ALL INFORMATION HERE IS FOR OLD WORLD 2.x GEAR
(Go to the first page for updated info)
Reached level 50 in your gatherer recently? New patch got you wondering what the best in slot DoL gear is? Look no further! In this guide, we will be discussing the best possible gear and materia melds for you gatherer, and an ideal progression to reach it!
Navigation:
Gear & Max Meldable Stats | Specific Materia Order | Gear Progression Tips
2.4 Gathering (DOL) Absolute BiS Gear
| Slot | Shared? | Meld Max? | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Hand | Supra Weapon | Class only | N/A |
| Off-hand | Forager's Offhand | Class only | Ga(14) Per(??) GP(??) |
| Head | Forager's Hat | Shared | N/A |
| Body | Forager's Vest | Shared | Ga(12) Per(6) GP(0) |
| Hands | Forager's Wristguards | Shared | Ga(10) Per(??) GP(0?) |
| Waist | Dodore Survival Belt | Shared | Ga(4) Per(3) GP(4) |
| Legs | Forager's Slops | Shared | Ga(6) Per(1) GP(4) |
| Feet | Forager's Shoes | Shared | Ga(1) Per(6) GP(4) |
| Neck | Dodore Choker | Shared | Ga(4) Per(4) GP(8) |
| Ears | Rose Gold Earrings of Gathering | Shared | Ga(4) Per(4) GP(8) |
| Wrist | Militia Bracelets | Shared | Ga(4) Per(4) GP(10) |
| Ring | Dodore Ring | Shared | Ga(4) Per(3) GP(4) |
| Ring | Dodore Ring | Shared | Ga(4) Per(3) GP(4) |
All crafted items above should be HQ
Base Stats NO MELD: Ga(399) Per(404) GP(590)
Bast Stats NO OFFHAND MELD: Ga(452) Per(438) GP(636)
Off-hand stats for Final Tier Gathering: Ga(6 Preferably) Per(ANY) GP(ANY)
Off-hand maximum melds: Ga(14) Per(??) GP(??) (Impossible)
REQUIRED STATS FOR HIGHEST TIER GATHERING:
Mininum Gathering: 420. 1% HQ Perception: 420
DOL Materia name note: Guerdon = Gathering, Guile = Perception, Grasp = GP.
Head & Weapon: N/A
Rings & Waist: Grasp IV, Guerdon II, Guile I
Neck & Earrings: Grasp IV, Grasp III, Guerdon II, Guile II, Grasp I
Alternative: Grasp IV, Grasp IV, Guerdon II, Guile II
(Guile and Guerdon pretty much interchangeable here)
Wrist: Grasp IV, Grasp III, Grasp III, Guerdon II, Guile II
(These are a pain to meld…)
Chest: Guerdon IV, Guerdon IV, Guile I, Guile I
Alternative: Guerdon IV, Guerdon IV, Guile IV
Hands: Guerdon III, Guerdon III, Guile II
Legs: Grasp IV, Guerdon I, Guerdon I, Guile I
Alternative: Grasp IV, Guerdon IV, Guile I
Shoes: Grasp IV, Guile I, Guile I, Guerdon I.
Alternative: Grasp IV, Guile IV, Guerdon I
Offhand: Stick a Guerdon IV in there for now.
So, you need 420 Gathering and 420 Perception. The melding Strategy above gives you Ga(458) Per(438) GP(640), Which is way over minimum. Here’s my thoughts… Max out your gathering so you reduce “wasted” nodes. Anything above 420 Perception is a luxury. You can save money by reducing 18 points of perception somewhere up there. Everyones gear and gil situation is different so a quick rule would be to remove some of the brutal pentamelds (wrist, neck, ears)
The BiS and melds are pretty obvious this time around. However, the path to the ultimate gatherer has become more and more complex. I will be making a Gathering Progression Guide. I’ll just keep the older info on this page as a pseudo archive for this purpose (It’s still pretty damn useful)
TO END ALL DISPUTES: THE CAP TO WRISTS REALLY IS +10
ALL INFO FOLLOWING THIS POINT ARE RELEVANT ONLY ON YOUR WAY TO BiS
Gathering Best-in-Slot gear & Materia Meld Stat Caps
The below table represents the current Best in Slot Gathering gear. The numbers (+X) represent the maximum amount of stats it can hold through materia melding.
| Slot | Gathering | Perception | GP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Main Hand | Class Specific Supra | 153 | 88 | 0 |
| Off-hand | Militia Off-hand HQ | 64(+9) | 112(+20) | 0(+4) |
| Head | Forager's Hat | 4 | 82 | 3 |
| Body | Class Specific Green HQ | 64(+11) | 32(+6) | 3(+1) |
| Hands | Class Specific Green HQ | 48(+8) | 0(+4) | 3(+1) |
| Waist | Dodore Survival Belt HQ | 0(+4) | 16(+3) | 0(+4) |
| Legs | Class Specific Green HQ | 32(+6) | 3(+4) | 3(+1) |
| Feet | Class Specific Green HQ | 3(+) | 32(+6) | 0(+4) |
| Neck | Dodore Choker HQ | 0(+4) | 0(+4) | 39(+8) |
| Ears | Rose Gold Earrings of Gathering HQ | 0(+4) | 0(+4) | 45(+8) |
| Wrist | Militia Bracelets HQ | 0(+4) | 0(+4) | 43(+10) |
| Ring | Dodore Ring HQ | 0(+4) | 1(+3) | 23(+4) |
| Ring | Dodore Ring HQ | 0(+4) | 1(+3) | 23(+4) |
There are two new notable pieces of gear, Main-Hand and Head. Both of which are redeemable in Mor Dhona by handing in Umbral Rocks for Mining and Fragrant Logs for Botanists. The Main-Hand gives a huge boost in stats and makes reaching the required gathering for 2-Star nodes much easier.
Relevant Pre-BiS Gear:
| Gear/Melding | Gathering | Perception | GP |
|---|---|---|---|
| i55 Headgear | 4 | 11 | 4 |
| Raptorskin Survival Belt | 3 | 2 | 4 |
| Electrum Earrings | 3 | 3 | 7 |
| Raptorskin Ring | 3 | 3 | 4 |
With that in mind, the below table is the maximum amount of stats meldable onto the best in slot gathering gear. (Ordered by similarity)
| Slot | Gathering | Perception | GP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Hand | - | - | - |
| Off Hand | 11 | 20+ | 4 |
| Body | 11 | 6 | 1 |
| Head | 4 | 11 | 4 |
| Hands | 8 | 4 | 1 |
| Legs | 6 | 1 | 4 |
| Feet | 1 | 6 | 4 |
| Belt | 3 | 2 | 4 |
| Neck | 3 | 3 | 7 |
| Ears | 3 | 3 | 7 |
| Wrist | 4 | 4 | 10 |
| Ring | 3 | 3 | 4 |
Gathering Materia Optimum Meld Order
This meld order is based off of how expensive the melds are, reducing the expensive forbidden melds as much as possible. These suggestions are just to max out meldable stats.
Off Hand – is a special case because of the amount of stats possible. Body and Off Hand have the largest amounts of Gathering meldable so it would be a good idea to start with those first and adjusting your melds accordingly.
Head/Main Hand – No melds possible
Accessories give bang for your buck due to it being shareable with other DoL classes.
Neck & Earrings (Same melds)
Grasp IV, Grasp III, Guerdon II, Guile II, Grasp I
Alternative: Grasp IV, Grasp IV, Guerdon II, Guile II
(Guile and Guerdon pretty much interchangeable here)
Wrist: Grasp IV, Grasp III, Grasp III, Guerdon II, Guile II
Rings & Waist (Same melds)
Grasp IV, Guerdon II, Guile I
Body – Guerdon IV, Guile IV, Guerdon III, , Grasp I
Alternative: The above is probably the best meld.
Hands – Guerdon III, Guile II, Guerdon I, Grasp I
Legs – Guerdon IV, Grasp IV, Guile I
Alternative – Guerdon III, Grasp III, Guile I, Guerdon I, Guile I
Feet – Guile IV, Grasp IV, Guerdon I
Alternative – Grasp II, Grasp II, Guile I, Guile I, Guerdon I
Things to note about Gathering Stats
Your first priority is to get the needed stats to farm the new 1-star node. This is so that you can farm the HQ item needed for the new Forager’s main hand and weapon. If you do have the gil to burn, might as well max meld all your gear from the get go.
Gathering – You would want to reach 370 gathering to be able to farm the new 1 star difficulty nodes. 2-Star nodes require 408 Gathering.
Perception – You need a rating of 332 to get a 1% chance to HQ the new 1 star difficulty nodes. You need to farm quite a bit of HQ mats to get the new main hand and head gear. You need 389 for 2-Star nodes
GP – Try to get your GP to 600, before or after food depending on how much you want to meld. Not that important, but it will make your life easier.
Gathering Gear Progression Tips
Once you hit 50 gatherer, where do you start in your road to BiS?
- Buy and meld all i55 greens (skip melding i55 Head)
- Gather your “token” to obtain Foragers Hat.
30x Fragrant Log: South Shroud, Camp Tranquil: 2:00 AM.
30x Umbral Rock: South Shroud, Camp Tranquil: 6:00 AM.
10x Silver Sovereign: Lower La Noscea (24-39) Oschons Torch. Bait: Yumizuno.
Due to Silver Sovereigns difficulty, save them for the rod IF you have another DoL class.. - Gather more of your token to obtain your Foragers Weapon
60x for Fragrant Log / Umbral Rock.
20x for Silver Sovereign. - Have 3 Mastercraft Demimateria? Buy your Supra Weapon.
Navigation:
Gear & Max Meldable Stats | Specific Materia Order | Gear Progression Tips
Please refer to our Unspoiled Nodes Guide (<- will be updated) for all unspoiled nodes including the new ones added for patch 2.3
===COMMENTS BELOW ARE PRE 3.3===
There might be some incorrect info. The GP “Totals w/ melds & no food” should be 706 instead of 679. My guess is you guys used some data of NQ gears. I made a full set of HQ gears and melded, and by only adding +3 GP on main/off/head gear, my total GP is 700 without food. (same happen in crafting gear as well, some data might be from NQ)
oh wow 706? lemme recheck. that’s alot better than I thought.
FSH 50+ needs GP as well, and the more the better. Patience II costs a whopping 560GP to use, and more GP means you can use more Hooksets and less waiting and wasting buff time.
hey there FFXIVGUILD, just want to inform u the Serpentskin Belt Of Gathering is changing name into Dragonskin Belt Of Gathering.
and many thanks for your update since 2.0 until now, hope the best for ur website and ur FC :D
~ Ryakieus Ixion IGN
Supreme FC
Oh what, really? A name change is the worst type of update for me -_-
Hi! Just made belt here and cap are reversed: +5 gathering +7 perception
/FIXED! TY :D
576 Perception seems to be the minimum for the lv 60 gathering rotaitons mentioned abover for the 450, 470, and 530
I apologize if this is a stupid question, but I’m honestly quite new to the entire DoH/DoL scene (just got my MIN to 60 last night and have yet to get a crafter up there), and don’t fully understand the specifics of gear stat caps, melding, etc. As for my confusion, what exactly are you doing do achieve the Unmelded Stat numbers you have at the bottom of the table? Using the full set you have listed with no melds, I’m sitting at 500 Gathering, 510 Perception, and 573 GP. What am I missing to get me the 74 Gathering, 61 Perception, and 24 GP that I need to match your “unmelded” numbers?
Did you HQ the items?
Items definitely HQ. Am updating this soon… it’s a bit strange this time around with a “3 tier” bis.
The serpentskin bush hat has a much higher perception cap than 7; I’ve already melded 2x Gatherer’s Guile IVs and it’s letting me meld another one at full potency (for +18 total). I haven’t tried to meld more than that yet for lack of funds but if anyone gets a chance to figure out the REAL max meld for it, please let us know?
Hmm? Is it HQ? I’m gonna verify all of these once alex S comes out. Red Scrip tier gear might render some of these obsolete
I can confirm that the HQ Serpentskin Bush hat is more than 7. I think I screwed up some melds, but all well… :X
Yeah I have first handedly confirmed it at +20… why the hell is the table wrong… fixed!!
Just a heads up: you need 650 gathering to be able to reach the legendary nodes in one hit. (At least for botanist, I assume it’s the same)
Aye, I’m not sure of the exact, but 650 sounds in the right range. Will definitely update this on tuesday for savage.
might be better to wait til thursday to update it seeing as wont be able to see the new red scrip gear til then
Yes thursday! There is indeed a short (1 and a half?) day delay until this can be cemented.
looking at the new gear its better to get new crafted gear. since u cant get main hand from crafted u got to choice but to get main hand as red scrips.
should be able to reach over 700 gathering and perc from new crafted gear and main hand from red scrips. not sure on gp depends on how much u want to meld
you might want to double check the cap melds again, the belt caps at +7 gathering. also the only new crafted stuff for gatherers are offhand, belt, and accessories, the mainhand, hat, chest, gloves, pants, and shoes all can only be upgraded via red scrips.
Yes this is unupdated to Red Scrip gear. Will fix this very soon.
!!!!!!!!!!!! EVERY COMMENT BELOW IS PRE-HEAVENSWARD !!!!!!!!
I’d say everything here is pretty much out dated since 3.0 heavensward. Might want to put at the top of this page or something that will let people know that this gear is pretty much useless so they don’t spend a fortune trying to get BiS melds that are outdated.
Which is why the page title clearly states “2.4 BiS”. fortunately I’m updating this today.
Do you have a BiS for fishing?
Hrm… I hesitate to recommend the right-side BiS for fishing. I will be adding this in the initial 3.0 update for this guide. For now here’s some advice:
For the sake of “value for money” use the above right side even if GP is wasted.
For the sake of “Who cares about cash”
Meld 110 Platinum accessories with Perception and Gathering. I myself do not know the cap, but feel free to let me know.
Foragers Wristguard takes 10g and 4p, it wouldn’t take more than 4 perception on straight melding, having tried overmelding it yet
You should update the best main hand to be Lucis tools
What does ‘BiS’ stand for?
Never mind: means best in slot. How do I go about implementing these steps? Do I purchase them or make them? How do I go about maxing out my gathering?
Never mind, I see now. It’s way at the bottom. I didn’t catch it at first; can’t really see without my glasses.
Can you guys please update to patch 2.5 already? this is so outdated
say what? 2.5?
for Rings and Waist, I suggest adding an alternative :Grasp III, Guerdon II, Guile I, Grasp I. This saved me alot of money do to Materia IV high price.
Yes, this definitely works too. I simply cannot list all alternatives, tho – so thanks for commenting!
needs to be updated with Lucis weapon BiS and progression tips on how to obtain it. Also it is worth noting that Fishing BiS is different than Mining and Botany. For Fishing you want to meld i70 battle class accessories each with 5 gathering and 5 perception
With regards to the melds for Forager’s Slops, it should really be Grasp IV, Guerdon III, Guerdon I, Guile I for the econo-meld, since Gathering cap is 6, rather than Grasp IV, Guerdon III, Guerdon III, Guile I. ^^
Addressed! luckily the typo still hits overcap and not under.
Militia Bracelets can take at least +4 gathering.
You have this listed:
Wrist Militia Bracelets HQ 0(+) 0(+) 43(+10)
Ga(4) Per(4) GP(10) is listed in the new main table. I think you’re refering to the pre-bis table which ill fix now, thanks!
Another possible mistake:
You have Forager’s Legs listed as:
Legs: Grasp IV, Guerdon III, Guerdon III, Guile I
However, the I believe it should be Grasp IV, Guerdon III, **Guerdon I**, Guile I
Since max gathering is 6, adding 2 Guerdon IIIs is overkill, no?
Please confirm if Im in fact correct or if Im derping :P
Right, i confused the numberwith the stats given.. it can actually be Guerdon I x 2 or 1 x IV
Where do we find this Forager’s Spectacle? i tried to find it every in databases and so fort but no luck did you mean the Foragers hat?
Foragers HAT sorry /fixing
Thank you for another amazing guide FFXIV Guild, as always, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your letting me spend my time fishing rather than working out what these melds should be!
“Body – Guerdon IV, Guerdon III, Guile IV, Grasp I
Alternative: Guerdon III, Guerdon III, Gulie III, Guerdon I, Guile I”
The alternative one gives 13, 8, 0 instead of 11, 6, 1 for stats…
Fixed! After reviewing, there really is no practical alternative.
There is still some disparity between your top chart and your bottom chart. In particular, it looks like the bottom chart reflects the pre-2.3 data on the old neck, belt, ear and ring melds while the top chart lists the data for the new iLvl 55 items in 2.3. And the meld bonuses on the Militia Wrists are still missing from the top chart.
I was curious about the totals for Gathering because I’ve been seeing posts on other sites claiming certain iLvl 80 fish (such as the Frilled Shark) requiring a gathering stat of 390+. My gear, as far as I can see, is capped at 354 with the Halcyon Rod Supra. Add 24 more for HQ Spinach Quiche and 10 more for an FC action buff and you get 388. So, two questions:
1) How many extra points or gathering can you put on the iLvl 70 (combat) jewelry (2-star lvl 50 Goldsmith recipes)?
2) Would Square Enix be so nasty as to require fishers to get non-gatherer gear in order to catch the top fish in the game?
(or, third question: Am I missing 2 points somewhere? Should the total for a fisher with the Supra rod be 356?)
Militia Bracelets can now take +10. Should probably fix that.
I was hesitant to add this cause I havent checked it myself. checking when i login.
I have HQ Militia Bracelets with +10 GP, +4 Gath & +4 Perc.
Ah right, thanks for reminding me to update this!
No, Militia Bracelets only takes +8 GP. I saw some guides saying it’s +10, so I planned to add +10, and ended up getting fooled. Could have done it cheaper.
This damn bracelet has been causing confusion for 3 patches! haha
why is this guide so bad? on the chart it clearly says the max melds for legs are +6 gathering +4gp +4 perception, so why would you put a guile 1 in it which only has +3 perception? it’s the little stuff like this that is off with your guide. it just makes you seem like you don’t have a clue what you’re talking about
The leg CAPS at 4, and holds +1 perception. Guile one does give 3, but you can only utilize 1 of it. If I could suggest Gatherers Guile 0.3 i would :D
There seems to be incomplete stats above on the militia bracelets on both charts. Also not updated as it seems they can take +10GP now. Thanks for the guide :)
the bracelets do take 10 GP now, yes.
the leg af perception cap is actually +1, not +4
Yes, +1 for 4 total
The Perception cap on Offhand is 20, not 20+. I applied Guile IV, III, III, III and only received a RED +4 for the last Guile III melded.
Great to know. I dont have an offhand piece i could test this on further.
Does anyone know the specifics for the Materia that can be affixed to the Dodore Choker,Rose Gold Earrings of Gathering, and Dodore Ring? As I’m quite unsure what I should place in them.
It’s now listed in the guide above :)
It still says 2.2 gathering melding order though.
Three new gathering gear recipes in the master Leatherworker book: the Dodore Survival Belt, Dodore Choker and Dodore Ring. All are item level 55, which should point out one line in the patch notes people may have missed: “The GP cap when affixing materia to accessories item level 55 or above has been increased.” Effectively, the Militia Bracelets can now take a total of 10 GP in melds, not 7. I have my Dodore Survival Belt HQ (base +16 Perception) capped with +4 Gathering, +3 Perception and +4 GP on my melds (that’s up +1 Gathering and Perception each compared to the Raptorskin Survival Belt). The Dodore Choker HQ (base +45 GP) can take +4 each to Gathering and Perception (again, up 1 point each from the Raptorskin Choker). I ran out of Grasp Materia IIIs after getting 1 to stick and I can see that a Grasp IV will stick all 4 points. The question is will it take more than 7 GP on melds? The Dodore Ring HQ (base +23 GP & +1 Perception) will take melds of +4 Gathering, +3 Perception and +4 GP. Only a 1 point increase in Gathering compared to the melds for the Raptorskin Ring, but again the base stats include a point of perception on the new ring.
In case you’re interested, here are the material requirements for crafting these items:
Dodore Survival Belt: 2 Dodore Leather, 1 Undyed Felt, 1 Darksteel Nugget, 10 Fieldcraft Demimateria I, 3 Earth Crystals, 2 Wind Crystals.
Dodore Choker: 1 Dodore Leather, 1 Raptor Sinew, 10 Fieldcraft Demimateria I, 3 Earth Crystals, 2 Wind Crystals.
Dodore Ring: 1 Dodore Leather, 1 Twinthread, 10 Fieldcraft Demimateria I, 3 Earth Crystals, 2 Wind Crystals.
All are 1-star iLevel 55 recipes, Difficulty 195, Durability 80, Quality 2646, requiring Control of 255. Unlike the Dodore Doublet (lvl 47 LTW recipe), these are not aspected recipes (the Doublet is Earth aspect) in case anyone was curious.
Hey can u please write down what are the stats u can attach to each of these new pieces and including the militia bracelet that u said it changed, so much info confuses me.
All the information you requested is found in the post above.
You have guile 4 after a 3 on the chest, does order mattter? Why would I want to overmeld a 4 over a 3?
Hmm ill be QA’ing this guide as there are many people who have gripes with it.
I think the last Materia for the Alternate version of the Legs meld should be a Grasp I instead of Guile I
Also, the alternate legs have +8 gathering total if I haven’t flubbed my math. They can only hold +6 according to the chart.
Legs – Guerdon IV, Grasp IV, Guile I = +6 Gathering, +3 Perception, +4 GP
Alternative – Guerdon III, Grasp III, Guile I, Guerdon I, Guile I = +8 Gathering, +6 Perception, +3 GP
Did you mean:
New Alternative – Grasp III, Guerdon I, Guerdon I, Guile I, Grasp 1 = +6 Gathering, +3 Perception, +4 GP
Similarly, your Alt Body has +13 Gathering. Should it be instead:
Alternative: Guerdon III, Guile III, Guerdon I, Guerdon I, Guile I
What is the actual meld order for the off-hand? I see the “Off-hand” sub-heading in section 2.2, but I don’t see the actual meld order…
How might the be modified to put some Gathering/Perception on belt/accessories and GP on “AF” pieces in order to use them cross-class with all gathering jobs including fishing?
A pure fishing meld can be discussed i guess – i’ll look into it.
Another thing: the alternate meld order for feet you give is “Grasp II, Grasp II, Guile I, Guile I, Guerdon I”. Given the primary order of “Guile IV, Grasp IV, Guerdon I” shouldn’t those Guiles be II’s? Also, given the cost of materia and the differences between grades, how about an alternate meld order of “Grasp III, Guile III, Grasp I, Guile I, Guerdon I”? With two 100% meld chance slots on feet, using III’s would guarantee 75% of those stats sticking without a long string of overmeld failures.
And a stupid question, but I have to ask it anyway: Is there any reason why Fishers need GP at all? I can’t see that they would, but before I go melding all my Fishing gear with the Grasps removed from the meld orders you suggest I’d like to be certain of it. :)
Never mind the stupid question, found it on Reddit and common sense rules the day.
I’m trying to meld my newly crafted Raptorskin Ring HQ with Gatherer’s Grasp Materia IV, but the materia in my melding window is greyed out, unavailable. Yes, I do have Grade 4 Carbonized Matter in my inventory — besides which, if you do not have the necessary carbonized matter it will still bring up the window to show the meld chance but it says “You do not possess the proper catalyst to complete the meld.” If it’s greyed out, it can’t be done. Is this something new that hasn’t bee modified in this guide yet?
Does your materia meld guide total up to reaching Two star nodes (after getting better tool and headgear), or only one star?
The suggested melds are posted to reach the certain max stat caps of each item. With that, plus the new Forager’s gear. You will very well be over the required cap for 2-Star nodes.
I seem to have come across a problem where I am mining a level 50 node and I am 2 strength short of getting the +1 gathering attempt. I also have BiS for mining gear. Anyone else have this problem?
Could be your starting race?
One correction: raptorskin survival belt HQ is the best in slot for belt, not boarskin, not that it’s a huge difference thou, just 1 miserable perception so it doesn’t really matter.
You don’t actually need to use the toil skill at all – all items gathered at unspoiled nodes are “fixed” in their location, for instance, gold ore is always the 3rd from the bottom. You can just waste 1 action clearing rubble, then use 600 gp worth of skills on the node. Of course, if you want 2 hits of deep vigor/brunt force you’ll have to use toil, but if you’re only interested in yield of normal materials, you can hit once to clear rubble and reveal the item, use blessed harvest 2/king’s yield 2 + 1 +5% increase gather chance skill and get 5 hits of +5 of an item. Same applies to if you’re using the +30% increased HQ mat skill with a 5% increase gather chance skill.