[Megathread] Final Fantasy XIV

[Tekkommo]

You'll be going back to the expansion zones for hunts, clan mark logs, fates, treasure hunts and beast tribes. Its not completely useless.

As far as it being account bound I doubt it... but do you need it? You can do level every job on a single character.

Thanks, I edited my post as that was a dumb thing to ask.

[Wrecktangle]

Yeah I'm doing 11K without a dancer on my 430 Black Mage. Dragoon, Black Mage and Bard are the strongest right now I'd say. Especially Bard which will most likely get the nerf hammer before savage.

Now if only my Titania ex groups could do higher than 7k while having a dancer buff.... also not fail on the tether mechanic five attempts later. PLEASE.

edit; yay got my pepe mount. best mount.

You on Primal by any chance? I can do the EX's with you if you need. PLD, cleared em both already.

Offer goes out to anyone, if you need help with anything - let me know. I'm on Behemoth (Primal) so can't help if you're on another datacenter.

[Granyala]

That's not the norm IMO. At least it wasn't during EA. Everyone in my FC had gating issues, but not horribly bad.

Typically had half the level missing when I hit the red ? and running daily randoms (24man, main, leveling, trial, 50-70) took care of that.

Meh, healer DPS is as embarrassing as ever.

[Remilia]

Me and my friends are over leveled. We did FATEs in between and my friend did the side quests while I just did the alliance roulette, il meg and onwards are littered with side quest icons. Granted we didn't exactly rush the entire thing. None of us are finished with the story yet just to put that in perspective.

[StrawberryZebra]

After getting SCH to 80, I have to say I'm quite disapointed with it. It doesn't feel like we got anything "new", just more of the same old skills we already had. Another pet, another AoE heal. Another AoE Shield.

Which brings me to my biggest complaint about the job - Too many of the skills do the same thing now. It feels like it doesn't matter which AoE heal you go with, as long as you pick one. It seems less like it was expanded and more like the Developers had run out of ideas and just went with whatever they could come up with.

The only skill that feels like it was needed was Recitation, a way to force crits on shields was something the Scholar has needed for a while now. Everything else is just yet another AoE heal to add to the collection. It all feels very samey.

[Graeham II]

You on Primal by any chance? I can do the EX's with you if you need. PLD, cleared em both already.

Offer goes out to anyone, if you need help with anything - let me know. I'm on Behemoth (Primal) so can't help if you're on another datacenter.

If only you were on Balmung...

(It may or may not be surprising that I play there myself.)

[Granyala]

Hmm I quite like the expanded WHM toolkit, gives us better options when movement is enforced.

Not particularly thrilled about the red lily though. Feels very underpowered, given it's rather long cooldown.

The wings are ♥♥♥

[RohanV]

I found the new PLD "combo" amusing. It's one button that does a lot of damage, but you can only press it 3 times after your Royal Authority combo. So it's a combo that isn't a combo.

[Kyriani]

Hmm I quite like the expanded WHM toolkit, gives us better options when movement is enforced.

Not particularly thrilled about the red lily though. Feels very underpowered, given it's rather long cooldown.

The wings are ♥♥♥

I agree with your WHM assessment. Overall I am happy with WHM but I think the whole blood lily thing has to go and we should just be able to use Misery with the regular lilies, so we can decide whether to use them for dps or healing at our discretion.

[Aruhen]

You on Primal by any chance? I can do the EX's with you if you need. PLD, cleared em both already.

Offer goes out to anyone, if you need help with anything - let me know. I'm on Behemoth (Primal) so can't help if you're on another datacenter.

Nah I'm on Cactuar which is on Aether.

[Wrecktangle]

Typically had half the level missing when I hit the red ? and running daily randoms (24man, main, leveling, trial, 50-70) took care of that.

Meh, healer DPS is as embarrassing as ever.

WHM is busted dude. They're sustaining like 5k DPS in both EX's an expert roulette. Not only that, but they still got the healing kit too.

After getting SCH to 80, I have to say I'm quite disapointed with it. It doesn't feel like we got anything "new", just more of the same old skills we already had. Another pet, another AoE heal. Another AoE Shield.

Which brings me to my biggest complaint about the job - Too many of the skills do the same thing now. It feels like it doesn't matter which AoE heal you go with, as long as you pick one. It seems less like it was expanded and more like the Developers had run out of ideas and just went with whatever they could come up with.

The only skill that feels like it was needed was Recitation, a way to force crits on shields was something the Scholar has needed for a while now. Everything else is just yet another AoE heal to add to the collection. It all feels very samey.

Healers really need a big revamp IMO. They need to dig deep next expansion for them. Build real tools and situations where the decisions matter and give real ways to DPS that isn't just 1 button.

If only you were on Balmung...

(It may or may not be surprising that I play there myself.)

Sorry friend!

I found the new PLD "combo" amusing. It's one button that does a lot of damage, but you can only press it 3 times after your Royal Authority combo. So it's a combo that isn't a combo.

PLD is massively improved, but still has a lot of things I don't care for.

1) MP may as well not exist. It's so rigid and there's absolutely no real way or reason to manage it. You always max it our naturally and the regen effects on skills isn't a thought or decision, it's fire and forget due to the rigid rotation.

2) Atonement is cool. Hitting the same weaponskill 3x in a row is a little cringey though, BUT it does offer much needed solo burst or good target swapping (if encounters will require it). I would have preferred it be a random ability that gets proc via some method IMO.

3) Intervene really should have been learned at a lower level.

4) Fight or Flight is not only stupidly named, but is boring as fuck too.

All IMO of course.

Nah I'm on Cactuar which is on Aether.

Lame!

[RohanV]

1) MP may as well not exist. It's so rigid and there's absolutely no real way or reason to manage it. You always max it our naturally and the regen effects on skills isn't a thought or decision, it's fire and forget due to the rigid rotation.

Personally, I've never liked the whole casting part of the rotation. I'm only 77, so I'm not sure if it feels better once it becomes instant. I kind of think it would feel better if only Clemency (and maybe other helpful spells) used mana, and mana regen and costs were tweaked around that.

[Advent]

Finished the Msq yesterday and while I thought Stormblood was dull and boring, this expansion has had some of the best set pieces and story beats I've ever seen in this game. Most of the people I encounter have said they think that this is better, even, than Heavensward, to which I can very much agree with so far. It remains to be seen if they can maintain that level of quality, but this is what I had hoped Warlords of Draenor had turned out to be. I'm another note, I'm really dreading the idea of doing EX trials. I've never been very good at this game, and I already had enough trouble with the normal versions. Gilgamesh doesn't seem to be well known for their patience or tolerance.

[Wrecktangle]

Anyone an armorer at 80 and can craft the innocence barding?

Personally, I've never liked the whole casting part of the rotation. I'm only 77, so I'm not sure if it feels better once it becomes instant. I kind of think it would feel better if only Clemency (and maybe other helpful spells) used mana, and mana regen and costs were tweaked around that.

It's definitely better simply from a QoL standpoint. You can move and cast and it makes the Req timer less tight (for instance with 90ms there was a non-zero chance i'd fuck a holy spirit up and not have it be buffed if I used more than a single oGCD during the Req window, this is now a non-issue with instant casts.

That said, it still has the same MP issue where's completely irrelevant and inconsequential.

[Granyala]

WHM is busted dude. They're sustaining like 5k DPS in both EX's an expert roulette. Not only that, but they still got the healing kit too.

I don't get what you want to say here but 5kish sounds about right, provided you do not need to heal all too much.
Around 8-10K for large group pulls, depending on tank damage.

Right now I am sitting between 33 and 50% of what a DPS can do, 33% in single target and 50% in AoE. I miss Wind III.

BTW: did anyone notice the change in animation after a completed dungeon? Ifalna no longer looks happy or anything, she only briefly closes her eyes and looks exhausted.

[KrayZ33]

Didn't recieve my key .

Never again will I purchase anything on that crappy SE site again.

edit: holy crap, It seems like they don't send E-mails but you have to visit that SE site again, which has otherwise absolutely zero-connection to the game, and then have to visit your purchase history... this is so weird.

[Dugna]

Didn't recieve my key .

Never again will I purchase anything on that crappy SE site again.

edit: holy crap, It seems like they don't send E-mails but you have to visit that SE site again which has otherwise absolutely zero-connection to the game... this is so weird.

they send an email alerting you that your key is available to acquire, just be ready to reset your password, the SE site is stupid and thinks you're hacked because you dared to login once.

[TriHard]

Finished the story yesterday, I'll have to say that this is the best story we've ever had in a FF game in a long time.
This was on par with some of their best titles by far, they really did outdo themselves this time. The ending and after the second to last main boss was insanely emotional.

I'm not sure if the third dialogue option was available to me because I have done the Crystal tower raids, but if you have not done them yet, I suggest you do them before moving on to the last part of the story, it really makes it that much better. This is a story that they set the seeds for back in ARR.

[Granyala]

I'm not sure if the third dialogue option was available to me because I have done the Crystal tower raids, but if you have not done them yet, I suggest you do them before moving on to the last part of the story, it really makes it that much better. This is a story that they set the seeds for back in ARR.

Yes, you only get that option when you have done that sidequest.

[StrawberryZebra]

Healers really need a big revamp IMO. They need to dig deep next expansion for them. Build real tools and situations where the decisions matter and give real ways to DPS that isn't just 1 button.

I can't comment on other healers, but the Scholar is a bit of a mess at the moment. Due to having three different resources to manage which are all tied to the same singular skill, Aetherflow, it leaves them in a strange situation where playing optimally isn't playing efficiently, and playing efficiently just kills any kind of optimisation.

Part of this is due to how the Fairy gauge works, where there are only two skills to spend it on both of which are strictly inferior versions of existing spells the player already has.

Aetherflow charges are also very wonky right now. Without a DPS alternative to spend them on, you either need to "waste" them on Lustrates for scratch damage or else just accept the fact that they are going to be lost once you recast Aetherflow and get 3 more. The problem being that recasting Aetherflow means you lose out on the Fairy Gauge, so you're losing more than just one resource in the process.

I do get what they were aiming for, a kind of cycle where you convert MP -> Aetherflow Charges -> Fairy Gauge. In theory it's good, but the issue really lies in how you're forced to spend those resources to participate in the gameplay loop.

As to how to fix it, I'd probably make the Fairy Gauge unlock earlier, and have it tied to all of the Fairy abilities, including Embrace. I'd also buff up their potencies, reduce or even remove the cooldowns and increase the cost so their usage is determined by how much Fairy Gauge you can generate rather than an arbitrary cooldown. To add to this, I would also remove Aetherflow as a skill, and allow the player to generate Aetherflow Stacks through some of their healing skills, this is a more direct conversion of MP -> Aetherflow, without having to generate both at the same time. It solves the issue of having to "waste" charges because, instead, you're using them to save yourself from spending MP, both in the short term by spending your Aetherflow, and long term by spending your Fairy Gauge.

It would speed up the cycle to the point where your progression through it would be determined by MP expenditure to generate resources for your more powerful abilities. This would also make the Fairy Gauge more central to the Scholar (right now it feels very much like a bolted on addition), as well make it feel more like you were a one (wo)man healing team rather than having an automatic heal bot that's passively doing a ton of your work for you.

It also allows you to ramp up your healing as appropriate. Rather than having Potencies be spread out across the range of abilities, you can have them escalate as you spend more valuable resources on them. For instance, you can have Physick -> Lustrate -> Embrace in order of their healing output. The MP heal is the weakest one because MP is the most abundant and least valuable resource, the Aetherflow heal is right in the middle because it's the half way point of resource scarcity and value, and Embrace is the most powerful because it costs your most valuable resource.

Just my thoughts on the matter. I'm sure once more people reach 80 theres going to be more ideas and opinions on the topic.

BTW: did anyone notice the change in animation after a completed dungeon? Ifalna no longer looks happy or anything, she only briefly closes her eyes and looks exhausted.

I did, but only after completing Qitana Ravel. The other two had the usual chearing animation. Makes sense, I suppose, since that's about the point in the plot where they introduce the idea that the Light is corrupting the player.

Didn't recieve my key .

Never again will I purchase anything on that crappy SE site again.

edit: holy crap, It seems like they don't send E-mails but you have to visit that SE site again, which has otherwise absolutely zero-connection to the game, and then have to visit your purchase history... this is so weird.

Truth be told, nothing at all about buying FF14 is straight forwards. Applying the pre-order code took you through three different sites. The game registration code took another three. You want to make things easy and straight forwards for your customers to buy things from you, not send them on a grand adventure just to unlock the game they've bought.

Other companies have figured out how to keep it simple a long time ago, but Squenix missed the memo. The entire process needs looking at, from begining to end, and to have all the unnessacary steps removed. It's convoluted, confusing, unclear and it needs to be changed.