New Player

[MithrasInvictus]

I think warrior would probably be a good choice for me as well. It seem'd like that have a pretty good kit. Does anyone go against the grain, and play a DPS warrior ?

You can do it, certainly. People generally don't for party content because even at it's best warrior just can't compare to the damage that a dedicated DPS class can dole out. For the vast majority of open-world content you can take full advantage of the armory system, and outfit your warrior however you like. If you want very sharp teeth, do it!

[Niwashi]

Look around for a family friendly Free Company or Linkshell to join. You're going to want to be able to find groups that are understanding about it if you need to suddenly AFK for a little while, and that's more likely if you can talk to people in advance and they know that your home situation sometimes requires that. I've done FC dungeon runs where we occasionally stop for a little while because someone's kid just woke up, and everyone's fine with that, but in random groups there's a greater likelihood of the other players getting pissed off by it.

Just about any class can handle solo content, and you can spend the majority of your time solo, but as Bixby mentioned, there are also quite a few required dungeons and trials where you'll need a group. People generally recommend finding a friendly FC as a worthwhile move for any new player, but I think it's especially important to those like yourself whose family life may make your game time erratic. A good FC should be able to help you get through the required dungeons so you can advance through the game. And in return, you can help them do the same.

[emeposk]

Another question.

Say I level an arcanist to level 30, and whatever the summoners other subclass is to 15, and then I level the summoner to level 50.

Would I have access to a level 46 arcanist spell such as miasma II or would I need to level my arcanist to level 46 as well ?

[MithrasInvictus]

Another question.

Say I level an arcanist to level 30, and whatever the summoners other subclass is to 15, and then I level the summoner to level 50.

Would I have access to a level 46 arcanist spell such as miasma II or would I need to level my arcanist to level 46 as well ?

It will always be your ACN getting the experience points, the SMN is just a modifier for the ACN class which is equipped to your character like a weapon or piece of armour.

[Sagittarian]

The jobs based on the classes use the same level as the class. So leveling Summoner to 50 is the same as leveling Arcanist to 50. As a Summoner you will have access to all of your Arcanist abilities plus a few more job specific ones. You have less access to cross-class skills with the job, though.

[Naberrie]

Since you're considering WAR you should know that when you use Duty Finder it will automatically put you into the dungeon as a tank. The only way to avoid this would be to queue with someone else who is also a tank, usually an FC member.

From what you need from your available playtime, it sounds like ACN/SMN would suit you best. You would also have the option of queuing as a Scholar for healing, which has a shorter wait time than DPS, once you hit 30 on ACN.

The way the job system works is that at level 30 on a class you will have the option to do a quest to unlock a job, which is a specialized version of the class. In Arcanist's case, it gets access to two jobs: Scholar and Summoner. Each has the requirement of a secondary class at 15. For Summoner it's THM; for Scholar it's CNJ (Conjurer). Once you complete the quest you are rewarded with a Soul Crystal. This is a slot in your equipment window beneath your rings. Equipping the SMN Soul Crystal while on ACN turns you into a SMN. You still, however, share stats and experience points with Arcanist. When you level on either SCH or SMN you will be awarded ACN experience points. Technically, you are always leveling the class.

[emeposk]

Look around for a family friendly Free Company or Linkshell to join. You're going to want to be able to find groups that are understanding about it if you need to suddenly AFK for a little while, and that's more likely if you can talk to people in advance and they know that your home situation sometimes requires that. I've done FC dungeon runs where we occasionally stop for a little while because someone's kid just woke up, and everyone's fine with that, but in random groups there's a greater likelihood of the other players getting pissed off by it.

Thank you for the advice! Everyone has been so helpful so far, I really appreciate it. By the way does everyone have the 1000 character limit on their posts? It's pretty annoying...

[MithrasInvictus]

Thank you for the advice! Everyone has been so helpful so far, I really appreciate it. By the way does everyone have the 1000 character limit on their posts? It's pretty annoying...

That it is...

[emeposk]

Since you're considering WAR you should know that when you use Duty Finder it will automatically put you into the dungeon as a tank. The only way to avoid this would be to queue with someone else who is also a tank, usually an FC member.

From what you need from your available playtime, it sounds like ACN/SMN would suit you best. You would also have the option of queuing as a Scholar for healing, which has a shorter wait time than DPS, once you hit 30 on ACN.

Thank you for this information. I think I am leaning more towards a summoner at this point.

[Bixby]

Thank you for the advice! Everyone has been so helpful so far, I really appreciate it. By the way does everyone have the 1000 character limit on their posts? It's pretty annoying...

The character limit doesn't apply to edits. Anyone you see with large posts has edited to add the text over 1000.