Making Waves for Beginners...

Fallen London
1

As a newly-minted PoSI, I feel that a starting-guide to Making Waves is something one could sorely need. The Wiki hosts many useful guides, but not to that. I have heard of the things people use to reach the highest levels of Notability - things like running a Salon or a newspaper. But what if you just want to reach 2-3 Notability in order to access a second-tier job, and don’t have access to any of that stuff yet?

So far, during the course of normal play, I’ve never reached more than 12-14 MW before Time, the Healer came by and erased most of my progress. That’s not enough, even for the FIRST point of Notability, at least not with the level of Dreaded/Respectable/Bizarre I’ve got access to.

So, what are the smart play for ‘entry-level’ wave-making? Simple ways to reach something like 20-25 MW in a week, without access to advanced resources. That sort of thing.

2

As a fledgeling PoSI, you have a lot of new opportunities to increase BDR. Affiliations like God’s Editors, transportation, a club; a whole new half of your inventory opens up. Because each level of MW takes more to advance than the last, increasing BDR is a very powerful option, and one you should be exploring.

Additionally, as a PoSI, you’ll begin to draw A Polite Invitation from your deck. It’s a card that leads to an area that allows you to slowly grind up things like a Personal Recommendation or Favours in High Places. No matter how much time you spend there, leaving always gets you 20 MW.
edited by The Machinist on 5/3/2015

3

If you do not have patience for those things, certain side-crafts also help, as do heists. giving generously to the widow gives you several points- but doesn’t pay for the action- though it does refund an equivalent sell value of goods to what you give her, and add a point of someone is coming.
edited by Grenem on 5/3/2015

4

Hmm… I’ve only given generously to the widow once or twice - usually, I just give a few pearls, since being generous cuts MAJORLY into my Glim-supplies. And I need those to fuel Archaeological Expeditions by way of the docks…

5

I would suggest you put Notability on the side and fill in your Expanded Inventory with better items first. (The God’s Editor is particularly good with 4 Respectable and low price).

If that’s too much hassle, grind for some echoes to get the top-tier equipments with BDR.

6

Getting BDR is by far the best starting strategy when starting out as a POSI. Notability is nice, but it is very expensive in the beginning.

If you want a tier 2 profession, consider writing an exceptional short story and becoming an author. You can do this before you even become POSI, and the rewards will be useful when you’re finally ready to grind in seriousness.

If you must get that second / third point of notability, grab the low-hanging fruit of BDR as mentioned above, and then find the best way that works for your stats. You can get a pile for ‘free’ by inviting a friend to an evening with you from your lodgings, for the cost of a free evening. You get five of those a week, so do it. Otherwise, if you’re persuasive enough, the court has a fairly easy 1MW/action option that is terribly slow, but might even be your best bet. Alternatively, grinding out Tales of Terror in the Flit, and converting them might work out, or gathering supplies to do a lot of poetry in the Singing Mandrake…

The BDR thing is no joke. Let’s say that you’re after your second point of notability, and have no BDR gear. You need level 28 MWs. If your best grind is 1cp MW / action (and it could well be lower than that at this stage), then you need 406 actions over the course of a week, entirey dedicated to making waves. Get 10 points of BDR (not too hard - you can buy some BDR gear from the Bazaar, and God’s Editors, for example, has relatively low requirements), and you need level 18 MW, or 171 actions.

Even that is a lot, and the rewards of a second-tier profession just aren’t that great. Do it if you want, but holding out is less frustrating in the long run.

7

Continuing the thought above about costs, your third point with no BDR gear would cost 528 actions. That’s 88 hours’ worth of actions over the course of a week.

Getting MWs for your second point with 20 BDR would cost you 5 actions (you can get there from zero just by inviting a friend to your lodgings).

Max BDR is currently 33, but a lot of it is fate-locked. If you have 33 BDR, the second notability point is free. As is the third. And the fourth. When you get the notability, your MWs get set at the point required to hold it for a week, so the first three notability points at 33 BDR don’t cost you MWs, they give them. In fact, the third point gives enough MWs to get the fourth point of notability.

Short form: get BDR gear, and keep getting BDR gear.
edited by RandomWalker on 5/3/2015

8

Also: By side converting tier 3 items (e.g. Tales of Terror into Compromising Documents), you’ll get an average MW of more than 1 point per action (13 actions to complete the round, 4 of which give a variable number of MW points). There’s no stat check involved, so this can be done by any player.

9

Hmm… side-conversion. That’s the thing where you basically convert X to Y, Y to Z, and Z back to X (with several more steps), making a tiny profit in items along the way, right? I had no idea you could profit from that in terms of MW…

About the BDR-stuff, meanwhile - I can see how the ‘second page’ stuff is earned, though many of those are somewhat expensive. But what about BDR gear for the ‘main’ slots? I’ve got a couple of Weapons and Pets with +1, but other than that, nothing. All the stuff at the Bazaar is 400-450 Echoes a piece, and I’ve yet to find any significant ways to profit from being notable. Well, maybe once I access Mahogany Hall, that’ll change… point is, is there any main-slot BDR-gear available outside of buying it? The way you can pick up the Salt-Weasel or Haunted-Looking Dog for +1 in the companion-slot, and get the Dilmun Club Pin or Bejeweled Cane for +1 in Weapons…
edited by BlakeTheDrake on 5/3/2015

10

There’s the Iron Republic Journal, and there’s also the Unfinished Hat in Polythreme (bring an Exceptional Hat before going). There’s probably others, but I have to leave in a couple minutes so I can’t go check right now.

11

Side conversion is very useful. I don’t like it because of all the screen-reloads, and it tends to be low profit and no skill improvements, but it’s good for MW, definitely.

Let’s see: face, best in slot BDR is shared between two items, bought by fate during the Feast of the Exceptional Rose. Other options: buying from the bazaar, or a profession item (which isn’t relevant for this discussion).

Clothes, you have lots of options, many of them quite cheap.

Gloves: either fate-locked during the FotER or echoes with the bazaar.

Weapons: +1 BDR you already have, +2 can be gotten from the iron republic journal, +3 from Fate during FotER

Boots: one choice only, and that’s echoes from the bazaar.

Companions: +1 you already have. +2 is either a LOT of money (Overgoat) or the Unfinished hat, or fate during the FotER. +4 is fate plus a hideous amount of money, or fate plus a lot of work (bifurcated owl).

Does that help?

12

Hmm… seems like most of the main-slot upgrades available are either too expensive, or too much trouble for a mere +1, Or limited to the Feast, which is a bloody long time away… it was just winding down when I started playing. Shame I didn’t know then what I know now, or I might’ve picked up a few things…

Either way, I’d best focus on getting the second-page slots filled out.

13

[quote=BlakeTheDrake]Hmm… seems like most of the main-slot upgrades available are either too expensive, or too much trouble for a mere +1, Or limited to the Feast, which is a bloody long time away… it was just winding down when I started playing. Shame I didn’t know then what I know now, or I might’ve picked up a few things…

Either way, I’d best focus on getting the second-page slots filled out.[/quote]
it’s not a ‘mere +1’, +1’s are really significant. that said, yeah, you would be better going for POSI stuff that offers +2 or +4 first- but there’s only 6 points worth of (relatively) inexpensive BDR items under POSI item- zubmarine and yacht are both really pricey, and should be put off for last, they also only offer a +2 at the most. (not counting the shrine to saint joshua, a +1 in an otherwise BDR-free slot, i believe, but it is based on 3rd teir profession.)

then, once that’s done, buy 1 point’s worth of every item slot in your main inventory. (you should be good for +1 BDR pets already.) if you finish the bejewled cane sidequest earlier, where someone keeps mooching glim off of you, that’s one down. lenguals are the ideal glove (fateless, at least) for shadowy anyways, so they’re a good early purchase, the same is true for persuasive with the feccund amber tiara or it’s dreadful counterpart, and dangerous with far khanate laquered armour. this leaves shoes as the thing to put off for last, since they cost a small fortune just for the point BDR, and aren’t best in category like the others. skip this, if you wish, but if you’ll need notability 5 for the 3rd teir profession, it… probably won’t pay for itself on that alone. (~400 echoes)
that is where i am, at 12 points BDR, not counting the one from the festival or saint joshua’s shrine.

there will then be sidequests, mostly at zee, which will unlock +2 equipment- and the overgoat, which costs so much it’s not really viable to help with even notability 15, unless you want an ovegoat anyways. obviously, i’m ignoring fate options, like the rubbery consort, but that’s about it.
edited by Grenem on 5/4/2015
edited by Grenem on 5/4/2015
edited by Grenem on 5/4/2015

14

… For my first two points of Notability, I used the Singing Mandrake in Veilgarden. The “finish a libretto” option reduces scandal and gives decent MW. Costs a Vision of the Surface every time though. The “lewd satirical song” gives more MW, but costs a Tale of Terror! I think, and reduces connections, while giving Wounds and Scandal. And they’re each three actions. Still, it’s a MW grind. I’m only at Notability 2 since I just wanted to move up professions.

15

A dinner at Dante’s Grill would be lucky to give you 15 CP of making waves. You are not getting 100+ CPs from anyone. Unless you’re actively looking for ways to burn echos, it’s far more sensible to simply invite someone to a private supper.

16

Yes, my bad. I misunderstood draned MW and gained MW. 150 CP of MW is drained, not gained value.

17

Huh… don’t you just basically get all of the Waves that the other party has, up to some kind of limit? Or do you lose a percentage in the ‘transfer’? I mean, if someone had, say, 12-13 levels of Making Waves (like I often had towards the end of a week, even before becoming Notable), that would still be a pretty hefty pile of CP.

18

Nope, it’s levels to CPs. So if your friend has, say, 13 levels of MW (91 CPs), then you get 13 CPs (i.e. 14% of the CPs carry through). The ratio gets worse as the friend’s CPs get higher. NOT a good deal.

It’s charity to your friend for when they have high menaces, not a sane way of getting MWs.

19

Geez… now I feel bad for Grenem. >_> I thought I was HELPING him with those dinners at Dante’s before…

20

no worries, i thought you were helping me too- otherwise, i wouldn’t have done it. don’t worry, i should have done my research.