Mecrofeeding: The Way to Chocobo Color Dyeing

[AttacKat]

NOTE 9/12: RGB value updated, ver 4.0

Used in game print screen, then extracted RGB value using GIMP 7x7 sample space avg, verified with another sample location. RGB value now to EXACT reading and removed all rounding. This still may not be the exact in game RGB values.

METHOD PROCEDURE: How do I do this?

A. Go to FFXIV Chocobo Colour Calculator, select your current color, and then your desired color, click calculate. EG: Desert Yellow -> Rolanberry Red
B. Go to the Chocobo Colour Simulator spreadsheet and and make a copy (File->Make a copy)
C. Using the new spreadsheet copy, select your Starting color, and Target color, and input the recommended feed fruit and amount from step A. EG: pear 17, apple 19, berry 28
D. Check if any of the RGB values is 0 or 255.
E. If yes to step D, break that fruit into smaller qty by adding another step at the end and adjust the original qty so no value is 0 or 255, and the newly inserted qty is what you removed. EG: step 1: pear 17 into step 1: pear 14 and step 4: pear 3
F. Repeat from step D for the next fruit until the "Current Guess" is the Target color and you have used up as many fruits as recommended. During this adjustment phase you will want to keep the To Target values for all three RGB within +/- 5. EG: step 2: apple 19 into step 2: apple 3, step 5: apple 16
G: Feed your chocobo in the steps worked out from the spreadsheet.
** There may be times when you will need to rearrange the fruit feeding order. EG: berry must be fed first.

Original feed recommendation:

Step	Feed	Qty	220	181	89
1	pear	17	135	255	4
2	apple	19	230	160	0
3	berry	28	90	20	140

Target Colour RGB	93	24	43
To Target		3	4	-97
Current Guess		Gloom Purple

After adjustment:

Step	Feed	Qty	220	181	89
1	pear	14	150	251	19
2	apple	3	165	236	4
3	berry	28	25	96	144
4	pear	3	10	111	129
5	apple	17	95	26	44

To Target		-2	-2	-1
Current Guess		Rolanberry Red

How do I fine tune microfeeding?

Easiest way is by working backwards. Once you figured out your feed order, using the feeding from above, take 1 unit of each fruit and place them at the end, rearrange those so the ending fruits keep you in the desired color range if necessary, the above simply becomes:

Step	Feed	Qty	220	181	89
1	pear	14	150	251	19
2	apple	3	165	236	4
3	berry	27	30	101	139
4	pear	2	20	111	129
5@	apple	16	100	31	49
6	berry	1	95	26	54
7	pear	1	90	31	49
8	apple	1	95	26	44

To Target		-2	-2	-1
Current Guess		Rolanberry Red

where all the steps after 5 are for fine tuning purposes.

FAQs

Q: What is the benefit of the Microfeeding approach?
A: By knowing the amount, the kind, and order, of fruits you need feed to adjust the RGB value, it allows you to do one initial massive feeding, and reduces the need to wait 6 hours at every feather proc. This approach quickly moves you within the desired color range after your first feeding.

Q: Why are you NOT using the color map?
A: Because the color map only shows single fruit color paths. The microfeeding method allows you to calculate what you need between any two colors.

Q: What about the RNG that SE loves to throw at us?
A: The RNG in this method comes from two places:

1: We do not have the ACTUAL RGB values, so we best guesstimate what they are.
2: We do not have the ACTUAL adjustment values of the fruits, therefore, they are also best guesstimates.

Q: I am trapped in a loop between ColorA and ColorC, I want to get to ColorB but it keeps going back and forth between ColorA and ColorC. What do I do now?
You are over shooting the color value of your desired color, so instead of feeding the full recommend amount, break it down into microfeeds. Using the Color Simulator Spreadsheet, starting with your current color and arrange your feeding so the last fruits takes you to the desired color range. Feed your Chocobo your newly derived microfeeding pattern, and stop at the first feather proc that takes you into the desire color range indicated by the spreadsheet. You can look at the recommendations for "Soot Black" for examples.