Yeah, I have issues with group stuff. I've got some social/performance anxiety, and am in my 40s with the reaction times of a snail some days. What's worse, is the more the content must be re-run, the worse I get over time. I've lucked out a time and again with good groups, but the feeling of being carried is never a good one. I tend to ignore even normal trials unless they're MSQ, and I have a stomach full of butterflies every time these horrid trials come up (so, yeah, the last couple of patches have not filled me with joy).

There's also the content I believe I have to avoid because of graphical issues and epilepsy. Would pretty much hate to have an extremely bad day just because of the game's inability to tone lighting and mad effects down. It's not too much stuff, thankfully, but I couldn't do the Nier alliance raids series because of the graphics (my husband ended up sitting in my chair and punting my cat through for me). There's some glamour stuff from there I'd really like but will never have, and I wish I had a Smaller Stubby! Eden looked to have potential issues, and there was some really nice potential glamour stuff there, too. It sucks to have to miss out, but I generally like being alive, so it's not hard to go with that.

However, I've been doing this some time, and I know I'm better than those paragraphs might suggest.

So now I've got the last two auspice trials and the omega stuff to be getting through as some more recent content requires them, and I've put those off for years because of (scream it) Other People and Side Content. I've started to look at the Hells' Kier story mode solo unsynced (white mage, will change if I feel I have to), and am figuring out the whatnot in it as I go along. I like unsynced as yeah, it's easier, but I like having all the buttons available. And I know if I just put up a party finder announcing this, people would probably come and pitch in either for themselves or just because. But as it's just the normal version, not extreme, it feels a cheeky ask. Also, when I have to deal with people I don't know, my brain cells fuse together then melt in a puddle somewhere and I may end up saying/typing some really weird stuff because of nerves. I've been umming and ahhing for quite some time now about doing some sort static just to pootle through these things, but the anxiety gets in the way and it's like ever-decreasing circles. I kinda wish they hadn't made more content reliant on having done the trials, because now I have to do the trials to do the newer content!

If I can get 7 people who don't mind a nervous odd person, and are relatively flexible with FFXIV jobs, to punt a few hours on one night every so often to go through anything and everything, no experience necessary, I'd think I'd be happy (but still horribly nervy), but just getting that going feels almost too much. Maybe one day.