Idea: Merit system

[Bebekurenai]

I don't know if anyone came up with this already, but here goes anyways.

I was just thinking of an idea to introduce a job specialist system for battle classes similar to crafter specialists, and inspired by merits in FF11 and/or talents in WoW.

This system would be active from level 80 onwards and would allow us to specialize in one job only, having to exchange a good amount of the latest tomestones (maybe 1500) that cap a 450 per week, for an item that after using it, resets all your merits so you can relocate them. This would avoid changing them constantly as you'd have to prioritise if you want to spend tomes in gear, weapons, mats or merit reset.
How do you gain merits? Everytime you max a job to 80, and at completion of the relevant final job quest, one guaranteed reward will be a merit point. When you complete all jobs and their quests, together with the Amaro mount, you'd get an extra quest with lets say 3 merit points rewarded.
Now, what can you merit?
You can't merit role skills such as swift cast, rampart etc, and you can't merit stances such as iron will.
You can merit weaponskills, healing spells, damage spells and certain abilities.
Let's imagine you can merit healing spells up to three times with an increase of 3% potency every time, damage spells another 3 levels with 3% increase, weapons kills can merit two levels for also 3%. Just an example. And not all spells or all weaponskills, maybe the last part of a combo or the Dot potency.
The goal is to have people stand out a bit with their specialisation, have a scholar maybe fully merited on galvanize, partnered with an astro or whm that has merits in quicker casting, again, just an example.
And the point of getting merits by levelling other jobs you won't touch again is mainly to at least have a basic knowledge of other classes so you can do your own more efficiently (I know this doesn't really work now but hey, one more try).
What happens after ShB when we get a new expansion and a level cap increase to 90? Merits get an upgrade too. Let's be generous and up each category for additional 2 levels?
Level 80: galvanize potency increase by 3% each level 1/3
Level 90: galvanize potency increase by 3% each level 1/5

I'm not a programmer so I can't judge the balancing and impact it would have, but I find it quiet interesting as an idea, and it could work in FF14. What do you guys think?

[Bacent]

Oh gods please no. I enjoy being able to swap classes to do things with friends/groups, and 14 actually LETS PEOPLE PLAY MULTIPLE CLASSES. The only specializing is with crafting, and that's rather minimal in difference as well.

Last thing I want really want to see in game (Besides more eureka) is something like this that people will force you to follow what everyone does or get booted from groups even more than it happens right now just from materia. You're literally asking them to change how the game flows.

And if you want a merit system, then XI still has one - https://ffxiclopedia.fandom.com/wiki...y:Merit_Points - But XI was more based around 'Certain races are better at certain classes' from what I remember. Racial bonuses are negligible here.

[Enkidoh]

Also FFXI's Merit System was to compensate for it's level cap being frozen at level 75 for something like eight years - FFXIV is constantly raising the cap ten levels every time a new expansion comes out so it's not necessary at this time. Maybe when we hit level 99 they might introduce something like that. But for the near future at least, it probably won't happen.

[Vaer]

This would just end up splitting the player base.

Mechanics like merits is a "time to win" mechanic. It wouldn't be a complete disaster in self contained content that doesn't affect the main stuff (so stuff like Eureka, Diadem, etc.) but making people grind for hundreds of hours to be end game ready isn't something that would work too well in this game due to how it has been structured in general.

Basically, people would end up taking people with more merits.

You could design things where merits are not needed or taken into consideration, but the people with them will crush the content.

XI had barely any balance to begin with so it worked decently there. It also had barely any instancing in it's prime and what instancing there was allowed you to bring tons of people into it. XIV is a bit more structured with strict player limits.

[Raqrie_Tohka]

Sounds like EVE online skill system. Lot of enforced grind. Newcomer unfriendly. Min-max pressure.
Perhaps would work on non-combat stuff like Achievements and glamour which coincidentally there is some already.

[Saefinn]

Also FFXI's Merit System was to compensate for it's level cap being frozen at level 75 for something like eight years - FFXIV is constantly raising the cap ten levels every time a new expansion comes out so it's not necessary at this time. Maybe when we hit level 99 they might introduce something like that. But for the near future at least, it probably won't happen.

At a level 99 they've introduced Job Points in addition to Merit Points and ended up implementing an iLevel system on top to compensate the fact they cannot go above level 99 due to a technicality. Then they have equipment restricted by "Superior" grades, which are tiered and gained after spedning certain amounts of job points.

I expect the way this game is coded probably won't find itself hitting hurdles like this where they have to creatively think of new forms of job progression for new content. I expect like WoW, we'll not be capped at level 99 but get to 100, 110 and so on.

[Nalien]

Merits aside, I do feel like XIV needs a new endgame progression system... Item level just really doesn't cut it, given it's largely redundant for the vast majority of content... Even then, stats and itemization in XIV are so barebones that item level increasing simply isn't remotely exciting... What's really the best we get? Extra Skill Speed granting an additional Fell Cleave during Inner Release? Can't think of anything other than that (and similar versions for other Jobs) that stat growth actually achieves, and I'm fairly certain that level of Skill Speed is achieved early on enough as to not be labelled as "endgame" progression...

[Deusteele]

Hell no, no level cap ability progression BS. I don't need to level up to the new expansions cap, only to have half my class locked behind some grind-or-die tryhards e-peen tracker.

[Lunavi]

Why do you want us to have to play through MSQ one time for each job we want to play? This is like one of the best parts of this game compared to WoW, it is already bad enough that they still have the miserable specialist system for crafters.

[Shougun]

I wouldn't want to see a merit system that affects our combat capabilities as many of the reasons people have referenced, but I do think a cosmetic merit system could be fun- especially if presented in a nostalgic way. I think it'd also be nice because we'd still have a use for EXP after cap, so for those who wanted to heavily invest on their cap job rather than "well guess I need to level something else if I don't want exp to go down the flusher".

Nostalgic way as in we could have a sphere grid, crystarium system (FFXIII, 3d sphere grid), or license board (FFXII). I think the biggest problem being how the game shares that info and allowing players a way to manage different options, as someone may want to have some cool X effect on for their Paladin but not for their Dark Knight.

Cosmetic as in we could unlock unique things for jobs specifically as well as in general.

Job specific things for example could be:

• Dragoon- unlock hyper jump mode, allowing dragoon to make great leaps in areas they've unlocked their aether currents (it activates via the mount system). Now they can have that dragoon imagery of being able to leap through the air. An upgrade variant may even give them double jump.
• Dark Knight- unlock the smokey energy effect from the Heavensward trailer that radiates off the dark knight while they're under their dark side effect
• White Mage- Unlock a holy breast plate armor
• White Mage- Their wing ability gains another set of wings and gets larger (visually)
• Black Mage- Unlock a new heavy armor reminiscent of Ex-Death / Golbez (although I would like to see this become a job concept as a "battle mage" sort of thing, but if not that then this is cool too)

Being able to change visuals and animations of things, a unique feature not really available else where. As well as goofy new abilities because why not.

Or general concepts, including class and ability goofing:

• Unlock the flying ability (mount) from the cutscenes in the main story
• Hildibrand / Godbert run mount (that supersonic dust kick up mount)
• Some side character outfits from other FF games
• Ability to place down a camp fire and stumps/seats
• Alchemist - unlocks quick brewing that creates a timed life potion (will be removed from inventory) that greatly increases out of combat regeneration and is mostly just an RP / for fun ability
• Culinarian - brew drinks and food like above, mostly just for the fun of it but also perhaps has that built in +couple % exp boost
• Radiance - occasionally very subtle god rays will illuminate you (perhaps unlocked through Paladin / White Mage but can be used on other jobs)
• DoM - Magic camp fire
• DoW - reduces fall damage
• DoW - As you run you slowly increase your run speed (resting when you stop, obviously has a cap but gets to a respectable number)
• DoM - Surf - as you run you'll hear a chime after a bit that unlocks the ability to press space once to get into a sort of glide over ground ability that increases movement speed
• DoM - passive, tap jump while falling - casts slow fall, slows falls and reduces damage
• DoM - Levitation, double tap stops falling, instant cast can be cast while falling, resets fall damage, has a short duration before it'll turn back off (can't just stand somewhere forever)

Effects that are generally open world goof off that do affect things like culinary exp boost quick food or reduced fall damage would not work in any instanced content (including pvp), I don't want any "you didn't buy x so you can't come" merit issues.

Etc.. just customization and goof off things that players can unlock because they can. Spending that otherwise lost experience. Encouraging SE to check out WoW's Toy Box as well for ideas of things players could goof around with (and other silly spells).