Macro Storage NPC

[Miiyo]

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[Daniel_Hatcher]

Sounds pointless and way to much realistically for the lazy SE Devs to do.

[Miiyo]

Sounds pointless and way to much realistically for the lazy SE Devs to do.

You can't be a mage, or at least, a good one, to say that. If it's too much work, then they should come out and say they'll accept windower and spellcast. What sense does it make to give multitudes of different gear pieces without a way to effectively use them? Here's a few fast cast pieces that you can use before casting, then switch to this some other pieces in the middle of casting to make the spell stronger, and after that you'll want to equip something else to reduce dmg. To do all that, here's 6 lines for macros. Good luck!

[Daniel_Hatcher]

You can't be a mage, or at least, a good one, to say that. If it's too much work, then they should come out and say they'll accept windower and spellcast. What sense does it make to give multitudes of different gear pieces without a way to effectively use them? Here's a few fast cast pieces that you can use before casting, then switch to this some other pieces in the middle of casting to make the spell stronger, and after that you'll want to equip something else to reduce dmg. To do all that, here's 6 lines for macros. Good luck!

I am, and I make do with the macro space we have. It's not hard to use the /macro commands and click multiple macros.

That said I don't see how this effects you since you use Windower and Spellcast.

[Jerbob]

I have never used any of these illegal tools, and I can see the merit to this kind of idea. It's certainly possible to play your job without third party extended macros (I've been doing it for years) but it is indisputibly more complicated. FFXI's macro system is sluggish - increasingly so when the frame rate drops if you have the audacity to stand near a veridical conflux, for example - and this makes chaining macros more and more unreliable. Sometimes they simply don't activate properly or completely. This is before even considering the possibility for human error and the general slowdown when chaining macros.

It's also not possible to reliably or realisitically do "pre-cast" type things with the standard macros. Ignoring illegal third party software, something like this would be adding new features to the game that would help everyone be just that little bit better and reduce the stress of macro mashing, making the game more enjoyable as a whole.

With regards to this idea itself, I have a few queries. Would it still be possible to macro equipment that you're holding as part of a "stored macro"? There is equipment that I would like to hold on to rather than store, if only because I like having at least some of that stuff (artifact-style equipment, for example) floating around. Also, how would it work for augmented gear? Perhaps that would have to remain in the player's inventory?

On the whole though, this sort of idea sounds like a great solution to multiple problems. I personally perfer using the existing macro system to trigger these stored macros as described at the end - seems more flexible and can be modified on the fly - though I suppose that runs the risk of running out of space still. Perhaps have both options available?

[RAIST]

IDK if SE would seriously consider this system....it could have the potential for additional congestion server-side that they don't want to get into. If they set it up with a bit-mask concept like the NPC/Moogle storage, it might not be too big a deal (but you'd certainly not be able to do augmented items, possibly other items too depeding on how long the DWORD can be on the legacy code/systems involved). But if it were to be designed as custom views of your avatar's database tables, it might introduce a new wave of traffic (people tweaking the macros, then using them) that might very well increase the load/lag to the servers.

We've all seen them use increased lag as an excuse before....probably would come up with this idea as well.