Body WS Gear

[Gunnerie]

Hello all,

I've been playing now for along time (since 04) and I finally figured I'd get around to leveling NIN. (Got it to 37 for SJ and left it there till new caps, then took to 50.) Now I'm working on leveling it to 90. I prefer the older way of playing so I do alot of parties/solo and I am avoiding Abyssea burning it, so I can actually skill it up correctly.

I've read some posts that the AF1 body is great for Speed/TP Build, and we all know the SH is good also for TP/Eva. build. I just hit 67 recently and was wondering if my old Assault Jerkin would be the best Body to macro in for WS. Or is there something better I should aim for atm. If not what sould I look towards getting later on? (Other then Emp. Body which I plan on getting anyways.)

[ThaiChi]

Haubergeon is a great WS piece until you get to your Empyrean Body

[Gunnerie]

Ok I see what you're saying. I looked at the Mods for Blade: Jin and it makes alot of sence. I didn't think about just using it as a WS gear swap due to I see so many NIN's my level running around in it full time on my server.

Now at what level would it be advisable for me to switch from wearing my SH as my main Body to maining my AF1 for the DW% ?

[ThaiChi]

Test out your accuracy on your xp mobs. If you feel like you no longer need the accuracy boost from SH then use AF. Personally I've always liked using NIN AF1 body to tp, I still do even at 90 and I have many options (Usubody, Empyrean +2, Loki's, etc). I've generally preferred attack speed over accuracy in the body slot. Remember that accuracy issues can be compensated with food. Personally I got my AF body and ran with it until 75. I used SH for a brief while until I noticed the faster my attack rounds came, the better I was holding hate (back in the days where there was structure to xping). SH nowadays has been relegated to merely an Evasion body.

I actually have a guide written on the wiki that's not just a list of gear that you can equip tailored to those who want experience NIN through the entire level range instead of flying through to 90. It's a bit long but it might be exactly what you're looking for.

http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Ninja_-_Doing_it_right

[Anza]

SH nowadays has been relegated to merely an Evasion body.

NQ SH doesn't even have a place as an Evasion body any more 78+, since Aurore is better (same acc/evasion, but also has STR and DA) and is dirt cheap. I personally don't think SH+1/Antares are worth it over Aurore for the marginally better evasion and loss of STR/DA. And there's also Alcide's+1 out there as a great (though more pricey) evasion piece that also helps DD significantly.

[SpankWustler]

To be really brief about weapon-skill bodies:

Loki's Kaftan and Iga Ningi +2 are the best options by far, with the winner generally being dependent on the situation and whether you're using Blade: Jin or Blade: Hi. I'm pretty sure Iga Ningi +2 wins out in almost all situations for Blade: Jin, but I'm totally sure Loki's Kaftan is still worth having.

As for right this second, your best bet is probably a plain old Haubergeon or Haubergeon +1. You can pretend it's 2005, a more innocent time when many thought neo-grunge would go away after just a few years.

[Nightfyre]

NQ SH doesn't even have a place as an Evasion body any more 78+, since Aurore is better (same acc/evasion, but also has STR and DA) and is dirt cheap. I personally don't think SH+1/Antares are worth it over Aurore for the marginally better evasion and loss of STR/DA. And there's also Alcide's+1 out there as a great (though more pricey) evasion piece that also helps DD significantly.

The critdmg enhancement is very small, 2-3%. The difference in damage output between Alcide's +1 and Aurore is actually quite small as a result. Usukane Haramaki offers evasion equal to Antares Harness and more damage output than any of the aforementioned options; it's also fairly easy/cheap to get these nowadays.

[Shiyo]

I like my 3% DW 10 evasion mirke for evasion.

[Anethia]

Y'all are probably gonna laugh at me, I don't have empyrean body yet, but I do have NQ SH and an NQ haubergeon, and above both of those I prefer to TP and WS in my koga chainmail. Just a personal preference since I solo a lot. Im not all that concerned about ws modifiers during solo work, but if modifiers are what you are looking for then NQ or HQ haubergeon are your best bet until +1 empyrean body.

Actually, now that I think about it, aurore body would work as well. I have one of those too, I use it as main body when I solo, pull, or tank on dnc and stacking a lot of evasion will help with survivability. Other than that there are better TP pieces than this.

Again these are simply personal preferences.

[Gravionblack]

Well in have to agree with Anethia, i dont have my iga body upgraded at all yet and have been trying to get my koga body for the last 2 years (which i got a few days ago btw. . . finally! ^^ 9-25-11) and i have been messing around with it on ws's. It seems to out dmg my loki's outside abyssea, not really sure i understand that myself but i did 25 ws's with lokis macro'ed in and 25 with koga and and my koga did 200-500 more dmg then loki's on 14 ws's. I dont know maybe my ninja is just broke lol. But it is all going to come down to what works best for you and what you like the best as well, but from the stats point of view i think iga body at +1/2 is really just a upgraded version of the koga.

[Greatguardian]

Koga Chainmail is absolutely terrible armor whose only proper place is on a Storage Slip.

I don't give a crap if people want to mess around with obviously bad gear, knowing that it is bad, because they're solo and like2style. But I won't be so lenient on you if you seriously come in here and try to tell people that Koga Chainmail outperforms Loki's Kaftan, on anything, ever.

Koga Chainmail is worthless. If you think it's better than even an NQ Haubergeon, you're wrong.

[Anethia]

Koga Chainmail is absolutely terrible armor whose only proper place is on a Storage Slip.

I don't give a crap if people want to mess around with obviously bad gear, knowing that it is bad, because they're solo and like2style. But I won't be so lenient on you if you seriously come in here and try to tell people that Koga Chainmail outperforms Loki's Kaftan, on anything, ever.

Koga Chainmail is worthless. If you think it's better than even an NQ Haubergeon, you're wrong.

Settle down man, such strong wordage is completely unnecessary. I choose to TP and ws in koga for the simple fact I like it, it has good acc and att stats (not blade: jin material however due to lacking str/dex modifiers). If you had read my entire post you would have seen where I mentioned there are better pieces than that for ws. It's a personal preference. Nowhere in my post did I ever say "koga chainmail is what you should use". I just use it because I prefer it's appearance over anything else.

Now if the guy who posted under me is having issues doing more dmg with loki's than koga he might be missing a str or dex modifier somewhere. I would suggest some of the following items to help him boost his blade: jin modifiers with his loki's.

1: neck > chivalrous chain str +5 acc +5 store TP+1
2. rings > raja's ring (pretty much non negotiable on this)
Choice of flame ring: strength +5, spiral ring: str +5 vit +5 int +5, or Airy Ring: Dex +5 Chr +5

All three of the above items play into the blade: Jin dmg modifier.

[Dirtyfinger]

I would never recommend Chivalrous Chain for Jin, ever. Rancor Collar all day every day.

[Greatguardian]

Settle down man, such strong wordage is completely unnecessary. I choose to TP and ws in koga for the simple fact I like it, it has good acc and att stats (not blade: jin material however due to lacking str/dex modifiers). If you had read my entire post you would have seen where I mentioned there are better pieces than that for ws. It's a personal preference. Nowhere in my post did I ever say "koga chainmail is what you should use". I just use it because I prefer it's appearance over anything else.

Now if the guy who posted under me is having issues doing more dmg with loki's than koga he might be missing a str or dex modifier somewhere. I would suggest some of the following items to help him boost his blade: jin modifiers with his loki's.

1: neck > chivalrous chain str +5 acc +5 store TP+1
2. rings > raja's ring (pretty much non negotiable on this)
Choice of flame ring: strength +5, spiral ring: str +5 vit +5 int +5, or Airy Ring: Dex +5 Chr +5

All three of the above items play into the blade: Jin dmg modifier.

And you can see quite clearly that I wasn't talking about you. In fact, I specifically said that I really don't care if you use crappy armor on a personal level. My problem was solely with the poster below you trying to intimate that Koga was actually better than Loki's, which is absurd and flat out wrong.

Also, Rancor Collar =/. Chiv chain is Str+3, not Str+5, and is also garbage (sea gorgets are better). Also, if he's doing "more damage" with Koga than Loki's, then it's obvious that his Attack is terrible, not his WSC =/ it's completely backwards. The correct solution is use Loki's and eat food.

[Anethia]

And you can see quite clearly that I wasn't talking about you. In fact, I specifically said that I really don't care if you use crappy armor on a personal level. My problem was solely with the poster below you trying to intimate that Koga was actually better than Loki's, which is absurd and flat out wrong.

Also, Rancor Collar =/. Chiv chain is Str+3, not Str+5, and is also garbage (sea gorgets are better). Also, if he's doing "more damage" with Koga than Loki's, then it's obvious that his Attack is terrible, not his WSC =/ it's completely backwards. The correct solution is use Loki's and eat food.

Sorry, just felt like a personal attack. However, even though it wasn't directed at me it still would have been better to offer suggestions in lue of basically calling him a moron.

I do agree that rancor collar is pretty much a no as a blade: Jin modifier. However, chivalrous chain, I apologize I got the stats wrong, I was posting via iPhone at work and didn't take time to look up the stats. But calling it garbage is again nothing more than leetist opinion. Chivalrous chain works into the modifier no matter how you look at it. It's fairly cheap and easy to obtain, and not everyone is going to waste their time to obtain sea gorgets. With that being said chivalrous chain is a perfectly good substitution.

And lastly the solution for attack deficiency is not "use loki's and eat food". If his attack is that low the problem is under level'd combat skill. Thus he needs to skill up katana to raise his attack.

[Greatguardian]

You can have capped skill and low Attack...

In fact, you almost always do if you're on Ninja in the first place and not fighting something ridiculously weak.

Sea Gorgets are almost free, and are extremely useful to have. They aren't all best in slot for everything any more, but they're always extremely solid options. A sea gorget will lose to Rancor Collar, but it will destroy a Chiv Chain easily.

Heck, a Spike Necklace is better for Blade: Jin than a Chivalrous Chain =/.

[Tamoa]

Koga Chainmail is worthless.

Hey it was nice for pulling DI! ;)

[Shiyo]

Chiv chain has been complete crap since level 33. Yes, it was bad before you could even equip it, because peacock charm is at level 33. This is using it as a TP piece, which was it's design intent.

Talking about WSing in it? Are you insane? Rancor collar, breeze gorget, spike neckace, etc, completely destroy this piece of equipment. Chiv chain is just as useless as Koga chainmail.

[ThaiChi]

I wouldn't say Koga Chainmail is totally useless, I'd place it between NQ Hauby and HQ Hauby, but this is what I did back at 75 when Haub +1 was 3-4mil, Usukane body was out of reach, and accuracy for Jin was still very important. I can't really assume how accessible gear is to anyone, but couple Koga body and Ninja Tekko +1 and you've got a decent setup for Blade: Jin for those two slots. Hauby +1 still tops that, but back at 75 Chainmail had better output for me than NQ hauby if you want to nitpick the little things. This honestly was a difference of 100-200 damage for Jin. But if you're looking for updated gear, you should be working to get an Iga body upgraded; it's not an upgraded Koga chainmail, its a whole different breed of body piece that's more along the lines of a Haubergeon +2 or +3. Its first upgrade to +1 blows Usukane body out of the water and on top of that you have crit rate which you lose out on in the process of updating gear and weapons from 75 to 90 or 95, i.e. Senjuinriko.

As for Neck gear, there's nothing wrong with a Chiv chain as a place to start, but don't be lazy, go out and get a sea gorget, if you can't afford a Rancor Collar. Ovni is easily soloable and has a very high drop rate for organs. It's not like back at 75 when going out to do something alone was difficult.

Edit: Loki's is great, but consider this: Crit damage is great until you don't crit, where you should consider having a nice balance between rate and damage, so look at consistency vs. potential. I only use Loki's for Blade: Hi currently. Everything else (Good ol Blade: Jin) I want the Accuracy, Attack and STR/DEX modifiers with a 5% Crit rate bonus.

[Caesaris]

Here are my Body Choices...

NQ AF = Great for speed... used mostly for skillup, farming, and killing things EP or lower.
Assault Jerkin = A great piece of gear... 4 years ago.
Koga Relic = Looks badass, but gets swallowed by Iga Ninji +1/+2
Iga Ninji +1 = My main TP/WS body of choice. Looks good, and hits hard.
Kirin's Osode = Another great piece... 3 years ago. I got my Osode for BST years ago, but the modifiers are good for Ninja WS's too.

I don't know what my current Attack is or how close that is to being capped, but I bet if i played around, I could find out definitively which body is best for my Blade Jin setup... Osode or Ninji +1. I think this is also determined by the level of mob i'm WS'ing on. I'm thinking - More Attack for high level mobs... - More STR/DEX for the lower level mobs? Or do i have that reversed?

[Dirtyfinger]

Iga Ningi +1/2 will always beat Kirin's Osode regardless of the mob, much like Rancor Collar beats any other neck piece unless you are some how capping critical hit rate without it.

[Alderin]

Agreed with everyone else - Hauby til AF3 +2 for Jin.

As for your earlier post regarding people full-timing AF3+2 body. Go slap them for me. AF1 body is the best TP piece. (Unless you are lucky enough to get a Mextli Harness, which beats AF1 in overall bonus).