Question about dungeon drops and gear in general.

[djnions]

So I'm looking for the Plundered Trousers. I have seen the trousers on the board but none were available. Can they be crafted? Can they only be bought and not traded? Are the trousers just super rare? I have a good grasp on the game so far but this is really bothering me. I've played Sastasha like 20 times trying to get these pants. I know having a set this early in the game shouldn't matter because there's way better gear towards end game. At my current level though, none of the gear available to me can top my plundered set.

Another question. Will dungeon drops be my best bet as far as gear goes or should I craft my own?

[Nathan061111]

Plundered gear can also be obtained from Copperbell and possibly Tam Tara I believe. Gear dropped from dungeons ie pink, and even more so green, are superior to crafted gear (unless its like HQ and melded which is pointless at low levels). I know its nice to get full sets of gear but you are much better selling the plundered gear and moving onto the next dungeon, there you can get Foestriker gear which is much better and looks nicer basically get gear from dungeon drops but 20 runs in Sastasha :O that's crazy mate.

[Anova]

You can only get green and pink dungeon drops from dungeons. Unfortunately, it is completely up to luck of the draw with dungeon drops. Sometimes you'll get the full set, other times you'll have to keep grinding.

Dungeon uniques (green gear) is the equivalent to a hq item 4 levels higher than the level it is designed for. That means, you should probably start looking in to hq upgrades starting at lv.20 to replace your Sastasha/Tamtara/Copperbell set. Alternatively, Hatalati has some decent lv.20 green armor drops, although it is a bit uglier.

You will generally level with a combination of green and pink gear if you run dungeons for your gear. The dungeon green drops will generally be the best of that level available to you. Crafted items can be as good as pink gear, with the added bonus of having customizable stats (thanks to materia). Keep in mind though that crafting hq items and melding them with 5 materia will be prohibitively expensive for you before your first 50.

If you grind dungeons and try to complete every set before moving on, you'll definitely be over-geared for the next dungeon. And if you have HQ crafts with overmelds, you'll be equally overgeared too. Most players aren't expected to have more than 3 or 4 items of the dungeon's level equipped when they first complete them.

In the long run though, dungeon drops will be your mainstay as crafting simply can't compete with blue and purple equipment. There are some exceptions of course, especially for those building specific secondary stats, but it's not necessary to go in to optimized builds until lv.45 at least.

[djnions]

Plundered gear can also be obtained from Copperbell and possibly Tam Tara I believe. Gear dropped from dungeons ie pink, and even more so green, are superior to crafted gear (unless its like HQ and melded which is pointless at low levels). I know its nice to get full sets of gear but you are much better selling the plundered gear and moving onto the next dungeon, there you can get Foestriker gear which is much better and looks nicer basically get gear from dungeon drops but 20 runs in Sastasha :O that's crazy mate.

Haha. I didnt mind at all. I like doing the dungeons and I'm getting pretty good at tanking. I actually really like it. Your input is very much appreciated sir.

[Estellios]

Just a warning - the Foestriker's set is usable by tanks but is intended for Melee DPS and Archer/Bard. The defensive stats on it are low.

You are better off progressing through later dungeons once your level is capped out for the current one. You will not only get better gear but the XP rewards are much more lucrative. Since you are level 24 according to your profile on the forums you can get as far as Toto-rak which will drop level 24 gear that vastly outperforms the level 15 plundered set. Make sure you are looking at defense/magic defense stats when upgrading gear as it makes a difference.

Also tanks get gear sets that combine both the body and head slot into one item and the feet and leg slot into one item. The defense stats on these are deceptive - they combine the two slots together so when upgrading from them make sure you add together the defense stats of both items that can potentially fit into those slots.

[Erendis]

You can only get green and pink dungeon drops from dungeons. Unfortunately, it is completely up to luck of the draw with dungeon drops. Sometimes you'll get the full set, other times you'll have to keep grinding.

Actually, you also can get pink gear from silver boxes that sometimes appear during battlecraft leves.

[Anova]

And also from treasure maps and most other 'treasure chest' really. Guess I forgot about those since I usually get them from dungeons. Thanks for the tip Erendis.

[Niwashi]

Another question. Will dungeon drops be my best bet as far as gear goes or should I craft my own?

Green dungeon loot is better when you can get it. As you've seen, though, it doesn't always drop when you want it to. If you can get High Quality crafted gear, that's the next best, and much more reliably available. So it's nice to be able to make your gear for any slots where you haven't yet gotten the better drop.

[PetiteMalFleur]

I can craft you gear. Send me a tell in game!