Okay so I've been talking myself out of buying this game for a while now but the new collection on steam in tempting me, I played it in like 08 or something for the xbox but didn't have much time to play it. Do you guys think it's possible to get into as a total newb or do you think I should not bother? I've heard the Asura server is quite good and I want to be a Summoner. Also is this game a lot more casual now because I've heard it is but thats hard to believe with the amount of time you had to put in to gain even the smallest amount of EXP last time I played.

I don't play anymore myself, but with the over abundance of craptastic mmo's as of late, I'm thinking of going back and starting over in a game (ffxi) that i already know is top notch.  

I play EVE for the sandbox-goodness and hyper-pvp of it, but it's very slow and technical, and it's not as focused on cooperative play as FFXI, so I kind of miss the friendly non-pvp attitudes.   (to you EVE players, don't flame me.  I know EVE has plenty of coop/group/fleet based content... just speaking here in more of a standard in terms of group camps for mobs and leveling etc)

I did reactivate FFXI for a short time last year, but ended up being sidetracked by the hopes of other MMO launches (to which I regret wasting time and money on now)  

FFXI has definitely changed the leveling curve.   The last time I played (2010) I got Warrior to 30, thief to 20, and Samurai to 40 all in just over a weekend.   Now, if you talk to other FFXI vets, that's UNHEARD OF pace.    So, I can't really say that starting now would be a bad time.   The leveling was much more fluid now, but I don't think that it was a problem to begin with. I pretty much enjoyed every moment of FFXI when I originally started, and I loved the group-based leveling system.   yes, it was a grind... no there were not quest hubs and quest logs filled with easy xp objectives... but there was no rush to the top.  

Even moreso now that they introduced level caps.   This helped the game the most imo.    Here's an example of how it works:  A group of players all at level 12 active jobs want to form a full group but are missing members. They can fill them with anyone at any level.   So, if a level 50 comes along and wants a group, that level 50 player can join, and be level capped at 12, so they are all 'temporarily' the same level, so no one gets jipped for XP.    The level 50 earns xp towards gaining 51, and the 12's earn xp towards gaining 13, and everyone's happy.    This is how I leveled so fast, because I CONSTANTLY was in a group.  Never during my last stint in the game did I spend more than 15-20 min LFG.   The old days of FFXI it was not uncommon to spend 3-8 hours LFG so I would say that's definitely an improvment.

Anyways, all in all, I think you should try it out.   The steam package is a good deal, and I think if you find people to play with that you'll understand why FFXI has such a strong community.

Thanks for the informative post, you're really tempting me now.

has anyone else just started playing and which server have you started on?

Originally posted by mm0wigginsno there were not quest hubs and quest logs filled with easy xp objectives... but there was no rush to the top. 

Fields of Valor regimes and Grounds of Valor are exactly that. Just without the stupid pretense that it's a "quest" as though you aren't just doing it to exp.

In reply to OP, I just think it needs to be said that Summoner is still the least new player friendly jobs around, aside from maybe Puppetmaster. You would have to get to level 30 then unlock the job, and level it up to level 20 with Carbuncle before you can gain the other summon pets. It's not a bad job, but it's not something very easily accessible for a noob to dig straight into. If you really want to do it just do the research first.

In reply to OP, I just think it needs to be said that Summoner is still the least new player friendly jobs around, aside from maybe Puppetmaster. You would have to get to level 30 then unlock the job, and level it up to level 20 with Carbuncle before you can gain the other summon pets. It's not a bad job, but it's not something very easily accessible for a noob to dig straight into. If you really want to do it just do the research first.

Okay well I'm dead set on being a summoner but I might level an easier job aswell depending on how that goes, thanks for the information.

I'm about to start, does anyone else play and wants to team up or something or invite me to a LS? :D

Originally posted by Lunny08

In reply to OP, I just think it needs to be said that Summoner is still the least new player friendly jobs around, aside from maybe Puppetmaster. You would have to get to level 30 then unlock the job, and level it up to level 20 with Carbuncle before you can gain the other summon pets. It's not a bad job, but it's not something very easily accessible for a noob to dig straight into. If you really want to do it just do the research first.

Okay well I'm dead set on being a summoner but I might level an easier job aswell depending on how that goes, thanks for the information.

I'm about to start, does anyone else play and wants to team up or something or invite me to a LS? :D

All righty. If you'd like any suggestions I'd advise you to level WhiteMage to 30 since that's a standard subjob for Summoner. That or RedMage is also good to have but not a useful subjob until high levels. Soloing on even mage jobs like WHM is pretty easy now from 1-20. After that it mobs tend to have more Hit Points and it gets a little lame and slow to whack away with your stupid staff/club to solo so at that point try to find a duo partner or a party.

Once you unlock Summoner it should be relatively easier than soloing before on WHM because Carbuncle helps add damage. One good aspect about SMN is that the gear doesn't change much, you don't need tons of gear combos like a melee to change your stats, just focus on MP, Mind, or avatar specific boosts which are rare low levels. SMN equipment is pretty damn cheap 1-70 and lasts a long time.

Summoner is a pet job, and so it requires learning to get used to the delicate balance between you and your pet getting hate from the enemy. Unlike other pet jobs like Dragoon, Beastmaster, and Puppetmaster, Summoners are squishy like a mage. So if you gain way more monster hate than your pet you're gonna get eaten fast. Every action you take will add a little to your enemy's hate toward you.

Between checking out the game and soloing your Summoner to level 20 do your best to build up your quest Fame up to level 2. You can learn more about quest Fame here:   http://ffxi.gamerescape.com/wiki/Reputation

At level 20 summoner you can now go  to unlock the prime elemental summons if you have level 2 fame in each corresponding city. To unlock the summons you have to accept the quest and then win against the Prime Avatars in each of their cloisters. Which can be pretty challenging, but once you learn how to win it can be gratifying. Other high level summons can be unlocked later like Fenrir, Diabalos, Odin, and Alexander. Fenrir is the only one that is really worth having as a low level though. Diabolos used to be a pain to unlock, but now that Chains of Promathia missions are no longer level capped he's not so bad.

For more info go check out the SMN wiki page.

http://ffxi.gamerescape.com/wiki/Summoner

There's lots of guides listed at the bottom for good info. But keep in mind these guides are pretty outdated now, so some of the things they say no longer hold true.

That was a very useful post thanks a lot. I started on Phoenix btw.