Encumbrence = Lose 20 levels.

[Danita]

Every time I get hit with Encumbrance, I go from level 119 fighting something that hits me for 120 per hit, to level 99 and taking 1200 per hit.

I understand that Encumbrance should remove gear to make things harder, but now it's effectively removing my levels as well. Can you please set this so that the effect does not strip off iLVL gear? I don't understand why my level 119 character fights a level 99 monster no better than it did at level 99. This would not be the case if I had gained my levels legitimately, and not from gear. It's frustrating and upsetting, and I'm sure that Encumbrance = Delevel 20 times is a bug you have overlooked.

Thank you.

[Deifact]

I'm sure that Encumbrance = Delevel 20 times is a bug you have overlooked.

Pretty much sums up the dev team in a sentence

[Mirage]

I told them to just quit with the item levels while it still wasn't too late. I think they might not really care, though.

[FaeQueenCory]

It's an unintended side effect of having >99 "levels" handled through gear....
One that I don't think can ever be remedied due to the game's engine and the way the iLv system works... but I can't truly say for sure... because I am not intimate with the game's code.

I'm not really sure what else to say on the matter other than... *shrug*

[Vivivivi]

Level down (status effect) isn't new to the Final Fantasy series, however I agree encumbrance causing level down is probably worth looking into adjusting.

[FrankReynolds]

Encumbrance and Ilevel are both really crappy game mechanics. They could have used merits to avoid this whole situation.

[Okipuit]

We realize that enemy abilities that remove equipment or give an encumbrance effect have larger impacts now that we've implemented the item level system, and as such, moving forward we will be doing our best to make sure that these kind of abilities are not used by monsters as much. If you encounter monsters that can use these type of abilities, we'll be sure to provide methods to avoid them or prevent them from using it.

On the other hand, content that was released prior to Seekers of Adoulin has been balanced properly so that it can be cleared even when getting hit with abilities that remove your equipment or give an encumbrance effect, so we do not have any plans to make adjustments to this content.

[Kristal]

We realize that enemy abilities that remove equipment or give an encumbrance effect have larger impacts now that we've implemented the item level system, and as such, moving forward we will be doing our best to make sure that these kind of abilities are not used by monsters as much. If you encounter monsters that can use these type of abilities, we'll be sure to provide methods to avoid them or prevent them from using it.

One of the Mummers' Coalition tasks requires players to seek out slugs in Rala Waterways and get hit by their encumbrance move, which strips ALL gear for a considerable time. This was added before the item level system, but I think it would be a good idea to add some limiter to these slime-scattering slugs and their scandalous striptease specials...

Perhaps limit encumbrance based on the level of the mob. If a lvl 110 slug uses Fuscous Ooze, it will not remove any item level 111 and above gear.

Or use a point system, where an encumbrance move can remove x levels of gear (ie, 50 points worth of items, where item level 99 and below is 1 point and lvl 120 is 21 points.) Wearing a lot of high itemlevel gear thus reduces the effect.

Another idea is to not remove gear, but negate all it's stats except for item level. (Preventing all gear swaps to and from affected slots.)

[Ziyyigo-Tipyigo]

If you encounter monsters that can use these type of abilities, we'll be sure to provide methods to avoid them or prevent them from using it.

It can be avoided by doing the fight on a Watersday during the waning gibbous moon while facing northwest-by-north and standing exactly 8.735 yalms away from the target, all while under the status effect of Deodorize. Whether or not the weather needs to be a heatwave or just a hot spell has not yet been verified (since 2006).

[Rubeus]

It can be avoided by doing the fight on a Watersday during the waning gibbous moon while facing northwest-by-north and standing exactly 8.735 yalms away from the target, all while under the status effect of Deodorize. Whether or not the weather needs to be a heatwave or just a hot spell has not yet been verified (since 2006).

you forgot to add in that you can't have buffs (including food and signet) on (with the obvious exception of deodorize, which will wear if you attack/are attacked), it must be between 6:00 am and 10:00 am game time, it can't be during a conquest tally or the hourly updates, it only works if you have aquan earring on, and of course if you have the 4 king suite Cardian Cards in your inventory that can't hurt either. Certainly doing every quest in the game involving amorphs HAS to add about 1% chance of success, as well. more information is needed as to whether or not you can use the spell deodorize or if deodorizers are better.

xD