FFXI Mercing

[Murphie]

Re: FFXI Mercing

I think it's an interesting idea (even though I'm with Davitron re: Mercenaries), but seriously, I just can't see it panning out. You'd have to get a considerable portion of each server to participate for it to be worthwhile. As it is, people can post in their server forums at a site like this, and usually find help with the things that they need help with.

The people that could really benefit from a site like that are the same people who don't visit sites like that, or sites like this, even. Meaning, the majority of each server in FFXI.

[Neomage]

Re: FFXI Mercing

I like the idea. I can solo Promyvions for people's anima, and I could find people who still need the two assaults I can solo and do them for them. Plus If I ever needed something, it would be a sinch.

[Murphie]

Re: FFXI Mercing

How would you solo for someone else's anima? I mean, technically any job can solo anima (I did it as WHM/NIN), but the memories are Rare/Ex, as are the anima that you get from them.

[Mhurron]

Re: FFXI Mercing

It just seems like a Merc website kinda promotes the 'whats in it for me' attitude. This
is the kind of attitude that can kill Linkshells IMO.

It's no different then calling out for help with getting a coffer key by saying its a skillup party.

You always help others because of what you get out of it. The reward might have been gil, skillups or just not being bored for a while, but you still did it for your own personal reasons.

[Murphie]

Re: FFXI Mercing

My personal reason is that I like to help others succeed. But he's right. I still got something out of it (satisfaction).

[Medalink]

Re: FFXI Mercing

So far I am still proceeding on this, I am currently working on the User-Profile System. I am not to great with graphics, I may be looking into finding help for someone to make some GFX for the site.

Not 100% about this tho, my LS really likes the idea and I have gotten alot of positive feedback for this.

Medalink

[Yuanlung]

Re: FFXI Mercing

Thats no where near what I am aiming to do. I think the single biggest problem with the comments are if you d/c you lose it, Why waste time makeing a comment when you can only make 1, and will lose it if d/c? Since d/cing happens so much.

Perhaps not as functional, but it's similar, and yet noone bothers to use it.


As for losing it on DC, did you know you can actually set the comments as a macro, and just run the macro to "open shop"? (see /? /seacom) This feature was added about an year ago.

[Balfree]

Re: FFXI Mercing

Ahem. The ingame comments are just that: ingame comments. You have to be ingame, and what if you want to find someone to form a set party, and at the same time find people that need a mission, what about more missions? what about a quest.. an item you need, etc! ingame comments allow you for one comment, youre limited in what you can type too.

If you were to apply for, say, CoP mission 5.3...

with this site, you would do this:

1. You go to the site, and you say you need to do 5.3 by following a couple options: click that you want to do a mission, select the mission, give info such as job, level, etc, the system keeps all your data.

2. Someone comes along and does the same. Then they click: "Find people that need this mission", and everyone that needs that mission will be displayed on a list, you also see the date of when they posted.

3. You get together with this guy, and you start planning a date to accomplish the mission, you might even find more than one person, you all get together and start doing your thing.

4. With a messaging board, you get to know everyone that you found, you post links that supply info for the mission, you type in all the items required, youre all set up. You wont end up having to repeat yourself for hours (o my GOD why does it allways have to be me...)

5. And most important of all, you dont get the feeling of a pickup party, you ask everyone their timezones and their avaliablity and you can plan a time and date that suits everyone, and this way youll be sure that your members wont need 20 minutes to get lunch, or half an hour to pickup their kid at school.

without this, ingame you have to...

1. Shout in a zone, probably jeuno. The first problem is that shouting doesnt go across the server, its strictly only for those that are in jeuno, take out those that filter shouts, take out those that ignore you, take out those that think youre a n00b for shouting, take out those that blist anyone that shouts (many people claim to do that..), also you have to stand out in the middle of other shouters, and worst of all, you have to stay in jeuno or whatever zone youre shouting in.. and this my friend, will take hours.

2. If after all that you managed to get 5 other people for your mission, congratulations. Now you need to start planning, member #3 never done the mission, he doesnt know what to do, #2 did this mission and he has a strategy, #5 has a different strategy, he did this too and failed, and #6 cant speak english too well. Now, as the party leader you have to make decisions, you have to let everyone know whats needed for the mission, you have to remember everyone of their roles, you have to make sure everyone has all the requirements, well its all good, this is common... the problem is that you need to setup everything, and you have to do it fast, after all it took you 4 minutes to find one person, but then it took you 3 hours to find the rest, the others have been waiting for all this time... they have been either AFK or been complaining in /p chat, so you have your patience running thin coupled with other people's, everyone's getting tired before the mission even started, all of this because everyone has to sit around waiting for a full group.

3. After hours upon hours, you guys finally start... after youve explained everyone what NPCs to talk to, what items to bring, what strategy to use, youre finally ready. But zomg! #6 doesnt understand much english and he didnt understand you when you asked him to bring a reraise hairpin! D: So you guys arrive at the BCircle and he says hes going back to get one, meanwhile #2 gets fed up and leaves. #3 4 and 5 leave aswell because now you cant do the mission, and #6 teleported himself to Dem. Congratulations, you just spent 10 hours of your life.

indeed, ingame comments can achieve the same thing, however, people dont use ingame comments that much, we all wish everyone did

and indeed, to plan a date and time would mean waiting longer than you would with a pickup party, but how many of you like pickup parties? and what about when youre not the one planning.. you saw someone shout so you joined them, theyre all ready to go and what not so youre trying to get ready really fast as you dont want to make them wait, they keep saying "hurry up" and youre juggling your AF and your potions, and the AH is laggy and you forgot something and youre now stumbling on your toes and youre finally gonna get this done! wooo! but if half the population is anything like me: you probably forgot something while you rushed, you probably missed something that the PT leader said because youre too busy unloading youre items as fast as you can... and now youre a stupid ass n00b according to them! NOOO! ><;

and ofcourse! if people arent using ingame comments, how hopeful am i that people will use a completely separate system?! easy.. you cant advertise ingame comments in forums, now can you...? if i were to start a thread, or a news article about a site that lets you post what missions you need and that lets you plan for set parties and anything else, i assure you it will get more views than it would if it was something like: "use the ingame comment system"

and then, if i use the system, then my friend uses it.. (hes pretty desperate for cop 5.3... so why not?), then my linkshell buddy, then his buddy, then you, then your friend, then their friends... success!

i mean, anything helps right?

also, i see people posting crafter lists, how about we make a crafter list already! in an easy-to-browse environment, you click a crafter's name, and then you click "What can this crafter synthesize?" and then you get all the recipes you have for his level, if anything.. for convenience.

theres so many possibilities... indeed it will be something very very very time-consuming to pull off, and obviously theres a chance it wont even budge, it might not work, it might suck.. but ... it wont help if people start booing a project before it even begins... im sure many of you would be glad to find someone on your server that needs the same mission as you..

for many people its piece of cake! you go to school 4 hours in the morning then you have the afternoon free, or you have a part-time job, or youre a zombie and dont sleep... but if you are anything like me, if you live on a timezone like GMT, and you have a full time job, and you cant even drive home so you need a ride everyday, delaying your arrival for 2-3 hours.. youre screwed, im sure im not the only one with this problem

[Neomage]

Re: FFXI Mercing

A very long and meaningful post describing why a fourm like this would be very good!

I have to wholeheartedly agree. I'm very busy most of the time, but I can, however, arrange to do an event or mission when I need to. I do not, however, have the extra time for shouting in jeuno.

[Davitron3000]

Re: FFXI Mercing

It's no different then calling out for help with getting a coffer key by saying its a skillup party.

You always help others because of what you get out of it. The reward might have been gil, skillups or just not being bored for a while, but you still did it for your own personal reasons.

Helping someone and getting skill ups while helping is different than having to pay
someone to help you. Am I the only one that thinks this?

I don't think the point I was making was whether or not I am getting 'something' out
of it, but whether or not someone should pay for this kind of help.

[Medalink]

Re: FFXI Mercing

I don't think the point I was making was whether or not I am getting 'something' out
of it, but whether or not someone should pay for this kind of help.

Well some dont agree you should pay for a tele, That in its self is very easy to do, takes no longer than 30 seconds. But everyone does.

People now are greedy. Not everything needs to be payed for, but the goal of this site is to "Bring Help Where Needed". Not allways by paying. Not allways free.

Im not sure you have ever been a SMN or BST or RDM, and you get 2-3 tells a day asking for your help, wanting you to spend 100k on items (SMN in Promys) to help them. Not only do I not need it, but I dont think I should give them my 100k for my help. Thefore I ask for them to pay for the item. At the very least.

Also for exsample, dieing while soloing happens alot. Do you not think that the time and effort we put into soloing something for someone should not be enough for us to at least get our EXP and time back? I have been stuck at 72 for 4 months now, all due to me "helping others" Not alot of that has been for gil.

In short what im saying is not everything in life (FFXI?) is free. And that is a fact.

To Balfree:

Dang long post.... heh I have to agree with you. I like the fact that this idea now has a few defenders. I for sertain will be going through with this after talking to about 40 people in Jeuno last not on Ragnarok, everyone like the idea

Check top post if your interested in helping.

Medalink

[Balfree]

Re: FFXI Mercing

and i just noticed.. youre on ragnarok too! that'l make things easier if we work together

[Davitron3000]

Re: FFXI Mercing

Im not sure you have ever been a SMN or BST or RDM, and you get 2-3 tells a day asking for your help, wanting you to spend 100k on items (SMN in Promys) to help them. Not only do I not need it, but I dont think I should give them my 100k for my help. Thefore I ask for them to pay for the item. At the very least.

Also for exsample, dieing while soloing happens alot. Do you not think that the time and effort we put into soloing something for someone should not be enough for us to at least get our EXP and time back? I have been stuck at 72 for 4 months now, all due to me "helping others" Not alot of that has been for gil.

I don't have a high level SMN, BST, or RDM but I don't see how that is really relevant.
I do plenty of helping being a PLD. I am not saying your site is bad, and that
everything has to be free. As a personal choice, I would not charge people for help.
Also I would not pay for help. Maybe I have a good LS where we help each other
attain goals in the game. I don't know.

The reason I said I thought the "me" attitude is bad for an LS is this... when going
for some gear, sometimes you have to spend a lot of time, lose a lot of
experience, etc, to help your LS mates out. Alot of this is done with you getting
nothing out of it (except the satisfaction of helping, and the hope that when you
need help they will do the same thing for you). An example of this are Rostrum
Pumps. I can't use them, nothing else drops from Alastor that I can use, but I will
help for hours on a Pump run so that my mages can have it. If you have a bunch
of people in your LS that have the 'what am I going to get out of it' mentality, it is
hard to do things like this, in my opinion.

Of course, I don't think a help website is bad, I just think helping each other
accomplish goals is > then paying someone to help. Also if your site is going to
have people who will help for free and some that pay, maybe it shouldn't have
'Merc' in it.

Mercenary according to dictionary.com is - 1. Motivated solely by a desire for
monetary or material gain. 2. Hired for service in a foreign army.

[Balfree]

Re: FFXI Mercing

If my ideas get implemented, you will have things people like and things people disaprove of, but i assure you there will be something for everyone, be it finding and meeting people with common goals, be it searching for crafters, be it hiring someone to help you or be hired for something to help with, i'm sure theres more to gain than to lose.

[Murphie]

Re: FFXI Mercing

Provided you can actually get people to use it, yes. There is more to gain in that case. The problem, again, is getting enough of the FFXI population to use it to make it worthewhile. And if you figure out how to do that, more power to you.