R/M/E 99 to 119 upgrade info and findings

[Mefuki]

The double-negative at the start of that post confuses me a bit, "have yet to meet a person who doesn't think ilvl is a terrible idea" <paraphrased> so you are saying you haven't met a person who thinks ilvl was a good idea.

My apologies. I try to be as coherent as I can when I post. That's why a lot of my posts have "last edited" marks, I'm constantly making minor adjustments or spelling/grammar fixes for clarity.

That said, I think if you read the rest of that paragraph I think you'll get the idea I was trying to convey. I was trying to say that no one is debating iLvl is terrible (that I'm aware of), so bringing it up is a little bit of a red herring when we're talking about the "fairness" of RME upgrading.

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I notice you keep mentioning iLevel in your posts. No one is debating iLvl is terrible. That's not the sticking point with me. Everyone knows lateral, "sidegrade" gear is what this game needs right now. And based on what one Dev post said, SE seems to be realizing that as well. Good for them because we can all agree that the level of power creep this game as undergone just this year alone is completely unsustainable, long-term.
*Insert obligitory Power Creep Ep of Extra Credits, as it's almost an exact analogy on why FFXI's old system (with it's MUCH better handling of "incomparables") was so effective*
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bxszx60ZwGw

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Yeah, I posted that. And it's not for the reason you think.

It's not that I think the RME trial should be easier. I just think that the healthiest situation is for RME items to be accessible to anyone. Adding them to reives (as in my example) would give even the most casual players another thing to sell. Likewise, I think that the drop rate in WKR should be carefully considered such that they are plentiful enough to keep players coming back even if they are the sole incentive to participate.

Basically I'm saying that these items should be used as an incentive to do events, especially server-wide events that anybody can participate in.

Your point is well taken and I agree. Which is why I was so pleased (and figured everyone else would be) at the fact that RME mats drop from various places and are sellable. Now, anybody can make Gil (read: points) to get them that way or get them while get your AF1 +2 upgrades or doing WK reives or fighting Delve NM's outside the fracture or doing the fracture itself or a little bit of all of those things. I think, given how many already exist, it's entirely reasonable to keep things as they are.

[Okipuit]

Greetings,

Similar to some of the other high level content, we will be looking into having the content level displayed for the high-tier seal battlefields as well.

In case you are curious about the current content level, when selecting “normal” difficulty, microcosmic orbs are content level 107 and macrocosmic orbs are content level 109.

[Damane]

I notice you keep mentioning iLevel in your posts. I have yet to run into a person who doesn't think iLevel was/is a terrible idea. That's not the sticking point with me. Everyone knows lateral, "sidegrade" gear is what this game needs right now. And based on what one Dev post said, SE seems to be realizing that as well. Good for them because we can all agree that the level of power creep this game as undergone just this year alone is completely unsustainable, long-term.
*Insert obligitory Power Creep Ep of Extra Credits, as it's almost an exact analogy over why FFXI's old system (with it's MUCH better handling of "incomparables") was so effective*
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bxszx60ZwGw

The main problem I'm having is people saying that the RME and AF1 +2 upgrade methods are unreasonable when it's really not. Not if you've already spent time getting a 99 RME or do research and take advantage of said research to get your SKC. Because now we're in a position where FFXI vets like Byrth, Sylow and Jinjo have already completed the trials and, according to one FFXIAH thread, are wondering what to do now, meanwhile other people on the OF want RME mats to be added Colonization Reives...I mean, what do you want here? Because it seems to me that SE just can't win even when they do what we ask them.

We wanted RME to matter both for personal and game heath reasons, that's what we got. And now we complain we want automatic upgrades? When we're already seeing people completing these trials?

We wanted to use our AF again, that's what we got. And now we complain that we can't immediately transfer our Beastmen and Kindred seals into SKC? When the stockpile of BS and KS is so high (I personally have a little over 1000 of each)? Maybe it was a good idea to give us a reason to actually kill all those monsters that they put in Adoulin areas. Plus, if you followed the link I provided a few posts back, apparently there are ways to getting SKC at a somewhat decent pace. Now, if it turns out that what we see as a mechanic is actually a glitch or something, I'd be more willing to bend on this point but given the information we have, it doesn't seem that unreasonable and it's a system where everyone can have a chance to get upgrades and play content, whether you're an alliance sized LS or a solo, lowman group.

I wasnt sure if I should comment on anything because I am tired, but anyway. My relic (Bravura) was done like 6 years ago, I am sitting now basicly on a almost finished mythic (just have to turn items/alex etc. in and do assaults once I pick a weapon which isnt happening).
the RME upgrade is garbage, because there is no way to solo at least some of it. I am not saying I am not makeing progress, infact I am, did like 5 evenings of RME upgrade item farming with some friends and we split everythign up at the end. I am sitting at ~50 upgrade items in 10 hours thats ok. However those arent all plutons, i only need plutons but I have mythic and empy upgrade items I have no need for at the moment, so infact I have only 34 plutons (2 weeks of farming). so i should be finished at this rate iiiiin 6 months
... oh god where am I going with this lets make it simple

I am TIRED. tired of trying to catch the carrot SE has put in front of us for the last 7 months. I am caped on delve gear and skirmish gear (at least what I wanted) etc. but I am just TIRED of running out every 1-2 months to upgrade basicly ALL of my gear because it all got obsolete after 1 month.
I dont have anymore the time/freetime to put so much effort into a relic/mythic to finish it in 2 weeks, nor do I have the motivation.
I am TIRED of chasing after things that should be so easily accessable, like the new BCNMs for AF upgrades.
I am TIRED of artificial cockblocks of not adding any way to trade your old seals into new seals
I am TIRED of haveing to work for my finished Relic AGAIN on an event I am totally sick off, because I spammed the hell out of it before. I would rather do the new BCNMs for it, but see one line up "artificial cockblocks".
I am TIRED to go and replace all my equipment for 5 jobs after each months
I am TIRED of not being able to enjoy this game because of bullshit that blocks your road and is total bogus. The transportation system is garbage, running through new zones is sometimes garbage due to reives I DO NOT want to join, going to some places is garbage. I am looseing time for nothing.
I am TIRED and I really dont have anymore the time for this.

I think i should just quit.

I am ageing, the game is ageing too, my priorities/freetime changes. The game isnt adjusting very well to that and I find myself less and less able to adjust to the game, which imho i shouldnt do so I should just stop.

EDIT: i forgot to mention that my 5 main jobs are WAR COR BLU SCH WHM which basicly share little to no common gear together.

[Karah]

I am TIRED of artificial and arbitrary c-blocks
I am TIRED of having to work for my finished Relic AGAIN on an event I am totally sick off, because I spammed the hell out of it before.

I just realllllly wanted to echo these sentiments.

Was sick of delve the day they created it, continued to be sick of it, and now absolutely disgusted by the mere thought of it.

[Claudeus]

Dear SE Devs,

I haven't heard anything about Gungnir being fixed in regards to defense down procs, or making it stack with angon etc.

SE officially stated that they have taken care of issues with certain other weapons (Excal enspell > added effect case), but they have not mentioned anything about doing anything about Gungnir.

If it's not too much to ask, it would be great if they would also look into the Aftermath and Geirskogul WS, to make this a realistic option to keep an AM effect up.

I know this horse has been beaten to death plenty, and nothing has happened as of yet. This is my first post on the forum, and I sincerely hope the Devs will make a reply in regards to issues related to Gungnir.

If they would add more whollop to my polearm and fix the current issues, which I am upgrading to 119 regardless, it would make this subscribing player very happy

[Sapphires]

After playing a bit more with this update and tempering my initial emotional reaction to it, some feedback to the dev:

As for the RME upgrade item, I am 70/300 and a majority of them are farmed, I am admittedly impatient and not too great at making gil quickly and am rather poor at the moment However, I think this quest to upgrade is a rather fair one since they plan to keep upgrading the weapons into the future. There is no sense of accomplishment without effort in this game, so while its initially disappointing that the upgrade was not 'free', the materials arent impossible to find/farm/buy for even casual player.

RME material dropping from new SKC battles and WKR was a good idea, and I also like that 6 person group can kill outside delve NM for these item too.

my thoughts on SKC and new AF:

+ The addition of a new SKC seal and more drops with larger party size was good, it got players to team up to a full party instead of solo grinding. They only come from higher level monster so it reinforced teamwork.
Its possible as a 6 person group to divide the work of simultaneously farming delve NM outside for RME upgrade materials, with 1 person continuously farming normal zone monster to gather SKC/HKC/KC +delve NM pop item for all member. My friends and I find the current time/reward for this very enjoyable.

As a nice side effect of the above situation, and the introduction of the new iLevel 109 Artifact armor, we've been able to make a few SKC orbs and make some of the new armor. I thought it was a nice touch that the upgrade required rare and often unused materials that were obtainable through doing older content (malboro fiber coming from Byakko for example to make AF 109 bodies). Also a shortcut reward path for using AF1+1 to make the new body using less chapter pages gave us a good reason to go back to limbus. Although that older content is very easy to do, its a bit of quick and easy fun and alot of us never made AF1+1 pieces.

One of my favorite part with the new SKC 20 fights is that all participating member can get upgrade chapter pages as personal reward item while there still being a common loot pool to share. This fixed alot of the problem with trying to get 6 player to do bcnm style fight, which was coming up with a reward for all participant for a group if only 1 or 2 player had enough seal/crest for an orb.

While some may find these aspects annoying or inconvenient, I am much more optimistic about future updates since this update created alot of different activity options for players to do and incentivized teaming-up for mutual reward.

[FallenE]

NEVER | REM 300 | FORGET

[Karah]

The only comment I can really give about 119, why I'm so disappointed. Is that the items are like everything else, buyable.

Morons with more gil than skill/brains/talent/abilty/whatever, instantly obtain it, and have no clue how to use it. It's pretty disgusting to me at least.

If you had made the plutons boulders and beitetsu drop into inventories with Ex tags, like the new pages for reforges, then I'd be a lot less inclined to hate it.

I realize money makes the world turn (even fake ones) but just once, it'd be nice to see people who're actually good at their job get rewarded, instead of he who bots longest.

[MarkovChain]

Gathering gil is a large part of the game, so I'd say that if you are rich it's largely a matter of skill.

[Karah]

No, just no.

The only "skill" to being rich is having an alarm on your fishbot and being able to wake up when it goes off.

You're the 1% of 1% that obtained gil via other methods than haks. Though I wouldn't be the least bit shocked if you didn't have one as well...

Though most of your gil did come from selling to fishbots so.... technicalities.