Can I solo?

Hello!

I am totally new to Final Fantasy :), however I am not new to MMO's. I know it's an MMO, but I don't always want to group. So far a lot of my main story quests are for group dungeons only. My max level is only 20, though. My question is this, is the whole game going to force me to group? I really hope not. I really like this game so far. I want to be able to solo to max level. I am not concerned with getting the "best" gear or anything like that. I just want to play and have fun...but at least be able to ding max level.
If I know I can play on my own terms..I will purchase this game; love it.
Like will I be able to do quests that don't force grouping?
thank you

no solo dungeons other then class quest instances but u can level to 50 without dungeons but need to complete story to unlock most things

you definetly can reach max lvl with soloing.

you'll just miss probably most of the story, dungeons and pretty much everything that makes the most fun in this game (imo).
due to the missed storyline you won't be able to switch your arcanist to summoner or scholar aswell since they made a specific quest of the storyline to be neccessary for switching to a job.
if the most fundamental things in an mmo aren't required for you and you don't care about the story to have fun you're good to go :P

I don't mind grouping up occasionally. I just don't want to have to group ALL the time.

you'll be forced to do the first three dungeons if I'm correctly and later on some more for the storyline.
most of the story is solo content though.

so no, you aren't forced to group up all the time^^

Well, that's awesome. Thanks for your response, help and time.

There are quite a few story mode dungeons to do, 9 total i think, also if you want to rank up your GC you will have to do more. Then the primals for story mode, 3 or 4 you have to do.

Damn. That's a lot. You know, I don't mind grouping. I just don't want to do it all of my game time.

The biggest issues with the dungeons are some of the people. Alot of high level players end up in low level dungeons for bonuses and such, and some of them can be real d bags. But for the most part most of the people are very helpful and the d bags are few. You are playing as a DPS so it won't be as bad if you're a healer or tank.

Oh, I see. I get that a lot in other games too.

I don't like grouping either, but the DF makes it pretty painless. Truth be told, you don't even really have to talk to anyone.

As was said, most lower level dungeons will just get populated with high levels doing their daily roulette's - so they'll plow through it without so much as a hello. In, out, and on your way.

Primals withstanding, the forced dungeons are really just there to introduce you to the concept of party play.

However, once you hit endgame, you're going to want to get on the stick in order to go through the Coils. No way to avoid that.

Despite the fact that I have avoided it so far. I just keep going back to level up lower jobs in an effort to avoid it.

Rejoice my dear Kirito you can solo the whole game and still do your solo thing while sitting in the DF for the forced group content.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Rev1170

Rejoice my dear Kirito you can solo the whole game and still do your solo thing while sitting in the DF for the forced group content.

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Yup this right here!

You'll have to group nine times for dungeons and I think it's three times for primal fights to get through the story. And reaching max rank in your Grand Company will require two more dungeons. (EDIT: make that 4 more dungeons for your Grand Company. I was thinking of the two you get GC quests to do, but forgot there are another two you'll need to do in order to get all the mobs for your GC hunting log.)

The rest of the story (i.e. the vast majority of it) can be soloed. There are also some sidequests for solo play, and levequests. There are FATEs and a hunting log to give some direction and meaning to grinding mobs. Once you get into your 40's, there are several beast tribe factions to gain rep with through repeatable solo quests. And once you get near or at max level, there are open world hunts you can take part in to earn endgame gear. Plus there's a crafting system if you like that part of solo play as well. So there is always something to do that can be done solo.

So you can treat the game as mostly solo if you choose, provided you're willing to group occasionally for those 12 or 16 required runs. Most players choose to repeat dungeons a lot more than just the initial required run through them, though. Repeating them is the best source of XP in the game (not really needed if you're focusing on a single class/job which will level well enough through the story quests, but if you want to level up several or all classes, you'll run out of quests and need additional XP sources). They're also where a lot of the best gear drops, so people farm them for gear.


EDIT:
Incidentally, my previous favorite MMO before this one was LOTRO. It's an almost entirely solo-able game, and I rarely group there. When I first got to the initial set of required dungeons in this game and found we'd have to group up periodically to continue the story line, I was worried about that, but I've found I actually really like it. While it's possible to meet mean or annoying players in a dungeon, it's actually quite rare. The vast majority of people I've played with have been either friendly and helpful or else silent and just focused on completing the content. I've had a lot of fun working out how to fulfill my role in a group while simultaneously supporting and relying on other players in their respective roles. It adds an extra element to the class/job system that you don't get to see during solo play.

In short, you don't need a dedicated group to play 95% of the contents. 5% are THE freshest of contents that came out not a patch ago.