EXP Parties as an option please!

[kyuven]

Just make it so that ANY combination of ANY jobs can clear ANY exp dungeons.

Diablo 3 and FFXIV, nor FFXI, are even close to the same type of game.
Having to balance content for completion by any combination of classes/jobs is a development nightmare that is PROBABLY partially the reason Diablo 3 took over a decade to complete.
If you try, people will either come up with their own golden trinities and have exclusionist mentalities, or the content is so easy it can be done in your sleep. Unless you REALLY emphasize mechanics over boss stats, this is what you get.
And then people would complain that they can't do X dungeon as Y class, while at the same time complaining that Z dungeon is too easy or N dungeon is too hard.

[Calevr]

I am still waiting for something like this to come to FFXIV. +1

If I could have something else though that made it easier to find players for exp grinding, I would ask the devs to either tweak or expand the Battlecraft Leves and give the players better party options. This is my idea, keep each task to a time limit, but let the mobs be able to respawn, this allows the party to track and kill as many mobs as they please. Give every mob strong attacks and high defence so it provides a challenge. After the time limit or when the party decides to complete the task, speak to the Battlewarden to collect your reward. Bonus exp should be awarded for every additional mob you can kill.

If you have an idea how exp parties can work, share it!

[AlexionSkylark]

what IS an EXP party after all?

[Enkidoh]

When you remove all the tedious grinding, ultimately an old-style EXP party is just a social event, nothing more (which is the real arguement being made here - the OP basically just wants a chat room with fighting in it).

FFXI EXP parties were so monotonous due to FFXI's slow, drawn out battle system, hence socializing was a way to break the monotony and actually make it fun - it's like any real-life situation where a group of people are thrown together in a dull or boring setting and start to have conversations to make things more interesting. Nothing wrong with that of course, except it just wouldn't work here, as FFXIV's battle system is just too fast paced to spend time yacking about random stuff.

This is why you usually don't see people talking much in a dungeon - they're more worried with the task at hand to waste time chewing the fat (especially as dungeons are timed and you simply don't have time to waste talking).

Really, if you want to chat with random people, go sit in the Adventurer's Guild around a table and strike up a conversation around a bottle of gyshal ale, battles just aren't the right place for that.

[BlaiseArath]

i don't see why all of you people are getting so blatantly butdevestated and the idea of someone wanting Exp parties back. Its just as easy to demonize it like you guys are as it is to romanticize it. Ignoring the fact that the OP is clearing saying they do not want exp parties to be the only way for Exp, and just another viable alternative, I don't see how anyone could be harmed by this concept.

FFXI exping was tediously slow yes, but it was the social aspect that made it bareable, and essentially all he wants back is the social aspect. Unfortunately, I can't say exp parties will bring that back, the combat pace will still be the same so there will be no room to talk. As much as I'd like a socializing aspect outside of FC/LS, you'll not find them in Exp parties/dungeons/whatever. Combat is to fast-paced for talking to your fellow players. They've essentially made an anti-social game. Playing in a dungeon I might as well be with NPCs for all the feedback I ever get.

[Avenger]

FFXIV has level sync for FATEs, guildhests, and dungeons, but I'd like to see regular party level sync, so that you could do leves, maps, random open world fights, etc., with friends of any level and everyone would still get a bit of challenge and possibly XP as well.

[kyuven]

FFXIV has level sync for FATEs, guildhests, and dungeons, but I'd like to see regular party level sync, so that you could do leves, maps, random open world fights, etc., with friends of any level and everyone would still get a bit of challenge and possibly XP as well.

Most maps worth doing are for level 50 anyway, no sync needed (til the expansion, when they'll have new maps to do)
Leves maybe, but if they level scaled people who are doing books would be rather upset. They're tedious enough without being forced to level sync.
Random open world fights? OK, again, which ones? If it weren't for kill X quests, certain loot drops, Spiritbonding, and Animus Books. There would be no reason to kill world spawn mobs at all. And every single one of them is soloable.
Level syncing exists in the places it does because those are the things designed for group content. anything without level syncing of some kind is designed to be soloable.

[Cynthis]

I support this message. Some of the most fun I had in 1.0 was in wolf killing parties in Natalan or even parties for mutual power levelling that turned out to be hour long chats where I made most of the friends I had in the game. If it hadn't been for the fact that I changed FC I wouldn't really have made any new friends in ARR because of the lack of these kind of activities. The closest we have got to things like these have been light farming parties which is the main reason I found that to be the least painful zodiac weapon phase.

[Radacci]

you're asking for XP parties, FATEs are exp parties....
you miss the social bit, so why are you asking for exp parties that you can already do?
you can also have social LS/FC parties....so there's nothing missing...
If your fate party doesn't talk, then make a PF asking for social grinders. the only thing preventing you from having social exp parties, is you, not SE.

[Sapphic]

FFXI purists do not like the fact you run around to do fates and you don't need have to have a balanced party to exp.

It's still the same inregards to jobs in FFXI, before May it was stack THFs and after job changes in May update it's back to stacking SAM for DPS. FFXI is the worst system to hold up as a model for balance. As most jobs are ignored for the FOTM jobs, as everyone wants the path of least resistence. Even many of the "FFXI purists" ignore that aspect. Also what parties where killing dictated what jobs they took do to mob strengths and weaknesses to different damge types/elements. Which alienated jobs also.

Many jobs where forced to xp solo on things like mob pets/summons because they, simply, weren't wanted.

But fortunatelly they learnt from past mistakes and all jobs are viable in 14 for all content. No more, "sorry, you can't do this content as DRG as it is strong to piercing, but don't worry we will kick the other DPS for the next boss as it is weak to piercing and immune to crushing damage"