Kalgaloth's Gathering Guide

So, you want to be an awesome Gatherer? You have dreams of picking up a Pickaxe, Hatchet, or Hammer and taking it to mother nature? You've come to the right place!

The Basics
Gathering, or commonly referred to as TS (Tradeskilling), is the act of Mining, Woodcutting, or Quarrying in IQ RPG.

The first thing you need to do is decide which area you want to focus on. It is possible to spread out between the different skills, but you'll soon realize that the cost of Tools becomes too much and rather than being a great Miner, Woodcutter, or Stoner you become mediocre in all three.

Deciding which skill to choose can be made easier by also choosing a craft. The choices for a craft are Jewelcrafting, Runecrafting, and Alchemy. If you go with Mining & Jewelcrafting, for instance, you can provide yourself with your own gems that you need to craft jewels rather than buying them.

If you don't plan on doing a craft, which is not required to be a great TS, then you can just sell all of your special resources to those who do focus on crafting.

I've Chosen My Skill - Now What?
Now that you have chosen your skill, it's time to get better at it. You are going to see very small returns at the beginning, but don't be discouraged by that. The higher your skill level, the more resources and exp you get and the more special resources you have access to. There are a three main methods to becoming a better TS:

Tools

You can find a fully detailed chart in Tools, but it is very important in the early levels to get the tool for your chosen skill to at least level 3 as soon as possible. It is expensive and you may need to sell your resources at 1g each in order to afford it. The extra exp and resources gained in the beginning make this very worth it, though.

You can get Tool Components to upgrade your tool from regular actions, from dungeons, from events and from buying them on the marketplace. If you plan on doing dungeons for them and you are fully TS-focused, DO NOT go above the Goblin Cave Key, as you will not be able to kill the monster and will have wasted a key. Sell any key higher than that or cripple your TS gains and train battling to do the higher dungeons *shudder*.

Clan

Clans are very important in IQ RPG to give boosts. The buildings you want from a clan are Gathering Exp Totem, Mastery Totem, and Drop Totem. If you plan on crafting, then a Crafting Exp Totem is useful as well. Try to find a clan that has a focus in TS to maximize your gains, or at least a clan that is friendly to TS'rs and evenly upgrades their buildings. Do not get caught in the trap of becoming the resource slave for a battle clan.

Tools soon become so expensive, that I have found it is better to donate as much as I can to the clan so that the totems can be upgraded and provide a boost not only to myself but also to everyone else in the clan. If it is a TS-focused clan, then each building upgrade is a huge boon to everyone.

Premium Credit Boosts

The other method of maximizing your gains as a TS is to purchase premium credit boosts. The ones you want to focus on here are the Gathering Exp Boost, Mastery Boost and Drop Boost. Do these three first, even if you plan on doing Crafting.

Getting Stronger - What Comes Next?
Well, simply put, getting stronger. There is no level cap. Keep increasing your tool, keep increasing your boosts, keep upgrading the clan. Here are some general tips to make sure that you keep going as fast as possible: Things to Keep In Mind:
 * Sell all of your special resources on the marketplace (If not crafting)
 * Once you get to Tool level 5, the cost goes up immensely compared to the benefits you get. Consider selling Tool Component drops at this point so that you can focus on purchasing credits for premium boosts or donating to clan to get boosts that way. This is NOT a long-term solution and should be stopped as soon as you are comfortable with your income
 * Consider trading your special resources and keys directly for tools. Battlers don't need tools, but many battlers are also crafter's and will do a direct trade for special resources and also for keys you obtain from action bonus
 * Consider having your clan put up a buy order for resources at 1g each if you are really hurting on money, so that you can get some gold but your resources will still go to the clan. Most clans would rather you sold it to them to 1g each than sell outside
 * Always participate in the battle events and every TS event. The battle events will eventually reward you with boss tokens and more (once super bosses come out) and these may be useful for us. You also have a small chance of getting the last hit and striking it rich. The TS events have increased chances to give Tool Components and special resources, and so should not be skipped.
 * Consider finding a crafter and setting up a long-term contract. This usually comes with a small discount and loss of income, but it ensures that you always have a steady flow
 * The game is new. Not all features are released and balancing may happen. Don't be surprised to log on one day and find that the Diamond you could get yesterday now requires 23 more levels.
 * There are currently no Runes or Jewels specifically for TS, but this may change. Make sure you know a Runecrafter and Jewelcrafter just in case.
 * As clans get higher and higher buildings, the demand for resources will increase greatly. This may lead to a cost increase, so keep your eye on the market.
 * Eventually Clan War will be implemented and we know that we will at least have Fortified Walls. These will cost large amounts of resources, so your value as a TS will go up for clans. Do not sell yourself short, clans cannot grow without you.
 * Don't let mother nature hit back, because you're a scrawny TS and that shit will hurt.

The End
- Do feel free to contact me in game if you have any questions that I did not answer here, this guide will be updated as the game progresses as things will change, I'm sure.