Concepts from other MMOs that would be utterly anathema to FFXIV

[Rilifane]

Funnily I feel exactly the opposite about this haha
I've been an altoholic in every MMO I've played until this one, and being stuck on one character has been a consistent source of frustration while I've been here. Being able to do any role on one character is nice, but it means I'm stuck with... one character. I can't just swap to an alt to get a different look, feel, and personality for my characters because in my experience playing alts in FF is an actively miserable experience, and I keep buying Fantasia's purely because I want a new look and can't just. Have two (or three, or fifteen...) characters to get what I want without feeling like I'm losing time on my main because absolutely nothing is shared between them

On that note I guess my addition to the thread would be alt friendly features mail and trade between alts is something I'm also used to from pretty much every other MMO I've played, and the shared bank in Aion (and I believe swtor had this too?) came in handy quite a few times. Add in shared mounts and minions and I'd be a lot happier...

I feel the same.
I've always been an altholic, I've played at least 4 chars in pretty much every MMO and in WoW even more because most classes had at least one spec I liked and even after every major revamp there was always still at least one left I liked playing. And it was fun gearing several chars because every char had its own lockout and could run raids. I knew several raid groups and if someone had to cancel on short notice, I was always happy to fill in.
Having to spread the different professions on different chars wasn't an issue for me. I was playing them anyway. And being able to mail alts, enjoy additional bank and bag slots and so on was fantastic.
But the main reason why I was so put off by FFXIV for a long time (and still am to some degree) is that I'm stuck with one character. And since I don't want to spent a fortune on Fantasia, it feels constricting.

I play alts in FFXIV but GODS this game is the most alt unfriendly I have ever played and it's incredibly frustrating....
No mailing between alts. No shared retainer. No shared housing. No shared mounts/ minions (although that is not as important to me I know many people who are frustrated because they have to buy/ farm their favourite mount/ minion again and again...). Only very few account-wide mog station items.

[StriderShinryu]

I play alts in FFXIV but GODS this game is the most alt unfriendly I have ever played and it's incredibly frustrating....
No mailing between alts. No shared retainer. No shared housing. No shared mounts/ minions (although that is not as important to me I know many people who are frustrated because they have to buy/ farm their favourite mount/ minion again and again...). Only very few account-wide mog station items.

Yeah, I have to agree with this. I love how completely unnecessary alts are in 14; it really is one of the best elements of the game. But, for when you do want to try out an alt for whatever your personal reasoning is, it would be great if FF14 wasn't so terrible about it. Even something as minor as a shared retainer would be a godsend.