Guides

I started playing FR about 6 months ago and pretty quickly discovered that I love Baldwin's cauldron. It feels like a delightful puzzle to me, and is a pretty great way of making money. I couldn’t find a Baldwin guide that covered everything I wanted (and major updates in July and September 2023 updated all the recipes through level 10 and made many guides out of date) so I thought I'd compile the information I have for everyone.


This guide will cover:
General Background Information
Leveling Up Your Cauldron Quickly
Making Money with Baldwin
Elemental Festivals
Night of the Nocturne
Other Special Events

[center][size=5][u]General Background Information[/u][/size][/center] [center][size=4][b]Transmuting Objects[/b][/size][/center] Transmutation is the process of melting certain kinds of items (food, materials, trinkets, apparel and familiars) into special new kinds of materials which are used in the create new items option. Each kind of item creates a specific type of transmutation material, with the color determined by RNG. Transmuting one item takes 30 minutes and gives 15 XP. The item type needed and RNG chances for each type of Transmutation material are: [quote=Goo] Goo is created from food such as [item=Highland Dryleaf] [item=Topaz Guppy] ----- Colors and RNG chance for each color: [item=Green Goo] 45% [item=Yellow Goo] 20% [item=Orange Goo] 15% [item=Red Goo] 10% [item=Purple Goo] 7% [item=Blue Goo] 3% [/quote] [quote=Ooze] Ooze is created from materials such as [item=Cracked Leather] [item=Smooth Pebbles] ----- Colors and RNG chance for each color: [item=Green Ooze] 45% [item=Yellow Ooze] 20% [item=Orange Ooze] 15% [item=Red Ooze] 10% [item=Purple Ooze] 7% [item=Blue Ooze] 3% [/quote] [quote=Sludge] Sludge is created from trinkets such as [item=Stone Arrowhead] [item=Scroll Case] ----- Colors and RNG chance for each color: [item=Green Sludge] 45% [item=Yellow Sludge] 20% [item=Orange Sludge] 15% [item=Red Sludge] 10% [item=Purple Sludge] 7% [item=Blue Sludge] 3% [/quote] [quote=Slime] Slime is created from apparel such as [item=Bright Rogue Mask] [item=Dusty Dinosaur Arm Guards] ------ Colors and RNG chance for each color: [item=Grey Slime] 70% [item=White Slime] 15% [item=Black Slime] 15% [/quote] [quote=Muck] Muck is created from familiars such as [item=Coral Carpenter] [item=Entrapping Shackles] ----- Colors and RNG chance for each color: [item=Copper Muck] 60% [item=Silver Muck] 25% [item=Gold Muck] 15% [/quote] You can also check the “Used for” tab in any item's Game Database entry to find out which Baldwin materials it can become. [b]Each item in a category has the same chances for color[/b]; you don’t get better chances of rare colors by melting rare items - use the cheapest items for melting! [center] [size=4][b]Creating New Items[/b][/size][/center] Each item you create in Baldwin’s Bubbling Brew has its own recipe, which calls for up to 5 ingredients. There’s also a treasure fee, brew time, XP amount gained and level for each recipe. Baldwin recipes include apparel, aesthetic changes to battle stones, familiars, genes, vistas and scenes, Bogsneak eggs, and special festival items. You generally can’t get these items anywhere else. [center][size=4]Recipe Materials[/size][/center] The majority of materials for Baldwin recipes are Transmutation materials; you may need 2 or 3 of some materials in a recipe. Most of these are the materials made in the previous section (Goo, Slime, etc) but some of them are their own recipes. You can sort by Materials/Transmutation in the Baldwin recipe list to see all of the recipes. [quote=Transmutation Materials created with a recipe] [item=Glass Beaker] [item=Coarse Alchemical Reduction] [item=Sizzling Phosphorus] [item=Irradiated Alchemical Reduction] [item=Infused Fragment] [item=Reinforced Glass Beaker] [item=Fine Alchemical Reduction] [item=Imbued Sulfur] [/quote] Some of the transmutation material recipes chain together. Glass Beaker is used in Sizzling Phosphorus, Coarse Alchemical Reduction, Irradiated Alchemical Reduction, and Infused Fragment Reinforced Glass Beaker is used for Fine Alchemical Reduction Fine Alchemical Reduction is used for Imbued Sulfur If it’s a little confusing, I recommend this beautiful visual guide by @Rowanhart. [url=https://www1.flightrising.com/forums/gde/3232555#post_3232555]Visual Guide to Transmutation materials by Rowanhart [/url] Some Baldwin recipes call for items other than Transmutation materials. These items can be food, materials or trinkets, and you’ll often need 5 or 10 of them. [center][size=4]Treasure Fee[/size][/center] The treasure fee is a fee you pay in treasure to make the recipe. It ranges from 100t to 185,000t depending on the recipe. Recipes that create items that apply to a dragon (genes, eye vial) are particularly expensive, and the most expensive recipe fee is for Breed Change: Bogsneak. [center][size=4]Brew Time[/size][/center] Since you can only do one thing at a time, brew time tells you how long your cauldron will be busy. It ranges from 30 minutes up to 24 hours (Breed Change: Bogsneak) for regular recipes. The Prismatic Token recipe (only available during festivals) takes 96 hours. [center] [size=4]XP and Level[/size][/center] Every account has a Baldwin level based on “Alchemy Experience”, which is how much Baldwin XP you have. You start at Level 1 and gain XP by transmuting items (15XP per item) and creating new items. The XP varies significantly among recipes, so if you’re looking to level your cauldron quickly, there’s some strategy involved.

[center][size=5][u]Leveling Up Your Cauldron Quickly[/u][/size][/center] [size=4][u]XP Table[/u][/size] [columns] [color=transparent]_______ [/color] [b]Level[/b] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 [nextcol] [color=transparent]_______ [/color] [b]XP to Reach[/b] 0 200 400 700 1,100 1,600 2,200 2,900 3,700 4,600 5,600 6,700 7,900 9,200 10,600 12,100 13,700 15,400 17,200 19,100 21,100 24,400 25,400 27,700 30,100 32,600 35,200 [/columns] There are two major categories of recipes to look for when trying to level up your cauldron. If you’re active on FR or can check the site every 1-2 hours, you should pick recipes that give the most XP per minute and swap them out when they’re done. If you have a longer block of time where you can’t check the site (like if you’re sleeping or at an event or just busy), a longer recipe that gives more XP total is better. [quote=Best XP/Minute for Each Level] [columns] [color=transparent] _________ [/color] [b]Level[/b] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 [nextcol] [color=transparent] ___________________________________________________________ [/color] [b]Best XP/Minute[/b] Jealous Eye Earrings,Peridot Roundhorn, 4 XP/Minute Any Level 2 Apparel, 6 XP/Min Amethyst Roundhorn, 7 XP/Minute Posh Waistcoat, Posh Monocle, 4.5 XP/Minute Any Level 5 Apparel, 4.61 XP/Minute Ancient Gene Parchment: Mucous, 7.67 XP/Minute Tertiary Gene: Scales, 8 XP/Minute Irradiated Alchemical Reduction, 16.67 XP/Minute Juvenile Starsweeper, Lesser Wisp, 9.09 XP/Minute Scene: Webfiend Cave, 11.11 XP/Minute Infused Fragment, 16.67 XP/Minute Reinforced Glass Beaker, 11.67 XP/Minute Fine Alchemical Reduction, 13.33 XP/Minute Protobeasts, 12.73 XP/Minute Wild Apparel set, 2.20 XP/Minute Ancient Genes: Octopus, Rings, 7.75 XP/Minute Cauldron Crawler, Glam Nudibranch, 3.11 XP/Minute Ancient Genes: Beetle, Mandibles, 8.81 XP/Minute Firefly and Quartz Cockatrice, 5.29 XP/Minute Scene: Royal Chambers, 10 XP/Minute Vial of Darkened Sight, 8.33 XP/Minute Genes: Slime, Sludge, 20 XP/Minute Rainbow Starsilk set, 7.33 XP/Minute Tertiary Gene: Veined, 20 XP/Minute Tertiary Gene: Keel, 25 XP/Minute Friend Red Eared Slider, 15.28 XP/Minute [/columns][/quote] [quote=Best Total XP Recipes at Each Level] [columns] [color=transparent] _________ [/color] [b]Level[/b] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 [nextcol] [color=transparent] _____________________________________________ [/color] [b]Best Total XP[/b] Level 1 Apparel, 200 XP Harlequin and Sable Feathercroak, 350 XP Magister Overcoat, Rings, Waist Wrap, 450 XP Posh Monocle, Posh Waistcoat, 450 XP Rosetail, Tropical Caiman, 450 XP Ancient Gene Parchment: Mucous, 2300 XP Tertiary Gene:Scales, 2400 XP Genes: Nudibranch, Skink, Spinner, 2500 XP Juvenile Starsweeper, Lesser Wisp, 1000 XP Genes: Poison, Toxin, 2700 XP Iron or Rusty Golem, 1200 XP Total Ancient Genes: Display, Parade, 3000 XP Total Serpentas Familiars, 1350 XP Total Genes: Stitched, Patchwork, 3250 XP Level 15 Vistas, 1500 XP Ancient Genes: Octopus, Rings, 3100 XP* Red-Tailed Boa, 1500 XP Ancient Genes: Beetle, Mandibles, 3700 XP Tertiary Gene: Capsule, 2600 XP Genes: Pinstripe, Trail, 5000 XP Vial of Darkened Sight, 6000 XP Genes: Slime, Sludge, 12000 XP Rainbow Starsilk items, 2200 XP Tertiary Gene: Veined, 12000 XP Tertiary Gene: Keel, 12000 XP Any Ancient Gene Parchment, 5800 XP [/columns][/quote] *Note: for Level 16 I left out Breed Change:Bogsneak because it takes over your cauldron for so long that it’s usually not a good quick leveling choice. If you’re not logging in for 24 hours, the extra XP is nice, but otherwise I recommend picking something with a shorter brew time. You’ll free up at least 12 hours of cauldron time, which is plenty of time to brew a second high XP recipe (which will give you more XP total in that time). As you can see, the XP doesn’t always go up with higher level recipes, and often lower level recipes are better. A lot of lower level recipes (through level 14 as of May 2024) had their XP adjusted up and brew time adjusted down and the unadjusted recipes don't catch up in XP/Minute for a while. If you're short on treasure and looking to avoid expensive recipes like genes, all of the Scenes have good XP/minute and total XP with much cheaper fees.

The most reliable way to make money with Baldwin is by selling transmutation materials in the Auction House (AH) for other people to use for brewing.
If you have a pile of low value items, melting them into Baldwin materials nearly always makes you more money (with one exception I’ll talk about in a minute). For example, the cheapest trinkets sell for 25-50t in the AH, and the cheapest Sludge (Green or Yellow) usually sells for around 1000t, for a 950t profit. But you have limited cauldron time, so what’s the most reliable way to make money?
The short answer to that is Slime. The cheapest apparel in the AH is typically less than 2000t, and if you pay attention there are frequent options under 1700t. The most common and cheapest Slime is the Grey Slime, which usually sells for 3000t or more, resulting in a profit of 1000 - 1300t for the most common color. You have a 30% chance of getting a Black or White Slime, which sell for around 7000t (sometimes higher), and the average profit (weighted by RNG chance for each color) is around 2500t per apparel item melted.

Slime is the answer if you’re looking to avoid being at the whim of the RNG, but if you’re willing to take the chance, Goo and Sludge are pretty good money makers overall. Sludge is great because there are so many cheap trinkets just lying around our hoards waiting to be melted. You won’t make huge money unless you get a Purple or Blue Sludge, but whatever you get is pretty much pure profit and the weighted average profit works out to around 3000t per trinket melted.

Goo is a great money maker if you can spare the food points, but be sure to use a cheap/low food point item. The profit available is also driven heavily by the rarer colors (Red Goo is pretty pricey for its rarity), and getting a Green Goo which only sells for 800t can be disappointing.

Ooze makes a profit but usually isn’t as good as the other options. The rarer colors which drive average profit up aren’t as expensive. If you use cheap materials you’ll still make a profit, but it won’t be as high on average.

The last thing to talk about is the exception I mentioned earlier - Muck, and Familiars. The challenge with Muck is that the base price of familiars is often kept high by high hoard sell value. It’s not unusual to see a lowest AH price of more than 2000t, with no cheaper options popping up. That high price isn’t bad if you get a Gold Muck out of it, but what if you get a Copper Muck? A Copper Muck generally sells for 2500t (with prices as low as 1900t at times) so that high initial investment really hurts profit. If you use a familiar with a high hoardsell value you can actually lose money! Only go for Muck with cheap familiars (Night of the Nocturne is a huge source); if you have Coliseum familiars with hoardsell values of more than 2000t, I recommend hoardselling (or AH sell if you like) and using the money to buy a cheaper familiar or apparel piece.
Nearly every Baldwin material that you can brew from a recipe will make a profit. Prices can fluctuate a fair bit, so you’ll have to keep an eye on the market, but you can make a profit on anything but Imbued Sulfur. The materials for that are so expensive you’ll almost certainly lose money. The market for everything except the Glass Beaker is slower than for the melted materials; don’t expect to sell more than 1 or 2 a day and try not to flood the market.

If you’re at least Baldwin level 10, you can make money by converting cheaper Baldwin materials to more expensive ones with the level 10 material recipes. The 3 to 1 recipes are basically not worth it, since 3 of anything adds up, but some of the 1 to 2 recipes are. The most reliable money makers are 1 Purple Goo to 2 Red Goo (Purple Goo is often the same price or cheaper than Red, which means you can double your money) and 1 Yellow Ooze to 2 Green Ooze. If the price of any particular material goes up a lot, it’s worth double checking if the conversion recipe makes sense - if the cost of the single material for the recipe is less than twice the cost of the material it makes, you get extra money out of it.

When you reach level 20, you can swap Silver Muck for Gold Muck. Gold Muck can be a few thousand treasure more expensive, so it’s worth the swap.
You can make a profit on other types of recipes, but the market can be tricky here. Familiars of level 10 and above generally make a profit (except for the level 20 Geckos for some reason), but under level 10 you’ll usually do better selling the materials.

For most apparel, look for an AH price of 40kt/40g or higher for guaranteed profit. For apparel that uses more expensive materials like a Reinforced Glass Beaker or Infused Fragment, the price needs to be more like 60kt/60g. Keep in mind that the apparel market is not super predictable and can be slow; I don’t have detailed data on what sells best to offer for this but if someone else does please let me know!

Many Genes will make a profit, but a few just aren’t worth it. The materials for Poison/Toxin are over 100kt for each recipe and they usually sell for around that much, so you’ll probably break even at best. Half the Ancient Gene Parchments sell for less than their materials; Shark, Porcupine, Angler and Scuttle seem to be worth it, and Octopus and Rings make very good profit if you can afford to invest in the Imbued Sulfur, but the rest will usually lose money. If you want to make money with genes, your most reliable bet will be Modern genes.

[center][size=5][u]Elemental Festivals[/u][/size][/center] There are 3 things available at Baldwins during an Elemental Festival: Festival Currency, Festival Skins/Accents, and Prismatic Token. Festival Currency comes in 1, 2, 5, and 20 item recipes. The 1 and 2 currency recipes are level 1, the 5 currency recipe is level 2, and the 20 currency recipe is level 3. [center][size=4]Festival Currency[/size][/center] Based on the usual prices for the recipe materials and currency, only the 20 currency recipe is worth it. For every other recipe, you’d be better off selling the materials in the AH and buying currency directly. The 20 currency recipe uses Grey Slime and Copper Muck, so look for cheap apparel and familiars and stock up. Also keep in mind that if you transmute an object during a festival, you have a high chance of getting festival currency when you collect it and you can get a Baldwin material to sell or use later. The apparel and familiars you stock up on can be transmuted during the festival for this. [center][size=4]Festival Skins and Accents[/size][/center] Festival Skins are level 3 recipes. There are always 2 skins or accents available in Baldwin for each festival, with 2 standard recipe formats. Skins are a one-time item and won’t be available once the festival is over. [quote=Festival Skin/Accent 1] 5[item=Green Ooze] 4[item=Green Sludge] 10[item=Iron Ore] OR [item=Copper Ore] OR [item=Nickel Ore] [/quote] [quote=Festival Skin/Accent 2] 5[item=Green Goo] 4[item=Green Sludge] 10[item=Salt] OR [item=Gravel] OR [item=Sand] [/quote] The last item in each recipe is based on which material can be dug up in the element of the festival. For example, digging in Wind gives Iron Ore and Gravel, so those are the materials for the Mistral Jamboree skins, but digging in Water gives Copper Ore and Salt for Wavecrest Saturnalia. The price of recipe materials often climbs during the festivals, especially the digging materials and Green Sludge (which is found in both recipes). It’s a great time to sell the piles of digging materials that can build up. [center][size=4]Prismatic Token [/size][/center] The Prismatic Token recipe is a level 16 recipe. It takes 96 hours (4 days!) and has a 25kt fee. Given how long it takes, you can make up to 2 per festival, if you start the first one by the end of the Tuesday of the festival. (If you really want to push it you actually have until 5:59 FRT on Wednesday, but you’ll have exactly 1 minute to start the 2nd recipe :P). However, that means you won't be able to use your cauldron for anything else during the festival. If you want to make one, I recommend starting the recipe at the end of the festival. It will keep brewing after the festival as long as it was started before the festival ended, and you can use your cauldron during the festival for currency, skins etc. You'll have the token ready to spend at Joxar’s when the next month's festival starts.

[center][size=5][u]Night of the Nocturne[/u][/center] Night of the Nocturne (NotN) runs in late December every year for 2 weeks, with many special items available for the holiday. The biggest part of the event for most players is getting Strange Chests, which have to be opened before a deadline (usually a few days after NotN ends) to get special familiars, apparel, vistas, scenes, genes, and (rarely!) Nocturne Eggs. Baldwin is a big part of the event. As of 2023 there are 61 NotN recipes, which make Apparel, Familiars, Vistas, and Strange Chests. Nearly every single recipe for NotN will sell for a profit, but there’s one special case I think most players might not have noticed: [u]Strange Chests.[/u] [quote=Strange Chest] [item=Strange Chest] (Level 2 Recipe) [rule] 1[item=Copper Muck] 2[item=Yellow Sludge] 2[item=Yellow Goo] 2[item=Yellow Ooze] 12 [item=Mimic Powder] [/quote] [quote=Strange Chest x2] [item=Strange Chest][item=Strange Chest] (Level 3 Recipe) [rule] 1[item=Silver Muck] 1[item=Gold Muck] 1[item=Red Goo] 1[item=Red Sludge] 1[item=Red Ooze] [/quote] The cost of a Strange Chest in 2023 was around 16kt for most of the festival. The usual cost of the materials to make Chests is around 16kt for a 1 Chest recipe and 32kt for a 2 Chest recipe, which means you break even. However, the Strange Chest recipes are very popular during NotN (especially the 2 Chest recipe) which means the cost of the ingredients rises quite a bit. In 2023, a Red Goo was about 15kt during NotN and a Gold Muck was around the same cost, meaning just those two ingredients would nearly cover the 2 Strange Chests by themselves! Instead of brewing Strange Chests, I highly recommend selling ingredients to others and buying the chests with the money; you’ll also get money to buy the other special items that way. In addition to stocking up on Strange Chest ingredients, there are a few other Baldwin ingredients that sell well during NotN. With 13 Familiar recipes, players need a large supply of Glass Beakers, and the price rises accordingly. There are also 2 recipes using Coarse Alchemical Reduction, including the Haunted Flame Cloak which is pretty popular, so Coarse Alchemical Reductions are a good way to make treasure. If you also want to brew recipes to sell later, NotN apparel is pretty popular. It’s got a spooky style that I’ve heard is especially popular around Halloween. My first NotN was 2023 so I haven’t gotten to test this myself, but if you’re looking for data on what sells best, [url=https://www1.flightrising.com/forums/frd/3302425#post_3302425]this post[/url] has some great info.

[center][u][size=5]Other Special Events[/u][/center] There are a few other events throughout the year that add temporary recipes to Baldwin’s recipe book. All of the recipes here have been sourced from the comments in their Game Database entries (thanks to all the players who do that, it’s so useful). I haven’t gotten to experience all of these events myself, but as I do I’ll add anything I notice to the event’s section. [center][b][size=4]Love is in the Air[/b][/center] Love is in the Air starts on February 14th and runs for a week. There are 2 Baldwin’s recipes for the holiday as of 2024. The Enamored Swan seems to be the more popular recipe - in 2024 it more than doubled the AH price of Orange Goo for the week of the holiday (from a regular price of 3500t to over 7000t). [quote=Enamored Swan] [item=Enamored Swan] (Level 3 Recipe) [rule] 1[item=Copper Muck] 1[item=Silver Muck] 2[item=Orange Goo] 2[item=Green Ooze] [/quote] [quote=Lovebird Landscape] [item=Scene: Lovebird Landscape] (Level 6 Recipe) [rule] 1[item=Copper Muck] 1[item=Grey Slime] 5[item=Scarlet Yuccaweave] 5[item=Greyback Sparrow] 1[item=Glass Beaker] [/quote] [center][size=4][b]Way of the Warrior[/b][/center] Way of the Warrior runs in August. There are two Baldwin recipes, both familiars. [quote=Crystalcleave Canary] [item=Crystalcleave Canary] (Level 3 Recipe) [rule] 2[item=Copper Muck] 3[item=Green Ooze] 1[item=Orange Goo] 1[item=Glass Beaker] 2[item=Blue Throated Budgie] [/quote] [quote=Vigilant Sparrow] [item=Vigilant Sparrow] (Level 3 Recipe) [rule] 1[item=Gold Muck] 3[item=Green Sludge] 1[item=Orange Ooze] 1[item=Glass Beaker] 5[item=Zephyr Sparrow] [/quote] [center][b][size=4]Talk like a Pirate Week[/b][/center] Talk like a Pirate Week starts September 19th. There’s a pair of familiar recipes available in Baldwin for the holiday; Awakening both of them gets you a familiar from Fiona. [quote=Blue and Gold Macaw] [item=Blue and Gold Macaw] [rule] 1[item=copper muck] 1[item=orange sludge] 1[item=yellow sludge] 2[item=green ooze] 1[item=glass beaker] [/quote] [quote=Scarlet Macaw] [item=Scarlet Macaw] [rule] 1[item=copper muck] 1[item=red sludge] 3[item=green sludge] 1[item=glass beaker] [/quote]

Changelog

Posted 17April2024
Updated for the Display and Parade Genes 27April2024
Updated for the May 2024 Baldwin Adjustment (Levels 11-14) 09May2024

Additional Resources

Baldwin Visual Guide 4.0
A visual guide and ingredient tracker for all active Baldwin recipes, updated during events for event recipes

Baldwin/Swipp Tracker
A set of spreadsheets for tracking recipe ingredients and where to acquire what you need.

Rowanhart’s Visual Guide to Transmutation Materials (also listed in the General Info section)

It's all up!

I attempted to cover all the big points I could think of in this guide, but there’s lots of smaller pieces of info I ended up leaving out. I have a big spreadsheet to keep track of Baldwin recipes, ingredient prices, XP stats and more. If you’re interested in any little details (the cost of a certain recipe, how many Irradiated Alchemical Reductions do you have to make if you use only that to level up, what’s the worst recipe for XP/Minute) please ask! My sheet does have some gaps at the moment (it’s a lot to type) but I’m happy to fill things in if people are interested.

Please also let me know if there are any errors. I’m still sort of new to Flight Rising and I’m sure I missed some things! I’ll try to add on to the appropriate sections as I experience the special holidays and have more personal observations on the recipes.