I still wish they would release a SP version of this game to play through the campaign at least
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Happy Birthday FFXI! Celebrating the 18th Vana'versary of FINAL FANTASY XI [UPDATE: SE will be hosting an event on 5/22. See threadmarks]
- Thread starter Toth
- Start date
You can play through all the story content in the game solo right now with a party of trust NPCs, without interacting with virtually any real people. That's about as single player friendly as it gets in an MMO.
Really, FFXI is super friendly to story-focused solo players these days. Highly recommend giving it a shot. Going from 1-99 takes about as long as going from 1-20 did back in the day, lol.
For the current discounted price of $10, you get nearly 20 years of premium FF story content.
That was my thought too. It's a nice homage, as it's not Leene's square, but is hidden away section of one of the Promathia zones related to a Promathia mission.
Finished off playing through all of the story. Well, the main stuff anyway, the add-on story packs felt a bit tedious and uninteresting so I ended up not bothering with those. Made some half-hearted attempts at Dynamis, Omen, Abyssea, and all that, but playing solo seemed to mean that getting any real upgrade to my AF or Relic armor was going to involve farming a ton of gil for various items needed. By no means insurmountable and a lot of that content seemed like it would be fun but I did what I set out to do and anything further would be a bigger investment in time that I planned on.
Overall I had a great time. If I had to rate the story content from worst to best:
Nation missions + Zilart: Lumping these in together. Square was figuring out how to integrate story into an MMO when nobody else was really doing it, but they'd go on to get a lot better at it.
Wings of the Goddess: The story itself is actually pretty good but the way it integrates the nation missions is a little clunky (although those are good as well) in that it felt like putting one story on pause for a bit to switch over to another kinda related story, and then you'd go back and forth. Also a lot of the actual mission/quest stuff was tedious and the zones kinda sucked since they're mostly just maps you've already seen but often laid out worse.
Treasures of Aht Urhgan: Not bad and it flows pretty quickly although the cast didn't really hook me like a lot of the others did.
Chains of Promathia: Probably the most classic Final Fantasy of the stories.
Seekers of Adoulin: Felt like the culmination of everything the team had learned doing stories in how to present a story. My only complaint is that while all of the stories have a lot of long-winded cutscenes with tons of superfluous dialogue, I feel like this one was the most extreme of "go to this NPC and watch a 5 minute cutscene, then go talk to this guy for a couple minutes of dialogue, then go back over here for another cutscene". I think it had the best cast overall though and some of the more interesting twists.
Rhapsodies of Vana'diel: It's a bit of a cheat to say it's the best as it ties into all the other stories. It's as much of a Greatest Hits/Curtain Call as it is a story in its own right. As send-off's go though it's a hell of one, and it's just a shame that all the rewards discourage players from saving it until the end.
Overall I had a great time. If I had to rate the story content from worst to best:
Nation missions + Zilart: Lumping these in together. Square was figuring out how to integrate story into an MMO when nobody else was really doing it, but they'd go on to get a lot better at it.
Wings of the Goddess: The story itself is actually pretty good but the way it integrates the nation missions is a little clunky (although those are good as well) in that it felt like putting one story on pause for a bit to switch over to another kinda related story, and then you'd go back and forth. Also a lot of the actual mission/quest stuff was tedious and the zones kinda sucked since they're mostly just maps you've already seen but often laid out worse.
Treasures of Aht Urhgan: Not bad and it flows pretty quickly although the cast didn't really hook me like a lot of the others did.
Chains of Promathia: Probably the most classic Final Fantasy of the stories.
Seekers of Adoulin: Felt like the culmination of everything the team had learned doing stories in how to present a story. My only complaint is that while all of the stories have a lot of long-winded cutscenes with tons of superfluous dialogue, I feel like this one was the most extreme of "go to this NPC and watch a 5 minute cutscene, then go talk to this guy for a couple minutes of dialogue, then go back over here for another cutscene". I think it had the best cast overall though and some of the more interesting twists.
Rhapsodies of Vana'diel: It's a bit of a cheat to say it's the best as it ties into all the other stories. It's as much of a Greatest Hits/Curtain Call as it is a story in its own right. As send-off's go though it's a hell of one, and it's just a shame that all the rewards discourage players from saving it until the end.
yeah I know about all those from the old days. Just dinged 60 and spent the day farming up coffers/leveling. Gotta do the next LB but only rank 3 and Windurst so I need to shout for help either way haha. I played for about 2 days before realizing you had to activate those quest things for points so I missed out on a few but going ok'ish atm. Also explored Adoulin a tiny bit. All the various currencies and npc features are still overwhelming but im mulling through them at my own pace. Unlocked Rune Fencer as well just to try it later. Would like to hit 75 on RDM first to get more of a foothold on the game though unless it gets boring.
Also looking for a nice LS on Asura if anyone has a spot.
Can't belive how fast it is now. Took like 4 months to do something like this back in the day lol.
damn i missed this, going to start today. 2 questions:
anyone got that gold world pass invite thing for me? i thinkg asura is the server with most population?
since i can only get like 1400 points from now on for the login event, which trusts should i get and is there another item apart from mounts that would be great?
anyone got that gold world pass invite thing for me? i thinkg asura is the server with most population?
since i can only get like 1400 points from now on for the login event, which trusts should i get and is there another item apart from mounts that would be great?
yeah I know about all those from the old days. Just dinged 60 and spent the day farming up coffers/leveling. Gotta do the next LB but only rank 3 and Windurst so I need to shout for help either way haha. I played for about 2 days before realizing you had to activate those quest things for points so I missed out on a few but going ok'ish atm. Also explored Adoulin a tiny bit. All the various currencies and npc features are still overwhelming but im mulling through them at my own pace. Unlocked Rune Fencer as well just to try it later. Would like to hit 75 on RDM first to get more of a foothold on the game though unless it gets boring.
Also looking for a nice LS on Asura if anyone has a spot.
Can't belive how fast it is now. Took like 4 months to do something like this back in the day lol.
You can join the LS I'm in! Just /befriend Everenae or PM me here and let me know when you'll be on and I'll see what I can do :)
I'll PM you a gold world pass in an hour or two! As for your login points: Shantotto 2 is a must and other than that I'd highly recommend Quilta and the two Dancer trusts, as well as Sakura.
The rest are all nice to haves if I remember right!
If nothing else appeals to you, hold on to your points, since 1500 points can roll over to next month.
I'll also make you a Linkpearl if you want one :)
okay thanks, im mainly just interested in playing the story. so trusts should be the priority ;D.
The other trusts you want to make sure you get during this event:
- Amchuchu (2000 Bayld) - One of the best anti-magic tank trusts
- King of Hearts (500 sparks) - Good buffer/red mage
- Koru-Moru (get him free at 99 but getting him early doesn't hurt - 300 tabs) - Backline healer/support/dispeller
- Qultada (500 sparks) - Better than Koru-Moru at low levels, gives an Exp bonus roll if you have an Exp ring up
- Sakura (300 tabs) - Increased combat physical gain rate and AOE Regen
As mentioned before, Sakura is highest priority on that list!
Nice to haves:
- Mnejing (3000 assault points) - Best low level tank (imo) cause it can provoke from level 1
Login point trusts:
- Shantotto 2 (number 1 priority)
- Mayakov (Dancer trust)
- Uka (Dancer trust)
- Ullegore
- Lion (if you need Treasure Hunter)
Nothing else available is super important
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Finally got this working through Ashita rather than Windower.
Now I'm facing the choice of starting over or trying to pick up where I left off years and years ago. I actually have 2 characters, both with a lot of playtime and lots of cool items and stuff. Problem is, I don't know how or where to pick up the main story threads anymore, or how best to reacquaint myself with everything.
Now I'm facing the choice of starting over or trying to pick up where I left off years and years ago. I actually have 2 characters, both with a lot of playtime and lots of cool items and stuff. Problem is, I don't know how or where to pick up the main story threads anymore, or how best to reacquaint myself with everything.
The game does a good job of helping you pick up where you left off through Records of Eminence. However, 3 months ago I left my home server behind (and my character since 2004) and rolled on a new server and I currently have more 99 jobs than my previous character, better gear and am way happier, mostly because I have people to talk to and play with now. I don't feel like catching up is very difficult anymore unless you have top of the line gear or an up to date REMA, and both of those are unlikely considering you took a break :)
It's also worth noting that with a few exceptions like trusts and mounts, rare/ex gear can be sent between characters now. Including things like Echad Rings, so you can technically pop an Echad ring, mail it to an alt and have other alts mail you theirs and you take one of the charged ones with you while you quest for back to back rings. By the time you get back to town, you can sent the second ring to an alt and then take out the first ring, if it's charged, or a third ring.
While it sounds like you have to constantly switch characters, you don't at all because mail doesn't actually send until the other character logs on and checks their mail, and even then you can return it.
This obviously doesn't work across servers though :)
But if you started a new character on your home server you could just send all your old gear in the mail (except stuff like REMA). As I said earlier though, the completely new server experience isn't all that scary anymore because of how fast you can catch up.
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Oh shit, I didn't know you could send EX gear now. I have a pair of Magnifying Spectacles that I didn't want to grind Clothcrafting again to obtain, but if they're no longer locked to my alt then I think I'll just reroll and start fresh.
There are some exceptions to the mail rule, I'd check BG Wiki first :)
Sent a friend request, I'm in Japan so I'm not sure when our times will line up but I'll probably be on quite a lot this week before my run up returning to work. Also thanks for the list of trust recommendations. I was confused as to what I should go for.
Also also, how do I get Bayld for the Amchuchu trust? I got the started 1k I believe but I don't think I'm high enough for that content.
It starts rolling in fast at level cap doing Adoullin content, but to get the Amchuchu trust quickly and painlessly, you can simply redeem a copper voucher or two for Bayld at the spark vendor. (You should be trading the spark vendor all your copper vouchers -- that'll store them there for later use at your leisure, while not taking up inventory space.)
I'm gonna try not to keep bumping this thread as my own personal FFXI troubleshooting blog and FAQ, but PlayOnline keeps telling me I have 4 messages on the e-mail server (remember that feature?) but I can't retrieve them because I guess the service was shut down? So how can I get rid of the notification constantly in the upper righthand corner of the game telling me I somehow have mail on a service that doesn't exist anymore?
I can still access my POL mail from the main POL menu and trash stuff from there, even if sending/receiving doesn't work.
However, if you go into your POL settings (from within POL) and go to viewer, you can toggle off "Mail Receipt" and that should fix the problem.
Did you get the Echad Ring when you logged into the game or when we visited the Gold World Pass npc together? It might be a trial account restriction, but I could be wrong. If you want to go back to the NPC with me, just let me know!
Thanks, you've been super helpful this whole thread through. Appreciate it.
By the by, anyone who's purchased the game should redeem the item registration codes they received on the SE account page, then talk to a Festive Moogle at either Port San d'Oria (J-9), Windurst Walls (C-14), or Port Bastok (J-13) to receive your two items. The Destrier Beret and the Chocobo Shirt are both very nice and speed up pre-30 leveling.
(The items are one time redemptions though, so don't scrap the character after doing so.)
(The items are one time redemptions though, so don't scrap the character after doing so.)
yea i think the ring was already in my inventar from the login campaign. thought that was from the pass npc lol. googled about the pass with a trial, couldn't really find anything if it works or not
For returnees, those 12 copper vouchers should be traded to the Records of Eminence NPC, and should help you greatly by converting them (using the same NPC you trade them to) into needed currencies to buy the alter-ego trusts.
So no need to spam some of the events like assault or campaign to get currencies like assault points or allied notes. IIRC the only currency you can't convert to is Bayld.
So no need to spam some of the events like assault or campaign to get currencies like assault points or allied notes. IIRC the only currency you can't convert to is Bayld.
Is Rhapsodies significantly different if you start out fresh? Like if you didn't meet any of these characters do they act as if you're meeting for the first time? I stopped after getting the 5th trust because I haven't finished WotG yet but it seems like they're playing loose with the prerequisites on progressing through Rhapsodies.
Yeah, the dialogue changes depending on your progress in a given expansion. It's not done perfectly—you "meet" Zeid several times in the game, lol—but it's a good effort.
Welcome to Asura! If you /befriend Everenae I will absolutely get you an invite to the Linkshell everyone else is in (if they are on Asura).
You mentioned being on the trial - its important to note that you can't join specific Linkshells on the trial because you can't trade.
Rhapsodies is designed for speed (except for Seekers, which has two notable roadblocks) so they basically take you to the intro portions of the important characters and get you moving on content wise. They do introduce each character to you, but obviously the story has deeper meaning and higher stakes if you have done all the other story content previously. However, Rhapsodies should be number 1 priority for anyone playing (even over leveling unless you get stuck) just because the bonuses are so damned good.
So what I'd generally recommend is doing Rhapsodies then going back and finishing up the older story content and then maybe rewatching the Rhapsodies cutscenes after for new context.
Neither Dragoons nor Puppetmasters are bad or ostracized anymore.
Well I did it. I beat the RoV boss. Took me like 12 tries. Each time was a different Trust combination but I beat it with about 30 seconds to spare. Now to finish WotG and SoA! lol
Yeah Cloud of Darkness can be tough solo with trusts because she can really dish out damage and goes into phases where she should not be damaged. She can be cheesed by some jobs , mainly summoner astral conduit/flow zerg. Congrats on the clear!
Thanks! NIN and BLM are the only two jobs I have at 99 and NIN turned out not to be good at all for this fight but it was what I was using for my intermediate RoE upgrades. I just ended up buying bayld gear for my BLM despite not having caught up in skill levels from the Abyssea days but it turned out fine because I played a Dot + back up healing role to my trusts.
On a side note, I'm really digging what little I've started on SoA. I don't know why I've always had this unfair impression that it was hastely put together expansion following the failed release of FFXIV 1.0 but I'm likely to finish it before WotG. The pacing in WotG is just so wack.
SoA is a solid expansion, the zones range from very nice to kind of copy paste, but it's a solid effort for the last true expansion to the game. Most of the content in that expansion are still pretty current too.