Ranking the Avatar fights

So, since I'm an expert at soloing avatars cheaply, I'm going to rank them by ease of battle. This incorporates their defensive capabilities as well as any ward bloodpacts. This list will go from easiest on top to hardest on bottom. Please note that this is my own personal opinion, and results may vary from your own experience.

Fighting Avatars

Diabolos
Ifrit
Shiva
Ramuh
Titan
Leviathan
Garuda
Fenrir

Diabolos is the easiest because it's really a no-risk battle. The only way to lose is to either do something stupid (like let the puppet melee) or running out of time. And really, it is a special case, as the Diabolos fight is vastly different from the other avatar fights.

Ifrit is next because Ifrit has no defensive bloodpacts, and no healing bloodpacts, so really, it's just a matter of wearing Ifrit down.

I was debating between Shiva and Ramuh. Shiva has Sleepga, but it rarely lands on the avatar (especially if using Ifrit), and as a Summoner, it is something that I usually get out of easily (with the Sublimation ability, or the Sacrifice Torque), so it's not that much of a threat. On the other hand, Ramuh's Thunderspark ability does a little damage, but the paralyze effect can be more devastating (imagine failing to resummon Titan because of paralysis), so it can catch an unaware Summoner off guard, and it can potentially be more dangerous. However, it can be countered by either being out of range, and having Light Arts with Addendum: White up.

Titan isn't much more dangerous, but he has Earthen Ward, which gives him stoneskin. While not dangerous, it can lengthen a fight, and drain a Summoner's MP more than necessary. In any avatar fight, MP is important!

Leviathan and Garuda are next, and I was debating between those two as well. What makes those two a bit more dangerous is their healing BPs, which potentially can be used often, and lengthening fights (which in turn, drains MP). Garuda wins out though, as she also has a defensive ability which gives her shadows, AND Hastega, hurting your avatar more. Of the six avatars, Garuda is the most dangerous in terms of fighting.

Fenrir, though, takes the cake. Tougher than the six elemental avatars, fast, and dangerous, Fenrir, as far as I'm aware is not soloable. At least not by SMN or PUP. I have heard, though, of a THF/NIN soloing this fight. But still, this one does require a group.

Getting there

Of course, fighting the avatars is only one part, but getting to the cloisters is a different trouble entirely. Some are very easy to get to, with no aggro to 75 monsters, and a simple maze, while others require items, fights, as well as dangerous aggro to 75 monsters. Again, the list is by avatar from easiest to hardest, with easiest on top and hardest on bottom.

Titan
Shiva
Diabolos
Fenrir
Ramuh
Garuda
Leviathan
Ifrit

Yeah, the list is a bit different than before, but again, this is getting in AND out of the avatar battle.

Titan tops the list as the easiest to travel to. Straight shot from Bastok through the Korrokola Tunnel into the Altepa Desert and into the Quicksand Caves. While it's easy to get lost, there are no aggro to 75 monster straight to the cloister of Earth. The best part is that the exit leads straight back out to the Altepa Desert, where you can go to Rabao or back to Bastok.

Shiva is next, as the Cloister of Ice is fairly simple to travel to. However, it is a rather lengthy journey to Fei'yin, and on top of that, there are sound aggro monsters near the cloister, so having sneak, or just enduring the hits, is a must.

Diabolos is, again, a special case. It involves going through Pso'Xja, but the level 40 portion. While naked runs are no longer necessary, the level 40 cap is still in place. The only real danger, though, are the gazers which sound aggro. They're in two portions, so having a means of sneak (two silent oils) is a must. If ice weather is present, there is a single snowball to watch out for. Otherwise, it's a fairly safe journey to the Shrouded Maw.

Fenrir can be easy or hard, depending on if you have the right key item. Taking the route from Windurst Walls will involve sneaking past a few sound aggro mobs, and it's a little longer. On the other hand, taking the 3 mage gate is safer, and there are no sound aggro mobs to look out for.

Ramuh is in the Boyhada Tree. When entering the tree, the crabs there all aggro sound, so having a form of sneak is a must! The Goobue also aggro sound, and should be avoided. Also, elementals will frequently appear there, and they aggro magic. Watch out for them, and don't cast magic near them.

Garuda is in Cape Terrigan, and it's filled to the brim with sound and sight aggro. Having both Invisible and Sneak is a must. Fortunately, there are no special aggro mobs, and it's a fairly straight shot to the Cloister of Winds.

Leviathan is deep in the Den of Rancor, which is only available through the Temple of Uggalepih. While there are no aggro to 75 monsters in the temple, there is a statue which must be destroyed to get to the area. On top of that, the Paintbrush of souls is also required to open the door to the Den of Rancor. When in the Den of Rancor, everything is sound or sight aggro, making invis and sneak necessary. Also, be sure to NOT have sublimation up, as there are monsters on the way to the Cloister of Waters which will aggro yellow HP.

Ifrit may be the easiest avatar to fight, but the hardest to get to. First, one MUST have an ice cluster to get past the flame spout. Then past that, there are sound aggro bats AND sight AND magic aggro bombs. So, needless to say, it's a very dangerous spot. Fortunately, it's not too far from the entrance, but getting there is a pain. I would also strongly suggest having a warp of some kind, as leaving the Cloister of Flames is a bit more dangerous than getting in.

So, there you have it folks, my avatar battle ranking. What do you think? How do you rank the avatar fights?

XBox 360 crashes

I posted this in the Allakhazam forum, but I'm posting it here too so it can get more notice. This is about the 360 crashes that seem to plague Final Fantasy XI every once in a while.

Dear SE,

Hello, my name is Keyln, and I play Final Fantasy XI. I have been playing this game for well over 6 years now, and I play this game on all three platforms (PS2, PC, and 360). My platform of choice is currently the 360 as it has generally better graphics, and is usually more stable. However, one of the things that really bother me is the rate that the 360 crashes.

Specifically, I'm going to list the following:

1) The game crashes when I try to exit the game. This usually happens after extended (4+ hours) playtime. What happens is that I go to my Mog House, hit shutdown, and the screen goes black as normal. However, the console will never turn back, and the console will sit at this black screen for forever until I turn off my console and turn it back on again. When I log back in into the game, it tells me that the game did not shut down properly. This tells me that the console never left the game, and was stuck at the shutdown process.

2) Dynamis - Every once in a while, I or one of my Dynamis shell buddies will mysteriously crash during Dynamis. It seems to happens more often in Dynamis-Beaucidine than in others, but this crash has been seen in most Dynamis areas. It seems to happen near the end of Dynamis, and the really odd thing is that it hits all Xbox 360 users all at once. The fact that it is hitting all 360 users at once tells me that this is NOT a problem with my console.

3) Besieged - This happens constantly in Besieged, where all of the blue, my 360 crashes. It seems to happen right around the 55 minute mark near the end. What happens is that my game locks up, forcing a restart of the console, I try to log in, and all of my points that I earned are gone, and I'll be lucky to get any points at all. Again, the fact that it seems to be widespread tells me that this is, again, not a problem with my console.

Now, I work in the game industry as a QA person for well near 10 years now, and I can tell that by the fact that it's not just me that it's not a problem with the console, but a problem with the code. The fact that it's happening near the end or with extended play times tells me that there is a memory leak that is causing the 360 to crash.

Now, having said this, I don't expect an immediate fix. But I do expect a notice that you are aware of the problem, and that you are currently investigating and/or fixing it. The purpose of this post is to bring notice to this problem so that it can be addressed.

Thank you for your time,

Keyln, pet lover of Phoenix.

Maybe a bigger community site, like Pet Food Alpha will pick this up. This is something that needs to be addressed!

The Garuda exception

The other day, I made a post about how to get 0 perpetuation on any avatar. Today, I'm going to talk about exceptions of that rule by displaying avatars where it's possible to get 0 perpetuation without having to use those gears.

First is Carbuncle. At base, Carbuncle is 9 MP/tic, so there is already a -4 difference. Throw in Carbuncle Mitts, and the perpetuation cost goes from 9 MP/tic to a low 4 MP/tic. Add in Auto-Refresh, and it turns into 3 MP/tic. At this point, simply having an Apollo's Staff, or any combination of -3 Perp will turn Carbuncle into free, and everything else goes to waste. Carbuncle is the cheapest avatar in terms of perpetuation cost, so it's not really all that hard to get a free Carbuncle.

Second is Fenrir. While not as cheap as Carbuncle, at base, Fenrir comes in at 11 MP/tic. So, it is possible to get a free Fenrir by using -2 less perpetuation equipment. For example, Using a Pluto's Staff instead of Nirvana, and using a Penance robe or the ACP with the -2 perpetuation cost will make Fenrir free.

The third and final exception is Garuda. Not too long ago, when SE came out with the ZNM system, a head item called the Karura Hachigane allowed Garuda to get a -2 perpetuation cost bonus. With this item, it puts the perpetuation cost as the same cost as Fenrir, and thus, get free Garuda by simply using an Auster's staff and the ACP Body with -2 or Penance Robe. Or any other combination. Garuda, with her powerful Predator Claws and Hastega effect, is a very handy avatar to have out.

Currently, it's possible to have all avatars out for free, but not without great cost. However, with items like the Karura Hachigane, it is becoming easier to keep avatars out indefinately without any help. I can only hope that SE will continue to release items like this.

Soloing Diabolos Prime...a guide with pictures!

So, yesterday, I promised a guide on how to solo Diabolos Prime, and today I deliver. And here I am with how to solo Diabolos Prime.

Preparation

Preparation is 90% of victory, or so says Sun Tzu. Anyway, as far as gear goes for the puppetmaster, here's what I used.

The first thing that I want noticed is that I used a mage subjob, in this case Black Mage. Yes, it's underlevelled, but bear with me here. Really, one key thing here is the INT. The magic number here is 76, and that can be earned with the right subjob and the right gear. Once 76 is hit, no more INT is needed. The other things of note is the Puppetry Tobe, which adds in more MP for the puppet. However, if the Merke is available with the Pet +Magic Attack and +Magic Accuracy, use that instead. Pantin legs and Pantin feet are also very helpful here. The rest of the gear is just window dressing.

And there are the attachments that I used. Now, in case you're wondering, I used the following:

Scanner, Tranquilizer, Loudspeaker, Mana Booster, Strobe, Condensor, Optical Fiber, Flashbulb, Mana Tank, Mana Tank II, Economizer, and Mana Conserver.

I equipped my puppet for more magic speed than magic attack, so the puppet will cast more often than hit hard. The Strobe and Flashbulb are in there so to keep Diabolos's regen is kept under control. And the more MP the puppet has, the longer it can go without using Deactivate-Activate-Deploy. I would suggest avoiding the Ice Maker and the Mana Channler, as it can potentially slow down the casting in return for damage. Remember, the key to winning this is to cast often, and keep his regen down.

Fighting Diabolos Prime

When I enter the fight, I start off by using a Dark Maneuver and a Light Maneuver. This will

cause the puppet to to use Dia II. This prevents Diabolos's regen from occuring for a good long while. At this point, I throw up 3 ice maneuvers so my puppet can go nuke happy. Eventually, my puppet will run out of MP, and at this point, I use a Dark Maneuver or two to activate the Economizer to give my automaton MP, and then continue nuking.

At this point, my puppet will not cast Dia II any more, so now I rely on Flashbulb and Strobe to keep Diabolos from regaining HP. Maintain a Fire Maneuver and a Light Maneuver to stop Diabolos's regen while still using an ice maneuver for nuking speed and damage. Don't be afraid, however, to use 3 Ice Maneuvers to do some serious damage.

Keep up the damage and keep Diabolos regen away, and eventually, he will fall like a house of cards. It's not really all that hard when one knows what he's doing, just keep working and keep maneuvers up.

Where else could this work?

Now, in one of the comments made in my previous post, it was asked if this could work in the CoP battle 3-5 against Diabolos. While the level is capped at 40, all of the basic elements are there. INT may pose a problem, but all of the attachments are there, and the battle is set up in the same way. But enough about Diabolos.

Another possible spot this may work against is in the ACP 11 battle. As long as the crystal just stands there and does nothing, the puppet may be able to nuke its heart out. As long as the crystal doesn't draw in, both the master and puppet are safe. The question then is, can the puppet do enough damage to kill it in time before timing out?

And Fenrir? No way. Fenrir will attack the master before the master can get in range.

Why this works.

This works because of the rather strange hate relationship between the puppet and the master. What isn't unusual is the fact that the hate is completely seperate between the puppet and the master. What is unusual is that the master is not put on the hate list for the actions of the puppet, unless the puppet physically hits the target. This why when the puppet does any action outside of physically smacking it, the monster isn't claimed. It can be nuked, shot, and even flashed and provoked, but the monster will not be claimed until it's physically hit.

Diabolos Prime is an unusual battle where Diabolos Prime will stand there and wait for the party members to get in range, or get a party member on its hate list. And since pets aren't party members, and since the puppet can do any number of things that do not place the master on the hate list (see above), Diabolos will not do draw in and will not attack.

Could SE fix this? Perhaps, by moving Diabolos back so he's out of range of Deploy, or drawing in the puppet and master as soon as it gets hit, or changing the nature of the hate relationship between the puppet and master, they very well could. But until and unless they do so, I think I'll try to milk it for what it's worth.

I hope that this post has been helpful to someone, and if anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask.

How to get 0 perpetuation avatars solo...

So, this post is more of a thought experiment more than anything, as it's currently not practical to accomplish this. So, anyway, on with the thought experiment.

The elemental avatars plus Diabolos have a -13 MP/tic perpetuation cost. I propose that it's possible now to get that perpetuation cost down to 0. It's not really practical now, nor is it easy, but it is possible to do this without any BRD, RDM, or COR or even a SCH. But it does require lots of endgame stuff as well as some high end gear.

Auto-Refresh - Auto refresh provides an automatic -1 to perpetuation cost regardless of avatar = -12

Nirvana - Nirvana has the most powerful -perpetuation cost weapon in the game, or anywhere for that matter, with a powerful -4 perpetuation cost. Good luck getting it though = -8

Summoner's Doublet - This Dynamis-Beaucidine piece allows -3 perpetuation cost on the avatar matching the day. For example, Titan will be -3 perpetuation cheaper on Earthday. Downside is that it only works for Earthday for Titan = -5

Nashira Gages - These hands drop from Proto-Ultima in Limbus. Proto-Ultima, unfortunately, is far from a pushover. -1 perpetuation cost = -4

Evoker's Spats +1 - The upgraded Artifact Armor feet requires drops from both parts of Limbus. -1 perpetuation cost = -3

Evoker's Ring - This is earned from a quest in Norg. This quest involves fight all six primes (again) plus Fenrir to get special items. All Summoners should have this item. -1 perpetuation cost = -2

Conjurer's Ring - This is a BCNM item that is, in my opinion, grossly undervalued. Downside is that the HP needs to be yellow, but with things like the sacrifice torque, sublimation, or zenith gear, it's not too difficult to do. -1 perpetuation cost = -1

Ballad - Now now, I can hear you saying right now, "But Keyln, this is supposed to be solo!", and I do mean solo. Even with the above gear alone, perpetuation cost is still at -1. But, if a Summoner uses the Bard as a subjob, the Summoner can sing Mage's Ballad to hit that 0 perpetuation. Granted, if there's already a Bard in the party, it would be better off using something else, like COR or SCH for the sub job. But this is a thought experiment. -1 perpetuation cost = 0

And there you have it. Getting 0 perpetuation cost solo using gear and abilities available right now. However, there are a few caveats for this to work.

1) Only avatars matching the day can be used.
2) Summoner must be at yellow HP (75%) at all times.
3) Bard subjob must be used.

Use this as you will.

On other news, I solo'ed Diabolos again this morning, and I got him under 15 minutes. I took screenshots this time around, so you can expect a guide very soon. Maybe as soon as tonight. Watch for more details.

Oh, and in SE news, there's an update in late July. If something exciting comes up, like new avatars, new frames, or something to make BST better, I'll post about it. ^^

Diabolos Prime solo'd!

This morning, I managed to solo Diabolos prime using PUP. This is the second time that I've done this, but this time, I didn't time out. Maybe I'll give details on how it's done as guide later.

I'm stoked about Final Fantasy XIV coming out soon. It may convince me to get a PS3. Maybe.

If there's no Summoner job though, I might not come. I love Summoner too much. :<

Good Grief, where have I been?

Yeah, it's been a while since I've last posted, but I haven't been in game much due to some certain "economic" issues that have been keeping me out of the game.

Not much has happened in game really since I got the Nashira Gages, except maybe that I've now got 6/6 on my PUP relic, and I upgraded my hands to +1 status.  2 down and 4 to go.

It's also slow going on my Nirvana, and I still need to earn Captain status.  I have about 9 more assaults to go to finish that, all of them second lieutenant or first lieutenant.

I'll try to post more often as I accomplish more things.  Thanks for watching if you still are! :D

Nashira Gages get!

So, last night, my Limbus group fought Proto-Ultima.  It was a close fight, and we were practically wiped, but we managed to pull out a DoT win when we were all down.  And what drops?  Head, Body, and HANDS.  Needless to say that I'm a happy Summoner.  Nashira Gages = -1 Perpetuation.  Closer to that free avatar.  Just need Nirvana now.  :3

How to: Summoner latent breaking

Latent breaking involves doing skillchain after skillchain after skillchain, until a latent is broken.  When that happens, it will make the weapon more powerful or unlock powerful new weaponskills.  Usually, to unlock a latent in a timely involves getting a "skill up" party.  Usually, 2 people are needed to form a skillchain, and go from there.  However, there are a few jobs that can do skillchains solo, and Summoner is one of those jobs because a Summoner can have their avatars do a Rage Bloodpact followed by a weaponskill to form a skillchains (Puppetmasters can do this too, and perhaps Dragoon and Samurai, although not quite as efficiently).  This little post is a guide on how to unlock a latent weapon as a Summoner.

Gear

To start off with, good melee gear is a must.  Since most summoners who were only Summoners to begin with, most summoners don't have good melee gear that they can wear (it's not like there's a huge selection to begin with...).

I recommend getting the following before beginning:

- Wahalara Turban - This turban is a really popular piece of equipment that can be bought for about 1000 bronze coins (10 gold coins) in Aht Urghan.  The good thing here is that all jobs can equip it, and it has a +5% haste to it, something that's rare for Summoner.

- Battle Gloves - Battle gloves is a low level piece of equipment that has a good accuracy boost.  Since Summoners don't have much in way of accuracy equipment, we need as much accuracy as we can get.  These can be replaced, however, with Goliard cuffs if accuracy is okay for more haste.

- Yingyang robe - Failing that, Summoner's Doublet also works, as well as Austere/Penance robe.  This is one of the few slots that I dedicated to avatar perpetuation, which is strongly recommended for efficient latent breaking.

- Volunteer's Brais - This legs equipment is rather ugly, I know, but it has a sizable accuracy boost that isn't found elsewhere that Summoners can equip.  This piece of equipment can be bought with IS, but the proper rank is required.

- Evoker's Pigaches +1 - There aren't many choices for meleeing in the feet slot, so I dedicated this slot for avatar perpetuation.  Again, the less perpetuation, the less resting is needed, and the more time can be focused on breaking latent.

- Brutal Earring - Double Attack is good here, and it will help in TP gain.  The other earring can be used for standard Summoner equipment.

- Rajas/Ulthalam's Ring - Obviously, these are the end of storyline rings, and if they're available use them.  If not, just use standard summoning equipment.

- Evoker's Ring - Yeah, every Summoner should have this.  Anyway, use this as a means to boost summoning skill and the -2 avatar perpetuation.

- Life belt - +10 Accuracy.  'nough said.

- Chivalrous Chain - This piece of equipment adds in both accuracy and Store TP, both which help TP gain.  It can be bought for 8,000 Lebros points in assault.  It's a good piece to have for all melee jobs.

In short, melee gear should focus on getting accuracy, haste, and Store TP.  The purpose of the melee gear isn't to kill the target quickly, but to build TP in the most efficient manner possible.  I also recommend getting Summoning Magic skill for extra accuracy for bloodpacts and extra time for wards and extra MP from Elemental Siphon.  Make two macros so that the two can be switched easily, one for summoning magic, and the other for TP.

Subjob

Needless to say, Samurai is the best subjob for this.  Not only can Samurai can pull out TP out of thin air, but it has the Store TP trait, and Hasso, which adds in extra accuracy and speed for even more TP.  It even has Zanshin so that each hit will pull in TP more often than not.  I recommend to have Samurai to at least 30, if not 35, before trying this.  Failing this, Dragoon is a good replacement, especially if one has the Wyvern Earring, as well as Ranger or even Dancer.  Suffice it to say that a melee subjob is strongly recommended over a mage subjob.

Location

In order for the weaponskill to count for unlocking, it must be done on an enemy that checks as "Easy Prey" or above.  My best recommendation are the Goobues outside in Rolanberry Fields[S].  They fall pretty quick (but not too quick), don't have too many threatening moves, and fairly close to Jeuno, so it's not a long walk at all.  Add to the fact that no one ever farms these things, so targets are rather plentiful.  Do keep in mind that there are things that are aggressive to level 75 characters, so tread carefully.  A good alternate spot would be in Wajaoum Woodlands right outside of Al Zhabi, but the birds are a bit tougher than the Goobue, and they're also hunted more frequently, and they have very annoying Feather tickle, which erases TP.  Failing that, crabs in Boyhada Tree is also a good spot.

Tactics

When reaching the area, first equip the melee gear, including the weapon, and then summon Garuda.  Why Garuda?  Because a level 2 skillchain can be formed with Garuda (I'll explain later), as well as Garuda has Hastega (something VERY helpful for TP gain) and Whispering Wind (healing move for if things go wrong).  Use Meditate and Hasso AFTER summoning (especially Hasso.  Having Hasso adds in the time it takes to summon by 2 seconds!), and then send in Garuda first and then attack.  Use Hastega if it hasn't been used before, and then wait for 100% TP.  At 100% TP, use the Claw Bloodpact.  When Garuda uses Claw, count to three and use Starburst.  This will create a Gravitation skillchain and add in 3 weaponskill points.  Done right, and it's possible to do two skillchains per enemy, by doing a skillchain near the start, and then do a second near the end.  Just make sure that the enemy has enough life to not get killed.  If this is the case, retreat the avatar, and wait for either the bloodpact timer or the TP to reach 100% to get the skillchain.  Then use the bloodpact and weapon skill to create the second skillchain.

In between fights, feel free to use elemental siphon, or rest between fights.  Note that changing weapons will reset TP to 0%, and thus, make sure to change back to the weapon in question before going to fight or using Meditate.

Done right, a latent in a few hours with Summoner.  It's really all about efficiency.

Summoner as a subjob

As I write this post, I find myself asking if Summoner as a subjob could work for any job.  The advantages is that there is a ready made skillchain partner that can go at almost any time (assuming the bloodpact rage timer is ready).  Add to the fact that pretty much, a level 2 skillchain can be made anywhere with the right avatar, it would make Summoner the ideal subjob for unlocking a latent.  

The real question is that if the avatar is level 37, will the accuracy of the avatar be an issue?  If the bloodpacts are constantly missing, then the advantages would effectively be nullified.

I will be happy to take any questions from the peanut gallery, and everybody else.  ;)

A week off from Endgame!

So, I was looking at my FFXI schedule, and I found myself to be pretty busy with all sorts of "Endgame" activities. This is my normal week schedule as it stands now:

Sunday: Dynamis
Monday: Salvage
Tuesday: Einjerhar + Limbus
Wednesday: Dynamis
Thursday: Salvage
Friday: Einjerhar + Limbus
Saturday: Free

Needless to say, as you can read from my above schedule, I am a pretty busy man with stuff. Combine that with the other things that keep me busy (work, sleep, other games), and pretty much, when I log into FFXI, I only do those activities above.

So, I have decided to take a short vacation from any and all activities that are considered "endgame". From April 5 to April 12, I will refrain from doing Salvage, Einjerhar, Dynamis, and Limbus. Other activities, such as meritting, doing Assaults for Captain rank, and levelling other jobs are still free game.

It's not a permanent break, just a little something to break up the monotomy before I get burned out.

Thoughts on the new armor...

The details about the new armor is out now, and my jaw dropped through the floor.  There's some very nice augments to be had there for sure.

As far as my SCH goes, the augments are largely trash.  I don't want to lose the +10 skill that the AF provides, and there are no real augments that enhance my light arts provide.  The only thing that might be worth something is the fast cast improvement, and the -5 enmity.  While helpful, sure, but there are other augments that will help my other jobs so much more.

As far as my SMN goes, the -4 BP timer isn't an improvement over my Evoker's Doublet +1, so that's out, and the -2 perpetuation cost isn't better than my -3 perpetuation cost for my Summoner's Doublet.  Maybe if the augment was -3 perpetuation cost, then it would be better than my Summoner's Doublet.  Where I see the real improvement for Summoner is the Pet: Accuracy +10 and the Pet: Magic Accuracy and Magic Attack +7.  This would make this piece a premier BP piece to throw in before the BP goes off.

As far as my PUP goes, the real potential is to go any which way.  I could go to the ultra power-up for my puppet which would mean Pet: Accuracy and Pet: Attack bonuses.  Or I could go with the magic attack and the double attack/crit bonus.  However, right now, I'm thinking something on the lines of the "Magic" Pantin Tobe.  The Pantin Tobe gives +10 ACC and Pet: +10 ACC.  What I'm thinking is getting the +10 ACC bonus for the master, and the Pet: Magic Accuracy and Magic Attack bonus, giving the piece the same thing as the Pantin Tobe, but with magic instead of physical.  And considering that I'm meritted in magic, it's very tempting.

As far as looks go, I love the look of the Nuevo Coselete.  It's a shame that I don't have a job that can wear it.  :(

I'm really looking forward to the update, and I'm wondering what's going to be next.  :x

April Update Part VI! New City Storyline Quests!

The Story Continues with All-new Nation Quests! (03/19/2009)

The trials and tragedies of each of the three nations are set to be further revealed in the fast-approaching April version update. With the dark shadow of the decisive battle between the warring factions looming ominously overhead, adventurers will delve deeper into the mysteries and intrigues of the Crystal War in the continuing episodes of nation quests in Wings of the Goddess!

San d'Oria: The Price of Valor

Young Rahal and the Swiftwing Griffins catch wind of the enemy's latest plot, the knowledge of which holds power over the fate of countless innocents. But this time, the mission upon which the young knights embark may well prove to be beyond even heroes of their courage and resourcefulness...

Bastok: Quelling the Storm

No respite is in sight for the beleaguered Republic as another violent storm arrives to batter its walls with gruesome murders. The method of killing is reminiscent of Darksteel Hurricane, the most feared killer in the history of Bastok, and that knowledge has citizen morale plunging to an all-time low...

Windurst: The Path of No Return

The Windurstian army stands in shambles, the grim state of affairs having forced even untested reserves into the fray. Left with no other options, Federation forces embark on a last-ditch effort to turn the tide of war. The first step involves a mission to procure vital resources from an ally, while the second will lead them down a path far more perilous...

Prepare to bear witness to the beginning of the end in the April version update!

Dynamis-Bastok <3

So, today, my Dynamis shell did Dynamis-Bastok.  I almost not wanted to come since there really wasn't anything that I wanted relic-wise, but hey, I decided to come anyway.  Heh,heh,heh, that was almost a mistake.  First off, since there were so many people coming to Bastok, the entry price was low.  Really low.  Like under 10k low.  Then, we managed to clear the zone, and while I didn't get any relic armor, I did get a 100 Byne Bill, and TWO Wootz Ore.  TWO WOOTZ ORE!

Total value of things in Dynamis: 1 MILLION Gil.  In one night.  Yeah, I'm glad I came.  Not really looking forward to Jeuno on Sunday though.  >.>;;

Also, did some assaults after Dynamis, and got one done that I needed for my Captain rank.  One step closer to Captain, and one step closer to Nirvana.

April Update News Part V!

The upcoming version update will usher in the "Augments" system, a new feature that will shatter your preconceptions about equipment and breathe new life into some of your most treasured pieces of armor.

Any veteran adventurer knows the feeling:
A beloved breastplate that served you in countless epic battles...
A cherished cuirass that fended off many a vicious enemy blow...
Equipment once treasured, now auctioned off for a purseful of gil or relegated to a dank, lonely corner of your Mog House in favor of more potent apparel better suited to your burgeoning abilities.
What could be done to give these items a longer lease on life? This is the question we asked ourselves, and in the next version update, you can experience the answer—the new Augments system!

Let's examine how it will work.

*This development screenshot may not represent the final product.

As illustrated above, players will be able to customize certain pieces of equipment by adding two augments of their choice to supplement the item's base attributes. This new feature will allow for two pieces of armor bearing the same name to possess distinct capabilities, specially tailored to complement the skills of the wearer. 
A wealth of heretofore unseen diversity in adventuring attire awaits you!

Needless to say, the development team is hard at work to ensure that augmented items can be enjoyed by the widest possible range of adventurers, while preserving game balance with existing items available through questing and synthesis. Furthermore, to maintain the items' exclusivity, it will not be possible to trade them to your companions, nor sell them via the auction house or bazaars. Adventurers looking to acquire augmented equipment will have to do so by their own courage and valor!

We'll be sharing even more information on this exciting new feature come release day, so be sure to check back for all the latest details!

Runic Key GET!

After months of toil and trouble, my Nyzul Isle group FINALLY got up to Floor 100, and everyone got their runic key.  This is an important and major milestone in my getting Nirvana and Kenkonken.  I'm SO happy.  Now if only I can get Captain rank, I could work on my next goal...getting all four titles.

April Update News Part IV! ANNMs!

In the upcoming April version update, fearsome Notorious Monsters will take to the field in areas of past Vana'diel currently under the control of the Allied Forces.

With each passing version update, the Campaign Battles and Campaign Ops systems continue to grow in size and scope. Next month will see the introduction of fearsome new Notorious Monsters to past Vana'diel to further intensify that savage conflict known as the Crystal War.

In order to engage in battle with one of these new NMs, the Allied Forces must currently hold sway over the area in which the creature appears. In addition, you must also be in possession of the required key item which is obtainable from specific NPCs in each nation. With these two prerequisites fulfilled, simply examine the designated target point located in each area. This will trigger the NM's appearance.

Key Items

- The trigger key item can be acquired in exchange for Allied Notes. While neither your rank nor allegiance will influence your eligibility for obtainment, no more than one can be acquired per Earth day.
- All players wishing to engage in the battle must be in possession of the key item.
- It is required that the key item is one that has been issued from the nation currently in control of the area. For example, a key item issued from San d'Oria is needed to participate in an NM battle in a Ronfaure (S) under Kingdom control.

Battle Conditions

- The allotted battle time is 30 minutes.
- No experience penalties will be imposed for being rendered unconscious.
- While each NM is intended to provide a suitable challenge for a six-member party, it will be possible for an 18-member alliance to participate, similarly to the ENM quest.
- NMs will take to the field in the company of a squad of underlings.
- Defeating these NMs will yield not only experience points, but also additional rewards the nature of which will vary depending on the strategy that was employed during battle.

We fervently hope that your efforts to aid the Allied Forces in regaining dominance over the land are met with every success, for yet another exhilarating challenge awaits you on the horizon!

Wow, looks like they're putting in ENM style NMs now.  This looks to be both exciting and promising.  For now, I'll just call them "ANNMs", meaning "Allied Note Notorious Monsters".  I guess people have a use for those Allied Notes that they've got stacked up now.  Not like they weren't hard to get before.  

I'm really surprised by the rather quick pace that SE is putting out these update notices.  Makes me wonder when the update is going to occur, and if they're going to run out of stuff to put up.  I also wonder if we're going to see a 2 week lull before the actual update arrives.

April Update Part III!

The April version update will see coverage of the Fields of Valor and Treasure Casket systems extended to include areas introduced in the Rise of the Zilart expansion. Fields of Valor, in particular, is set to undergo a major upgrade that will further enhance its appeal to a broad range of adventurer palates.

An Ever-expanding Sphere of Enjoyment!

The above-mentioned systems will be made available in the Rise of the Zilart areas listed below:
Cape Teriggan / Eastern Altepa Desert / The Sanctuary of Zi'Tah / Ro'Maeve / Yuhtunga Jungle / Yhoator Jungle / Western Altepa Desert / Valley of Sorrows / Ru'Aun Gardens

Treasure Caskets appearing for the first time in these areas will yield an array of rewards unique to their respective locales.

Enhanced Access to Fields of Valor!

In addition to the above Rise of the Zilart locations, the following original areas are also scheduled to host a Field Manual:
East Ronfaure / La Theine Plateau / Batallia Downs / South Gustaberg / Konschtat Highlands / Rolanberry Fields / East Sarutabaruta / Tahrongi Canyon / Sauromugue Champaign / Behemoth's Dominion

In light of the expansion of playable areas for Fields of Valor, a number of preexisting training regimes will be relocated for the sake of convenience. Currently, there are regimes for which the objectives are found in a different area from where the issuing Field Manual is situated. The next version update will eliminate hassles such as having to make a long trek to La Theine after receiving regime objectives in West Ronfaure.

As the icing on this veritable cake of convenience, each Fields of Valor area is scheduled to host multiple Field Manuals, so you can spend less of your precious adventuring time in commute, and more on completing your objectives and reaping the rich rewards.

NMs Set to Join the Fray!

Fields of Valor was created so that all players could have lighthearted yet fruitful adventuring available at their fingertips. Following in the footsteps of this ideal, the April version update will usher in challenging new objectives—elite training regimes—that will have hearts pumping in the ears of even the most seasoned adventurers.

Accessing these elite training regimes requires key items which can be obtained in exchange for tabs, and your choice of gil, beastmen's seals, or a piece of equipment. Rewards granted upon completion of an objective will vary depending on the combination of the above. For example, adventurers who trade gil will be handsomely rewarded in kind, while beastmen's seals will garner you an amount of experience points corresponding to the quantity traded. Those who dare to relinquish equipment, on the other hand, can expect delightful rewards the likes of which have never been seen before on Vana'diel!
As an added bonus, no experience penalties will be imposed even if your best effort at fulfilling an objective results in a humiliating defeat at the hands of your quarry. So go on, get out there and prove your worth and valor!

*Due to the grueling nature of these elite training regimes, no more than one can be undertaken per day (Earth time). 

Fun and accessible content for everyone is the common objective which drives all of us here on the development and administration teams. These additions and adjustments to Fields of Valor and Treasure Caskets are but another part of our ongoing commitment to this mission.

This is yet another exciting update from SE.  I might be able to solo all the way to 75 on most jobs now, and on top of that, trading equipment for new equipment (and fight NMs) is pure win!  I am curious to see as to how this sort of thing will be implimented.

April Update Part II! Gobbiebags!

What adventurer hasn't long wished for a roomier receptacle to store the scores of sublime spoils snagged in the course of their abounding adventures across Vana'diel? Take heart, you Greedaloxes—your wait is over! Don't think you'll be able to procure this prodigious pouch free of charge, though, as the Goblin Bluffnix has devised a devious new assignment to test your mettle. What does the tightfisted taskmaster want from you this time? You'll just have to see for yourself in the upcoming version update! 

This is exciting!  More inventory space!  YAY~!

April Update News Part 1!

"It is our pleasure to announce that the next FINAL FANTASY XI version update has been scheduled for early April. Development is currently in progress for a whole host of items, including the following:
- Thrilling new episodes of nation quests for Wings of the Goddess.
- Battle-related adjustments and additions.
- Large-scale expansion of the Moblin Maze Mongers and Fields of Valor systems.

Details will appear right here on Topics as they become available, so stay tuned! "

I'm psyched about it!  New missions!  New storylines!  New stuff!   :D

I can't wait to see what they do to Summoner.  Interviews have indicated that new Summoner stuff is coming out this patch.

Also, I hear that the mini-expansions are also coming out this patch.  I'm so going to get them.

Week Review

Not much to say, except that I really haven't had much of anything notable happen to me in the past week.

I've joined a Salvage group, so now I'm closer to getting full Usukane and Nirvana.

And that SMN/COR ROCKS!  It's so nice to seeing higher numbers, especially from my bloodpacts.

Hopefully, I won't wait another week before updating.

DORPS!

Well, it's been a good week so far for my PUP.

Sunday, I got my Puppetry Babouches +1, which is the best AF+1 piece for PUP. And then, on the following Tuesday, 2 PUP AF+1 pieces drop in Apollyon. Coincidence? Perhaps... Sometimes I wonder if there's a GM watching me and controlling my life. Maybe I should rename my character to "Truman".

Then, Yesterday, I got a Pantin cape. The best back piece for PUP. I am SO Happy! Pantin Dastanas and Pantin Babouches -1 also dropped, but due to linkshell rules, I couldn't lot them. Still...the best back piece.

So, I'm happy.

How to: SMN/COR

So, I'm going to be talking about something that I've been toying with for a while now.  This is what might be known as the "unusual" subjob.

When it comes to subjobs, the standard for Summoner is White Mage and Scholar, mostly because of the spells those two subjobs bring.  While in most situations those two subjobs are fine for what they do, I find myself asking if there's something better.  A good subjob, by definition, should support and enhance the main job.  So, what's another job that can enhance Summoner?  I present Corsair.

What does Corsair have that other subjobs don't have?  Rolls.  Specifically, rolls that enhance pet abilities.  One thing to be aware of with Summoner is that it isn't really a mage job at all, but a pet job, and at most times, should be viewed as such.  So, as a pet job, there are very few things that can enhance pets directly.  Fortunately, COR has just such a thing in both the Puppet Roll and the Beast Roll.

There are a couple of downsides, however, when using COR as a subjob.  First is that only one roll can be active when playing as a /COR.  This means that only one effect can be used, so only pet accuracy or pet attack can be enhanced, but not both.  Second, and this relates to the first, is that a bust is perhaps worse on a /COR than a main COR.  A bust amounts to not only not being able to roll, but actually puts on a Negative effect.  So, busting on a Puppet roll means not only not being able to roll for five minutes, but it also means that the avatar will actually lose accuracy.

There is also one more side effect to consider when playing /COR, and that is Healer's Roll.  Healer's Roll will increase the amount of MP per tick when resting.  This is important as it cuts down the amount of down time that the Summoner faces.

So, where would I use /COR?  In large man events like Dynamis or Limbus (or pretty much any event where there will be more than one alliance).  In events like these, pet performance matters more than what the Summoner does, and remember, COR is the only subjob that can directly affect pet performance more than anything else.  Another place where I would use it is in a Summoner burn party where these rolls won't just help the player himself, but everyone around him too.

Where wouldn't I use /COR?  Soloing, where running out of MP is tantamount to death.  Since while soloing, I can't rest, having another sub, such as SCH would help better in the long run as it can restore MP directly.  I would also not use it in small man events such as Assaults and Nyzule Isle.  There, I might need the utility of WHM and SCH to help move things along and to help keep my party alive.

Like everything else, COR does have it uses, and it's great in some spots, and not so great in other spots.  It's situational, and it depends on if there's a need for the pet to perform rather than the master.

I'd be happy to answer any questions that pop up.

Blue Mage Blues

Yeah, it's been a while since I've actually posted, but hey, look, a post!  :D

I tried my hand at levelling Blue Mage, but it drives me batty.  At least I got it up to level 10, but learning those spells is a royal PAIN.  I don't know how people stand that job.  Here's a few of my recent experiences with trying to learn Metallic Body:

Crab uses Bubble Shower!

Crab uses Big Claw!

Crab uses Bubble Shower!

Crab uses Bubble Shield!

Crab dies!

Crab uses Bubble Shower!

Crab uses Big Claw!

Crab uses Bubble Shield!

Goblin Fisher decides to join the fun!  

Keyln dies...

Crab uses Big Claw!

Crab uses Bubble Shield!

Crab uses Metallic Body!

Crab dies!

Keyln earns 95 Experience Points.

(Keyln) What?  I didn't learn Metallic Body?

No, you didn't learn Metallic Body.

(Keyln) {/sigh}

Multiply this experience by about 50 crabs or so, and you can get the picture.  This job is just downright frustrating.  Give me something a bit more fun, like Corsair.

Speaking of Corsair, while I didn't level Corsair this week, but I did get Ranger up to 22.  I'm going to hold off on levelling Corsair a bit till I get Ranger up to 30.  But I did get my Trump Gun.

Also, other exciting stuff is that I got the PUP AF+1 feet Sunday.  One down and four to go!  :D  And my Nyzule Isle group is up to floor 75.  Maybe we'll finally hit 100 next week.

Doh!

So, today was a rather productive day. Went to Einjerhar with my crew, and we faced down Odin. I went as SCH/BLM (with an underlevelled BLM sub to boot), and we still won. If I had subbed RDM, I would have at least Stoneskin to play with. And then, even though we won, I warped out from the place. Yeah, big mistake. Turns out that you don't get the ampoules for winning if you don't leave by throwing the lamp away. >.< /sigh So, I've lost out on 1920 ampoules. Nirvana, I'm so sorry!

After Einjerhar, I joined my Limbus group and did Apollyon NW. I went with SMN/SCH, and tried out my new macros. I'm doing a ton of equip swaps, swapping in BP- timer gear, and then switching to Summoning Magic Skill+ before the BP goes off. So far, I seem pleased with the results.

Yeah, I pulled a Homer today. ^^;;

Soloing avatars for fun and profit

Didn't do too much, as I really wasn't feeling well yesterday.  I did some campaigning, and I now have the Wings of Altana SSSS!  :D

Got enough merit points now to max out Stormsurge, and now I'll be the permanent SCH in BLM parties casting out Hailstorm to everyone.  >.>  Not sure what to merit next.

Anyway, that's all of the report, now on to the lesson of the week.

Soloing Avatars for fun and profit!

Soloing a prime isn't really something new, as it's been shown that most any job can do it, especially subbing NIN and using resistance gear.  But what if it could be done using no items, no Astral Flow, Fox only, Final Destination *cough*.  I mean, doing it while using as few resources as possible.  The general idea is to defeat the avatars using only the abilities and spells that cost nothing to use.

There are two things that make this possible, first is the Sublimation from /SCH that allows MP to be stored in exchange for an HP drain.  The second is the Elemental Siphon that allows the Summoner to get MP from the spirits.

Having WHM up to 38 also helps in teleporting around to the various towns to pick up and drop off forks.  Now, obviously, there shouldn't be a fame problem, but do be aware that level 8 fame is required to even get the forks.  

For me, timing is important, as it allows me to fight the avatars at their weakest.  So, fighting Shiva on Fireday gives me an edge, as does fighting Ramuh and Earthday, and so on.  Pretty much, when I decide to fight an avatar, I take in account what day it is, and then fight the avatar that is weak to the day.

One of the most important thing is avatar perpetuation.  Pretty much the less MP used in fights, the longer the fight can go.  When a summoner runs out of MP, pretty much that's the end of the fight.  So, keeping up MP is really important, and running out is paramount to death.

During the fight, using Sublimation takes approxiamately 5 minutes to fill out.  During that time, it's important to keep HP up.  If the HP gets below 50%, Sublimation stops working, and it will automatically appear as filled.  I suggest using Penury (50% cost) and Regen II to keep up HP, and be sure to use Earthen Warp before the fight, as it'll help prevent HP loss.

Another tool to keep up MP is Elemental Siphon.  Elemental Siphon will allow the Summoner to take MP from the elemental spirit summoned by the Summoner.  There are two important things to keep in mind with Elemental Siphon.  First is that the amount of MP is influenced by both day and weather.  In these battlefields, there is a constant double weather, and this should be a guiding factor in which spirit to summon.  For example, if fighting Ramuh on Earthday, a Thunder spirit should be used because of the double thunder weather.  The other thing to be aware of is the timing.  First is to move as far away as possible from the prime so as to not get beaten.  Second is that if release is used, wait 3 seconds before using the elemental siphon macro.  Hopefully, if enough distance is between the summoner and the prime, then there can be plenty of time to do an elemental siphon, and get the avatar out for the next round.

One final note to make is that when soloing primes, it's important to realize that this is not a race to see how fast to kill these primes, but an endurance race to outlast the primes.  So, the key is MP conservation.  When using bloodpacts, be aware of how much MP they use, and use them conservatively.  Remember that running out of MP is paramount to death, especially since the Summoner has absolutely nothing else to fall back upon if the MP runs out.

And finally, it never hurts to be prepared for the worst.  It's a good idea to come with an elixir or three for instant MP boost, and Astral Flow, while not needed, is very useful, especially if MP is low, and time is running short.  An Astral Flow BP can do up to 15% of the prime's HP, so use it to end a fight quickly!  But if things are running the way they should, this shouldn't be needed.

I'd have a video up, but it's about 15 minutes long, and about 3 gigs in size.  I'm working on splitting it up and sharing it on Youtube, but I have no idea if or when I'll be done.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

The Weekend Report!

So, I've done a few things over the weekend, and rather than go day by day, I'll just bring up the highlights.

Levelling : I got Ranger up to level 20, and I'm going to work on levelling it more.  I also got Corsair up to level 41, and I'm going to hold it there for about a week until I can get my AF gun, and Ranger up to a more suitable subjob.  I also did a little bit on Scholar, and got my Scholar XP buffer and a merit point.  Only 2 more merit points left to max out Stormsurge.  

Einjerhar : We did Wing I, and whipped it.  Not sure how many ampoules I need for my mythic weapon.

Limbus : We faced Proto-Ultima, and wiped at 8%.  Once the tanks and healers went down, we got whipped.  Hopefully, things will get better soon.

Dynamis: Did Dynamis-Bastok, and the Argute Pants dropped.  Only 16 more bills to go before I can upgrade the Argute hands.  I'm happy with that.

Nyzul Isle: Nyzul went great!  Started at floor 46, and made it all the way to floor 60.  Nyzul cheated though, by restricting weapon skills and giving us hydra as the boss.  Needless to say, we lost because we couldn't do enough damage against its regen.  Still, despite the loss, we're making great progress in climbing.  Not even flayers scare us now.

Other stuff: I got all the dice I need for Corsair (At a steep price of 600k...ouch!), and now it's just a matter of levelling it.  I'm going to wait till next week to restart levelling it though, since I want to get my AF weapon, and I need the bone key.  Unfortunately, it won't be available till next week.  Also, no progress on getting that last medal.  I haven't been doing much campaigning as of recent.

Goals: My goals for next week-

- Maintain a profit by farming CCB Polymers and selling them on the AH.

- Continue doing well in Limbus and Dynamis.  We're doing Dynamis Beaucidine and Dynamis Tavnazia this week.  Nothing I really want from Beaucidine, as I got all the armor for all my jobs.  Tavnazia...I pray that more -1 stuff drops.

- Level RNG up.  Hopefully to 25.

- Get more Marbles so I can do more stuff with it.  There's an interesting link that shows people getting 10k-12k PER RUN in MMM.  It'd be interesting to try.

- Have fun.  A game isn't a game if it isn't fun.  :)

And here's to a productive and fun week.  :D

- 

Ever notice that I'm getting later and later...

That's because when I'm done, it's usually around midnight, and I'm sleeeeepy...so I don't want to write posts with my eyes shut.

Anyway, yesterday I did Dynamis-Valkrum.  We did get the win, barely, but outside of that, nothing exciting really happened.  Aggroed a Nightmare Manticore, well, not me but someone did, which closed off a quarter of the people in there.  Good thing Scholar has Reraise II.  I didn't get anything by way of relic drops, but I did get some currency for my upgrading relic.

Afterwards, I did Nyzul Isle.  We finally got up to floor 46, but failed past that.  Flayers are the devil, I tell ya, the DEVIL.  Flayers + Gears = might as well give up.

I really need to rebuild my buffer for my SCH now...

Bastokian Frustration

So today, I did Wing III in Einjerhar.  We started off with Imps, which I have a hatred for.  To make things worse, I came as a SMN, which is rather unusual as I'm usually asked to come as SCH.  Anyway, we beat all the imps, and then the Taurs came in, and the large bats completed the group.  The boss was the Hydra, and we beat him down rather easily.  From what it sounds like, we'll be facing Odin on Friday.

We did Limbus next.  We went to Appollyon floor where there were fomors/trees/mimics/elementals.  I went as SCH, and we won rather easily.  PUP item dropped, but it's too bad I have that item already.  I want the Temenos item so I can update the feet.  :<

Earlier, I did some CCB farming.  Not as lucky as yesterday, though.  I went through a dozen chests, about 9 diremites, and about 5 lizards before I got the chips I needed for a single set.  Before where I got two sets in less time, today I wasn't so lucky.  Disappointing really.

Now, my rant is Bastok.  Why did SE make the city so hard to get to?  I mean, compared to San d'Oria or Windurst, Bastok is a PAIN to get to.  Getting to Bastok without using airship requires going through a number of zones, no matter which way I take it.  And getting to Bastok [S] isn't much better, as it requires transversing the ENTIRE zone to reach the city.  Compared to Windurst [S] or San d'Oria [S], it's really inconvienant.  I with SE would set up like they did before WotG, where they had moogles in the cities to teleport people to the various cities.  I miss that.

Ka-Ching! $.$

Nothing exciting happened today really.  This morning, I was playing around with my SMN/COR, when I saw this shout for CCB Polymers.  After a quick jog to the ye ol' Auction House, I discovered that not only were none up, but they were selling for a pretty decent pace and for 30k each.  While it's a decent piece of change, and I remembered that back in the past, I farmed chips to fund my automaton attachments.

So, I decided to go SMN/SCH and start farming the monsters for the chips.  Somewhere along the way, SE must have really upped the drop rate on those chips.  I killed a grand total of 3 mimics, 2 diremites, and 4 lizards to get 2 sets of chips for CCB pumps.  After getting to Bastok (honestly, they need to make an easier way of getting to that city...), I got one CCB pump, when to Jeuno, put it up for auction, and went back to Bastok, got the second CCB pump, and returned to Jeuno.  Amazingly, the first CCB sold before I got back to Jeuno to list the second one.  And I put both of them up for 30k each.  And they were sold before I got back.  

Frankly, I'm rather amazed that the whole thing took 2 hours, and I could probably find ways of cutting down on time.  I made enough money from killing all six avatars and in the third of the time.  I should do this more often, so I can fund my Dynamis and Limbus runs...which also fund my relic improvements.

I got home tonight, and decided to seek on my SCH while playing Dissidia.  After a few hours, I got an invite, and the party didn't last long until our leader lost connection.  From what I understand, he's been doing it for a while, and after the fifth time, we gave up and went home.  Never learned if he came back though.  While it was short, at least I got a good ~6k buffer on my SCH now.  With Reraise II, hopefully it won't mean that I'll be delevelling if I die.

Tomorrow should be fun.  We're doing Wing III in Einjerhar, and who knows what we're doing in Limbus.

I need a good Salvage group...

Hello to the TaruTaru Times Online!

Just a quick post to add in that I've been added to the Tarutaru Times online.  /wave

Assault, Campaign Ops, Dynamis, Einjerhar

So, I've got a few days to catch up on.

Thursday I didn't play much. I did some Campaigning, and I got the Wings of Integrity, as well as got caught up on some of my XP.

Friday I did Einjerhar with my group, and we cleared Wing I. Won that one pretty easily, and ended up fighting a reject from an anime porn (don't ask).

Afterwards, I did some Limbus. We did Temenos West (Beastmen). We won that one pretty handidly, but we got 4 MNK pieces and a THF. Sorta disappointing as we only needed one MNK piece. And I still need the PUP and the SCH pieces to drop. :<

Saturday I didn't do too much. I more or less played around with the Campaign Ops, and leveled COR some. Did the same thing on Sunday, and now I have COR up to 39. Unfortunately, my RNG is only at 17, so that means I should probably hold off on levelling COR until I get my RNG up to 37 or so first. I really enjoy playing COR, as it appeals to the gamer inside me. (Haha...). I also want to level DNC so I can get the relic (it looks really nice!). Unfortunately, that'll mean levelling NIN, a prospect I simply dread.

Also on Sunday, we did Dynamis-Buburimu. We wiped once or twice, but we did get some decent drops. Of note to me is the Pantin Hands -1 (still don't have the Pantin Hands yet, and it's the one relic piece that I'm missing), and Argute Hands -1. Also saw Summoner's Hands -1, but due to lotting rules of my linkshell, I couldn't grab them. Next time, gadget, next time.

We did Nyzul Isle/Assault. Tried climbing past floor 40, but we failed twice. First time, we got up to floor 45, but failed because we had to kill a chariot...and with White Magic restricted. Needless to say it didn't go to well, and we couldn't kill it in time. On our second try, we had to find another chariot, but it was behind several gears that we couldn't destroy, along with other very nasty monsters. Our sixth member dropped out, so we had a helper, but she only had two tags. The other two tags we did some assaults that one of our members was lacking. We did Shooting Down the Baron, whcih involves finding and killing this teleporting imp. Both Elfi and I were Summoners, so really, the trick was finding the imp. Once we did that, the avatars followed the imp around and killed it. The other assault that we did was the Shanara Grass Conservation assault. We had to kill bunnies. Lots of bunnies. That love to link. I died trying to kill that last bunny. I should have gone PUP/DNC instead of PUP/COR. But we won anyway, and now I know what I'm going to be doing tomorrow. ^^;; Anyway, he has three more assaults to finish, then we can go up to the next level of assaults, which is the Corporal assaults.

Goals for this week:

- Sacrifice Taru to the great gods of Dynamis for good drops. Hopefully I can get the SMN Cape to complete my relic set, and I also want Argute feet to drop from Bastok.

- Keep working in Campaign so I can get the fourth and final wings medal.

- Get all three silvers from the Promyvion areas.

- Level RNG to 20 at least.

- Have fun in Limbus and Einjerhar.

- Get Abdhisayana the other three assaults completed so he can rank up to Corporal.

- Not get broke.

Here's for a fun and productive week this week!

Dynamis + Assault + MMM Oh my!

Today, I joined my group for a little bit of Dynamis-Beaucidine.  Considering that I've already got the armor for SMN, SCH, and PUP from there, there was nothing more for me to get except free money.  I went as SCH, and well, I did die a couple of times, but they had me playing healer.  Healer's fine and all, but I'm better playing support and enfeebling.  For some strange reason, my Xbox locked up twice near the end.  Even weirder was that a few of my linkshell mates also had the same thing happen at the same time. 

Anyway, I did get about 7 pieces of currency, so I made some nice gil.  I also got wootz ore, which sells very nicely.  A Jadeshell also dropped, but someone else won that one with a 995 lot.  All in all, not a bad run.

After Dynamis was done, our Nyzul group met, and we decided to do a few assaults.  We picked up someone who we worked with last week, and it turns out that he was not only Private Second Class (the lowest assault rank), but he didn't have all six gates!  He had 3 of them, two of which are generally easy to get to, but he also had Nyzul, of all places.  I'm frankly more shocked that there's a person in this day and age who's level 75, and STILL doesn't have all 6 locations.  Some, like Periqia I can understand, but he didn't have Mamool Ja Training Grounds, which is one of the more popular places to merit.

I was ready to go off to bed when I saw a JP shout for some marble farming.  I couldn't resist joining.  So, after some antics with the auto-translate, I got into the group.  Evidently, this group was a bit further ahead than I was, as my updated maze only netted 25 while the others got somewhere between 30 and 50 marbles a run.  I was impressed.  By the end of the night, though, I ended up with over 300 marbles (a mix of the last run I did with the current run), so I got that final rune to make my ultimate marble farming maze.  I also got the other two contracts, so I'm going to try the mega boss run...the one with the peon rune, and a few others.  It should be interesting...if I don't end up dead.  Reminds me, I need to get some XP on my PUP.  It's getting rather low...

Einjerhar, Limbus, and Cheating

Well, today I started off with demanding rent from my avatars (Aka fighting them solo and getting the gil reward).  Shiva, Ramuh, and Garuda were, of course, more than happy to oblige.  The one really nice thing about being a SMN/SCH is that I don't even have to use my 2 hour ability, Astral Flow or even items to win.

Later, much later, that night, we did some Einjerhar.  We started late because I think we were waiting for people to show up, much to my annoyance.  We did a Wing III, which had some really tough waves.  First we fought clusters, followed by bombs, followed by a combo of FLAYERS (hate those things) and Manticores.  The boss was the hydra, and we had it down to 75%~ before we kicked out.  Still got 1920 ampoules out of it, so I'm pleased.  Wish we won so we can do more Odin, but hey, I'll take what I can get.

After a quick jog home, I joined my Limbus group later that night.  We were going to do Tenemos West, but that turned out to be occupied when we got there.  We ended up doing Tenemos North.  We won, and got the chip, and no one died, so it's a plus.  On the other hand, We ended up getting three(!) MNK pieces, which are completly useless to all but one person.  On the bright side, we also got one THF piece which helped someone out.  After that, I cut out for the night after using my moogle stuff.

Now something that has been bothering me is that a few days back, SE did a huge ban sweep, banning some 900 people, 550 of those were permanent bans while the rest got temporary 72 hour bans.  There were many reactions to this, from anger, to despair, to resignation.  Overall, there are three main reactions, "We cheated because SE was being unfair"(rationalization), "Yeah, what we did was against the rules, but banning for a first time offense is a bit harsh!" (bargaining), and "Yeah, we did wrong, and we got what we deserved." (acceptance).

For those who may not know, there was a bug that allowed an item in the treasure pool be duplicated to an entire alliance by letting the item appear in the treasure pool, and then disbanding the alliance.  The treasure pool would then appear for all three parties that were in the alliance as a whole, effectively tripling the treasure drop.

There are two main things wrong with this.  The first is the duplication of rewards being spread to all party members.  For example, instead of getting one Usukane piece, there are three for the alliance/party to take.  SE has, historically speaking, always banned duplicating items, and this is a clear exploit of the system.  Personally, I'm boggled with the idea that somehow, people do not see this as an exploit or even a bug.  I fail to see how any reasonable objective person would look at this, and say it's not an exploit or a bug.

Some of the other player's reaction have also hinged on some rationalization.  They will rationalize this by saying that since the drop rate is so low on the stuff (and believe me, it is low), that when and if something drops, it should be duplicated so people can get their stuff faster.  Blaming a weakness in the design as justification to use an exploit is to me as wrong as simply denying it.  It's like someone buying gil, justifying it by saying that it's near impossible to actually get money in this game.  Such rationalizations is still no excuse from breaking the rules, and certainly no excuse of escaping the consequences.

Finally, there is a third group, which say that what happened was wrong, but SE was too harsh when banning people.  My thought on this is that players have certain responsibilities when playing the game.  These responsibilities include not using exploits when found, and reporting them to SE.  Needless to say, nearly everyone that got banned failed, at least in some part, on the first one, and definately failed the second one.  When I think about it, I don't think the purpose of the bannings was to punish players at all, but to send a message and a warning to all players of FFXI.  First is that exploits should not be used (at least not frequently).  Second is that when exploits are being used, all players share the responsibility to communicate with SE on the exploit.  Needless to say, all players have failed in either one, or in the case of some, both, and a penalty needs to be made to send a message.  By banning people who might have used this once, SE made it clear that there is no gray area in this matter, and cheating once or allowing a cheat to happen will receive the same fate, banned from the game.

I with to close my statement with this: This is Square-Enix's game, and we just play in it.  SE has every right to cancel or ban accounts for ANY reason.  This may include banning all red hair mithra playing Palading on a Tuesday.  Stupid perhaps, but they would be well within their rights.  Having said this, everyone has a certain responsibility when playing this game.  For the devs, this includes ensuring a stable game that doesn't go down often, and producing new and exciting content to play with.

On the other hand, players also have a responisibilty to report any and all bugs and exploits that will appear.  For this reason, I think SE did what it did.  Not only was it an item duplication bug, but one that was really kept quiet for a long long time.  Since no one came forward with information, some people were banned for that, as well as duplicating items.

Been too long...

Yeah, it's been a while since I've last posted.  And of course, I have been still playing, but I've done quite a bit.  However, I think I'll just focus on today.

Really a boring day today.  I really didn't do too much.  I ding 35 on my COR yesterday, and today, I dinged 22 on my PLD.  Thinking about levelling NIN so I can maybe level 75 for DNC.  I think.

After just hanging around in Whitegate, I did some Marble farming for my Moblin Maze.  Got a good 70 marbles out of it, and I was able to get one more piece for my Marble farming maze.  Still need one more for it to be complete.  

Did Dynamis-Beaucidine today.  While it was a boss run, and we did beat the boss, I got the Argute Robe (SCH Relic Body), which goes nicely with my light arts look.  Now I'm 3/5 (3/6 if I count the belt) on SCH relic.  Just need the Legs and Feet pieces to complete my relic.  

Completed the day with a four run set of Nyzul Isle.  Went from Floor 20 to Floor 40 in a straight shot.  We did alot better today, and the worst that we saw was when we went from floor 35 to floor 40.  We had about 3 minutes left when we got to 40, and we had to face Fafnir.  Good news, though, is we won.  With 10 seconds to spare.  And Askar legs dropped.  We could have come a little closer.  Oh, and fun fact: Fafnir is apparently resistant against both Ice and Fire.  Next time I face him, switch between Thunder and Water.

Anyway, my goals for tomorrow are to see if I can do another Moblin Maze run, perhaps after work.  And I want to level NIN now.  Want to make DNC my next 75 job.  It's sorta fun.  Even if there are no pets involved.