Guides and FAQs for New Players: Do they Exist?

Hello!

I am brand new to FFXIV, having just joined up last week. I played in the Beta, but decided not to purchase at that time. Anyways, I had been thinking about coming back to give it a try for a while, as my raid group (WoW) has been getting the 'end of expansion jitters' and we really only log on to kill Deathwing each week. Needless to say, only 2 hours of gaming a week is not going to cut it, hence the purchase.

Anyway, I've been enjoying myself quite a bit, but I've been having the hardest time finding reliable, current information about the game. Google searches more often than not return information from 2010 that just is not relevant anymore, and I have so many questions about the game that spending 20+ minutes tracking down the answer to one little thing seriously cuts into my playtime (and more importantly my desire to play at all honestly).

I guess my question for you all is, is this information out there in a place I am not looking, or does it simply just not exist in one place? So far I have had the most luck tracking down single questions by google searching them and then placing emphasis on results that lead me here or to zam, but I haven't found anything close to a "hello newbies, this is what you want to know" type of guide for this game (that is current anyway). I hate to bug people on these forums / zam every time I have a question and... I have a LOT of questions. I'm not even really digging into the deep stuff here like arguing the merits of one item over another... Here are some things I have tried to search for and had some to no success researching.

Where should I level?
Related to above: Is there some sort of map that shows mob clusters?
What do I need to make sure I do in order to Join a Grand Company?
What do I need to make sure I do... period?
When should I try to get my chocobo / run dungeons / group up?
Is there a list of dungeons / places people often group?
What is expected of me in a group?
What items should I hang on to / what items should I sell?
When to use / not use Anima?
Are battle regimens still in the game?

...and a bunch more that I have either forgotten or not thought up yet. =D

Now I'm not expecting anybody to answer these really, just point me in the right direction so that I can find the answers myself is all. If anyone can lend a hand to a newb, it would be much appreciated.

Thanks all!

~Chook

P.S. I did find Arcell Garza's guides for the classes on gamefaqs, and they are pretty recent, some even updated in 2012. Thanks for that Arcell!

I've really just skimmed this a bit -- willing to read into it more if I'm missing the point but allow me give you a few sources..

http://ffxiv.gamerescape.com/

-- Run by a guildie of mine, it's pretty much a wikipedia on the game, kept up to date by players that are currently playing in the game.

http://mozk-tabetai.com/

-- Probably the best item database I've ever used for a game, really simple to use.

http://xivpads.com/

-- another website run by a guildie, it's sort of an advanced version of the history on lodestone, I know my LS uses it to track player progression, there's also linkshell registration , it's pretty sweet and I use it a lot to help set personal goals.

http://mooglebox.com/includes/

-- this is normally used for crafting recipes, the owner , I think, posts on the forums quite a bit.. :O I haven't had a chance to use it yet, but hear nothing but good things about it.

http://www.ffxivpro.com/

-- another LS ranking site, sort of. This site resembled FFXIAH from FFXI, in fact I believe it's made by the same person if you're familiar.

http://ffxiv.yg.com/

-- YG - an item database, shows were items are dropped from mobs, though I think this is sort of outdated, not sure.

http://www.disciplesoftheland.com/

-- Best site for finding gathering nodes/ material locations on the net I believe.

http://www.daevaofwar.net/

-- The forum for my linkshell, pretty notorious for beating content quickly, upon defeating some of the bigger NM's we usually post how-to videos.


Hope this helped, sort of dumping my resources here.

-- Edit --

Recently there were really thorough guides posted here on the forums for WHM and GSM, should try to find them, I really enjoyed them.


Where should I level?

Depends on your level.. There are TONs of places.

Related to above: Is there some sort of map that shows mob clusters?

-- On the mini map it shows you were there are groups of mobs, however most places are found by adventurers.

What do I need to make sure I do in order to Join a Grand Company?

The quest line in the city you wish to join.. To find it, you have to go to the same zone line as the market wards and enter the Adder's Nest, Flame , or Maelstorm place.. I forget the names.

What do I need to make sure I do... period?

Find a good group of friends and ultimately have fun.

When should I try to get my chocobo / run dungeons / group up?

Chocobo is obtained through a quest line that you have to be at least level 30 to start. As far as dungeons and groups go , you can either shout in uldah (unfortunately), or use the search function, something I highly suggest. Also, when you hit 30 you can get a free mount at the moment , I believe the NPC is south of Bloodshore.

Is there a list of dungeons / places people often group?

Ul'dah is the answer to your second question unfortunately, I wish they wouldn't though DX

What is expected of me in a group?

Play your job correctly.

What items should I hang on to / what items should I sell?

Things that you generally need, or can be used to make money are worth hanging onto. Personally I am a hoarder because I fear price spikes might happen and I'll cry if I don't have the high dollar item :[

When to use / not use Anima?

Anima is precious, try not to use it unless it's REALLY far and you are on a tight schedule.

Are battle regimens still in the game?

nope, coming back eventually though.

Wow, thanks a bunch Rath! Some of these sites already are leading me to answers I couldn't find before. Awesome! And as for the question: "what is expected of me in a group?", i guess what I meant was, in 11 sometimes people expected you to have food buffs / certain spells / play for a certain amount of time etc. I would hope playing your job correctly goes without saying =D

Thanks again!

Well you would be surprised with the power-level spree they had awhile back, even now it's really easy. And in FFXIV, food and what not is only really required in raids, but most groups don't use it regardless, if you are good you tend to use food, if everyone uses it, it helps a ton. And as far as spells go, if you get every job to 36 you should be ok, that sounds tough but when you get a group it's stupid easy..

-Sentinel (GLD)
-Second Wind (MNK)
-Chameleon (ARC)
-Keen Flurry (LNC)
-Blood for Blood (LNC)
-Blind Side (MNK)
-Raise (WHM)
-Rampart(GLD)
-Invigorate (LNC)
-Quelling Strike (ARC)

These are the ones I use the most.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by RathSkybreaker

the owner , I think, posts on the forums quite a bit.. :O

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Heehee.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by drchook

Related to above: Is there some sort of map that shows mob clusters?

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Yeah! mooglebox! Just click on the little mob icons to see their level range. And, it's completely current (1.21) for clusters of mobs.

Bam! I knew you lurked around here somewhere! Sorry for not knowing your name Jet T_T

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Jet

Yeah! mooglebox! Just click on the little mob icons to see their level range. And, it's completely current (1.21) for clusters of mobs.

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OMG! Mooglebox is amazing! Thank you!

Thanks for the mention, sorry some of them are a bit out of date. With the 1.18, 1.19 and 1.20 drastic changes, I've had to essentially re-write large portions of them each time. I'm working on it when I can though!

Oy, no one brought up the dang Lodestone guides yet again. It's the official site! You had to get through it to get to the forums!

Click the "Play Guides" section on the left side, there is a lot of really useful information there and it is frequently updated now. There are guides on how to join a Grand Company, Materia, Crafting, Gathering, acquiring jobs, and a bunch of other stuff. It can probably answer most newbie questions but no one looks at it =P

Spread the word so that the people that work on that thing can get the recognition they deserve.

I wouldn't be too worried about bringing food etc to a party, the game as is now, level difference really matters. Just make sure you have an up to date weapon. I've seen people in really outdated gear still putting out a ton of damage. That's not to say you just roll up to a party wearing weathered stuff, just it doesn't have as much effect at the moment for leveling. The parties in this game are faceroll due to the fact a full party is 8 people and also gives a beneficial stat boost when full... You want to get gear upgrades if you can, but I wouldn't sweat it...

Learning how to play your job after the basics is basically reading all the abilities you have and knowing what they do. Once you get combos, learn how to trigger them as some have positional requirements.

Other than that, learning how the mob linking system works would be beneficial. Also, a lot of mobs in this game have "flail" skills triggered when attacking them from behind. Don't sit behind something and attack for longer than you need to. On the other hand, a lot of mob tp moves are cone and can be avoided if you move while it is charging, at the mercy of lag, of course.