Soloing - Help?

[RagingAvatar]

Hey guys,

Look I'm going to go out on a limb and say it.

I love the world of FFXI. I love the art. I love the concept. I've played this game more than any other game I've ever played.

That is.. I've restarted it more than any other game.

I get to around level 20 and have found the grind so hard that I just stop and give up.

I want to know what happens in the stories. I want to finish CoP and get to Aht Urghan. I want to travel through time in WoG.

I don't really have the time for all the statics and meeting with people and having parties and all that business.

Can anyone give me any tips for soloing?
What jobs are best for soloing? What races? Locations?

I love this game and I know that inevitably one day it will end and I want to make use of it while I can. Someone please help! Help!!

[Tobal]

I would just give up, soloing exp in ffxi is just to boring and slow even with the recent patches improving chances vs EP/DC and EM mobs when using Signet/Sigil/Sanction. if you unwilling to party up you'll never get the main story missions done, open up advanced jobs and leveling as you've found out to a total grind.

If you set on doing anyway you only really chance is the advanced job - beastmaster about the only job through out all levels able fight tough/vt mobs for chains.

[Daragon]

You can also solo to a much lesser extent with Summoner, and that job is pretty good for endgame, so if you're set on getting through lvls 1-75 by yourself I'd recommend that. It's slower than lvling BST so there's your trade-off. Tarutaru is probably the best race for the job as it carries the most mp - it's also the weakest physically however.

[dataDave]

I'd recommend BST myself if you're set on soloing, however what I enjoyed most about the exp was building capable parties and finding replacements once someone had to bail. If I had my mind set on gaining two levels I'd sit there in the same party, eventhough all the members apart from myself had progressively been transferred over the 6hrs or so... I'd be healing as WHM for instance, then another WHM would come along so I'd invite him and then switch myself over to BLM as I was set on keeping those two jobs neck-to-neck

I'm gonna call into the bank today and sort my card out so I can log in and prevent my characters from getting deleted. I do plan on returning one day, although my head is far too deep in WoW PvP at the moment to even finish off Mario + Metroid on the Wii. I'd be so upset if Daviravi got deleted though, and Fallows too for reminiscence sake.

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So yeah, if you like chilling out by yourself pick up BST, I've looked into it a few times and you really need a broad understanding of the wildlife and 'food-chain', so it opens up an unseen part of the game that your usual party exp'er would never usually know about.

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Just whacked £250 into my credit card but still no luck getting PoL to verify the motherf**ker. That was 8hrs ago so I'll give it another bash now.

EDIT: Still can't get on Saying it can't verify my card which is just ASS!!! I'm dead keen on farming some grain seeds for a few minutes a day!

It'd be good to get a little trickle of gil coming in even if I'm not playing for another few months... My mog locker is safe until March however.

[RagingAvatar]

You can also solo to a much lesser extent with Summoner, and that job is pretty good for endgame, so if you're set on getting through lvls 1-75 by yourself I'd recommend that. It's slower than lvling BST so there's your trade-off. Tarutaru is probably the best race for the job as it carries the most mp - it's also the weakest physically however.

To be honest, as an option that's pretty appealing - the issue is getting to the SMN job..

I know it sounds pathetic but I've never managed to get any of the 'extra' jobs.

I'm starting again today. Going for a Hume (I just can't stand that lower viewpoint from the Tarutaru..) - any suggestions on a starting job just to get me through to unlock the SMN job??

[Daragon]

Hard to say for certain which will be the best starting job for you prior to 30. Monk, Black Mage or White Mage would most likely get you there quickest out of those available to you.

I should warn you however - soloing is not something I'd recommend to someone with little to no experience of the game such as yourself. It isn't easy, even for someone who's been a part of it for several years. If you're set on becoming a Summoner however, the benefit to such a job over Beastmaster is that you're always considered for a party as a DD role (although more likely as a healer when no other mage jobs are available).

Also, unless you have friends on a server, it might be a good idea to join up on Seraph, so at least you have someone to consult for help or advice.

[dataDave]

I should warn you however - soloing is not something I'd recommend to someone with little to no experience of the game such as yourself.

Yeah, I can guarantee you will be fed up with soloing by lvls 10-12, as soon as it takes over 1,000 kills in the same area to get a lvl-up you'll soon cave in and either party up (IF you get a decent party that isn't full of c**ts) or simply quit torturing yourself.... especially after you die once and lose 100 mobs worth of EXP.....

Like I said with BST, it's a whole different ball-game and has you experiencing the game from a different perspective as you essentially 'juggle' mobs around and progressively push your luck/skill/mob knowledge until you sit and rest up. I personally wouldn't recommend soloing on any other job.

[Daragon]

He wants to experience the game's storylines however - I can almost guarantee noone is going to take a Beastmaster onto the airship BC or the final battle of the Aht Urghan expansion for example.

Summoner has the advantages of being both a party and a solo job as well as something that's quite useful for storyline missions and endgame activities. Beastmaster would be easier to level up than Summoner, but then there'd be nothing for him to do once he gets it to 75.

Bottom line though is that if you want a job at 75 easily, then you're going to have to bite the bullet and sit out waiting for an invite or form your own party with a more useful job such as Paladin or Ninja. You can solo with Summoner, but it's not something I'd advise for a newbie - Beastmaster is designed for solo play, but with that job, that's all you'll ever experience...

[RagingAvatar]

He wants to experience the game's storylines however - I can almost guarantee noone is going to take a Beastmaster onto the airship BC or the final battle of the Aht Urghan expansion for example.

Summoner has the advantages of being both a party and a solo job as well as something that's quite useful for storyline missions and endgame activities. Beastmaster would be easier to level up than Summoner, but then there'd be nothing for him to do once he gets it to 75.

Bottom line though is that if you want a job at 75 easily, then you're going to have to bite the bullet and sit out waiting for an invite or form your own party with a more useful job such as Paladin or Ninja. You can solo with Summoner, but it's not something I'd advise for a newbie - Beastmaster is designed for solo play, but with that job, that's all you'll ever experience...

Perhaps I could use BST for solo play and something else for when I want to play in parties?

Is that a sensible soultion perhaps?

I'm thinking of using MNK to get me to the advanced jobs. I like the 'Punch.. Punch.. Punch..' of it all :-)

[Daragon]

Leveling up 2 jobs at once regularly isn't going to be cost effective unfortunately and there are really no good ways of making decent gil easily atm. Find one job to begin with that you like and stick with it. If you're waiting on a party, there's always things you can be doing in the mean time, like killing easy prey monsters. A DS or PSP can kill the downtime pretty well too.