Is it me or do mage jobs seem very expensive to level as a noob first time player?

[Artaniss]

Is it me or do mage jobs seem very expensive to level as a noob first time player? Leveling a WHM as a first time player ( noob ) and man it is getting expensive to level and get all his spells and stuff . If this is the case can anyione tell me which job is bets to level first as a noob so I can have enough money later on and level a WHM or another caster job? Thanks...

[Arcon]

Generally melee jobs are all less expensive to level than mage jobs. Especially MNK and THF are very simple and cheap to level and THF in particular will also help with money, mostly from random drops from Abyssea while farming KIs and triggers. However, the real money won't come in until you do some serious crafting or events like Dynamis or Salvage, which will require a huge initial investment in the case of crafting and a more sophisticated approach in the case of events, because you'll need certain job combinations to perform well at it, along with at least some basic gear sets.

[Artaniss]

Generally melee jobs are all less expensive to level than mage jobs. Especially MNK and THF are very simple and cheap to level and THF in particular will also help with money, mostly from random drops from Abyssea while farming KIs and triggers. However, the real money won't come in until you do some serious crafting or events like Dynamis or Salvage, which will require a huge initial investment in the case of crafting and a more sophisticated approach in the case of events, because you'll need certain job combinations to perform well at it, along with at least some basic gear sets.

Thanks Arcon, you are very helpful. WHat is your opinion on what I should do? Should I continue the WHM router now level 32 or should I go thief which is I think 15. Also where is Selbina as opposed to Jeuno where I am now so I can do my sub job quest. Thanks...

[Rustic]

/facepalm

FFS, stop telling the newbie "Abyssea makes it all better".

Selbina is in Valkrum Dunes. If you got your gate crystals from the crags in either La Theine or the one next to Gusgen, you can get another WHM to teleport your there and it's only a short ride via rental chocobo. At 32, assuming you have moderately decent gear you should be able to whap the local snippers and damselflies for the items for the quest (damselfly worm and crab apron- if you did Gusgen to 32 you -should- have a magicked skull already- if not, get hunting them Ghouls!).

Melee or spellcaster, money matters and the advice you're getting is coming from L99's who haven't had that problem since they were figuring out what guard gave you Signet. If they say "Abyssea", they mean "endgame"- which is useless to someone who's trying to buy Cure III for the first time without a subjob. This is akin to saying that it's easy to go to Mars because I have a fusion-powered rocketship and you have a bottle rocket.

The point is, you learn how to make money. Not millions, just thousands and tens of thousands at a time. You're not buying million-Gil items in your 30's. Likewise, you don't have to make millions to meet your needs.

FFXIAH. Google it. It's going to be your best friend.

First off, go ahead to Selbina, get your subjob. Choose Thief for your subjob at the moogle (either your Mog House or a nomad moogle). You are now a 32 WHM/15 THF, and have Treasure Hunter as a job trait thanks to your subjob. And can steal to boot.

Zone into either La Theine.



The areas marked in green are where wind elementals spawn if the weather is windy (a "tornado" icon"), blue where water elementals spawn if it's rainy (a "raindrop" icon). While they're rather resistant to physical attack, they don't handle magic damage very well and are only L18-20 as well. Each one generally drops 1-2 "clusters" of the appropriate type.

A stack of 12 goes for 55-60,000 Gil at the Ragnarok AH. In addition, you've got plenty of low-level crafting stuff that sells just fine as well that you can sell as is, or make more with basic low-level crafting. The bees near the wind elemental areas drop beeswax chips and honey. 10,000 Gil a stack for the chips- which can be melted into beeswax. About 5,000 for the honey. The worms near a lot of the water elemental spawns drop ore- zinc goes for 2,000 gil. Each one. Take the time, hunt a bit, and your money problems should fade. You can do better than that, mind you- but that's just a simple example. Look at where you can gather a lot hunting of X item, check the AH to see if it's worth it, go hunt and make some Gil. Low levels of goldsmithing can melt those ores into stackable ingots- copper and brass - that sell even better and are easier to carry. If you're just making money at that level, insane levels of investment into crafting is NOT needed- I make most of my income with crafting skills that are in their 20's.

The most important newbie skill isn't knowing how to level up a job. That's stupid easy. It's being able to get what you need for that job, and that means income- however you choose to do it. Gear and gil will always matter, from 1 to 99, from your first job to the last.

Oh, and if you haven't already- GET A MOG SACK. Right off, it's 30 extra inventory spaces (you can open it in the field with "View House") and every time you do the gobbiebag quest in Lower Jeuno, go right back to the Artisan Moogle and he'll expand the Mog Sack to the same size, meaning 10 spaces for the price of 5. Best roughly 10K a newbie can spend Gil on, since it doubles your carrying capacity in one fell swoop. Lots of carrying capacity = bring more loot home = more money per hunting trip. There's Artisan Moogles in all three starting cities and in Jeuno in Ru'Lude Gardens.

[Arcon]

WHat is your opinion on what I should do? Should I continue the WHM router now level 32 or should I go thief which is I think 15.

As a general rule, you should always do what's most fun to you. If you wanna continue playing WHM, feel free to do so, you won't have to worry about money for a while. If you wanna give THF a shot, it will be quite useful later on, but honestly, WHM is too, especially in group situations. So you'll still get junk every now and then, which is enough to get by at first. You don't need to have every spell for every level, you should focus on the essentials (the ones I told you before) and get the remaining spells when money allows it.

/facepalm

FFS, stop telling the newbie "Abyssea makes it all better".

It does. It's also not what I said. I told him how he'll make enough money with the least effort for the time he'll need it the most.

Melee or spellcaster, money matters and the advice you're getting is coming from L99's who haven't had that problem since they were figuring out what guard gave you Signet. If they say "Abyssea", they mean "endgame"- which is useless to someone who's trying to buy Cure III for the first time without a subjob. This is akin to saying that it's easy to go to Mars because I have a fusion-powered rocketship and you have a bottle rocket.

Says the one telling a naked and unskilled WHM to kill elementals for clusters. He's in my linkshell, and I've explained myself in more detail there. You're the one wasting his time trying to tell him gear is important "from 1 to 99", which is a load of garbage, for WHM more so than for most other jobs. You'll just make him run around aimlessly and pointlessly for things he doesn't need and are otherwise more easily acquired.

Go back to telling people to skill up Healing Magic by waiting for hurt people coming out of Dynamis.

[Rustic]

As a general rule, you should always do what's most fun to you. If you wanna continue playing WHM, feel free to do so, you won't have to worry about money for a while. If you wanna give THF a shot, it will be quite useful later on, but honestly, WHM is too, especially in group situations. So you'll still get junk every now and then, which is enough to get by at first. You don't need to have every spell for every level, you should focus on the essentials (the ones I told you before) and get the remaining spells when money allows it.

It does. It's also not what I said. I told him how he'll make enough money with the least effort for the time he'll need it the most.

In other words, leech to 99, then just sit there in Abyssea. This is playing the game how?

Says the one telling a naked and unskilled WHM to kill elementals for clusters. He's in my linkshell, and I've explained myself in more detail there. You're the one wasting his time trying to tell him gear is important "from 1 to 99", which is a load of garbage, for WHM more so than for most other jobs. You'll just make him run around aimlessly and pointlessly for things he doesn't need and are otherwise more easily acquired.

Hand him some Gil then and welfare him through the game. He's 32nd. He can sit there spamming Banish with autorefresh up and win without pushing more than one macro button the entire time vs something like that. Oh, wait- {I'm sorry}. He might have to cast Cure once in a while. Maybe.

If you want to skip him through the entire game so he can sit there healing your next cleave party, be my guest- just get him up to 70 while leading him through the earlier limit breaks, so Maat can kick him in the jewels repeatedly, all alone in the Burning Circle. Good thing each testimony works three times now, right?

Go back to telling people to skill up Healing Magic by waiting for hurt people coming out of Dynamis.

Worked for me, but hey- I just mentioned it as an opportunity to skill up that frequently sits there right outside your Mog House. Blowing up undead works too, but generally I don't suggest a "naked and unskilled WHM" without most of his spells to go attack even EP monsters for skillups, especially one that's as newbie as this. Put him in some cheap armor and sit there holding aggro while he spams Cure on some VT-IT mob. It'll go faster, naturally. He's not solo anymore and has a high level character to babysit him.

Forgive me for giving advice that assumed he actually wanted to improve himself, rather than relying on a nanny.

[Arcon]

In other words, leech to 99, then just sit there in Abyssea. This is playing the game how?

How many grapefruits did you have to lick to get this bitter?

[Rustic]

How many grapefruits did you have to lick to get this bitter?

None at all. Distilled water, a salinator, and a fire crystal, L20 Alchemy.

{You can have this.}

It hurts cause it's true. If you have a few friends who can mindlessly cleave/heal cleaver, you can level your entire linkshell to L99 (once they're past their level breaks) an alliance at a time without any real visible effort.

This doesn't make the player -good-, mind you. It doesn't teach them what is good, why it's good, or develop any real game awareness whatsoever. It gives you an underskilled L99 that won't know what to do in an actual situation where you'd need a real DD/healer/support type, because sadly, they didn't actually play. They AFK'd. It doesn't mean they actually experience the game outside of the equivalent of being the Pokemon with EXP share at the back of the party while your Warrior-Zard burns out chigoes in the tall grass to the sounds of the level up SFX behind them.

Yeah, put someone through the exp-o-tron once they've actually gotten to see some of the game so they can skip repeating parts. The first ride to the top shouldn't be a game of Candyland. They should see the Shadow Lord when it's actually scary. Do their Rank 10 before the mobs aren't effectively too weaks. Get to run through CoP and ToAU before it becomes completely trivial, maybe even WoTG.

The endgame is the endgame. Shoving players into it as fast as possible is stealing huge chunks of fun and game-experience out of the trip, removing the sense of accomplishment for the little victories and successes in favor of camping endlessly for that Magian, that Mythic, that relic, that HNM, whatever. Endgame is forever, I've been there. The trip to it is a small chunk of time compared to the time spent doing it, and it's often some of the most fun parts of the game.

Why steal all that from a newbie? Let them discover the basics, find their first NM's to defeat, explore their dangerous places, use their wits and make a bit of a fortune on their own, value what they earn rather than be taught that it's better to be spoon-fed. If they ask for help, help them. Just don't fast-track them past everything else to be stuck in the same place you will be for months and years to come.

[Arcon]

This doesn't make the player -good-, mind you. It doesn't teach them what is good, why it's good, or develop any real game awareness whatsoever. It gives you an underskilled L99 that won't know what to do in an actual situation where you'd need a real DD/healer/support type, because sadly, they didn't actually play. They AFK'd. It doesn't mean they actually experience the game outside of the equivalent of being the Pokemon with EXP share at the back of the party while your Warrior-Zard burns out chigoes in the tall grass to the sounds of the level up SFX behind them.

Yeah, put someone through the exp-o-tron once they've actually gotten to see some of the game so they can skip repeating parts. The first ride to the top shouldn't be a game of Candyland. They should see the Shadow Lord when it's actually scary. Do their Rank 10 before the mobs aren't effectively too weaks. Get to run through CoP and ToAU before it becomes completely trivial, maybe even WoTG.

The endgame is the endgame. Shoving players into it as fast as possible is stealing huge chunks of fun and game-experience out of the trip, removing the sense of accomplishment for the little victories and successes in favor of camping endlessly for that Magian, that Mythic, that relic, that HNM, whatever. Endgame is forever, I've been there. The trip to it is a small chunk of time compared to the time spent doing it, and it's often some of the most fun parts of the game.

Why steal all that from a newbie? Let them discover the basics, find their first NM's to defeat, explore their dangerous places, use their wits and make a bit of a fortune on their own, value what they earn rather than be taught that it's better to be spoon-fed. If they ask for help, help them. Just don't fast-track them past everything else to be stuck in the same place you will be for months and years to come.

So much talk for nothing. I have absolutely no intention to powerlevel anyone to Lv.99, and never have. If you're talking to me, you're wasting your time.

You draw ridiculous conclusions from the things I say. When I say gear is not important until the higher levels, you somehow think I just wanna get him to 99? I say that for one reason only, because it's true. Gear is ridiculously useless until the 50s, for every job. He can experience the game at lower levels all he likes, I'll never stop him. But he won't need to buy Protectra II or some mage gear with marginal DEF and +5 MP to do it. Those things are wasted money, at any level, and they always have been. It's as simple as that.

You accuse me of wanting to force him to endgame, when it's you who seems to have a strong opinion about how he should play the game. Why should people experience the Shadow Lord when it's scary if they don't care for that? I don't care either way. I myself loved doing those things, but I'll never tell anyone how to do it or what's right. If someone wants to leech to 99, I'll cheer them on doing it. And so should you.