Crafting and Gathering

11:02 Chrono Odyssey's life skills are harvesting, logging, mining and skinning, plus fishing, processing, cooking and crafting "valuable equipment and consumables" (Steam store), and they give experience, so a character can reach max level through gathering and crafting alone. The official Gameplay Walkthrough (Jun 12, 2025) shows the loop: fishing at a forest pool, gathering in the woods, a crafting screen for a ring, a market screen and gear upgrades, while the narrator says "life skills in Setera are rooted in exploration, spanning gathering, processing, and crafting. Each opens a different path of progression." Most of what follows was seen in the closed beta of Jun 20 to 22, 2025; the developers have promised changes since, and nothing is final, as of Oct 21, 2026.

Quick facts

Gathering

0:49 Gathering is part of the open world, not a separate mode. In Developer Interview #1 (May 23, 2025) executive producer Yun Sang-tae says the team wanted players "to explore seamlessly without any loading screens, whether that be wandering the woods, cutting trees, fishing, or teaming up against powerful monsters." The Steam store names the activities: "harvesting, logging, mining, and skinning". Kakao Games' beta announcement listed gathering, fishing and crafting among the beta's content (Jun 6, 2025).

In the closed beta each kind of gathering used a tool: a sickle, a pickaxe, a logging axe, a butcher knife and a fishing pole, as Icy Veins lists them (updated Mar 30, 2026). Testers found gathering "overly repetitive", the developers admitted, and promised better animations, effects and sounds, clearer textures on herbs and ores so they are easier to spot, and that "gathering will now have a chance to yield higher-grade materials and larger quantities" (Developer's Notes #2 Part 2, Jul 30, 2025).

24:12 Crowded resource spots were a beta problem. The creator Kanon asked Yun before the beta (Jun 9, 2025) about players competing for nodes ("Red Trees") on busy servers. Yun's answer: the competition came from the small area open in the test, a much larger launch map should ease it, "we'll ensure rare items remain appropriately rare", and monster respawn times will scale "in proportion to the number of players present".

Leveling without combat

6:25 Gathering and crafting give experience. "Most in-game activities grant experience points, allowing players to reach max level through gathering and crafting alone," Yun says in Developer Interview #1; "traditional MMORPGs haven't always been friendly to players who prefer non-combat activities," and Chrono Odyssey lets players progress through exploration and crafting while trading and sharing information with combat-focused players. Kakao Games told MassivelyOP that players gather materials and rare resources "contributing to character growth through crafting and cooking" (Jun 4, 2025).

The beta leaned too far that way. After the test the developers wrote that "progression was heavily reliant on life skills, which reduced the appeal of exploration, combat, and co-op activities", and that each type of content will get its own progression so players can grow through all of them (Jul 30, 2025). How much experience life skills give at launch has not been published, as of Oct 21, 2026.

Crafting

15:55 Crafting is at the center of character growth. "At the heart of this system is Crafting and Enhancements," Yun says: "Using life skills, players can gather rare materials and craft high-tier equipment that directly impacts their character's strength." Enhancement materials come from combat, exploration and gathering, and "those who prefer a non-combat route can still reach the highest level purely through crafting and gathering."

The walkthrough's crafting screen makes a single item, a "Ring of Loyalty", then shows a market screen and an upgraded helm ("Transfer Complete"). In the closed beta the crafts were split into professions: Weapon Crafting, Armor Crafting, Accessory Crafting, Processing, Cooking and Alchemy, as Icy Veins lists them (updated Mar 30, 2026), with raw materials refined at a processing bench before crafting. Those names are from the beta build and are not confirmed for launch.

The developers promised to make crafting clearer and worth more. Testers found that crafting results "often felt underwhelming compared to the value of the materials consumed" and that the interface lacked guidance; the fixes promised are a gear crafting screen that better shows possible outcomes, a bookmark to track the materials a recipe needs, and gathering and crafting visuals that reflect progression and "new life skills" (Jul 30, 2025).

Crafted gear and dropped gear

9:06 Crafting and farming drops are meant to be equal paths to gear. Asked whether the beta's gearing (craft lists, target-farmed materials, or drops from quests and field bosses) would last to the endgame, Yun told Kanon: "We're currently planning so that neither side has a definitive advantage. Because if we lean too heavily toward one side, the content on the other side could collapse." MassivelyOP reported the same: gear comes from drops or crafting "with no method having a distinct advantage" (Jun 12, 2025).

10:06 Perks can move between items. Yun said only "a very small portion" of the gear was in the beta, and that launch adds more levels and tiers and "a system where unique perks can be extracted and transferred". Endgame gear is meant to be horizontal, without single "overpowered" items. After the beta the developers also promised a way to "trade in a set amount of collected materials for a specific item of their choice" (Jul 30, 2025).

12:30 Enhancing crafted gear carries no risk of loss. "Our enhancements do not include scenarios like items breaking, or perks attaching at extremely low probabilities," Yun says. The beta's enhancement, bought with Gold at a 100% success rate, was "less exciting", so enhancement materials will become exploration rewards instead (Jul 30, 2025). The whole system is on Gear and Enhancement.

Food and potions

Consumables were reworked in Developer's Notes #4 (Jan 29, 2026). HP potions are no longer consumable items: they are "a permanent, rechargeable system" on their own key, refilled on death in instanced content. Food became long buffs (stats, movement speed) instead of instant healing, and special potions give short, strong effects for critical moments. Yun later said rechargeable potions free materials for food, cleansing potions and special potions, which "will actually open up economy" (Icy Veins, Feb 12, 2026).

Trading and the economy

22:15 Players trade through an auction house, not hand to hand. "We have an auction house, but direct player trading isn't currently allowed. And there are bound items as well," Yun told Kanon (Jun 9, 2025), because "we've seen many cases where economic systems were negatively affected by direct player trading." Icy Veins calls the beta's market the Trading Post (Feb 11, 2026); the name at launch is not confirmed. The Steam store says gathering and crafting should "foster social interaction and a sense of community, as you engage in trade and collaboration with other players."

The currency is Gold. After the beta the developers wrote that its structure "was underdeveloped": they will raise Gold rewards from Epic Quests early on, add guides for Bounty Hunting, Local Quests and Time Portals, "where players can earn larger amounts of Gold", and revalue loot so selling it is a real income (Jul 30, 2025). Chrono Odyssey is buy-to-play with a planned cosmetic shop and battle pass, and Yun has said nothing that affects game balance will be sold (see Price and Business Model).

Frequently asked questions

Can you level up by crafting in Chrono Odyssey? Yes. In Chrono Odyssey gathering and crafting give experience, and executive producer Yun Sang-tae said players can reach max level "through gathering and crafting alone"; after the June 2025 beta the developers said they will rebalance life skills against other content.

What life skills are in Chrono Odyssey? Chrono Odyssey's life skills are harvesting, logging, mining and skinning, plus fishing, processing, cooking and the crafting of equipment and consumables; the June 2025 beta also had alchemy and separate weapon, armor and accessory crafting.

Is there fishing in Chrono Odyssey? Yes. Fishing was in Chrono Odyssey's June 2025 closed beta, and the official Gameplay Walkthrough shows it among the life skills.

Does Chrono Odyssey have an auction house? Yes. Chrono Odyssey has an auction house (called the Trading Post in the beta, according to Icy Veins), but no direct trading between players, and some items are bound, executive producer Yun Sang-tae said in June 2025.

Is crafted gear worth it in Chrono Odyssey? In Chrono Odyssey crafted gear and dropped gear are meant to be equal, "with no method having a distinct advantage", so players who craft and players who farm drops can both reach the endgame.

Does Chrono Odyssey have player housing? No player housing has been announced for Chrono Odyssey, as of Oct 21, 2026.

Can you trade items with other players in Chrono Odyssey? Not directly: Chrono Odyssey allows trading only through its auction house, because direct trades have hurt other games' economies, Chrono Studio says.

Sources

• Chrono Odyssey on Steam, Valve, read Oct 20, 2026
• Chrono Odyssey Closed Beta Details, Chrono Studio on Steam, Jun 6, 2025
• Developer's Notes #2: End of the Closed Beta Part 2, Chrono Studio on Steam, Jul 30, 2025
• Developer's Notes #4, Chrono Studio on Steam, Jan 29, 2026
• Chrono Odyssey closed beta confirmed for June 20th to 22nd, Kakao Games press release via Game Developer, Jun 6, 2025
• Interview: Kakao on Chrono Odyssey's global parity, opt-out PvP, and embracing MMORPGs, MassivelyOP, Jun 4, 2025
• Chrono Odyssey addresses endgame, gear, and monetization, MassivelyOP, Jun 12, 2025
• Chrono Odyssey Life Skill Hub, Icy Veins, Mar 30, 2026
• Chrono Odyssey Beginner Guide, Icy Veins, Mar 30, 2026
• Chrono Odyssey Alchemy Guide, Icy Veins, Feb 11, 2026
• Sang-Tae Yun Q&A, Icy Veins, Feb 12, 2026
• Chrono Odyssey | Gameplay Walkthrough, Chrono Odyssey, Jun 12, 2025 (video)
• Chrono Odyssey | Developer Interview #1, Chrono Odyssey, May 23, 2025 (video)
• EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO KNOW - My Full Interview with Chrono Odyssey's Lead (ENG/한), Kanon, Jun 9, 2025 (video)