New Player/Returning Player Guide for FFXI in 2012

[bungiefanNA]

So... the game is essentially 'Get to 10, go to Gusgen mines, stay there till 35-ish'?

No more groups in the Dunes? Meaning if I don't have any linkshell friends I may as well just level up and then go try to get the other subjob items solo?

Really starting to regret resubbing...

Leveling was removed as a focus of the game. It's now something to be done quickly, so you can jump into the events you want to do with a job you want to do. Subjob items are ridiculously easy to get at level 30+, and you will definitely have a Magicked Skull from a Gusgen party.

You can also level solo without Gusgen. I did Sarutabaruta, Tahrongi, Buburimu, and then Battalia getting my SAM to 30 for Abyssea. Took me about 12 hours and then another 6 in Abyssea.

Go do story missions or endgame with friends. Find a linkshell to do them with. 99 is easy to get in a week or so.

[Theremy]

finally! this is what I'm looking for xD
thanks a lot, now i know how the game was and how is it today

[Rustic]

I am too valcarde. I got to 12 and headed to valkurm like the old days and there was not a single person in the zone. Pretty disappointing.

Yeah, it's one step in the game that seems to have suffered greatly. Mind you, I've stabbed my way through to THF 20 solo without getting past Sarutabaruta, and I might just keep going until I can solo my subjob stuff. Figured if I'm going to be that long as a single job, having TH and plenty of money to go with it was a good idea...honestly, it's the biggest flaw in the level-up road at the moment. New players are 10 levels further from subjobs at least, and that's assuming they can manage fights at 24-25 vs. the mobs in question.

Mind you, I can do it, but seeing the changes made me shelf RDM for THF for a while just to be sure I'd be able to get past that wall with a minimum of fuss.

[Reinard]

This is just what i wanted to know after rejoining and starting over - last time i played was 7 years ago~ Also looking for people from Shiva server to join me the more the merrier

[Anarai]

Gave me a good idea what to do on some questions I had, Thank you! Had completely forgotten about needing to do the subjob quest, not looking forward to trying to solo it hehe.

[Krenian]

You have no idea just how happy I saw a thread like this as it really helps out the old vets that have stopped playing 6+ years ago just as Chains of Promethia came out. This really is helpful and I will say kudos to you for this

Thanks again, and I will be following this now. So nice to know that I get to actually play the first MMO and I don't get bored waiting for parties.

[Rustic]

I'll also note this bit of learning: It is always...-always- better to level up when possible in dungeons.

This is because completing Grounds Book pages often gives you buffs- which will stay until you zone or log. In addition, casket rewards are superior. When you smack a low-level mob and find the occasional item that -vendors- for 3K+, never mind what it goes for in the AH...well, it's a good way to help fund yourself early on as well. They're often quieter areas with less people whacking what you want for a page, too. I'd sit there stomping easy prey solo, fueling myself on a steady diet of casket medicines/wings/page buffs and turn into a monster-slaying machine.

[Pachux]

thank you! this is a very nice guide for newbies in FFXI like me.
I just got lv 10 with my thief.
Can you give me advice about how can i get gil?
you said that npc sells armor, but i only can afford a vest.
I'm in San'd oria, where should i go next?
Also, where i can start my story missions?

Thank you in advance! I'm very lost lol

[Rustic]

thank you! this is a very nice guide for newbies in FFXI like me.
I just got lv 10 with my thief.
Can you give me advice about how can i get gil?
you said that npc sells armor, but i only can afford a vest.
I'm in San'd oria, where should i go next?
Also, where i can start my story missions?

Thank you in advance! I'm very lost lol

The guards at the gate exits from the city are on two sides. One's the fellow who will give you Signet. Usually on the other side of the gate is someone who'll give you one of the missions to rank up (your storyline missions), IIRC for Sandy the first one is to go find an Orcish Axe off one of the Orcish Fodder in Ronfaure.

Gilwise, there's some decent suggestions already in this thread, but I'll add in some easily repeatable ones that newbie monsters drop the items for.

Bat Wings: Go out in forest at night. Massacre bats. Trade Secodiand them 2 at a time in Northern San d'Oria. 200G each time you do it.
Flint Stones: Worm mobs drop these like mad. 4 stones to Legata in Southern San d'Oria (in the Lion Springs Tavern) = 120G. Do it as many times as you like.
Rabbit hides: Every 3 you get, Parvipon in the Tanner's guild will take them for 120G.
Honey: You'll need a little reputation to get this, but a few reps of the quests above will do the job. Raimbroy (the Grocery in Southern San d'Oria) will take 5 honey for 400G. Talk to him twice. First time's a cutscene, second time he'll offer you the quest. Dead bees = money!

As you can see above, knowing about repeatable quests like that can mean the stuff you've likely been selling off to the vendors makes you more money if you trade it to the right NPC. Also, finishing quests = reputation. Basically, the more times you finish quests in Sandy, the better you'll be known there. Some quests take reputation (aka fame) to open up in the first place, like the honey-trading above, and the higher your reputation is, the lower your prices to buy things in Sandy also become.

Also, you'll end up needing to visit King Ranperre's Tomb if you're doing storyline missions. Talk to Aurege in the Carpenter's Guild in North San d'Oria. He'll complain about a missing worker. That's Varchet in South San d'Oria. Gamble with him (trade him 5 Gil at a time) until you win, then go back to Aurege. He'll give you a map to the Tomb, which'll come in handy. Drop on in. Near the entrance will be a "Grounds Tome", with training routines (basically, kill X mobs). Page 1 or 2 should be doable at your level, and you can sit there whacking mobs that drop the aforementioned items while getting a nice bonus in xp and Gil now and then from finishing the page in question, as long as the mobs themselves still give exp. The brown caskets you occasionally find in there can make a nice bit of supplemental income from selling them (often on the auction house more than to vendors), and once you have a decent amount of Gil for gear from the repeatable quests, it can actually be more profitable to sell stacks of the quest items (in stacks of 12) on the AH as well. On my server, 12 flint stones go for 1000G- while the quest only gives you 300G (3 trades of 4 each). Do increase your reputation- Namonutice in the Lion Springs will give an idea of how well known you've become, see http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Reputation for what he says = what level of fame- but mix it up with boosting your income a bit more with AH sales.

Also, check the AH regularly for how much what you get in drops goes for there. Those slices of hare meat you keep coming across (and can Steal off rabbits)? A stack of 12 sells for 12,000-15,000 Gil on the AH. That's a lot of newbie gear money, eh? The Auction House is likely the biggest source of Gil for a new player, long as you learn what's worth selling.

[Stompa]

Then the grand daddy of FFXI (in my opinion). The Wings of the Goddess expansion came out. This expansion was the prime of FFXI. Two amazing new jobs, and the richest and most amazing story I've ever experienced. Campaign battles, new areas, and revival of the current areas but in the past during the Crystal War. It tied in so much of FFXI Core and the history you learned that it was truly amazing. However, it was still really hard. But at this point, if you didn't understand this game was hard, you probably shouldn't be playing. The NMs in WotG were EPIC. Really really hard. But so much fun.

Great guide for new adventurers, and nostalgia for the rest of us. Agree with you totally about Wotg, and how it is still a valuable but overlooked part of the 2013 game. Hopefully new players will try Wotg Campaign Battles, because it is still great fun, big XP & makes the player feel part of a well-crafted cultural storyline.