Why are elite hunts so valuable? What are the devs thoughts?

[kyuven]

if they want more people geared and it's not broken, why is Sands of Time not already an ST drop? why is there a 1 item lockout for ST and why is the armor i100? why are Ramuh EX items i100?

shouldn't there be no lockout in ST if the armor is i100 anyway? shouldn't you get i110 rings from the "hardest" trial in the game?

why aren't there better Frontline rewards?

i100 items still take actual time to get. The weathered gear takes between 1 and 2 weeks worth of soldiery tomes, and ST only allows one piece of loot. If you get maybe 2-3 pieces of loot a week, it'll still take you months to get "maxed." And not everyone has that kind of patience. Especially those who play multiple jobs. The only thing making oils and sands easier to get does is alleviate the time commitment required.