Multiple/All Jobs 50 going into ARR – What city/class will you start on?

[Catapult]

I wish I could be as faithful to my forest home. I can't stand the thought of grinding EXP through repeated dungeon runs so my focus is to not waste any EXP from quests. That means I have to start in Limsa for Arcanist even though I can't see that being my main class and it will never be my home town. As soon as I can it's off to Gridania though to rejoin the Adders.

Sadly I am sacrificing my personal desires for game mechanics.

An option you may want to consider:

Start in Gridania. When you arrive in Limsa as part of the main scenario, unlock Arcanist and take the time out to play through the sidequests that resident Lominsans had played in their first fifteen levels. By the time you're done, you should have Arcanist leveled to around Level 14 and be ready to take your letter to Merlwyb. Then play as Arcanist for the rest of the main scenario and sidequests.