SE enough of the treadmill, please make the game more interesting!

[Ryel]

XIV's system kind of screws over players in the "middle" of time commitment and progression. People at the top are always ready for the next thing, while the most casual players benefit from the easing of previous content, but there's this place in the middle where you finally complete a set just in time for it to be replaced with another and for what you just got to be made much easier to do. And a lot of people fall into that middle category.

I agree with this completely and i think it's XIV's largest issue outside of the ladder of gear progression.

Right now this game doesn't really consider the "middle" ground or rather most midcore players, the players that have the ability to down the current raids but for a number of reasons are unable to do so on first release.

Due to the initial lockout, many of these players may simply be unable to put together / maintain a static party for the long periods of time it usually takes to not only learn the encounters but also to deal with the RNG of drops when it comes time to farm them. If the system was more flexible and allowed for either variable party sizes or an ease up on the amount of time for the initial lockout (they're supposedly doing this in 2.45) more players would be able to experience this content first hand.

These are often the players you may hear complaining about adding Echo / nerfing content so soon because they enjoyed / just learned the normal difficulty once it was unlocked and added to duty finder, but are now robbed of the experience because content in this game jumps straight from hardcore lockouts to free for all casual duty finder without anything in between.

This is something else easily fixable by adding a variety of gear paths, you have the option of making Hardcore, Midcore, and Casual type raids that can be released in sooner increments than 6 months, allowing everyone to progress in some fashion and leaving none really behind.

[Damane]

I don't get it. You said you have more stuffs to do in FFXI? That game is 10 times worse when it comes to grinds. And what do you exactly do in FFXI?? Ding ding ding!!!! Collecting gears... and more gears... and more gears!! And farming and grinding, for xp, for money, for currency, for oh forget it, it's grinding for every single little things you want to do.

this has actually changed and i feel FFXIV is worse when it comes to grinds lol. FFXI has nowadays alot of instant gratifications, points, etc you accumulate by doing almost everything and can be used for everything.

[Felis]

How about you actually read the thread I linked? You've clearly missed the part where you Spiritbond the gear and then do not need the gear to have the stats.

This is not how spiritbound work.
It would be more likely that we would get special stats with new materia we would get from spiritbinding high level gear in the future. And those materias you put into other gear.

[Nalien]

This is not how spiritbound work.

So what? It would be a new system entirely, it can work however it wants to work. It wouldn't even need to work of Spiritbond, that's just a simple analogy between this game and IXs AP system.

Materia, as it currently is (yes they could rework it just like I'd suggest they do Spiritbond) is a terrible solution. First and foremost because Materia is terrible. Secondly, can't meld it to any BiS on the left side usually.

The game already checks for 100% Spiritbond to let you Convert gear, wouldn't be massively difficult to have it check for 100% Spiritbond to have you permanently learn its ability.

[Alukah]

Just give me this and make all gear somewhat relevant, and in turn make the events they come from relevant outside farming tomestones.

Only if they slow down with the ilvls, if they keep both extreme vertical progression and add special effects to keep old gear relevant it would create a situation similar to our current SB system, having to wear low level gear until you learn the skill, which is not a problem when the gear is still current, but -using 2.4 as an example- I'd hate to wear i80 or i90 gear just to learn traits, even if it's temporary.

[AzakaTonnerre]

Gear swaping could be ok, so long it don't work during combat.

While I am not a huge fan of gear swapping (though I do see some pro's in the system) what you said makes no sense from the stand point of we can already do what you say "could be ok" lol. I have three sets for my warrior (DPS, HP, and ILevel) and swap them out of combat all the time lol.

[Woggers]

I do agree with you OP, but 2.0 series is the 'Learning' part. Once 3.0 comes out we will have multiple end game raids. Which sounds like what you want. I really can't wait for this expansion! So exciting.
3.0 is only 6 months away. Maybe sooner, so if it really bugs you that much, just cancel your sub til 3.0 drops.

Not sure on who stated this on a earlier reply, but please stop saying that FFXIV has been out for over 4 years. ARR and FFXIV are two completely different games. Sure the lore NPCs and area names are the same, but totally restructured with new engine, music, playstyle, etc...

All in all wait for expansion, they have already confirmed multiple end game raids will be available, let's hope there will be more of a horizontal gear progression then.

[Akiza]

Adding horizontal gear progression to learn different abilities and enhanced abilities is a horrible idea. SE should add horizontal character progression instead.

[Tupsi]

Honestly, I don't agree with this type of idea at all. Whenever I hear the phrase "Horizontal Progression" I hear "Gear Swapping".

Whenever most people hear it they hear "having more options and variety of gear." The only options you have for weapons for example is if you choose not to do the insane grind for a Nexus (even XI's ultimate weapon grind was superior because the content it was tied to offered more incentives/rewards for my maxed job..what does grinding fates and low level dungeons offer my level 50 job?) Even 1.x had it and the only "gear swapping" you could do is in passive mode, which affected not only your damage but also your healing if you chose to do so. Bards gear swapped for their songs (since the AF enhances songs.)

[Nalien]

Adding horizontal gear progression to learn different abilities and enhanced abilities is a horrible idea. SE should add horizontal character progression instead.

Wait... What's the difference?

I can grind EXP on mobs while at the level cap for Merit Points (to copy XI) to learn new stuff, or I can grind EXP on mobs while at the level cap to Spiritbond gear (to copy IX) to learn new stuff.

So... Gear actually having a purpose in this game is a horrible idea? OK then...