When to Join JC or LS

Greetings All!

I am a new player that is upgrading my account from trial to heavensward. After a few hours leveling to 10, I decided I was ready to pay for this game. I had some questions about the guild system.

How quickly should I join an FC or LS?

Is a LS just a group of people in a group channel?

I do not intend to rush to endgame content, but rather quest and level at a leisurely pace. I am enjoying the questing and combat so far.

My previous MMO experience was a year of Tera and 8 years of WoW. I still actively raid in WoW 3-4 nights a week for now, but my sub is set to cancel in November because I am tired of the game outside of raiding.

Welcome to Eorzea Brytallica! :D

Really, it's entirely up to you when you want to join a ls and FC - although particularly joining a FC can open up new possibilities in that you can use the company chest to store items and gil (depending on what the FC's leader allows), make use of company actions which are buffs that improve gameplay (like an exp bonus, reduced teleportation fees etc), and of course, the social aspect of being in a close knit group which can provide you with support and advice on proceeding through the game (and helping you out in dungeons and the like).

A ls is indeed just a chat channel, however, because you can be a member of multiple linkshells at once where as you're limited to membership in only one FC at a time, a lot of players use lses as informal groups.

Taking your time to experience the game is a very good thing to do as there is just so much to do in the game even before reaching endgame content and the Heavensward expansion. The journey is equally as important as the destination.

But basically, and this is the fundamental rule: have fun! :D

Don't feel pressured to join an FC you're not comfortable with. Join one when you feel comfortable to.

That said, aside from beneficial things having an FC gets you access to (Such as the buffs), just being around a lot more people is a great help. Being able to chat with people, ask for people to come run content with you, etc; it's a huge relaxer and adds a lot to the game, I think. FCs aren't solely endgame oriented - although there are inevitably some out there that are specific to that. A lot are plenty casual, with lots of members levelling or helping each other through content or even just being social and hanging out.