Getting Metal Stocks

[Minoe]

As everyone is mining gold, for iron and coal someone has to pay even as much as for gold to get some from other players.
I understand, that not everyone who crafts will be able to get that much money (to get steel for example) to improve their metallurgy skill.
So here is my suggestion to solve that problem:
Weapons and Shields are made from Steel, Bronze, Iron and even Gold.
I'd wish to be able to melt those items down to molten Steel, Bronze of whatever they are made of.
So for example; when i melt a Broad Sword i'd get one molten steel. (For a steel stock are then 10 swords needed).
What do you think of this - because it'd be a real improvement and not that hard to implement. (well, at least not as hard as implementing shield handling)

[Illyria]

As everyone is mining gold, for iron and coal someone has to pay even as much as for gold to get some from other players.
I understand, that not everyone who crafts will be able to get that much money (to get steel for example) to improve their metallurgy skill.
So here is my suggestion to solve that problem:
Weapons and Shields are made from Steel, Bronze, Iron and even Gold.
I'd wish to be able to melt those items down to molten Steel, Bronze of whatever they are made of.
So for example; when i melt a Broad Sword i'd get one molten steel. (For a steel stock are then 10 swords needed).
What do you think of this - because it'd be a real improvement and not that hard to implement. (well, at least not as hard as implementing shield handling)

So sounds fair and realistic, although I sugest then only with Big weapons and totally metal shields (Else someone can melt a gagger wich are very cheap)   
But yeah, not every (wanna be) smith has to be a miner or some rich folk (Cause only they can buy it mostly from the players (not sayine EVERY players sells things way to expensive, but most do))
  I fully support this

[John80sk]

effectively changing the price of iron and coal to 100ea(or whatever the price of an axe is) and giving no one any reason to mine it.

[Feline Prince]

Well the metal wouldn’t be as pure. The less quality the less of the molten metal you get and the more times it has been repaired the lower the purity of the metal. From an axe you would get VERY little because it is mostly wood. The only problem I see with this system is that the NPC's don’t adjust to the economy and have a constant supply of everything which makes implementing anything and everything a struggle.

[Staren]

Is that not effictivelly destroying an economy and the supply and demand that goes with it. If everything was instantaneous and no hard work had to go into it and a Metalurgist like myself could smelt all metals from day one, what would drive me? Would there be any reason for me to hone my skills or a drive to become better. As far as getting the ores required to smelt said metals, that's what guilds are for, everyone has a job such as but not limited too;  Miners, smelters, blacksmiths, etc.. Before i was part of a Guild as Incredible and Glorious as the Imperial Trades {sorry selfless plug} I too mined my own ores than went back to the smith. If i could have just gone to Harn and got the ores i think there would be much less satisfaction in what i have achieved thus far not too mention anyone could be a master at many jobs. I think this would take away from the game in some respects. Anyways just my opinion.

[Bavil]

What about factoring in skills like metallurgy and blacksmithing.

For example, when melting down a weapon the metallurgy skill could determine the quality of the stock while the blacksmithing would determine the number of stock.

As for blowing away an economy, I think that first we should remember the absurd prices of weapons that Harnquist sells compared to the amount of material and labor provided.  When one factors in the price of stock, it becomes clear that weapons are extremely too cheap.  Perhaps this could be fixed first.

[Avadon]

What about Lineage 2 style.
A crafter 'breaks' a weapon to get it's base materials.
Instead of actually getting the metal he gets crystals.
The weapon costs 100 to buy from the store, the crystals can then be sold to the store for 90 or saved up and would get 1 piece of metal for a certain amount of crystals.