Maybe you’re just getting into crafting and gathering in GW2 and really hate having to go out and gather materials all day. There are some ways around it. if you have the Gems, you can certainly buy Gold directly, then use that to buy a bulk of materials off the Trading Post. That’s one option. But ArenaNet has added other options to the Gemstore to add a bit of randomness to the matter. We all love random loot, right? That’s where the Gemstore Delivery Contracts come in.
These handy little objects get added to your home instance, and allow you to get free crafting materials in random boxes each day you login. The effect is account-bound, but you get the delivery on the first character you log into that day. The delivery boxes come into your mailbox each day, so be sure to check for them. Each one gets a bunch of materials in a random loot box.
The best way to make use of these is to spot-check prices for the drop types and change your delivery for the next day to try and take advantage of price spikes. Pocket the extra Silver and Gold, and then use it to buy the materials you actually need. Another positive to getting them is the Bandit Crests that can be used to sometimes open the Home Instance chest without having to rely on running event content.
There are four types of Gemstore Delivery Contracts:
- Black Lion Industry Contract – Adds a Black Lion Industry Board to your home instance. The board can be used to collect basic crafting materials of your choice. Each delivery has a small chance of containing surplus goods. Drops the following: Cloth Scraps, Leather Sections, Metal Ore, Wood Logs, Jewels. 1,000 Gems
- Black Lion Hunters Contract – Adds a Black Lion Hunters Board to your home instance, which can be used to collect fine crafting materials. Contains the following materials: Bones, Claws, Dust, Fangs, Scales, Totems, Venom Sacs, Vials of Blood. 1,200 Gems
- Season 3 Expedition Contract – Adds a Black Lion Expedition Board to your home instance, which can be used to collect exotic resources from across Tyria. Expedition locations include the following: Dry Top and the Silverwastes, Bloodstone Fen, Ember Bay, Bitterfrost Frontier, Lake Doric, Draconis Mons, Siren’s Landing. 1,000 Gems
- Season 4 Expedition Contract – Adds a Black Lion Expedition Board to your home instance, which can be used to collect exotic resources from across Tyria. Expedition locations include the following: Domain of Istan, Sandswept Isles, Domain of Kourna, Jahai Bluffs, Thunderhead Peaks, Dragonfall 1,000 Gems
So, are these Delivery Contracts worth it?
In a word, NO. Even if you go about the ideal process, and get Delivery Contracts for items that fetch the highest price, the time for an ROI is literally years long. The most valuable items might fetch 1 Gold a day in value if you’re very lucky. Now imagine spending hundreds of Gold on the Gems. Do the math and see how many days of consecutive logins it would take to recoup the cost of just one board at 1,000 Gems. If you bought all four, gods help you.
If you still want to get them, you can wait until they’re on sale, and it gives a bit more value.
But if you really have some Gems to spend, there are genuinely better options. It might be a better idea to grab some Salvage Kits first. There are also some good options if you’re trying to min-max gathering output.
You might also want to check out our guide on the best quality of life items from the Gemstore while you’re at it.
