I just started and I'm so lost - Help!

[Foghorn755]

Okay hey, so I picked up this game and even though I still don't have a real grasp on the game, I love it! I've been playing the last few days and so far I have archer at level 30. Few questions though!

What do I do to level up other jobs when there are no more quests? I'm going through the main story quest and basically doing every quest I can, as well as the Guildhest/Dungeons as they become active. Once I hit 50 with archer those quests aren't going to be there anymore I'm assuming.. So would I have to level a separate job/class through the levequests, fates and the like?

Also, how do I use the Auction House? I know that they are used through the market board things but I can't figure out for the life of me how to put up something to sell, is there an auctioneer type character I need to talk to or is it a different process?

I'm completely new to the final fantasy franchise too, even being a 7 year WoW vet this game is like a brand new experience for me!

[Erendis]

For leveling other classes you can use hunting log (every class gets separate hunting log), guildleves and fates before level 15, after you reach 15, you can do dungeons. Starting from level 10 you can also do guildhests, they give a large amount of experience once for each class. Do not forget to do low level roulette, as it also gives a lot of experience.

To be able to use Market Board, you have to unlock them through the story quests. If you are already at level 30 story quests, you have unlocked them already. Talk to a retainer vocate at the market in any of city states and hire a retainer. You can hire two free retainers and also can purchase up to two more retainers as a paid service. Use summoning bell in the markets or inn rooms to call your retainer. Retainer can sell your items on MB and is also a big storage space. Gil from sales is stored on retainer.

Also, since you are already level 30, do not forget to get your job by talking to your class guildmaster!

[Rufalus]

You were right on both counts, needing to make do without quests once you've cleared them, and needing an npc to sell things. Monsters in dungeons give decent exp; you will end up playing each dungeon many times over... and you still have bonuses from challenge log (unlocked in limsa lominsa), hunting log, roulette, FATEs... I guess that's about it.

[Enkidoh]

Welcome to Eorzea!

Firstly, you are correct in that normal story quests/side quests are 'once-only' - once it's completed, you can't do it again. However, don't despair, as there are other alternatives to sidequests for levelling:

Levequests (which are repeatable as long as you have enough allowances which recharge every six hours)
FATEs (still the easiest really, as you can do as many as you like and come and go from them at will)
Dungeons (if you do them via the Duty Roulette you can get a bonus to exp and gil once a day)
Hunting Log (each class has it's own log unlocked automatically upon completing it's first class quest for it's guild)
Challenge Log (requires a quest to be completed to be unlocked - this is kind of like a cross between achievements and the Hunting Log. Completing various objectives, such as, complete x number of levequests from five different areas, or gain the highest rank in a FATE x number of times, will give you large amounts of gil and exp. This resets once a week on a Tuesday)
Beastmen 'daily' quests (unlockable after around level 40, each beastman tribe has a 'friendly' faction who will have three quests each day for you to do - you're restricted to only being able to do three per tribe for a maximum of six per day, but they too reset each day at Japanese midnight. Npcs with beastmen quests can be determined by the speech bubble icon with a 'recycling' symbol)

Additionally, there is an added effect you're given if you're levelling a class lower than your first in that you're given a bonus to exp gained after battle for any class that has a lower level than your first (so for instance, your current class is ARC 28, all other classes will gain an exp bonus up to level 28). Not to mention logging out in a 'sanctuary' (either of the three cities, or a hamlet which has an aetheryte) will also grant you a 'rested exp bonus' on top of that. I found levelling was far easier with later classes than it was the first time, mostly due to this exp bonus.

Secondly, there is actually no true 'Auction House' in FFXIV. Instead, we have what is called the 'Market Board'. This is basically just a list of player retainers who are virtually personal shops. When you purchase an item on the Market Board you're buying that item from a player directly and not actually bidding on it. To sell items yourself you first have to hire a retainer from a special npc in the Market area of each city - this npc has the title 'Retainer Vocate' under their name. They're shown on the map as an icon with two heads. When you hire a retainer, that person becomes not only a shop front on the Market Board for you, they also give you extra storage space for items (this is completely seperate from the Market). To use a retainer after hiring, simply look for a 'summoning bell' in various places (one is in your inn room for instance). By default, you can have up to two retainers, but you can purchase more for real money from the Mogstation, although personally I find having two is enough.

Anyway, hopefully that hasn't been too confusing for you! FFXIV is full of references to past FF games so if you';re interested in all the in-jokes, lore and references, the FF Wiki is a good place to get up to speed.

[Foghorn755]

thanks for the replies guys, helps out a bunch!

so is the general strategy focus on one class to 50 first and then start working on others? so like, should I even bother going into a different guild to get access to a new class yet, or only when I get archer to 50?

[Bixby]

so is the general strategy focus on one class to 50 first and then start working on others? so like, should I even bother going into a different guild to get access to a new class yet, or only when I get archer to 50?

You'll need to take at least one detour to level another class to level 15. Jobs unlock at level 30, and each one requires a second class at level 15. For example, to unlock Bard from Archer at level 30, you need to take Pugilist to 15. Class Q&A Guide lists those, along with some other good info.

And you definitely want to unlock the job at 30. Taking up the job instead of the base class gives you a large boost to your main stat (DEX for BRD), and gives very useful abilities for party play every 5 levels.

There's also a second class that each job can take cross-class skills from, besides the one needed for the unlock. For example, Bard can take skills from both Pugilist and Lancer. It might be worth your time to collect some of the other cross-class skills before 50 as well. And when you get to level 50, you'll definitely want your full range of possible cross-class skills before you start getting into more difficult content.

Beyond that, it's really up to you whether you take one all the way to 50 before you work on the others. Contrary to what the in-game help tells you, you get the same 50% XP bonus on lower-level classes regardless of differences in level; as long as you're working on something that is lower than your highest level, you will get that 50% XP bonus across the board. For example, if your highest level is 28 ARC, both your level 1 ACN and your level 27 LNC will get the same bonus.

Getting to level 50 can make several other things easier; unlocking all the travel options, making gil to gear up other jobs, etc. But it's not such a vast difference that you'd look back on your life ten years from now and wonder why you ever allowed yourself to get sidetracked into leveling other jobs. Whatever floats your boat.

Regardless, there's no harm in at least unlocking any/all of the other classes at the guilds while you're there. You don't lose anything (except a little armory chest space for the starting weapons, more for armor and such if you actually start leveling them), and the only thing that's irreversible is the fact that they're unlocked (and leveled if you start leveling them).

[Foghorn755]

okay i gotcha, so what should I do for armor then? basically i've been just using armor from the quests to level up archery, but seeing as that won't be an option if I go up with another class, what would I do in that situation.. dungeon armor I'm guessing?

[Bixby]

okay i gotcha, so what should I do for armor then? basically i've been just using armor from the quests to level up archery, but seeing as that won't be an option if I go up with another class, what would I do in that situation.. dungeon armor I'm guessing?

There are lots of options for grabbing armor. Vendors, the market boards, dungeons, your Grand Company, stuff you've saved from leveling archer (if you're leveling another non-tank Disciple of War; at low levels, it's all the same and interchangeable enough to reuse), rewards from levequests, rewards from other quests if you don't use every single one in the whole world up. The vendors in the starting cities have stuff for the beginning levels, and most aetheryte camps have a vendor that sells armor and weapons for around that camp's level (with a focus on gear for the classes near their cities before 35ish).

[Sagittarian]

okay i gotcha, so what should I do for armor then? basically i've been just using armor from the quests to level up archery, but seeing as that won't be an option if I go up with another class, what would I do in that situation.. dungeon armor I'm guessing?

Crafting. Just saying...
The armor you get from quests is what you can buy from the normal vendors and is the lowest level of armor. You don't want to rely on that anyway. High quality crafted, aetherial (from leves/dungeons), and green dungeon drops are all better for the same level.

[Foghorn755]

so when I'm starting out on a new class, I should just buy something from vendors till I can get into dungeons and then start getting armor from there?