[dev1003] Abyssea Adjustments (more Empyrean whining, whaaaat??? /facepalm)

Since SE typically lacks in detailed information for the sake of the player base figuring things out for themselves, I thought it important to point out that while the measures taken are appreciated, I question the form it is going to take. Logic dictates that the new spots for Empyrean armor +2 item drops will be existing NMs that drop Empyrean weapon upgrades. I would like to remind the devs that the biggest reason for congestion is because of the Empyrean weapon farming that is taking place, and if your current plan is to unleash +2 armor upgrades on these NMs, you might want to reconsider that plan. Go with it sure, but consider that it's not going to help things very much at all. Congestion is still going to be there. People aren't even getting a chance to fight these NMs because of others spamming their pops to farm weapons. And if they do fight for pops, it does nothing but create more drama.

I really must insist that these +2 items be made available to all NMs. I suggest really low drop rates for them regardless of azure weakness procs as to not make them a complete joke to obtain but seriously anything more is better than just relying on other Empyrean weapon item dropping NMs to provide +2 upgrades. And I'm making a pretty big assumption here on all of this, but it's all I can do with so little detail provided. I rather point this out now for you to consider if you aren't already considering it instead of later, where we will surely bark up your tree when you do in fact add the drops to only the big gun NMs because it made sense that only top tiered NMs drop the best stuff, and it does make plenty of sense and is logical, until you factor in the core of the problems are in fact LSs spamming their Empyrean Weapon farming. All players want their +2 upgrades but it's impossible to get them when you never get a chance to fight the NM because of people spamming it for weapon drops.

If only it were as simple as going during off peak hours. With an entire server doing Abyssea that strategy doesn't work so well anymore.

To sum it up and for example:

Athamas now drops MNK/NIN/THF/DNC empyrean +2 armor items. Drops are incredibly rare even with azure weakness in effect. This example accomplishes 2 goals: 1)Doesn't take away from the big guns and their thunder, and remains a pretty modest restriction on the rate of obtaining upgrades. 2)Provides players with the rare bonus of +2 items when hunting +1 seals. Also allows them to target specific NMs for the +2 drops they want, instead of all out randomness. I'm sure players would love to see a higher than rare drop rate but I'm trying to work on a compromise here.

Really, I love the idea of restrictions on obtaining items, making them rare and all that jazz. I've spent 7 years chasing those items. My only complaint in all that time is the Octave club because it was implemented before I could go after LoO for the Kraken Club and now I may never obtain it without flat out buying it. I enjoy long hours of camping and obtaining things most players will never see. I have a ton of items that are nothing more than trophy items to me, from some crazy assed NMs like Taisai. I even have a rain hat. I'm a thief. I'm a hunter. I enjoy that I can target one specific NM for the drops I need instead of running around like a chicken with its head cut off because everything drops everything. I am the very last person on the face of this Earth to ask for higher drop rates. But in the interest of relieving congestion and drama amongst your player base inside Abyssea I implore you to take your counter measures to the next level if you are not already planning to do so. Every drop we can get no matter how rare it is outside of those big NMs helps with congestion problems.

I thank CRs for taking the time to read my post and for passing it on to the devs. Hopefully it was just a waste of my time but it's better to be safe than sorry. I respect that this is a SE game and that the devs have a right to want things a certain way or not a certain way. It's your sandbox. I'm just tired of pointless drama between players. I'm tired of watching people at each others throats. I'm tired of having to be at someone else's throat, as rare as that may be since I walk to the next camp when one is taken, but it does happen when people walk up on me without courtesy ever crossing their minds. I'm starting to wish Empyrean weapons and even Abyssea were never conceived and that's just kind of sad. Things were better when the drama was limited to the hardcore linkshells and their end game business. Now everyone has been dragged into Dramafest. I guess I'm asking the devs for a compromise here, to sacrifice their ideals yet again, so that your customers may play peacefully amongst each other for at least as long as Abyssea lasts.

A person stealing their LS bank or a drop... now that was drama worth getting worked up over. Not fighting over a bloody ??? or timed spawn in Abyssea. It's just stupid. It's as stupid as getting worked up over the octave clu... oooh, right... Nevermind.

{Help us out!}

All I hope is that when they said "New Ways to gain Empyrean item upgrades" they meant weapon upgrades.

That is the single reason for the majority of congestion on NMs at the moment. Moving +2 drops to other NMs is a good way to solve the armour issue, but it doesn't really fix the cutthroat competition or congestion at mobs like Gakumatz, Heqet, Amun or Tunga, especially on merged servers.

I'd rather see alternative ways to get roaming mob KIs, say through gold chests or multiple spawns.

Bit of a wall o text there, only reading the first few... I would suggest waiting to see what they actually do before jumping to your conclusion you have made that empy bosses are going to have the new drops. It may not even be the route they take; let's just wait and see before presenting ideas.

As Andylynn said let's wait and see before you start complaining.

I do agree its better to wait and see the outcome but fear always gets me when this game promises something and it back fires. I know the hardship of farming pop items for NM's to get my +2 gear and i've seen a LS take over almost a whole zone camping every big ticket NM and never letting anyone else get it, I even had one of their members stand by me with full +2 gear just to make sure i couldn't get it even if i wanted to.

SE should think about battlefields for the +2 items also, take away the total cutthroat known as abyssea and bring back some harmony.

People calling Abyssea cutthroat have never been involved in Pre-80 FFXI Endgame. Period. It is infinitely nicer than anything the game has ever had before.

+2 is not hard to get, either. Adding them to Visions means people have some sort of incentive to help out with Empyrean Weapon first stage upgrades. It also increases availability. That's about it. More ways to get armor in case the primary NM was too tough / too overcamped. It sounds pretty damn awesome.

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Originally Posted by Greatguardian

People calling Abyssea cutthroat have never been involved in Pre-80 FFXI Endgame. Period. It is infinitely nicer than anything the game has ever had before..

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I've been playing this game for about 7 years now and the game always has a cutthroat spin to it when something new comes out, everyone wants it and wants it before you. To say that cause i call it cutthroat means i'm not pre-80 why that number, makes me wonder about yourself.... I would have made a pre-75 comment.

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Originally Posted by Secondplanet

I've been playing this game for about 7 years now and the game always has a cutthroat spin to it when something new comes out, everyone wants it and wants it before you. To say that cause i call it cutthroat means i'm not pre-80 why that number, makes me wonder about yourself.... I would have made a pre-75 comment.

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Because pre-75... excludes... 75. Pre-80 Endgame is ... 75 Endgame. It's not difficult.

Abyssea is also nowhere near as bad as HNM, old/middle-aged Dynamis, Sea, and Sky were. Hell, I would not even call Abyssea "bad". The only time you see NMs being "stolen" are when mentally handicapped morons manage to wipe to things and try to Apoc zombie them for an hour. People actually team up when they don't want X or Y seals. That shit would have never happened pre-Abyssea in any sort of Endgame environment (Read: shitty social shells and events don't count).

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Adding them to Visions means people have some sort of incentive to help out with Empyrean Weapon first stage upgrades.

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Whichever way you looks at it this seems very likely.

Vold:

You answered it in your sig.

One of the main hopes I had for this game at the VanaFest 2010 announcements was the implosion of the power structure and the bragging rights the elite players (largely read that as "cheaters") had over the game, which was their sole source of enjoyment in it.

As always, we appreciate all the feedback you all provide regarding Abyssea.

We spoke to the development team in regards to all your questions about [dev]1003.

To start, we would like you all to keep in mind the FINAL FANTASY XI 2011 Roadmap where we showed that we have continuous adjustments planned for Abyssea in the future. While the portions that we would like to adjust are by no means small in number, due to the fact that there are some things we would like to add after monitoring their implementation, as well as those that take a bit more time to implement, we will be releasing adjustments gradually.

Also, currently Empyrean armor has become the most powerful equipment, but as an ultimate goal we are planning to add numerous items so that you can select what you wear depending on the situation and slot. This is similar to when the level cap was 75 and you have Relic, Salvage, Einherjar, and Limbus-related gear to utilize.

Now, for the good stuff:

•Additional Methods of Obtaining Empyrean +1 Seals
With the new battlefields that will be added, players will have another venue in which to obtain +1 seals. With this factored in, the chance of obtaining seals in order from highest to lowest will be notorious monsters first, followed by the new battlefields, and lastly quests.

There will be two tiers of battlefields, one for a 3 person party and another for a 6 person party. By taking on a battlefield the possibility of obtaining +1 seals are as follows: 0-1 for the 3 person party battle and 1-2 for the 6 person party battle. While you cannot aim for specific seal rewards, we will make it possible to select which battlefield you can attempt depending on what job and slot you would like to obtain.

•Obtaining Seals via Quests
While adjustments are not being made during the upcoming version update, in regards to repeatable quests specifically, we would like to make adjustments to the necessity of having to leave and re-enter the area. We also plan to adjust quests where the reward may not necessarily be equal to the level of difficulty required. Due to the fact that we’ll need to adjust each quest individually, making changes all at once will be quite difficult; however, we would like to start making adjustments a bit at a time.

•Additional Methods of Obtaining Empyrean +2 Items
Due to the fact that it was a bit difficult to completely solve everything during the upcoming version update, this is something that we would like to continue working on in the future. We’re working diligently so that disputes arising from heavy congestion can be avoided.

•Notorious Monsters’ Weaknesses
For the upcoming version update, we are only making adjustments to blue magic, however, we would like to continue to make adjustments to magic and weapon skills in the future. At any rate, we plan to make adjustments on the basis that no job will become the be-all end-all.

•Empyrean Feet
We are not making adjustments for this during the upcoming version update, but there is a possibility that take some form of action in the future and are continuing to look into this. Currently, compared to other equipment slots, Empyrean feet are definitely harder to obtain; however, we will be thinking about this carefully as to not lower the difficulty excessively.

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Originally Posted by Camate

•Additional Methods of Obtaining Empyrean +1 Seals
With the new battlefields that will be added, players will have another venue in which to obtain +1 seals. With this factored in, the chance of obtaining seals in order from highest to lowest will be notorious monsters first, followed by the new battlefields, and lastly quests.

There will be two tiers of battlefields, one for a 3 person party and another for a 6 person party. By taking on a battlefield the possibility of obtaining +1 seals are as follows: 0-1 for the 3 person party battle and 1-2 for the 6 person party battle. While you cannot aim for specific seal rewards, we will make it possible to select which battlefield you can attempt depending on what job and slot you would like to obtain.

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Okay this.. really?? This sounds so pointless.. so i have to get a group of 3 people to get a reward of 1 random seal?.. id rather take those 3 people and low man nms..

Camate, to be blunt, do we really need more situational gear? Sure, most jobs can almost full-time their Empyrean +2 armor and still be at the pinnacle of their job, but all Red Mages in particular got from that deal was another situational armor set, half of it to be macroed to one spell set, and half of it to be macroed to another, and all of it macroed to yet a third spell set! I'm not saying that the armor isn't incredibly potent, mind you, but when you're a job as versatile as that, more gear "depending on situation and slot" isn't exactly music to your ears. I dunno, perhaps I'm just being bitter and selfish, here . . .

(Not to mention that most Blue Mages don't even care about their Empyrean Feet, which is really a sort of a shame . . .)

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Originally Posted by Camate

•Empyrean Feet
We are not making adjustments for this during the upcoming version update, but there is a possibility that take some form of action in the future and are continuing to look into this. Currently, compared to other equipment slots, Empyrean feet are definitely harder to obtain; however, we will be thinking about this carefully as to not lower the difficulty excessively.

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But shouldn't the base feet be easy to obtain they're useless as is, you need to spend more time +1ing them to make them useful. You can buy the other 4 base items with cruor etc. and that's when the hard work begins shouldn't the same apply to the feet, I've gotten 5 caller's seal:feet without even trying and have spent countless hours partying in Abyssea Vunkerl Inlet and have only seen 1 set of caller's pigaches so far.
The system for getting feet seems wholly unbalanced to me almost to the point where given the difficulty you should remove seal:feet from the game and make the feet +1from gold pyxis instead that's the only way the system as is to me could give reward equaling time spent.

I do agree that taking 3 people to do a battle field for 1 seal seems rather pointless I am hoping the seal aspect of the battles are more of a side note luck drop. It would be my hope that KCNM and High KCNM battle fields drop craftables, scrolls new weapons or something then have the seals as a plus.

Then maybe at a later date make some 18 member battle fields like KS99 for fast form of +2 farming or empyrean weapon farming to pull these groups out of abyssea and spread out the population a little.

Hmm, with this additional data I've formed certain impressions:

Battlefields

Sound rather worthless. A 0~1 in 4 chance isn't going to move anyone away from NMs you can solo or duo. Most quests can be done relatively quickly, thanks to not having to gather people or gear for specific circumstances. So battlefields won't have the speed or solobility of quest, all the hassles of coordination, people management and intra-party competition of NM hunting, and a worse drop rate than if you can get someone to proc yellow. The only benefit is less competition for timed spawn NMs, which is offset by the lower drop rate. The odds go down further if you can't find people who don't want the same seals you do and 1~2 in 4 divided by 1~6 can potentially be even worse. Depending on the non-seal rewards, 1 or 2 might have staying power, but after the first month or 2, I expect these battlefields to see less action than a 30 cap ENM.

Quests

Removing the zoning requirement will go a long way to making quests worth the time. Although some individual quests may be somewhat unbalanced even beyond that, that one adjustment may be all a lot of quests really need.

Empyrean +2

We appreciate your efforts, and realize that instant results are not always attainable. Please continue to do your best, we will await the results of your labours with gratitude. Thank you.

Weaknesses

From my personal perspective this is a minor thing, but it's good that even minor things are not ignored.

Empyrean Feet

Again, please do your best, your efforts are appreciated.

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Originally Posted by Babygyrl

Okay this.. really?? This sounds so pointless.. so i have to get a group of 3 people to get a reward of 1 random seal?.. id rather take those 3 people and low man nms..

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I'm spitballing, But I'm going to assume the new battlefields will likely be kinda like BCNM/KSNM, meaning a lot of Rewards, and the "Seals" are probably like the "Cheap Synth mat" portion of the rewards. Randomly get one at the end of the fight, along with your other stuff.

I don't think they're designating an entirely new battle-field simply for obtaining 1 +1 seal... If they are... I give up.

But for now! I'm assuming its going to be BCNM/KSNM/ANNM type System, Lots of rewards, +1 Seals tacked on for an "extra" Reward.

On the prospect of Situational gear. I don't think he means "0.001 sidegrade item". If you look at what he described and how all that gear meshed and mix/matched created decent sets. I think its a good idea.

I mean, Really, what would be the point in going to 99 if all the battlefields we'd be doing wouldn't offer gear better than Abyssea armor? The way it sounds is that "We'll be releasing gear thats better for xxx"

Like for instance, THF+2 Head is probably going to remain king of TP, but maybe they'll release a new WS head that blows our old ones out of the water.

I don't know how to articulate my words but, Basically I'm trying to say, yes, I look forward to new armor, Side grade or not. its the variety that keeps us going, especially If theres even a few sets worth getting.

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Originally Posted by Camate

•Notorious Monsters’ Weaknesses
For the upcoming version update, we are only making adjustments to blue magic, however, we would like to continue to make adjustments to magic and weapon skills in the future. At any rate, we plan to make adjustments on the basis that no job will become the be-all end-all.

]

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Um...I hope this does not mean more jobs can will be used to trigger weakness?

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Originally Posted by Camate

Also, currently Empyrean armor has become the most powerful equipment, but as an ultimate goal we are planning to add numerous items so that you can select what you wear depending on the situation and slot. This is similar to when the level cap was 75 and you have Relic, Salvage, Einherjar, and Limbus-related gear to utilize.

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emp +2 sch pants are useless.

Can i take the time to state here that I would like you to look into issues like my SCh pants and others on the sch forum? I feel the job is neglected reflected in the fact SCH mythic is underwhelming.

HQ staff > ash staff > sch mythic

Well, we heard it here first, full timing your AF3 at 99 is probably going to mean youre gimp.

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Originally Posted by blowfin

Well, we heard it here first, full timing your AF3 at 99 is probably going to mean youre gimp.

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most jobs that is true already -.-

Breaking News: Some armor is bad.

More at 11.

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Originally Posted by Greatguardian

Breaking News: Some armor is bad.

More at 11.

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WHAT?! IMPOSSIBLE D:! /QUITGAME-RAGE

On a side note.

Guy love hi-five /

Fell Cleave (WAR/SAM. Please have sekka or you FAIL/take much longer than need be), Thf can have aoelian edge or you can have a blu aoe and you have any feet items shortly. If utilized properly, the combination with these and a good healer, can rape 12+ mobs in 2 attacks. Let's imagine what happens when you have full lights, you round up 12-20 mobs at one time, and these 12-20 mobs drop dead from 2-3 attacks. LOTS OF CHESTS! Oh the possibilities. And then... 12-20 more within 5 mins. That's alot of mobs dropping dead!!! Alot of chests!!!

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Originally Posted by Greatguardian

Breaking News: Some armor is bad.

More at 11.

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I just think it's nice to put it out there ahead of time so people are well aware they're gonna be seen as gimp in full AF3 at 99.

Not that it stopped people at 75.

Glad to see the zoning requirement going. While some quests are way more time consuming, it will help by being able to build time before starting. It also means that for quests that require a rare drop, you can get right back in there and farm them again once you turn one in (thinking of Pursuer Wings) instead of losing all of your accumulated time.

You know what I would like. I would like the you guys, the developers to actually think for once before you implement something. You almost always implement things broken, then take 2 years to fix. Please stop that.

Second, do you guys think that challenge = making you do things over and over and over again for next to no reward? is that your idea of challenge? You do realize all you accomplish is having people give up and quit because they expect a game to be fun, not a chore. So ya, you are making battlefields which will give you most likely a pathetic chance at getting a seal you need. So need mnk feet, do battlefield 100 plus times and you should get by then.

Enough SE, please use your damn heads and stop doing everything you possibly can to push players away. Time sinks are not content.

I guess going to do an NM for 1 hour is just too hard huh. Abyssea itself is just too hard bro. You know what. Exp mobs should drop 3-4 Seals Each too. Why stop there, I should get Free seals with Every Stone i pick up, and every time i zone in.

WHY STOP THERE. I should get Seals for logging on. I paying 12.95! i shouldn't have to even leave my mog house for seals, So why stop there. I think My Moogle should just give me seals when i talk to him, 4-5 of them, Only the ones i need too.

If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm being sarcastic.

We literally know absolutely nothing about these battlefields except that they're going to add/have seal drops too. This game is easier than its been in years, and seriously people are complaining its still too hard? It will take literally minimal Effort to get a piece of +1 Gear.

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Originally Posted by blowfin

I just think it's nice to put it out there ahead of time so people are well aware they're gonna be seen as gimp in full AF3 at 99.

Not that it stopped people at 75.

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Oh I know, I was responding more towards "SCH legs are bad".

Also, high five for Krabnuckle /

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Originally Posted by Karbuncle

I guess going to do an NM for 1 hour is just too hard huh. Abyssea itself is just too hard bro. You know what. Exp mobs should drop 3-4 Seals Each too. Why stop there, I should get Free seals with Every Stone i pick up, and every time i zone in.

WHY STOP THERE. I should get Seals for logging on. I paying 12.95! i shouldn't have to even leave my mog house for seals, So why stop there. I think My Moogle should just give me seals when i talk to him, 4-5 of them, Only the ones i need too.

If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm being sarcastic.

We literally know absolutely nothing about these battlefields except that they're going to add/have seal drops too. This game is easier than its been in years, and seriously people are complaining its still too hard? It will take literally minimal Effort to get a piece of +1 Gear.

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I think I love you

Honestly obtaining +2 armor is a joke. If people are camping the same NMs as me just for seals/+2 items, I let them join me to reduce the competition, instead of complain about it. On the other hand, other people who generally work on Empyrean weapons are the reason why it gets so congested. Only close-nit friends work together, besides that, it's just like FF has always been. Beat the others to the claim and you can have your prize.

Honestly the feeling of accomplishment has severely died over the past few years, and the only thing left was relic weapons. The trend has been and still remains to be the group with the fastest trigger finger always wins. What's so great about it when it takes minimal effort to actually fight/kill said NMs?

Oh, by the way, the sever merges will probably be the death of all of us. I'm not looking forward to being crammed in with twice as many people like a Tokyo metro at rush hour.

how do i send a pm.... i want to ask great guardian something

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxi/th...vate-Messaging

more comments to try get pms here, atm i do not think you can.

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Originally Posted by Camate

As always, we appreciate all the feedback you all provide regarding Abyssea.

We spoke to the development team in regards to all your questions about [dev]1003.

To start, we would like you all to keep in mind the FINAL FANTASY XI 2011 Roadmap where we showed that we have continuous adjustments planned for Abyssea in the future. While the portions that we would like to adjust are by no means small in number, due to the fact that there are some things we would like to add after monitoring their implementation, as well as those that take a bit more time to implement, we will be releasing adjustments gradually.

Also, currently Empyrean armor has become the most powerful equipment, but as an ultimate goal we are planning to add numerous items so that you can select what you wear depending on the situation and slot. This is similar to when the level cap was 75 and you have Relic, Salvage, Einherjar, and Limbus-related gear to utilize.

Now, for the good stuff:

•Additional Methods of Obtaining Empyrean +1 Seals
With the new battlefields that will be added, players will have another venue in which to obtain +1 seals. With this factored in, the chance of obtaining seals in order from highest to lowest will be notorious monsters first, followed by the new battlefields, and lastly quests.

There will be two tiers of battlefields, one for a 3 person party and another for a 6 person party. By taking on a battlefield the possibility of obtaining +1 seals are as follows: 0-1 for the 3 person party battle and 1-2 for the 6 person party battle. While you cannot aim for specific seal rewards, we will make it possible to select which battlefield you can attempt depending on what job and slot you would like to obtain.

•Obtaining Seals via Quests
While adjustments are not being made during the upcoming version update, in regards to repeatable quests specifically, we would like to make adjustments to the necessity of having to leave and re-enter the area. We also plan to adjust quests where the reward may not necessarily be equal to the level of difficulty required. Due to the fact that we’ll need to adjust each quest individually, making changes all at once will be quite difficult; however, we would like to start making adjustments a bit at a time.

•Additional Methods of Obtaining Empyrean +2 Items
Due to the fact that it was a bit difficult to completely solve everything during the upcoming version update, this is something that we would like to continue working on in the future. We’re working diligently so that disputes arising from heavy congestion can be avoided.

•Notorious Monsters’ Weaknesses
For the upcoming version update, we are only making adjustments to blue magic, however, we would like to continue to make adjustments to magic and weapon skills in the future. At any rate, we plan to make adjustments on the basis that no job will become the be-all end-all.

•Empyrean Feet
We are not making adjustments for this during the upcoming version update, but there is a possibility that take some form of action in the future and are continuing to look into this. Currently, compared to other equipment slots, Empyrean feet are definitely harder to obtain; however, we will be thinking about this carefully as to not lower the difficulty excessively.

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Thanks for the response, Camate. It's good to have a little bit more detail on what the team is up to.


Personally I'm looking forward to the battlefields. If they are interesting and fun I see no reason not to do them, and I suspect seals will not be the only rewards. Even if they are by some chance, it's another option. It's better than not having it at all when you might actually need it. Specifically during the weekend.

In regards to +2 items, it is understandable to make adjustments for those and monitor the situation for a bit as with anything else you implement. My only concern was that these suckers get put on Glavoid and company and we're still fighting each other over this stuff for another 3 months give or take a couple weeks before we see more adjustments. We've been knee deep in drama since Heroes was released. I've had to fight over Tunga okay. TUNGA OF ALL THINGS. You know, the lil Yoda wannabe guy that single handedly keeps the chig population going strong simply by "befriending" adventures on a regular basis, if you catch my drift. I've probably given birth to a few hundred chigs myself over the months during experience groups. Nevermind that it's easy when you're prepared, okay. In soviet chasm, Tunga experiences off YOU. Most of the time it's going to go down like this until you show up to specifically kill it. So you know, to see people fighting over that thing is just crazy. Hell, I welcome the competition of it all. I thrive on that stuff when it's fair. But not at the cost of pointless crybaby drama.

Anyways, I still don't know what the overall plan is for +2 items but hey, it's something more than things staying as is. It'll help someone somewhere at the very least.

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Originally Posted by Tamarsamar

Camate, to be blunt, do we really need more situational gear? Sure, most jobs can almost full-time their Empyrean +2 armor and still be at the pinnacle of their job, but all Red Mages in particular got from that deal was another situational armor set, half of it to be macroed to one spell set, and half of it to be macroed to another, and all of it macroed to yet a third spell set! I'm not saying that the armor isn't incredibly potent, mind you, but when you're a job as versatile as that, more gear "depending on situation and slot" isn't exactly music to your ears. I dunno, perhaps I'm just being bitter and selfish, here . . .

(Not to mention that most Blue Mages don't even care about their Empyrean Feet, which is really a sort of a shame . . .)

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To be blunt, YES! Situational gear is something the FFXI team does wonderfully. It is fascinating and interesting for players and gives us more options to explore. I think the ffxi has done a fantastic job w/ gear abilities to come at battles and NM's from different directions w/ so many job possibilities and strategies (including gear) to use when approaching a battle.

and I love my blu empyrean feet! (no I don't full time them, but for nuking they are fantastic!)

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•Notorious Monsters’ Weaknesses
For the upcoming version update, we are only making adjustments to blue magic, however, we would like to continue to make adjustments to magic and weapon skills in the future. At any rate, we plan to make adjustments on the basis that no job will become the be-all end-all.

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This is VERY interesting. I can't wait to see what weaknesses are used! (BST READY MOVES< YES, PLEASE)

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Originally Posted by Karbuncle

This game is easier than its been in years, and seriously people are complaining its still too hard? It will take literally minimal Effort to get a piece of +1 Gear.

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Teugghia is still evil though. :/ She's not afraid to be stingy with seals, even with yellow proc.

My only real issue with gear that comes from abyssea right now is AF feet. I spent over 8 hours plus a ton of stones the last time I went feet farming. In over 8 hours of AF feet farming we got .....0 YES 0 Zero Nada Nothing pairs of AF3 feet. This is just poor game design. I am almost tempted to just say screw AF feet for jobs that I play. Nothing in this game has been more tedious than AF3 feet. HNM camping, pointlessly long COP missions (8-3 tower escourt), crafting.... none of them hold a candle to AF3 feet. The system itself is bad ... AF3 feet have an absurdly low drop rate within a pool of about 50 different items that can drop from a chest that drops randomly even with good abyssea lights.

If SE wants to keep this system in place the drop rate for the boots from the chests needs to be upped significantly say to about the drop rate of the augmented armor that comes from the same chests that are absolute garbage that no one wants.

I have several wrong pairs of af3 feet that nobody wanted... maybe instead of dropping feet directly, the chests should drop a rare/ex coupon that you turn in to an npc for the feet of your choice? (And you could take the coupon to a different zone, even, so everyone who wanted feet would have an incentive to join amber farming parties in all scars zones, not just a particular one.) The Limbus coupon system always seemed kind of pointless to me because there was only one obtainable item per coupon so they might as well just have dropped the item directly, but a coupon that allows you to choose a reward (like the mog bonanza ones) would be much better. Everyone might be lotting on it at first (except people who already have all the feet they want), but if the coupon is rare, anyone who has already gotten one that party will be unable to get another until they leave to trade it in.

This would completely solve the problem of drops not being proportionate to the populations of different jobs, without implementing any kind of more complex system like adjusting drop rates depending on who is in the alliance (which wouldn't work right anyway because some people are on one job to contribute light or whatever, but want a drop for a different job).

P.S. I have a full set of DRG feet seals and no NQ feet, and it's hard to get groups to go to Scars zones when Heroes zones have Dominion Ops. So I would really appreciate some kind of reform to the NQ feet system.

*I have no great problems getting AF3 footgear, but the process (especially solo) is beyond comprehension. Even with just enough amber lights, gold pyxides still rarely spawn with items. The biggest problem I have is the erratic rate in which pearlescent lights are attained. I realize this was to maintain some kind of balance in accumulation of pyxides overall, but it makes for some difficulty when trying to get those boots solo.

*I can only hope that these proposed battlefields, regardless of difficulty, do not follow the ENM model for rewards. To many of us, all risk and no reward is not exactly an attraction.

*On NM weaknesses, I would hope to see a system put in place that is more inclusive of the many jobs available. For one, pet jobs--particularly Summoner and Beastmaster--get completely hosed as things stand. Despite the cackles of those who get off on excluding people because of the job(s) they enjoy, the weakness system as it stands currently needs to be modified to include more jobs. There would be nothing wrong with including -helices (SCH), BP: Rages (SMN), and Ready ablities (BST) other than a party leader having to adjust his/her strategies to fit these jobs' capabilities.

*It is good that you have come around more to our way of thinking regarding quests and how rewards are parcelled out. I very much believe that quests such as "Proof of the Lion" and "Brugaire's Ambition" deserve much higher seal reward rates than such quests as "Unidentified Research Object" which require items that can be bought at the Auction House.