Letter from the Producer LIVE Part XXXIX Digest (11/1/2017)

We are pleased to present the full digest of the Letter from the Producer LIVE Part XXXIX!
If you missed the live stream, or if you just want to watch it again (and again), check it out below!

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http://sqex.to/EWr

*Don’t forget to select the 720p option to watch the video in HD!

Patch 4.1 Special Part II
0:04:50
We showed off some of the content arriving in Patch 4.1 along with some gameplay footage.

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Due to the release of Shirogane housing plots, even in the case of an early maintenance completion, the Worlds will not be back online earlier than scheduled.

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◆The Lost Canals of Uznair Updates
0:09:34
The deeper floors being added in this update will only be accessible through the new maps obtainable from treasure chests in the Lost Canals of Uznair.

The location indicated by these maps will be somewhere underwater. Using the “Dig” action will not yield a treasure chest, but is instead guaranteed to spawn a portal. Deeper floors will always have three doors, and have an even greater chance of granting rewards.

New monsters with traps have been added along with unique mechanics, such as increased rewards when a monster is defeated a specific way. One example is “Abharamu's Lure,” which has a chance to trigger when opening a treasure chest. Abharamu's Lure presents players with the opportunity to greatly increase their rewards. Rewards can be increased up to five levels, but failure will reset rewards to zero. If this trap were to be triggered on the deepest floor and the players succeeded five consecutive times, each party member could receive several million gil.

Additionally, Grade VI Materia will drop quite often. However, the monsters are somewhat powerful, so we recommend going in with a full party.

◆Custom Deliveries
0:13:51
M’naago will be added as a custom delivery client NPC. Contributing to her cause shows you a glimpse of M’naago’s story, so please take a look. We also have another custom delivery planned for Patch 4.2, which will follow the story of a “fashion leader.”

◆Adventurer Squadron: Command Missions
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0:15:21
We are introducing “Command Missions,” which allows you to enter dungeons with your squadron members. Glamour will also be available for squadron members.

Command missions will be available starting at Squadron Rank 2. Dungeons can be entered with the standard light party composition of 1 Tank, 1 Healer, and 2 DPS, which includes the player themselves. Additionally, levels will be synced upon entering the dungeon. The following five dungeons will be available in Patch 4.1:

• Halatali
• The Thousand Maws of Toto-Rak
• Brayflox’s Longstop
• The Stone Vigil
• The Wanderer’s Palace

With the addition of command missions, “Battle Tactics” can be assigned to each squadron members from their enlistment papers.

Battle tactics allow you to set the AI behavior for each squadron members during missions. You can select from Independent, Offensive, Defensive, and Balanced battle tactics. Initially, only the Independent battle tactic is available, but upon completing dungeons, squadron members may learn new tactics. Each tactic also accumulates their own experience levels, which may increase upon completion; however, the battle tactics learned and raised are random. As a side note, unit members are not as powerful as the Warrior of Light, so please try working around them as you challenge dungeons with them.

0:21:07
(During the stream, we introduced features while in a dungeon.)
In the battle UI and General Actions commands, there is an “Orders” category allowing you to give various Order actions such as to Engage or Disengage. The squadron members’ Limit Break is also available in the same menu.

If the player’s own level is similar to that of the dungeon, the player can also use the squadron missions as a means to level up. More dungeons are being considered and are planned for future implementation.

However, some dungeons such as The Lost City of Amdapor include mechanics that disable player actions. It would be difficult for squadron members to solve these mechanics, so such dungeons are currently not planned for implementation.

Upon ordering the team to engage, squadron members will wait for the tank to attack first. However, they are unable to do complex actions a player might do, such as specifically targeting the enemy with low HP. We hope that you would enjoy dungeons with your squadron in a way similar to doing content with a friend who is new to MMORPGs. We are looking to improve the squadron members’ AI, so please try it out and let us know how what you think.

Unlike squadron missions, command missions have no time restrictions and are available as long as you have sufficient Grand Company Seals. On the other hand, they are not as efficient for gaining squadron experience, so please try using squadron missions and command missions together when leveling up members.

Rewards for completing dungeons with your squadron include emotes of squadron training animations, among other things.

◆Job Adjustments
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0:34:55
Adjustments will be made to warrior, dragoon, ninja, machinist, summoner, scholar actions, as well as the effect of a few caster/healer role actions.

Please see the 4.1 Patch Notes for specific details.

Here we will be explaining the reasoning for certain adjustments.

«Warrior»
Warrior’s party utility will be increased by changing the effect of Shake It Off and adjusting its party defending capabilities to be more in balance with that of paladin and dark knight.

«Dragoon»
At first glance, it may seem as though many changes are being made to dragoon. This was because the damage increase effect of Heavy Thrust was lowered and instead added to the potency of other actions.

Because dragoon’s combo rotations are long, failing to reapply Heavy Thrust resulted in a severe DPS loss. In order to alleviate this, the effect of the buff was lowered and the potency of other weapon skills were increased.

We have also adjusted the maximum number of gaze of the first brood units from four to three, in order to make it easier to return to maximum damage output in situations, such as when the target disappears during a phase change.

«Ninja»
We fixed the issue where Doton was receiving the effect of the ability Dripping Blades II. In order to allow ninjas to maintain the same amount of DPS, we increased the potency of Doton itself.

The execution speed of Shukuchi was adjusted to be similar to that of monk’s Shoulder Tackle.

«Machinist»
Minor adjustments were made to both turrets’ effect, which increases the target's damage taken.
We believe that players are beginning to understand that “machinists are a powerful job if you’re able to master it.”

«Summoner/Scholar (Arcanist)»
Recovery from losing a pet is now considerably quicker.
“Sustain” was widely requested to be brought back, and has been re-implemented.

«Summoner»
We made adjustments to summoners, such as changing the effect of Tri-Bind and Ruin III while under the effect of Dreadwyrm Trance, and adjustments to Devotion were adjusted as well, so that the playstyle will feel different. We received a large number of comments regarding changing the size of Demi-Bahamut. In the end we have decided to add an option for all players so that they can change the size displayed on their screen, as we felt that players who preferred their Demi-Bahamut to be large would feel pressured to keep their summon smaller as to not inconvenience other players.

«Scholar»
Along with reducing the MP cost of each shield-granting action, we also increased the shield potency of Succor.

«Role Action: Surecast»
In order to increase the usability of this action during mechanics, we changed the effect of Surecast.


We will continue to make further adjustments based on player feedback and play data we collect.

◆The Minstrel's Ballad: Shinryu's Domain
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0:47:28.

(During the stream we presented this alongside gameplay.)

As we mentioned in the previous Letter from the Producer LIVE, many of the mechanics planned for the Extreme version of the fight ended up being used in the normal version. As a result we have added plenty of new mechanics for this extreme challenge.

The difficulty, compared to The Pool Of Tribute (Extreme) and Emanation (Extreme), is quite high. We tuned the fight to be somewhere between Deltascape V2.0 (Savage) and Deltascape V3.0 (Savage) in difficulty. However, while there are points in V2.0 where failure would guarantee a wipe, in Shinryu’s Domain there are areas that can be recovered by individual performance, so the level of difficulty may be felt differently from player to player.

We have also included other features, such as a unique “heal check” mechanic and a dynamic display in the latter portion of the fight, so we hope that you will enjoy the battle.

◆New Bard Action “Performance”
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0:54:40

(During the stream we presented this alongside gameplay.)

Although initially planned to be released in Patch 4.1, in order to address lag during performances we have delayed implementation until Patch 4.15.
Because the notes go through the server before reaching other players, even if you are performing correctly, depending on the latency of the listening players, a certain amount of lag will occur. Although the lag cannot be fully circumvented, we have discovered that we can alleviate the issue by adjusting it so a certain amount of packets are sent together. As a result, although the action is complete, we have delayed its release to make adjustments to how packets are sent.

In Patch 4.15, 3 octaves (including semitones) will be playable on the harp during Performance. Similar to the gradual addition of features to group pose, we would like to continue to add new features to Perform, such as new notes and animations.

However, please understand that due to the network latency mentioned above, currently it is very difficult to perform in unison with other players. If in the future we are able to create a mode where a party’s note packets are sent all together, it may be possible to harmonize with party members.

We would like to see players practice to perform songs, rather than enabling all players to perform the same song the same way, so we have not made performances compatible with macros. Even if your tune might be a little bit rough, there is a certain beauty to manually playing your own unique melody.

◆HUD Update
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1:06:07

(During we showed some live footage of the various new HUD changes.)

There will be a large update to the enhancement and enfeeblement displays. Up until now, the settings were available under Character Configuration, but from now on they will be adjustable though “HUD Layout” → “Individual HUD Settings”.

From there you will be able to separate the displays for enhancements/enfeeblements/others (such as meals). Each HUD can be personalized further, such as prioritizing enhancements you applied yourself, or disabling them so that the window will not be focused on while utilizing a gamepad.

Additionally, target information such as HP/cast bar/enhancements and enfeeblements can now be displayed separately.

Simplified versions of job gauges will also be added in Patch 4.1. Many requests were made to have the duration of certain Machinist and Bard buffs displayed; these will also be supported.

Other UI-related updates, such as 200% window sizes for high resolution monitors, will also be coming with the patch.

◆Relocation System
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1:33:35

(During the stream we showed some live footage.)

With the release of Shirogane housing plots, the relocation system will be implemented. We have kept you all waiting, but we believe it is now a simple and easy-to-use system; for details, please see the 4.1 Patch Notes.

We will also be introducing a storeroom for all estate types, including apartments and private chambers.
The storeroom is an inventory space for furnishings. Even if you are not relocating your housing, you can store your housing items in them, and even place furnishings directly from the storeroom. With the exception of a few items, even furnishings that are destroyed upon removal can be stored, so please try utilizing the storeroom for occasions such as seasonal remodeling.

In the stream we also went over the swimming areas in each residential district, so please take a look at them in the video.

◆New PvP Content “Rival Wings”
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1:57:58

Up to 48 players will be grouped into 2 teams to fight in this new large scale PvP content.
We are aiming for release in Patch 4.15. During this time we mainly explained the rules of the game mode.

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Skillful use of mechanical weaponry will be vital in attacking the core.

In order to mount the “mechanical weaponry”, players will need to gather energy by picking up the ceruleum dispersed throughout the field. The weaponry will be mountable upon consuming this energy, which is accumulated per light party.

By the way, the weaponry are based off of the various bosses of Alexander, and will play their themes when mounted.

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Cruise Chaser is a unit that is capable of dealing large amounts of damage to enemy players and weaponry. However, its defenses are quite low, so careful maneuvering is required. Energy is consumed every time it attacks, but if party members pick up ceruleum, you can recover energy even while mounted.

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Oppressor specializes in destroying objects, such as towers and cores. In exchange, it deals little damage to players. It also moves very slowly, so good positioning and support from party members is important when launching an assault. Whether or not you can skillfully use the Oppressor will be a large factor in winning a match.

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Brute Justice is a final resort that is only mountable when your towers are destroyed. It is incredibly powerful against both players and objects, and has the power to overturn a match.

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They will move about on their own, and will attack any enemies they come across. Protecting them will be an important strategy.

PvP content now consists of the highly competitive The Feast, three major factions battling each other in Frontline, and two teams fighting in the new Rival Wings, and the three game modes feel like we’ve provided a good amount of variation in playstyles. Regarding Frontline, we are planning to add a weekly change in ruleset sometime during or after Patch 4.2.

◆The Unending Coil of Bahamut (Ultimate)
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2:08:18

(During the stream we showed off some live footage.)

The item levels and substats of the weapon rewards will be the same as the Genji weapons from Deltascape V4.0 (Savage); however they will have one additional materia slot, for a total of three material slots per weapon. We debated adding another 5 item levels over the Genji weapons, but in the end we decided against it. We’re hoping to hear feedback such as, “This is just right,” or “I’d like it to be slightly more powerful,” from players who obtain the weapons.

If you are unable to smoothly clear the Twintania phase (shown in the gameplay footage), an extremely harsh fight awaits from there on out, so please give it your all with food and potions.

The Unending Coil of Bahamut (Ultimate) will only be available to players who have cleared Deltascape V4.0 (Savage). The minimum item level is set to 340, but as you can only enter with a party of 8, you will be able participate even if your item level is below 340.

In the event that you are able to clear the fight, all party members will receive a token, which will be exchangeable for a weapon for a job of their choice. One token will be obtainable once per week. It will not drop from a treasure chest, so even if there is someone in your party who has already cleared for the week, your token will be obtainable.

Unlike Deltascape’s Neo Exdeath, there will not be an intermission where wiping will result in resetting the fight from a midway point, so please take your time to slowly learn the fight. This is only the first of the high difficulty “Ultimate” series, so we await your feedback, including that of the difficulty itself. We are scheduling this for release in Patch 4.11.

◆Return to Ivalice
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2:18:49

(During the stream we showed off some live footage.)

This new raid was developed with help from guest creators Yasumi Matsuno who wrote the scenario, and Keita Amemiya who designed the boss monsters.

We’d like for you to experience the fun firsthand, so we will not be going into the details. We were very particular about the visuals, such as the color of the sky and the atmosphere of the dungeon. We will also be introducing a number of new mechanics in the fights. Please enjoy this content alongside Matsuno’s storyline.

Many of FFXIV’s development team members have either contributed to or have memories of Matsuno’s work, and a lot of effort was put into including references for fans of Final Fantasy Tactics. Of course, it will also be an enjoyable experience for players who will be looking upon the world of Ivalice for the first time.

During the stream we showed off Keita Amemiya’s boss designs and in-game models, so please take a look at the video.

◆Other Updates
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2:32:17

«Materia Retrieval»
You will now be able to retrieve materia melded into equipment, in order from the last materia melded. Anyone will be able to retrieve materia as long as the piece of equipment is 100% spiritbonded. However, the success rate will vary depending on the grade of the materia being retrieved. We included this feature in order to encourage players to meld materia whenever they can.

«Kojin Beast Tribe Quests»
The quests will be available after unlocking diving at level 63.
Like the Vanu Vanu beast tribe quests, the level adjustment system will allow you to use the quests to level up battle classes.

«Sidequests: Hildibrand»
This will be an introductory of what’s to come, so please enjoy and look forward to the story ahead.

«Custom Deliveries»
M’Naago will be added in Patch 4.1, and the reset day will be moved from Thursday to Tuesday. With this change, all content with weekly limitations will be resetting on Tuesday.

«Patch 4.2 Onward»
For future updates, we would like to add features such as joining PvP with cross-world parties, and a replay function that would record the movement of every party member in an instance for later viewing.

In Patch 4.1 we added cross-world Tells, but we are also considering cross-world linkshells alongside PvP parties.

Regarding inventory expansion, adding more inventory space using past methods is difficult, so we are looking to expand through other means.

As for Eureka (name pending), balancing is taking quite some time, so we are aiming for release during or after Patch 4.2. Instead of focusing on upgrading weapons, we are planning for a fun new activity of strengthening the player character themselves. Please stay tuned for more details.