Hello, people. I never realized this was a thing. It's interesting to say the least but given the daunting commitment FFXI in it's prime was I'm not sure I'd want to start over. I did everything, so I know what it's like to be in the top guild and can imagine how frustrating it was for new players to join years after establishment. Not sure I want to be in that spot with feeling like I'd never recreate my character/reach the same heights.

That said, I just miss this game.

1) First off, can Square just shut down the server if they ever wanted to? I know this isn't exactly the same as those high-populated WoW servers but I feel I should get the truth before I consider this. I don't want to exactly log in one day to find out the server is shutting down.

2) Any way to back up a character/accounts data personally? Or has the Admin ever considered it. Not really sure how an MMO account is saved in the first place. This is tied to concern #1.

3) What is the HNM/NM/End game climate like? As indicated by my concern in the OP, would it be realistic for a new character to ever get a Ridill or Kclub in this game?

4) What about Dynamis(AF2/Relics)Sky/Sea etc? Are there groups actively doing these? I can imagine how hard it is to get a Relic in this game with possibly only a couple runs a week with a low pop server.

5) Is the gameplay relatively the same? I recall reading something like some spells don't work right(Cure 5, etc). Plans to fix that?

Thanks for anyone who pokes in and takes the time to read.

Apparently I can't send PM or anything yet@@;

1. It's been up for over 3 years at this point, It's unlikely that will happen.

2. No but nasomi regularly does a backup of the server data, he is a professional in the data management stuff so I trust his work 100% in this regard.

3. Quite Healthy and Definitely Possible.

4. There are many shells do that content actually, the dynamis timer is on the newer once per day timer so it's not so bad as it used to be.

5. Vast majority of black/white magic works as intended, blue mage is odd in it's current implementation but it works.

If you have any more questions feel free to either send me a /tell ingame, hit me up on the irc, or reply here. ^^

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1. Any private servers are at the mercy of their owners.

Ridill is easy to get. Kraken club, not so much.

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This server currently rains relics provided you either level BLM to 75 and/or have a dedicated farm group to go with. No idea if/when this may change, however.

If your knowledge of retail mechanics is lukewarm it'll feel about 95% the same. If your knowledge of retail mechanics is strong it'll feel about 80% the same.

It gets a little better all the time, for instance Cure V used to give full enmity for HP cured in addition to the static enmity of 400CE and 700VE. It now gives the static hate as it should, however that patch opened up a niche situation where it would not give any hate if you were not already on the monster's hate list. I suspect this will be corrected down the line as well.

What are CE and VE? Are those something exposed to players or a behind-the-scene thing?

They are types of enmity. Discovered on retail and more or less identical here.
Kanican's Livejournal is a good place to start to brush up on the mechanics.