End-game questions

[Cadmus]

On the trial version here and I've heard and read some things in passing that I've questions about.

1) what are Tomestones?
2) what is the ideal path I should take after lvl 50 if I want a strong Dark Knight? Like should I do raids X and Y over and over, or farm something in particular?
3) If I glamour using the projection of a PVP gear onto PVE, do I have to maintain my pvp rank to keep wearing it?
4) what's a good way to earn gil late game?
5) do I have to take up a crafting class?

Thank you

[Ehr]

1. Tomestones are a currency used to purchase endgame gear at 60. There are currently Tomestones of Poetics(from 2.0, these are actually for the last tier of gear from 2.0), Tomestones of Esoterics (used to purchase previous tier of gear in 3.0), and Tomestones of Lore (used to purchase current tier of endgame gear). Tomestones are earned from various content at 50 (50 content will only reward Poetics, not the other 2) and 60: Dungeons, Raids, Trials, PvP, and roulettes. The gear purchased with Tomestones is not the only endgame gear in the game, for example the current raid drops gear comparable to the gear purchased with tomestones.

2. Well once you get to 50, you cannot play Dark Knight right away, you'll need to complete A Real Reborns story through the story content from patch 2.55. Truthfully, gear doesn't matter until you reach endgame. I'm no Dark Knight so I can't speak specifically to what sub-stats they stack (i.e. the stats like determination, crit, parry, etc.). What content you need to do to get optimal gear is usually a mix of raiding and the aforementioned tomestone gear.

(A note on gear: the gear in FFXIV has iLvl's which denotes how "good" it is. For example, an iLvl 220 is better than an iLvl 210. The current highest iLvl of gear is 240, which is the iLvl of the gear that drops from the current difficult version of the raid, whereas the gear you purchase with tomestones is iLvl 230. Tomestone gear has to be upgraded to technically be 240.)

3. As far as I know, they have removed the PvP rank restriction on gear, so this shouldn't be an issue. Unless they put rank restrictions back in, but I don't think they have. (someone feel free to correct me on this if I'm wrong)

4. There's a lot of ways to earn gil late game. The really rich people are crafters and gatherers. You can also make gil off of selling materia if you spiritbond and convert gear into it. Some people just get by on doing roulettes every day. The absolute best way to make gil is probably crafting.

5. Taking up crafting is not required at all. I know some people who haven't leveled them. Though having them leveled is very handy for being able to repair gear whenever you want.

Please do ask if you have more questions/need clarification ^_^

[EveK]

Tomestones allow people to accrue tokens over time to turn in for whatever kind of gear they want rather than having to get lucky and get the right drop (which is also an option). They primarily buy equipment for levels 50 and 60 but can also be used to buy things like minions and orchestrion rolls. You can technically earn some at any level (via Rank A and S hunt marks) and more as your dungeons approach level 50, but they're intended to be max level currency and the easiest way to get the 50 ones is from level 50 stuff (and the 60 ones from 60 stuff).

The highest item level equipment now is also technically 245 weapons (the highest weapons weapons in existence have historically tended to be 5 item levels above all the other equipment which does indeed presently max at 240 and of course requires level 60).

Rest is pretty much already answered. There's generally plenty of incentive to do what's the most fun for you.

[Frizze]

Ehr and Eve did a good job on this, but ill clutter up your thread with my words too.

1. As was answered, these are currency that is exchanged for gear. You earn then doing content(dungeons, raids, trials, etc) at the level they represent(50/60) and then you exchange them for whatever gear upgrades you need(which doesnt necessarily have to be gear for the class you earned them on - get tomes on DRK and buy new healer pants if you like). They also get updated a couple times a year. So while right now we're fighting for Lore tomes to buy ilvl 230 equipment(and getting Esoterics as the 2nd tier for ilvl 210 gear and quest items), after the next patch Lore will be moved to 2nd tier and we'll be chasing Tomestones of Scripture so we can get ilvl 250(estimate, not confirmed) gear. As was mentioned, the top raids(8 and 24 man) also drop end-game gear. Different classes emphasize different stats, so the optimal set of gear for you will likely be a mix(though your set will be perfectly fine if its all tome gear with no raid pieces - i would say or vice versa but if you can raid then youre earning tomes and can buy any pieces that are better then the dropped version).

2. The ideal path is to learn the class really well. Know what your skills do and how to use them best. Know your rotations for tanking, off tanking, and DPS. Know what to do when things start to go wrong so you can stop them. Know how your abilities interact with the rest of the group so you can get the most out of everyone. Get your cross-class skills and learn them too. Then learn the fights. At any given time the end game only consists of a few raids trials and dungeons(as new ones are added in future patches with better stuff, people stop focusing on the older ones), so learn what to do in the fights youll repeat the most. In this game all your gear will eventually be outdated, so whatever i might tell you to try to run today would be different by november. One thing to remember though, your weapon is your most important piece of gear in determining how effective you are. So find a path to a good one(savage raid, tomestone, quest, ex trial).

3. I dont pvp, so im not 100% on this answer. However, once a glamour is assigned to a piece of gear it stays. You can remove a glamour or write over it with a new one, but unless you do that piece of gear will forever look the way you changed it to look.

4. Sell things and challenge log. Though this game really doesnt require much gil. The expensive stuff is all optional(glamour equipment, housing, crafting mats) and much of it player made.

5. Do you want to? The game will never ask you to craft anything unless you unlock a crafting class. There are a very few quests that ask for crafted items, and the ones that do all use items that are tradable(and some can even be gotten by other means). Many people playing have never made a single thing themselves, while others have all 8 crafting(plus 3 gathering) classes maxed out. So yeah, this one is entirely your call.

Finally: Welcome to Eorzea, enjoy your time here, and if theres more info you need then dont hesitate to ask!

[Cadmus]

Ty all for the thorough answers. I got a Pally to 35 and Gladiator to 8 right now, but think I'll max Warrior before Dark Knight. I heard it's better in both PVE and PVP (correct me if wrong).

Nvm I still might go with DK just cuz it looks so badass. Does it have any problems tanking end-game? Like do people ever go "damn, wish we had a warrior/paladin instead"?

[Ehr]

Does it have any problems tanking end-game? Like do people ever go "damn, wish we had a warrior/paladin instead"?

Not usually.

[Claire_Pendragon]

(2) if this was meant for Lv60 instead of 50, then this is actually something more so left up to you.
It's like asking how should i get exp? dungeons? guildhests? quests? FATEs? PotD? etc.

If you want to experience everything, vs getting to the strongest gear asap, you will take different paths.

If you want the quickest path;
(1) Buy item level 220 HQ (High Quality) gear form the AH, and put grade5 materia on it. (You cant put VIT or STR on armor, as it already has that, but you can put critical, determination, or skill speed on them IF they dont already have that stat. (in some cases, it has the stat, but in low amounts, so u can put1.5 materia on it)
(2) Farm Lore Tomes from any content you enjoy, but you will be capped at 450 a week. Which means u cant buy much. In the mean time, do weeping city for 230 armor. And do Palace of the Dead for 235 weapon. Once you either have a Lore Weapon, or PotD weapon, do Alexander Savage floor5 for some upgrade gear. You cant get everything, but Alexander Savage has the best gear. Once you're even higher in gear, and quite a few weeks pass by, where you have upgraded lore gear (iLv240) and filled in remaining slots with 230 gear, or AlexSav5 gear (iLv245) you should be able to handle harder floors, further gaining items for higher iLv gear.

The best weapons atm are Lore (230) being upgraded to 240, and your relic weapon, which will take up more time than the alternatives imo.

at the end of the month, everything I just said will no longer apply, and you will need to collect tomes of Scriptures. And do Alex Savage 9 for the best gear, and with enough, do the remaining floors

If you want to experience everything path;
Unlock all Lv60 and Lv50 dungeons for tome grinding.
Fight any HW HUNTs you encounter, including joining HUNT LSs, and doing your weekly/daily HUNTs for i170 gear, which upgrade to i180.
Once iLv 170, Then do Alexander normal floors 1-4 for i190 gear
Once iLv175, Then do Void Ark for i200 gear.
Buy esoteric accessories, while getting the armor from void ark.
Upgrade the esoterics with Void Ark drop at the end. (Farthing)
Once your iLv is 200 you can do Alexander Normal floors 5-8, which give i220 gear.
Then once you're iLv205 you can do weeping city for i230 gear (you can only get 1 item a week, and its only armor)
Then Alexander Savage for 245 gear.

There is also a list for weapons in the same manner, but you have some options in this, but essentially weapons from HUNTs, esoterics, PotD, Lore, and lastly a bunch of EX primal fights.

[Cadmus]

Ty for the response. I'll go the proper/longer path I think.

I just learned how to dye equipment. If I die a weapon that has a glowing visual effect, would it dye the color of the glow, or just the weapon and the glow will remain the same?

[Taika]

Nvm I still might go with DK just cuz it looks so badass. Does it have any problems tanking end-game? Like do people ever go "damn, wish we had a warrior/paladin instead"?

If you're planning to do the highest level of endgame (currently Alexander Savage and extreme primals), there are usually 2 tanks in the party, and the most popular tank setup seems to be DRK and WAR, where DRK is the main tank and WAR is the off tank (although in many fights there are tank swaps and the MT / OT roles vary through the fight). If you're planning to do easier endgame content such as expert dungeons and 24 person raids, your job really makes no difference. Currently WAR is the most popular option of the 3 tanks because of its DPS power, so pretty much every group runs with a WAR. I would imagine most groups also run with DRK as 2nd tank if they can find one instead of PLD.

I just learned how to dye equipment. If I die a weapon that has a glowing visual effect, would it dye the color of the glow, or just the weapon and the glow will remain the same?

The parts getting dyed depend on the item you're dyeing, but I don't think any dye will change the glow on anything.

[Ehr]

Ty for the response. I'll go the proper/longer path I think.

I just learned how to dye equipment. If I die a weapon that has a glowing visual effect, would it dye the color of the glow, or just the weapon and the glow will remain the same?

It won't dye the glow.