A New Path to New "Jobs"

[Ryce]

We all want to see new areas, new story lines, and jobs added to FFXI. We all realize it's not likely to happen... at least not on the scale that we've seen in the past with full expansions.

Here's an idea.

Using the newer distribution model of "Add on" DLCs, create story-driven scenarios that take adventurers to limited areas on the continents of Vana'diel which we have read about in lore, but never seen.

New Areas
I imagine each pack containing 3 new zones. A small city/fortification/staging area, a field area (the size of an average field area now), and a small, instanced dungeon-type zone. I wouldn't complain if not a single new texture was created for use in these zones.

New Story
I'd hope to see mini story lines on the scale of the Add-On scenarios that we've seen thus far. The story line should focus heavily on the situation of that region, why they've been cut off from the rest of the world for so long, and what Adventures can do to help. There are some great opportunities in the lore to give players just a taste of the rest of the world, without having to build an entire new game.

New "Jobs"
I'd love to see SE give us new "mini jobs" through the use of gear and enchantment abilities. I envision 3 new armor sets from each add-on: Heavy Armor, Light Armor, Mage Armor - as per usual. Each of these sets would graphically represent the new "job" and grant the wearer bonuses to existing job traits and stats. The head equip from each set would also have "Enchantment: XXXXX". When the item is used, the new job ability/spell for that "job" is activated (a la "Provoke" on Reviler's Helm).

To make this more simple, each of the 3 armor sets could just be variations a single "job" representative of that area, but each with it's own ability.

Example
One such add-on I'd like to see is an adventure into the Northern Continent where the Gigas call home. I could see some sort of Rift opening in the Northlands that would teleport adventures to the Viking Outpost of XXXXX. Surrounded by hoards of Gigas warriors, the remaining Viking clansmen have been trapped in their mountain stronghold for generations, clinging on to life by hunting tigers in the area when the weather allowed. All men and women of the clan are raised as fierce warriors by necessity.

Their fight for survival has taken a recent turn for the worse, as the new captain of the Gigas force has made it his life's mission to wipe the remaining Viking clansmen from the memory of the world. The Gigas are searching for the outpost and trapping the tiger population to try and starve the hidden Hume clan.

Adventurers are asked to help counter the Gigas effort by executing missions for the Vikings. Players can leave the small outpost through a secret pass down a cliff, where they will reach the snowy field of XXXXX. Missions take place between the field and the outpost as players complete tasks and trigger fights/cutscenes at points in the zone. For a few important battles, players will enter the Gigas encampment in a cave(battlefield) at the far end of the field.

Along the way, players will collect materials that the Viking blacksmiths have been seeking for the survival effort. In return for their help, the adventures are rewarded with their pick of Viking armor pieces. The final armor piece has a long-forgotten Viking special ability imbued upon it.

Viking Brave armor - Heavy. Increases STR, VIT, and reduces damage taken.
Special ability: Viking Rush - Stuns target and increases enmity (Provoke + Stun).

Viking Scout armor - Light. Increases AGI, DEX, and Crit Hits.
Special ability: Viking Stance - Parry incoming attacks (Perfect Parry for 5 seconds).

Viking Explorer armor - Mage. Increases INT, MND, and CHR.
Special ability: Viking Cunning - Exposes an enemy's weakness and readies target for a Magic Burst (allows the next elemental magic spell to be unresisted and trigger a magic burst without a skill chain).

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Whether you like my Viking example or not, what do you guys think of that format for new content and "jobs"?

I'd love to hear if the Dev team thinks this kind of paid content is possible in the future.

[chubrocka]

That would be a great Add on

[Panthera]

I'd like to see this, but I'd want some new textures. For example, Cape Terrigan looks identical to Valkurm Dunes, with a slightly different map. I wouldn't want to shell out another $10 for zones that look too similar. The nice thing about Aydeewa Subterrain was that it looked very different than Crawler's Nest.

I wouldn't mind new jobs, like Geomancer and especially Morpher.

A mini-expansion of the nature the OP is talking about would give us reasons to keep playing. Frankly, around level 99 I expect something like this. We'll need more content for higher levels, there's just no way around it.

[Bubeeky]

I wouldn't mind some new jobs or weapon choices....like whips or bells from the previous ff games

[Ryce]

Maybe I'm wrong, and SE will surprise everyone, but I don't see any actual new jobs or weapon types on the horizon. All the new animations and balancing with other jobs seems too ambitious this late in the game. That's why I think adding new gear with exclusive abilities is an achievable solution.

We know they are still making new endgame gear. We know they are making new abilities and spells for existing jobs. Why not coordinate the two to give us the opportunity to feel like we've gotten a new job? I think that would be cool for people who have always wanted to see a particular job from another FF game in XI, even if it's not a complete job class.