took me awhile to discover... you CAN share money between toons under some restrictions (like same server, they must be of same alignment, etc). You do this via the in-game email system. In fact, I just sent 1gp to a new toon the other day.

PPS: [Ack... what's going on with this edit thing??] I keep 10sp on me and bank the rest (coins have weight in this game). I think I have 2-3gp in the bank but have spent 5-6gp on my apartment and have loaned 1gp to a new toon.
Edited, Wed Jul 13 11:37:34 2005 by bsellick

Edited, Wed Jul 13 11:43:55 2005 by bsellick

Ok I guess i'll try to tune down the settings a bit...and sorry for all the questions but I have a few more:

1.) How do you get the Splitpaw zones? Weer they automatically updated recently, or do you have to download/buy them? And same goes for the Desert of Ro expansion, you have to buy that, right?

2.) And what does the 'p' after the coin stand for? Pieces? (i.e gp, sp, pp)

Thanks again guys

I carry 10gp at all times, plus silver. I always drop all my coin in the bank when I go to the bank, then take 10 gp + all silver with me. So never more than 10gp 99sp.

Ways to make money:

1. Quests - quests are a huge money maker. The quests often pay off in cash, and sometimes in items that you can either use or sell to other players to get more money.

The higher level you are, the more money quests pay. If you feel that you are dirt poor and it bothers you, my main piece of advice is level. Once you are in the 30s and 40s, you'll be making a lot better money.

2. Tradeskills. Like real life, you need to know your customers. What do people need? Get what they need and sell it. Armor, weapons, food, drink, furniture. Whatever. Jewelry. You can make good money. Two ways to make a lot of money at tradeskiling - sell high desirability items for huge money (in other words, overprice). Or, sell medium desirability items for reasonable prices. In other words, price well, maybe a few percent profit but not a huge profit margin. Basically, volume.

3. Harvest - Whatever zone you are in beyond the tier 1 zones (so Antonica/Commonlands and beyond) has rare harvests. Harvest till you can't see straight. Harvest everything in sight, then do it again. And again. And again. Occasionally you'll get something with the word sparkling/glowing/luminous in it. Those are semi-rares, sell for a bit of cash. Really rarely you'll get something that says its rare. It is. Jasper, opal, coral, there's a bunch of different rares in different tiers. These can sell for a bit of gold to a lot of gold, depending on how many are on the market. Harvesting takes patience.

Here's the trick though - don't trash the other stuff you've harvested. Go look at the market and put them up for sale... that iron you harvested? Sells for maybe 3 copper each. Crap, that's hardly worth it right? But if you're vault boxes aren't full, throw em in anyway. A stack makes some cash. Some harvests sell for more than others. Put it all up for sale, make sure you always have a full vault of items up for sale at reasonable prices. It all adds up.

That's the basics of money making, there's lots of tricks but if you do 1 of the above you'll have reasonable amounts of cash available.