Is it time for a pass at companions?

[Nomuno]

When you engage in combat, the Chocobo will close in an attack from the direction he's coming from and parks it there until the mob is dead. Since they're usually behind you when you engage, of course they're going to go right up next to you if you stand still.

You want him out of frontal cones? YOU move and swing the mob around. That's kind of your job as a tank. It's something done in literally every dungeon trash and boss in the game where it's possible.

It might make sense to you to have him not stand in aoes, but you're a person who is intelligent enough to know to do that. A chocobo isn't.

Their eyes are on opposite sides of their heads. They LITERALLY cannot see much in front of them!

I don't think you've even played a tank with healer birb. https://streamable.com/z0w40 A place button would be perfect for those who are tanking or melee'ing and don't want their bird just standing there when its not attacking anyways

[Gemina]

The wonky AI definitely makes the bird seem duuummmm. The healer bird stays by you because it is not engaged with any enemies. Since there is no other AI programmed in, the bird is dumb and does the only thing it knows... Follow you everywhere.

To better keep your Bo alive and out of AoEs, you'll have to micromanage its stances. Switch to healing when you need it, and leave it in DPS the rest of the time. You can also send your Bo away before it dies to prevent the horror of witnessing it. It also allows you to immediately resummon him.

In their defense, chocobos are freakin clutch on their stuns. They do it better than most RL players.

[Jojoya]

Look, I understand what companions are and what they were intended to be. That being said, the bird is STUPID. Literally, Im playing a tank, bird is healer and is literally up my bum the entire time. Makes no sense to stand in front of the mob I'm tanking....0

Can we at least have a place feature (like you have with pets) so we can place our companion elsewhere while playing a melee range class?

or at least upgrade their AI to match trust NPC AI (if that's even if possible) and only if they are actually dodging stuff and not moving in a script

if we cant have either of the two, can we have a different range setting for when the companion is on healer mode? at least 3-6x the current distance? An optional setting? for the love of god, I cant take it

I agree that it's silly for a chocobo in Healer stance to always be right next to us when they don't have a problem with healing at a distance when in Free stance. They should remain in one place once combat starts unless we move out of range and they need to get closer.

It's also pretty silly that they'll stop healing us just because we're slightly higher or slightly lower in elevation (no line of sight issue) but if we stand right on top of them they'll go back to spam healing.

An improvement to the AI would be welcome. At the very least if it's supposed to be following me, have it stop casting to move when I move.

Can't you get your chocobo out of the AoE with the follow command? I mean, it's a PITA but it's there. Genuine question since I've never really tried and don't use the chocobo as often as I should.

I agree it would be better if the chocobo could behave more autonomously like the trusts do, though.

There's a bit of a delay before it obeys a follow command when it's too close to you (which it always is during Healer Stance).

The one advantage is that they do take greatly reduced damage taken from AoEs in most cases. The real problem is the status effects some of those AoEs apply (like the ones from Bad Breath). I can be in a Morbol's face when it starts casting, immediately move to the far side to avoid it and my chocobo will still be sitting there trying to decide if it should also move if it's in Healer Stance.

[Deceptus]

Was just thinking about this the other day

YES

Our bird buddies have been completely forgotten about.

Want an example? They have accuracy traits. Accuracy was removed in Heavensward, 2 years ago (2017). That pretty much says they haven't even looked at them since then.

Apparently however, This is working as intended

What I want:

Healer birds to stay put. If I need healed, I need it and I don't want the bird right next to me eating every aoe. Also, every time they move, they can't cast.

A Fourth bird spec, ranged DPS. It's past time we had another bird spec. Give them some more levels!

Bardings with stats on them. As of now they're static, they are what they are. This would give people incentive to barding hunt.

[Saidosha]

Would also welcome improvements to AI in the various stances.

Though, I'd also be selfish and hope for some improvements to the leveling process and the onion wall.

[Shougun]

Would love to see our Chocobos updated, in like every way lol (including their gambit/AI system). I made a huge thread on wishing for more chocobo content here: http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...t-Tribe-etc%29

With the tl;dr highlights being

• New Chocobo Beast Tribe (fat chocobo / chocobo paradise FFIX throwback), this being a non-expansion specific beast tribe that will be updated cross expansions (and will be a major chocobo upgrading hub/progression system)
• Hot and Cold
• Chocobos being allowed into more content (including things like anything a squadron can be a chocobo could as well)
• New improved AI
• New Jobs/sub job system adding more customization and gameplay features (with smoother leveling added afterwards, chocobo beast tribe being a feature of that)
• New appearance customization including chocobo emotes (emotes you can make your chocobo do, as well do with your chocobo), new feathers/feather types (fluffy, etc, like some of the variations cross FF games), breeding

I don't think you've even played a tank with healer birb. https://streamable.com/z0w40 A place button would be perfect for those who are tanking or melee'ing and don't want their bird just standing there when its not attacking anyways

Not arguing against a place feature but definitely just having them be smart enough to not do that would work well too . Since then you'd not have to place them every fight, they'd just not stand in the cones of everything in healer mode lol . Giving them some of that Trust positional AI.

[Savagelf]

companion expansion suggest

first upgrade the AI use the trust AI this AI seem to be alittle more advance then chocobo AI

add dragonling companion with update ai

if finish the dragoon companion
you get Orn Khai you get build friendship and when he gain more friendship while fight side by he get increase exp.
dragonling start at lvl 1 and you have level up to lvl 80 have ability and trait thing like chocobo has own exp system to level with
you go back if you complete dragoon and get Orn Khai
player get dragonling at lvl 30

with end of the dragonsong war the dragon feel it time bond once more with they mortal companion and tried rebuild old relationship
dragonling companion come out at same time rebuild Ishgard does.

[Genz]

Companion needs some update, like every other old features and content of the game. GaaS should strive to keep most, if not all, of their content in an acceptable state. FFXIV is deplorable in this aspect.
At least the companion is not "bad", just very limited. I wish we had one big unique companion/trust system instead of the 3 concurrent and equally incomplete gimmicks we have now.

[MonsutaMan]

We need an option to cook it, which will provide a food buff. That may be more useful.

[Bacent]

The best you can sadly do for your chocobo if you want it to be healing you and NOT on you is to put it on free stance and make it unlearn most of its skills.



I don't know why SE hasn't made any changes to how a companion acts since the game came out, but it probably has to do something with coding.

Bardings with stats on them. As of now they're static, they are what they are. This would give people incentive to barding hunt.

I wouldn't want this. I have between 35-40 bardings right now, some of which are impossible for players to get now (Like the Christmas one from 2013, unless you can find it for millions on the MB). There's also the Royal Barding that you can only get from SE's contests.

There's only one barding I use about 99% of the time and I honestly don't want to be forced to use another just because the stats are better than my Race Barding.

IF there were a stat bonus having to do with barding, I would rather it be for having X amount of barding sets, but again with some of the bardings being too rare/nearly obtainable, people would be locked out of said stats.