Unsure About Jewelcrafting

[Lunarsong]

Hi everyone. My highest level character is only 25 right now, so there is obviously A LOT that I have yet to see. My Jewelcrafter is level 3 right now. However, I have some confusion as to the usefulness of Jewelcrafting.

Right now, my Jewelcrafter can remove gems from existing sockets without destroying the gem (for a fee) and combine 3 of a particular gem into 1 of that gem's next tier. Does he unlock anything else other than these two abilities? Is the only thing gained by training your Jewelcrafter to the next level the ability to combine gems one tier higher than before?

My second area of uncertainty comes from the removal of gems from sockets. Is there a level restriction on this at all? For example, a Level 1 JC can remove gems from items up to level 20, Level 2 JC up to level 25, Level 3 JC up to level 30, etc. Or is this just something that anyone with a level 1 Jewelcrafter can do regardless of item level?

My final concern is more opinion than anything else. The Jewelcrafter just seems... lackluster compared to the blacksmith. What is your opinion on the usefulness of the Jewelcrafter relative to the Blacksmith? Am I missing something? I feel like there's got to be something at higher levels of Jewelcrafting that I haven't seen yet that will make it worth while.

Thanks in advance!

[Deleted]

Well, the highest level gem that drops in the game I believe is tier 8, but gems go up to tier 14. So if you want to get good gems for inferno, you're going to have to make them - or buy them on the AH. I think both crafters really come into their usefulness at 60 more than anything else.

[Fumu]

I can imagine a nice profit being made for people who level their JCing quickly enough and selling perfect gems that their class doesn't need.