Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-35606019-20180625175609/@comment-35065776-20180625192858

The first magic ingot I got was, I am pretty sure, because I'm left-handed. Early on I learned a valuable lesson - never scroll through a merchant's items list on the left side of the screen. Quite by accident I 'chose' to craft a magic ingot, thus taking up the only crafting slot available for 10 hours and at the same time using all  my Winding Keys.

My ineptness aside, until around level 60 or 70 you need all the income enhancing you can get. Unless you have a Magisterium available, your money vanishes every time you craft, and even if you think you've raked in a considerable amount, it can go in a flash. But the first time I crafted using the Magisterium, I saved over 100k gold. Once the Magisterium was used up that money also went in a flash, but it gave me an edge that I was able to enhance gradually since then. Shots of Vigor combined with an ingot or piggy bank are great - until other rooms offered even more, the Sakura Garden was my target area every time I used a Shot of Vigor. I'd play that room until I ran out of APs for the incredibly high (for me) amount of gold per round.

Add into the equation (not that I'm being scientific, mathematical, or even mostly coherent) a talisman that increases the drop rate of Diagrams and Winding Keys - also best when served with a Shot of Vigor or two - so it's easier to let go of a few Keys and Diagrams to craft the ingot. And a talisman for reducing Energy usage, if you don't have a SoV handy, or to use before you go to the SoV. Not sure about other players, but I will set off my talismans, run down my energy, use a Fire Crystal once I'm out of energy, and then use a Shot of Vigor while my energy recharges. If my eyes aren't crossed by then, I might use more talismans once my energy is recharged (or another Shot).

Last factor I can think of in this 'equation' is how much time you have available to play. I usually save my highest-level talismans for night-time after my wife goes to bed, so there's as little as possible to interrupt a solid 2 hours of gameplay. During the day, doctor appointments, taking care of the puppy, etc. can make it impossible to guarantee game time, so I might only use a scroll and eagle eye then. If you use Folio, Star and Ingot, it can seem like a tragedy if you lose playing time for any reason.

But in a nutshell, the climb to in-game financial security is slow to begin with. taking advantage of your talismans and high-yield rooms can help you along, and the Magisterium is nearly indispensable in the process. Same with Shots of Vigor.