Hi there! I just wanted to say hello, and I also wanted to admit to you all that I am in desperate need of any help you want to throw this noob's way! (There is only so much that reading up on the wiki can do hahaha) I'm currently a little Tarutaru RDM named Tinytim in game, and I am willing to shamelessly admit I have died 4 times before I have reached level 4. This game is way more difficult than I had anticipated, and I think the challenge will become even more interesting when I get to lvl 12 or so (that's when I heard that people group up to level in parties.) Anyways, that's it! Hope to see all you lovely people in game!

P.S. If someone would like to hook me up with a server-wide linkshell, that would be absolutely fantastic!

P.S.S. Been thinking about going for BST main job. If I go BST, sub RDM, will I be looked down upon by parties? If so, why? Thanks!

Just hang in there it takes a while to get past that learning curve in FFXI. As for BST you generally either Solo, Duo, or sometimes Trio with other BST's. Normally they don't join parties, but I am sure most wouldn't mind BST/RDM in a group as you would be there mostly for Damage, and Pet tanking.

Good Luck to you in your adventures.

IGN: Delani if you want to look me up for some advice. I normally play at nights.

For bst you will mostly want to have whm, nin and war subjobs. WHM is used most often when soloing/duoing with other bsts, which later on /nin can replace it, in actual 6 man exp PTs you will want to probably most times use /war for the most dmg output possible, or /nin if you are worried about pulling hate off the tank.

Alright, thank you! It's difficult but I'm up for the challenge! >:D As for BST, that does make sense.. What other things could I use with RDM, then? I saw on the wiki several suggestions, but I want to hear first hand what might be good!

ha HHHAAAA!!! Welcome! At least you picked something with all around skills. 1st retail was taru BLM and ...yeah, lot so of death. Especially at that just leveled point where you switch to the new gear and ... delevel. 4x. In a row.

Yes please! Thank you FFXI! May I have another?!

Hello TinyTim,

There is quite a bit to consider with FFXI. I don't know where to begin but I will try to touch on a few things from the get go. The first 10 levels, simply grind off of everything. You may be tempted to want to join parties but it will slow you down at first. Per tick of the clock, you are better at conserving HP and hitting and killing easy opponents than harder ones, risking dying, and then having to rest in-between each fight. The first 1-4 Levels are good fighting Easy Prey through Evenly Matched. After that, focus more on Easy Prey and Decent Challenges. Avoid Beastmen until they read Easy Prey. Do not buy equipment from AH in the beginning, as most shops sell them around the area for significantly less.

When you do grind. Get signet. Talk to a gate guard. They have initials and are right near the zone you would go out to hunt/grind on monsters. This gets you Conquest Points to trade in for items to sell for money, and it also gets you Crystals. Stack and collect 12 to sell to the Auction House (in all major cities and towns) and get money from other players. Be smart about it. Collect other items and trade in for money at the Auction House (AH) or for quests.

Get into a guild or craft. Find something you want to do and make that your job for money. I personally enjoy fishing and metalworking. Find what works for you.

Do quests. It get's you fame, cool items, weapons, and money. Takes time but good to have and use in the beginning. Do missions. Advance your story. Talk to the appropriate individuals and find time to do quests/missions and then other days to do grinding/parties. Generally, do not join a party until at least level 10. If you are a melee job, you can usually solo just fine up to around 14.

Once you get comfortable with surroundings, you will have to TRAVEL to get to where you need to go for grinding. Most people, you go from your home town to the valkurm dunes to grind from 14-20.

Start with a MELEE job. Cheaper and easier. Mage jobs are too hard in the beginning because you do not have the funds for the scrolls, and you do not have a SUB JOB to help bolster your HP/MP/Defense. You go down easy. Start with Warrior with an Axe/Shield, or Monk with Fisticuffs, or Thief with Daggers.

Learn the monsters and be careful. ALWAYS carry a scroll of instant re-raise or two and a scroll of instant warp. These are bought at the same people who cast your Nation's signet on you. Helps with traveling and the unfortunate and untimely death you WILL face while traveling long distances and aggro'ing something.

Once you get to Valkurm Dunes, collect the Magicked Skull, Damselfly Wing, and Crab Apron, and keep them. You need these items to get sub-jobs activated. Once you are 18, go into the town there, and speak with an NPC who will give you the quest. Trade items and boom, you get sub-job. To level sub-job, you have to make that your primary in the Mog House (Residential Area). You will have to start at level 1 all over again. My advice: Level all melee jobs first up to 10 after you have sub job available. Great money for crystals, Conquest Points, and the like. Set Main Job as Sub and Sub Job as Main. Be smart with selection. WAR/WHM is bad and counter-intuitive to the job traits.

Good combos starting out:

WAR/MNK
THF/WAR
MNK/WAR
WHM/BLM
BLM/WHM
BLM/RDM
RDM/WHM
RDM/BLM
RDM/WAR

Other combos can be done but with mixed effectiveness.

If main job is level 18, then your sub job you can get up to the same level because your sub job will always be HALF of Main job. So, when you get to level 37 (important) your sub job will be 18. If you gimp out the level, then it makes it difficult later on in the middle of grinding tougher battles. People will not party with you if you have a gimpy job set-up or poor leveling.

Get your main job to 37 first. THEN, begin advanced job hunts. When you get the NEW job, such as Beastmaster to 75, half of that is 37. So, once you have 37, you are done for quite some time on that job unless you want to master it.

Keep equipment as you go, and do not continually upgrade equipment. When you play other jobs, you will have appropriate equipment for that time. You can sell if you want but just my two cents. Make sure you are not too far behind but you have the appropriate gear in major areas to battle. (Valkurm Dunes, Delkfutt Tower, Jungle, etc). Upgrade equipment every 5-10 levels as needed.

Get maps. Get maps before going to the level you need the map for. Helps out big time. Get comfortable with dying. It is going to happen a lot.

DO NOT approach any monster with a Name or reads "It is impossible to Gauge" when checked. That is a Notorious Monster. Those are the "bosses" of each Zone. Do not go near them unless you know more about them. Most NM's will completely destroy you in the beginning until you are around Level 25-30. Don't do it unless you have a party. Beware of HNM. These are Hyper Notorious Monsters and they are x10 harder than a regular NM. These guys usually require you to be atleast level 65+ and most of the time, are not soloable.

DO NOT get rid of Beastmen Seals. You will need these for special boss fights later to get sick prizes. This is the currency used to pay for the fights.

That's all I can think of in one fell swoop, if you have more questions, just let me know in-game or send me a message. I am Eidolon.