Why don't they change the way we earn Atma? (An honest question, not a rant.)

[Duelle]

End game grinds are supposed to be about encouraging people to come together in a positive way to accomplish a goal. This is just a long solo grind that's size-ably worse than any long term grind in FFXI just for that reason alone. We're revisiting stuff that has no relevance to us, making zero friends out of it because of totally random cross-server groups, and then doing it over and over.

The mechanic for Atma isn't new, because as I said when Atma was implemented, they basically took the "splinters of atiesh" approach but yes, made it a solo grind instead of something that happens while your guild is raiding.

I still say the whole system was aimed at the wrong demographic, as this system was originally designed to give hardcore players a reason to raid after getting gear. They instead tossed it at those who aren't raiding while creating a faster way of upgrading a weapon via UAT+Rowena Tokens+Sand. From a design perspective the decision to this day still doesn't make much sense.

Had I made the call, I would have made the high allagan weapons ilvl110 with the option to unlock the weapons' potential via what we call the Atma system; make it possible for the 20 upgrade items (I would raise the number of items required from 12 to 20) necessary to drop from FATEs while also dropping in dungeons and coil. I would have taken the Secret of Mana approach with relics by making the relic upgrade involve essences from content no one cares about at this moment: extreme primal fights. Granted, this would NOT work until Shiva is implemented, as I would have it require primal essences from the six elemental primals. Or do the upgrade in two phases. Phase 1 (Patch 2.2, Zenith => Novus) requiring Garuda, Titan and Ifrit extreme, while phase 2 (implemented in patch 2.4, Novus => whatever) would require Leviathan, Ramuh and Shiva extreme. That would have gotten me to care about extreme primals instead of seeing those fights as poorly-implemented hard modes. It would have also made the progression path very clear instead of the current RNGfest atma grinds are. And for the record, I'm still at 0.

[ruskie]

with relics by making the relic upgrade involve essences from content no one cares about at this moment: extreme primal fights. Granted, this would NOT work until Shiva is implemented, as I would have it require primal essences from the six elemental primals.

I think you just shown us the next upgrade path for our relics...

[HeroSamson]

I think you just shown us the next upgrade path for our relics...

I will not do extreme fights just for a relic weapon.

If that comes to past, I will end up tossing my sword down and just hope they upgrade burtang, Extremes are a waste of time I don't have the will power to die a million times for one win.

[Duelle]

I will not do extreme fights just for a relic weapon.

If that comes to past, I will end up tossing my sword down and just hope they upgrade burtang, Extremes are a waste of time I don't have the will power to die a million times for one win.

Dealing with the possibility of having to teach people an encounter, or even better, forming a party between FC-mates is a LOT more palatable than prayers and sacrifices to the RNG gods.

[Marael]

I think you just shown us the next upgrade path for our relics...

Naw, that's not mundane enough, it'll probably be like running story roulette seven thousand times or something.

[ruskie]

Naw, that's not mundane enough, it'll probably be like running story roulette seven thousand times or something.

Except it would go in line with the whole reviving old content BUT at the same time they can make it mundane enough by basically having a 0.01% drop rate of some mats you need 10 from each and from that you upgrade novus to a pre next step relic that then you need to run through all the dungeons each 10 times(so that rouge/nins won't have to long queues) and all the trials 10 times and all the boss fates(let's say once since they mentioned they might reduce that requirement) and then you need to spend 2000 sol on some Thavnarian acid and 10000 myth on some Doman sake and you have your relic. Sounds about right...

[zeopower6]

I think you just shown us the next upgrade path for our relics...

Maybe with hard modes. The common thread between the quests seems to be revisiting old content that wasn't necessarily hard and adding more things to do as they progressed.

Zenith - 900 myth for Mists
Atma - 12 Atma from FATEs
Animus - 13500 myth for 9 books (leves/FATEs/dungeons/enemies)
Novus - 1500 myth on Inks for sphere scroll, collect 75 Alexandrites (you know the ways) and infuse 75 materia

Judging from how they've said it will take a long time to finish the next level, I have a feeling it might be something like the Novus path but with Primals involved since that's the only old content that hasn't been used.

I've read some Japanese theories that they might have some kind of demimateriatype item that uses desynthesis to infuse into the weapon (Atma from desynth?) or even involve hunt mobs. Or maybe all of the above? Whatever it is, it's going to be a huge time sink.