I’ve done a fair amount of iron work in real life, I learned on 1890s era equipment, which is a bit more advanced than what the game is representing. Finishing anything in a single heat is not typical in my experience, but that’s only so relevant to what’s fun in a video game. About the only thing I normally did in one heat was making a single nail, and it’s only the last part, using the nail header, that you really have to be quick about.
New to the game, have not made it past bronze yet, gotta say this is the coolest representation of forging metal I’ve ever played. Of course it’s not totally accurate but I feel like it “captures the vibe”, which is as much reality as I want in my game anyway.
I do think the wooden tongs should last about 30 seconds instead of being good enough that I haven’t even considered sparing the metal to replace them yet. Would be hilarious if their durability drained super fast and then they turned into a torch and dropped whatever you were holding when it ran out.
I guess I’ll find out if I think working iron is frustrating once I get there.