Quote Originally Posted by Seraphyel View Post
Hey there,
Right now I have no Free Company - should I get one just for doing those quests?
)
You should find a Free Company to play with. There are a number of them on every server, and all of the ones I've encountered have been extremely helpful running instance to get me through content, whether it is leveling one of the new jobs or one of the original classes/jobs. A bonus - you get to hang out with some cool people in-game.

The story IS important -- you get a perfect explanation of WHY you got into Ishgard and what you're supposed to do now that you're there. You will need the gear you get from that content when you start out in HW -- the enemies hit MUCH harder than in the 1-50 runup, and take much more damage before they go down. A brand new level 50 has ilevel 55 gear. You'll have ilevel 110 gear at the end of the 2.x Main Story, and will need it in HW!

Take care. See you in Ishgard.