Returning player, Looking for semi active server

[Zenion]

So, exp parties just aren't really a thing any more, trusts made them pretty much irrelevant; why sit around for three hours with your party flag up when you can just pull half a party out of your butt and get to level grinding, right?

The fastest way to get levels is basically "get to Escha - Zi'tah." You access it from a warp thing in Qufim, a bit south of Delkfutt's Tower. Get to like level 15 so prism powder and silent oil won't wear off right away, grab a couple of those, then go through the steps with Record of Eminence to unlock Unity Concord, that gives you access to a teleportation service, one of the places it can take you is Qufim, then you just need to cross the zone. There's a homepoint between Delkfutt's Tower and the warp to Escha Zi'tah, and a survival guide at the tower entrance, so you only need to make the run the hard way once.

Once you're inside Escha Zi'tah, basically monsters are laid out in clusters, as you move north and easy from the entrance the monsters get higher-level, so just keep walking until you find something that you can handle and... repeat until level 99 (with pauses for limit breaks.)

That's one of the big disconnects between "old" FFXI and "modern" FFXI - getting to max level isn't the game like it used to be; now, life begins at level 99, and getting there is just a hassle along the way.

[Mareppa]

That's disappointing. I just tried FFXIV and left it almost immediately when I realized people don't party. Your first sentence isn't really true for me. I like the social connection. Ya, it was a pain, but that's one of the things that makes it worthwhile in the end. Clicking through a bunch of quests (like in FFXIV) or getting to lvl99 by myself is kinda boring. Although I'm willing to hear stories that's it's still worth it in the end - I have no idea what "life at 99" is like.

[Mareppa]

I think also finding a role within a party of actual people is what makes me feel the most important, not getting to top level or having the top gear. I'm not in it for the dings, I'm in it for the strategic wins.

This is perhaps because I've been playing a MOBA for several years. Partying is the only form of the game, and having a role within the party and doing your job effectively is what gets you the W.

I guess I'll have to keep on the lookout for another MMORPG that does partying like XI used to.

[Zenion]

I think also finding a role within a party of actual people is what makes me feel the most important, not getting to top level or having the top gear. I'm not in it for the dings, I'm in it for the strategic wins.

This is perhaps because I've been playing a MOBA for several years. Partying is the only form of the game, and having a role within the party and doing your job effectively is what gets you the W.

I guess I'll have to keep on the lookout for another MMORPG that does partying like XI used to.

That's basically what endgame content is, though. Odyssey and Sortie are both built around a party of six, so everyone needs to bring their role and work as a team. Ambuscade is similar, but with a lower gear floor (it's the "entry-level" post-99 content) and lower stakes since they took experience loss out of it, allowing more freedom to develop tactics rather than having to go with the one on-meta setup known to work because you can't afford a failure.

There's also the master level grind, though that tends to favor workhorse jobs that can dish big damage and self-skillchain, over coordinating a whole party. You don't get there until you finish the second big experience grind (job points) though.

Parties are still a thing, just... not for experience points. You can literally get from level 1 to level 99 in a day if you can stomach doing all the limit breaks that fast, and can get a high-level friend to help, so... really, levels 1 through 98 now are to all jobs what levels 1 through 64 used to be to summoners: you're not really playing what the job's going to be when it grows up, you're just getting by and putting in the time to get there.

[Mareppa]

On the subject of figuring out whether I want to spend the money on this game again, is there a way I can learn more about Ambuscade, Odyssey, and Sortie (other than reading the wiki). Any let's plays? reviews you can point me to? Are they fun? Or people do them because they get something out of it, like equipment or something, like a quest attempting to reach the ultimate god state.

I appreciate the info so far. I'm intrigued. I tried out trust on my character for the first time and it was fun. But no way in hell am I going to get to 99 in 1 day. I don't have a power level, and I still need to do all the quests, I don't even have a subjob yet. No gear, etc.

A thought about trust (not that it matters now since this system has been in place for how-many-years): if it was restricted to two alter egos, then you could solo in groups of three and still get your basic tank, healer, DD, and if you wanted a full party, you'd have to at least invite 4 people. But that's just me thinking of alternatives as I do.