Looking for Input on How Your FC is Coping

[Michou]

Coping with what? Well, coping with anything really. Lots of questions here and they do not all need an answer, just doing some open research.

I am just looking for general input for what your FC does after the weekly reset, after reaching a big goal, after all is said and done? What is left to do as a FC before members start leaving, looking for a more active FC? Can a FC stay active inbetween patches? Is your current FC active?

Any input would be greatly appreciated!

[Naunet]

My FC in this game is just a personal one for my husband and our two close friends, but I run a raiding guild in WildStar and your concerns are fairly universal.

I've found that having a Discord server and using it to chat when we're not in-game has really helped bring our members closer together. It also allows us to maintain connection to individuals who PUGed with us in the past and who enjoyed running with us but may be part of other guilds - which provides a good source of other people willing to do various activities.

We also make a point to do things together outside of our scheduled raid nights. These things won't just happen organically - it's kind of the responsibility of every member to log in and make requests of other members, be it for running Prime content, hunting world bosses, leveling or attuning alts, helping with a housing issue, etc. FFXIV equivalents might be farming trials for weapons or mount tokens, S and A rank hunting, or helping someone with tomestone grinds. I think doing stuff together outside of raid night is critical to maintaining camaraderie in the guild and for member retention.

If you've just achieved a major guild goal, then take a little time to celebrate before discussing as a group what goal you would like to next set. Not only will this bring in more ideas to the pot, but it will give the members a stake in the guild and playing together.

[edit] I have found that in FFXIV, a lot of the "raiding" scene revolves around linkshell-based statics that often do not have the same level of group loyalty as a raiding guild in other MMOs. Honestly this is one of the reasons why I don't really raid in this game, BUT I think the strategies mentioned above can apply to really any situation.

[Xatsh]

Even number patches are extremely hard on any endgame guild due to the sheer lack of content and only meaningful endgame being tokens farming and savage content.

Odd number patches there typically is more for a FC to do although honestly still lacking.

Basically all you can do is try to find things to keep ppl active or level alts and help ppl with content using them.

This game endgame progression wise can be completed in about 6hrs of game time a week once you learn the content. Most serious endgame groups/guild I know spend most their times working on Feeding runs to get everyone top parse of FFLogs.

As for keeping members. This game it is harder then most mmos because people do not need guilds at all to progress, so the loyalty factor is missing. You will lose people during the low periods in patches it is inevitable. People will get bored and log in for 1-2/7 days a week do their weekly progression content, other not as caught up or who want to play more then endgame will log mid/end week and say man this guild is dead the leave. Core issue is in game design...nothing you can do about it really. Been fighting it since ARR launched.

[Dzian]

As for keeping members. This game it is harder then most mmos because people do not need guilds at all to progress, so the loyalty factor is missing. You will lose people during the low periods in patches it is inevitable. People will get bored and log in for 1-2/7 days a week do their weekly progression content, other not as caught up or who want to play more then endgame will log mid/end week and say man this guild is dead the leave. Core issue is in game design...nothing you can do about it really. Been fighting it since ARR launched.

This.

With the games design. Free Companies are nothing more than glorified chat channels pretty much. Everything in the game is done on such a strict design to be done solo pretty much just jumping into the duty finder or raid finder and going whenever. Even v4s can be done in raid finder with absolutely no friends or social connections at all. There is no loyalty or teamwork in the genenral community really, That's why people always say there groups / statics fall apart because once someones got the clear or drop they jump ship to a different group...

The other issue is content in general with the exception of aquopolis or the canals is all built around strict party sizes and compositions which even if you want to do it as a free company often ends up being impossible because you either need 8 people and you've only got 6-7 (you could get a pug or 2 but not always a desirable option cos they might bail as soon as they've got there drop and leave the 6-7 of you in the dirt.) Or on the other hand you need 8 people and you've got 10 that want to do it. So someones gonna be excluded and it's really difficult to make everyone feel included. This is made even more true with some of the loot systems in place. 8 of you clear savage for 2 chests and shuffle around the members for the other 2 and you screw up there loot chests because 6 of you have already cleared.

This game actually promotes anti social and anti inclusive behaviour really because all you ever need is the duty finder. I think this also in part leads to the dubbed toxic behaviour players often complain about. You can be an ass to people and what does it matter the likely hood duty finder will match you with them again is slim to none. at least not in any time frame they'd remember you.

There's also the impatience factor that seems to be prominient with many players these days. Why wait for everyone else to do something when you can go go go right now. In Early ARR this is what pulled many freee companies apart. Some friends said lets work on relics together.. then before long everyones on completely different stages grinding nexus lights while one guy is still trying to do his alexandrite or something... No loyalty, No reason to wait when you can just go off and do it on your own via duty finder...

As much as people may flame it. This is one the biggest things I miss from XI. (pre abbyysea)
The endgame required teamwork and was promoted social connections and inclusiveness pretty much. it built groups and bonds between players.
It really didn't matter if 8 people wanted to go do Appollyon that day or 18 people. You could include everyone one and still make progress. Dynamis and Sky were the same, so were ZNMs and various pop NMs even some HNMs, It really didn't matter how many people you had there was always something you could do together.. if a few didn't turn up you might not to trigger the mega boss that run but you could still work on the next set of pop items together.

Another thing I miss from XI is the playerbase mentality. players were generally much more helpful. We had players doing Temenos even though they needed nothing from it. players doing Appollyon even though they eeded nothing from it. Sky, Einherjar and ZNMs again.
It was more about making the group stroinger as a whole than the player stronger as an individual. where as Xiv is a lot more self entitled whats in it for me kind of mentality.

One of the things players have asked for ever since even before ARR has been for actual content designed for free companies to do working together as a team. even the old idea that freee companies could summon primals was built around this concept of actually working together as a free company and not just a random group of indivuduals all basiacally soloing the same thing. but has never been implemented. free companies are basically then just chat channels...

potd had some hope for this in a very small way but then people went mad and tried to create parties to burn 51-200 in a single session because the idea of those same people coming back next week to work on the next 20-30 floors was laughable...

It's quite ironic really. We live in what is dubbed as the age of social gaming. But it actually more anti social than social. Just because you play with other people doesn't mean you play together. It's kinda like getting on the tube with 50 other people. Your not making a journey together or being sociable. Your just a bunch of people who happen to be going the same way. Games are the same. Your expert roulette isn't 4 people working together it's just 4 people who are going the same way. Which is why no one talks to each other. It's such an anti social player base

[Cidel]

truth

I agree with everything you said. The strict party compositions, systems/mechanics and worthwhile endgame activites that are made to discourage players from doing outside of a static/clique/whatever you want to call it are a big factor, but not as big as:

This game promotes anti social and anti inclusive behaviour really because all you ever need is the duty finder. I think this also in part leads to the dubbed toxic behaviour players often complain about. You can be an ass to people and what does it matter the likely hood duty finder will match you with them again is slim to none. at least in any time frame they'd remember you.

Sometimes I wonder if it's just me that sees all these anti-social content and designs in-place, but posts like this reaffirms my sanity.

[Gemina]

We're not really hardcore raiders in my guild. We are a social FC, and we are like-minded in the sense that we don't rely on grouping with each other to stay active. It's more like a home everyone comes to stable their bird, take off their shoes and hang up their coat. Because if this, we don't need fresh content or a weekly reset to become or stay active with each other again.

Don't get me wrong, we do content together, but rarely is it fresh content. We usually group when one or more people need a clear, an elite mark is in someone's way, farming drops, or just for shitzngiggles. I think our laid back guild is what keeps the members we have from leaving because everyone enjoys not being pressured to do anything, and they can come and go as they please. Members have left though for more hardcore guilds so they can accomplish their goals faster, and most of them have come right back talking about how much they missed the casual atmosphere we have.

[Rakiria]

I've had to pretty much rebuild my fc with a few members who always remained until new a few times already. We usually recruit until we have a nice comfortable amount of people that are all social and get along well, but you can't really do anything to keep them from leaving, be it leaving the game because there simply is no content worth playing for them or they found something that suits them better.
I run a social / roleplay fc, so the content drought is not really a problem for the roleplayers. But even the non-roleplaying members sometimes just log on to see what's up. And since we're all pretty casual, we can pretty much always go to pony / bird farms where perfect groups of 8 are not an issue, since barely anyone even has any birds. Still, people will leave nonetheless, and the way my group of lovely nerds who stayed since back when we all came together cope with that is, just accept it, recognise it, and don't give up on rebuilding again and again. Because even if they all left, we still had fun teasing the brown haired hyur who was running after everyone's catgirl, or progressing our airship with the lalafell who was always so polite, or helping the ambitious highlander progress in endgame, or play triple triad with the miqo'te man who loved pirates.

[Michou]

Great input so far! It's nice, although sad, to know more about the endgame atmosphere for FCs. It makes sense that people end up becoming drifters, in a sense, going from FC to FC or from one raid group to another. So I have a few more questions come to mind, feel free to answer some or all!

What do you do when your FC becomes inactive, aside from reset day? Do you still stick with your group or drift on to the next FC in line? Do you have any hard feelings towards the people that leave your FC or raiding group? And do you see low-periods as just a normal thing to not be worried about?

[Hestzhyen]

Great input so far! It's nice, although sad, to know more about the endgame atmosphere for FCs. It makes sense that people end up becoming drifters, in a sense, going from FC to FC or from one raid group to another. So I have a few more questions come to mind, feel free to answer some or all!

What do you do when your FC becomes inactive, aside from reset day? Do you still stick with your group or drift on to the next FC in line? Do you have any hard feelings towards the people that leave your FC or raiding group? And do you see low-periods as just a normal thing to not be worried about?

Don't freak out about activity dropping after the excitement for available content dies out. The game's active population rises and dips with the content patches so quiet groups will probably get lively again when new things to do are added to the game. Just be there to welcome them back and help them catch up.

Generally though, it's not really worth getting attached to people in a game unless you know them IRL. People come and go all the time. If you want your FC to be a big, happy family then you'll have to work hard to make it so. But don't take it personally or get too upset if people leave for their own reasons. Oftentimes people don't leave because they want to, but because they have to.

[MrsT]

This is all fine unless you are in a congested world. The closures are absolutely killing smaller FC's