I think I'm finished; a new player's final thoughts

[Crevox]

Thing is if you watch just a bit you see the auto trans of wild keeper reives all the freaking time so it doesn't take much more then a IQ little over 75 to connect wilds keeper reives to wkr.

Thanks for calling me retarded.

This is the best community: a fine example of why I don't PM people asking what WKR is

[VoiceMemo]

Having read the majority of the 13 some pages, I'll throw in my 2 gil.

My first question Crevox, is that do you, or have you been a part of a social shell.
As a players starting off, these tend to be invaluable to ask questions. I tell anyone
that is a returning player in my shell to ask many questions as the game has changed alot
since they last played.

I've always viewed linkshells with this hierarchy:

1)No linkshell
2)Social shell
3)Social shell with some higher end content
4)Endgame shell
5)Retirement Shell, endgame shell of older players who want to do endgame but not at breakneck speed

And I've always held that once you get to 4 you either go to 5 or back to 1 from burnout/frustration.

Speaking for myself, I've played now for some 10 years(has it really been that long..). I've accomplished near every goal I have setout for myself. I am one of Asura's few Relic, Empyrean, and Mythic Bards. I would not have gotten this far without linkshell/friends. All but 1 of my IRL friends quit the game(that I had started the game with), the 1 friend recently came back after 4 years of not playing. Which now I'm in the situation I want to get him caught up, but I can't just drop my LS Leader obligation just to help 1 person.

Before when I was in school/not working I tried to help as many people as I could, both in my shell, friends, and random shouts. But now that I'm older and such I only try to focus on my ls/friends. I still try to help as much as I can to pay the help I got forward.

I can understand your frustration where alot of the information is not worded/linked well on wikis. My advice echoes some of the other posts. A linkshell helps alot. Granted because of abyssea that killed may of the endgame shells, but there are still good linkshells out there. It just may take you some time to find one you fit in. As others of said, ask around, be polite and try try try. You'll never beat someone that has years of playing the game in terms of time/mob experience, but that's alright, knowing your job and following directions of leaders is the key. If you can do those 2 things usually you'll be fine.

The other thing you could do is find a mentor. I've mentored a few players, where I would help them out with information/fights etc. Networking/making friends/linkshell are the 3 things that I can recommend that may improve your ffxi experience.

[Lithera]

It's not their fault, you don't seem to want to actually use your brain while in game. Also one of the best accessories in a non ring slot for once can be gotten from WotG. It's best augments are aimed at mage jobs. Quick cast is awesome when it goes off. Seems to proc a lot at least for me. Though most of the time on a buff. Also as I have said before it has some really good pre 70 gear you could have gotten since you said you didn't go into abyssea til 75. Some of the grips you can get using AN are very helpful and probably cheaper than ones off the AH. Also scholar is a very helpful job as a sub job. If you actually had the balls to ask a question as to where to level around 41 without having to step into abyssea I would hope someone on asura would have told you east ronfaure [S] as a really good spot til about 47. But no you seem to be too afraid to ask questions in game just because of the one time you did you had a bad experience.

[AppropriateName5786]

there is nothing wrong with asking questions. most of this stuff you will stumble on in storyline from brenton, and RoE is all over s.e sites and forums. do research; not just read wiki, ask ppl if you dont understand.

again you need to go to SoA.

And it's so easy to connect NNI with Nyzul Isle Uncharted Area Survey. And it doesn't take a genius to connect Delve to Morimar 1-5+ NM. And it goes without saying that new players should be expected to memorize the tens of BCNM and KCNM fights too. RJ? UO? In the whole of the English language, these letters have never stood for anything else besides Royal Jelly and Ultima Online, I mean Under Observation. And there you are insulting other people's IQ.

[OKOA]

Thanks for calling me retarded.

This is the best community: a fine example of why I don't PM people asking what WKR is

It's so sad that a new player trys to come on here and give genuine suggestions, and the prototypical response on this forum is ALWAYS someone gaslighting them.

[OKOA]

The difference between an extremely complex game like EVE Online and an extremely complex game like FFXI is that, in the former, the community accepts that the super-steep learning curve could be a massive turnoff, and does everything to try to accomodate new players. See EVE University for reference. No one complains there because a player run organization dedicated to improving the new player experience meticulously maintains a high quality wiki that is free to use.

In FFXI they tell you the problem is your IQ.

To wit, Zeni Notorious Monster versus Records of Eminence.

RoE ... open one menu, click to initiate quest, kill sh*t, start collecting rewards.

ZNM ... to be totally honest with you, I still don't know wtf a Soul Plate is ( other than at the last second you trap a monster inside one??? ), and from what I gather, this is content people actually still do.

Yes, clearly our intelligence is the dam stopping up the wellspring of intuitiveness built into these expertly designed systems.

And by the way, hunting in ERS never gave AN and still doesn't. You'd have to actively campaign battle for that. It does however have the huge disadvantage of not having FoV or GoV pages available, the latter providing important buffs to skill gain rate and attack power. I loved grouping in that zone when people did bird sync parties, don't get me wrong. But Google traded at $450 a share then too.

Life is full of missed opportunities, but I don't believe this game necessarily should be too.

[Spectreman]

Once you start seing MMORPGs as a journey and brake the chains of "end game carrot-slavery mindset" you will have fun. It takes a huge while to happen though and you have to grow up a lot to see that the reason we play is to be immersed in a virtual world where we can do things we can't in real life, instead of rushing to get the new set of gear that will tell others how cool you are and get bored right after while complaining for the new set of gear to arrive.


So forget about endgame. They were made for people to get stressed and have an empty feeling of accomplishment. Play the game for the story, get 117 gear through RoE. Level the jobs you like and don't care about having to make it best in slot to satisfy others so they will allow you to play with them.

Play the game for you and not for them. When you are able to do that and have fun you then mastered Final Fantasy XI.

[Ravenmore]

It's so sad that a new player trys to come on here and give genuine suggestions, and the prototypical response on this forum is ALWAYS someone gaslighting them.

What they are suggesting is make FF11 a FF14 with worse graphics. More to the point on Zam there have been a couple of threads just this past week of people asking honest questions in a tone that got them answers. I get tells all the time asking me how to do something or where something is at, it really comes down to tone and what you are asking for(ask me for gil I'll laugh in your face).

People remember you and how you ask so how you come across in you first post is how people will see you till your quit posting or playing. Come in saying how the game doesn't hold your hand and whining how a 11 year old game should be more like other MMOs is not how you go about it.

[Ravenmore]

The difference between an extremely complex game like EVE Online and an extremely complex game like FFXI is that, in the former, the community accepts that the super-steep learning curve could be a massive turnoff, and does everything to try to accomodate new players. See EVE University for reference. No one complains there because a player run organization dedicated to improving the new player experience meticulously maintains a high quality wiki that is free to use.

In FFXI they tell you the problem is your IQ.

To wit, Zeni Notorious Monster versus Records of Eminence.

RoE ... open one menu, click to initiate quest, kill sh*t, start collecting rewards.

ZNM ... to be totally honest with you, I still don't know wtf a Soul Plate is ( other than at the last second you trap a monster inside one??? ), and from what I gather, this is content people actually still do.

Yes, clearly our intelligence is the dam stopping up the wellspring of intuitiveness built into these expertly designed systems.

And by the way, hunting in ERS never gave AN and still doesn't. You'd have to actively campaign battle for that. It does however have the huge disadvantage of not having FoV or GoV pages available, the latter providing important buffs to skill gain rate and attack power. I loved grouping in that zone when people did bird sync parties, don't get me wrong. But Google traded at $450 a share then too.

Life is full of missed opportunities, but I don't believe this game necessarily should be too.

And a few mins on wiki(FFXI has many sites that are free and well maintained and they pop up with the first 5 google results) would tell you right away and the only people doing it are people finishing mystics and by and large is dead content with little to no reason for new players to touch. Wiki and the rest of the info is out there and it was SE intentions at the start of of the game to push sites like wiki instead of having it explained in game or for players to ask each other and share the information between our selves. Though SE biggest mistake was to open these forums with out a suggestion area and a general help area and enforced it.

[Lithera]

And by the way, hunting in ERS never gave AN and still doesn't. You'd have to actively campaign battle for that. It does however have the huge disadvantage of not having FoV or GoV pages available, the latter providing important buffs to skill gain rate and attack power. I loved grouping in that zone when people did bird sync parties, don't get me wrong. But Google traded at $450 a share then too.

Life is full of missed opportunities, but I don't believe this game necessarily should be too.

Yes it doesn't give AN but the OP said he didn't go back to WotG zones is because after dying to a lv 50 mob he never went back. Then after some more prodding he said it was more so because he couldn't find a place to xp. Does it have fov or gov? No but you can get regen and refresh when you get sigil. Also if the city you are allied with has the pixies they give a reduced xp loss from death you can add to your sigil. One of the huge complaints many new players have is there is no real gear at lower levels. Meanwhile they probably never bothered to even unlock WotG areas and thus cant get gear for mid 50 or late 60. If the equipment you can get from CP isn't to your liking or if you are not from that city and thus can't buy an item because it is that city only. Also how else are people to think of a person who complains they didn't know what this or that was because they didn't ask the people online what certain things are or what they mean? You have to use your brain in this game. If you don't ask things in game an only rely on wikis then yes people are going to call you an idiot. After all it doesn't take hopefully too long to know not to be facing a cocatrice or a lizy when they're about to petrify you.

As for soul plates the cameras in game are like the ones that were first made in RL. They used to use plates that would help copy the image the camera was aimed at. Some people didn't like cameras and felt they would steal your soul.