The harvesting trade skill in New World has the capability to be more in-depth than any other MMO before it. Making the most of harvesting requires a guide to show you all of the key optimization tricks. Instead of wasting time on repetition, you’ll spend it honing and improving your craft.
Making The Biggest Improvements
Harvesting isn’t easy if you are prone to making mistakes along the way. That is why a new world boost has become an exciting way to stay on top of your game. A boost will save you the tedium of gathering produce, fungi, fiber, herbs and elements. Instead of spending a week getting these ingredients, you’ll be ready to go from the moment you log in. Learning about harvesting can be overwhelming at first, but it’s important to key in on the entire experience. That is why New World players love to harvest, and this guide will show some of the biggest reasons why.
The First Step
You have to create a sickle before you can even get to the good bits of harvesting. The first and easiest iteration is a flint sickle made from 1 flint and 1 green wood. The ingredients are easy enough to find, especially if you’ve already made a logging axe. Don’t wait too long to create a sickle since there are a lot of items and ingredients you’ll miss out on. To prevent a lot of backtracking, a sickle should be a priority tool when you start a new character.
Categories
So, now that the sickle is created, what can it actually harvest? Because of the variety, it’s easier to put all of the items in at least 9 different categories. This includes uncommon and rare products that are hard to find anywhere else in the world. Every category is restricted to your current harvesting level, so there are plenty of things that will be out of reach until you level that skill up. From lowest to highest, the 9 available items are farm plants, hemp, herbs, magical creatures, fungi, pismabloom, magical plants, silkweed and wirefiber. The most notable gap is from silkweed to wirefiber, where a staggering 75 points of harvesting separates the two item requirements.
Speeding Things Up
No one wants to get stuck harvesting low tier ingredients for multiple real-world hours. The categories are restricted, so you’ll have to work your way up to get specific ingredients. This can be frustration for players that just want a particular ingredient. Outside of boosting, the easiest way to speed up harvesting level is to use the options available when you rank up in reputation for a region. You’ll have options for Territory Standing upgrades that can boost gathering speed by 30%, among many other options. You can also upgrade the harvesting sickle to speed things up, and that will be covered in another section. A lot of upgrades stack, so make it a point to pay close attention to the ones that speed up harvesting.
Nodes
When you discover a resource node it is automatically marked on your map. This is important to remember since it can help with finding specific items for harvesting. If you are already deep into the game and have not touched the harvesting minigame, being able to identify nodes on your map is a huge timesaver. Players should make a note that mineral or gem nodes don’t replenish and follow different rules than other nodes. There are plenty of maps online that list out the most important nodes. Getting the most up to date version will grant you a big advantage when leveling up harvesting.
Upgrading The Harvesting Sickle
There are five tiers of the Harvesting sickle. The final form is the Orichalcum Harvesting sickle that tops out at a base gathering speed of 625% total. On top of other bonuses from Territory Standing, you could easily become a harvesting beast in New World. But getting to the final two tiers of the Harvesting sickle takes time, and some really expensive craft requirements. It is recommended to shoot for the 3rd tier, which is the Steel Harvesting sickle. This is a 250% speed bonus and should be more than enough for most players. The ingredients are also a lot more reasonable to attain for any level. But if you’re all about that harvest life, the 4th and 5th tiers become a mandatory upgrade for the sickle.
Rare Drops
Territory buffs have already been covered, but what else can you do to improve harvesting? Food buffs are an option, and it makes the cooking system much more important than it first seems. The ingredients are cheap and easy to find and will play a role in upping your harvesting luck for rare drops. Charms are next on the list for players that want to get more rare drops during harvesting. Unlike cooking, charms are permanent buffs that can be worn with your regular gear. That means you can add or remove it depending on your current needs. The most notable perk provided is the Botanist’s Luck or Botanist’s Yield perk.
Tips
Don’t aim for level 200 in harvesting without a boosting service. Dedicating yourself to this much grinding on a minor feature can lead to quick burnout. Instead, level in small chunks with an intended goal to get to 200 organically.
Some of the best deals can be found at the trading post for a reasonable amount of coin. This includes upgraded sickles, which will act as a shortcut to one of the biggest upgrade grinds in the game. The most valuable farm plant you can harvest is corn – never forget this! Several corn recipes will increase your luck during harvesting. This is a cheap and easy way to get a temporary boost that will net you rare items.
The Best Harvesting Advice
New World is a great MMO that only gets better when you understand the fundamentals. As you get used to harvesting in a New World, the game opens up more opportunities. Take advantage of the constant updates and watch as your character slowly becomes a pro.
