A Pixel Nomad

I know some folks are not fans of in-game events that replicate real world events – but me? I enjoy them. FFXIV is a bit of an odd duck in that they have these events each year with rewards, but if you want the rewards from previous years, you have to purchase them (with real money) from their shop. It’s one of the few games I’ve seen that manages to carry off a full subscription as well as a robust store and paid for game features (extra retainers, level boosts, class unlocks).

I was actually playing last year at this exact time so I had the previous rewards but nothing prior to that. I decided to splurge and I picked up 5 rewards from the shop, then I also completed this years quests and picked up the Lovely Moogle Cap, and a house item (Stuffed Kupka Kupp). My glamour chest is starting to fill up nicely with a collection of outfits to wear and my tiny apartment is filling with moogle related items. I still have big dreams of being able to afford an actual house, but for now I’m still raising money for that.

Short term plan? I’ve settled on paladin & astrologian as my next focus, that will leave me with a tank/healer/dps class at least and more choices to swap between. Once I’ve got those leveled up we’ll see where I want to head. I never planned on leveling everything to 80 in the DoW/DoM category, but I DO want to try to level everything up as a crafter (DoH/DoL). I also need to complete a bunch of class quests still – on everyone, even my 80 dancer hasn’t completed all of her quests yet. I know, I know. There’s just SO much to do. I love it.

I’ve been playing FFXIV off and on for years now, but I never really stay with it for whatever reason. I wander back to ABC game and it gets put on the back burner – not this time. This time, I’m dedicating myself to actually making some progress in the game, finishing the MSQ, leveling jobs. First one I completed was the dancer job, woot!

Dancer is an odd bird. It’s a mixture of ranged (single target attacks) and close range (AoE attacks) dance moves that damage enemies. Instead of moving in and out of range, I tend to stay close to the mobs. It’s a class that LOOKS pretty, but I can’t say I particularly enjoy playing them all that much. We’re more of a hybrid utility / dps class than powerful dps, though don’t get me wrong, I AM happy that I finally leveled up.

Next? I’m not sure. I am not interested in playing the gunslinger I have at 60, but I do have a 52 warrior. I’ve got a 60 red mage, 55 scholar, and 34 astrologer. I was thinking maybe bard? Maybe just keep going on with the warrior. We’ll just have to see! As always, happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself.

One of the things I love about FFXIV is that I don’t actually need to have an entire stable of characters. In fact, it’s one of the few games I play that I DON’T have any alts – one character can do it all. If I get the desire to change race / sex I can do that through some fantasia potions, so it’s not a big deal. You switch jobs (classes) by changing your weapon, and you can unlock as many (or as few) as you’d like.

My dancer finally reached level 80! I’m so happy. I now have a level 80 dancer, 80 goldsmith, 80 mining, 80 fishing. It’s not a lot compared to what is available, but it is a great start.

Of course the second I turned 80, I wanted to decide who to level up next. I don’t have a lot of characters unlocked, and while my husband has a few 70s and a handful of 60s and 50s, I only had the dancer. I do have a 50 warrior, but I wasn’t convinced it was the tank I wanted to play full time. Ideally I’d like an 80 tank, dps, and healer. I have a 55 scholar as well.

I decided I wanted to try a paladin, which starts off as a gladiator. Unfortunately as you can see by the screenshot above, my gladiator at level 5 did not own any pants. I figure she’s preparing for 6.0 when they remove the belt slot. How else are her pants supposed to stay up?!

As always, happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!