My Ideal Expansion

[AyinDygra]

Crystal Shards
(Merit System Extension - actually, more of a replacement)

~*~ Basis ~*~
Crystals in most FF games have been associated with stored memories and life force. In many FF games, characters can gain access to the powers held within the crystals, sometimes only gaining one or two powers, and sometimes this feature reaches even to the extent of gaining entirely new jobs from the crystals and all of their abilities that they had to learn over time.

In one of my proposed "End Game" events for FFXI, the adventurers are recovering the light (Light Warriors) stolen from the mothercrystals (Warriors of the Crystal) when the Zilart tried to use their power to open the gates of paradise. As the adventurers accomplish this task, they gain power and abilities from the crystal shards. This system is inspired by and derived from many past FF games: FF3 (job crystals), FF5 (job crystals), FF6 (Magicite), FF7 (Materia), FF8 (Junctioning), FF9 (Magic Stones), FFX (Spheres), FFXI (Merit Points, Atma and Atmacite), however, it is not a copy of these systems.


~*~ Key Points of the Crystal Shards System ~*~

* Important Terms

Shards: These are fragments of the mothercrystals that contain the memories and life force of past generations. They contain the bonuses we are familiar with from Merits along with a whole new set of bonuses. The name "Shards" implies the concept that they're only a single aspect of a bigger whole, or that they were "broken" off of something and bringing them back together completes the original.

Shard Tiers: Shards have tiers of growth, similar to merits. Some shard tier progression paths are simply one effect getting stronger over time (the merits we are accustomed to.) The other shards gain new effects with each tier (similar to Materia of FF7), and each tier can be set separately. Shard tiers must be purchased in order, even on shards that can have their teirs set separately.

Set Caps: Each category has its own Set Cap. These limit how many shard tiers can be set at any given time. Each shard tier has an individual "set cost" like Blue Magic. Some shards have tiers that can be set individually, others only allow one tier to be set. Setting an entire shard may have a set point discount. Since each category will have its own set cap, some categories may have over a hundred set points, but the shards within them may have tiers that take massive amounts of set points to set (one may require over 50 points, so only one of these powerful abilities could be set, while others in the same category only need 1 to 10 points to set) which allows you to precisely tune the figures for optimal balance easier than dealing with smaller numbers with less flexibility. Don't go crazy with balancing, though, otherwise, adding a single new "merit" to a category could break it.

Motes: Motes are the currency obtained in the "Light Warriors" event -- used to "create" Crystal Armor and some shards. They can be exchanged for either limit points or items that grant limit points, similar to Miratete's Memoirs to spend exclusively on shard growth.

* If this is implemented as a replacement for the Merit system, I'd have it begin at level 75 with only shards that contain the existing merit bonuses (and a few new ones), expanding to the new shards and their features at level 99. This could be controlled by how and when we obtain shards.

* The Shards are kept as "key items" or "Automaton Attachments" not in inventory - although, some shards could drop as one-time usable items that add the shard to our shard list and then disappear like a potion, or become junk to toss.

* Every single shard can be obtained and grown to full power, regardless of jobs available to us to play. Since they do not take effect unless they are set, there is no conflict with completely growing both the "Enmity Increase" and "Enmity Decrease" shards. This also allows growing every single weapon skill increasing shard and magic skill increasing shard. A massive hole to fill with experience is created by allowing this freedom, even if people don't intend to use all of the shards; some will put forth the effort to max out every option they have "just in case."

* A different selection of shards is available to be set by each job. (This means some jobs cannot use some shards, as a balance issue, and while this includes job-specific shards, more of the new shards work this way. The original merit system will remain "unchanged" as far as who can equip which merits that currently exist.)

* Different jobs may equip some (not all) of the same shards, similar to the difference between universal Combat Skill Merits and Job Specific Merits.

* Changing which shards are equipped would have to be done outside of combat (disengaged) and have a cooldown limitation like Blue Mage when they change spell lists (The cooldown for this system may be much longer than Blue Mage's, but 5min maximum). This should absolutely not be limited to "in the mog house only." Points may be spent to grow your shards anywhere.

* I would plan ahead for having several configurations for each job saved and easily switched between, with the last set used by each job remembered and pre-set (perhaps even set through macros).

[AyinDygra]

Here is the system that I envision, broken down into Shard Categories:

Health (Set Cap: 17)
HP/MP
* Max HP, Max MP
* HP recovered while healing, MP recovered while Healing
(The set cap should be adjusted to allow for fully upgraded Max HP or Max MP plus Healing HP or Healing MP, if their maximums are raised)

Maximum HP Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost: 1 Set Point per Tier
*........... +10 HP
**.......... +20 HP
***......... +30 HP
****........ +40 HP
*****....... +50 HP
******...... +60 HP
*******..... +70 HP
********.... +80 HP
*********... +90 HP
**********.. +100 HP
***********. +110 HP
************ +120 HP
(perhaps up to +150 HP with 3 more tiers)
(Same for MP)

Healing HP Shard
This is HP added to your base recovery rate per tick, while resting.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost: 1 Set Point per Tier
*.... +5 HP
**... +10 HP
***.. +15 HP
****. +20 HP
***** +25 HP
(Same for MP)

Attributes (Set Cap: 15)
* Strength, Dexterity, Vitality, Agility, Intelligence, Mind, Charisma
(If you want to keep the current single stat boost limited to 8, simply stop the shard growth at the +8 upgrade tier, and leave room in the game system to add tiers later.)

Strength Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost: 1 Set Point per Tier
*......... +1 Strength
**........ +2 Strength
***....... +3 Strength
****...... +4 Strength
*****..... +5 Strength
******.... +6 Strength
*******... +7 Strength
********.. +8 Strength
*********. +9 Strength
********** +10 Strength
(Same for all stats)

Offensive Melee Skills (Set Cap: 24)
* H2H, Dagger, Sword, Great Sword, Axe, Great Axe, Scythe, Polearm, Katana, Great Katana, Club, Staff, Archery, Marksmanship, Throwing

Sword Skill Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost: 1 Set Point per Tier
*......... Increases sword skill by +2.
**........ Increases sword skill by +4.
***....... Increases sword skill by +6.
****...... Increases sword skill by +8.
*****..... Increases sword skill by +10.
******.... Increases sword skill by +12.
*******... Increases sword skill by +14.
********.. Increases sword skill by +16.
*********. Increases sword skill by +18.
********** Increases sword skill by +20.
(one for each weapon)

Defensive Skills (Set Cap: 10)
* Guarding, Evasion, Shield, Parry

Guard Skill Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost: 1 Set Point per Tier
*.... +2 Guard Skill
**... +4 Guard Skill
***.. +6 Guard Skill
****. +8 Guard Skill
***** +10 Guard Skill
(one for each skill)

Resistances (Set Cap: 10)
* Elemental Damage Reduction
* Status Effect Resistance (These effects stack with job traits)

Firebrand Shard
These elemental shards limit their effect to damage done by the element, not raising their related enfeeble resist rates.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost: 1 Set Point per Tier
*.... Reduce Fire Damage by 2%
**... Reduce Fire Damage by 4%
***.. Reduce Fire Damage by 6%
****. Reduce Fire Damage by 8%
***** Reduce Fire Damage by 10%
(One for each element)

Resist Paralyze Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost: 1 Set Point per Tier
*.... +3% Paralysis resistance. (also reduce duration 3%)
**... +6% Paralysis resistance. (also reduce duration 6%)
***.. +9% Paralysis resistance. (also reduce duration 9%)
****. +12% Paralysis resistance. (also reduce duration 12%)
***** +15% Paralysis resistance. (also reduce duration 15%)
(One for each status)

Magic Skills (Set Cap: 24)
* Divine, Healing, Enhancing, Enfeebling, Elemental, Dark, Summoning, Ninjutsu, Singing, String, Wind, Blue

Divine Magic Skill Shard:
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost: 1 Set Point per Tier
*......... Increases Divine Magic skill by +2.
**........ Increases Divine Magic skill by +4.
***....... Increases Divine Magic skill by +6.
****...... Increases Divine Magic skill by +8.
*****..... Increases Divine Magic skill by +10.
******.... Increases Divine Magic skill by +12.
*******... Increases Divine Magic skill by +14.
********.. Increases Divine Magic skill by +16.
*********. Increases Divine Magic skill by +18.
********** Increases Divine Magic skill by +20.
(one for each magic skill)

Enhance Melee/Ranged Offense (Set Cap: )
* Critical Hit Rate
* Critical Hit Damage
* Melee Accuracy
* Ranged Accuracy
* Melee Attack
* Ranged Attack
* Multiple Attack Rate
* Long Reach

Critical Hit Rate Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost: 1 set point per tier.
*.... Adds +1% Critical Hit Rate.
**... Adds +2% Critical Hit Rate.
***.. Adds +3% Critical Hit Rate.
****. Adds +4% Critical Hit Rate.
***** Adds +5% Critical Hit Rate.

Critical Hit Damage Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. Adds +1% Damage to Critical Hits.
**. Adds +5% Damage to Critical Hits.
*** Adds +10% Damage to Critical Hits.

Melee Accuracy Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Gives +3 accuracy.
**... Gives +5 accuracy.
***.. Gives +7 accuracy.
****. Gives +10 accuracy.
***** Gives +15 accuracy.

Ranged Accuracy Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Gives +3 r.accuracy.
**... Gives +5 r.accuracy.
***.. Gives +7 r.accuracy.
****. Gives +10 r.accuracy.
***** Gives +15 r.accuracy.

Melee Attack Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Gives +3 attack.
**... Gives +5 attack.
***.. Gives +7 attack.
****. Gives +10 attack.
***** Gives +15 attack.

Ranged Attack Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Gives +3 r.attack.
**... Gives +5 r.attack.
***.. Gives +7 r.attack.
****. Gives +10 r.attack.
***** Gives +15 r.attack.

Multiple Attack Rate Shard
Increase the chances for Double, Triple, Quadruple, Kick, and Zanshin attacks.
(This shard only enhances existing multiple attack rates granted by job or gear, it does not add a chance for trait you do not already have without the shard.)
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. Increases the chance for any multiple attacks +1%
**. Increases the chance for any multiple attacks +3%
*** Increases the chance for any multiple attacks +5%

Long Reach Shard
Allows melee attacks against "flying" enemies, with polearms and whips. These are enemies that are normally out of reach of normal auto-attacks. (Like Cuelebre, Ouryu, etc)
(Dragoon and Engineer get a tiered version of this trait normally, see the Engineer thread for tiers and effects.)
With tiers 2 and 3, Polearms, Whips, Bows, Crossbows, Guns, Cannons and Chakrams now grant bonus damage to "flying enemies" and this effect extends to several enemies that only appear to be flying and levitating like Bees, Spheroids, Ahrimen, Imps, Puks, Bats, Birds, Flytraps, Flies, Ladybugs, Wamoura, Colibri, Yovra, Ghrah, Wanderers, Gears, Bombs, Clusters, Djinn, Pixies, Moogles, Enemy pet wyverns, and Wyrms and Gargouilles that can switch between land and flying mode, when they're flying.
*.. Allows melee attacks to damage "flying" enemies. (only with Polearms and whips)
**. Deals 10% bonus damage to "flying" enemies. (total: 110% damage)
*** Deals 15% bonus damage to "flying" enemies. (total: 115% damage)

[AyinDygra]

Enhance Magic Offense (Set Cap: )
* Magic Critical Hit Rate
* Magic Accuracy
* Magic Potency
* Elemental Relationship
* Piercing Magic

Magic Critical Hit Rate Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. Adds +1% Magic Critical Hit Rate.
**. Adds +3% Magic Critical Hit Rate.
*** Adds +5% Magic Critical Hit Rate.

Magic Accuracy Shard
This is a generic magic accuracy effect, not linked to any one magic skill. It applies to all magic.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Gives +3 Magic Accuracy.
**... Gives +6 Magic Accuracy.
***.. Gives +9 Magic Accuracy.
****. Gives +12 Magic Accuracy.
***** Gives +15 Magic Accuracy.

Magic Potency Shard
This is a generic magic potency effect, not linked to any one element. This only applies to damage, not enfeeble/buff effects. Individual spell potencies will be part of a different shard section.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Gives +2 Magic Potency.
**... Gives +4 Magic Potency.
***.. Gives +6 Magic Potency.
****. Gives +8 Magic Potency.
***** Gives +10 Magic Potency.

Elemental Relationship Shard
For instance, it makes fire magic much stronger against fire-weak enemies than any other spell of the same tier. However, it would also make thunder magic used against a thunder-strong enemy do negligable damage.
(You can set any one or all of these tiers once acquired.)
Tier Cost:
*.. Increase Elemental Relationship Effects
**. Increase Bonus From Proper Weather
*** MP return on spells cast during same-element weather.

Piercing Magic Shard
(You can set any one or all of these tiers once acquired.)
Tier Cost:
*.. Prevents the lowest tiers of resists. (no resists below 50% damage)
**. Increases magic critical hit damage.
*** Single target spells cannot be reflected by targets. (prevents Colibri mimic?)

Enhance Defense (Set Cap: 15)
* Enemy Critical Hit Rate
* Spell Interruption Rate
* Damage Blocked by Shields
* Damage Blocked by Guard
* Increase TP gained when hit.

Enemy Critical Hit Rate Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost: 1 set point per tier.
*.... Reduces Rate 1%
**... Reduces Rate 2%
***.. Reduces Rate 3%
****. Reduces Rate 4%
***** Reduces Rate 5%

Spell Interruption Rate Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost: 1 set point per tier.
*.... Reduces Rate 2%
**... Reduces Rate 4%
***.. Reduces Rate 6%
****. Reduces Rate 8%
***** Reduces Rate 10%

Damage Blocked By Shields Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Reduces damage by 2%
**... Reduces damage by 4%
***.. Reduces damage by 6%
****. Reduces damage by 8%
***** Reduces damage by 10%

Damage Blocked By Guard Shard
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Reduces damage by 3%
**... Reduces damage by 6%
***.. Reduces damage by 9%
****. Reduces damage by 12%
***** Reduces damage by 15%

Stalwart Shard
When hit by an enemy, you gain additional TP.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. +1 TP
**. +2 TP
*** +3 TP

Teamwork/Cooperation (Set Cap: )
* Received-Cure Potency, Received-Refresh Potency, Received-TP Potency
* TP Gift from Skillchains
* MP Gift from Magic Bursts

Nightingale Shard
Increases HP received from cures. (Cure spells, Curing Waltz, Blue magic, etc)
(This allows cures to break the Cure Potency Cap that is imposed on the caster of the cure.)
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. Received-Cure Potency +5%
**. Received-Cure Potency +10%
*** Received-Cure Potency +15%

Astral Shard
Increases MP received from Refresh. (Refresh, Refresh II, Devotion, Evoker's Roll, Diabolos's Favor, Mantelets, Mage's Ballads)
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. Refresh Potency +1 MP
**. Refresh Potency +2 MP
*** Refresh Potency +3 MP

Tactician Shard
Increases TP received from special sources, not auto-attacks. (Including: Reverse Flourish, Tactical Guard, Tactical Parry, Zanshin, Kicks, Meditate, Tactical Switch, Occult Acumen, Shield Mastery, Spirit Link, Shikikoyo, Absorb-TP)
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. +1 TP
**. +2 TP
*** +3 TP

Renkei Gift Shard
Grants TP to the entire party when a skillchain is successfully created. (This gift is only given once per skillchain, using the highest tier of the shard set by anyone in the party, in range.)
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. 5 TP given to all party members in range.
**. 10 TP given to all party members in range.
*** 15 TP given to all party members in range.

Mana Gift Shard
If you cast a spell that creates a Magic Burst, the party receives MP.
The only limit to this effect is how many Magic Bursts can be triggered off of one skillchain.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. 3% MP Cost of Magic Bursted Spell is given to party members.
**. 6% MP Cost of Magic Bursted Spell is given to party members.
*** 9% MP Cost of Magic Bursted Spell is given to party members.

Sphere Effects (Set Cap: 1)
* Sphere Effects (New sphere effects that also impact the character generating the sphere.)

I'll let SE decide what sphere effects are possible. While they probably want to keep these effects on gear at the moment (it's also on Atmacite), it's a great category to think about for "merits".
All sphere tiers cost 1 point (the maximum), so it would only be possible to equip one sphere regardless of strength.

The creation of Sphere Shards could be by gaining the maximum level of the Atmacites from Voidwatch.

Enmity (Set Cap: 15)
* Enmity Increase
* Enmity Decrease
* Decrease Enmity Loss Over Time
* Increase Enmity Loss Over Time
* Increase Enmity Transfer
* Grudge
These shards should make battles where enmity is an issue run much more smoothly. The terminology used of "Cumulative" and "Volatile" enmity are there to help clarify the distinction between the merits and their true functions, rather than throwing the word "hate" around for everything.

Hatred Shard
This increases "Cumulative" enmity built up by actions.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Increase Enmity +1
**... Increase Enmity +2
***.. Increase Enmity +3
****. Increase Enmity +4
***** Increase Enmity +5

Peace Shard
This reduces "Cumulative" enmity built up by actions.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Reduce Enmity -1
**... Reduce Enmity -2
***.. Reduce Enmity -3
****. Reduce Enmity -4
***** Reduce Enmity -5

Provocation Shard
This keeps "Volatile" enmity higher for a longer period of time.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. Decrease Loss of Enmity Over Time -5
**. Decrease Loss of Enmity Over Time -10
*** Decrease Loss of Enmity Over Time -15

Appeasement Shard
This forces "Volatile" enmity to dissipate faster.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. Increase Loss of Enmity Over Time +5
**. Increase Loss of Enmity Over Time +10
*** Increase Loss of Enmity Over Time +15

Deceiver's Shard
Increase the amount of enmity transferred by abilities like Accomplice, Collaborator, Cover and Trick Attack.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Increase transferred enmity by 10%
**... Increase transferred enmity by 20%
***.. Increase transferred enmity by 30%
****. Increase transferred enmity by 40%
***** Increase transferred enmity by 50%

Grudge Shard
A special shard that keeps you at the top of an enemy's "hate list" when they use "enmity reset" abilities.
(Paladins can have gear that enhances this trait)
Tier Cost:
* The enemies you have attacked will remain angry with you.

Specialization (Set Cap: )
* Ability Recasts/Effect-Activation-Rates/Durations
* Spell Recasts/Effect-Activation-Rates/Durations

Mostly Job-Specific shards in this category, allowing players to specialize in certain aspects of their jobs. I won't list them all, but I will give examples. Ideally, we should be able to set the same "merits" we had before, with room for a few new effects.

Chakra Recast Shard
Monk Only
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Reduces Chakra recast by 10 seconds.
**... Reduces Chakra recast by 20 seconds.
***.. Reduces Chakra recast by 30 seconds.
****. Reduces Chakra recast by 40 seconds.
***** Reduces Chakra recast by 50 seconds.

Counter Rate Shard
Monk Only
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Increase counter attack rate by 1%
**... Increase counter attack rate by 2%
***.. Increase counter attack rate by 3%
****. Increase counter attack rate by 4%
***** Increase counter attack rate by 5%

[AyinDygra]

Job Abilities (Set Cap: )
* New Abilities
* Augments and Enhancements of existing abilities.

Again, mostly Job-Specific shards in this category, however, this will contain a new variety of shards that actually add new abilities to any job with the shard equipped. Most of these new shards will be created through a process much like unlocking weaponskills on Nyzul weapons.

Previous merits that fit this category include Mantra, Angon, Martyr, Feint & Saber Dance, however, I think all abilities and spells should be "learned" by the job naturally from leveling up/scrolls/questing, with merits simply enhancing/augmenting them. I'm just working within the existing system here.

Chakra Mastery Shard (Augment/Enhance Shard)
(really, I'd prefer this shard be given as a normal Job Trait beginning at level 40 with different tiers as in my Monk Ideas post, however, it makes a good example shard)
Monk Only
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Adds MP restoration to Chakra. (2x Mind)
**... Gives Chakra an Area of Effect, heals other party members 20% of the HP and MP restored to the Monk & status removal.
***.. AoE restores 30% of HP/MP restored to Monk.
****. AoE restores 40% of HP/MP restored to Monk.
***** AoE restores 50% of HP/MP restored to Monk. While Mantra is in effect, Chakra AoE restores 100% of HP/MP restored to Monk.

Footwork Mastery Shard (Augment/Enhance Shard)
These effects are only active under Footwork.
Monk Only
(You can set any one or all of these tiers once acquired. Discount for full shard.)
Tier Cost:
*.... Allows kicks to stun enemies briefly (long enough to interrupt spells and stop TP moves)
**... Increases damage against enemies with high defense. (no effect on enemies with low defense)
***.. Increases Double Kick rate +10%
****. Changes counterattacks from punches to kicks.
***** Allows 4 kicks per round. (up to a Double attack on each kick or a triple on one kick)

Weaponskills (Set Cap: )
* Weaponskill enhancing.
* Weaponskill unlocking.
These shards aim to enlarge the weaponskills available to players on multiple jobs.

Hand to Hand Weaponskill Shard
Master the techniques of Hand to Hand fighting with this weaponskill shard.
(You can set any one or all of these tiers once acquired. Discount for full shard.)
Tier Cost:
*... Allows access to all non-quest Hand to Hand weaponskills, regardless of job/support job.
**.. Increases the damage of all Hand to Hand Weaponskills by 10%
***. Grants TP Bonus to all Hand to Hand Weaponskills (+50?)
**** Grants access to Relic Weaponskill. (must equip a weapon with access to this Weaponskill to unlock this shard tier to purchase) Such as Spharai or Heofon Knuckles for Final Heaven.
**** Grants access to Empyrean Weaponskill. (must equip a weapon with access to this Weaponskill to unlock this shard tier to purchase) Such as Verethragna or Revenant Fists for Victory Smite
(I would include Mythic, but it already has a quest to unlock its weaponskill without the weapon equipped)
(one for each weapon)

Glory Slash Shard
Unlock the Sword Weaponskill to use outside of Campaign.
Tier Cost:
* Unlocks Glory Slash for use outside of Campaign.
(one for each Campaign Weaponskill, including many that are not yet accessible to players. These shards may be gained by fighting the Campaign Generals in the Simulacrum Arena a number of times, or bought with Arena Points.)

Serpent General weaponskills could be added here as well.

Spells (Set Cap: )
* New Spells
* Old Spell Potency/Accuracy Merits
Similar to the Job Abilities category, there are mostly Job-Specific shards here, with the new shards that grant access to new spells.

Impact Shard
Unlock the Impact Spell.
Tier Cost:
* Unlocks the Impact spell without wearing the Twilight Cloak.

Reviviscence Shard
Unlock the Reviviscence Spell. (Raise without Death Sickness.)
Tier Cost:
* Unlocks the Reviviscence spell without wearing the...

More added here.

Traits (Set Cap: )
* Job Trait Mastery Shards
* Augments/Enhancements to Traits
* New Traits
Similar to the Job Abilities category, there are mostly Job-Specific shards here, with new shards granting a wide variety of new traits or improvements to existing traits. Existing merits that grant traits that fit into this category include: Snapshot, Ninja Tool Expertise, Fine Tuning, Optimization, Closed Position and Overwhelm)

<Job> Trait Shard (Grants all traits up to current shard tier)
These shards can be equipped by any job. Since they offer a significant variety of effects, they should have a high "set cost". If this shard is set on the corresponding main job, the cost is reduced significantly, since they're only activating the Tier6 bonus because they gain all the other traits as they level up, automatically. (Mimics may simply get a higher limit to setting these shards than other jobs, depending on how the Mimic job is implemented, if it is... see the Mimic thread to see why this is a concern.)
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*..... Levels 1-20 Traits
**.... Levels 1-40 Traits
***... Levels 1-60 Traits
****.. Levels 1-80 Traits
*****. Levels 1-99 Traits
****** This tier grants additional Job-related bonuses that are desirable enough for that job to equip its own trait shard, despite getting all of their job's traits automatically. This is "similar" to the system available in FF5.

Tier6 for Warrior:
****** Double Attack Rate Bonus +5%, Combat Skill Bonus (all offensive combat skills +5)

Tier6 for Monk:
****** HP bonus, Hand-to-hand Skill +10, Quadruple Attack +2%

Tier6 for White Mage:
****** Cure Potency +10%, Resist all status ailments (elemental resistance) +10%

Tier6 for Thief:
****** Triple Attack Rate +5%, Critical Hit Damage +10%, Treasure Hunter Upgrade Chance +10%

Tier6 for Black Mage:
****** Magic Attack Bonus +10%, Magic Skill Bonus (all Black Mage magic skills +5)

... and so on for each job.

Formless Strikes Shard (Augment/Enhance Shard)
"Formless Strikes" becomes a trait as long as this shard is equipped, rather than a timed ability.
Monk Only
(You can set any one or all of these tiers once acquired. Discount for full shard.)
Tier Cost:
*.. Changes auto-attacks from physical blunt damage to non-elemental magic damage.
**. Allows enspells cast on the Monk to change the elemental type of their strikes.
*** Attacks with Formless Strikes do not allow the target to receive "extra" TP. ("extra" is that amount of TP which is added on by all monsters when they receive melee hits above and beyond that received by players when they are hit by monsters.)

Grapple Shard (Adds New Monk Job Trait: Grappler)
Increases a Monk's abilities in close combat.
Monk Only
(You can set any one or all of these tiers once acquired. Discount for full shard.)
Tier Cost:
*.... Guarded attacks stun enemies briefly.
**... Counterattacks grant 2 TP.
***.. Guard Rate increase +20%
****. Counterattack rate increase +5%
***** Guarded attacks trigger an additional counterattack. (Counter-Kick during footwork)

Auto-Status (Set Cap: )
This is a new category of shards that provide status effects as long as they're equipped. They cannot be dispelled.
* Auto-Haste
* Auto-Life
* Auto-Shell
* Auto-Protect
* Auto-Regen
* Auto-Refresh
* Auto-Regain
* Auto-Reflect

Auto-Haste Shard
Grants haste that does not wear off, while set. (Counts toward spell haste cap, since most auto-shards are based on spells)
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. 5% Haste
**. 10% Haste
*** 15% Haste

Auto-Life Shard
Grants reraise that does not wear off, while set.
(You can only set one tier of this shard.)
Tier Cost:
*.. Reraise I
**. Reraise II
*** Reraise III

Auto-Shell Shard
Grants Shell that does not wear off, while set.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... Shell I
**... Shell II
***.. Shell III
****. Shell IV
***** Shell V
(Same for Auto-Protect)

Auto-Regen Shard
Provides the effect of regen, while set.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... 1hp/tick
**... 3hp/tick
***.. 5hp/tick
****. 7hp/tick
***** 10hp/tick

Auto-Refresh Shard
Provides the effect of refresh, while set.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.... 1mp/tick
**... 2mp/tick
***.. 3mp/tick
****. 4mp/tick
***** 5mp/tick

Auto-Regain Shard
Provides the effect of regain, while set.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. 1tp/tick
**. 2tp/tick
*** 3tp/tick

Auto-Reflect Shard (assuming this status is added)
Changes the target of most single-target spells from the Reflected Target to the caster.
(You can only set one tier from this type of shard)
Tier Cost:
*.. Re-applies Reflect once every minute.
**. Re-applies Reflect once every 45 seconds.
*** Re-applies Reflect once every 30 seconds.

[AyinDygra]

Non-Combat (Set Cap: )
These statuses do not belong in with combat nor are they limited to specific jobs.

Boko Shard
(You can set any one or all of these tiers once acquired.)
Tier Cost:
*.. Increases movement speed +12.5%
**. Increases movement speed effect durations by 30 seconds. (Flee, Chocobo Jig, Chocobo Mazurka, Bolter's Roll)
*** Allows flee speed at all times in towns.

Kupofried Shard
(You can set any one or all of these tiers once acquired.)
Tier Cost:
*.. Prevents aggressive Easy Prey monsters from initiating combat.
**. Greatly reduces detection range of all aggressive enemies.
*** Increases duration of Sneak, Invisible, Deodorize effects by 1 minute.

Crafting (Set Cap: )
* Increase High Quality Rate
* Decrease Material Loss Rate
* Increase Desynthesis Success Rate
* (Mog House bonus enhancements?)

I'm not a big crafter, so I won't suggest more specifics here.

I'll stop there. (someone posted an idea about meriting our Adventuring Fellows, which sounds like a great idea to me.)

Many details were left open, such as Set Caps and individual Shard Tier Costs. I didn't want to go into full detail with every single existing merit, and new merits for every job, or how I'd adjust every single job's merits, since we know a Merit Revamp/Overhaul is on the horizon.

Hopefully, this Crystal Shards merit system concept inspires the development team and gets their imaginations running!

[AyinDygra]

* "Monster Arena": (endgame event)
The Simulacrum forces the re-opening of Hazhalm Testing Grounds' secret Soul Plate laboratory. Here, they focus their research on creating never-before-seen monsters to challenge in the arena. Nothing pleases them more than experiencing something new and different.

* Introduction of super bosses created similar to FFX's Monster Arena.
* Collect and combine soul plate monsters.
* Gain rewards just for completing certain sets of plates.
* Costs Gil, Jettons or Scylds to fight each creation (Species, Region, Notorious, Original).
* May require raising the base monsters to a certain level through Pankration battles, before combining. (these creations become soul plates, and soul plates are bazaarable, creating a new "craft" in effect. This allows people who don't really enjoy Pankration to still participate in this facet of endgame)
* Rewards include primarily Battle Arena Points, then possibly merit-like additions to characters (maybe some actually useful evoliths and aptant armor sets as outlined in the Battle Arena Rewards post.) and Jettons/Scylds too.
* Reflector Pets created by the new Beastmaster Job Ability: Reflection for short duration pets based on Pankration monster reflectors and Notorious monster versions for one-time attacks called forth with the Beastmaster Job Ability: Beastlord's Command. (Species Creations, Region Creations and Original Creations can be used with Beastlord's Command after they have been defeated. The "Notorious Monsters" section serves a different function in this event.)
* Due to the vast variety provided by soul plates, there should be a way to store favorite reflectors, not just soul plates, outside of normal inventories. (Something like an album or a monster stable)


Species Creations
Collect all the desired soul plates of a species desired by the Monster Arena. (This does not need to include all members of every species in every area like FFX's Monster Arena due to the ever-expanding nature of FFXI, a static list is required for achievable goals to be instated for each collection requirement.) The unlocked "Species HNM" will be of the corresponding species.


Region Creations
Collect one soul plate of each creature in each zone. (These may overlap with the Species requests, and they count for both lists; these lists will never include the NMs found in the zone, only regular enemies.) Collecting the desired creatures will unlock a new soul plate HNM that represents that zone in some way. It may be a totally different species than anything else found in that group of zones; perhaps a legendary beast from the lore of the Region.


Notorious Monsters
Collect one soul plate of each Notorious Monster on the lists, similar to the Data Analyzer and Logger EX (Dale). These HNMs can now be fought in the arena for a cost of Gil, Jettons or Scylds. They will not drop the items that they do in the wild, however, defeating them may provide you with an item to pop the real version. No special monsters are created by defeating collections of HNMs, however, some of the "Original Creations" may be unlocked in this way. (This system may be combined with the Red "Hunt Registry" books.)


Original Creations
Defeat combinations of the Species, Area and Notorious creations to unlock new Original HNMs in this arena. These are the main "end game" feature of the Monster Arena. These monsters actually drop items. They are not simple reflections created by soul plates... something interacts in the Hazhalm Testing Grounds, either the portal to the underworld that Odin breaches in Einherjar or something like that.



* Reflector Pet
The Simulacrum has perfected reflector technology, allowing Pankration monsters to be materialized outside of the pit cages. Only Beastmasters have the skill to control these powerful beasts, and they cannot remain materialized for long periods of time. These pets would be leveled up in Pankration matches, not with normal experience like adventuring fellows. There is the possibility for the Reflector Pets to be level 99 and be called by a lower level Beastmaster. In such a case, its level would scale down to the Beastmaster's current level.

Reflector pets can simply be a monster that you create from a single soul plate. However, they can also be much more. By combining soul plates, you can merge innate family traits and attacks from one onto another.

The normal Reflector Pets can include examples such as these:
Create a Warrior/Samurai Rabbit with a tiger's paralyzing roar, a crawler's cocoon, and a Dhalmel's Healing Breeze.
Create a Thief/Monk Chigoe with a Puk's Obfuscate, an Ahriman's Eyes on Me, and an Orobon's Seaspray.
The possibilities are vast and frightening. (now imagine these beasts as notorious monsters you have to fight in the arena!)

Beastmasters would have the new ability: "Reflection" (level 50) that would create the monster on the reflector (which would never be "consumed" by this ability) but they don't last very long... maybe 15 minutes, with a 15 minute recast. They'd be useful for when a beastmaster doesn't want to use a jugpet for a short period of play time, or their "Call Beast" timer is down, but not a total replacement for normal pets. The main issue for these pets would be the cost to use their attacks, perhaps all of them would cost an additional point to use with "Ready" (max of 3) since you can customize your pet with a selection of attacks from several monster families to best serve your goals.

I call those "normal Reflector Pets" because of this next category, used in the new Beastmaster Job Ability:
* Beastlord's Command (Level 96)
Again, HNMs are in a league of their own and cannot be called out for any great length of time. In fact, their sole purpose is to appear, use their signature ability, and then disappear, which was the ability mentioned in the Beastmaster manifesto. (an example would be a pet Cerberus that uses "Gates of Hades".)

These boss monsters would also be leveled up via Pankration battles.



Beastmaster Side-note:
At the present time, I think out of all pet jobs, Beastmaster has the least connection to its pets.
Others have suggested a "chocobo raising based system" for personal Beastmaster pets, and that would still work alongside this idea. In fact, this "Monster Ranch" type area could be on the Western Continent of Ulbuka, with the Veldt and Echidna, "the mother of all monsters."

More pet options are always a good idea in my opinion; especially cheaper options that don't take up too much inventory.
Still another idea is an "adventuring fellow based system" to raise a pet (Familiar) and level it up with you in normal combat. Again, this would work alongside this system very well, as an alternative. If Beastmaster got all of these, they could spend time with several unique pets that they have put work into developing, rather than just "throw-away" pets that matter very little.

[AyinDygra]

Tavnazia
This endgame event is actually two separate events.

(I'm "Hiding" this stuff since it spoils a lot of stuff from several storylines; mainly Chains of Promathia.)

* The defending of Tavnazia in the past is part of the Simulacrum arena's "Historic Battles" selection.

In this event, there are several Campaign-style battles to accomplish certain tasks to ensure certain outcomes, such as making sure Aldo escapes safely, and protecting the Tarutaru while they launch that meteor/comet, among any other possible events going on during that epic battle. (Remember when Aldo's sister was trapped by the Orcs and it seemed she was killed in the movie? We know she survived -- That was due to our actions!)

* Retaking the city from the Beastmen forces in the present.

The second Tavnazia-based event is more of a true endgame area, battling the beastman forces that currently hold Tavnazia in the present. The adventurers will be under the direction of Aldo, Rochefogne and Louverance, with the aid of their forces: the Tenshodo, the Knights Mistalle, and the "unexpected" help from Atarefaunet Remevel(?)'s "brigands", and possibly soldiers from the Tavnazian Safehold. Prishe may help out too. (there is the slight chance that the Tavnazian fomors may help as well)

Character Motivations:
Aldo seems to be the boy who escaped Tavnazia and also the man leading the huge army of adventurers back to Tavnazia in the opening movie.
Rochefogne is the rightful marquis of Tavnazia whose misguided actions cut Tavnazia off from the world.
Louverance wants to bring honor to his family's name and possibly help atone for San d'Oria's betrayal of Tavnazia (besides, he got tied up in the whole story due to Atarefaunet's actions during Chains of Promathia.
Atarefaunet wants to restore Tavnazia, and he's been gathering money and supplies ("brigands" and Mimeo Mirror blackmail) to mount a massive offensive against the beastmen.
Gilgamesh and many from Norg and Selbina are originally from Tavnazia as well, so they'd have motivation to go back or help in some way to reclaim it.)

The Event
There could be a mission-style story moving through Blueblade Fell, then unlocking each section of Tavnazia (similar to Dynamis progression requiring city wins to unlock northlands) one at a time, eventually working our way up the city hill, crossing the rock bridge to the castle. Each section should be desirable to battle through, and there should be objectives that can be accomplished alone (mission story progress), in small groups (gear-dropping NMs), and in alliances (optional Mega-bosses). These are to be open battlegrounds, not time-locked zones with only alliance-based challenges.

Motes of light from the partial unsheathing of the Lightbringer sword (perhaps the Avatar of Ragnarok in sword form) may remain in Tavnazia. Collecting these motes may help restore light to the Mothercrystals (if the energy types are compatible ... making this connection between the Lightbringer sword and the Avatar Ragnarok and the history of Olduum, Odin, Alexander and the Gordius... connects the plots all together, finally making Treasures of Aht Urhgan seem connected to the rest of the game!)

No staggering here, at least not in the ways that have been implemented in Abyssea or Dynamis.

Rewards
Since the "Light Warriors" event is about collecting Crystal Armor, this may function as the final weaponry end game event. However, this may just be another part of the "Light Warriors" event, if motes are involved here too. Crystal Shards may drop here, granting/improving traits, spells and abilities.

A crazy thought...

If Tavnazia isn't made an endgame battle zone event (this is a last resort to get it added to the game), it could be one of those all-server collective effort events, similar to the Crystal War re-enactment prior to the Wings of the Goddess release. Aldo, Rochefogne and Louverance could lead the players back to Tavnazia (the Tenshodo become the new city's spies and navy, with the Knights Mistalle as the guards and army.) In this campaign style event, all servers cooperate to defeat the forces that have taken up residence in the abandoned city of Tavnazia. A tally could be kept on each server of how many beastmen and wyrms are wiped out for some bonuses.

After the servers-wide event, Tavnazia becomes a new city - the new "Light Warrior's Capital" of the world - with:
* An airship port to: all the nation cities, Jeuno (Tenshodo port entrance), the Safehold (Sea Lion's den), passage to the other continents and to the locations for the endgame events related to restoring the light to the mothercrystals
* A boat to/from Norg and Whitegate
* An auction house
* Abyssea warps
* Magian Moogles
* etc.
One of the cave tunnels in Lufaise Meadows (maybe the tunnel near those Treants) could link to the "Blueblade Fell" zone, outside of Tavnazia, for the method of reaching it on foot.
(guards may block access to the tunnels and the airship ports unless players are far enough along in the story, especially Chains of Promathia, since the Tavnazian Safehold NPC conversations change at several points in the story talking about how they lost Tavnazia).
Other connecting zones could be previously collapsed corridors in the Phomiuna Aqueducts and the Sacrarium. They could also build a bridge from Blueblade Fell to Cape Terrigan, since the landmass was "cut off" during the war.

I'm just throwing these "alternate" ideas out there, so SE can take whatever they like and run with it.

[AyinDygra]

Personal Airships (Mog House addition)
We have outgrown our Mog Houses. They may be nice quiet places to go while in town, but why can't we have a more dynamic base of operations (while keeping our Mog Houses)? Airships are the perfect platform to use for this purpose, flying buildings that aren't limited by location.

* They should have more than one room that we can decorate and store things in, possibly allowing us to set up several rooms with different mog enhancements which we can choose from as our activities change.

* They would also allow us to quickly go where we need to go without waiting on schedules. To avoid the problem of docking: place a teleport rune on the airship and at locations where we can disembark (likely near savepoint crystals and in our Mog Houses in each nation). Moogles can run our airships and manage our landing sites. (Adventuresome moogles may paradive down to create new landing site locations for us! We may have to reach locations by "normal" means before we can simply warp down in the future.)

New Airship Battlegrounds
* Fighting monsters on the deck while in flight will be possible (HNMs that take a group - remember we can invite other people into our moghouses now - same function here) and we can keep our ships in flight for as long as the battle lasts, instead of being tied to scheduled departure and landing times (we don't actually have to have a destination).

We could equip our airships with weaponry (cannons, energy nets) to help us in these battles (furniture), and gather support NPCs (moogles, adventuring fellow, reflector monster) like Tenzen did (Chebuki triplets). This personal airship may also be the only way to reach certain destinations that allow access to HNMs.

New Airship Activities
* New furniture that enables Triple Triad and those tables added to most towns "could" be there (though I don't see them being very popular).

New Airship Zones
These zones would be for airship flight, possibly with Wyrms and other enemies flying around that you could fight on the deck of the Airship, but more importantly, they'd be ways to access regions of some areas that are inaccessible from the ground, similar to the first mission in FFX-2. Clearly, there wouldn't be a sky for every single zone in the game, more like:
* The Skies of Mindartia
* The Skies of Quon
* The Skies of (one for each of the outer continents - maybe one zone entrance is in the highest mountains of an area surrounded by the emptiness below, working its way up.)
* The skies above the Shu'Meyo sea would be too dangerous (need special protection or flight devices) for our airships, requiring the use of Cid's airship in The Sealion's Den in the Safehold. That way, Tu'Lia and Al'Taieu stay off-limits - though, you may be able to teleport to Tu'Lia through the green teleport pads or maybe a new moogle location near the region ownership flag.

A story-related point is that likely, initially, the only ways to reach the outer continents will be by seafaring boats which are notoriously slow for sea voyages as compared to speedy airship travel which doesn't exist outside of the middle lands (we'll have to assume the only airships in existence were created by Cid and the Zilart) and later, teleportation magic? Maybe trains, though they'd have to either go across a massive bridge, or tunnel under the water) (plus, Trains were discontinued in Bastok, but they prove that level of technology is possible) However, only personal airships would make sense to travel to and from these areas in a timely manner (and teleportation methods obviously.)

(another section cut short to get this whole expansion idea out there)

[AyinDygra]

Triple Triad
Using the soul plate system to create the cards fits right into the game-related theme of this expansion. It's the perfect game for FFXI to have available anywhere (but due to the coding issues involving NPC dialog filling up whatever space was needed just to cram the Abyssean warp NPCs into certain zones, I could certainly see this game only being available in the field, or special zones like the Coliseum, Chocobo Race Track, Simulacrum Arena, etc) If playing in town meant essentially "zoning into" the Triple Triad zone for each game, and getting warped back to town each time a game was over, it might work out, but it would also cut people off from the shouts they're hoping to hear while waiting around, among other things like party invites. Perhaps this game zone could share the same "Yell" region as towns.

Major Points:
* A card game that can be played with NPCs and other people.
* I don't think I need to copy-paste the rules and information from an existing FF game to describe it here, but some key features were the 3x3 grid, fast games and easy-to-understand rules.

* There is one major point I'd like to bring up though: Please don't have rules "migrate"... it "worked" for a single player game, but even then, I hated the rules changing on me. Players should be able to agree upon rules before a match begins.

* Ante Cards: Friendly exhibition games should be allowed without the need of an ante. I guess this falls into the whole rules thing, but that's a specific topic I'd make important. I'd remove the single card and full deck ante rules entirely, if it were up to me.
[INDENT]Cards should be obtained by these methods:
* Soul Plate exchange with Simulacrum NPCs to turn them into Triple Triad Cards. (required for HNM cards)
* Enemies dropping cards as loot.
* Corsair "Card" ability that turns a critical HP enemy directly into a card. (does not create HNM cards, will "fail")
(this ability could be used to create a new type of card for use with a new corsair ability - I'm just leaving the option open here, not that I have a specific idea for it. It fits for making Triple Triad cards, though.)


(The HNM restriction is to make sure Corsairs can't ruin an HNM battle where it would have dropped actual items people wanted, just to make their little cards. It also makes it possible for everyone at an HNM fight to collect a soul plate of the HNM to make into cards.)

[AyinDygra]

New Jobs:
I fully understand that these are unlikely to be created since we already have 20 jobs, and many of them need adjustments. However, if there is any chance whatsoever that new jobs ARE considered, these are the ones I'd like to see. (There are 6 jobs, keeping things even. The first 2 jobs I personally want to play more than any current jobs available.)

* Chemist (See Full Post/s)
With the advent of Synergy and portable furnaces, Alchemists and Engineers create a way to make the mixing of potions practical on the battlefield with portable alembics and a new method of Chemistry, extracting the essences of practically everything in the world to mix into potent new potions with a wide range of effects, both helpful and harmful.

* Engineer (See Full Post/s)
The nations of Vana'diel again turn to their Engineers to devise a way to protect them now as in the past during the Crystal War and more recently with the help of Cid in the conflicts with the biotechnological weapons such as the Mammets, Ultima & Omega and the Caturae. Their wide range of technological tools, constructs and traps give them the edge in the battles ahead.

* Judgemaster (See Full Post/s)
To oversee the games of the Simulacrum, Judgemasters have been appointed. They use powerful techniques and technologies to enforce "laws" on the participants of battles in their vicinity. They can change the course of a battle by prohibiting certain actions entirely or penalizing their use on one hand, or approving the use of other actions on the other hand. They can also render judgments on the participants of battle, further swaying things one way or the other.

* Mimic (See Full Post/s)
The combat style used by most of the Simulacrum is that of the Mimic, playing to their strengths of being able to learn how to perform techniques and magics after watching a single time, having learned all there is to know about physical and magical combat. They can copy the actions of those around them and pick and choose from abilities and traits they have already mastered for whatever battle they see ahead, adjusting to the challenges they must face. This requires that a mimic already have much experience with combat themselves, long before they attempt to mimic the combat style of someone else.

* Jikuu Sage (time & space mage) (See Full Post/s)
Understanding Atomos and how it interacts with dimensions and time itself, a new school of magic once only known to the Simulacrum becomes known to those of Vana'diel. The strategic use of both the flow of time and warping of space may just give the adventurers the advantage they need. (I totally thought this job was going to be added with Wings of the Goddess)

* Geomancer
I didn't have time to fully flesh this concept out (no post of its own or skill/spell lists), but it would be based mostly on FFT's Axe-wielding Geomancer with a mix of FF3, FF5 (bell wielding guys), and Mog from FF6, using themes from the western continent of Ulbuka with "Native American" and "Aztec/Mayan" visuals.

Mini-Geomancer-post:

I see Geomancer as a melee mage with damage+enfeebling "Job Ability Spells" using one-handed axes for melee and bells for ranged; TP-driven geomancy spells learned from different environments, but usable anywhere, given bonuses when used in their respective environments (perhaps with Job Abilities that "create" suitable temporary environments). They'd get counter-geomancy as a job trait.

Geomancy spells in FFT were fairly weak, but had a long range and inflicted enfeebles, so when wielding bells to deal damage and build TP, they could still make use of their Geomancy from the safety of the back lines (although front lines will give them TP a lot faster.) Since they use bells, they could have a symbiotic relationship with Bards and other Geomancers. The weather of Scholars and Dances of Dancers may also be beneficial for them, even though Geomancers are mainly terrain based, not weather based; Native Americans who used rain dances fit the theme, combining all three (weather, dances, axes).