A question about joining parties and FCs

Hello, I'm new to joining FFXIV and MMOs in general. I know the Final Fantasy franchise and am just enjoying myself until I get my head around the various aspects and see how I can balance things (right now while schools are on holidays I can play for hours but once I'm backing in teaching mode I'm not sure how much time I'll be able to spend). I've had an invite to join an FC as well as one to join a party. I haven't got much of a clue and I feel rude saying no or as the time runs out because I'm busy googling what it means.

I guess my main question is: is it okay to say no? I don't want to offend anyone, and I now feel really silly writing this but I have often found it easiest to just lay it out and see what happens.

Thanks :D

To Ragnar Tigurdson on Odin,

As I can't post another new topic (due to me being so noob and low level atm) I want to put this out there.

Thanks to the above player character who tried to trade with me. I appreciate your very kind efforts. However, I was unable to complete it due to fear of doing something wrong and messing things up.

Thanks! I really appreciated your welcome!

Welcome to Eorzea! :D

To answer your question, it is entirelly fine to say no! If you do not wish to join a FC, then that is completely up to you, although being a member of one definetely has benefits (FC's have access to shared buffs that can increase things like EXP gained or reduced costs of teleportation, and they can even have their own personal housing), so they are reccomended, especially if you're after a more social aspect. But do not feel bad for not accepting an invite. It is completely up to you! :D

You're still new and the game is a learning experience - really, you never really stop learning in this game, as there is always something new to find (I've been playing FFXIV since the original 1.0 version that FFXIV ARR replaced, and there is still plenty in this game I do not yet know or are still learning!). :D

You've already taken the first step by asking here though, so you're already on your way to experiencing this amazing game! ^^

Either way, the most important thing to remember is, first and foremost, is to have fun! This game is a journey, and the destination is no more important than the journey you take to get there! So take your time, and enjoy everything that this amazing game has to offer. :D

Thanks so much!

I am really enjoying everything so far and I do intend to join an FC at some point, but trying to get my head around things :D. Thanks again, I've never gamed with this level of social interaction (outside of table-top RPGs) and so am looking forward to exploring all the game has to offer. I really appreciate your insight :D

Welcome to Eorzea!

Free Companies and parties are two different things, and you're not obligated to accept random invites to either one.

Free Companies are permanent player run communities (like guilds in any other MMO.) There are perks to joining one, including people to talk to/hang out with/do content with, some buffs, possible access to a house, etc. Most people join one eventually when they find a group they click with but it's definitely not required if you're not interested in that sort of thing.

Parties are temporary groups. Generally people party up in order to do something specific that requires multiple people. Running a dungeon, fighting a boss, looking for treasure maps, and so on. Parties usually disband after accomplishing the thing they were created for. Again, there's no need to accept random party invites from random people.

There's actually a brand new tool for finding an FC that is miles better than just randomly accepting an FC invite in-game. It literally just came into existence last week. FC's that are recruiting can post information about their FC's and there are some search capabilities that make it easier to find ones that might match your needs. Searching for new player or browsing the ones with the "Beginner & Novice Friendly" tag, for example, brings up quite a few that make mention that they're open to brand new players.

https://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/lodes...munity_finder/

Oh, and definitely don't worry about not accepting those random FC or party invites, by the way. People who send them out tend to just spam all the names they can find anyway.

Edit: Also, looks like the resident forum troll saw this thread and just created a thread titled "Is it griefing to ignore my FC invite?" Ignore that thread and poster. It's not, and they're just trolling.

Thanks so much everyone! Especially Mhaeric, I really appreciate the community finder, it looks like a great tool for when I'm ready to put myself out there.