This thread is mainly to separate this suggestion from another suggestion so it can be properly discussed and proposed as its own content. I am of course talking about the Auxiliary Gardening suggestion that I and at least one other person fleshed out in the "Why doesn't decorating your room give you a buff in game?"
For this suggestion, I want to make it clear to the developer team that this would not allow players to get items normally obtained only through AC purchases, such as the +450% Rare Drop Rate Booster. Instead, this offers an alternative to farming Ex-Cubes and Photon Drops that takes real world time to "grow" items like boosters and other materials. For the purpose of adding it sooner than later, I propose using the already implemented Auxiliary search system that utilizes specific client orders that said Auxiliaries can take on.
Client Order Method
So, for this reason, we will need a special NPC (Maybe Frosty in Franca's Cafe) that can give us Client Orders to obtain the items you want to "grow." These client orders will have your Auxiliary go out on a search and gather "Seed" items to trade into the Client Order NPC for the items you want. Each client order will actually only need 1 of these seeds, and will only give EXP and Meseta directly. However, the NPC in question will actually have a "Seed Shop" that you can use these seeds to exchange into special items.
Each client order will take up 2 or 3 slots in the client order search window depending on what type of seed you get.
Actual Gardening Method
The alternate method, and by far the most community-friendly of the two, will instead duplicate the current crafting system's "Assembly Line" dialogue and allow players to use that to transform various materials into boosters via "Gardening Plots" instead of an "Assembly Line." Unlike Crafting however, you should have an Auxiliary set to maintain the gardens. Based on the Auxiliary stats/level, the garden will perform better (more yield), faster growth, higher tier minimum, or faster cooldown.
You can place a special "Garden" Auxiliary Terminal that allows you to set an Auxiliary as your garden's caretaker. (Only one per persoal quarters. But any character on the account can set their auxiliary to it.) Auxiliaries that take care of gardens will gain EXP based on the items produced, but cannot be sent on Client Orders. Auxiliaries will ask for any of the "items needed" below from storage and/or inventory. The more items provided, the higher the tier that can be produced (but not necessarily will.) Any items unused due to not producing a higher tier/etc. will be returned to the player character after gardening is completed. (This has diminishing returns.)
Unlike other Auxiliary terminals, all characters can speak with the Auxiliary in the gardening terminal.
Potential Gardening Items
Item Name | Maximum Tier / Amount | Items Needed § | Cooldown |
---|---|---|---|
Item Drop Rate Booster | +250% / 1-3 | Desynth Materials (Weapons/Armor) | 3 Hours |
EXP Booster | +75% / 1-3 | Enemy Kill Drops (IE: Red Meat) | 2 Hours |
Meseta Booster | +125% / 1-5 | Meseta Crystals | 2 Hours |
Triboost | +75% / 1-3 | Desynth Materials + Enemy Kill Drops + Meseta Crystals | 3 Hours |
PA Technique Fragment | 1-5 | Any Technique Disc Lv.1-10 | 1 Hour |
PA Melee Fragment | 1-5 | Any Melee Disc Lv.1-10 | 1 Hour |
PA Ranged Fragment | 1-5 | Any Ranged Disc Lv.1-10 | 1 Hour |
§ "Items Needed" is only if the Garden Plot / Crafting Line method is used from "Actual Gardening Method."