Let's use an Alchemist creating a batch of Lesser Alchemist's Fire here...
A batch is 4, Alchemist's Fire costs 3gp each, so the total cost is 12gp. In order to craft, the character needs to spend half, of 6gp.
They then spend 4 days of downtime, then they make their crafting roll. As GM I set the DC based on the item level (1 in this case as they're making Lesser Alchemist's Fire), and I set the DC at 15 for a common level 1 task.
Say the player gets a Success.
Now, they can either pay 6gp more to finish the batch right then and there (at a 0 cost savings, and the only benefit they receive is that THEY made it... perhaps there is not an alchemist's shop in town...), or they can spend more time.
As a level 1 Trained crafter they save 2sp/day they spend beyond the initial 4 that they must always spend. For maximum savings, 6gp, they need to spend 30 more days.
That seems... like a lot of time. Which makes me think maybe I've missed something? Who here is better at reading and math than I am? Am I understanding this, or am I missing something?
Seems correct to me.
One might make an argumenten that the batch is crafting 4 separate items at the same time (using a single check) instead of looking at the batch as one item. This would mean you could reduce the cost by 8sp/day, which makes crafting consumables much more manageable.
That being said, the math seems to be the same as in the playtest. I did some calculations back then and found that you need roughly 100 extra days to craft a permanent item of your level for half price. This is more or less an average number since the cost of those items can vary greatly even within the same item level.
Alright, thanks for backing up the interpretation.
I may steal the concept of multiplying the savings by the number of items in the batch. I feel like it should be easier to make consumables. Then again.. what about Scrolls and Talismans.. I need to look up how they are crafted.