Watching the forge work gives XP?

[ZanyScum]

When I use the forge (for Forged Iron currently) I get +3XP every few seconds.
If I just stand at the same spot but do not open the UI, then I don't get the XP.
Is that a bug or a feature?

[Brevan]

I think it's a feature. That occurs with other workstations too, and the XP drops off as you produce more of the thing. Stacks of ore (unlocked by a mining book) are notably huge numbers of XP (about 20k XP the first time, about 1/2 with each repetition).

[Mardoin69]

The idea is that you are 'actively' crafting. But, if you exit out of the UI--basically same as 'walking away'--then you are not considered 'actively' crafting because you could be doing other things. So, yeah... it's a feature. For this reason, it's best to stay in the UI for crafting things the first few times. Since we have the law of 'diminishing returns', you will get less and less xp the more you craft that item. So, if it's your first time crafting something, you wouldn't want to set up the Workbench (for example) with the job of crafting a hundred of something and then walk away. You'd miss out on all that XP. If you came back, collected that item, and then decided to craft some more of it--remaining in the UI--you probably wouldn't see anymore xp gain from it cuz the game has calculated that you already crafted more than the number which would supply xp at that point.

[ZanyScum]

Thanks guys. It seems I lost a lot of XP :-(

[Seftak]

I'm pretty sure you get no XP past maybe 5 crafts of a single item? And since crafting gives a ridiculously small amount of XP you did not lose anything. Killing 1 basic zombie will give you more XP than what you "lost".

The only craft worth XP are the stacks of stone, wood, etc.

[Mardoin69]

Originally posted by Seftak:

I'm pretty sure you get no XP past maybe 5 crafts of a single item? And since crafting gives a ridiculously small amount of XP you did not lose anything. Killing 1 basic zombie will give you more XP than what you "lost".

The only craft worth XP are the stacks of stone, wood, etc.

This is somewhat true. Most things give less than 100 XP and that's really not considered that much xp when you can kill a typical zombie for 400+ xp. There are some things that give a considerable amount... like the stacks for example. First time crafting workstations gives a decent amount but, you usually do that in your player's crafting menu and don't lose out on those. Some electrical devices, traps, tools, and weapons give a noticeable amount first couple times. But, with law of diminishing returns, it's only the first 2 to 3 times crafting said items that you get 'good' amounts of xp. Things like crafting wood frames or cobblestone, basic foods, and drinks aren't going to be missed for the xp since it's so little anyway. No worries really. It's just personal preference if you're trying to farm those good amounts out of the first couple crafting sessions. You'll easily make up for not having done it by killing zombies.

[ZanyScum]

Thanks again. I really like to have perk points.