My concern is that it's going to be like day 30 before I can get a crucible, unless I find one at the trader. I can make quality 5 steel tools, but I'm not going to be able to make steel for weeks, unless I get lucky at the trader. That seems like poor balance to me.
And yes, I can wrench stuff for it, but wrenching 150+ steel would take a long time, and heaven forbid I want to build a 4X4.
I notice some tier 1-2 trade quests often give 25 forged steel as a reward choice. just like you can see 10 glue or duct tape, or even 10 mechanical parts are quest rewards. Tfp has kinda thought about this a bit and does provide SOME options to get it. But yeah, Unless you find a crucible in loot or buy one, your not going to be self crafting forged steel for a very long time. Unelss you have luck like I do, day 5, I've found a whole 2 mechanical parts in loot, I do not have a wrench nor found one for sale, and I need at least 4 to make a ql 1 wrench. Literally blocking me from workbench I've been able to make on day 2-3. Its partly why I like the new learn by reading system, each game is now more unique as you never know what order your going to unlock things in anymore, as its rng based.
I do feel the game could use learn by doing, copy how Darkness Falls does it, I mean a21 prob copied half its features from Darkness Falls if not more than half as it is. Just have it for weapons, harvesting tools, and salvaging (wrench), and the action skill level gives stam use reductions, block dmg and harvest bonuses, as well as controls what level of the perk you can get, like, 1 skill is lv 1, 20 is lv 2, 40 is lv 3, 60 lv 4, and 80 is lv 5.
I really dispise the stat system or more the fact weapons are tied to diff stats, and I especially dispise how sex t-rex was removed. Yes I am aware its part of the perk lines themselves now, but, the thing is, 5 str and max sex t-rex costs less perk points than getting a single stat to 10 and getting a single weapon/tool 5/5 in the perk. best option would be to offer both ways, with sex-trex overriding the individual lines unless the individual lines are a higher bonus. It was/is much more efficent to just get 5 str and max sex t-rex, than it would be to take 1 stat to 10 and max the perk for that ONE weapon type, remember sex t-rex worked globally on any melee weapon or tool. I mean if you ONLY ever take 1 weapon line and NEVER use a single other stam using thing ever, maybe then its worth the new system, but how many players only use literally 1 thing the entire game? that means no pickaxe, no wrenching, no butchering corpses with knives etc. Its just a horrid design choices and its just TFP adding yet more level gates to the game.
TFP iirc has said the reason for the stat system was to remove the "level gate" in a16.4. However, they did not solve the problem they made it FAR worse than it was, as now instead of a single level gate, you now have 5, or with the new stam system, more like 12-15.
