Should FFXI have instances?

[Yeargdribble]

Re: Should FFXI have instances?

I think they should instance a lot more things. Dynamis should be multiply instanced so there is less competition and zone-stealing. I think a lot of endgame NMs should be instanced. The Kings are so overcamped and overbotted that they really need to be instanced to give anyone a chance. I've been in plenty of LSs that can take them out, but because that shell refuses to cheat they don't even try to claim the Kings.

When I'm in a LS and we get the claim on a King type mob if someone in my LS is botting.

[Icemage]

Re: Should FFXI have instances?

But where would all the drama go then? j/k

I agree that instancing all the best gear-dropping NMs would be a good idea, but it's not just the Kings or Dynamis. There's a lot of stuff out there that's waaaaay too easy for what it drops. Eastern Shadow. King Arthro. Lord of Onzozo. Roc. Serket. Simurgh. Many others. If we're on a spree to reduce end-game stupidity, I would have to argue that these lesser NMs also get some preferential treatment along the same lines.


Icemage

[Karinya]

Re: Should FFXI have instances?

True, but 3 kings' drops are EX, which makes it impossible to get them if you don't cheat (or someone in your LS does, at least).

The others you name (I'd add Cassie and the beastman kings at least) aren't EX, which makes them big targets for RMT instead.

Autumnstone falls somewhere in between: the stone is not EX, but the reasons you want it are. So you have to outhack the monopolizers, buy stones (almost always from RMT), or just go without any Byakko/Kirin drops.

All those things are problems, but I think being locked out of getting some EX gear at all is a *worse* problem than possibly being forced to pay a few million to RMT. But then, I'm kind of bitter about my 2/5 Koenig. It's the most I'm ever going to see without embracing cheaters or a reform to kings pop/claim system. (Unless the rumors about abjs dropping in Salvage or other TAU endgame content are true. That could bypass the kings altogether, except for Defending Ring and Ridill which are still insanely too powerful for *anything* to drop.)

[Loial]

Re: Should FFXI have instances?

An interesting concept they had in EQ2 was to on-the-fly instance zones that got overcrowded. Mind you, most "end-game mobs" were already instanced with a few exceptions that were contested.

Anyway, when a zone got overcrowded with people, a copy of that zone would 'spawn' and anyone trying to enter that zone had the option to go to Instance A or Instance B. It made the experience grind much simpler. Or in some cases, if you were camping some quest mob, you could have a friend check the other instance (if one was opened).

Of course, that would be interesting to see if they applied it to Dragon's Aery... but then again the design on Kings is horrible and needs to be revisited.

[Jei]

Re: Should FFXI have instances?

Yea it's depressing to see the end game atmosphere camping these kings. 400 people camping KB, everyone follow the KB spamming provoke even after it's claimed.... everyone pretty much preyed that other LS made mistake and want to steal the mob. It has always been very unfriendly, negative, hostile environment at these king camps. And SE "leaving it to the players" policy just doesn't help...

Remembered in EQ1, end game guilds were able to meet very friendly aggreement, rarely any MPK or mob stealing at all. The end game system was much more fun and enjoyable there : /

[Loial]

Re: Should FFXI have instances?

Remembered in EQ1, end game guilds were able to meet very friendly aggreement, rarely any MPK or mob stealing at all.

That's because it was player enforced. "Just because I can steal this mob from you" doesn't mean people would. However, since we have a server enforced claim system, "just because I can provoke once this mob goes unclaimed (for whatever reason) means its ok."

Some people might say, "Well, that was EQ1, different community." EQ2 carried over a very high percentage of EQ1 players (most people playing EQ2 had played EQ1 previously). One would think that the "community" would have carried over the idea of not kill-stealing, jumping experience camps, general griefing...

But nope. EQ2 devs instituted a claim system just like FFXI and in many places where contested mobs popped, it was just like FFXI where 2+ guilds would compete over the same mob.

Goes to show... let players enforce their own system. But, its too late for FFXI in that respect. Its bred its players a certain way and that won't change.

[Grizzlebeard]

Re: Should FFXI have instances?

The language and culture barrier doesn't do anything to help alleviate the problem either. The Asian guilds on my old EQ server had a completely different approach to raiding compared to their NA and Euro counterparts. They would raid zones and kill mobs they only needed one subpar item off rather than leaving those mobs for lower progression guilds to raid instead. It was quite sickening to see their locust mentality approach to farming but it was also nigh on impossible to come to any sort of understanding with them over mob rotations etc. Even when we could converse with English-speaking members they would refuse point blank to any level of flexibility in the interests of a friendly server. Eventually, the NA and Euro guilds grew so tired of these steamroller antics and fought fire with fire. We just helped the lower progression guilds kill the mobs they needed and did our best to deny as much content as possible to the Asian players. Mobs we normally would have left standing we made a point of killing and invited members from other guilds to join us to collect the drops and learn the tactics for when they were able to do them unaided.

I saw this in my time in FFXI but it had spread from the Asian players to the American and Europeans as well. That, "Stand around and watch someone die when they're fighting an HNM, then jump in and kill it, then port out without raising the fallen" ethic. The irony wasn't lost on me of a game that purports to foster international friendship while the endgame essentially consists of hundreds of people hoping you mess up and die whilst trying to do their best to steal your target via hacks or exploiting in-game bugs.

To answer the OP, yes FFXI would benefit hugely from instances. And, no, BCNMS etc aren't really worthy of being considered an instance.