Brief History
I've been an adventurer in Vana'diel for some time now, when a friend of mine told me of this MMO she plays that I just had to play. So, I figured, why not. I started as a galkan in the city of Bastok, and immediately set out to explore this vast new world. Oh, I annoyed my friend so much back then... she wanted me to push myself towards endgame and do events with her, but grinding xp never really appealed to me. I would try to do every quest I could... even so far as trying to sneak through high level areas (without sneak or invis, I might add. I was both a monk, and cheap). I even refused the help of free gil from her, though that was because I had a similar experience with a friend who got me to play Ragnarok Online, and basically gave me any items I needed, any money I needed... so there was no point in anything I earned. I didn't want that experience in Vana'diel.

Over the years, I travelled through several social shells before finally winding up in the social/event shell TheAbhorrentOnes. I still have a few friends from my old socials, and wave and say Hi when I pass though. I've always been a little low key, since my drive to improve myself only extends as far as being able to help my friends better, rather than obsessively improving the sake of improving, I've never been the kind of person who just tops the parser and shatters expectations. Though, I've never been a bad player either. My one claim to fame, and perhaps the only way some of you may know me, is becoming one of the moderators on FFXIclopedia and Eorzeapedia (now combined at GamerEscape). I've always liked helping new players, so helping keep order on those premier sites was a natural progression for me.

Odd Quirks
Unlike most players, I pay quite a bit of attention to the lore of the game, not just as far as doing quests and viewing the storyline goes, but in my gear considerations as well. I consider that SE originally intended all players to melee alongside their other responsibilities (Looking at WHM's hammers, RDM's swords, and the MP restoral WS that dagger, club, and staff get for BLM), and I especially enjoy wearing job specific armor and weapons for my jobs, such as RDM rapiers, BLU scimitars, and other such things. Of course, I always carry more party-oriented weapons and armor when I'm on one of those jobs, just in case I get a party invite... though I do still try to melee on WHM and RDM if they'll let me.

Accomplishments
I pride myself on exploring Vana'diel and seeing all that she has to offer. To that end, I've attempted to do every quest and obtain every title, keeping records of them on my userpage at GamerEscape. I also attempt to solo in every zone in the game, a hobby I picked up while trying to level DNC. Along the way I went to places I never thought I'd xp in, such as Castle Zvahl and the Temple of Uggalepih. Sometimes, I found a reason why nobody trained on some mobs. Other times, I found hidden gems (Tonberries are surprisingly good if you clear hate every so often).

However, my quest hunt has run into snags as of late. Most of my remaining quests are ones where I would require assistance, but good help is hard to find. Especially when it's not to obtain some greater power, but merely because it's there. Still, I keep an eye out for opportunities, and one of these days I will finish it. Or the servers will go down, whichever happens first.

Roleplay
Bit of an unknown even to those who know me, but I do roleplay. I don't often RP in-game however, as there are rarely any opportunities where it's appropriate to do so. Most of my RP is just on forums, writing stories, and through IM with friends. Urthdigger's real name is Dobenn (Pronounced Dough Ben), he was given the hume name of Earth Digger, and when he became an adventurer he went with Urthdigger as a compromise of keeping his hume name while making it look like a galkan one. He's fond of mining and has a love for ore and stone of all kind. This has evolved into a fascination with metalworking, as well as archaeology. He especially loves the old zilartian architecture, and the strange devices in Pso'xja or the cermet structures of the crags, Fei'yin, or Ro'maeve are enough to drive him into a certain mania. Personality-wise, it depends on what job he's on, though he always keeps a kind heart. His two main jobs are pretty much polar opposites, with monk having him focus on inner reflection, acting in a calm and humble manner, while on dancer he is concerned with being the center of attention, attempting to draw the attention of friend and foe alike to his performance.