Question for the Devs; will Heavensward include a new STARTER City-State?

[Terin]

Well, like I said, it isn't a deal-breaker either way, I would just personally prefer a new starter area, just to be able to have a *TOTALLY* new experience to start out with; new Race, new Job, and new City-State. Even if it was only unique until lvl 15 or so, when you get sent to the other areas, I just like having a totally new experience.

If not, though, I'll be fine with that too. It'd just be nice to know sooner than later, as I'm already intended to start a separate character to be my Dark Knight. If there's no new starter-area, I'll just create something else and use the Fantasia potion once the new Race is available, but if there's a new low-level area, I'd rather wait on that.

Especially since it's one of two things that Fantasia doesn't affect; your City-State, and your starting Class (neither of which seems terribly relevant, but I'm obsessive-compulsive, so it's something I keep in mind).

[Niwashi]

It would certainly make a lot of zones go unused.

There only needs to be so many zones that have the purpose of guiding you to the exact same place. End game.

But we currently don't have nearly enough content for leveling. People can try parsing out a few sidequests for each class, but that doesn't go far. We have nine classes to level already and enough content to level maybe two or three of them. Beyond that it's nothing but grinding. If even more classes are being added, then we're going to need a lot more leveling content. The new zones (at least some of them) would be a good place to put a lot of that new leveling content.

[Felis]

But we currently don't have nearly enough content for leveling. People can try parsing out a few sidequests for each class, but that doesn't go far. We have nine classes to level already and enough content to level maybe two or three of them. Beyond that it's nothing but grinding. If even more classes are being added, then we're going to need a lot more leveling content. The new zones (at least some of them) would be a good place to put a lot of that new leveling content.

People got Ninja to 50 in the first 2.4 week. There is already enough 1-50 leveling content ingame. What we need are 51-60 leveling content.

[Intaki]

People got Ninja to 50 in the first 2.4 week. There is already enough 1-50 leveling content ingame. What we need are 51-60 leveling content.

You seem to believe that new 1-50 leveling content and 51-60 leveling content are mutually exclusive.

[Ecks007]

You seem to believe that new 1-50 leveling content and 51-60 leveling content are mutually exclusive.

Given the vast amount of story that begins only after attaining level 50 I would say yes, yes they are mutually exclusive.

Well, not so exclusive for players in the 51-60 bracket as we do have the ability to go back and do lower level content and still gain some exp from it. Lower level players can't do higher end content because they do not get appropriate exp (if they even get any). For example, a level 35 player might be able to go to a level 47 FATE, but their contribution to that fate is heavily taxed to the point that it's really not worth it as they wouldn't get the full experience (assuming they can even survive and complete the FATE).

Likewise, a level 35 player can't join any dungeons that are above their level range.

With 60 being the new level cap we can expect to see level 60 dungeons, probably only a few at first. But we can also expect to see hopefully a handful or more new dungeons ranging from level 51 to 59 (though more likely the highest until 60 will be 57 or 58).

tl;dr version: 51-60 content is exclusive to levels 51-60 (duh). 1-50 content (gasp) is still able to be accessed by anyone 50+.

Added: Now that doesn't mean a level 10 person can't make it to a 51-60 area, but there just wouldn't be anything for them to do there. Right now I can take a level 1 character to Revant's Toll, but that doesn't mean there's anything there to do other than run around exclaiming how awesome you are.

[Niwashi]

People got Ninja to 50 in the first 2.4 week. There is already enough 1-50 leveling content ingame.

But they didn't do it through content unless they hadn't leveled their other classes. I never said you couldn't grind after running out of content, but grinding isn't what makes a game, content is. It takes a lot more than one quest every five levels to raise a class/job from 1 to 50.

What we need are 51-60 leveling content.

Well, by the logic of thinking that since you can level without it means content isn't needed, we wouldn't need that either. But the truth is we'll need it all the way through. We'll need new level 1-15 content, new level 15-30 content, new level 30-50 content, and new level 51-60 content. While some of that new content could be placed in the same zones we already have (and would be good for fleshing out some of the more sparsely-used sections of the current map), it makes more sense for the majority of it to be used in providing the character of the new zones. Particularly if the new areas are as widespread as has been suggested, they should contain the whole range of levels.

[Ecks007]

I really don't see them adding anything for pre-50 characters with the expansion. We have enough of that already.

Though they could add a few more low level dungeons I suppose, but they could also easily place those in already existing maps so that they are accessible pre-50.

I expect all new areas and dungeons in those areas to be level 50-60, maybe even have the mob level cap be increased beyond level 60 in some of the areas for added challenge. (Since this is one of the complaints about the game that pops up often. ie. No danger in the overworld)

[polyphonica]

From what Square-Enix has hinted about the Dark Knight, in that it will not have a base class and that you will be able to play it right away if you buy the expansion (they didn't say you had to have an existing character at 50 or anything), I almost wonder if it could be a new job that starts in Ishgard right at some mid-level, like maybe 40 or even 50. If you start a new character on this job, you would jump right into the 3.0 storyline without going through the 2.0 story path. For example, you could be a Dark Knight that joins the Scions once Ishgard finally opens its gates. Of course it would also be possible to take an existing 50 or whatever and learn this job, and take one of these characters and learn the other jobs, which would progress as usual.

This approach would have some controversy, but because Dark Knight is a tank class, S-E might feel that such an approach would bring more tanks into end-game more quickly. And given the progression in the story, and since you can play them right away with the expansion, I doubt it makes sense story-wise to have them start at level 1 in some other city and go through the whole 2.0 path.

I guess we'll see how it plays out, but if so, Ishgard could be a new starting city-state, but in a different sense. (And if they do take this approach, it would make sense for the other new job to be a healer-type, because then they have an influx of healers and tanks in end-game more quickly.)

[MilesSaintboroguh]

I doubt they'd make the new tank class open only for the end game since it would mean anyone that isn't up to the expansion won't get to play with the new toys or anyone who reached 3.0.

[polyphonica]

I doubt they'd make the new tank class open only for the end game since it would mean anyone that isn't up to the expansion won't get to play with the new toys or anyone who reached 3.0.

Well, you'd still meet them in old dungeons and FATEs using level sync, I imagine. But since it won't have a starting class and you can play them right away, I don't think anyone would be levelling with them from 1 anyway.