I sort of wish players could only choose one job.

[Lirion]

Being able to do everything with one character is one of the biggest reasons I play FF MMO games.

[KyahAlmasy]

Ok let's look at the Final Fantasy games and it's "Job systems".

FFI: set jobs/roles but you can choose how many of every job you want at ebginning
FFII: no jobs but every character can do what he wants
FFIII: free job system
FFIV: set roles/jobs
FFV: free job system
FFVI: set roles but magic is learned through espers which you can equip as you want
FFVII: limit breaks and freely usable materia system
FFVIII: limite breaks and freely switchable GFs and Magic system
FFIX: set/jobs roles
FFX: freely usable Spheregrid + Overdrives which you can consider a bit job like
FFXI: free job system
FFXII: license board

As we see only FFIV and FFIX has really set roles through the whole game. In FFI you can decide at the begining but it's set after that.
The rest has either a completly free system or set system for character + a free system.

While a character's role throughout the series isn't specified, that shouldn't suggest that they weren't there. In every game, (in my experience) each character is depicted with a set of unique abilities that usually indicates their role in the party.

For example, while you can use Tifa in any way you want, her particular set of skills depicted in her limit breaks and stat advantages for physical combat allow us to deduct that she is a monk classed character. Cid, of course taking part as a Dragoon. These aren't coincidences. In all those games (Or at least most of them.) The characters all exhibit abilities unique to a particular job.

[Kallera]

While a character's role throughout the series isn't specified, that shouldn't suggest that they weren't there. In every game, (in my experience) each character is depicted with a set of unique abilities that usually indicates their role in the party.

For example, while you can use Tifa in any way you want, her particular set of skills depicted in her limit breaks and stat advantages for physical combat allow us to deduct that she is a monk classed character. Cid, of course taking part as a Dragoon. These aren't coincidences. In all those games (Or at least most of them.) The characters all exhibit abilities unique to a particular job.

Barret's got a gun arm and acts like Mr. T. Is he the White Mage or something?

[Nix]

I see what you're saying, you want all your achievements and feats acknowledged on a single character, instead of having them spread apart on a bunch of alts. I understand and respect that.

But I feel as if it's in having to do those things again with that new job that would make the reward appealing. The hard work and effort only serve to bolster the sense of accomplishment once you've endured it. For example, the feeling of fulfillment for getting a weapon from a low-level dungeon is no where near as appealing than achieving a weapon from an end game dungeon. Like working hard to level a new job, there's a notoriety with earning a weapon from a hard boss.

In the end, I feel like it is this inherent "unappealing" nature of leveling and having to go through lots of work that would put a cog in the large proliferation of jobs and return that sense of accomplishment when you finally reached your level cap. Because personally it was so easy that I barely blinked a lid.

I mentioned in my first post that with the sheer amount of content for one character in a game like FFXI made it darn impossible to start up an alt for each job. Having to re-do nation missions, RoZ, CoP, ToAU, WoTG and the 6 addons doesn't make you better at your job, it means you have way too much time on your hands.

The focus for character progression in XIV isn't exp, grinding for 600+ hours doesn't make you a better player, you're still going to have awful players regardless of how long it takes D:

Instead, there's going to be more challenging content that will allow players skills to really show. Anyone can say "I got 50WHM" but who can say they got white ravens for example? Skill will be rewarded in ARR, not the grind.

[Enma]

Multiple Jobs is one of the best thing of Final Fantasy Online. And I would never want it removed.

[Felis]

This probably comes from not playing the games prior to VI/VII. In FFIII and FFV your characters could be any job that you currently had access to, and could switch at any time for the most part. I didn't play XI, but they used something like it there as well. It's one of the things that comes to mind when many people think of Final Fantasy.

And in Final Fantasy VII (materia system, even if you can't change the weapon type), Final Fantasy X-2, Final Fantasy XII (license board), Final Fantasy Tactics and Final Fantasy XIII

[SaikaSyvari]

I personally prefer the ability to change jobs as it were on a single character. I'll explain why now;

FFXI: Had one character, my Tarutaru, did all of RoTZ, CoP, Rank 10 Sandy/Windy/Bastok, like 5 75's (based off the 75 cap) and pretty decent gear as well as a handful of my AF2 from Dynamis.

Doing that, the missions, the gear, the leveling and so on makes a lot of memories and I can say that I have a "bond" if you like with that specific character. The sheer amount of time I've invested I can see at all times regardless of what job I am on to go to sky/dynamis as long as I have fun on it (and if it's 75 then I obviously did otherwise I wouldn't have stuck with it lol).

WoW: Had like 6 characters, 3 level 90's, done some questlines, done some raids, all of which are just grinds to me as (again, personally) I find that the lore in WoW is pants/not put across well... My "main" is my mage, yes I have done a few rep grinds that took months for a mount, sure I have my transmog tier sets but none of that was a challenge, it didn't make me remember the achievement of it, just the "ohnoes I spent 8 weeks doing the same 5 dailies each day to get this" is all that stuck.

I have no attachment to that character, I'm not saying delete it I won't care, I've still invested time into it, but I wouldn't even type that about my taru because my brain just goes "NO!" at the thought lol

I guess the point is, on WoW you have to make a whole new character for a job, and when you do that, you're not on your main character anymore, you distance yourself and everything changes. Back to level 1, with no reps, no gear, no professions... You have to grind up to 90 all over again, get your professions to 600 and so on. I've done it, I hated it.

All I want is one character, I don't have a problem with versatility as long as you can do whats expected & have fun, that's fine by me ^^

PS - I feel the need to add this, I know people these days but I'm hoping that there aren't any here as FF has a generally pretty decent community, but, in the unlikely event that a WoW player takes this as a "lets bash WoW" post, it isn't... Just look up the definition of "personally" and have some cake ^^b

[MrKupo]

Name transcends the mere fact of class most of the time. What I mean by this is that when everyone knows that every class/job is attainable to everyone, then people start looking at other things like damage output, skill, knowledge of routine, leadership. These are the things that you can make yourself a reputation with. It will sometimes come to the point where certain groups of people will have a very specific set of players for certain roles they do everyday.

For example, whenever I was in a PUG with relatively new players, there was one tank I knew that could handle any situation. If that guy wasn't on, there were a few others. In my mind, these guys were the best tanks because they knew so well how to do it, not just because they were that specific class.
I, as another example, was a pretty good bard and had the routines for CC and AV down to the dot. It was because of this that my LS's would often ask me to bard those raids, despite the fact that I much prefer to play Dragoon.

[Tonkra]

One of the first things that comes to mind when I think of Final Fantasy are the jobs, like White Mage, Black Mage, Monk, etc and that the characters were normally reined to one role and thus were indispensable for their unique abilities. (Well, for the most part that is.) It is this, I think that allows others to more readily respect and appreciate the significance of that specific role and player when it isn't so easily replaceable, or if at all. The player and their name sort of becomes renowned with that role.

I mean when if I wanted Black Magic I think of Vivi, the black mage. Martial combat? The monk, Tifa Lockhart of course. The list goes on, but if these characters were allowed to change their abilities freely, like lets say give Vivi a sword and Tifa a staff they wouldn't be as iconic to these roles as they are now.

Lastly I feel like allowing players to change their roles at will takes away from the traditional Final Fantasy experience, and overall makes it less gratifying to play a Job when you can potentially be replaced by anyone and everyone in your party at the flick of the wrist.

I feel as if the effort that comes along with making a new character for a new job that would make the Jobs feel more signifigant. The hard work only serves to bolster the sense of accomplishment once you've endured it. For example, the feeling of fulfillment for getting a weapon from a low-level dungeon is no where near as appealing than achieving a weapon from an end game dungeon. Like working hard to level a new job, there's a notoriety with earning a weapon from a hard boss.

In the end, I feel like it is this inherent "unappealing" nature of leveling and having to go through lots of work that would put a cog in the large proliferation of jobs and return that sense of accomplishment when you finally reached your level cap. Because personally, leveling in FXIV was so easy that capping out hardly phased me.

In the end, I understand why others like it and why it's detrimental to playing online, but just wanted to share why I don't particularly like it myself. Perhaps my ideals are a little dated. lol

What do you think? (Sorry if this is a misplaced thread, or repeat.)

i totally disagree.. why?

because a jobchange system is first of all.. classical for a final fantasy.

secondly... when you are able to switch jobs you first of all need mostly one character and not thousands of anonymous twinks.. which is new in comparison to other mmorpgs.


Need a black mage? a wait a second.. let me switch to my twink character..
i kind of hate this.



The way it is now you really grow onto your character with his personality.. everyone in the LS knows who you are...
this way a character becomes a REAL (final fantasy) personality, instead of being "just a flat twink character"


you should think of that. i myself.. i am specialized into blm, whm and drg (and going to be smn also).. so everyone knows my personal taste and role.

[Mjollnir]

The armory system has always been the most appealing feature to me. Not to mention it is the most exciting thing about the game for people who don't play it, every time I describe it to a friend they are instantly interested in the game because it's just so different from every other mmo.

Was actually talking to some friends about this yesterday. They'd not paid much attention to the FF MMOs, pretty much of the opinion that because WoW is so successful, it must mean the other (fantasy) MMOs aren't worth playing. I was talking about something to them and the fact of playing all jobs on one character (in XI) dropped into the conversation. The conversation was stopped as together they expressed their disbelief that a single character could level all 22 jobs. It was a real pull for them. We went inside and they signed up for the FFXIV Beta straight away.

With the other MMO I play a lot of, I have at least one character of each class levelled on my account, but there's only one for which I've taken the time to complete every single quest and achievement. I prefer the way FF is one character by a very long way.