Trying to get started

[OronaminC]

Is it difficult to get a free company off the ground and going? I haven't had much luck getting past the petition stage.

[Enkidoh]

I think the main problem getting a FC up and running is indeed getting enough people to join you to satisfy the '3 others plus you' requirement. When my bf and I founded our FC it was shortly after launch and thus there was no real issue for us as we had several of our friends also join.

However now after nearly a year since launch due to the fact you can only be in one FC at a time, there's far fewer people around who aren't already in a company and thus, it's harder to get signatures for setting up a new one. I'm not sure if you can get a signature from someone who is already in a FC, but I'm liable to think you cannot sadly.

All I can suggest is ask in the FC for help in this and see if there's people who haven't yet joined a company who would be happy to help set one up from scratch, and to get their signature to get it started.

The other main problems normally faced in setting up a FC and getting it up and running is getting enough rank points to unlock the various actions (particularly, being able to add the company's crest to your armour, unlocking the chest, and of course, being able to buy land to build the Company's house/HQ on), but with a few people doing mundane things as quests and FATEs you should gain those ranks fairly quickly.

And speaking of housing, that is the real Everest to attain with running your company - not only is it a high rank to gain before you're even allowed to buy land (rank 6), land prices are extremely high - small blocks on a 'tier 3' server can be as high as 5 million gil! - and because there is only a limited number of blocks currently available, most servers the residential areas are already fully bought out sadly, preventing any more houses from being built, until SE adds new 'wards' (residential areas) in the future. SE have said there will be steps to help address this issue though, so as it will still be a while before you can reach this stage, it's something to work towards either way. So don't be discouraged!

[Maero]

Back when i had started a FC i had the same issue, i just ended up shouting. Not recommended to recruit new players once established but may get you your 2 signatures at least