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Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward |OT2| RIP Bowmage 2015-2017.

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I would not expect to see Gilgamesh or Balmung opening up until well after SB launch. They are incredibly overpopulated and as people resub on both servers for the expansion, it's just going to get worse.

As far as I know, the preemptive move to shut down server transfers to those servers, and not just character creation, is a new one. I don't think it happened pre-HW? I'd imagine they're going to do everything they can to prevent either from increasing in size until the SB launch hype goes down and the population starts contracting again.

Trying to land somewhere else on Aether and planning to stay for a few months would probably be smart. Housing and social ties can make it awkward, but there are worse things in the world than finding a small server that's unlikely to be overloaded with expansion hype to do initial early leveling on.

This is another problem of Japan not knowing how anyone outside of Japan actually plays. RPing is not a thing in Japan, which surprises Western MMO players. It's unlikely that anyone at Squenix in Tokyo actually knows why NA players pile onto Balmung which is why this temporary freeze on people transferring to Balmung will not do anything long term. People will just wait and not play or pay subs and then suddenly when it's open again, if it ever opens again, they'll all start piling in again. If it never opens again well then Squenix has just put a cap on how large the RPing community can ever be in FFXIV and that will only harm the game's growth in the longer term. Too bad no one in Japan knows what RPing is or what all these Westerners are doing on Balmung.

Now the issue with Gilgamesh is a separate one and now that there is cross-server PF there is no reason for one server to be the 'raiding' server. So people really should just disperse from Gilgamesh to other servers and look for raid groups on the cross-server PF which covers their entire data center.
 

Omnicent

Member
i can't wait to see all the pictures of ridiculous queues on aether and balmung during stormblood

I remeber seeing queues posted on reddit (30min+). And I logged into the game with a 5 min queue and unlocked DRK. Good old Ultros queues.
Hopefully it will be the same for Stormblood. I'll probably have my SAM lv52 by the time some people get through the queue on Balmung/Gilgamesh
 

Squishy3

Member
Also I'm an idiot and just realized how that new Ninja leylines-like ability works. Now Ninjas will probably have what feels like an actual opener instead of the kinda weird mishmash it is now. Using multiple Ninjutsus on your way to Suiton is rad.
 

Ken

Member
Also I'm an idiot and just realized how that new Ninja leylines-like ability works. Now Ninjas will probably have what feels like an actual opener instead of the kinda weird mishmash it is now. Using multiple Ninjutsus on your way to Suiton is rad.

NIN current opener is great idk what you're talking about
 

Haly

One day I realized that sadness is just another word for not enough coffee.
Also I'm an idiot and just realized how that new Ninja leylines-like ability works. Now Ninjas will probably have what feels like an actual opener instead of the kinda weird mishmash it is now. Using multiple Ninjutsus on your way to Suiton is rad.
NIN opener preview.
 

Squishy3

Member
NIN current opener is great idk what you're talking about
I don't feel any real "oomph" out of it, I guess is what I mean. I'm still stumbling over it a little since it's not ingrained into my muscle memory 100% but just out of what I saw in the job actions video (which probably isn't in any way optimal) packs the oomph I'm looking for.

Dumb ninja frog sold me.
 

iammeiam

Member
The best part of the convoluted WAR pull opener was the guaranteed 60s warning. No needing to hold up ready checks waiting for aetherflow or ammo timers and then have people take off to go to the bathroom/get a drink.

20s aint nothing.
 

StarVigil

Member
I skyped with a friend of mine who is getting into the game and was like, don't underestimate the amount of available content until Stormblood. And I was telling him how much stuff I actually didn't do yet. Just to give him a rough idea, I typed in the playtime command and had a good laugh at the 19 days 9 hours played. I subbed for the third month half a week ago. In my defence, I was only playing between semesters.
 

Squishy3

Member
I skyped with a friend of mine who is getting into the game and was like, don't underestimate the amount of available content until Stormblood. And I was telling him how much stuff I actually didn't do yet. Just to give him a rough idea, I typed in the playtime command and had a good laugh at the 19 days 9 hours played. I subbed for the third month half a week ago. In my defence, I was only playing between semesters.
Yeah, there's still a lot of content that's considered side content if all you do is follow the critical path to Stormblood.

It'll be super nice for people just getting into the game for Stormblood now and realize they don't have a lot to do at 70 and can go back and unlock all the side dungeons for roulettes and do Hildibrand/Coil/Alexander etc.
 

Ken

Member
I don't feel any real "oomph" out of it, I guess is what I mean. I'm still stumbling over it a little since it's not ingrained into my muscle memory 100% but just out of what I saw in the job actions video (which probably isn't in any way optimal) packs the oomph I'm looking for.

Dumb ninja frog sold me.

idk i think everything fits together really nicely? one of my favorite openers in the game since all the oGCDs just feel good!

DRK is probably my least favorite opener
 

Edzi

Member
I skyped with a friend of mine who is getting into the game and was like, don't underestimate the amount of available content until Stormblood. And I was telling him how much stuff I actually didn't do yet. Just to give him a rough idea, I typed in the playtime command and had a good laugh at the 19 days 9 hours played. I subbed for the third month half a week ago. In my defence, I was only playing between semesters.

There's a playtime command?
 

Valor

Member
The million dollar question at this point is if part, and if so how much, of the 30% damage buff the physical ranged classes lose alongside caster stance is going to get partially baked into their base potencies now, or if they're losing whatever chunk of it regaining auto attacks won't make up. It's another reason them not touching on the meat of the ranged changes is frustrating--the entire justification for caster stance in the first place was to cope with Bard's ability to run around the map and keep firing off weaponskills, and the only counter-measure they could come up with was cast times. The early HW stance was even with cast times Bard and MCH should be doing lower damage because supportthings, but there hasn't really been any indication of where they're targeting the jobs for SB and support skills are much more spread out now. We won't know in practice until the game goes live because it'll be a bunch of boring math, and god knows they've missed their targets repeatedly in the past, but it'd be nice to know what they think they're doing.

Where it gets sort of weird is that the problem is now going to be worse than ever--In ARR, a bard could move and keep hitting skills/doing damage no problem, but auto attacks required facing the boss, so there was some restriction--lock-on or strafe, because if you turn around to run away you're losing damage from missed autos. Since HW updated auto attacks to not require facing the target, it's going to move to being an even more mobile job than it was pre-HW. There's not really any amount of movement utility they can give other jobs that will match that, and the sprint change will end up benefitting the physical ranged just as much as tanks/melee. Shoulder tackle/Shukuchi/the warrior will definitely help those jobs, but physical ranged will be able to keep up full DPS for everything barring mechanics that force you outside of shooting range which haven't been super common.
I know numbers are subject to change, but you were on it at first with higher potencies baked into the class. I think that's why Bard gets the two new updated dots. Where before they're 80/60, for what it's worth the SB ones were 120 with 55/45 tick (VB was the 45, of course). That plus EA + two new higher potency (300+) weaponskills means to me that they're adding those skills (plus passive dps gain from songs I suppose?) and auto attacks to make up for the cast time.

You're of course dead on when it comes to the Minuet stance being done to reign in Bard from being able to move around as much as they please while doing top tier dps and support. A big focus appears to be on individual players' dps, and Bard/MCH don't look like they're exempt from it for now. Weapon Damage is still a limiting factor, of course, but I'm not really sure how they plan to compensate for the mobility both of those classes will likely bring. Maybe smaller auras for their songs/support abilities to want you to stay in range of your party members? That may be a thing. BLM looks much more mobile now than it used to be, and RDM looks like it's also rather mobile too to a degree. Maybe they're giving more of a range of movement to the ranged classes in general to compensate? I mean here we are at the end of HW and BRD/MCH still top the dps charts in many fights, so maybe they don't really care about that balance of them having to be lower than melees/casters. It's hard to tell, but it kind of feels at first glance that's the thought process.

They added an RP player status icon though.
and how~
 

Sylas

Member
This is another problem of Japan not knowing how anyone outside of Japan actually plays. RPing is not a thing in Japan, which surprises Western MMO players. It's unlikely that anyone at Squenix in Tokyo actually knows why NA players pile onto Balmung which is why this temporary freeze on people transferring to Balmung will not do anything long term. People will just wait and not play or pay subs and then suddenly when it's open again, if it ever opens again, they'll all start piling in again. If it never opens again well then Squenix has just put a cap on how large the RPing community can ever be in FFXIV and that will only harm the game's growth in the longer term. Too bad no one in Japan knows what RPing is or what all these Westerners are doing on Balmung.

Now the issue with Gilgamesh is a separate one and now that there is cross-server PF there is no reason for one server to be the 'raiding' server. So people really should just disperse from Gilgamesh to other servers and look for raid groups on the cross-server PF which covers their entire data center.
There is talk of RP communities building on other servers so hopefully they get off the ground with that. The real "issue" with RP communities is that we tend to stay subbed far, far, far longer than PVE/PVP centric players, so if someone goes on Balmung they're kinda there for the long haul and don't unsub terribly often/don't make room for more people. It's compounded by the fact that you could transfer onto Balmung for the longest time so the RP community just kinda kept piling up on this one specific server instead of being forced to spread out.

There's honestly not a solution other than labeling servers as RP servers in a more official capacity or hoping that other communities build themselves up to the point where people don't wanna leave when Balmung opens back up. Granted, people tried to form a community on Gilgamesh and boy oh boy did that crash and burn.
 

iammeiam

Member
I've seen some talk about trying to set up on Mateus as sort of an RP refugee situation; Gilgamesh seems like it'd have been trouble since it already had a strong server identity, but a smaller server with tons of available housing doesn't sound terrible.

Maybe they're giving more of a range of movement to the ranged classes in general to compensate? I mean here we are at the end of HW and BRD/MCH still top the dps charts in many fights, so maybe they don't really care about that balance of them having to be lower than melees/casters. It's hard to tell, but it kind of feels at first glance that's the thought process.

Interesting stuff, thanks.

And part of why I'm curious in a full list of potencies is that I'm not sure how player feedback reaches them. There's a decent contingent who have been expecting massive ranged nerfs to put them 'back where they belong' and the decision to tell us nothing aside from 'lol everything is different now' on the stream didn't help. The weird power death spiral they hit mid-Heavenward of buffs and counter buffs seemed borderline unintentional, and things like the weird difficulty disparity in the BRD and MCH 12S Stone, Sky, Sea dummies gives me no idea how they think the jobs should work. The potency bumps you listed are hopefully a good sign, but there's also the loss of buffs via the inability to cross-class and the current belief that Hawk's Eye is be gone. Songs may make that up for bard, but MCH is just a giant black hole until the embargo is up at a minimum. MCH without cross-class has literally no buffs at all, unless they add one, and the mystery of the turret is worrying because +autos - turret = little if any gain single-target and a nerf in AOE, plus without the constant 30%. The DoT changes are potentially encouraging, but at the same time there's the mystery of the missing Flaming Arrow (which is... 400 potency single-target? I think? every minute), the apparent reduced Bloodletter if it only resets in the one song, etc. I've also got general AOE confusion for both jobs--fewer resets on RoD, no FA, maybe no passive Bishop damage is a huge nerf for just dungeon spam on first blush. Also no Quelling is incredibly weird unless they're taking two of the burstiest jobs and making them non-burst, or just building some kind of aggro modifier into a trait.

I get the bard rework--it needed to happen and they're addressing some issues dating back to HW launch there, but it baffles me that they spent so little time addressing essentially a full class rework. Totally no idea what they think they're doing with MCH or what they're actually fixing there, which probably should not be surprising.

I feel like we should be betting on whether ranged is massively over- or under-tuned at SB launch, because these changes are so huge I kind of can't believe they're going to get it right the first try.
 

Luminaire

Member
Pre-ordered Stormblood, third time in a row on Greenmangaming. They usually have pretty good discounts.

Now I need to prepare for the slaughter that will happen to Cleric Stance, Esuna, Protect, Stoneskin, etc...
 

Redhood

Member
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECSD2I8-hO4

Sophia EX cleared! Next up, Nidhogg and Sephirot.

Anyone have any tips for them from both a tank and healer perspective?

I also finished Sophia ex yesterday. Then was whole day in Nidhogg extreme. Spent 8 hours in training parties and managed to get to it's final phase.

Miss teq's video will tell the strategy but nothing compares to actually executing it as a group.
The hysteria circles placement is of utmost importance in all phases otherwise you will die. As a healer I will say work on dodging the mechanics damage. If you die then u loose mp. Also during adds phase be on the lookout of shadow dragon. He targets healers first. His moves have a long tell and can easily be dodged.
 

Omni

Member
Also during adds phase be on the lookout of shadow dragon. He targets healers first. His moves have a long tell and can easily be dodged.

He actually targets the player that is furthest away from him. When it was new, you'd have a designated player to bait his attacks by standing away from the party. Usually off-heals or a SMN/Bard/MCH if you have one

These days it'll probably just be off heal by default. Should probably ask, just to make sure
 

kurohana

Member
I knew about Shadowfang, but if stealth resets the mudra cd that sounds like an extremely welcome QoL change. Still probably ditching the class since Bard is being semi-reverted and RDM looks nice. I won't miss the awful ninja glamour selection.
 

IvorB

Member
So with Stormblood almost here I decided to put together a top ten list of my favourite tunes from the soundtrack in Heaensward, as I did for ARR and as a tribute to the amazing OST in this game. I've only included tracks that stood out to me in game and since I wasn't as active in HW as ARR I'm sure I've missed a few good ones.

Two honourable mentions for that unfortunately didn't make the list.

Stone and Steel, Order Yet Undeciphered

And the list:

10. Unbreakable
9. Revenge twofold
8. Nobility Sleeps
7. Against the Wind
6. Imagination
5. The Mushroomery
4. Bismark. This is techincally two tracks I think but I included both phase one and two because I like them both and they go so well together.
3. Metal. I'm a sucker for a snappy gitar riff and tight percussion.
2. Coming home
1. Contention. Just a beautiful piece of music and conveys so much emotion in such a simple track. For me this tune is classic Final Fantasy.

I'm sure everyone has favorites so feel free to shout them out.
 

Foxxsoxx

Member
Speaking of music. I really, really hope they get more than one 'ominous music theme' for SB. It's getting real, real old hearing the same theme whenever something bad is about to happen lol. Especially considering that I don't consider it a good track in the first place.

Really liking this theme from SB.

https://youtu.be/3_JxY2pRHn4?t=1m10s
 

Moreche

Member
Hello, I just purchased the expansion on the PSN sale and I have PS Plus but when I log in to my FFXIV account, it says it's expired. The last time I played was sometime last year.
I thought with PS Plus we had free play.
 
Hello, I just purchased the expansion on the PSN sale and I have PS Plus but when I log in to my FFXIV account, it says it's expired. The last time I played was sometime last year.
I thought with PS Plus we had free play.

Unfortunately that isn't the case. Playing XIV doesn't require PS Plus at all, but it does require a subscription to the game itself.
 

Moreche

Member
Unfortunately that isn't the case. Playing XIV doesn't require PS Plus at all, but it does require a subscription to the game itself.
Thanks. I checked and it says I have a basic account service from 2014.
So I need to start a monthly sub to play?
I also thought it was ftp until level 30?
 

Qvoth

Member
yeah creating a new character with the trial should still work
here's my recruitment code if you want :3

Recruitment Code: SV8KV6DX
You will need to log into the FINAL FANTASY XIV: Mog Station to enter your recruitment code after completing registration. After logging in, proceed to Your Account, then select Enter Recruitment Code.
http://sqex.to/Msp
* If you wish to redeem a recruitment code, it must be entered before purchase of a subscription or game time card. Bonus items cannot be obtained if a subscription has been purchased prior to use of a recruitment code.
Please refer to the page below for more details on bonus items.
http://sqex.to/Cz9
 

Moreche

Member
yeah creating a new character with the trial should still work
Apologies for the questions but how do I start a new trial because when I install and start the game up, it takes me straight to my login screen?
I'm thinking that I can't start a new trial because my PSN account is automatically linked to the FFXIV account.
 

Moreche

Member
yeah creating a new character with the trial should still work
here's my recruitment code if you want :3

Recruitment Code: SV8KV6DX
You will need to log into the FINAL FANTASY XIV: Mog Station to enter your recruitment code after completing registration. After logging in, proceed to Your Account, then select Enter Recruitment Code.
http://sqex.to/Msp
* If you wish to redeem a recruitment code, it must be entered before purchase of a subscription or game time card. Bonus items cannot be obtained if a subscription has been purchased prior to use of a recruitment code.
Please refer to the page below for more details on bonus items.
http://sqex.to/Cz9
Thanks for the code, greatly appreciated.
 

Wagram

Member
Finally got to the point of Yugiri's third voice actress.

A+ redeemed the character. Seriously, the voice direction they took for her in the main scenario of Heavensward completely killed the character for me. Glad they returned to her original demeanor.
 

EndcatOmega

Unconfirmed Member
Finally got to the point of Yugiri's third voice actress.

A+ redeemed the character. Seriously, the voice direction they took for her in the main scenario of Heavensward completely killed the character for me. Glad they returned to her original demeanor.

Yeah not speaking ill of the dead, it's horrible what happened to her, but the voice direction she was given (i.e. 'put on a horrible accent') was not great.
 

rucury

Banned
Finally got to the point of Yugiri's third voice actress.

A+ redeemed the character. Seriously, the voice direction they took for her in the main scenario of Heavensward completely killed the character for me. Glad they returned to her original demeanor.

I shed a tear when I heard Alphinaud's HW VO. not bad at all, just... Sam Regal ;_;
 
I might jump back into this game. its been about a year. while everyone was friendly and all, I didn't really make any lasting buddies online. I did get a ninja & paladin to 40+ and the new expansion looks cool...
 
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