A problem on Pandemonium

[Kiyajio]

I have a problem. I am trying to lvl my scholar. It is now lvl 10 but I goto the dunes and everyday and night even on weekend nights.. There are barely like 20 to 50 people on, and most of them are lvl 40+. What I also noticed is that there is usually only 1 party active in the region, and 3 seeking. What I want to know is did the zones change. Do low levels goto a different zone to lvl or is it still the dunes and there aren't enough new players playing FFXI on pandemonium?

Me and my cousin need help, and I already have a lvl 45 Bard, but now I can't level my WHM subjob. I just recently returned to the game after quitting back in 2005.

Also if you could help me. Which servers have a high low level population?

[Rostum]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

A lot of people seem to keep solo'ing longer and try not to even bother with the dunes. I have noticed that in certain time areas that you are more likely to get a party invite than others (my playtime is when NA are starting to go to bed and when JP are starting to come home from work/school).

I notice if I get on earlier I'll get a party no problems, or if I get on later I get parties without problems, but inbetween I will be waiting a very long time.

[Kiyajio]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

A lot of people seem to keep solo'ing longer and try not to even bother with the dunes. I have noticed that in certain time areas that you are more likely to get a party invite than others (my playtime is when NA are starting to go to bed and when JP are starting to come home from work/school).

I notice if I get on earlier I'll get a party no problems, or if I get on later I get parties without problems, but inbetween I will be waiting a very long time.

That's odd to keep soloing because it takes longer to close that gap and get to lvl 20 with the job. Which it's time I don't have, and it becomes impossible for a support job to solo like that.

I find no problem finding a PT with my BRD. It's just with my jobs that are below lvl 20 I tend to have this problem. Because I don't see a lot of people on.

[Nuriko]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

Just remember what the Dunes was like ... those parties were rarely all that good. Lots of people think the certainty of avoiding that is worth the (possibly) lower XP. Of course, this means people will be learning in Qufim and the Jungle what they used to learn in the Dunes...

[Kiyajio]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

Just remember what the Dunes was like ... those parties were rarely all that good. Lots of people think the certainty of avoiding that is worth the (possibly) lower XP. Of course, this means people will be learning in Qufim and the Jungle what they used to learn in the Dunes...

WEll yea but even people lvling their subs would just invite other experienced players and things would go smoothly.

Even so the noobies who would suck. Usually learned their jobs this way because people in windurst wanted to ignore the usefulness of PTing at lvl 6 in the canyons then at lvl 10 in the maze and then lvl 15 at the dunes. So they have to learn some way, and people learning in qufim and the jungle actually does not seem fun at all because by then people usually had it down. Now I feel like an old timer, but the lack of creativity from the side of the players is starting to worry me.

It's kinda why I loved the Dunes it was like a right of passage to say I survived it all in the dunes. Made the game fun to die constantly like that at a low level because the penalties for dying weren't as high especially once you reach lvl 25 where getting exp to lvl requires a lot more time.

But do you know of any good servers that still have the usually dunes setup? Because as of right now I don't know where to lvl my lvl 10 SCH. And I can't play my lvl 45 BRD until I can lvl my 13 WHM.
Returning to the game and find it has changed after 3 yrs, and finding out that there isn't much support is kinda disheartening.

What are players at low lvls exactly doing to lvl up? How are they soloing especially the support jobs if they are doing that instead?

[Taskmage]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

It's pretty easy to solo mage jobs to 20 in North Gustaberg (S) now. Just get refresh sigil, throw on barstone and go to town nuking worms. The ones east of the cliff and south of the river are 10-12 while the ones west of the cliff are 18-22. There's a little stretch in the middle where you're slaughtering the lower level worms but not quite high enough for the higher ones. Just be choosy with your targets if you want to move down early. If you can't take it you can always run away.

My smn, wife's blm and friend's sch all got to 20 this way. Except for the gobs at the cliff tower there's no aggro in D-9 through J-9 where your targets are, so it's very safe and pretty easy if a little boring.

[Kiyajio]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

It's pretty easy to solo mage jobs to 20 in North Gustaberg (S) now. Just get refresh sigil, throw on barstone and go to town nuking worms. The ones east of the cliff and south of the river are 10-12 while the ones west of the cliff are 18-22. There's a little stretch in the middle where you're slaughtering the lower level worms but not quite high enough for the higher ones. Just be choosy with your targets if you want to move down early. If you can't take it you can always run away.

My smn, wife's blm and friend's sch all got to 20 this way. Except for the gobs at the cliff tower there's no aggro in D-9 through J-9 where your targets are, so it's very safe and pretty easy if a little boring.

hmm sounds like too much work I think I'm going to just quit again. Help my cousin out a bit and that's it. It's ridiculious. solo to lvl 20 WTH?!?!?!? that lvl 1-10 solo grind is a pain. let along a lvl 1-20 solo grind with a mage.

This effectively killed anyone from becoming bards from what I am assuming. Which might be a good thing for me XD but point in blank I remember why I quit in 2005. Plus in a few months I will be in Japan, and then once I start my career. I think I would rather just work hard in real life and find a game to just enjoy.

This game is not young adult friendly at all lol.

[Wise Donkey]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

FFXI has always been a grind, it's nothing new. The grind has just changed a little bit - soloing lower levels is easier, but you have to do it longer, for example.

[Taskmage]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

Not even necessarily longer. If you know what you're doing you can generally achieve the exp rate that an average party in Valkurm would get, without the possibility of getting stuck with one of those horrid parties that wastes an hour of your time and actually loses you experience. Emperor/Empress bands reduce the grind time even further from what it used to be.

And nobody says you can't put your flag up when you're soloing. Someone trying to start a party will probably search all areas if searching the region doesn't get them enough members.

I imagine bards solo to 20 the same way melee do. They have the same skill rating at that level as a rdm or a thf using a sword, and an almost identical selection of armor. Plus attack and accuracy bonus songs and paeon to reduce downtime. Should be pretty easy really.

I think I would rather just work hard in real life and find a game to just enjoy.

Nothing wrong with that either.

The game's changed a bit since 2005. Camps, strategies and party dynamics are probably not at all like what you remember. If you want to play again you're going to have to do things slightly differently than you used to. If you enjoy the game and want to play it again, don't let that stop you. If you don't enjoy it and want to quit again, don't feel like you need to justify your decision to any of us. We like FFXI just fine obviously or we wouldn't be here, but I don't think anyone will claim this game is for everyone.

[Mhurron]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

WEll yea but even people lvling their subs would just invite other experienced players and things would go smoothly.

You would think, but for some reason everyone is retarded in the Dunes.

[Nuriko]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

I had a good Dunes PT once ... really, I did!

[Audioma]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

I had a good Dunes PT once ... really, I did!

You lie!

Neh, it's actually possible. I've had several very good parties in Valkurm Dunes.


You know who was leading all of them? Me.

[Kiyajio]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

You would think, but for some reason everyone is retarded in the Dunes.

It depends. Back when I lvled my BRD through there I was always invited into good pts mainly because of being rank 5 thus them knowing I am not a noob, and also because I am a BRD and when crap hit the fan in any PT I was in. I wouldn't stick around too long to find out if the PT could survive a IT mob that has 75% HP and the WHM is dead and the Tank is dead XD

But I had fun with such things like that because the dunes felt like it was like the battlefield. Because after the dunes the only other place where PTs get wiped out are the jungles. after that it's systematic and boring zzzZZZzzz

Not even necessarily longer. If you know what you're doing you can generally achieve the exp rate that an average party in Valkurm would get, without the possibility of getting stuck with one of those horrid parties that wastes an hour of your time and actually loses you experience. Emperor/Empress bands reduce the grind time even further from what it used to be.

And nobody says you can't put your flag up when you're soloing. Someone trying to start a party will probably search all areas if searching the region doesn't get them enough members.

I imagine bards solo to 20 the same way melee do. They have the same skill rating at that level as a rdm or a thf using a sword, and an almost identical selection of armor. Plus attack and accuracy bonus songs and paeon to reduce downtime. Should be pretty easy really.
Nothing wrong with that either.

The game's changed a bit since 2005. Camps, strategies and party dynamics are probably not at all like what you remember. If you want to play again you're going to have to do things slightly differently than you used to. If you enjoy the game and want to play it again, don't let that stop you. If you don't enjoy it and want to quit again, don't feel like you need to justify your decision to any of us. We like FFXI just fine obviously or we wouldn't be here, but I don't think anyone will claim this game is for everyone.

That's cool man. I loved playingg through this game because of that. The only thing I hated is once you get to lvl 40 or so players get a bit demanding, and so I had tons of fun playing through the low lvls. I do besieged and stuff like that, but I think I am going to solo maybe in Windy [S].

[ItazuraNhomango]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

If your goal is to level, even sub-par exp/hour from soloing beats out hours of seeking without invite for 0 exp/hour. (Can always solo with seek flag up, too--I did that on NIN a few nights ago.)

A friend of mine recently level WHM to 37 for SJ, getting the last few levels by nuking worms with Banish.

I have a problem. I am trying to lvl my scholar. It is now lvl 10 but I goto the dunes and everyday and night even on weekend nights.. There are barely like 20 to 50 people on, and most of them are lvl 40+.

Is that for real? 20-50 people on seems like an absurdly small number. Aside from just after server reboots, I don't recall Ifrit dropping below 900 more than once or twice in the last four years.

/sea all

That should tell. ._. (Unless you mean there are 40 to 50 people in just Valkurm Dunes? If that's that case, I'd consider that pretty crowded by today's standard.)

[Lunaryn]

Re: A problem on Pandemonium

Scholar in particular kind of sucks in this regard, it doesn't start being really good at anything until around level 20, even though it gets enough tricks to be useful at 10. Honestly, if you can find another SCH, BLM, RDM, or WHM, duoing or trioing worms can be very effective and is something an SCH can actually manage somewhat decently. Just be sure to sub WHM, and remember that Banish is your best nuke until at least Aero.

Biggest problem I'd see with trying to take SCH to the dunes is that many people primarily expect you to main heal if you're a mage. Particularly when, as often is the case, there is a shortage of healers. I'd always been advised to avoid the dunes until 11 on WHM and 14 on RDM so that I wouldn't be asked to main heal a party without Cure II. SCH doesn't even get the spell until 17. Its nuking capabilities are lackluster compared to BLM, although in the rare case you found a dunes party that thought it wanted a BLM, they aren't as easily found for parties either. SCH's main strength is versatility, but your very sparse spell list won't really offer that much yet.

That said, SCH is hardly the only job that is seriously limited in what it can contribute during early dunes levels. *coughTHFcough*