WARNING - New Players or Players thinking of coming back - Consider this first.

[Tunechi]

I have come to find out that the community in-game is not helpful or friendly one bit. They seem to be very clique oriented and will IGNORE you because you do not have 7 jobs to 90 or have not been playing for 8 years like them. Not to mention the language barrier cuts the already dwindling population of people online even further (The other half are gil farmers.)

IF YOU ARE THINKING OF STARTING BACK I RECOMMEND YOU CONSIDER THIS:

You will need to solo the majority of a game NOT MEANT for soloing. You will not be able to do missions, get a subjob before level 30+ (normally lvl18), level at any respectable rate, and forget about unlocking jobs because it more than likely will not happen without paying people in-game HUGE amounts of gil (YOU WILL BE DIRT POOR) or unless you have been lucky enough to get into a linkshell but even then that promises nothing.

Its funny how a dying games community can be so shallow and cold towards new players. You would think that they would appreciate new players more since it keeps all their level 90 jobs somewhat relevant and keeps THEIR game populated. Instead its just the opposite its about who you know rather than what you know or do that makes or breaks you in this game currently and it will only get worse by the day.

If soloing a un-soloable game is your thing, play this game. If being ignored by other players because they do not know you is your thing, play this game. If playing a game where you can not unlock anything solo but a chocobo at the appropriate level is your thing, play this game. If not, I suggest you play WoW (a game you can solo if needed and can actually find a party) or even... FFXIV, which I have not played yet and with this SE game experience will more than likely not.

[ZelkeDarkwings]

Ya know, I have been seeing that is far too true and that really sucks. I have been trying to get a party but have had no luck. The funny thing is that I am not the only one having issues. Maybe all the new or low level players should band together. It makes a lot more sense than trying to get the older players to join us. Maybe we should all pick a server and join up.

[Tunechi]

I want to add also that struggling new players is not a new occurrence and I don't want people thinking I am just 'whining' and bashing. I like/want to like this game and I am pretty determined to MAKE it work. Their are just glaring faults that frustrated me a bit.

@Zelke - You should come to Odin if your not heavily invested in your server yet like I am. I only have a 20 THF so the other 5 starting jobs are fair game :P. I can also help out a bit on starting gear and what-not. Also, I was in Valkrum earlier looking for help with getting my subjob items and there was only 21 people there (11 of them were 45+ x_X) and no one would help I even tried to bribe some to no avail xD.

[ZelkeDarkwings]

That actually works out since I have a friend on Odin, I think. Lol also I play as a WM anyways. I think the maintenance starts soon so it will be after that. I have no attachments to my current character anyway.

Also are there a lot of people on Odin? There capped out at a little over 2000 in Asura on a good day.

[Tunechi]

I've seen it spike at 3300 but I am starting to think its predominantly Japanese since its all I see usually (which isnt a problem other than I do not speak or read it :( ) and I don't want to have to autofill everything I type. So I might go to yours instead in an hour or or when I finish getting my chocobo license.

[Tohihroyu]

When I see newbs "Struggling" I go & see what help they need, even for missions (well depending cause I only have Bastok Rank 10 & Windurst Rank... 4 or 5) I find helping others to be...dare I say the dreaded three letter word...fun? but 9/10 the newbs who join quit within a month because they found they are NOT playing Final Fantasy XI they are playing Abyssea XI.

I have difficulty recommending this game to friends due to how it is now :/

[Tunechi]

@Tohihroyu - Well, I'm glad someone helps :P. I think there's an ugly truth facing this game that people will not like and would rather the game be canceled than see it happen, which is there has to be FAR less servers. No one wants to hear that because they will lose their name, have to reconnect with friends, people will quit because they have to go to a new server with their level 90s (poor them), and etc. Which is understandable to not want any of that, after all the hard work and years put in but spacing their entire game population to where its only about 2k per/server kills the experience and turns the game into a chat room and does not support population growth at all. It's actually quite counter productive and will ultimately be the reason the game will die. So instead of biting the ego bullet they would rather let it sit so only 'they' can enjoy the game. Which means they would lose everything instead of just changing =/.
-Sorry for this long random reply

[ZelkeDarkwings]

Well let me know what you decide and I will either add a new character on Odin or wait for you to come over to Asura lol. If the maintenance isn't now then I will be on soon.

[Tunechi]

Well let me know what you decide and I will either add a new character on Odin or wait for you to come over to Asura lol. If the maintenance isn't now then I will be on soon.

It costs $25 for me to switch X_X I just looked it up, I don't know why but I thought it was cheaper. It would be so much easier if you came here for me financially at least. If thats possible. I'm sorry about the late reply Zelke.

EDIT: We are going to make a LS as well :o

[ZelkeDarkwings]

Well I can't transfer my character but I will gladly make a new one since its only $1 extra a month, and I like having a few characters anyways. I think if they lowered the cost a bit since its been out for a while then many more people would join up. I will go ahead and make a new one and we can start from there if that's okay.

[Tunechi]

Well I can't transfer my character but I will gladly make a new one since its only $1 extra a month, and I like having a few characters anyways. I think if they lowered the cost a bit since its been out for a while then many more people would join up. I will go ahead and make a new one and we can start from there if that's okay.

Fine with me, I just have items I really do not want to lose. my IGN is the same as my name on here.

[ZelkeDarkwings]

Got it. Just so you know I am familiar with some aspects of the game but I am sure that there is a lot I don't know. I am sending a PO friend invite so you will know its me lol. I will let you know my character's name as soon as I make him.

Also it wouldn't let me edit the text lol.

[Thuggy]

Well as an "older" player I actually find it a little offensive how you group all servers and all players together. Not everyone is clique-ish or elitist. There are actually some of us who help others and go above and beyond. As a matter of fact I can tell you today that I PERSONALLY went and escorted someone from Korroloka Tunnel to the Eastern Altepa Telepoint crystal and then to the exp party. I even offered to help the same person fight their avatar fights for their summoner since all they had were elementals and Carbuncle. Was this anyone I met before? Did I have a hidden agenda? no. It was something I felt as a player of the game I should do to help another person who needed assistance. So before you group all of us old players together all willy nilly please think about what you are saying. Yes the dynamics of the game have changed where it is a rarity to find a traditional exp party and some people are carelessly spam leveling jobs is abyssea, is it something EVERYONE is doing, no, it isn't remember it only takes ONE person to make it NOT everyone.

Thanks ^^

[Tunechi]

Well as an "older" player I actually find it a little offensive how you group all servers and all players together. Not everyone is clique-ish or elitist. There are actually some of us who help others and go above and beyond. As a matter of fact I can tell you today that I PERSONALLY went and escorted someone from Korroloka Tunnel to the Eastern Altepa Telepoint crystal and then to the exp party. I even offered to help the same person fight their avatar fights for their summoner since all they had were elementals and Carbuncle. Was this anyone I met before? Did I have a hidden agenda? no. It was something I felt as a player of the game I should do to help another person who needed assistance. So before you group all of us old players together all willy nilly please think about what you are saying. Yes the dynamics of the game have changed where it is a rarity to find a traditional exp party and some people are carelessly spam leveling jobs is abyssea, is it something EVERYONE is doing, no, it isn't remember it only takes ONE person to make it NOT everyone.

Thanks ^^

Well, if your not in the group then there is no need to take offense this isn't targeted at anyone. It's a generalization of my opinion on the subject is all. I know not everyone is an elitist and what-not. This is for new players to be mentally ready if they do decide to play this game and understand that things might not go as planned or as you might look up on the internet. You have to be mentally prepared to NOT be able to do 'this' or 'that' on the exact level available sometimes and play in circles until you can solo or get help depending the situation. So please don't take offense but I feel if new players can understand that more people would stay instead of giving up. It's like stepping into a scolding shower thinking it was warm, your going to hop right out, unless your prepared ahead of time and take precautions. So please don't think I'm bashing anyone in particular it's just how the game revolves at the moment.

Also the last time I played this was when CoP was released so this is a giant learning experience for myself personally.

[Zaknafein]

Personally I pick a random noob every few months, and put a lot of effort into cultivating them. Been doing it for years. My current project I found from a shout I made asking if anyone wanted one of w/e it was I was crafting for skill ups at the time.. LC straps iirc. He was level 12 at the time with no subjob. Over the past two months I've invested over a mil in gil, and 30-40 hours of my time. With that help, and his desire to learn he's off to a successful start in his ffxi career. 1 level 90 job. A solid understanding of macro's, and how his job functions.

While everyone you meet in the game will not be that helpfull there are those of us out there. Also social LS who accept new players. Don't give up hope just cause you have some bad experiences. For some of us old burnt out players grooming a newbie is one of the most rewarding activities in the entire game.

[Ayke]

Well maybe things have been hard for yourself and some others, but from what I've experienced It's not so bad, I've been playing for less then 2 months now on my new account (Used to play about 5 years ago). And its a lot easier now to get parties then what it used to be, book burns are a very fast way to leveling up, and if you need help with missions, unlocking jobs etc, you probably just need to find the right people/linkshell to get things done, add other new players to your friends list and get things done together. And making gil shouldn't too much of a big problem, there are lots of way to get a good income starting. And check your server forums, I don't know about the Odin server but there are a few linkshells and people offering help on the Asura server. I joined a LS i found on the Asura forums and I don't think I could of found better and more helpful server with a decent amout of players on at all times of the day

[Runespider]

This thread is just pure ignorance. (understandably I guess since Square made the game kinda unfriendly and stuff like GoV alliances are still kinda unknown about by many)

Leveling process? Do Fields of valor till you get to 15 then head to gusgen mines and team up with others doing grounds of valor in alliances. Carry on till you get to around 40-45 then goto crawlers nest where you can get to 75+ Takes less than a week, really fast and easy xp with lots of other players. No need to solo.

Help with stuff? Ask! If you need help with certain things head to the zones and shout or send some tells, people are generally busy doing stuff but if you ask nicely you will usually find someone to help. For things that take longer, well you need to try make some friends.

I hate to break it to you but almost all MMO's are like this these days, FFXI still has one of the better communities out there.

[Karbuncle]

This thread is just pure ignorance.

Leveling process? Do Fields of valor till you get to 15 then head to gusgen mines and team up with others doing grounds of valor in alliances. Carry on till you get to around 40-45 then goto crawlers nest where you can get to 75+ Takes less than a week, really fast and easy xp with lots of other players. No need to solo.

Help with stuff? Ask! If you need help with certain things head to the zones and shout or send some tells, people are generally busy doing stuff but if you ask nicely you will usually find someone to help. For things that take longer, well you need to try make some friends.

I hate to break it to you but almost all MMO's are like this these days, FFXI still has one of the better communities out there.

Actually agree with Rune here.

Frankly, I wonder if people complaining actually remember days before Level Sync? Where you had to find 5 other people in your exact level range with less than 1 level variance in order to make a decent party, and if someone leveled up your Exp tanked and you had to find a rep? This wasn't fun, at all. it sucked and i don't fathom why people view this kind of era ending as a negative thing.

You can still party with people, You can still play with others, you can still interact as much as you could in the past (hint: Linkshells). Hell people are even back in Jeuno now so you dont need to get to Whitegate like it was a few years ago when people jumped from LJ to whitegate.

The game is a lot more solo friendly, but the Party aspects are still there if you know where to look, and to mirror what Rune said, Asking nicely goes a long way to getting help. I help just about anyone i can if I'm not busy, Always answer questions/etc.

[Glamdring]

not sure where the issue is, I've helpped new players my whole term on FFXI (to my own detriment actually, alot of stuff I needed to do has been put on hold to help others). Ask nicely, you'll get help with leveling. If you are decent, you'll get invited to a decent social shell and get to tag along on lots of stuff. But be realistic, you aren't going to get through CoP in a week as an example. annoying content is going to be ignored a fair amount of the time, and you'll just have to go when someone else chooses to, or put it together yourself. CoP took me YEARS, why would you expect it to be different for a new player? I'm just using CoP as an example, btw, it could just as easily be ToAU, or WoTG, or just about anything else.

All that being said, if you are NOT nice, get demanding, whine, whatever, you stand a good chance of getting booted from an LS and prolly make my /blist. What's more, players DO get a reputation, and you do NOT want to end up on the negative side of that, it kills chances of getting help. Nobody likes an ass, and the nice thing about a MMORPG (unlike life) is that we CAN deny an ass the opportunity to get ahead.

[Runespider]

All that being said, if you are NOT nice, get demanding, whine, whatever

In my experience this is what a lot of new players do and when they get rejected they say how bad FFXI is and how unfriendly the community is. FFXI players make up a community, treat people as you would treat people irl and be nice. Nobody has to help you and you don't deserve help just cause you are paying the monthly sub. If someone is busy and can't help you when you ask don't get annoyed just stick with it and keep asking other people, and as I said keep your tone nice, remember you are asking people to help you.

I've played this game for nearly 7 years now and I've never had serious issues getting help with anything, players are generally really nice but the way you talk to people is very important. If you're an ass people will treat you like one.

Oh and if you want help, read up on what you need help with before you ask. Don't ask people for help and expect them to know all about whatever you want help with.

wiki.ffxiclopedia.org

[Patrik]

i have my Mentor icon always up because i WANT new players to ask me questions and for help... sadly most new players have no idea what that M next to our name means... and even worse, most people with the M just get it as some kinda fashion thing. then when a new player asks them something they just go "lolwut? goaway" unfortunately the couple people talking in here for help are not on my server, but any new players reading this on bismarck, please if you have any questions send me a /tell when i'm on. and i wont always have time to do things, feel free to also ask me to help out, i'll do my best to make time.

since most of the game now is infact abyssea, i really enjoy doing old content with new players, even if thats exping in the dunes, or fighting the 2-3 dragon

[Patrik]

In my experience this is what a lot of new players do and when they get rejected they say how bad FFXI is and how unfriendly the community is. FFXI players make up a community, treat people as you would treat people irl and be nice. Nobody has to help you and you don't deserve help just cause you are paying the monthly sub. If someone is busy and can't help you when you ask don't get annoyed just stick with it and keep asking other people, and as I said keep your tone nice, remember you are asking people to help you.

I've played this game for nearly 7 years now and I've never had serious issues getting help with anything, players are generally really nice but the way you talk to people is very important. If you're an ass people will treat you like one.

Oh and if you want help, read up on what you need help with before you ask. Don't ask people for help and expect them to know all about whatever you want help with.

wiki.ffxiclopedia.org

also i second this post, i've also been around for 7 years and have seen how the way you ask things really affects the outcome (just like rl). i've had noobs come up to me, stare for a few minutes, i move they follow. so i think, maybe they don't know how to use chat? but then i get a tell saying "help me now". so i go "ok... what do you need?". and many times i get this blunt reply "i need gil, trade me 100000gil" or "i like your gear, give it to me." it sounds so outrageous it would seem like a joke but... that's just the farther side of the spectrum, ask nicely, don't talk to people like it is their duty to help you, and say thank you... again just like real life XD it is a game, but we're all real people

[Meyi]

-gasp- So many gil farmers in a game where gil is no longer relevant! Oh no!

I have a better list suggestion:

1. /shout "I'm new to the game, may I have a linkpearl with some awesome people?" in your beginning zone. Do a /sea region to find out where the majority of the traffic is and shout in that specific zone. Or hey, /yell it now instead!
2. Most advanced jobs can be soloed. The ones that can't can be asked for help by a linkshell or a higher level friend made along your adventure.
3. Learn about GoV and level sync.
4. Learn about Abyssea.
5. Try to get to know people in the game. Make friends. Chat in parties and talk in /tells to people you find interesting.

Believe it or not I know a lot of very friendly people who are willing to help new and returning players, myself included. It's not as if we owe any of you a thing; you've never helped us achieve a single thing in this game, but the idea is that it's fun to make new friends and hopefully one day the favor will be returned.

I don't appreciate beginners who refuse to learn anything for themselves though. A lot of silly questions could be answered if the person took three minutes to look it up on wiki.

The game's lifespan is really not in as bad of shape as you think it is and we really don't need beginners to enjoy the game. Almost all of the fun is at the final level (currently 90) and it's not as if we get anything out of helping people below us.

Such a pessimistic personality is one way to dissuade higher levels from helping you achieve your goals.

[Rafien]

All you new players, switch to Bahamut, and look me up. I'll be more then happy to help you guys along.

[Inafking]

I completly support the TC. This is a legit problem that the Devs won't adress and players flame you for talking about. But I do have an idea to fix it.

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxi/threads/11395-Jeuno-Quest-Bulliten-Board

[vyhakeyo]

Tunechi, I know your pain. I was on Odin, and a month ago, I jumped servers to Lakshmi. Odin is very cut throat after the merger with Ifrit, and that is why I decided to bail on Odin. Dont get me wrong, I'm a long time gamer and have been on the game since it went live with the 360. Ifrit was a very old server, and when 14 came out, all that was left as long time end game people. When we merged we saw the same thing with Odin and it became cut throat between ifrit and odin. I'm personally very happy on Lakshmi, surrounded by so many different experience people. Matter of fact I'm in a social LS that has people that are working on CoP missions (Which blew my mind after being on Ifrit and all endgamers), and people that actually level their jobs. So my suggestion to you Tunchi is if you have not invested a lot of time on your account is delete it, and pick a different server. There is several people here suggesting you to try theirs, so give them a try....Or pay the 25 bucks for the server hop.....Though I do recommend the deletion over the 25 dollars since your only level 20.

[Inafking]

pick a different server

Ragnarok and Titan were the same as Phoenix. Does not help as far as I can see.

[Glamdring]

Oh and if you want help, read up on what you need help with before you ask. Don't ask people for help and expect them to know all about whatever you want help with.

Agreed, the info is out there. And for god's sake, get your preliminary cut-scenes and the like out of the way BEFORE you ask for my help. I'm willing to give you a little time, I don't usually want to make a day of it (outside XP or gil farming or something).

[Winrie]

I have come to find out that the community in-game is not helpful or friendly one bit. They seem to be very clique oriented and will IGNORE you because you do not have 7 jobs to 90 or have not been playing for 8 years like them. Not to mention the language barrier cuts the already dwindling population of people online even further (The other half are gil farmers.)

IF YOU ARE THINKING OF STARTING BACK I RECOMMEND YOU CONSIDER THIS:

You will need to solo the majority of a game NOT MEANT for soloing. You will not be able to do missions, get a subjob before level 30+ (normally lvl18), level at any respectable rate, and forget about unlocking jobs because it more than likely will not happen without paying people in-game HUGE amounts of gil (YOU WILL BE DIRT POOR) or unless you have been lucky enough to get into a linkshell but even then that promises nothing.

Its funny how a dying games community can be so shallow and cold towards new players. You would think that they would appreciate new players more since it keeps all their level 90 jobs somewhat relevant and keeps THEIR game populated. Instead its just the opposite its about who you know rather than what you know or do that makes or breaks you in this game currently and it will only get worse by the day.

If soloing a un-soloable game is your thing, play this game. If being ignored by other players because they do not know you is your thing, play this game. If playing a game where you can not unlock anything solo but a chocobo at the appropriate level is your thing, play this game. If not, I suggest you play WoW (a game you can solo if needed and can actually find a party) or even... FFXIV, which I have not played yet and with this SE game experience will more than likely not.

You have a clique style playerbase because of abyssea which destroyed the needs of recruitment due to lowman capabilities for the game after so many years. Also, most new players who shout for help get help, im unsure the direction this post is suppose to take, All it sounds like to me is that you are angry at a bad experience youve had with a random person, and you are expressing it as an entire playerbase. The lack of help has to do also with the server you are on, also the fact of if you have a linkshell or not. Most solo players who just begin this game at this point and time struggle only slightly, this game is too easy to not hit 90 and come running through the door, soloing to 30 is a simple task, all the tools have been laid to new players feet to solo if they have to, unlimited fov, grounds, double exp. Getting boss clears for abyssea is a simple task, make shout groups, join them even. On my server there a tons of new people and none of them seem to struggle whatsoever with getting past content as most all of it is soloable or there is shout groups doing it. The next point gil farmers? are you insane? With how easy gil is to get, and how crashed the market is on most servers due to this fact, how can you even point out a gil farmer as a serious part of the playerbase anymore? your ranting a 2004 sob story that no one is going to bite onto, unless they are new as well and havent grasped how easy gil is to obtain, and have grasped on how MEANINGLESS gil is now, every worth a damn piece of gear is rare/ex. A linkshell isnt the ticket to gil making, it never has been, unless you are a leader of a HNMLS back pre abyssea and you robbed your members. And seriously, drop the unsoloable game thing, this game is soloable now, it has been since the 1st lvl cap, oh a year ago? Find better friends, reach out and find a LS, and quit being an antisocial player, youll find more success i promise you.

[Inafking]

I completly support the TC. This is a legit problem that the Devs won't adress and players flame you for talking about.


And seriously, drop the unsoloable game thing, this game is soloable now, it has been since the 1st lvl cap, oh a year ago? Find better friends, reach out and find a LS, and quit being an antisocial player, youll find more success i promise you.

Thank you for proving my point.

[Tokiro]

I have to agree with Vyhakeyo. The server you are on really does make a difference. I was on Gilgamesh before it merged with Carbuncle. After the merge, the general feel of the server didn't change much, but everyone was either in an Abyssea Linkshell or doing stuff within their linkshell in Abyssea. I also moved to Lakshimi and was pleasantly surprised to find people levelling their jobs and the endgamers. The endgamers are not 'in your face' endgamers either and seem to just be well into the game for the fun. There are still some weirdos as in any community, but Lakshimi is great.
As for your 'warnings' to new players, I don't think you should generalize quite so much. I help people whenever they ask me to, so long as its not 'Hey, be my biatch for a couple of hours, will ya?' I'm trying to enjoy myself in-game too, and having to race around collecting things for a newbie who has not had the foresight to find out what he or she needs beforehand is not my idea of a pleasurable afternoon. Send me a tell saying you're stuck in a mission/quest and can't find out how to move on and I'll spend as much time as it takes getting you through it. I have also had the 'give me gil' tells and even some moron who spammed trade on me while I was levelling clothcraft. Introduce yourself, tell why you are in a fix and ask whether you have missed something. Just the other day, a player shouted for help with Nyzul and I sent him a tell with various troubleshooting solutions. He kept up the convo for as long as he needed my help and then suddenly, once he had got where he wanted to go, nothing. Ignored my tells asking whether he'd made it. I checked where he was and found him in the right place. No thanks, no acknowledgement. If I were to judge all newbies by him, I would never send a tell again. But I don't. I still send tells. I like people. I just like polite people. Call me old-fashioned.

[Winrie]

I have to agree with Vyhakeyo. The server you are on really does make a difference. I was on Gilgamesh before it merged with Carbuncle. After the merge, the general feel of the server didn't change much, but everyone was either in an Abyssea Linkshell or doing stuff within their linkshell in Abyssea. I also moved to Lakshimi and was pleasantly surprised to find people levelling their jobs and the endgamers. The endgamers are not 'in your face' endgamers either and seem to just be well into the game for the fun. There are still some weirdos as in any community, but Lakshimi is great.
As for your 'warnings' to new players, I don't think you should generalize quite so much. I help people whenever they ask me to, so long as its not 'Hey, be my biatch for a couple of hours, will ya?' I'm trying to enjoy myself in-game too, and having to race around collecting things for a newbie who has not had the foresight to find out what he or she needs beforehand is not my idea of a pleasurable afternoon. Send me a tell saying you're stuck in a mission/quest and can't find out how to move on and I'll spend as much time as it takes getting you through it. I have also had the 'give me gil' tells and even some moron who spammed trade on me while I was levelling clothcraft. Introduce yourself, tell why you are in a fix and ask whether you have missed something. Just the other day, a player shouted for help with Nyzul and I sent him a tell with various troubleshooting solutions. He kept up the convo for as long as he needed my help and then suddenly, once he had got where he wanted to go, nothing. Ignored my tells asking whether he'd made it. I checked where he was and found him in the right place. No thanks, no acknowledgement. If I were to judge all newbies by him, I would never send a tell again. But I don't. I still send tells. I like people. I just like polite people. Call me old-fashioned.

^ Decent people do exist.

[geekgirl101]

You're on the wrong realm, come to Leviathan. :P

[chubrocka]

You're on the wrong realm, come to Leviathan. :P

I agree Pipps.

[Inafking]

I didn't think jumping servers would help. I have one character that has been on 3 worlds. They were all prety much the same. Then I found this page:

http://www.ffxiah.com/database

It could be posible that these are good server jump destinations:
Lakshmi Valefor Bismarck Cerberus Quetzalcoatl Sylph Leviathan

[Zatias]

Do NOT come to Asura. Most of the people there are complete dumbasses. Port Jeuno is a nest full of hungry trolls waiting to pounce upon new players at the slightest need for help.

That's not saying the whole server is bad, but there are faaaaar too many people like this. I guess it's like chat roulette, there are a few nice people waiting if you don't mind wading through all the dicks to find them. XD

That being said I really enjoy helping struggling players. I don't enjoy handing them money, however. I have done that a few times and am 10M poorer than I should be. ^^;

[Aeonk]

FFXI is still accessible to new players, but they have to be motivated to actually get things done on their own rather than wait for it to be handed to them.
I'll generally help or give advice to anyone who asks for it (provided I'm not busy), but I don't enjoy holding their hand throughout the whole thing.

Even with other lvl 90 players, there's a big difference between "Can anyone help me get THF seals? I need 8 still" and "hey I'm going to kill this NM, <player1>, <player2> are you guys busy?"

This applies to newbs and veterans alike: Be direct, be motivated, don't abuse other's help all the time, use wiki or some other reference so you're not clueless about what we're doing, and 9/10 times people will help you.

[Solonuke]

I think being new at this game has always sucked. You don't have a lot of gil, you have a lot of missions to do, a lot of subjobs to level up, a lot of magic to learn and that the game doesn't tell you anything whatsoever. I thought starting over sucked because of I spent most of my time leveling up jobs with either one or two strangers (if a zone had any) until I could do more interesting stuff like missions, quests and endgame.

I personally wouldn't recommend anyone to start playing FFXI probably because of it's the greatest timesink in the world.

[Meyi]

Bismarck has a very... large social linkshell called TalesofVesperia. Not the brightest or best players, but there are a few gems. Wizkid is extremely helpful and there's never a time I go in there and he's not helping someone. You two should quit your characters, delete them, and move to Bismarck. I'll even help you get back to where your last character left off.

[Inafking]

FFXI is still accessible to new players, but they have to be motivated to actually get things done on their own

<sarcasim>Yeah, I know lots of people who soloed G1-8, AF, Missions, Quests, etc.</sarcasim>

I don't have the words to describe how badly you need to go away.

[Covenant]

I'm a really old player and have experienced the game in many manifestations. I don't agree with you specifically. In general yes it seems like no one will help you however, there's a difference between helping you and "baby-sitting" you. The game now is extremely solo friendly at beginning levels, even more so now with NPC is all town selling several beginning tiers of equipment.

Second, dont neglect crafting..I'd suggest cooking and alchemy, these two will save you and make you allot of gil, still.

I remember someone asked me for help with the ninja quest. I said sure I'll help you with the fight(leeches). This all in /tell. But, no he still needed even more help. He wanted to know exactly where the NPC was at, even though I told him to check the Port Bastok houses. He then asked me to take him there cause he couldn't understand my instructions via /tell. At this point I gave up and told him good luck and went about my business.

When I first played this game, I lvl redmage completely solo to lvl 30 the "hard way". It took me about 3 months with plenty if deaths, until I was introduced to party. It was my own loner personality that made this game even harder for me. Much like people griping about the "elite" crowd. Though they are jerks, theyve mastered group efforts to successfully power through farmng and battles. Nothing is gonna be handed to you on a silver platter, if it was you could probably buy it at brosale.com

[noirin]

i remember when i first started this game.course that was around the time the 360 beta started.the beta server has at least 8k+ people on it.a party wasn't hard to find,but getting your own mobs without them being stolen was.i also ground my way solo to level 30.my first linkshell was started when me and a handful of guys i met pooled our tiny bits of gil together and bought our own shell.man.things were alot harder back then,and that was only a couple years ago.

having restarted this game a few months back,knowing what your doing makes things alot easier.i was asked to join a linkshell that since then,has helped me get to lvl 90,get access to dynamis [and most of my wins] as well as a handful of other things.this in turn of course,got me to do the same for others.niceness is a very vicious,and welcomed cycle :).

[Aeonk]

<sarcasim>Yeah, I know lots of people who soloed G1-8, AF, Missions, Quests, etc.</sarcasim>

I don't have the words to describe how badly you need to go away.

Did you even read the rest of the post you quoted? The point is to say that if you actively try to set things up yourself that you need, rather than wait for some lvl 90 to organize everything for you (sending tells, joining a social shell, doing research on what you have to do for a quest, etc.) then shit gets done.

Reading comprehension is hard.

[Daniel]

I don't know about you guys but when I am exping on dolls on my blm I usually have a band of random new players I don't know at all following me around soaking up that exp. When someone asks I never turn them down, they just have to ask first. I've taken people all the way from 40ish to 90 in one night, its not like its hard.

[Defiledsickness]

this game was never newb friendly, it was always difficult to get help. the thing is that it takes so long to finally accomplish things, that to go back and help someone else doubles+ the amount of time you spend on each thing.

all you can do is ask ask ask questions and HOPE for replies. that's what i did. you also have ffxiclopedia.org or gamerescape.com so use them! getting parties is difficult now but go look for book burns. just go to the areas they occur at and put your flag up (seek party). if you xp on thier mobs they are even more likely to invite you lol.

i was always dirt poor but i managed ^^ you can level thf or just pick less expensive jobs. blue mage you dont have to buy spells, mnk is a easy DD and beneficial to have at 90, and thf is super cheap and great to get drops. if you need help try finding people who will help ya or level up until you can solo it. its funny to hear people complain about soloing because the whole time i played i just DREAMED of soloing stuff so i wouldnt have to constantly beg people to help me :(

[Inafking]

The point is to say that if you actively try to set things up yourself then shit gets done.

Too bad that's not true either.

Not being a dick is hard.

[Karbuncle]

Are you seriously saying if some new player takes the time to learn what he needs to do and takes the initiative in shouting/finding people that it doesn't help him complete his task?

If so i think you're simply being cynical. Sometimes a new player may go ignored for a while, but there is always at least 1 person who will help a new player.

I know on more than one occasion I've helped new players. Farmed the 3 items for 50 cap (?i think 50, Papyrus/etc), helped a fella with AF quests, etc.

Theres always someone to help, All a new player needs to realize is that people will help you but you need to help yourself too (Read what you need to do, etc)

[Inafking]

What I'm saying is that the shout of:

G1 (help me out!)

will get the same response as

G1 (mushroom) (crawlers nest) (help me out!)

But for some reason, there is one thing you can add to both that will get a better response.

(Reward)

That is why I suguest this:

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxi/threads/11395-Jeuno-Quest-Bulliten-Board

[Karbuncle]

What I'm saying is that the shout of:

G1 (help me out!)

will get the same response as

G1 (mushroom) (crawlers nest) (help me out!)

But for some reason, there is one thing you can add to both that will get a better response.

(Reward)

That is why I suguest this:

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxi/threads/11395-Jeuno-Quest-Bulliten-Board

I've never once asked for or expected a reward for helping someone... I there are many like me if you're willing to look. Shouting for a bit isn't a catastrophe, and eventually you will get help.

[Inafking]

Shouting isn't a catastrophe, and eventually you will get help.

The first part is not true. You have obviously never been on Titan / Ragnarok / Phoenix. From what I hear, Asura is prety bad too. So Asura isn't as bad as everyone says it is, you've never been to Jeuno or you don't know what it's like to be a new character without friends nowadays.

I guess the second part is true, it might take a couple days, but someone will respond eventually. But why should we have to wait days when people will do it for a reward now?

[Karbuncle]

The first part is not true. You have obviously never been on Titan / Ragnarok / Phoenix. From what I hear, Asura is prety bad too. So Asura isn't as bad as everyone says it is, you've never been to Jeuno or you don't know what it's like to be a new character without friends nowadays.

I guess the second part is true, it might take a couple days, but someone will respond eventually. But why should we have to wait days when people will do it for a reward now?

Back in the old days you had to shout for a long while too... Like doing CoP events, It was hell finding people for Bahamut V1 and things like Divine Might as well.

I can't adequately speak on what its like to be a brand new player in 2011, But neither can you, but i do know its been rough from the beginning, and as a new player to a nearly decade old game it wouldn't be wise to expect to jump in and have dozens of people waiting to hold your hand through the game.

We're not saying that the system is fine, what we are saying is that you can find help if you try, a lot of people are still out there helping new players, the only thing you really have to do is make it to port Jeuno to shout.

Your bulleitn board idea, . I think you should flesh the idea a bit more. I tried reading the OP to get a good feeling of what you were proposing but I'm afraid i don't understand.

You say a player can put put a request for help at a cost (i.e gil? or an item) and hope players chose it?

How would you make a request/
How would rewards be handled?
What types of Rewards are there? Exp?
Could you leave messages on these boards if you're say, in a different time zone but still want to help?
How would it handle Different languages (i.E would it translate it? or would there be JP/EN requests separately/Together?)
What Items do you mean when you say "Sign up using items"? Do the players who help get this item? is it lost?
How long would the request stay on the board? would you get a refund if no one took it? Could you cancel it?

I'm not saying its a bad idea But explain it to me like I haven't played the games you suggested its like. Because its very confusing to me.

[Inafking]

I can't adequately speak on what its like to be a brand new player in 2011, But neither can you.

the only thing you really have to do is make it to port Jeuno to shout.

Your bulleitn board idea, I'm afraid i don't understand.

Yes I can, I just did g3-8 in a few weeks worth of work. If I didn't dual box, would have been months. A lot of that time would have been days waiting for people to respond to shouts. I'll be happy to respond to your questions about the board in it's thread. (Please give me time to formulate my response.)

-- edit --
http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxi/threads/11395-Jeuno-Quest-Bulliten-Board?p=155975&viewfull=1#post155975
there ya go

[Karbuncle]

Yes I can, I just did g3-8 in a few weeks worth of work. If I didn't dual box, would have been months. A lot of that time would have been days waiting for people to respond to shouts. I'll be happy to respond to your questions about the board in it's thread. (Please give me time to formulate my response.)

When did you create your account? I have trouble believing you've only been playing the game for 6 months... (note i did say Brand new, not "I played back in xxx and quit and no i play again")

and i'll bring it up there in a bit so formulate away. i'd actually like the idea fleshed out a bit, Might actually catch some Rep attention

[Komori]

Collect yourselves on Bismarck, it seems to have alot of good helpful players (: I would be one of them if it wasn't for this new payment method.

Just watch out for like Mitsurgi (SP?) and Kuroganashi.

[Inafking]

When did you create your account?

Batmanxi has been around sience 2004. Never used him for anything other than a mule. I SMN burned his DRK to 56 just before Abyssea and FCed it 85 this month.

[Meyi]

Collect yourselves on Bismarck, it seems to have alot of good helpful players (: I would be one of them if it wasn't for this new payment method.

Just watch out for like Mitsurgi (SP?) and Kuroganashi.

Ahaha, seconded.

I must admit I got a taste of what beginning players are experiencing the other day. I decided to level up my bard sub a bit more -- I'd like it to be level 49 for an appropriate sub level, although I can already use all threnodies now -- and was struggling for the longest time to get a party! Let me tell you, brd/whm and a healing npc are not the fastest killers in the world. I would constantly do a /sea "Crawler's Nest" and /sea "Gusgen Mines" for invitations, but the two zones were empty for hours.

Could have been because I was playing during Japanese prime. As Americans started waking up around 7 A.M. PDT and the Europeans were getting off work, the Mines filled up decently. But I felt kind of... hopeless as I staggered through slow xp. So if you feel down because of soloing, do try to get into a GoV party when you can. If there are no GoV parties up, then do try to solo.

[Amador]

This is a bunch of crap. Stop posting negative things, and go make some friends.

[Defiledsickness]

ya simply putting your flag up wont cut it anymore and its a bit hard to find enough members for a typical 6man party (even harder to find a tank -good dd's -whm). but leveling goes REALLY quick now (12-45 rng in 3days and i work 8hours a day). only the level-break quests would be hard but you can find someone who will help you. you dont have to have the greatest gear leveling up to 75+ but you should already be trying to be the best you can at level 1. there are plenty of guides on wikia.

[Inafking]

This is a bunch of crap.

And you're a sack of crap. So it's like the pot calling the kettle black.

[Andreja]

Wow, this is probably one of the most fail threads ever. Jesus Christ, its not hard to get started into this game at all if you put some research into it to begin with. Before joining any server at all, look for a beginner friendly linkshell that is currently accepting members. It'll help increase the enjoyment of the game tenfold, and you'll have a place to ask questions and perhaps obtain some help with parties and quests.

There are areas in the game where beginner parties/alliances are pretty much always running, such as the dunes and gusgen mines, with the latter pretty much always having an alliance whenever I go in there. I've put up my party flag around lvl 10, and have gotten tells for the dunes within not long on Phoenix. If you're not getting any tells, the player search function is your friend. Someone needs to be somewhat social to get parties started, so if noone is breaking the ice, start doing that yourself. If you head for the gusgen mines, all you really need to do is put the party flag up and you'll be picked up usually within seconds if its not full. As long as you read up on the game with various wiki sites and are willing to ask questions from your linkshell, you should be able to do fine. I just started a couple of months back, and I'm already lvl 75 about to start on abyssea content, so it's definitely gotten easier on the new player these days.

[Inafking]

You can get EXP easy. The game isn't hard.

Why don't you actually do something in the game before you tell us how easy it is.

[RAIST]

All I can say is... wow.

Learn to use a couple tools available to you that I rarely EVER see brought up in these debates:

Use your server (and job) pages on the forums.
Strikes me as odd the outcry about lack of help not just here, but elsewhere--and yet I don't see much activity in server forums asking for help with the lower level stuff. Didn't find a single request for help with Genkai in the server forums here--33 hits on the term. A couple in job forums but none in the server forums. List what you are needing help with and search them for what you need. Other sites also have Private Messaging--join some of those forum sites and post on their server/job pages requesting help. PM is very handy for teaming up with people on those forums.

Search Comment, Bazaar Comment, Auto-Translate.
Learn how to use them, they can be your best friend in a multi-cultural, multi-language community like FFXI.

[Inafking]

Use your server (and job) pages on the forums. Search Comment, Bazaar Comment, Auto-Translate.

No one on any of the servers I've ever played on uses anything you've suguested.

[Eurell]

No one on any of the servers I've ever played on uses anything you've suguested.

Noone on any of those servers uses Auto-translate? Really? Sorta hard to believe you aren't exaggerating just to make things seem worse than they are at this point.


@ OP
Like a lot of other people have said, Bismarck seems to be a very helpful server. My wife and I just started helping out a new player that was shouting for help the other day. What makes him fun to help though, is he attempts the missions and tries to progress on his own, and asks questions when he's confused, or asks for help when he gets stuck. We suggested he work on some rank missions for his airship pass, he got to rank 4 in 3 days. We told him to get a choco license, he looked up what had to be done and got it done that day. He's got 2? lvl 50ish jobs now, and we were happy to help him beat g1 and 2 because he puts forth some effort on his own. And thanks us lol. I cant tell you how many times I've helped people and haven't been thanked.

I also know at least 2 LSs that help anyone from lvl 1 on, and also do endgame stuff for their other members. Thats not even counting for the 2-3 other LSs listed in this thread.

lol, sorta off topic but, funniest part about helping this new guy lately...
He was doing mission 2-3, and had to kill the Orc Warlod NM in Ghelshba(sp?) Outpost. He climbed to the top of the zone, got to the NM, and sent me a tell for help, saying it was too hard for him. He was a lvl 52 DRK. So I head out to help, and start asking him questions about his scythe skill, wondering if he lvled too quickly and wasn't up to par. I get up to him, and tell him to kill the NM, saying I would cure him and give him advice if he ran into trouble. He went up and 2-shotted the NM.

Me>> Um...? Good job!
Newbie>> OMG HOW!?
Me>> I told you you could handle it!
Newbie>> But it said it was impossible to gauge! I swear!

I laughed for a good 5 minutes after that lol

[Inafking]

Noone on any of those servers uses Auto-translate?

Yup. Only the english players use it to correct their spelling. German / French / JP don't even bother.

[Lynchilles]

You are like the man of 1,000 excuses.

[Bumbeen]

He's right though

[RAIST]

No one on any of the servers I've ever played on uses anything you've suguested.

You do realize that you just emphased my point 10-fold?

Sounds like a real opportunity for a teachable moment.....

[RAIST]

Yup. Only the english players use it to correct their spelling. German / French / JP don't even bother.

Maybe on your server... but I've got about 5 or 6 JP players on my list that I teamed up with because they had auto-trans comments in their /seacom when I was doing bazaar.

You are falling into the same trap as the OP. Basing your point of view only on your server's population and not accepting that may not be the way it is for the entire game. Maybe if someone was maybe getting the word out to some people somehow that these exisitng tools are useful instead of just discarding them as not worth it or nobody uses it when in fact people DO use it and they DO work...it may effect a little change here and there.

[Inafking]

I've tried putting stuff up in /seacom. Does not help if no one reads it. Just because it worked for you once, does not mean it works. Hell, people don't even read /seacoms when they invite you for EXP.

[Venat]

Bring FFXI to PSP Vista. It would bring more players into the game to support it.

Next set would be to uncap all the CoP,RoZ and what fights in the game where a lv90+ job could enter and solo them. This would make the games easyer but at this point in time... that content is very old and very hard to even complete.

FFXIV missions are solo based. Its not good for the game but it also has its benfits. FFXI should do this for FFXI,RoZ,CoP,ToAU and all 3 Mini Packs Storylines.

Also Boost the final reward for Wings of the Goddess by increassing completion of all 3 storylines. More players would plan on beating all of the content then. Wotg is far by the longest storyline in the game which takes alot of groups.

Keep Abyssea the way it is.

Make Void (New Endgame) More like Endgame focus on upgrading older equipment based on finding new (very hard) Magician Trial items. Also include new Void gear and make a Combin system when having 2 fully completed pieces of equipment.

Skadi Body+1
Thief EMP AF+2

Combin those 2 pieces =

((New lv99 Equipment))

See this way you gotta complete 3 types of endgame to earn equipment

Salvage,Void,Abyssea

[RAIST]

I've tried putting stuff up in /seacom. Does not help if no one reads it. Just because it worked for you once, does not mean it works. Hell, people don't even read /seacoms when they invite you for EXP.

Seem to be contradicting yourself....How would you know this if you aren't using it.

And I have had people who read my /seacom as I would solo /DNC and would put my available main jobs and subs and they would invite me and ask me to change subjob or if I wanted to change to another of the main jobs I had listed.

Korpg made a point in a thread about the payment systems, and the concept behind it may apply to this:


Originally Posted by Korpg
Just because a problem happens to a superminority does not make the system horrible.

It cuts both ways. Just because it works/doesn't work for a select few does not necessarily mean it is a good/bad option.

All I meant to point out about using the server/job pages to ask for help and using search/bazaar comments is there are tools already there that can help the situation, but people aren't using them--and maybe they need to start.

Edit: /seacom dind't work for me just one time...It's panned out for me too many times to count. So much I can't recall in fact. I just only listed some specific instances that stuck out for me. Case in point--it's helped out at least once on nearly every one of my 80+ items I've upgraded through the magian moogles so far. By the time I finish +2 armors, it may well wind up having helped on every single piece in the end.

[Yokoh]

I disagree with what the OP is saying (to some degree), the linkshell that I am in helps each-other out on nearly everything, from newbie conquest missions, to high-end sky things, Quest lines from all expansions included. We do regular shouts for people to join up, we get along like one big family. Many of the community, true, are more interested in higher level things, only for the fact that maybe.. they did it once, so why bother doing it again? (thats one thought they might have) But just as equal as there are people unwilling to help, there are many that are very generous with time and other luxuries in the game. So, its just very unfortunate that some people take things too personally. Just think, back in the day, we used to sit DAYS Seeking a PT. Final Fantasy 11 has become so much easier to play. As for the remark about not getting a subjob at Lv18.. You dont HAVE to get a subjob unlocked at 18, for most new players (or characters) you might not even have an adequately leveled subjob yet, so that remark isnt exactly valid, imo... I understand that people might find it frustrating, but trust me, we are out here, willing to help out a friend. It just annoys me, when I find people blasting the entire community from such a niche catchment. ALSO, the language barrier is next to null and void these days, if you dont understand, say Japanese, you can just as easy jump onto Google Translate and convert english to japanese, and pull up the Romaji (and ask the japanese to communicate in Romaji instead of characters) and its easy. (I already know enough Japanese to hold my own, so its not too much of a problem) But it just feels like, 'If you dont talk English, GTFO' considering its still a Japanese based game. But hell, what do I know, im from England... ((Sorry for the lack of paragraphs, my enter key is broken ;(..)

[RAIST]

Maybe it's just me... but for the most part, I've had good experiences with non-english players. I've been pleasantly surprised at how many JP players can speak at least broken english and will make the effort to communicate with me. Probly helps that I often degrade myself right off the bat by admitting <<---Amerika no baka or something along those lines....

[Steamgear]

I already knew the reputation of FFXI for a long time (elitist community, solo unfriendly, yada, yada,...) when I signed on a couple of days ago. And I don't really care anymore. I want to play a FF mmo and my primary game, XIV, is being rebuilt at the moment.

I do realize things are going to be different but then again that's par for the course for a FF game.

[Sephiran]

I understand how you feel, but being cast aside is a part of this game. Nothing you can do about it.

I've soloed the majority of the game (didn't get a chocobo 'til 40) and found it rather satisfying--and mind you, I was a WHM. The first and second Linkshells I was in did practically nothing to help me. And in the second, the LS founder had it in personally for me. He despised me for distorting WHM as I did and eventually kicked me from the shell (not entirely a bad thing, he taxed the non pearlsack-holders). For a time, I though all 75's were like that. I did things on my own until I found a good LS.

Eventually, WHM became tiring and ceased developing it at 74. I started leveling PLD, soloing a lot of it as PLD/WHM--at 45, I was even able to self-EXP chain and at 71, I solo'd Promyvion-Vahzl (see http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Talk:Desires_of_Emptiness#Testimonials).

My point is, don't give up. Soloing has its rewards and it's not so bad.

[Inafking]

How would you know this if you aren't using it.

I use it all the time. That is how I can tell you it does not work.

[Inafking]

My point is, don't give up. Soloing has its rewards and it's not so bad.

We're talking about quests / missions. Not EXP. Please read before posting.

[Inafking]

you can just as easy jump onto Google Translate and convert english to japanese, and pull up the Romaji (and ask the japanese to communicate in Romaji instead of characters)

good luck getting "JP ONRY" to use Romaji so you can read / translate what they say.

[RAIST]

No one on any of the servers I've ever played on uses anything you've suguested.

I use it all the time. That is how I can tell you it does not work.

soooo this post is mistaken then? or was it the first one? Which is true?

Again... just because it didn't work for YOU specifically the way YOU were trying to use it, doesn't mean it doesn't work for others.

Please, just stop as it is getting old.

I'll quote it again from the Boondoocks in that other thread you are also trolling this viewpoint in:


Gin Rummy: I always say the absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence.
Riley: What?
Gin Rummy: Simply because you don't have evidence that something does exist does not mean you have evidence of something that doesn't exist.
Riley: What?
Gin Rummy: What country are you from?
Riley: What?
Gin Rummy: 'What' ain't no country I ever heard of! They speak English in 'What'?
Riley: What?
Gin Rummy: English, motherfucker! Do you speak it?
Riley: Yeah.
Gin Rummy: So you understand the words I'm saying to you!
Riley: Yeah.
Gin Rummy: Well, what I'm saying is that there are known knowns and that there are known unknowns. But there are also unknown unknowns; things we don't know that we don't know.
Riley: What?
Gin Rummy: Say what again! Say what again! I dare you! I double dare you, motherfucker! Say what one more time!


/facepalm

[Inafking]

You need to stop. I use it which puts me outside the norm. I am done responding to your BS. Please stop trying to divert everyone's attention from issues that need to be addressed to make the game better.

[RAIST]

I'm not the one derailing it...I'm just responding to you. I first posted in agreement to another poster against your negative comment to that post, and then this took off because of your refusal to admit simple logic. I reference the threads that were the catalyst:

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxi/threads/12018-WARNING-New-Players-or-Players-thinking-of-coming-back-Consider-this-first.?p=160955&viewfull=1#post160955
http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxi/threads/11395-Jeuno-Quest-Bulliten-Board?p=160853&viewfull=1#post160853

Again, if you wan't it to stop... you need to stop, which you say you have. Hopefully that will hold true, as the record does show that these exisitng features can benefit users much like an in-game bulletin board could IF they would just use them.

[Yokoh]

good luck getting "JP ONRY" to use Romaji so you can read / translate what they say.

Have you tried? Doubtful, many japanese players are very good with you, if you put in some effort..

[RAIST]

hmmm...interesting tidbit from a wiki about romaji:

All Japanese who have attended elementary school since World War II have been taught to read and write romanized Japanese. Therefore, almost all Japanese are able to read and write Japanese using rōmaji.

Idk how awkward it may be for them to type it through their FFXI client--but at least they can read your responses.

[Yokoh]

hmmm...interesting tidbit from a wiki about romaji:


Idk how awkward it may be for them to type it through their FFXI client--but at least they can read your responses.

Well, its not too bad, on most japanese keyboards, you can type using the English Alphabet (romaji) and it automatically turns it into the characters, then after a few quick clicks, can keep it on romaji. My computer is set to japanese mode, and there are keyboard shortcuts to keep it in a certain mode, such as katakana, romaji (direct input), Hiragana, the computer then brings up like a dictionary sub section where you choose which spelling (characters) you mean to use.. sounds confusing, but its very quite simple :)

[Inafking]

Have you tried?

I have tried getting them to (Please use the auto-translate function.) 99% of the time the response is (no thanks).

[Karbuncle]

Truthfully I'm not entirely convinced a Bulletin board is going to work.

If people don't help people shouting, and don't use /seacoms, what makes you think someones going to use the Bulletin board, when the rewards from it seem meh, and even so new players are forced to work for points to put up requests.

In theory one might think "New players help new players = points for their own request" in practice its "I'm out of points and i dont wanna do XXX so I'll just shout for 2 hours then quit the game" like it is now.

A Bulletin board would need more rewards than "Bulletin bux" points to post quests for it to be any better than shouting or /seacoms. Now, I know you explained it before, but can you explain to me again specifically what rewards someone would get from helping a new player?

If its nothing big, Then it won't fix the problem, I'll help new players when I can, but most people won't unless its rewarding to them, in the same light, a Bulletin board with little/no reward won't fix the problem at all, it'll just be a Chocobo Races-level Ghost town with the occasional nub quest posted.

Furthermore most new players can barely reach jeuno by level 18, How are they going to get to Port Jeuno to post a Quest for sub job items when they cant even get to Jeuno?

I think the Bulletin board should be linked to all nations similar to Auction house system for that example.

[Inafking]

If people don't help people shouting, and don't use /seacoms, what makes you think someones going to use the Bulletin board

1 word (reward). They get gil, items, or the ability to post for their own help. But this is not the Buliten Board thread, anyone who wants to comment on that idea should do so there. This thread is about the problem, that thread is about the solution.

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxi/threads/11395-Jeuno-Quest-Bulliten-Board

[Karbuncle]

I read that, And it still makes 0 sense.

What items? Beetle Jaws? Insect Wings? Potions?

How much gil?

The system would need to be pretty rewarding for your idea to work is what im saying. You think people who ignore noobs now will suddenly help them because theres a Fire Cluster in store for them? no.

You act like this game is full of assholes/people who won't help, and honestly expect those types of players to go out of their way for piddly rewards? This won't do anything but help the people who are already helping new players. In essence it won't add any new people to the system, just help those already using the system.

I.E its not a solution, unless the rewards were significant, at which point i don't think SE would implement it because they don't like giving us things like that. Knowing them helping someone complete their 18 cap quest will give you a Cotton Cloth (Get it, bogy's drop them)

Edit: I'm not bumping that thread, this one is relevant, and I'm talking about your posts here. Your idea is that bulletin board, and i don't think it will work. prove me wrong here, and then just copy it there.

[Inafking]

I don't have access to all the data I need to balance it correctly. What I've posted is a general idea.

[Karbuncle]

I'm simply trying to point out, You crucify the community for being selfish/unhelping, and expect a bulletin board with vague rewards to fix the problem.

The rewards would have to be substantial to get the kind of people you describe that inhabit this game to help a new player.

Where as SE usually has a very conservitave approach to these things, rewards would be piddly. They could simply introduce a new Augmenting System like they did with Expansions.

I.E Every quest earns you 10 "BULLETIN BUX", And you can buy a "Key" (to that coffer in tenshodo, a brand new key, not one linked to past expansions) That will give you an augmented piece of Armor or an Item reward.

For instance:

Lv.10kay - Grants an Augmented Armor in the level ~10 range. or a low value item
lv.30key - Grants an Augmented Armor in the level ~30 range. or a medium-low Value item
Lv.50Key - Grants an Augmented armor in the level range of ~50, or an Item of medium value.
Lv.75 Key- Grants an Augmented Armor in the level 75 range. Or a high value item.
Lv.90 key - Grants a Augmented armor in the level 90 range, or a Very high value item.

Key prices:

Lv10 - 5points
Lv30 - 10 points
Lv50 - 15 points
Lv75 - 20 points
lv90 - 30 points

Possible rewards:

Lv10 - Augmented Armor:
Scale Mail (HP+1~10 MP+1~10 Accuracy+1/2, Attack+1/2, Random Stat +1~2)
Doublet (MP+5~15 HmP+1~2 Random Stat +1~2)
Power Gi (DEX+1~2 Acc+1~2 VIT+1~2)
Bee Spatha (STR+1, DEX+1, AGI+1, VIT+1, Acc+1~2, Attack+1~2, Shield Skill+1~2)

Lv10 - Items
Potion +3
Ether +3
Reraiser
Elixir
Pet Food Alpha Biscuitx 3~6
---------------------------------------------------------------------------


Lv.30 - Augmented Armor:
Eisenshuhs - (AGI+1~2, STR+1~2, HP+5~10, Shield Skill +1~2)
Seer's Slops - (hhp+1~2, MP+1~10, MND+1-2, INT+1-2, Magic Accuracy +1-2)
Soil Hachimaki - (HP+5~15 VIT+1-2 STR+1-2 DEX+1-2 Acc+1-3)

Lv.30 - Items
Hi-Potion+3
Hi-Ether+2
hi-reraise
Hi-Elixir
Silk Cloth x1~2
Petrified Log
Lesser Chigoe x1~2
Pet food Beta Biscuit x3~6
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lv.50 - Augmented Armor:
Mythril Breastplate - (STR+2-3, DEX+2-3, Acc+2-3, Attack+2-3, Physical Damage taken -1/2%)
Shinobi Tekko - (Acc+2-3 Evasion+2-3 STR+2/3, AGI+2/3, Critical hit Rate +1)
Crow Slacks - (MND+2/3 INT+2/3, MP+10-15, Magic Attack Bonus +1/2)

Lv.50 - Items
Pro-ether +3
X-potion +3
Vile Elixir
Hi-Reraiser
Pet Food Delta Biscuit x3~6
Dawn Mulsum
Saltena x1-2
Elshena x1-2
Scream fungus x3~6

and so on.

[Inafking]

The biggest reward would be the ability to post for your own help. That should be enough to motivate anyone. The gil / items are just a bonus / means of controling NM congestion.

[Karbuncle]

The biggest reward would be the ability to post for your own help. That should be enough to motivate anyone. The gil / items are just a bonus / means of controling NM congestion.

Not if no one takes the quest? If no ones doing it whats the point of posting your own quest.

I'm trying to explain why this won't work. People don't just help people to post a bulletin, when most players can simply shout. noobs helping noobs rarely works out because theres so few of them. This would be targeted more at high level players helping newer players.

And high level players aren't going to go out of their way to help some guy with Sub job quest if the only real reward is being able to post his own quest, when he's probably better off shouting for people anyway.

Of course i'm not speaking of the players who already help others.

Edit: Seriously just trying to point out to you, you go on and on about how unhelpful people are, no one uses /seacom or auto-translate etc etc, what makes you think this Bulletin board is going to be the exception to the rule? I don't think it will. It wont get traffic and most people will ignore it.

Most high level players already have friends to help them, and theres really not a lot of quests high level players need to do that can't easily be done via shouts. So it'd just be a "noob helping noob" system, which also wouldn't fix the problem, because there are so very few new players it would still be a wasteland.

I mean its not without positives, but the "post your own quests!" reward is going to attract no one. It will be Chocobo races and Pankration all over. Wasted space in the game.

Again, Not saying your idea is BAD, Just saying its needs to be thought out much more. You yourself know the population of FFXI as well as all of us, and despite me actually helping people when i can, i know a lot of people wont without reward.

[Inafking]

If no ones doing it whats the point of posting your own quest. This would be targeted more at high level players helping newer players.

The point would be to scale the amount of points one needs to post and gets as rewards in such a way that help could be distributed evenly. I don't have all the data for the exact balance but I can give you an example. People who need testamonys are helping people get G1, people who need G1 are helping with job quests, people who are doing job quests are heling with sub job items. But again, this all really belongs in the other thread. Especialy the augment suguestion. Please post there about the board. This is a thread about the problem, not the solution.

Edit: This is a solution to the clique system. There are people like me who are high level that don't like the way things are. Why aren't there more? Because they keep quiting. I haven't quit because of some attachment to Final Fantasy / mental illness I haven't put my finger on yet. Any normal person would have given up years ago.

[Karbuncle]

The point would be to scale the amount of points one needs to post and gets as rewards in such a way that help could be distributed evenly. I don't have all the data for the exact balance but I can give you an example. People who need testamonys are helping people get G1, people who need G1 are helping with job quests, people who are doing job quests are heling with sub job items. But again, this all really belongs in the other thread. Especialy the augment suguestion. Please post there about the board. This is a thread about the problem, not the solution.

I understand your ideals/ideas on the subject, I just don't think it'd play out like you imagine unless there was some better rewards. Because otherwise most people wouldn't bother fiddling through low-level junk just to post their own request, when they could gamble with shouting.

Some players might take the Bulletin path, but most will simply shout and ignore it. I'm not saying i would, I'm only saying you have to see it as well, especially considering the population of FFXI.

A lot of people will help others, but thats sometimes not enough, if the goal is to truly help new players, there needs to be rewards for helping them. I don't ask for rewards, but the general populace will is what I'm saying, and to truly fix it, we need to appeal to that crowd.

I'll post that stuff over there.

[Madjam]

[...] So if you feel down because of soloing, do try to get into a GoV party when you can. If there are no GoV parties up, then do try to solo.

... or to set the actually party you need to get it. That's what we call "entrepreneurship" : A person who organizes, operates, and assumes the risk for a business venture. (Read: experience points party venture).

[Madjam]

Use your server (and job) pages on the forums. Search Comment, Bazaar Comment, Auto-Translate.

No one on any of the servers I've ever played on uses anything you've suguested.

What makes you think that your "The Bulletin Board" will be used?

[Madjam]

Equation: Rewards from Abyssea > WhoKnowsHowManyRewardsAreMoreValuable > Rewards from The Bulletin Board
The Bulletin Board will endup being ignored just like Ballista...


Learning to properly use the tools that are currently available for use to let other players knows about our interests before asking for other tools.

/seacom and /seacomup are not that difficult to use and can be macro-ed
source:
http://ffxi.gamerescape.com/wiki/Macro
http://ffxi.gamerescape.com/wiki/Command/seacom
http://ffxi.gamerescape.com/wiki/Command/seacomup

Final Fantasy XI Linkshell Community ß version is a good way to make people know about what you are interested in.
source:
http://fanzone.playonline.com/lscom/index.do
http://fanzone.playonline.com/ff11en/portal/manual.html

It's still on ß version because it is not used as much as it should be.

And again, I'm not mentioning all the other community websites that can be found in the Internet.



The focus in this matter should be about what players, from Fresh Newbies to Hardcore Veterans, have to do to find people with the same interest as them.
Everythings is not about asking other players for help but about finding players with commons interest towards certains activities in the game.

It is the responsability of the community to make the best use of these tools.

We shouldn't be saying: "I would like you to HELP me."
We should be saying: "I would us to COLLABORATE."

[Karbuncle]

While i agree its the responsibility of the community to use the tools we have.

a New system that improves on the old and that may help/reward for help could be useful. Right now saddly, Vana'diel is not a utopian society, Some people will help you if you shout, but a lot of people do not want to help unless it benefits them.

We need to appeal to the players who are hesitant to help others. The rewards i listed above were for low level participants, if you didn't catch that they were leveled. There would be higher level rewards as well. The idea of his thread is to ease or create more tools for the community.

There are a lot of methods, But many go unused, you can't expect a new player to use the LS Community page to find help because its a ghost town, and old players won't start using it either. I admit the idea, if not properly fleshed out, will end up like chocobo Races, But with the right methods/rewards/ease it could be potentially useful.

[Return1]

OP is just a bit of a fool if he thinks the game is "unsoloable" or that you have to solo for any length of time past 10.

Just recently I made a thread on alla that's a terrific read for all newbs:
http://ffxi.allakhazam.com/forum.html?forum=10&mid=130291213274993521&howmany=50

Since that thread:

Grounds of Valor Book burning alliances have also become a new path to leveling and are almost ALWAYS running and looking for low level players as Syncs. Stand by a book with your flag raised.

At 60+ Campaign has been altered to be a great solo leveling tool and mildly decent source of income with Union Spoils.

Also, Leeching a VW run with some random people, or making your own at higher levels can yield decent EXP in short order.

Things have changed so much that the people who say soloing is some kind of difficult or the game is "unsoloable" are just whiny tools.

[Octaviane]

Why don't you actually do something in the game before you tell us how easy it is.

I think this comment is well...........uncalled for.

Getting help depends a lot on your attitude, and this kind of comment doesn't help your cause at all. Saying please and thank you and being just a tad civil goes a long way. There are still quite a few people who will gladly help other players out with almost anything for no reward other than it gave them pleasure to do so.

When asking for help, you also need to make sure you are ready to go AND know what you are about to do and where you are going. Nothing is more irritating than having someone ask for help, then when someone says "sure"! You ready? And you say, oh, I have to go to the store, gotta feed the cat, kids, take the dog for a walk, and I need to do 10 cs's (well maybe not that many, but not far off in some cases) before I am ready, brb and 2 hours later you're still gone, come back and get mad because they didn't wait for you.

Many things in game can be solo'd and if you show people some initiative to do what you can on your own instead of complaining, they might be more inclined to help you with the things you can't solo.

Not sure a bulletin board would help tbh. I certainly wouldn't read or use it. I do agree that /seacoms are not read, at least, not these days. I can attest to that when I have put up a /seacom that specifically states Party? No Thanks? and they still ask..........

Best choice overall would be to make some friends who have like interests that you can buddy around with help one another and perhaps others.

[RAIST]

eh... I get tells for party when I'm already in party.

The point I was trying to make earlier is that /seacom is used and does work for some, so to patently write it off as not working and no one uses it is technically false. And it's really easy to use... you can macro them very easily for something you routinely put up. To search a category, you can just type /sea all <enter>, <enter> and scroll to the category you want to filter. Searched last night in fact and had 73 users with translated text in the others (most of them were magian trials, people still tend to use others and not magian on my server, only 2 listed under magian). A good bit of those may have actually been JP because they had the funky font for the numbers and the PS2 button shapes also.

The bigger issue I think is getting people to use ANY of the grouping resources. Regardless if it is the current resources or something new added--people just don't seem to be inclined to use them. Maybe it's because they see Shout (and now Yell) being used so much and it appears to be the way everyone else is doing it. When in Rome......

Oh, and for the new users who are unfamiliar with what we are talking about when we reference /seacom:
http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/The_Importance_of_Search_Comments
(note: /seacom also has a shorthand command of just /sc so when you set up macros and such you can use /sc 1 instead of /seacom 1)

[Kari]

My main problem with /seacom is the lack of categories.
Example, let's say /seacom was much more popular than it is right now.
If I wanted to find people for CoP 3-5, I'd have to wade through every "Mission" search comment, looking specifically for this fight or anyone near it. Even if only 20-30 people had seacoms up, this would take a while and wouldn't likely be productive.
Not to mention, making my own would be just as annoying for others to find me. Search comments are also very passive, as it requires someone ELSE to think "Oh, I want to do this mission! Let me check if anyone has it in their search comment."
This is why people resort to shouts.

Shouting not only is easier, but will cause some people to join you without having thought of doing that mission themselves.
An example using what I said earlier, if I shouted that I was recruiting people for CoP 3-5, there's a higher chance of someone seeing the shout and thinking "Oh, I need that mission, I should see if I can join." or similar.
Which, is actually how I got Divine Might done. I saw a shout in Jeuno and decided to join. I had zero plans on doing Divine Might that morning.

I can't think of any better systems to "replace" seacom or shouts, but still, I can see why shouts are more commonly used, being a lot less passive.

As far as the topic goes, noobs who think this game is hard at low levels should probably quit ASAP.
This game no longer has any difficulty for leveling, so I'm not sure what the OP is complaining about.
Solo til about 15 [which takes no time at all with new exp rules and FoV/GoV].
Do a /sea gusgen
^This will show you how many people are in Gusgen Mines, a popular low-level Ground of Valor party location on most servers.
Player names in white are people without a party, gold are party leaders, and blue are people in a party.
If most of the search turns up gold/blue and there are a bunch of [fairly] low level people, it's likely there is a GoV party going on.
Head to Gusgen Mines and join up.
Depending on how many people are around and such, you should get good XP/hour for your level off the pages. [The page caps at 1320 exp, for killing only 6 Skeleton mobs.]
You could probably also solo this, if no parties are going on. You may need to be around level 18 though. Eventually someone else may come along, team up, and keep expanding.

If you're 30+ you can usually do the same with Garlaige Citadel.
Page 2 in Garlaige caps at 2320 exp, and is also fairly popular on most servers.

I personally took my BST from 15 to 30 in Gusgen, and 30 to 66 in Garlaige.
It's not very difficult, and the jobs that actually require gear to perform well only have to buy level 30/40 gear once, due to level syncs.

As far as Gil is concerned, you should earn more than enough to keep yourself afloat with the game-day page gil.
If you get the chance to claim and open Brown chests when they drop, high chance of getting something to either NPC or AH for good money. In my Garlaige parties, I found the Dispel Automaton attachment which sold for 500k on Shiva at the time. You'll also find things such as Elixirs which NPC fairly high. [Around 8k I believe?]

Noobs who think they have it hard NOW should really be thankful, the game just keeps getting easier at all levels.
A year or two ago, noobs had to solo/duo their way up for the most part, and it was MUCH slower than it is now, and actually required a couple risks depending on job to get decent exp.

[Rosina]

I'm returning player and never had an issue. This game was never really unsoloable. It just took longer. I'm on the same server I was on and re met friends. Plus i rekindled my relationship with my former ex bf. (yay) I also made new ones. This game always had elitism issues. Can be people be a bit more friendly and helpful? sure. But this game isn't that horrific. I seen worst communities. LIke Aion, I tried asking for help on thaat game only to be troll'ed, bullied, told off, called out for asking for a guild at level 10 stating i had to be level 25. (player rule not game rule) I never found any help to learn the game or how to make money. I never conneted with anyone. I left after 6months of trying.

World of warcraft also has a less then desireable community. But not everyone is bad.

[Sortis]

I have come to find out that the community in-game is not helpful or friendly one bit. They seem to be very clique oriented and will IGNORE you because you do not have 7 jobs to 90 or have not been playing for 8 years like them. Not to mention the language barrier cuts the already dwindling population of people online even further (The other half are gil farmers.)

IF YOU ARE THINKING OF STARTING BACK I RECOMMEND YOU CONSIDER THIS:

You will need to solo the majority of a game NOT MEANT for soloing. You will not be able to do missions, get a subjob before level 30+ (normally lvl18), level at any respectable rate, and forget about unlocking jobs because it more than likely will not happen without paying people in-game HUGE amounts of gil (YOU WILL BE DIRT POOR) or unless you have been lucky enough to get into a linkshell but even then that promises nothing.

Its funny how a dying games community can be so shallow and cold towards new players. You would think that they would appreciate new players more since it keeps all their level 90 jobs somewhat relevant and keeps THEIR game populated. Instead its just the opposite its about who you know rather than what you know or do that makes or breaks you in this game currently and it will only get worse by the day.

If soloing a un-soloable game is your thing, play this game. If being ignored by other players because they do not know you is your thing, play this game. If playing a game where you can not unlock anything solo but a chocobo at the appropriate level is your thing, play this game. If not, I suggest you play WoW (a game you can solo if needed and can actually find a party) or even... FFXIV, which I have not played yet and with this SE game experience will more than likely not.

I am really sorry this happened to you, if I was still playing (quit because of this retarded new payment system) I would invite you to come play on my server with me, my LS and I...we take care of our own, in fact we actually enjoy helping new people. Really sorry this happened to you, sounds like you just got screwed and unlucky. =\

[Tunechi]

First off, "LOL" I havn't been back to these forums in a while (Been playing FFXI :o) and there are 104 replies xDDD. I didn't mean to stir up anything guys I wrote this originally out of frustration and my opinions expressed originally were a bit off. (I have not read all the post and also will not because I know its mostly flame) After playing the game a while (BLM-19, WHM-10, THF-30, WAR-15, MNK-13, PLD-24, BST-2 xD, RDM-14) I've gotten 3 total parties (Gusgen, Dunes, Qufim) so far, and no linkshell.

This game is worth trying out if you never played it before or if your computer can not handle FFXIV.

Pros:
More EXP
A lot of items that used to be 1m+ are now a fraction of what they were.
HUGE AMOUNT OF CONTENT
Level sync


Cons:
Population
Starting a fresh character (Money and you will out level your gear pretty quick)
Hard to find a linkshell
Might take a bit to find a party
People would rather play with themselves than others (They make a separate account so they can dualbox with it, to farm Abyssea)


This is all a new player really has to worry about from what I've noticed in the game. I didn't mean for this thing to snowball out of control I figured people would just ignore it and move on. For everyone who might have gotten offended somehow I apologize again. <Take Care> everyone.

Also new players should come to Odin :o since its the best server out there.

PS Send me a /tell in-game if you (meaning anyone who needs it) need help. OR a LS :DD

Sorry again

[Rakeesh]

I'm also new to the game and I'm currently on Odin, do you guys have a linkshell?

[Chadx]

I want to add also that struggling new players is not a new occurrence and I don't want people thinking I am just 'whining' and bashing. I like/want to like this game and I am pretty determined to MAKE it work. Their are just glaring faults that frustrated me a bit.

@Zelke - You should come to Odin if your not heavily invested in your server yet like I am. I only have a 20 THF so the other 5 starting jobs are fair game :P. I can also help out a bit on starting gear and what-not. Also, I was in Valkrum earlier looking for help with getting my subjob items and there was only 21 people there (11 of them were 45+ x_X) and no one would help I even tried to bribe some to no avail xD.

time and place ill be there if still needing people

[Chadx]

I'm also new to the game and I'm currently on Odin, do you guys have a linkshell? no wish i could find someone willing to take a noob like me

[Rakeesh]

no wish i could find someone willing to take a noob like me

Maybe us newbs should bind together and start our own LS. I'm loving the game so far (just hit lvl 30 Warr) but it gets boring with no one to run around and chat with.

[meeks32]

Thanks for the adviuce. I just got back on after a two year layoff. I hope to have fun like I did way back when. Luckly I have a RDM at 70 and a SAM 59, so I hope I can lvl and get some missions done.

[AnSanto]

I don't know about your server but I met two very helpful high level players today and it was my first day so it might just be your server.

[Inafking]

I don't know about your server but I met two very helpful high level players today and it was my first day so it might just be your server.

LOLAsuraLOL, good luck with that.

[Soranika]

Best thing for older players to do if they want to help newer people is to actually populate the three nations instead of huddling at Port Jeuno and complaining about how bored they are and why aren't there any decent shouts? Part of the problem is that no one wants to do anything if there's no direct benefit for them, even as an older player, you know how hard it is to convince some one to do low level BCNMs with?

I hate to actually to say this but get any newbie to La Theine Plateau and travel to each abyssea maws... they would have NO problem doing GoV at Gungsten Mines then moving on to Abyssea to level. (strickly leveling)

I know when I'm able, I help people do story missions, genkai, or WSNMs many times over. Just have to be proactive in being welcoming to newbies and help them.... it's as easy as it actually sounds if people just do it.

[axlzero]

i read the first two or three post i find it sad back in the day i use to adopt taru players that were new i took a year off and came back and dont do any end game i been leveling all jobs to 50 for subjobs i got pld war and blm 85 (have not uncapped and dont really care to til im done with my leveling) im on shiva and need something to do when things get slow and helping new players dont take jack for time if you know what your doing and they have done all they can on there own and know how to travel fast if you wanna get going look me up when im online i have 6 chars axlzero, acezero, lilnuker, outrider, madpoofinger, and redsonya the last 4 are mules i use for moolge lotto and extra gear storage and auction house selling. i work strange hours so i might be gone for a week here and there but when im on i can play for hours. unless im haveing a lax day where im afkish a lot i dont hang in port jeuno there is things in the game you can always be doing and most if the time im doing them

[Vosslerr]

I read the first few posts of this until I got to Runespiders comment and I have to disagree with her. Though I can see her point, the community in Shiva compared to Alexander has taken a dramatic turn for the worst. I originally came from Alexander and moved to Shiva after a two year long break. In Alexander, I made many many great friends who I still talk to outside of game that were willing to help you at any time. They would drop whatever they were doing to help it seemed. So much that it turned me into the helpful player I am today. Given there are still lots of players willing to help, most ignore you nowadays. Even in my own linkshell, I am often ignored when I ask for help, even though I have helped those same players many times. Often times I have to offer payment in Jeuno, which I never had to do before btw. Its not just that either, its the fact that people don't even respond 90% of the time. If someone asks for help in my Linkshell, I give them a reason I can;t help such as camping an NM or in a party. But at least I respond to them.

I seen someone bring up page burns and aby leveling. I wouldn't even mind Aby 75+. Its the page burns and Level 30 leechers thats got me rattled. Players that are new to FFXI and got 90's in just a few days generally do not know how to use their jobs/very unskilled and can't land a spell or a hit, then they quit because they're bored after getting a 90. I don't blame them. A major part of the game was destroyed and the freaking awesome community that I loved for some reason is nonexistant anymore. This game no longer has a sense of accomplishment to it, its just simply played.

Maybe I also need to switch servers like some suggest here.

[Concerned4FFxi]

Hey guys, i just wanted to say that your not alone. There are many players who will help, unfortunitly, there are plenty more that stand around and offer nothing when they can spare five minutes for another person. Ive been on this game for about three years now, and do to unemployment and a ffxi addiction I've been able crush this game 100x to the point that I'm extremly well geared and completed everything in the game expect hunting a few Notorious Monsters (AV,PW) and completing a mythic or relic (have empyrean, very easy to trio).

My point is that I always help new players and I am keenly aware that new players are the key to future of any game so fyi I treat new players like gold. Sadly, in my three years of play I've echoed your feelings of no help the whole time. It also seems that its become harder for electing help, these days I dont require much outside assistance but I know how much help a new player needs. I was around 28 level when I got my first sub job, btw. I seriously hope more veteran players read this and consider spending an hour a week helping new players. I suggest shouting in Port Jueno once you get there, and definitly looking for a linkshell that can help you with common goals/achievements. Also, when you meet players that are willing to help, request them as friends. Just as in real life, dont ask these people for everything and anything, but attempt to solo stuff on your own and if you need help request some from your new veteran friends. I admit, if I'm repeatedly asked to assist by the same person over and over I'm not going to because I feel spent and I've seen new playhers not come back so my time invested is for naught. So that's why I suggest trying to meet other people that can assist you and spreading out the help onto more than one person so you can get stuff done and not always depend on that one decent veteran to help.

That said, perhaps you might be able to get to Crawler's Nest. My server is packed with players and there's a book which has grounds of valor in the crawler's nest. Usually low level (around 40-50) party up in Crawler's Nest doing books, there can be up to an alliance at times burning up this area. I suggest to you that you pop your head in there and ask the party leader if you can leech (you dont need be 40-50 to do this if leader is willing to let you, tell him your situation.) Also, if you find a few veterans or a linkshell that has veterans perhaps you can get into an abyssea party at 30+ and leech that. I let noobs actually leech abyssea from time to time over veteran players, because a veteran doesnt need me to leech them yet a new player does need leeching help. Also, as a new player you should familiarise yourself with some of the xp camps in the dunes and quifim island (which is a great place to xp on worms at full pt at 19/20 level or a decent balanced trio 23ish with sub jobs).

Its a lot of work, but if you really hope to strick around try some of these and getting internet access to the wiki is a life changer. There are also other websites you can use such as ffxiah.com. I usually give gil to new players also, regretably you observation is correct it is who you know in this game and the player base doesnt have the right attitude in my opinion towards new players, I see you as a means to strengthen the game I love, and not someone to be spoken down to or ignored. This attitude also reflects how most of us behave in real life too, so go figure.

Perhaps SE might consider having one GM per server get on a regular character and invite all the new players for some epic level sync xp, I've personally hosted pts for new players just because I've about cried seeing 10 new players looking for party and nobody getting invites. Come to Bismarck, send me a tell. I'll put you under my wing and introduce you to a guy who does nothing but help new and old players. It is possible to get somewhere in this game as a new player, I recently helped one a few months back by letting them leech, they have since gotten their Shinryu access (thats the abyssea storyline clear/win), rank 10 and a few level 90 jobs. Trust me when I say it, you just need to find a way over the first few hurdles, the rest is a frustratingly bumpy ride downhill but worth it ^^ {/wave} I still can't get help myself, I'm offering 3-5k for a tele and can't get at times lol, so I know a person with limited resources is in a tighter spto but if you like the game stay and fight for it.

I think the difference really lies in you first month playing, if you meet people or get discouraged. I lost my friends and linkshells along the way and was a loner for awhile, now I know lots of people and enough linkshell mates or friends here to do just about anything til 99 endgame. My linkshell leader made a good point the other day too, we can take a new player and get him/her top gear fairly easy with the introduction of Abyssea, but people good hearted people and people with brains is the key to a successful linkshell. So you really just should focus on one job for now and level that to 90 in order to better help yourself get what it is that you want and to be a lil more independent (independent my friend, not solo like you're being forced into).

White mage is probly your best bet if you want to get into an abyssea pt w/o a veteran's help. The spells are somewhat cheap compared to other mage jobs and you dont have to process weakness as much in a empyrean amor pt, plus you only need a few spells to start out for xp. You can do this at around 41/42 when White mage gets cure 4(attempt abyssea leeching without knowing someone). Granted not everyone will let you in but some leaders won't mind so long as you can cure 4 from time to time.

I'll be glad to check back here occasionally to answer any questions you might have that i might be of some help to you. About the sub job items, try getting into a pt in the dunes if you cant get someone to help you, at least in this respect you can get 2/3 items you need just from doing crabs and flies and fields of valor in an xp pt there and then you'll only need help with the magick skull (which a good thf should be able to get for you in no time, even off a skeleten at night in the dunes they drop it too) Take care and enjoy, I'll be hoping that you stay but understand if you don't.

[Concerned4FFxi]

Yes the game has changed to playing versus accomplishment, but im holding out hope that things will balance once 99 endgame forms. The game is in a transition to this, unfortunitly communication about the future isn't clear (yes theres roadmaps but it would be helpful if SE said flat out that their vision for 99 is a combo of casual play and hardcore endgame with or without a final add-on.

About the 75+ new players gimps, if they quit because they've accomplished enough let them go they were not meant for ffxi anyway so no loss there and maybe they will find the game they really want to be in. We need 75+ new player gimps, because there is really no pts 30-75 anymore outside abyssea so it makes sense to get them to 75+ fast and then fix the problem post 75. A day or two skilling up outside abyssea, a return to abyssea with skills 200-250+ and finally cap skills in abyssea then is a simple solution. Nobody wants to grind xp like the old days, even though it was educational, the new education starts at 75+ in abyssea.

[Vosslerr]

@Concerned I agree however they took something out that kept people around. I do want to grind levels in a party again, because thats what FFXI was. You know that. Book burns do not show people how to use thier jobs, and I have been killed countless times because a party member did not spend the two weeks afterwards skilling up or know how to use thier jobs, especially our mages. :p

[Lordscyon]

Players Don't really consider any off this usually as a player playing any game even ffxi we try too figure how too play the game we are no one too tell anyone consider this first too be honest its the 1st expression of anything that make it worthwhile and hey if they want too keep playing thats a bonus i support them.

[Juri_Licious]

Absolutely agree...The things i've had to do by myself have been just absolutely ridiculous.

[Soranika]

@Concerned I agree however they took something out that kept people around. I do want to grind levels in a party again, because thats what FFXI was. You know that. Book burns do not show people how to use thier jobs, and I have been killed countless times because a party member did not spend the two weeks afterwards skilling up or know how to use thier jobs, especially our mages. :p

This would be a great reason to take up mentoring roles. It's not just the new people who are unable to adjust properly but probably some that's been on for weeks and still don't properly know how to play job. I've been a SMN for 3 years but I've never actually visited forums until recently and it gave me a more deeper understanding for the job than what I thought I knew.

[VC_Braska]

Well as an "older" player I actually find it a little offensive how you group all servers and all players together. Not everyone is clique-ish or elitist. There are actually some of us who help others and go above and beyond. As a matter of fact I can tell you today that I PERSONALLY went and escorted someone from Korroloka Tunnel to the Eastern Altepa Telepoint crystal and then to the exp party. I even offered to help the same person fight their avatar fights for their summoner since all they had were elementals and Carbuncle. Was this anyone I met before? Did I have a hidden agenda? no. It was something I felt as a player of the game I should do to help another person who needed assistance. So before you group all of us old players together all willy nilly please think about what you are saying. Yes the dynamics of the game have changed where it is a rarity to find a traditional exp party and some people are carelessly spam leveling jobs is abyssea, is it something EVERYONE is doing, no, it isn't remember it only takes ONE person to make it NOT everyone.

Thanks ^^

Thuggy...I would love to join up with you if you get a chance! Elidonis

[FANCY60]

he is a new player thats hurting even if he critic us well next time we in game we just do more is all no more

Well as an "older" player I actually find it a little offensive how you group all servers and all players together. Not everyone is clique-ish or elitist. There are actually some of us who help others and go above and beyond. As a matter of fact I can tell you today that I PERSONALLY went and escorted someone from Korroloka Tunnel to the Eastern Altepa Telepoint crystal and then to the exp party. I even offered to help the same person fight their avatar fights for their summoner since all they had were elementals and Carbuncle. Was this anyone I met before? Did I have a hidden agenda? no. It was something I felt as a player of the game I should do to help another person who needed assistance. So before you group all of us old players together all willy nilly please think about what you are saying. Yes the dynamics of the game have changed where it is a rarity to find a traditional exp party and some people are carelessly spam leveling jobs is abyssea, is it something EVERYONE is doing, no, it isn't remember it only takes ONE person to make it NOT everyone.

Thanks ^^

[Kuishen]

ITT: Making friends is hard. Game is hard. Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh

[Aver]

Do NOT come to Asura. Most of the people there are complete dumbasses. Port Jeuno is a nest full of hungry trolls waiting to pounce upon new players at the slightest need for help.

That's not saying the whole server is bad, but there are faaaaar too many people like this. I guess it's like chat roulette, there are a few nice people waiting if you don't mind wading through all the dicks to find them. XD

That being said I really enjoy helping struggling players. I don't enjoy handing them money, however. I have done that a few times and am 10M poorer than I should be. ^^;

Can not like this enough, but Asura is home, sweet home.

[Shadowsong]

LOLAsuraLOL, good luck with that.

Ya know, out of everyone posting YOU seem the least friendly one. So negative and such, Ive never experienced the hate you spew by other members of the game.
If there is one thing new players should take away from this thread its stay away from Inafking

[Shadowsong]

By the way what missions are not soloable? Go level bst in a week and solo every mission in the game, naked.

[Splif]

There are a lot of great posts in this thread.

Many of the complaints here are valid.

Yes, we all see that FFXI has grown and been updated throughout the years and all of the changes can be really confusing for veteran players returning after multi-year long breaks.

When I get home, I will be setting up a new linkshell on my server for 'Classic Style FFXI' playing.

Hopefully there are enough newer players out there who are nostalgic about the old party-style playing.

I have been grinding non-stop in gugsen mines and I really miss doing Valkrum parties.

Hopefully we can build a linkshell dedicated to party-style levelsync play.

[Valonquar]

Pfft, with FoV you can solo with ease. Start out with MNK, regen from fov & random stuff from chests you will never sit at all. It is a bit of a huge endeavor for a new player to figure everything in the game out. I soloed over half the jobs in the game to 50 when FoV first came out. In a lot of cases it was faster than seeking for a PT.

[Demendred]

Well, I had started a week ago, and when I did start, I was buffed by someone, healed by another. I'm pretty sure if I asked for help in a respectful manner, someone would help me.
I'm hoping to get better so I can in turn help those who are new. This game is great, and should be enjoyed by everyone.

[Phirefly]

I started back up about 10 days ago. I have not had to solo for more than a couple hours. The game has radically changed in many ways. But last night we had some "drama" in the Gusgen Mines which proved this is the FFXI I so fondly remember. The game is different, not better or worse, and the player base is full of the same helpful and elitist people -- per usual. You still have to figure out how to farm gil, you still have to find or form groups, and there are still those who whine about how hard the game is... FFXI is as playable today as it ever has been.

[Leonlionheart]

I can't imagine it being less noob friendly than it was when I started. 160 exp max for killing a lizard for 2.5 minutes straight, struggling to get chain 3 because no one knew wtf was going on.

Now you can get what, 200 exp for a kill solo? Unless you were spamming colibri as a DRG/mage or a pro BST or /BST you could never do that solo back at 75 cap. 30k per MMM run now, and it was stupid fast EXP back at 75 cap. Who knows what exp/hour book burns are.

As for missions, just get to 95 and solo them. I can only think of a handful that wouldn't be soloable/duoable.

Not to mention you can burn it all up to 75 in a handful of hours in Abyssea if you so desired.

Only problem I currently see is for certain jobs like MNK, any caster really, PUP, and maybe BLU. MNK you essentially need to have Ascetic's Fury to be good, and Black Belt is a whore to farm without tons of gil. BLMs have spells that range from 500 gil to 2.5million, I'd say that the average cost for a spell after level 50 is like 500k. Similar for WHM RDM SCH and even NIN, who all have spells over 1m that can be rather vital. PUP you need butloads of gil for automaton attachments, and you also need stringing pummel to be any good. BLU you need to farm all those spells, which has always been a pain to an extent; just now you level up so fast that the amount of spells you need to learn is overwhelming (not to mention I've never seen a noob who knows how to fucking gear the job correctly).

Other than that I'd say the game is more noob friendly than ever.

[Nianny]

What Leon said. He said it better than I could.

What I'd like to add is, you're not confined to do everything alone as a new player. At least in Asura (from my personal experience) there's quite a few new players around which I bet would gladly join other ones. Also, some veterans would lend a hand aswell.

FFXI is still fun even as a low level/new player, you just need to find the right people for you. :)

[Bellamelly]

Ultimately, it's your decision what type of experience you're going to have playing FFXI. You can let others negative behavior and elitism get you down, or you can seek out the people who are more than willing to help you and/or be friends :) There ARE still people who play this game that fall into the latter category, I assure you. Be proactive in finding these people.

I agree that the game is more noob friendly than it ever has been. You can easily solo 1-15 and grab a Party in Gusgen Mines (GoV) till the 30's or even 50's and beyond if you wanted. An easy Magicked Skull, anyone? You could then take that same level 30 - 50 job (now you are high enough to solo the rest of your SJ items) and get to the 60's, even the 70's in a few long party sessions doing GoV again in either Garliage or Crawler's Nest. You don't even have to seek, really. Just go into the zone and ask if there's any space. Or hell, make your own ally yourself! Before you know it you'll be popping your party flag up and getting ready for Abyssea. Sure, you can technically level a job to 30 and go straight to Aby -- but if you'd like a different route (leveling in Aby all the time can get quite boring, especially combined with doing Endgame activity) it is still quite possible, and one I prefer myself.

For newer players, ffxiclopedia is your BEST FRIEND. I can not stress that enough. To this day I still refer to that wiki. It has a wide array of useful information to pretty much everything you could ever need/want to know about FFXI. Chances are if nobody in your LS knows, Wiki does. FFXIAH is a handy website to check the Auction House online and is useful as well.

Above all, have fun! It's a game after all ;)

[Khajit]

Reading anything infaking says in this thread is making me want to help new players LESS.

[Trangnai]

I can't imagine it being less noob friendly than it was when I started. 160 exp max for killing a lizard for 2.5 minutes straight, struggling to get chain 3 because no one knew wtf was going on.

Now you can get what, 200 exp for a kill solo? Unless you were spamming colibri as a DRG/mage or a pro BST or /BST you could never do that solo back at 75 cap. 30k per MMM run now, and it was stupid fast EXP back at 75 cap. Who knows what exp/hour book burns are.

As for missions, just get to 95 and solo them. I can only think of a handful that wouldn't be soloable/duoable.

Not to mention you can burn it all up to 75 in a handful of hours in Abyssea if you so desired.

Only problem I currently see is for certain jobs like MNK, any caster really, PUP, and maybe BLU. MNK you essentially need to have Ascetic's Fury to be good, and Black Belt is a whore to farm without tons of gil. BLMs have spells that range from 500 gil to 2.5million, I'd say that the average cost for a spell after level 50 is like 500k. Similar for WHM RDM SCH and even NIN, who all have spells over 1m that can be rather vital. PUP you need butloads of gil for automaton attachments, and you also need stringing pummel to be any good. BLU you need to farm all those spells, which has always been a pain to an extent; just now you level up so fast that the amount of spells you need to learn is overwhelming (not to mention I've never seen a noob who knows how to fucking gear the job correctly).

Other than that I'd say the game is more noob friendly than ever.

My Highest level jobs beg to differ. Hell, I even soloed rdm 1-75 >.>. mind you that most of these were imps (blu), pets or some squishy mob that made it possible to exp chain a decent amount to produce good exp. it was in no ways as fast as a 6 man pt back in the day, but it was good enough.

As for the topic of this thread I do have to say I'm glad to see some improvement on the areas of old and exp outside of keywhorebyssea my issues still stem from the seemingly dead gear market and the abilities for low level/new players to obtain gear and required things such as jobs, sub-job and level caps etc. Most End game Players arn't going to help someone who needs a simple level cap, unless theres gil involved, good luck finding a new player with the type of gil required to get said assistance.

[Preed]

I'm an older player from '05 that's comeback and has been playing for a month now no and I've got to say there are a lot of nice players out there. Two even helped me when I turned Level 18 to get subjobs (which I probably couldn't do until 30) just because they saw me struggling. They even invited me to their Linkshell, which has been a great help. I just think some newbies should learn to ask for help and veterans should try to help, not necessarily hands-on, but at least give tips or something. :B

[Kei-chan]

I just came back after a couple months of hiatus and I've been experiencing this, too. Luckily I've got a couple friends playing with me, but leveling parties beyond Qufim Isle just plain don't exist. I've gotten some book burning parties at Garlaige, but they're just as power level-y as Abyssea.

I see what everyone means when they say that Abyssea has ruined FFXI, and I agree. I just wish the devs would actually open their ears and listen to the players, because pretty soon they won't have a playerbase if this keeps up.

EDIT: By the way, I've been trying to solo and mooch my DRK to 95 so that I can help my group of friends get through their limit break quests, their rank-up missions, etc, because we're just not numerous enough to do them legitimately.

There are definitely helpful, nice players, but they are few and far between. Seeing as limit break quests are impossible now without a higher-level player doing it for you (since there aren't enough low-level players to do them legitimately in a party), I've spent hours /yell-ing myself hoarse in Jeuno before getting any assistance.

I'd like to get my AF armor, but who knows if that'll ever happen, again, due to lack of lower-level players and the difficulty I'm going to have in recruiting a high-level to tag along for such a long series of quests.

[Komori]

If you were on Bismarck, I would gladly help. I just did LB1 for a LS member the other day ):

[Ahmant]

lol sounds like high school xD

[Sappho]

I've tried putting stuff up in /seacom. Does not help if no one reads it. Just because it worked for you once, does not mean it works. Hell, people don't even read /seacoms when they invite you for EXP.

Obvious troll is obvious.

[Deifact]

I am also a fairly old player, having played for 6 or so years now on and off.

I have recently returned to the game, am trying a few of my low level jobs, and I can't find a group anywhere.
To me it feels like abyssea just ruined this game, I admit I have taken advantage of it to powerlevel jobs, but it isn't fun and rewarding like the game used to be.

Leveling up used to be enjoyable, there was a semi set path of area's to level in, dunes -> qufim -> kazham -> garliage citadel -> crawlers nest so on and so forth, which always made leveling a new job enjoyable, you would return to certain area's that hold fond memories of late night partying, group wipe outs and joking around with your new found friends.

Now the game just feels like book burn until you can go to abyssea -> go to abyssea level to max -> cry over the death of FFXI.

[Sappho]

I am also a fairly old player, having played for 6 or so years now on and off.

I have recently returned to the game, am trying a few of my low level jobs, and I can't find a group anywhere.
To me it feels like abyssea just ruined this game, I admit I have taken advantage of it to powerlevel jobs, but it isn't fun and rewarding like the game used to be.

Leveling up used to be enjoyable, there was a semi set path of area's to level in, dunes -> qufim -> kazham -> garliage citadel -> crawlers nest so on and so forth, which always made leveling a new job enjoyable, you would return to certain area's that hold fond memories of late night partying, group wipe outs and joking around with your new found friends.

Now the game just feels like book burn until you can go to abyssea -> go to abyssea level to max -> cry over the death of FFXI.

I feel your pain, brother. I've just come back from a two year break and I shed tears of blood when I found that Valkurm & Qufim were totally empty of parties. But I also discovered that leveling solo is LOL-so-easy-LOL. I did book burn about 5 levels on Bard, but other than that, I solo-leveled every single job to 30 in a few days.

There are entire linkshells out there with an "old fashioned" way of doing things. They form parties and do COP and Rank Missions. Hopefully your server has 1 or 2 of those. Find them and enjoy the nostalgia of wiping in the Dunes or hiding from Ghouls at night in Qufim.

[OgreBattle]

I am also a fairly old player, having played for 6 or so years now on and off.

I have recently returned to the game, am trying a few of my low level jobs, and I can't find a group anywhere.
To me it feels like abyssea just ruined this game, I admit I have taken advantage of it to powerlevel jobs, but it isn't fun and rewarding like the game used to be.

Leveling up used to be enjoyable, there was a semi set path of area's to level in, dunes -> qufim -> kazham -> garliage citadel -> crawlers nest so on and so forth, which always made leveling a new job enjoyable, you would return to certain area's that hold fond memories of late night partying, group wipe outs and joking around with your new found friends.

Now the game just feels like book burn until you can go to abyssea -> go to abyssea level to max -> cry over the death of FFXI.

It was just a grind, half of it was sitting around with a '!' over your head if you weren't a bard or whn. You've already done it dozens of times. Get to the content you've never experienced, enjoy that.

Go through the story content solo or with a duo, enjoy that. Wander into a part of the game you've NEVER exp'd at, solo through it, enjoy the new view! Yes, some things are gone, but lots of new options open.

I leveled 5-18 entirely in Fort Ghelsba. I battled the orcs through their dungeon and defeated their named commanders. This was only possible because of the higher rate of exp gain and other benefits like regen when under 50% health. It didn't feel like a grind because I was making progress through a dungeon, not camping a single square. For my next low level job I look forward to exploring the Yagudo and Quadav dungeons.

The old routine is gone, now you have the freedom to go wherever you want.

[Scribble]

The game still allows you to choose between traditional grouping, bookburning or abyssea. The only thing that would stop you from forming a traditional group is the willingness of other players in your group. This really isn't a 'abyssea killed ffxi' problem as much as a 'players want quick and easy exp' problem. Can't really justify blaming the game for this.

[Ahmant]

alright alright i think i'm understanding what's going on here...So i'm a new player, where would i want to go if i wanted to play in areas that aren't empty?

[Komori]

Port Jeuno to shout and make a traditional party... When I wanted to level my SCH from 20 to 30. I just sat in Port Jeuno and shouted to make a Qufim Party; you would be surprised how many people will jump on board if you make it known that you would like to level in the old traditional way, even those that burn in abyssea on occassion want some nostalgia. If someone really wanted to do a CN Party (Crawler's), I might would even gear my NIN to go and just enjoy old-school style.

Thing is, I never see anyone; including the "abyssearuinedthis" people ever try and do something as simple as shout to form a group. And so they get no sympathy for me, and obviously book burning, soloing or leeching doesn't hurt your pride too bad if your not making even the easiest of efforts to try and get back to what you love.

[Sappho]

Go through the story content solo or with a duo, enjoy that. Wander into a part of the game you've NEVER exp'd at, solo through it, enjoy the new view! Yes, some things are gone, but lots of new options open.

OgreBattle makes an excellent point.

I had never been to some zones and it is nice to have the freedom to explore them solo without fear of instant death lurkiing around every corner.

[Beacon]

I think most games in general are played by either of two distinct types of people: Those who like to mingle and those who don't. Personally I like how the old Final Fantasy games worked, kind of soloing all the way through with no actual human interaction and everything was simple and easy. With MMORPG this changed drastically. From having a firm and stable storyline, you now get parties, chat rooms and actual people interrupting you while playing. I was actually trying to play the game back in 2008, it was an old game even then. But I am not really sure how old it is. I remember that I felt frightened by the huge amount of players strolling around (alot of them), and when I bashed away in dungeons I died. Later I found out that I could just ignore people, and more later on, as of now, when I had reengaged with the game after three years, I now always check NPC's before I attack them. Some players are built for soloing, and its quite possible. I searched for people in my area that was also looking for a group and there was actually someone at my own level. Did I invite them? No. Because I don't want to engage with people. I am playing a game. Not making friends. Am I the only one that looks at this game from a relaxed position of casual and unimportant play? I have none to impress and only my own need for a bit of unintellectual computerinteraction to fullfill. Amen.

[Absit]

Wow Tunechi, I have no idea what server you are on...but I don't treat people like that when I play. I always help others out. Specially new players. Because you know what? S/E doesn't give you any tutorial quests at the start of the game. What the hell is up with that? I've been playing for years and I STILL can't get over that.

[FrankReynolds]

BAH! Why is this thread not locked yet? Didn't this guy rage quit like 4 months ago? This guy obviously had a bad experience which was not shared by %99 of the rest of the playerbase.

[RAIST]

Wow Tunechi, I have no idea what server you are on...but I don't treat people like that when I play. I always help others out. Specially new players. Because you know what? S/E doesn't give you any tutorial quests at the start of the game. What the hell is up with that? I've been playing for years and I STILL can't get over that.

Actually, there is a line of tutorials in the starter nations. Forget exactly how many it was...like 7 or 8 quests covering various aspects...eventually leads you to getting your first crag crystal for teleporting. Here's a link to the Adventurer's Assistants on cyclopedia--note the section for New Player Tutorial NPC's up top:
http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Adventurer%27s_Assistant

They've also revamped the FFXI main site and have a library of online video tutorials to cover the basics as well.
Main page: http://www.finalfantasyxi.com/

Scroll to the bottom and just right of center is a link for "NEW PLAYER GUIDE" that opens a new window for the revamped play guide, complete with videos:
http://www.ffxiplayerguide.com/ff11newplayer/index.html?lang=en

[Aramyth]

I'm hoping my server isn't like this. I had just transferred before I left, maybe a few weeks, and I was in a decent linkshell before I left.

Guess we'll see after the game is done updating.

[Concerned4FFxi]

Well as an "older" player I actually find it a little offensive how you group all servers and all players together. Not everyone is clique-ish or elitist. There are actually some of us who help others and go above and beyond. As a matter of fact I can tell you today that I PERSONALLY went and escorted someone from Korroloka Tunnel to the Eastern Altepa Telepoint crystal and then to the exp party. I even offered to help the same person fight their avatar fights for their summoner since all they had were elementals and Carbuncle. Was this anyone I met before? Did I have a hidden agenda? no. It was something I felt as a player of the game I should do to help another person who needed assistance. So before you group all of us old players together all willy nilly please think about what you are saying. Yes the dynamics of the game have changed where it is a rarity to find a traditional exp party and some people are carelessly spam leveling jobs is abyssea, is it something EVERYONE is doing, no, it isn't remember it only takes ONE person to make it NOT everyone.

Thanks ^^

I also help new players too, but do know the percentage of new players that bother to thank me properly afterwards or offer a hello later down the road? Very few. Or the new players that, after spending 3-4hrs helping they go off and I see them just shouting for help and not bothering to read wiki and help themselves first, when I just spent hours helping them and told them, ok this is what you can do to get the next time you want done but you need do this and this first, and it's easy to solo?

When I joined a few years back it was just as hard then as it is now, maybe even hgarder because COP was capped and 75+ jobs we unheard of. I had to solo alot of stuff on my own, make friends, spend hours in jueno shouting, but when I shouted and still when I shout today, I host the shout. I dont sit there and say COP can I have it please, I say COP 5-3 Do you need it? Please assist, team up? yes please, stuff like that. I can;t tell you how long it took me to do ZM before the cap increases and the COP uncap, but I got everything done by being patient, ok this week is bad to get ZM doen, I'll level a sub or I'll do a rank mission. I understand that it's hard to solo stuff, I'm not disagreeing, I just want new players to know that if you like the game and want to succeed, try doing things differently. Make the shouts yourself, find people that are after similiar goals, etc.

PS: I had to make my first two 75 jobs in east ronfaure (S) because I couldn't get into a bird merit pt with whm or blm. I know about struggling, but I did what it took to better myself, if I needed a job for something, then I leveled it. I needed a quest done, then I spent the time to organize to beat it, to get the man power to overcome it.

Perhaps having a search ability, like the one present to search by level or rank, so that players can search people by COP completion, ZM, abyssea clears, etc. This would greatly help new players and returning players. Also, one's attitude is the biggest success factor in this game.

I don't think all new players should have to go thru what I did, or have to love the game as much as I do to get stuff done, so these search abilities I think will help greatly. Also, the search needs to be automatic, and not something that has to be manually set or restes after a log. the system should update your info every 12hours, or every log on, with out the user doing anything.

This threads op is so negative, so I'm a little negative too, I'm sorry new guys, though some aspects are true. I can't get a decent vw only ls to save my life. I had one, the leader couldn't find another ochain pld and didnt wanna wait for me to finish mine, so he jumped ship to join another vw ls. We had finished jueno t3. I still needed cn(S) clear because I dc'd before they won and when i returned the freaking blm d2'd me before i could click on the rift to get clear and chest, so when i went back to the zone I couldnt get the clear. Aparantly zoning screws your chances to get clear from rift, even after the dc fix. So yea, I'm frustrated too, but you know what my solution is, finish ochain so I can be wanted by a vw ls, lol. I know, it's crazy right? So yes, I know how you feel.

I dont want an event ls, just a vw ls that gathers twice a week for 4hrs, because I do everything else on my own, except AV/PW, which when I get to it i'll look into making my own ls for that, but I'm busy elsewhere atm, so I'm not concerned with this right now. Lots of endgame event ls have this family thing, insist that after abyssea broke major ls to make them socual, that you can't wear your social ls now and personally I hate one ls bs. That's why I want a vw only ls, I don't want to have to do 4-5 events a week, I don't want to give up my social ls, if we are family then friendlist, I don't need your ls on 24/7 just to prove to your insecurities that I'm loyal.

[Concerned4FFxi]

Buy a mog sack for 9,999gil

Learn to macro in gear/spells/job abilities etc.

Make friends, but dont ask the same ones repeatedly for help spread the wealth around

Try to do things at least once or twice on your own first, if its a quest and you need help do everything you can do first solo, before asking for help. People will help more often if your prepared, use wiki to get the info you need about what you want, and have the key items ready from when you solo. Example is the nation rank quests. I love to help people, I hate to have my time wasted. I come to help someone and they don't have all their key items ready before a fight that they need my help on pisses me off. That's why you need to solo what you can, people are understandable if you didnt get a key item or drop that you can't solo but nobody wants to wait around for you to either get the cs you need still before the fight or ask a million questions because you don't have wiki access. Use the pulblic library if need be and print out your lists in advance.

Read wiki about level cap quests (after 50 you will need to do these quests every 5 levels to break the next cap) and prepare for them.

Look into the goobie bag quests, your "fame", and mog locker.

There's also many areas you need access to first, before you can explore them: shadowreign areas from wings of the goddess add-on, abyssea, sea, sky, aht urhgan whitegate from treasures of aht urhgan

First priority should be leveling your character and sub job(s) to cap, currently 95. This will enable you to do many more things easier than at lower levels and open the door for other things to you.

Gear: I recommend not spending much gil on gear, untill you hit cap (currently 95). Get yourself a decent weapon for whatever level you currently are at, and that's it. there are a few rings and such that may benefit you earlier, but as a new player your more likely to buy the wrong one and waste your hard fought gil, so just suffer for the time being or buy cheap gear that fits a purpose. Check other players, talk to people, see what is good for that job at higher levels. The goal is not to buy for today, buy for tomorrow because xp is fast in this game now and gear gets outdated even faster before you hit cap. Once you hit 75, start a magian trail for a weapon that you are interested in doing. Again, ask around to see what is worth it some weapons are junk while others outshine. It may be a little to early to ask yourself this, but consider an empyrean weapon or just build something to get you thru until you are established then you can start your empyrean weapon (explained more below). Once you hit 78, you will have access to perle, teal, and aurore gear sets. These are cheap and decent gear. You can buy off AH or from npc in abyssea with cruor (abyssea currency).
You can then start working on your empyrean armor (af3) post 78, or sooner if the oppurtunity arises.
You can do artifact armor and weapon(af1), starting at 40 for most jobs, but because xp is so fast these gear peices are often outdated and not worth time investment. However, talk with decent higher level players, some af1 is still great macro peices. for certain jobs and can not be replaced. Once you have 78+, start trying dynamis in your spare time. There you will get ancient currency that can be bazaared for gil and relic armor (af2). Relic armor is mostly for your macro sets, but each peice and job are different. Like af1, some is outdated while other peices are impossible to replace.

XP: Ok, at low levels (10-29) the best places for experience points is alliance style fights in gusgen tunnels (level cap 10-20) or crawler's nest (no clue on the best cap there i've had all my jobs past 30 a long time and burn in abyssea). There are many zones that offer the same xp, the trick is finding a zone that has alot of level sync'd people and a field of valor or grounds of valor book. The trick is to get a page from the book and spam the mobs listed there to get the extra xp called "book buring". Just try those two zones first, turn your party flag on, and shout for a party or ask the leader of a group if you can join.

Abyssea XP: First, unless somebody knows you or pities you, odds are your not going to be leeching in abyssea unless you have a 70-75+ dd (damage dealer) job or magic damage dealing job, a whm with cure 4+ (42), or a rdm 55+ (cure 4) or similarly leveled sch with cure4 (not sure when they get their cure4). Or without a few hundred thiousand gil to pay someone to let you leech their party. To leech a abyssea party generally you need meet one of three requirements: 1. you are of job and level as stated above, 2. you have cruor so you can "key", this means you will be opening chests for the party in exchange for leeching rights. You need cruor to buy the keys though, and so its a catch 22, as you need already have been to abyssea long enough to get cruor or have a 75+ job to do voidwatch to get cruor from there, 3. start you own abyssea party and leech your own party. I DO NOT recommend or like new players that host abyssea xp pt's, the reason is most new players do not understand enough of the pt makeup and lights in order to host a successful party. I suggest that during your first abyssea party that you do not host you ask questions and learn about abyssea so later on you can host your own party. Keep in mind people rememeber lamers in this game and a bad party can ruin you fast in the eyes of other players. That said, abyssea is the best place for xp, period. Perhaps, as was suggested earlier, leveling whm for your first job would be most beneficial to you. You can leech to cap asap in abyssea at 42 with cure 4, and as explained latter you can get more invites for empyrean armor +1/2 farming and empyrean weapon items.

Abyssea empyrean armor/proc: Ok, this is the other reason people are in abyssea, the gear. First, you need understand about proc (process weakness). Since abyssea, SE has used proc in other area as well, so keep in mind dynamis now has proc, as does voidwatch (VW). For abyssea, there are three proc, blue, red, and yellow. Wiki explains the difference, but what yuou need to know is if a party does process a Notorious Monster's weakness, then the drop rate is increased for the corrisponding weakness. What that means is, most people dont just go kill notorious monsters (nm), they go to proc the nm first, then kill it. In the case of +1 armor items, four different +1 drop from the same nm. Becaue of this, most +1 parties are made up of no more than 4 people, because each persopn rather lot a single +1 and have the party agree beforehand that that +1 is theirs. Four people, four different +1, get it. Now to proc +1/+2 drops, magic weakness must be triggered. this can be done with any sub job nin, a whm, a blm, a blu, and a sub job bard. While rdm and sch can proc yellow for magic weakness, they lack the spells that whm and blm have and so they are not as often invited. Add the cure power of a whm and its easier to understand why whm is suggested as your first job to cap.

Abyssea empyrean weapons: not gonna be long here. Point is they take alot of time and work to get, but are attenable for the average player with a just a few friends that are dedicated to results. Once you been around the block a few times you'll know how to proc weakness and you will have a better idea if empyrean weapons are your thing. You will prefer to have a thf, war, nin, whm at the least, and most likely add a blm to your unit. Larger groups use other jobs such as cor with empyrean gun to cap amber fast and brew speed kill, or a blu to solo burn chests/te/etc. Some nin's can straight solo some hnm in abyssea with the right atma/gear, I personally dual box mine so many combo's work but i listed the pt size for farming empyrean weapons as about 3-5/6 on average to give you an idea of the amount of people you will need. Note, these 3-5/6 would have good atma and experience to be successful at low manning but once you get the hang of things you'll do fine. Read wiki about atma.

Try these websites
ffxiah.com
gamerescape.com
http://wiki.bluegartr.com/bg
http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
www.ffxi-atlas.com/
http://ffxi.allakhazam.com/

Moghouse: There's a few quests related to furniture which will increase your mog safe storage to 80, also you can purchase furnature to put in your mogsafe that gives you access to mogstorage (again 80 cap and only available in your home nation) For mog storage I suggest when you can afford one get a
Panetiere. Also, look into moglocker and if you've been on for a few months and are gonna stay grab a mogsachel from the mogtoken ($9.99, mine has lasted me a few years now).

Travel: This one is big. 1. Start doing supply quests to get yourself outpost (op) access from the npc in your home nation. 2. Depending on supekupor power, teleport moogles maybe available for transport to the cities and selbina/mhuara. 3. Get all the telepoint crystals and recall crystals. 4. Get access to all the abyssea maws asap, even if you can't get a party (pt) just visit them to uinlock the maw and cutscene (cs) associated with each of the 9 abyssea zones so that you may warp to them. 5. Chocobo license, 6. once you attain 75+ speak to the voidwatch npc's in the 3 cities and get you key items to do those events. Even if you don't do VW, you can at the least use the npc's in the cities and other locations to teleport you to certain areas of the game. Theres other travel, but this is the main stuff and fastest.

Keep track of stuff: at the least, write down what boss and caturea nm clears you have from abyssea, and what op's you have if you can't remember. For abyssea you are gonna want these clears and all merit, furtherance, lunar, sojourn, and celerity abyssites asap. Ask around about atma and what ones are best for which jobs.

Gil: once you are using abyssea regularly you can convert cruor by buying chocobo blinkers (see wiki) or the three gear sets (perle teal etc) and selling this to npc's in vanadiel. Mind you that eventually you will need cruor to buy brew in abyssea but this will get you past the hump. You can also farm dynamis once you get the hang of things.

Hope this helps, goodluck and don't be discouraged.




Basic advice:

1. If you haven't done it yet, there is a tutorial NPC (http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Tutorial_NPC) in each nation designed for newer players. You'll get some nice rewards from it designed for newer players.
2. Remember to always get Signet from a gate guard before you head out to kill stuff. Save items you get and sell them on the auction houses. If you wish to increase your Signet duration, you're going to need to run missions for your nation.
3. Look for Fields (http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Field_Manual)/Grounds of Valor (http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Grounds_Tome) books, they will increase the xp you gain significantly, and provide gil and tabs. Tabs can be used for some useful bonuses on the battlefield.
3. Gaining levels quickly: These days most people go to Gusgen Mines at level 10 and join the alliances there. They continuously do the skeleton grounds of valor. At level 30 many people go to Crawler's Nest.
4. At level 18, you can unlock a subjob. I'd recommend the Elder Memories (http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Elder_Memories) quest in Selbina to obtain it. You'll get the Magicked Skull for it while leveling in Gusgen Mines, and the Worm and Apron can be obtained solo safely when you're about level 25. You can ask for help too, of course. Keep your subjob leveled.
5. At level 30, you open up more jobs, but they all require running a quest to obtain.
6. As said above, Mog Sack (http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Mog_Sack) can make managing your inventory out on the field a lot easier. If you want to make your inventory bigger (this will more or less be required as you get into higher levels), you need to build reputation in Jeuno. You can look it up on the wiki if you want detailed info. The quests to expand your bag are called The Gobbiebag.

Skill ups- this is another important thing, try to cap your skill on your main weapon asap. The more skill you hjave, the more damage you can do to higher level mobs. If you skill is around 120 and your level 95, you are basically like a level 95 job stat wise, but hitting like a level 35, so though you may be 95 that level 65 crab m,ight eat you for breakfast so watch out. Inquire about skill with other players, here's some quick info though and read the wiki and ask questions:
skill level 30-80 quifim island, grab a page and start busting on worms, when your skill ups slow down, hit up the crabs, if your low level avoid fighting at night time as the undead come out and agro blood (read up on the types of aggresiveness mobs have and read about hate and enmity) and especially near the lake in the center at night.

If you can get access, east ronfaure (s) 80-120 on birds, 120-140 on lady bugs, if not try east altepa desert.

Here's some areas I've outlined for you to fight stuff there at the following weapon skill level, not to be confused by job level. Remember this is for skill ups, though you may or may not get xp.

140-160, kuftal tunel
160-190 rabbits and lizzy in cape terrigan 190-210 on crabs there, and 210-230 cockatrice, mantacore there can get you as high as 270ish, but I'd stop at around 250-260 then finish skilling 250-300 in an abyssea la theine/konschtat highlands/tahrongi canyon.
300+, try bird camp in misareaux coast (a) or any party up to and including including dom ops (dominion ops) at this point.
350+, definitly need dominion ops in the heros of abyssea zones, its like fields of valor (fov) or grounds of valor (gov) for abyssea.

Side not about xp, get the emperorer band from your nation's signet npc, do not waste conquest points on emperess band. Also, if you drop any xp band such as these, don't worry, you can renew it once a conquest tally or trrade it to recharge it from the same npc, your home nation npc signet giver or a jueno signet giver

Conquest tally- is every earth week, and the count down is displayed in the menu.
menu>region info>conquest>it's on the upper right hand corner of your world map, should say "next conquest tally in X days."


Foods- there are many type food available, to start you might want to, once you can spare a little gil, and you start to skill up your jobs more, buy crab sushi by the stack(12) for about 4-5k a stack from the AH (auction house under: Food » Meals » seafood), this gives about +10accuracy (acc), if you are going to skill up and your confident that you will not die, buy a marinara pizza (auction house under: Food » Meals » Breads & Rice) this is the best acc and attack food for the price. Later on, when you are closer to your weapon skill cap and want to do more damage, buy cheap attack foods such as Meat Mithkabob ( Food » Meals » Meat & Eggs). Eventually you can buy better, more expensive attack food, eventually.

Rank- Each nation has up to rank 10 mission, the higher the mission the longer signet lasts, and the more access you get to some things such as dynamis. (need be on mission 6+ to access dynamis) Also, each mission rewards you with some gil, more for the higher missions. Check wiki, some can be skipped by trading crystals to the signet npc in your home nation/jueno) and most expect the early ones can only be flagged (flagged- term used to denote availablity of a quest) after trading a certain amount of crystals to the signet npc (check wiki, each mission requires a specific amount).

COP (chains of promathia) - Once you get your 90+ job and 49+ sub job leveled, skilled, and somewhat geared, or sooner, check out the wiki and look at COP. This quest line will reward you with one of the, if not the best, dd ring in the game, the rajas ring and sea access after 8-1. While tamas ring (you may only get one or the other or the long forgotten tanking ring, not worth it personally) was useful at one point, this author feels that this ring, tamas, can be replaced by alternative gear. While the replacements won't be as good as tamas, nothing gets the job done for a dd like rajas, and SE has stated that rajas will get a 99 level facelift, so expect this ring to once again come out on top.

WOTG (wings of the goddess) starting the first questgives shadowreign access (past). a note to you, when you go through a maw in the past always come back through to the present immediately, this will unlock the maw on both sides for you. If you fail to do so and die, you are not gonna be able to access the past again unless you have access somewhere else via another maw you opened in the past or going thru the gates in garlaige citadel which is a SOB. In other words, your first maw is the only time you can go thru the present to the past without going thru the past first, after that ALL maws in the present become locked and you HAVE to go thru the maws in the past individually to access to unlock them for use in the present. completion of the WOTG missions and quests (it's confusing at first, you need do both nation quests and missions to progress) grants some items (depends on which nation you choose to be allied with in the past, you can do all three eventually) and a moonshade earring with varrying augments on it, some are either latent refresh (mp restores 1mp/tic with weapon not drawn) or latent regain (tp restores at 1tp/tic with weapon drawn), as well as several others.

ZM (zilart missions or rise of the zilart) grants sky access and if you do DM (divine might) instead of mission zm14, you can get a decent earring. Pull up DM and see for yourself. the suppanomimi earring is a good one.

Quest- Apoc nigh - need have completed all ZM and COP as well as Bv1 (bahahumat, i botched the spelling I think, first fight) and another quest to gain access to this final fight and it's earring rewards. Ethereal earring is a decent pick.

there's also the add on's and there respective gear for completetion, type ASA, ACP, and AMK for the list of missions and goto the end to see the gear with it's augments you may choose. Again, the COP ring is probably the best item, but other add-ons are still decent, depends on the time you wish to invest in these rewards. There's a few add-ons I left out, mythic ws from nyzul isle, and the TOAU quests, mercanary rank, assualts, salvage, einherjar, limbus, and more. Interested? Check em out.


Welcome and see you around

[Jasonw]

Well maybe i have been lucky because i had made a good friend in this game and we both quest together,help each other lvl up and talk about subjects we are both interested in,so i would say weather or not you enjoy this game is going to boil down to the people u meet on your server.

However i can imagine that if i didn't meet this certain friend i firstly wouldn't know the info that i do now about how to even play the game and generally get around,but i also would of found it boring just fighting mobs over and over again.

For me the definition and no.1 reason for playing a mmorpg at all is to socalize and be apart of a community enjoying and playing together,why would i want to pay a monthly fee if not for that reason?If i want to play my self i will play some other games like erm ffx or ff xii,i don't play ff xi for a single player experience.

Also i know some people actually like to be by themselves and play solo,but i don't really et the appeal in doing that but each to there own.

In terms of finding people to help out in quests in FFXI i haven't found that a issue,i just say hi to someone and see where things go,it's about 50/50 weather or not i find someone useful or has to time to help me out,but you gotta have patience and not expect people to help out just because you demand so.

[FrankReynolds]

1234567890.o

[Draylo]

@OP, go quit and play WoW, this game doesn't need more cry baby gimps.

[Demendred]

New players, don't be discouraged. I was once new to the game, I'm about 4 or 5 months into the game, and was able to get all my classes by myself, with the help of course from this site: http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

That site will help out a lot. This game is worth it, it's very fun, and there are people willing to help, myself included.

[Rewyen]

That's unfortunate because I came back and didn't have this issue, and now that I'm on the higher end of the level scale, I actually LOOK for new players or lower level returning players who need help or someone to randomly murder bunnies with, but then that's me. I enjoy the base game elements and the camaraderie and like to share that. Even if you find only one person you can play this game with, it's worth it.

[Berjik_Fenrir]

Hi all,

I just re-subbed last night after a 2 year hiatus. Still reading about and catching up on current going on's in the game. I just got my first traverser stone, this evening I'll be going for the warp points. Probably not the best place to ask but I am looking for a friendly LS to join on FENRIR. I'm willing to help in anyway possible. Send me a /tell (Berjik) if you are recruiting. I'm interested in any form of playing from old school to learning the Abyssea/VW content.

[Haidyn]

I saw this thread when I first came to the boards looking to get back into FFXI...
And, I can really say at first I was a little worried...

After only a week playing, having 2 LS, friends to help, and having some random person hand me 200k just because he was passing me by as I was doing pages in Gustaberg... I can safely say it seems the OP is full of crap.

[Havesh]

To anyone being overwhelmed by the game, and unable to find people to connect with, I suggest that you send me a tell, and I'll see what I can do to help you/find you a linkshell, or whatever you need. I'm a returning player myself, but have played the game for about a year and a half in total. And the systems that make up this game is what I consider one of the best mmorpg experiences I've ever had. So I'm invested to try and make the game work, both for me, and anyone else willing to learn.

Mind you, I have somewhat high standards for grouping, but I won't shy away from giving advice to friendly players who will accept it.

My character on Carbuncle is called Havesh.

[Psxpert2011]

I will help anyone new or who is returning(whether from last year or from 05), just come to Sylph and I'll give you a pearl.

Maybe servers need to be managed better and titled for the right type of player. Mixing in with the wrong group can be a detriment to your game schedule. SE needs to look into this or not, if the community will step it up to make a change! You're not playing just for your self but for everyone.

We can't segregate ourselves just for end-gamers... go back and re-do old content and educate the new/returning players because FFvi has change alot and will continue to change in the future(with or without you/me).

Since I've played from '04 I'm well grounded but if I had to start from scratch again, I think it would be safe to choose a server where the ratio of new/returning players is greater. This is exactly how servers should be designed.

[Rewyen]

I don't know anymore. Asura used to be the place to be. I see new players all the time, but I never see them a week later. I think the game itself is best played by returning players or those who never left. New players seem to just get frustrated quickly and vanish. Maybe the servers need to be reorganized so players have a better chance of finding like minded individuals to adventure with. Who knows. The main reason I haven't logged in since the end of January is because after about ten minutes, I'm bored to tears, no one is on and there is literally nothing to do outside of Abyssea. I helped a few newer players with quests and what not, but I've seen even they are still on the lower rung because no one wants to take 30 minutes out of waiting for six hours to just help a fellow player. Sad.

[Psxpert2011]

I don't know anymore. Asura used to be the place to be. I see new players all the time, but I never see them a week later. I think the game itself is best played by returning players or those who never left. New players seem to just get frustrated quickly and vanish. ...
...there is literally nothing to do outside of Abyssea.

IRL I'm a persistent player/person with grit, I'm independent and at the same time self-denying for many reasons but I'll scale it down to this, "I give help to those who might remember me later". The over all fact that some players leave is because, this is not their style of game. If it's all self serving addiction of getting to the top and racing to get all the good stuff instead of the joy of being a community, what's the point if your not part of an organization/ linkshell?

I feel you Rewyen, when life slaps you in the face or you just want to escape to the MMO world, what better reason than to be in Vana diel and make long lasting friendships? That's the basis of why this game lasted so long and proof of that lay in historical events and online media. This MMO sells itself and true veterans know it.