http://www.reddit.com/r/ffxiv/commen...l_gear_and_af/

Just stumbled upon this and thought it might help in deciding your race. This is pre 2.0 but I think the gear is potential unchanged say for maybe the stats for each piece. The AF is unlocked at lvl 45 (head, arm, legs, feet) for each corresponding class and you will need to do a job quest to earn them with the body piece being unlocked at lvl 50 along with your last skill.