Scribe or Alchemist?

[Shay87]

I've been in an on-going debate with my friends about what would be better come Cata Inscription or Alchemy? I'm currently leveling a hunter (67) who has been doing some herbing on the side. Due to the accelerated rate in which I have leveled I haven't kept up on my herbing and now I can't decide if I would rather do inscription or alchemy when I attempt to level up my second (and primary) profession, on this character. My only concern about the profession is that it gets me money. I do not care what benefits me, other than gold. I simply want to know what others may think would be more profitable come Cata, due to some of the big changes in inscription, etc.

Any opinions or comments would be greatly appreciated!

---------- Post added 2010-10-17 at 07:30 PM ----------

I need to learn to read.. this should be under the cata stuff and it isn't. Sorry =/

[mikabob]

I have no doubt that alchemy will be of more use to a player any day the week. Iscription WILL have a good chance to make a retarded amount of gold with the new darkmoon-cards and such, but will take loads of time and materials to do it... There has not been anyting really shiny presented for catas inscrition, as far as i know anyway.

My main in cata will be engineering and alchemy, with the gathering on a alt...

To get to my point, alchemy for your main... inscription for your alt.

[JMTC]

Scribe
Fast sellers - Glyphs, Runescrolls, Vellums
Long Term Sellers - Off hands (including rituals of the new moon)

Alchemy
Short Term Sellers - Flasks, potions, elixirs and transmutes.
Bonuses - Transmute extra stuff or potions or elixirs/flasks.

These two professions are pretty different as alchemy is better at supporting a profession like blacksmithing or jewelcrafting instead of being a primary crafting profession.

[Hakasu]

I bet inscription will be the most profitable in cata as well.

[Verth]

Get inscription for the start of cata, or level it on a toon so that you can profit from the new glyphs coming with each patch.
Also, people will be crazy with the removal dust so it's gonna be a standard profit.
Alchemy however will always be useful and wont date as fast as inscr.

[Deleted]

Also, people will be crazy with the removal dust so it's gonna be a standard profit.

uhm ... http://cata.wowhead.com/spell=92027 is buyable at inscription vendors, don't think there's any money-making here

[Seref]

Scribes can also make Fortune Cards, pretty much WoW gambling... But its not BoP.

I'd say Alchemist, aside from the bonuses which beat Scribe anyway. Alchemist is steady gold, whereas Scribe is maybe some gold from Glyphs. But once everyone has the glyphs they need, useless. So only way to make money would be Darkmoon cards...

[ungar]

alchemy and inscription serve completely different goals. alchemy is great for leveling because you can consume potions constantly... this greatly speeds up having to slow down eat and dying. inscription doesn't serve much leveling function, besides maybe using the scroll buffs. inscription is for selling big items at max level like darkmoon cards. these equivalents for levels 70 and 80 have similar cost requirements in terms of mats as their level 85 cards, but aren't worth collecting all the mats to make them as you'll quickly outlevel the bonuses. these cards are best when there's no upgrade and the maximizers want the best in slot item.

TL;DR alchemy is better for helping you level, inscription is better for making money if you have access to all the mats to make the BiS trinkets. inscription is good at max level. herbalism is good at max level, as people need the herbs for crafting good items early in cataclysm. your hunter won't be able to compete in the market until you're close to max level 83-85 so you have access to mats, but alchemy will still be good for making low level potions. you can't play in the level 85 epic crafting market till you're 85, but you can play in the low level market making elixirs and healing potions for alts.

[kortin]

Alchemy gives you a mount. A two person mount...hmm I'd go with alchemy.

[ungar]

Alchemy gives you a mount. A two person mount...hmm I'd go with alchemy.

that's just a perk. its easy to give a two-person mount to another profession as well. it will happen.

[kortin]

that's just a perk. its easy to give a two-person mount to another profession as well. it will happen.

while this is true, this thread is about inscription vs alchemy. Inscription gives you glyphs, which are useful for the first time. With cata, glyphs will not be a very reliable way to make money. If you want to make money go with Alchemy. People are always needing flasks/potions/elixirs and plus you will also get little bonuses from flasks/potions/elixirs you make.

[ungar]

while this is true, this thread is about inscription vs alchemy. Inscription gives you glyphs, which are useful for the first time. With cata, glyphs will not be a very reliable way to make money. If you want to make money go with Alchemy. People are always needing flasks/potions/elixirs and plus you will also get little bonuses from flasks/potions/elixirs you make.

yes, this thread is about him making money with alchemy or inscription.

actually if you look two posts before that one you replied to you'd see the response to that. you suggested alchemy gives a two person mount perk, which the OP said he doesn't care about perks. so I did respond to your off topic post. lets try to stay on topic

On topic: alchemy is much better for leveling and making money before you hit level 80-85. when you get max level people will want best in slot trinkets and you can make a lot more profit with inscription... you'll need high end mats though.

here's a comparison... people will buy stacks of 5-20 elixirs for leveling alts 1-60 these elixirs can sell for around 5 gold each depending on supply vs demand on your server. a stack of 20 elixir/healing potion can sell for 100-150 gold, generally due to the cost to make them and reasonable profit margin. your mileage may vary, but you'll get at most a couple hundred gold for a stack.

on the other hand, consider the darkmoon cards. I could sell greatness card for 10,000 gold around the end of the expansion....probably much more around the release of wotlk. this being that greatness gave +90 in a stat, +300 in a stat on a proc. so strength for example, this was BiS for a long time. only made obsolete by the similar trinket from ToC....that was far into the expansion, and still greatness was easier to get from AH than it dropping in the raid.

alchemy will never compete with inscription if you can get the mats and successfully make the trinkets assuming they're best in slot still. I don't think the darkmoon cards will be as good in cataclysm as in lich king, but they will still be decent. they will probably be replaced sooner than in lich king. still, if you do it right you can make and sell them for at least 5,000 gold. alchemy will never be as profitable. the more cards you sell the wider the gap. inscription also makes plans and recipes, schematics in cataclysm, amongst other things. at max level with access to mats inscription beats alchemy and most other crafting professions by leaps and bounds.

[kortin]

yes, this thread is about him making money with alchemy or inscription.

actually if you look two posts before that one you replied to you'd see the response to that. you suggested alchemy gives a two person mount perk, which the OP said he doesn't care about perks. so I did respond to your off topic post. lets try to stay on topic

On topic: alchemy is much better for leveling and making money before you hit level 80-85. when you get max level people will want best in slot trinkets and you can make a lot more profit with inscription... you'll need high end mats though.

here's a comparison... people will buy stacks of 5-20 elixirs for leveling alts 1-60 these elixirs can sell for around 5 gold each depending on supply vs demand on your server. a stack of 20 elixir/healing potion can sell for 100-150 gold, generally due to the cost to make them and reasonable profit margin. your mileage may vary, but you'll get at most a couple hundred gold for a stack.

on the other hand, consider the darkmoon cards. I could sell greatness card for 10,000 gold around the end of the expansion....probably much more around the release of wotlk. this being that greatness gave +90 in a stat, +300 in a stat on a proc. so strength for example, this was BiS for a long time. only made obsolete by the similar trinket from ToC....that was far into the expansion, and still greatness was easier to get from AH than it dropping in the raid.

alchemy will never compete with inscription if you can get the mats and successfully make the trinkets assuming they're best in slot still. I don't think the darkmoon cards will be as good in cataclysm as in lich king, but they will still be decent. they will probably be replaced sooner than in lich king. still, if you do it right you can make and sell them for at least 5,000 gold. alchemy will never be as profitable. the more cards you sell the wider the gap. inscription also makes plans and recipes, schematics in cataclysm, amongst other things. at max level with access to mats inscription beats alchemy and most other crafting professions by leaps and bounds.

Ah, sorry i seem to have missed that part when i originally read it. I automatically assumed he wanted to know the perks and all that stuff.

I disagree with your last paragraph though. While in the first part of cata you will make more money than you could imagine you would ever make in alchemy, but in the later parts once those cards are obsolete your moneymaking on it will decline. With Alchemy you will keep a steady flow of money throughout the entire expansion. For me, even if i make more money upfront, I would prefer to have a steady flow of money. To put it into perspective, you have an employer who will pay you every time you get a job (best examples of this that i can think of are assassins). You will make more money all at once, but should you take a day job and get paid by the hour you will make less money upfront and have a more steady flow of it. I guess it depends on the OP's preference: More money upfront or a more steady flow of money.

[ungar]

Ah, sorry i seem to have missed that part when i originally read it. I automatically assumed he wanted to know the perks and all that stuff.

I disagree with your last paragraph though. While in the first part of cata you will make more money than you could imagine you would ever make in alchemy, but in the later parts once those cards are obsolete your moneymaking on it will decline. With Alchemy you will keep a steady flow of money throughout the entire expansion. For me, even if i make more money upfront, I would prefer to have a steady flow of money. To put it into perspective, you have an employer who will pay you every time you get a job (best examples of this that i can think of are assassins). You will make more money all at once, but should you take a day job and get paid by the hour you will make less money upfront and have a more steady flow of it. I guess it depends on the OP's preference: More money upfront or a more steady flow of money.

ok, we'll agree to disagree I think inscription making best in slot trinkets and selling for 5,000-10,000 gold (possibly more depending how much gold people have at start of cataclysm) is comparable to your boss giving you a million dollar sign on bonus, compared to your hourly wage of say, $30 an hour. you can invest the large lump sum early by buying mats and what not, making much more money, or you can spend the next year making 500g a day posting and reposting potions, elixirs all the time. I'd prefer to just post a couple trinkets rather than babysit the AH and still make less money with alchemy than inscription.

we'll just have to agree to disagree...I've tried both and made much more gold selling epics than lots of comsumables

[krasgoth]

Personally, the inscription wave has come and gone and anyone who's paid attention has cashed in. Alchemy hasn't really had that time yet.

Keep in mind that materials for all the new darkmoon cards is going to be through the roof - Whereas most people with alchemy also have an herbalist to fund them. Everyone has already bought their glyphs and while a few new ones will be released in Cataclysm, demand will dry up fast. Just like every other period of inscription, you'll have a couple of weeks to cash in on Supply/Demand, then everything will be useless for a good long time until new glyphs are released.

Alchemy is a more constant supply, Inscription is based entirely on timing and demand. If you are able to ride waves, go for inscription. If you like steady money flow, go alchemy.

[army1237]

Just because you have herbalism doesn't mean that you have to go alch or scribe especially if its solely to make money. If you want to make money i'd pick up mining or skinning but probably mining because gathering professions make sooooo much money at the start of expansions so I'd go with that imho. This is especially true because herbalism in this case is just feeding alch or scribe and therefore these herbs are only used to make this stuff, instead sell the herbs and the ores that you get and you'll get heaps of money.

[Deleted]

I would go alchemy. I really like the daily free trasmute

[Stirge]

One thing that hasn't been mentioned in this thread so far is that for all the new glyphs coming in Cata, you will have to use a different kind of dust that either will not be available from vendors at all or will be ruinously expensive, and is something that will be in steady demand. Scribes are actually in a pretty good place to make money in Cata, short- and long-term; their business model is just changing a bit. Alchemists, on the other hand, will probably make excellent money up front as the expansion starts, have that drop off pretty quickly but not too far, and then spike back up once the new epic gems are available and remain relatively stable but generally declining as the expansion progresses.

For myself, my main has always been an alchemist and I have every recipe in the game. Not only would I not even consider giving up all that effort, but in Cata you get to turn into a fucking dragon, and how awesome is that?

[sicness]

Personally, the inscription wave has come and gone and anyone who's paid attention has cashed in. Alchemy hasn't really had that time yet.

Keep in mind that materials for all the new darkmoon cards is going to be through the roof - Whereas most people with alchemy also have an herbalist to fund them. Everyone has already bought their glyphs and while a few new ones will be released in Cataclysm, demand will dry up fast. Just like every other period of inscription, you'll have a couple of weeks to cash in on Supply/Demand, then everything will be useless for a good long time until new glyphs are released.

Alchemy is a more constant supply, Inscription is based entirely on timing and demand. If you are able to ride waves, go for inscription. If you like steady money flow, go alchemy.

I highly disagree about inscriptions 'time' being gone. People need glyphs and will always need glyphs. Class changes simply change which glyphs are the money makers and which aren't, but inscription has been and always will be the money making profession without question.

[Xerogravity]

Flasks sell pretty decent all year.Esp when a new content patch comes out.What i suggest is stock pile a entire GB tab full of flasks for content patches.