Opinions on 71-80 leveling

[Laerune]

I do the roulettes first, then challenge log, then I spam Bozja.

[Vyrerus]

I appreciate all the answers but I kind of feel like my question still hasn't been directly answered fully.

What I'm more asking for (rather than the best way to level to 80) is what leveling methods provide you with the experience you need to perform your job the best?
Like, what content/route exposes you to situations you NEED to know how to handle as a tank before you hit 80. Any particular dungeons, trials, etc. Like I said, I'm concerned I've been putting too much effort into one leveling method and unintentionally been avoiding other things that I should experience to improve my overall knowledge in tanking.

Like, I can get to 80 in Zadnor in 2 days easily, I'm more concerned about what is the best route to take in general so that I'm able to go into like...extreme/savage content as a fresh 80 tank and be comfortable that I won't just drag my team down or be called a carry since I've had experience with the content/mechanics needed to perform my job the best I can from first pull. I would rather it take longer to level to 80 if I'm getting extra knowledge/job experience with another way compared to my normal.

The content that would teach a tank its job the most are dungeons for traditional dungeon gameplay, which is fairly simple. For raids, closest you're gonna get is Normal mode raid, Alliance raid roulette, and Mentor Roulette. To a lesser extent, Trial roulette. In general, almost no normal mode fights require tank swaps. That's about the one mechanic you need to step into an extreme of some sort for, since I think A7n is about the only normal mode raid that even has a tank buster that puts vuln stacks on you. Even then, you're so overgeared at each plateau that it doesn't matter much.

So for the most basic functions of tank you learn in dungeons and normal mode raids. This consists of large trash pulls, appropriate cooldown usage on bosses for tank busters, and picking up adds as the OT in any normal mode raid that has such a thing.

That said, tank swaps are ridiculously easy since Stormblood introduced Shirk. You just provoke and the current tank shirks you during the tank buster/swap condition cast. Easy. Done. If shirk's down they'll need to turn off their stance and you'll need to be johnny on the spot making sure you're hitting as hard and as fast as possible to break it off them.

But it's kinda like what people already said too. You only really learn your job fully in fights that require the full use of your job. Which is really only select extremes and Savage fights, and even then, some of those basically have the OT sit there whacking away for most of the fight, doing mechanics the same as everyone else, falling asleep in the co-pilot's seat.

Just join learning parties or make one yourself, and don't be afraid to ask people questions or look up the answer from guides.

Edit: And oh yeah, it's fight dependent again, so you'll learn it as you do fights that require it, but there's plenty of fights that require the OT to be #2 on the agro list. Play it by ear!

[ForctyusGold]

well do roulettes, try trust systems or queue for highest possible dungeon. i as some others dont know how many exps you can get from Bozja, but its totally okay to level up slowly and not having entire battle jobs at 80 in the week. doing fates when waiting is a nice thing too.

[FudoMyoo]

This is what I do.

1) Leveling Roulette.
2) Alliance Roulette. (F**K MSQ Roulette unless you need the poetics for gear upgrades).
3) Il Mheg Beast Tribe. (while queueing DR)
4) Bozjan South Front fates & CE. (Level 71 onwards)
5) Hunt Marks. (while queueing DR)
6) Fates at your level.

[PyurBlue]

Bozja is great for skipping to level 80 and not having to deal with gear, but it's repetitive. If you can fit in relic progress it's probably the best choice. I still use roulettes for some variety though, it just makes leveling feel faster.

[MoofiaBossVal]

I just AFK in the Gold Saucer, queue for my daily roulettes, and then alt tab out of the game until they pop, all the way to 80. I levelled up a few jobs while doing Bozja and Zadnor content for the first time but have never gone back there for the sole purpose of levelling up a job.

[Canadane]

I got everything to 80 via trusts before there was any real alternative methods available. Including the bonus to trust exp uguu.
Though I did pepper in some MSQ roulettes.

[JohncarterIx]

Did 70 to 90 in 24 hours gnb

[Illmaeran]

I just got my PLD to 71 the other day. After grinding Bozja/Zadnor for BRD, I'm going to stick to Faerie dailies, roulettes, FATEs, and Trusts. I get nervous enough going into dungeons I haven't done in years; there's no way I'll level a tank without actually tanking real dungeons/trials/raids before hitting 80.

[Roflcopter]

I m leveling my classes to 80. The most efficient and less exhausting way is: DAILIES!

1. Pixies! 3 Quests, 5 mins, about 25% EXP
2. Duty Roulette: Alliance > Trials > Leveling. May take up to an hour, about 60% EXP
3. Daily PvP Frontlines. May take a while to get in, but about 60% EXP (not sure)

If you have time, you can do Bozja. Castrum and critical engagements are the most effective ways to get EXP.

In my humble opinion, I cannot recommend powerleveling by running dungeons (71-79) all over again. Especially with Trust-NPCs. Trust-NPCs are nice to get into a dungeon the first time. But for leveling, it takes way to long. And even with friends or a group, you need about 32 dungeons runs to level a class from 71 to 80. Even with a fast group, that process can take about 8 hours.

Agreed. Pixies are amazing. Over 900k for 5 minutes work. Not bad at all. The pvp frontline is a huge chunk too and easy. Sucks after a certain time of day though. Almost instant queues at reset. MSQ roulette is your best friend as well.