February 2020 FINAL FANTASY XI Digest

[Sirmarki]

How do you address #1? How do you even consider that a core game balance issue? People are free to start parties or join parties whenever they want. If people are buying wins, it means theres a demand for purchasing content. It doesn't matter if they are forced to enter, people still sell wins that way too (Dynamis, Master trials.) It's sad but its what happens when we have an overabundance of gil via people selling and creating it from thin air with GAIN EXP sparks.

Because it is breaking game balance. I left my character logged in for 15 hours yesterday, just in town, in yell. 95% if the yells were mercs and a handful were people getting people together for content.
Of course some people are going to 'buy wins' if the option is there, it is a tempting and easy option - It has now been accepted as the new norm to just 'use a merc'.

If you really think the future of this game is going to be all about people entering a party and lotting and then returning to town to just stand there (without even participating in the battle) JUST to have that piece of equipment. Then it won't have a future, especially with new faces, because if anything, if that is the way the game is going, it is becoming increasingly boring.

Bottom line:
It is all well and good about talking and balance when it comes to Beastmaster/other and timers/distance.

Yet, battles (a pretty big part of the game) are being manipulated to the core.

- Getting equipment from a battle you never even fought in.
- Getting gear from a battle that you don't even qualify to enter (not having to spend merits)
- Standing there getting job points because someone is running a bot for hours on end getting them for you.

I mean... Seriously, come on.....

[Nyarlko]

I would genuinely like to know what criteria and metrics the dev team is using to define "Game Balance" at this point. Please consider addressing this at length to explain to all of us players how and why you are making the decisions you are making regarding job adjustments, so that we can lower our expectations accordingly. I say "lower" because many of us players are hoping for more, and more drastic, improvements to our favorite jobs than what you would likely consider feasible, so I believe that it would be beneficial to the community to have a clear definition of whatever limitations, definitions and benchmarks are in place in the current design process.

[Nyarlko]

Due to the base parameter values of pets and production cost required, we currently aren’t considering raising all pets to Lv119. However, now that the support effects affect the master, if there are any specific pets you would like to see raised to Lv119, please let us know. Additionally, please also let us know if there are any pets that are already Lv119, but you’d like to have support abilities added to them as well.

In the spirit of your request for requests for specific jug pets to get increased to ilvl119 and/or gain support abilities:

Please increase the natural level caps of the following jugs to ilvl119.
Reductions in synthesis material costs would be appreciated as well if possible.. particularly the recipes that require Philosopher's Stones.:

• Cactuar - Amigo Sabotender : Only jug with Fragmentation skillchain property. Add Photosynthesis if possible (shareable).
• Snow Rarab - Lucky Lulush : Only jug with Ice damage.
• Lynx - Bloodclaw Shasra : Only jug with Lightning damage.
• Hippogryph - Faithful Falcorr : Fantod (shareable).
• Adamantoise - Crude Raphie : Harden Shell was included in the initial implementation as a shareable buff but the only Adamantoise jug is not ilvl?
• Leech - Fatso Fargann : Please add Regeneration if possible (shareable). This is one of my personal favorite pets even though he needs the ilvl upgrade badly.

-----------------------------------

For existing ilvl jug pets:

• Chapuli - Missing Nature's Meditation. (shareable)
• Rarab - Droopy Dortwin : Stat differences are more than enough of a difference between NQ/HQ jugs. NQ should have a natural cap of 119 as well to reduce total dependence upon a 20min JA.
• Mandragora - Sharpwit Hermes : Missing Photosynthesis (Shareable). Phaeosynthesis would probably be too much to ask for, but would be something exciting (Shareable.) Also missing Dream Flower. Please add it like the low level jugs have it. Crowd control can qualify as support, no? >_>
• Toad - Brave Hero Glenn : New idea - Give Subtle Blow +50%~75% and flip the current atk-30%/def-30% penalties into +30% bonuses. This would give an option for meleeing masters who want a pet but not use Ready. Would at least make it more than a pure joke pet.

[Typral]

Okay, cool feelings? How exactly do you combat it? This game is entering its retired mode. There is barely fresh blood coming into the game so I don't see what you plan to suggest to curb that type of behavior. Are you suggesting SE ban people who attempt to sell content?

[Sirmarki]

Okay, cool feelings? How exactly do you combat it? This game is entering its retired mode. There is barely fresh blood coming into the game so I don't see what you plan to suggest to curb that type of behavior. Are you suggesting SE ban people who attempt to sell content?

You think new people are going to stick around when only around 5% of yell is actually people DOING content?
How long are they going to stick around knowing that the only apparent route these days is to not do anything, pay gil for gear and then go back and look pretty in town.

No, banning is way over the top. Redesign the treasure pool so that people can't just join in it and lot. That way people will have to (god forbid) play the game (you know, like when this game was huge and people got stuff done without the level of merc that exists today).

It's an MMO, it is meant for people to get together, to find and meet new challenges.
Otherwise you might as well have every single item/equipment/weapon sold by NPC's, because whats the difference (NPC vs Merc)?

[Spaitin]

Your solution of redesigning the treasurepool so that you can't just join and get the item wouldnt do much to stop mercing. People would just join before the fight similar to that of helm clears. It would simply make mercing more annoying.

IMO that is a poorly thought out solution. Mercing is fine, without it new players would give up. Which is the reason it is so common. We get rid of mercing and honestly we lose like 60% of the player base. Sadly, mercs are a big part of the reason the game is still going.

Idk if you played back in the day. But mercing was EXTREMELY rampant in the 75 days (i know, i used to do it a LOT).

[Sirmarki]

Idk if you played back in the day. But mercing was EXTREMELY rampant in the 75 days (i know, i used to do it a LOT).

Maybe on Asura. I never heard of it on Fenrir, it was only when I joined Asura that I saw it.

People would just join before the fight similar to that of helm clears. It would simply make mercing more annoying.

IMO that is a poorly thought out solution. Mercing is fine, without it new players would give up. Which is the reason it is so common. We get rid of mercing and honestly we lose like 60% of the player base. Sadly, mercs are a big part of the reason the game is still going. .

They can't just join a fight if they don't have merits to do so..

If new players give up because they can't get gear through fighting battles, then what is the whole point of the game? People give up when they see unlimited merc yells in /yell and because everyone has got stuff from mercs, they dont wish to do the battles anymore, and so the chances are reasons for doing content are virtually nil. They get bored, they quit.

[Spaitin]

Maybe on Asura. I never heard of it on Fenrir, it was only when I joined Asura that I saw it.



They can't just join a fight if they don't have merits to do so..

You want to make merits a prereq for all fights? for non merit fights they just join before. Making merits a requirement just makes EXP/CP mercs even more prevalent. WOuld make even more mercing.

[Nyarlko]

Better solution for the merc'ing+newbies issue: Become part of the solution.

Pick up those random shouters looking for lower tier content and help them complete it free of charge. Be like me and build a linkshell focused on helping new/returning folk learn about the game and get up to speed to be able to handle the content themselves that others are selling.

Doing content in-house rather than with randoms that you don't know tends to be a more enjoyable experience at the very least.

Merc'ing of highend content really does not have anything to do with anyone who would qualify as a "new player". The biggest stumbling block when starting out is learning 18 years worth of content. You are correct that this is an MMO and we should ideally do things by doing them rather than buying them. Instead of complaining about something that has been officially given the green light (declared not-against TOS) being a problem for new players, help those new players yourself and maybe they'll stick around long enough to become veterans.

[TullemoreAsuraFFXI]

Or you implement this :

Placed into June Digest reply, but relates to items, crafting, economy + econ health
This is a concern for the longevity of FFXI, the current state of our community and the overall health of each server.

At this point i really really really believe that FFXI is unworthy of it's ignorant peer to peer transaction interfaces. Unregulated interface design has lead to a manipulated and sometimes corrupt environment. All items in game categorized as equipment should be account-mail only (bound to account). This specifically concerns only the mail system, equipment will still have a place in the economy -> Read Below. Increase mail outslot/inslot to 32+. Trade boxes have the option for a gil trade completely removed. Crafting skill level cap per character reworked to allow all crafts to achieve maximum skill level.

"EX" itemization tag is completely removed from game with the exception of reforged armors, augmented equipment or equipment with Rank point upgrades. All items are given a NPC mediatory vendor listing in a new player supplied warehousing/pawnshop style environment including items that have "EX" tag removed. Auction house is removed and replaced with this new interface. SE dev team + director + producer select a base exchangeable gil rate for said items in the new warehousing system. Dev team + director + producer can elect to set a minimum and maximum value for every listing. Bazaar is linked to new warehousing system, prices of items placed into bazaar are set automatically by the current listing price through the new item commerce system. Item listings are subject to the supply and demand through easily constructed price formulas by which small percentages of value are subtracted or added based on stock levels and availability of items within each listing. Prices never exceed the maximum price for items that existing NPC vendors sell at: this includes all items that are currently sold by every NPC vendor. When selling to NPC vendors players are paid a suggested amount of 75%-90% of the item's current listing price. Listing prices adjust automatically based upon inventory levels. Sold items are automatically accounted for and added to the warehousing inventory. Inventory levels begin at and can become zero.

All equipment purchased with "Sparks" will receive a random stat augment applicable to the jobs that access user prerequisite. Example: Cloth armor sold from Sparks vendor with job listings for BLM/WHM/RDM/SCH/GEO/SMN could receive an augment of +INT or +MND based upon the level range bracket it's sold through.
New NPCs created that will remove any augment for the cost of X 100 the item's minimum equipment level. One placed in each city where sparks vendors are currently located.