I have over 6000 commendations and nothing to show for it. Thoughts on mentorship.

[Katzfu]

So I've played FFXIV for about 6 years and have accumulated 6076 commendations to date. But please do not think I've come here to boast, quite the contrary.

We all know one of the most enjoyable elements of the everyday MMO is attaining the most prestigious accomplishments and items the game has to offer and put them on display for everyone to see. While I have many mounts, minions, glams, and titles to flaunt proudly at the average gawking sprout standing in the Quarrymill, the one thing I am most proud of is a thing of which no one can see, and a reward is nonexistent.

We know that 1500 comms are required to become a mentor, along with some other simple job and duty requirements. We also know that the Mentor system has become somewhat of a meme as of late. Frankly, the barrier to entry is pretty thin, and there are many "mentors" in the game assisting news players, whether they are truly seasoned enough to do so or not. I should also mention that many skilled players refuse to wear and even shun the crown because they do not wish to be associated with the ones that do. They simply believe most Mentors are not ready to be Mentors.

To put it bluntly, I do think the barrier to entry is too thin. It has made the crown less meaningful or prestigious in its acquisition, and as someone who wore the crown for years, I've decided it best to take off the crown and join the elitists club in their cold, bitter houses of contempt of all of those who wear it. Don't get me wrong, I understand the main purpose of the mentor system. In fact, I'm not actually here to debate it. By the way, I only ever wore the crown and sword because it looked cool.

This brings me back to my first point. I have 6000 comms and stopped receiving rewards 3000 comms ago. Is it just me or is their something here that could make the game quite a bit more interesting? If 1500 comms net you a golden crown by your name.. shouldn't I have a multicolor flashing strobe light super crown by mine? I can't help but feel like if anyone has earned the right to be called a mentor, it's me, and all others like me, and we should be represented as such. But we have nothing but long rants on public forums

Ok, I know what you're thinking, that last bit was a little self indulgent. But I stand by my ideals. FFXIV needs more rewards for commendation acquisition that can be visually seen by their name. What better way to let everyone around you know that you play the game, and I mean REALLY play the game! Take my multicolored crown example, this simple implementation would give players something else to aspire to that is not easily given OR taken, while also highlighting players in the game who have truly been a positive influence in the community and a guiding light to all who have fought along side them.

[SturmChurro]

The rewards are the commendations themselves. Now, we could talk about further commendation rewards, as commendations should promote good behavior - even if there are players out there who try and farm it. The mentor system should be entirely removed from the game though, but if it needs to remain, it shouldn't have any rewards, as helping other players is the reward. The crown should be removed entirely, for that matter.

[VelKallor]

I can't help but feel like if anyone has earned the right to be called a mentor, it's me

Um....I hate to be the one to ask this, but do you want to be a teacher / mentor because of the comms you get, or because you have a skill and a desire for helping others? I say this because my late wife had a very matter of fact way of looking at this

"Some people are meant to be nurses, and arent, some people are nurses, and should never have become one."

A mentor isnt just a status symbol, its a responsibility, to be an example for others, to be able to teach others, give useful, practical and understandable advice. To be a mentor is to be able and willing to do that for others, it isnt just a crown, it also means you are saying "i know the game come ask me for help".

You are right btw, many are mentors and should not be...and more than a few are not mentors, and would do a far better job than those in place at the moment.

By the way, I only ever wore the crown and sword because it looked cool

Then you wore it for all the wrong reasons.

[Wissp]

I have to say, 6000 is certainly some dedication. You either must have been VERY helpful or hot, or unique in someway to accumulated THAT many. I have been doing it for four and a half years and only have a little over 2000. But then again, I do not do that much Duty finder with random people, mainly ones that I know.

It WOULD be nice if SE had added something for accumulating that many comms, but I think it just might be they didn't think that far in advance. They did not think that people would GET that many comms. I am sure not too many can say they have a super high number of comms, it's gotta be a small number of people.

[Vyrerus]

So you took off the crown, but you want a shinier crown? Seems like bait to me.

I wear the crown, and I have for many years. I'll help anyone that wants help, but I'm not going to force it.

I don't think there needs to be any more rewards for mentors specifically. More commendations rewards for any player would be just fine.

[Jeeqbit]

I used to have a cynical view of mentors because they always gave me the worst experiences in dungeons as new player. When I later qualified for mentor status, I chose not to wear it at first, but then I observed that battle mentors seemed to have a better attitude than those wearing a full crown, so I used the battle mentor icon.

Just over 2 years ago, I joined the Novice Network which everyone had told me was just used to troll and do ERP, but when I joined it, it was just mentors answering the questions of new players and returners all day.

So I stayed in it to help new players, answer their questions and help them with queues and many of the other mentors in them do the same thing.

I think the barrier to battle mentor is alright and most people don't get it for quite a long time, although I wouldn't mind there being more requirements like 6,000 commendations.

I think the barrier to crafting mentor is too little. There are some great crafting mentors who are genuinely crafter mains but most of them are just raidloggers who wanted the crown so they could use NN as a global chat or sprouts who haven't even entered Shadowbringers yet and fear losing access to the NN because they still want help or the social interaction.

[Eien713]

Not gonna lie, commendations in the game don't always mean much. If you're a DPS, you most likely won't be the one getting the comms no matter how brightly you shine. A lot of people commend healers or tanks by default. So basically, the comms themselves don't necessarily mean you're a good player or a helpful person.

[Jeeqbit]

Not gonna lie, commendations in the game don't always mean much. If you're a DPS, you most likely won't be the one getting the comms no matter how much you shine. A lot of people commend healers or tanks by default. So basically, the comms themselves don't necessarily mean you're a good player or a helpful person.

Since you have to level a tank and a healer to become a battle mentor, that just motivates you to actually learn how to play these other two roles.

[Eien713]

Since you have to level a tank and a healer to become a battle mentor, that just motivates you to actually learn how to play these other two roles.

I don't get how this is related to what I said in my post.

Anyway you can level both those roles, but the role you enjoy playing is DPS.

[SturmChurro]

Since you have to level a tank and a healer to become a battle mentor, that just motivates you to actually learn how to play these other two roles.

Does it though?