The excitement for the upcoming expansion for Final Fantasy 14 is palpable amongst our free company – well, so is maybe a little bit of burn out trying to wrap up loose ends and feel fully prepared for the expansion release. I recently found out that I did in fact order the edition that came with early access although whether or not I will be able to get on during early release because servers and the sheer volume of players jumping on that weekend will be…interesting to say the least. I now feel like I am at a point where I can take some time away from the grind I’ve been doing for the past few months especially just so I’m feeling nice and fresh for the expansion and can sink back into the story.
I have always loved video games. I’ve never been particularly *good* at them but there are some stories that are just so beautifully told through gameplay. As an imaginative and creative person video games just become fully emersive experiences for me and I have loved playing a part of a different character through previous final fantasy games, amongst others such as Assassins Creed and Horizon Zero Dawn. I got fully into the lore that surrounds games like Bloodborne and the Souls games which have such compelling visuals and all of this stuff going on in the background that just brings me so much joy. But there hasn’t been a game that has engrossed me as much as Final Fantasy XIV and theres a little part of me that is kind of sad that I didn’t pick it up much sooner.
I fully love playing and essentially for raiding reasons, being, Avalon. Role Playing games are essentially for me at least more immersive because you become that character for a short space of time but I have created Avalon and whilst she follows the story of FFXIV I have picked how she looks, reacts, comments she makes and jobs she plays. I love my tiny lizard lady character. I love crafting cool glamours for her and making furniture for her which is just a little bit of me too. It’s such a fun and interesting way to put some of you into an online character with all the aspects that an MMO has. Like I just genuinely love that there is more to this game than just the story. The interactions with other players makes it a whole lot of fun.
Endwalker Levelling
I would say my main job is a Machinist so I’ll be pushing that through the Main Story Scenario quests but I will be swapping in my Warrior and Summoner (to level Scholar) at the same time, potentially followed by Dragoon as that is the only other class I have in 70s. If I have any story left over after those then I’ll be speed levelling my other tanks because I don’t like the thought of wasting EXP. I know having a tank at level will help with some dungeon queues and I’ve been practising with Warrior again recently to be better at running through dungeons. I’m not going to be doing wall to wall pulls though because that just isn’t my style of play.
Main Story Quest
This will, of course, be my main focus. I have early access and as long as I can get online I firmly intend to focus on the story as much as I possibly can before I go away for the week. I have no intention of forming a static to go through content with although I am more than happy to join in with other people I know in game if/when we are at the same place at the same time. Mostly though I’ll get as much as I can done before I head off on holiday for the week and then when I’m back Friday night I will be right back to it. I imagine I will probably have the story done within a couple of weeks, depending on lag, queues and the like. Then I’ll work through any blue side quests that open up all the other things and probably open up beast tribes too.
Aether Currants
The thing I am most not looking forward to is how slow walking is in this game without riding maps and without being able to fly and something I know I’m going to need to get sorted before I go in with crafting and gathering because flying will make it about one thousand times faster.
Crafting and Gathering
All of my crafters and gatherers are at 80. I plan to do Botany and Mining first, then by specialist crafters of Culinarian, Weaver and Blacksmith. My final gatherer to level will probably be fisher because it takes the longest and it isn’t one I enjoy the most. I’ll be doing a mix of daily deliveries, custom deliveries and leves to do this. I do want to get these done pretty quickly and in time for treasure maps with my FC because I absolutely do not want to have to pay for them and I’ll need a level 90 gatherer.
Unlocking New Jobs
I will be unlocking Reaper and Sage but its unlikely I’ll be doing much with them. Reaper is probably going to be more my style of play because it does look pretty cool but I’m not sure I want to be making it a main job for me. I have though got the gear for it thanks to levelling Dragoon. However, it would probably be the next best job to have unlocked and level to 90. Sage will probably chill with my white mage and astrologian for a while until I even think about healing. One day I might not have the fear so much and will be able to heal through fights.
Leave a Reply