Returning Lost Player

So basically, I started playing on the first day of early release until about the beginning of November. In that time I played very casually and only reached level 40 on a Dragoon.

I HATE HATE HATED FATE grinding with a burning passion and did not partake in it for even a second, so after hearing about the changes made to the game since I've been gone I was happy to hear that FATE grinding isn't really required for fast leveling anymore.

My main issue here is that I don't really know where to start... I'm about half way to 41 with all my story quests (so far) completed and I want to know what the best way to level would be for me now.

Are dungeons good exp now that I should have the duty finder constantly trying to pair me up while I quest? Or are dungeons still a waste of time and I'm better off just doing quests?

Welcome back!

The 2.1 patch in December changed a few things, one of which is dungeon exp has been greatly increased - so much so that FATE grinding parties are little done now. Plus there is something called 'Duty Roulette' added in which the Duty Finder randomly selects a dungeon for you, and completing it will give you bonus exp and gil on top of the regular exp you get (and if you happen to be a 'needed' role, usually a tank, you get even more exp on top of that).

Plus at level 43 you can also start doing the new 'daily beastmen quests', which are basically like a normal sidequest, but repeatable (up to three a day) - at the moment you can do them for the Sylphs in Little Solace, and the new friendly amalj'aa faction The Brotherhood of Ash. These not only give exp and gil but also tomes of philosophy too, and they are easy enough to solo. The npcs which give these quests have a special quest marker which looks like a recycling symbol on the map (they can be found in Little Solace in the East Shroud, and the new 'Altar of Ash' near the Temple of Qarn in Southern Thanalan). Levequests are another option, as like dungeons they too have had a major revamp in that the amount of exp you get from completing a battlecraft leve is much higher than it was previously.

And yes, your main story quests are still well worth doing as well - not to mention with patch 2.1 the storyline has actually been extended past the previous 'end' at level 50 which involves new Primal fights and the new Crystal Tower raid, but you need to be level 50 to do that.

In any event, there's a lot more to do now and more ways to level so there is a lot more variety in gameplay now than there was at launch.

Awesome! Didn't expect such a detailed response but you answered all of my questions perfectly, thank you!

As for Beastman dailies, the Sylph quests in East Shroud actually start at 42, while Amal'jaa dailies start at 43 in Southern Thanalan.

And you can do 6 per day, not 3. Just 3 per beast tribe at first (still 6 if you do both), but when you rank up in the beast quests you can undertake 6 from one tribe.

Right. You're limited to three from each rank, and six total combined per day. Once you open more ranks, you can mix it up some.

In the beginning, since you're rank 1, you can only do three in each, so there's your six per day. But once you unlock rank 2 in each you get to choose. You can do three rank 1 and three rank 2 in one tribe. You can do three rank 2 from each tribe. You can do two rank 2 and one rank 1 from one tribe and three rank 2 from the other tribe. Once you unlock higher ranks you can mix it up. But the limits are always a total of 6 per day to work with, and three from each rank.

I mention mixing it up because, for me, there are a few that are just pain in the asses. You randomly get three each day that are offered for each rank. After you accept one you get offered another, until you accept all three. And there are a few that are just a pain and not worth the effort. Sometimes I'll accept one just to get the next offering, and then abandon the previous one and accept one from another rank. It's not like abandoning a leve where you lose it. You get the daily back to use somewhere else.

DFR gives about 120-150K exp for dungeon completion plus 3k+ exp per mob kill, so there is no point to grind fates anymore, BUT...that is if you can get in dungeon as a dps.