There's a lot more to Black Desert Online than mass murdering the endemic fauna while griefing other players with forced PvP. The more scenic route to the arduous path of this sandbox would be life-skilling. They're practically the sandbox activities in Black Desert Online and involve mundane endeavors like fishing, hunting, etc.
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Players can just pick any life skill they want in the game, but for those who want to hit two birds with one stone — the other bird being profit, then picking a profitable life skill is a must. The following life skills in Black Desert will not just provide players with a gameplay alternative, but they might also make them a lot of silver.
Updated on November 1, 2023, by Rhenn Taguiam: With Black Desert Online’s Spooky Playground marking the Halloween Season in full swing, it may be time for newcomers to the acclaimed MMO to give the game a shot to explore its offerings during events. And for players who want to enjoy the MMO’s spooky festivities, they can take a break from adventuring and focus on their Life Skills to bask in Black Desert Online’s Halloween frights even for a few days. On top of learning Life Skills that involve hunting animals and refining for better materials, players may want to learn the best training strategies for their favorite Life Skills to master them as soon as possible.
10 Processing
Process Raw Materials To Get Various Products
Among the Life Skills available for players in the sandbox MMO part of their Black Desert Online gameplay, Processing remains one of the easiest to get into for AFK enjoyers. At its core, Processing involves combining Materials through a specific “process” in order to craft a specific byproduct. Certain Materials require specific Processes according to their nature, such as Chopping, Drying, Filtering, Grinding, Heating, Repair, Shaking, Alchemy (Simple, Imperial), Cooking (Simple, Imperial), Guild Processing, and Manufacture.
Depending on the status of the specific Process, players may get their desired byproduct (Has Succeeded), incur a failure with an automatic retry (Is Not Going As Planned), not push through due to missing requirements (Is Not Working At All), or is lacking ingredients (Insufficient Ingredients To Continue Processing). Since players simply need to have the right Recipe and Materials with them, Processing can be done automatically, making this a nifty Passive Skill to raise.
Level-Up Tips For Processing
When players level up Processing, higher skill ratings incur faster Processing speeds, more output, and higher-quality products. Due to the nature of Processing as a Passive Skill, players don’t need an intensive guide to level up this particular Life Skill. Here are some general tips:
- As players level up Processing, they need to make progress through the [Processing] Questlines: Learning Higher Processing Skills, Filtering Feathers, Need Soft Hides!, Toys (?) For Kids, and Excellent Magnate.
- Players also need access to Gathering Apprentice 4 to get the Beginner Knowledge certificates for most Processing methods. Meanwhile, they need to get at least Processing Professional 5 and Gathering Skilled 10 to acquire the Skilled Knowledge certificates for the Life Skill.
- To get Processing EXP quickly, they need Processing Stones (Loggia, Techthon, Manos) to facilitate Mass Processing to finish multiple sets of items at once.
9 Hunting
Use A Gun To Hunt Various Creatures
Considered one of the trickier Life Skills in a player’s Black Desert Online playthrough, Hunting transforms BDO into a pseudo-Monster Hunter minigame inside its own sandbox experience. Players can start Hunting should they get a Hunting Matchlock and the Butcher Knife. Eventually, players get access to the Sniper Rifle that hits enemies at longer distances with a mini-game that targets specific parts, although this can take time to finish. When a player kills their mark, they can approach it with the Butcher Knife to collect parts.
The best part of Hunting is rare drops such as the Caphras Stone, Fire Horn, Black Crystal Shards, and Black Gems. Players may even secure a Hunting Byproduct called the Wildspark beginning at Hunting 250, which when exchanged could grant them Hunting EXP, Black Gem Fragments, and Spirit Pouches of the Ferocious Beast.
Level-Up Tips For Hunting
While players can technically just start Hunting if they have the Hunting Matchlock to kill animals and the Butcher Knife to get parts off them, it may be more practical to follow a specific progression to secure maximum gains. Here are some tips:
- Secure questlines to get the Daily Hunting Quests for a regular reward of EXP. These are the [Hunting] Questlines: An Eye For An Eye, An Epicurean Alligator, Easy Game, Fly Like A Butterfly, Sting Like A Bee!, Hunter’s Honor, The Reckless One, Those Seagulls!
- Finish the non-repeating [Hunting] Questlines to get them off the list: Basics Of Hunting, Annoying Jellyfish, Bee Hurts Farm, Brothers At Lake Kaia, Hunting In The Forest Of Seclusion, Hunter-Loving Hunter, Shoot and Help
- While the “best” Hunting gear at any moment depends on a player’s available resources, the stats to prioritize are Critical Hit, Attack Speed, Additional Hunting EXP, and Accuracy.
8 Training
Tame And Train Horses For Riding
Training horses is the dark horse method (no pun intended) of earning silver in Black Desert Online. Not many players like it or do it since it sounds tedious and has a lot of random factors involved but players always need good horses in the game and even the semi-decent ones will do for trading wagons.
Catching one tends to be the most grindy part of this life skill since a lot of good horse trainers in the game can clear a spawn area fast. In some cases, there might even be some fierce PvP involved just to keep a horse spawn location. However, those who love to catch animals in their games and train them will find plenty to like with this life skill.
Level-Up Tips For Training
Horse Training can become a fun Life Skill to level if players enjoy the idea of acquiring, taming, and training different mounts. Similar to other skills, Training heavily encourages travel among players. Thankfully, even the mere fact of moving around can potentially level up the Training Skill. Here are some tips when leveling up Horse Training:
- When leveling up Horses, players need to get Horses with high Mount EXP buffs and faster running speed. This is because Mount EXP is calculated based on how fast a horse can travel a specific distance.
- In terms of gear, stats to best improve the acquisition of Training EXP are the following: Additional Mount EXP, Additional Training EXP, Horse Capture Rate, Movement Speed, Auto-Running Speed, and Reach.
7 Trading
Transfer Goods From City To City For Silver
Trading involves a lot of foresight and economic acumen in Black Desert Online but it's worth it if players don't mind leaving their computers open while their characters drive wagons or carriages around from city to city. Trading, by far, is a good way to earn a bulk of silver or resources in one big payoff.
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It mostly involves selling stuff to NPCs from one city to another; the silver earned is proportionate to the distance traveled between cities. It just so happens that Black Desert Online's map keeps expanding, meaning this life skill just keeps getting more profitable. Granted, there's quite a big initial capital investment for the wagons and the horses, as well as the Imperial merchandise.
Level-Up Tips For Trading
Compared to professions in other MMOs, Trading in Black Desert Online is leveled up through the buying and selling of items across different locations. This simulates trading in medieval times, where merchants traveled by wagon and transported their wares from one city to the next. To level up Trading quickly, players need to follow these tips:
- When buying/selling/bargaining goods, they should do it in routes as far away as possible. Depending on the region, players should plot out a path that covers all cities in a way that can be repeated even when AFK.
- When raising Trading EXP, it’s best to prioritize these specific stats: Additional Trading EXP, Additional Life EXP
6 Sailing
Travel The Seas For Gold And Glory
Sailing in Black Desert Online is essentially the maritime version of Trading. Likewise, it involves a lot of capital upfront since players need sturdy ships that can stock up a considerable amount of weight. Ports will readily contract players to deliver some goods or barter in other faraway ports.
That's just one method of earning silver through Sailing. Players can also go the more active route and participate in sea monster hunting through a guild. Regardless, players will need to explore and uncover the secrets of the wide oceans in Black Desert which can be an exciting venture, especially with the threat of dying or getting stranded.
Level-Up Tips For Sailing
Despite the complexity of Sailing as a Life Skill in BDO, players should invest in their Sailing Mastery if they want to boost their ship’s overall stats. Players may be able to maximize their time at sea if they take into account specific tips. Here are some things players can follow to improve their Sailing game:
- Players level up Sailing the fastest by following the main [Sailing] Questline beginning with “[The Great Expedition] Oquilla’s Eye”
- Players who want to level up their Sailing faster should go finish the Dailies in the following areas every day: Iliya Island, Oquilla’s Eye, Velia, and Port Epheria.
- When it comes to raising Sailing EXP, they need the following stats in their gears and buffs: Additional Sailing EXP, Additional Bartering EXP, Sailing Mastery, Movement Speed, Weight Limit
5 Farming
Cultivate Plots Of Land For A Steady Stream Of Raw Materials
For players looking for something more relaxed or less dangerous, then Farming is the way to go — literal farming, not killing mobs. Players can do this easily by purchasing seeds or crops from the NPCs and farming nurseries. They can then establish their mini-farm just about anywhere as long as there's enough fertility and a nearby water source.
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It's semi-AFK since players will need to weed out the plants, water them, and kill the insects. But every now and then, players might snag some Sharp or Hard Black Crystal Shards while harvesting the crops and these sell for millions on the market. The crops are just minuscule bonuses at that point. It's one of the most low-effort ways to get Shards.
Level-Up Tips For Farming
As Farming transforms Black Desert Online into a farming management sim, players can increase this Life Skill based on how often they harvest crops and depending on which crops they choose to cultivate. Additional tips include:
- For beginners, players can place their first Farm near Velia, north of Loggia Farm. Outside this location, players need to consider the kind of crops they want to grow as they’re affected by Temperature, Humidity, and Groundwater levels.
- To power-level Farming, players should consider renting multiple Farms and placing them south of Heidel near the river. Players should then plant Special Purple Mushrooms to place in their plots. While Heidel isn’t ideal for these plants, tending to them as they grow may be worth the EXP once they’re bred and harvested.
- Players can level up Farming in conjunction with Cooking, especially since some Materials for Cooking are acquired when Farming
4 Alchemy
Create Various Consumables For Buffs, Silver
There are many ways to turn Alchemy into a profit in Black Desert Online. Players can make potions that everyone uses in combat or even Elixirs that sell for quite a bit, especially in bulk. If not, players can also dabble in Imperial Alchemy and combine their Alchemy with Trading in order to make one big payout of silver.
Sadly, Alchemy requires quite a risky investment since players might need to purchase the base ingredients for potions and Elixirs in the market and these prices fluctuate all the time. Alchemy Stones are also a decent option when it comes to earning profit or min-maxing characters, but these also require some heavy capital.
Level-Up Tips For Alchemy
Players who want to level up their Alchemy quickly should stockpile ingredients for higher-level outputs they have recipes for. Other than this, players can follow specific tips to ensure their character can power-level Alchemy as quickly as possible:
- One of the most worthwhile investments in improving Alchemy would be getting the Advanced Alchemy Tools to access the game’s best Alchemy outputs. Unlike Intermediate Alchemy Tools, its Advanced counterpart also reduces Alchemy Time
- It’s ideal to attempt to upgrade Alchemy Stones at around 80 to 150% Alchemy Stone EXP, as this increases the odds of boosting the grade of the said material
- Stats to prioritize when leveling up Alchemy include: Additional Alchemy EXP, Additional Life EXP, Alchemy Time, Alchemy Mastery
3 Fishing
Secure Fish From Hotspots All Around The World
Speaking of capital, Fishing is one of the few life skills in Black Desert Online that offer the lowest amount of effort for the silver gained. It's literally an AFK activity. Players just get a good rod whether by making it or by buying one off the market. After that, they just need to find a spot with a high fishing yield.
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Depending on how lucky players are, they could snag some tokens that sell for half a million, Ancient Relic Crystal Shards, and other stuff that might fetch a price. But since it's so low-investment and low-effort, there's no shortage of AFK fishers in the game, so the most accessible waters are crowded.
Level-Up Tips For Fishing
While a Fishing Rod is all that players need to start Fishing, the Life Skill being dependent on both the quantity and the quality of the catch means players need to spend time securing the best Fish from Hotspots across the world. Other tips include:
- Quantity is king - early-level Fishing can be power-leveled by catching a lot of Fish, and a higher Fishing rank can increase the likelihood of getting rarer Fish. Doing this in Fishing Hotspots can further boost the chances of catching better-quality Fish.
- When it comes to Fishing while AFK, players may want to get the +10 Balenos Fishing Rod. Its high catch rate and durability can make catching Fish more worthwhile even when the game is left to run by itself. Moreover, the Balenos Fishing Rod being repairable also makes this a decent investment
- For Fishing in-game, players may want to grab specific Fishing Rods for certain environments. The Mediah Rod and the Triple Float Rod are efficient in freshwater locations while the Calpheon Rod works better in saltwater regions.
2 Gathering
Find Different Raw Materials For Other Life Skills
Gathering is one of the most active life skills in the game but players might find it preferable to fishing especially if they're looking for Black Crystal Shards. Because it can be more lucrative than farming when it comes to getting lucky with those Shards. Of course, there's also the fact that players can gather items that sell well in bulk on the marketplace.
For this to be profitable, players will need to do a bit of research in the in-game marketplace as to which raw resources fetch a good price. They can then combine this life skill with something like Trading, Alchemy, or even Cooking to make their silver gain exponential.
Level-Up Tips For Gathering
Similar to Hunting and Fishing, Gathering is an action-based Life Skill that levels up based on how often players do the action and the kind of materials they obtain. In turn, one of the best ways of leveling up Gathering is to consistently grind in spots with high-level materials, as well as doing the following tips:
- Getting a Hedgehog pet and raising them to Level 10 will let them give players a buff that boosts their chance to get more output from their Gathering
- When choosing Gathering Tools, it’s best to achieve Gathering 5 first and acquire Magic Tools as they have high durability, fast Gathering speed, and a drop rate boost for rare items. Players can reliably use Magic Tools until they attain Gathering Mastery 650.
- Stats to prioritize when it comes to leveling up Gathering include the following: Additional Gathering EXP, Gathering Item Drop Rate, Gathering Speed, Energy Recovery
1 Cooking
Cooking Consumables For Buffs, Silver
Speaking of Cooking, it's as valuable a life skill in Black Desert Online as it is in real life. The most apparent way for players to earn a lot of silver through cooking is by fulfilling Imperial Cooking orders. This method isn't volatile since there's no competition with other players.
Or, if players want, they could just sell their food since those are also in demand for the buffs they grant during combat or other life skill activities. If paired with life skills such as Trading or Gathering, Cooking can even become self-sustaining; it also helps that it can be quite relaxing and low-effort.
Level-Up Tips For Cooking
Since Cooking relies heavily on the kind of output players create, it can also become quite the profitable AFK Life Skill. In turn, players may simply need a Cooking Utensil in their house as well as the right number of ingredients to speedrun their way to Cooking Mastery. Other tips include:
- Players can level up Cooking with Farming, especially since players can farm for certain Materials needed for dishes
- Consider getting the Advanced Cooking Utensils to take advantage of its high durability and reduction in Cooking time
- When it comes to improving stats connected to Cooking, the following are advised to level up: Additional Cooking EXP, Additional Life EXP, Cooking Time, Cooking Mastery
