Could the BLU spellbook be a little more helpful in finding spells to learn?

To begin with, yes, I know the entire spell list was datamined and posted online a week before BLU was even available. I'm not looking to be given the complete, perfect answer straight away, rather for a middle ground so I can enjoy chasing spells without feeling completely lost.

It would be nice to have a hint as to what the mob looks like, spell looks like (or what it does), or area it's in (i.e. Alder Springs or Proud Creek etc.). Otherwise, combined with the fact that you have only a chance to learn the spell, I find myself wandering around every mob in the zone, unsure if I should move on because there was never anything to get here or if I've just been unlucky.

If anyone remembers the very first 20 entries in the sightseeing log (the ones that made sure to include something about the location, time, weather and emote, unlike the next 60), something like that would be ideal, though I imagine a lot of effort is involved in writing hints like that.

There is a light etching mechanic for the restoration of Doma, and as a kid you might remember scratching a paper onto something and getting an image... I wonder if we could have a minor sort of etching mechanic here where the book gives you a hint to where you may find the spell with perhaps a few notes, and for each monster you kill (in the correct zone(s)) the etching becomes clearer and clearer and instantly reveals if you killed the right monster. At the top right of the image would be a "top three" list of "???" to where the monster is located. I say three just because SE probably doesn't want to data mine themselves and make a huge list when a monster is over used.

In this way you can wander around with a vague description that becomes clearer with each step, some people being able to guess the monster on the first reveal (others not remembering what monsters are in the zone might need a few more steps).

Also someone asked for a visual, audio, or whatever notice when a monster casts a spell you may be able to learn. I think that should be added too to let people know you're on the right track. For example it could be a little blue mage cane and question mark sort of icon by their name tag once they've casted a spell you could learn.

I agree - the tips are far too vague.

There's a degree of vagueness that makes you want to guess and work it out for yourself, and one that is so wide-open it would take too long to test the possibilities. Especially when there's no feedback that you're getting closer until you actually stumble on the right combination of place, monster, used skill, and random chance.

At this point there's no fun in working it out, when you could save yourself literally hours of work by consulting a list.

Maybe for the harder ones that you don't see often or doesn't have a cast bar that goes with it. Like loom and drill cannon. One you don't realize it's a move and I don't think every one of that type does the move where every Quirin or Goblin and bomb inside a dungeon does their moves. I probably had a better time with some because some of the spells are blue mage staples.

I'd rather it display the class of enemy that uses the skill.
Not the exact name but something like 'Imp' for Ice Spikes.
I mean it just so happens that all Imp type creatures use Ice Spikes, so that would be an easy one, but others are specific creatures and so that wouldn't give it away entirely, but at least you'd know you're not killing the complete wrong type of monster.

these kinds of things they expect the community to gather together and crowdsource it out. and lo and behold when the files were added to the game everything was already datamined.

It could be but given the idea is to go hunt down the abilities I suppose they didn't feel a need to exactly, plus being side content there's not really a burning need to get everything day one.

Yeah, I was really hoping for hints myself. It's no fun to look at a list of answers, I wanna figure things out myself.

It doesn't help that some of their "suggestions" on where to get the spell are ridiculous. Like, Gogmagolem boss in Copperbell HM for Plainscracker, really? Or stating EX primals for all their spells when you only need EX for two of them, causing ALOT of people to suffer even more than they have to for those.

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Originally Posted by Espritduo

It doesn't help that some of their "suggestions" on where to get the spell are ridiculous. Like, Gogmagolem boss in Copperbell HM for Plainscracker, really? Or stating EX primals for all their spells when you only need EX for two of them, causing ALOT of people to suffer even more than they have to for those.

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Same thing with faze the zone they want you to go to is a level 30+ yet there's lower level mobs you can go and learn it off of. Heck there's even a lower level fate you could get it in. Not that a lot of people would want to do the eyes have it fate but it's again a lower level non AV choice. Thankfully there's only a few end bosses that don't have open world counter parts and yes I'm including ability to get the look from a leve in there.

I really wanted just a tad more info- the general map location, the name of the skill, or just the monster type (like cactuar, golem, primal, etc.). The ARR areas are big enough that you can spend a long time wandering around wondering if you picked the wrong mob or are just unlucky. Feeling like you're on a wild goose chase isn't fun.

again you're supposed to collaborate with your friends and fellow adventurers. it is an MMO after all.

This would be good.

But also... can we have the spellbook linked to the abilities tab somehow? It seems strange to have them separate

It would be much better if it said the ability and then you had to work out where it was instead of the general location and you have to guess which mob out of 20 to kill.

I'd be cool with maybe a "list" where the hardest challenge is given, as they do with suggestions (unless it's the only location to get an item) with a handful of ? for however many other mobs there are to get it. If you don't want to do the footwork to explore you can go for the hard one, but if you're willing to put in the time, you can find the others, and you still have an idea for what gives it. Or they could do silhouettes of the mob and for each one you kill as a BLU, even if you don't get the skill, it gets filled in with an image so you know you're on the right track just keep trying.

Here you go:
https://ffxiv.consolegameswiki.com/w...Learning_Guide

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Originally Posted by Teraluna

Here you go:
https://ffxiv.consolegameswiki.com/w...Learning_Guide

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The issue is that most folks don't want a list. They want better suggestions than the weekly Fashion Report.

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Originally Posted by Teraluna

Here yuo go:
https://ffxiv.consolegameswiki.com/w...Learning_Guide

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It's sad that we have to consult an out of game resource to get something so simple and vital as a spell. These aren't lore fragments buried in side quests or loot drop tables. The other jobs list the skills you will learn and the level you learn them at - BLU should get just a little more than "kill stuff in the zone until you learn something". I don't want my hand held by the game telling me to kill cactuars at x:y coordinates in the relevant Thanalan zone to learn 1000 Needles. Just any one piece of that information being added to the spellbook is enough to give me some direction so I'm not wondering if I'm doing it wrong by not consulting a third-party website.

I think the suggestions they created are backwards, personally. Given there are multiple sources to learn almost every spell in the book, being given the name of the spell without being given information on how to learn it would have been better.

That would let people test their memories and think "now where have I seen an enemy use this skill?" rather than have everyone going for the same few enemies. Even now because of the listings in the book, people are trying to get certain spells the hard way even though there have been found much faster or simpler methods of gaining the same spells (Eruption, Tail Screw, and Flamethrower come to mind as examples of this)

Having the spell names would be far more useful. It would have the same kind of "discuss with others if you don't know the answer" approach, but would actually let the process be driven within the game by people who have a good memory for monster skills, rather than being almost necessary to consult outside sources.

Yeah, I knew there were guides out but had no intention of looking at them when I started. I assumed the book would give spell names and I could try to remember where I seen those skills before. Then I got in the game and see 'west than' ..... ok, guide it is I guess.

I'd be satisfied enough if we got some indication that "this is a spell you can learn" once you've seen it, if you don't learn it right away. Got lucky with Ice Spikes pretty quick, and then wasted a fair bit of time trying to learn Blaze Spikes.

I didn't really mind going around and testing out all the mobs in an area, but given the rng, would've preferred some way of knowing if a skill can actually be acquired without just grinding a few and then assuming if it hasn't dropped it's not a spell.

Also mildly disappointed that they had to resort to adding new mobs for some skills. Kinda understand it, end of the day, probably less work than cracking into the old mob AI code to add things. But also just results in "oh, guess that's clearly something with a spell, one less mystery."

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Originally Posted by SannaR

Same thing with faze the zone they want you to go to is a level 30+ yet there's lower level mobs you can go and learn it off of. Heck there's even a lower level fate you could get it in. Not that a lot of people would want to do the eyes have it fate but it's again a lower level non AV choice. Thankfully there's only a few end bosses that don't have open world counter parts and yes I'm including ability to get the look from a leve in there.

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Which look and which leve are you referring?

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Originally Posted by SannaR

Same thing with faze the zone they want you to go to is a level 30+ yet there's lower level mobs you can go and learn it off of. Heck there's even a lower level fate you could get it in. Not that a lot of people would want to do the eyes have it fate but it's again a lower level non AV choice. Thankfully there's only a few end bosses that don't have open world counter parts and yes I'm including ability to get the look from a leve in there.

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Which look and which leve are you referring?

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Originally Posted by Rasler_Heios

Which look and which leve are you referring?

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The Look is the name of one of the skills, and there's a Necrologos levequest in St. Chonach's Find which spawns a monster that uses the skill. Meaning this can be learned solo rather than having to get to the final boss of Amdapoor Keep.

This again is an instance where it would have been more interesting to have the book just say there's a skill called "The Look" and leave it up to you to find it rather than say there's a skill you can learn in Amdapoor Keep.

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Originally Posted by wereotter

The Look is the name of one of the skills, and there's a Necrologos levequest in St. Chonach's Find which spawns a monster that uses the skill. Meaning this can be learned solo rather than having to get to the final boss of Amdapoor Keep.

This again is an instance where it would have been more interesting to have the book just say there's a skill called "The Look" and leave it up to you to find it rather than say there's a skill you can learn in Amdapoor Keep.

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Yes that’s what I’m trying to do. If it can be learned outside the dungeons and trials I would rather get it from there. I learned one skill beating Crag Claws in Ala Ghana. Thank you for the information. I’ll go get cracking with the levequest then.

I think it would be pretty cool if, instead of bland question mark symbols appearing over spells you haven't learned, it instead showed silhouettes of the monsters you learn spells from.