Fun times in Uleg Range

So as planned, I logged on yesterday for a little while to try and scrounge up a party to fight Apedemak.. Apademik? So I logged on to kill this ugly fucker: (not really ugly... pretty kick-ass looking actually)

I shouted for around 5-10 minutes in Jeuno before getting a PLD (Almace and Ochain no less) and a WHM to help me out in killing him. The PLD wanted the horns and the WHM just came for the fun of it? The guy was a top notch WHM... but his motivations were strange.

Either way, the PLD purchased a full set of pop items for the kill and I snagged the Snow God Core and HQ Marid Hide off the AH for a hefty 60k investment and we left. I went NIN/WAR and the PLD covered Scythe, Polearm and GS weapon skills when we fought Dhorme Chimera.

We got our KIs quick enough (and the little guy is a joke now) and I headed back to town to change into BLM for the big fights.

All-in-all the guy really isn't that hard when you have a PLD and a WHM doing most of the work. The first fight went smoothly but took forever. Sadly the proc ended up being BLU... the only one we didn't have access to and we walked off with 2 horns and 1 Jewel for me. The second fight went ok until the WHM aggrod an elemental and got things a little complicated. I was able to handle it without much of an issue... but in doing so, I missed a stun and Ape-Dick leveled up and started to become a problem. After that, I stunned the next TierV spell only to have him follow up with AGA4 and level up again. At this point he was dishing out too much damage to handle and we all went down. Thankfully, the PLD was packing a brew and he was happy to use it up to get his horns and not waste the run.

The proc, as we had previously determined, was Light... and it turned out to not be WHM. Thankfully... when we wiped and his weaknesses got reset, it changed to Thunder and I was able to eek out a yellow proc JUST BEFORE HE WENT DOWN to increase my jewels from a measly 1 to 3. Sadly... we only got the 1 horn and ended the run there.

Funny part is, when he died he left behind a gold box that contained (no joke) a Snow God Core, Sissiphus Fragment and HQ Marid Hide. I opened it and took them for my next run. So not I'm prepared for today's run without having to do any of the leg work.

Here I come Cirque Body! I'm getting closer!

Cerberus maybe?

So after reading a friend's posts on the forum about his many adventures in Salvage/Limbus/Dynamis/Einherjar/Assault and other fun stuff, I light-heartedly suggested to him that I might consider changing servers to be able to participate in those events with him.

He and some of the others took that idea and ran with it, pairing up play times and schedules and all that nonsense. Eventually I told them that I would, but that my final decision hinged on whether Hayde and Cid would come with me. If they're not going to make the jump to Cerberus, I'd just be leaving friends to play with different friends... and that leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

In the meantime, while I await their decisions about moving with me, I've been continuing my efforts towards not only posting here on the blog (doing pretty well at not forgetting about this page) but also +2ing more of my gear. Yesterday I built a party of LS members to go out and farm Itzpapalotl for Stones of Vision. I started with only 1 and I needed 12. In the end I walked out with 9, not bad at all considering 2 of the 5 kills we couldn't proc yellow on and got screwed with only 1 Stone each time (fucking BLU proc).

I used those Stones and upgraded my Raider's Bonnet and put the other 3 towards my Orison Cap.

Current progress is 3/6

Later in the evening I joined a LS mate and killed Orthrus 5 times for his Ardor Stones(?). I only really went because I'd been sitting on a KI for him for a few weeks now... and he drops Jewels of Ardor that I need for Cirque +2 Body. Of the 5 kills, we managed to proc yellow on 4 of them (fucking BRD proc) and I got 2 Jewels for my time spent there. Sadly... I could have sworn that I had some of those stored away for a rainy day... but as it turns out, nothing. 

Current progress is 2/9.

In addition, while farming the NM for Tiger King Hide, I got my hands on a better set of PUP weapons, the Furor Cesti. They're not amazing, but they're better than the Hades ones I was using before. An upgrade is an upgrade.



All in all... a productive day. We'll see what I can get done today to add to that. Hopefully I can snag the 3 items I need to pop the NM in Uleg. for his KI to kill Apedick. I figure he's my best bet to finish PUP body in any decent amount of time.  

+2 ALL THE THINGS!!!

Lately I've decided that I don't like having to look at all those gross looking +1 items in my inventory anymore. That being the case, I've taken steps to fix it.

I started with BLM gear and got the head and hands finished. I have to say... the stats on them are awesome and I can see the difference in power/casting speed already. No complaints.

Now that those are finished, all I have left to complete for BLM are the feet... of which I have a whopping 0/6 Voyage collected.

In addition, I collected a bunch of +2 items for PUP head/body, WHM head/feet/ and THF head. If I seriously burn the midnight oil, I can probably knock out all of my +2 equipment for all 7 jobs by this time next week. We shall see.

THF progress and crushed spirits

Yesterday I did a little work on my THF and thanks to generous donations from the shell I was able to complete my Assassins Armets +2

Now the only thing standing in my way of having full TH are the Raider's Poulaines +2

So what did I do? I went farming for the NQ Raider's Poulaines last night... and ended up with 2 WAR, 1 RDM, 1 BLM and 2 WHM feet instead. 3 of those dropped in boxes within the first 5 minutes. I'm convinced that SE is trolling me.

I'm terrible at keeping a blog (and other common knowledge)

So for some strange reason, the new computer that they hooked up in my office (we've got 3 of them already... this makes 4) doesn't block this site like the others do. Will the IT squad eventually figure it out? Probably. Am I going to abuse the unrestricted access to sites that are normally unavailable to me at work? Absolutely.

So in the time since I last posted anything, I've done a few small things for myself and leveled some jobs to 99 that I had never planned on leveling in the first place. BLM and THF have joined my roster of available jobs at 99... and I'm starting to feel the hurt in my inventory.

My own accomplishments aside, I've been helping out some of the guys from DiV as they climb the ranks and join Hayde, Cid and myself in our adventures.

So far... iirc... Jarre has leveled PLD and somethingsomething else that I can't remember and Firewind has leveled THF, DNC and WHM.

Yesterday we finally got the 2 of them their 95-99 Limit Break and I'm pretty sure that they have both nearly finished capping their levels in their respective jobs.

Hayde has taken up working on a few new jobs as of late to join his 99 NIN. He's now got a very well equipped 99 BST as well as some other pet projects (pun totally intended) in the works. Oh... and he's damn near finished with a Kannagi all his own. He has already done the NMs, the VNMs and all 50/50 Briarius Helms. Last I checked he was at 35/50 Sobek Skins and has a couple of pop sets already built up to hopefully finish that project off.  

Cid is Cid and has been all over the place. Most notably we were able to go 1/1 on his Leg Abjuration from Kirin and he's either close to... or already has his Bloody Speedy Pants. So yay for him!

We're all in a shell together... for what that's worth. Hey, at least I'm not the one running it this time. If I were... it would probably already be dissolved. my track record shows that much. The people in the shell seem pretty much on the level. Shep, Bump, Ith and a few others stand out as friendly and active members who would bend over backwords to help a fellow member out. It's refreshing to see that mentality for once.

Lets see...

Yeah apart from all that jazz, there's not much else that's been happening aside from all of us patiently awaiting the release of the new Expansion. I did some cospetic work here on the blog... but mostly little stuff and some template adjustments.

Statistically speaking... this will be my last post for a long time... but here to hoping I actually remember to post again within the week.

- Yyg

Decision time!

Ok so I've given it a lot of thought (for the past 9 hours or so) and I've decided to return to XI.

My decision was based on 2 things.

1. I want to experience the new content that is being released as it's being released.

2. I apparently never unsubscribed from the game and have been unwittingly paying for it every month (good job).

I'm not coming back to further myself personally, but to help out the friends of mine that I know still play. Namely I'm going back as a high level assistance to Jarre, Leasious, Cid and a few others.

The way I see it, if I remove the grindy aspect of the game and replace it with more of the social aspect, I can get a lot more enjoyment out of it. The things I really truly enjoyed the most about XI are all dead content that I can really only hope to experience vicariously through someone else.

This approach also eliminates the exhausting "standard" of play that I've grown used to. I never did like being told what job to come as or what to bring or what to do or where to stand or how to play my job. The majority of my over 900 hours of gameplay were spent alone. The fact of the matter was that nobody wanted a SMN in their party and nobody thought that one was every a useful option.

I want to return to the game as a SMN to experience and enjoy all the things that made me love th game in the first place all over again.

This time I'm doing it for me. No events, no schedules, no requirements, no statics... no nothing of the sort.

I might even consider spending an hour or so just riding the Mana Clipper back and forth.  Who's to stop me? It was a relaxing experience for me when I would ride on it. Any of the archaic travel mediums were a welcome escape from the GO HERE! QUICKLY!!! pace of the game.

Before I left, I showed Leasious "Teleport: Dem" and "Warp II" and she was thrilled. I think her exact words were "That was AWESOME!!!". It made me think. When did the game stop being that fun for me? I remember feeling the same way as her when I got my first teleport cast on me. I felt that way when I went to Jeuno for the first time... and I felt that way when I finally got my Chocobo Permit.

I don't know... I guess I just want that same feeling back.
  

been a while... how are you?

As some of you might know, I quit FFXI a few months back to pursue playing XIV a little more. I liked a lot of the changes they had made... and the ones that are still on the horizon. Hopefully they won't let me down, right?

...right?

Anywho. On top of playing XIV, I've also moved. Yeah! Good times. After moving, I had a chance to unpack all of my games and decided to pull out a few that I hadn't played in a really long time. I also went out and picked up a few games that I had been keeping myself from buying.

On my entertainment center right now, you'll find:

-Disgaea 4: A Promise Unforgotten (Gearing up to face off against Mhurron this Monday)
-Star Ocean: Till the End of Time (A classic I've been meaning to replay) 
-Makai Kingdom (Because Mickey makes me laugh... and Zetta is a boss)
-Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure (I bought it 6 years ago and never played it)
-Ar Tonelico 2 (I bought it last year and never played it)
-Vagrant Story (I got this on loan from a friend who couldn't believe I never played it)
and
-Metal Gear Solid 4 (Because I never finished it)

That's all stacked on top of keeping up with XIV and trying to put the finishing touches on my new house.

I'm a busy guy.

To be honest, I'm really not entirely sure if I'm going to stick it out with XIV for too much longer. I really did enjoy the addition of the advanced jobs and I'm really finding myself drawn to support jobs (as expected). I really just can't put my finger on what it is that XIV is missing. I think it's soul. The game doesn't have the same appeal as a lot of other MMOs I play.

When I'm playing EQ, FFXI, Diablo, GW or even Ragnarok Online... I find myself lost in the game for hours on end, COMPLETELY enveloped and enamored by it. I just haven't gotten that same feeling from XIV and I doubt I ever will. There's something about it's design and the way it's played that feels detatched.

I don't know... maybe I'm just being picky... but I really don't think I'm alone in this feeling.

If I don't play XIV, I'll probably stop playing MMOs for a little while and try to make a dent in my single player games for a bit... while playing against Mhurron in Disgaea now and then.

Then again, who knows... maybe I'll feel that same itch come back that has dragged me into Vanadiel every few years to renew my adventures and experience the changes once again. Time will tell, I suppose.

I can say this for certain: The announcment made today from SE on their Roadmap for XI stating that Cait Sith is definately slated as being a new Avatar for SMN makes me really anxious to hop back on and make sure I have all my quests and missions up to date in preperation for that day.

For now I'm staying clear of the game and secretly hoping that CS is going to be a huge flop and bitter disappointment. If it ends up being great, I don't know what will stop me from coming back at least recreationally.

Wow... I typed a lot. I'll leave it at that and try to post some more either tomorrow or later this week.

I have to do some light reading on the roadmap to see what other changes are in store for my favorite game of all time.

Here's hoping it's all garbage!

Update: 01/05/2012

Yep. I totally neglected this blog for the longest time. Between the game and work, I just about forgot I had this here at all.

Well, for those of you who actually read it at all... heres an update on my progress:

- Kannagi 85 is finished
- Armageddon 85 is almost done (I need 35 more lanterns to complete it)
- A ton of assorted gear has been collected... namely all of the +2 Empyrian armor for NIN, SMN, WHM and COR (aside from the hat)
&
I have decided to undertake the most challenging quest line in the game: I'm going to build a Mythic Weapon.

I chose Nirvana as the one I want because no matter how much i play any other job, SMN has always been my 1 true love. That being the case, I want to treat myself to the best possible staff in the game for it.

Requirements:

To Start:
Captain Wildcat Badge

Floor 100 of Nyzul isle and recorded
- Collect the NQ Relic Staff

Stage 1: An Imperial Heist
All 3 ToAU Beastman Bosses Killed and titles obtained
- Gulfurlur the Menacing
- Medusa
- Gulool Ja Ja

All 4 Salvage Chariots Killed and titles obtained
- Sun Chariot
- Star Chariot
- Comet Chariot
- Moon Chariot

Einherjar Odin Killed and title obtained
- Smouldering Lamp*
- Rossweisse's Feather
- Grimgerde's Feather
- Siegrune's Feather
- Helmwige's Feather
- Schwertleite's Feather
- Waltraute's Feather
- Ortlinde's Feather
- Brunhilde's Feather
- Gerhilde's Feather
*Obtained after completing all 9 areas

Stage 2: Duties, Tasks and Deeds
150,000 Nyzul Isle Tokens
- Obtained in varied amounts after every successful mission

100,000 Inchor from Einherjar
- Obtained in varied amounts after every successful mission

30,000 Alexandrites from Salvage
- Obtained from Gears in Salvage zones as well as from Chariot Bosses in varied amounts

Stage 3: Forging a New Myth
All 3 T4 Zeni Notorious Monster Items (100% drop rate each)
- Tyger's Tail
- Tinnin's Fang
- Sarameya's Hide

Fight Zahak/Balrahn

Stage 4: Completion
Nothing to do here besides show up and collect my weapon.

Hrm. Seems I forgot I had a blog.

OH GOD!!! THE UPDATES!!!

Let's see, where to begin? Might as well start with my gear aquisitions since the time of my last post.

SMN:
Gifted Earring
Soulscourge
Summoner's Bracers +2
Summoner's Horn -1

COR:
Armageddon (Almost: 15/50 Cirein-Croin Lanterns)
Commadore's Tricorne -1
Commadore's Bottes +1
Commadore's Gants  +1

NIN:
Kannagi (85)

PUP:
Cirque

Gee... forgot about this (^_^)*

Kannagi: Update v3

Zi'Ghi 3/3, Lambert 3/3, Dodo 3/3, Gargantua 4/4, Megalobugard 4/4, Ratatoskr 3/4 soon to be 4/4.

Kannagi: Update

Zi'Ghi 3/3, Lambert 3/3, Dodo 3/3, Gargantua 1/4.

WotG: Update v.2

Won the final fight in the WotG: Windurst questline tonight. I even managed to do it solo on SMN/WHM.
The method was simple, buff outside to save time... enter and buff the NPC. From there on in its just a matter of sending in a self healing Avatar like Garuda who is capable of dishing out big numbers on BPs.

The form changes that cause you to disengage aren't a problem... as the NPC is more than capable of holding hate while Garuda takes it back.

While the NM is in Fenrir form, keep your distance to avoid being 1 shotted... and make sure the Nova heath stays above 75% at all times.

If you must, running to the entrance to Elemental Siphon os also ok since the NPC can take a few hits. I never needed to... but I also won the fight with only 60mp left.

Pure excitement. This is by far my favorite storyline of the entire game. Robel-Akbel is fucking badass. That is all.

Arms of the Azure Sky and Zodiac Ring... mine!

WotG: Update

Last night I busted my ass to grind up from quest 8 to quest 12 in the Wings of the Goddess: Windurst questline. If I had been using my desktop to play, I would have screenies to post, but I was on my laptop for the entire duration. I was able to solo everything up until quest 10 where you have to fight waves upon waves of Yagudo/Demons/Tauri/Ariman who storm the gates of Windurst Waters {s} and prevent them from destroying the warding seals protecting the gates. Killing them isnt a problem... it's keeping them from destroying the seals that made it difficult. Thankfully, my buddy Hellhoundxi was online and happened to need to finish quests 12&13 himself, so he teamed with me to burn through what we could. He and I teamed up with his girlfriend's THF to dispatch the army at the gates without a problem (THF/NIN, WAR/NIN and me as SMN/WHM). After that, Hell and I continued on to Quest 11 and then barely pulled out the win on 12. Ziee Deggi the Manifest and 2 Wind Spirits. We found a working strategy that was really simple (if we hadn't screwed up and let the NM regen to 75% atone point when we lost hate. Once we were finished, we did the leg work needed to begin the final fight and plan to take care of both that... and the final fight for WotG main Missions on Saturday. All-in-all... awesome progress yesterday.

Rewards for Windy Quests:

Zodiac Ring
- Lv. 80 All Jobs
- MP +25
- Depending on the day: Enhances Elemental Magic (3% added to day/weather bonuses on Spells/Quickdraw/Ninjutsu/Blue magic)

"Atma of the Azure Sky"
- MP+: Major (+5%)
- Magic Critical Hit Rate: Minor (+3%)
- "Blood Pact" Ability Delay: Minor (-10 seconds)

Rewards for Wings of the Goddess Mission Completion:

Moonshade Earring
- Lv. 90 All Jobs

One choice from each of the following groupings:

- Accuracy +4, Attack +4, Ranged Accuracy +4, Ranged Attack +4, Magic Accuracy +4, Magic Attack Bonus +4, HP+25, MP+25

- Latent Effect: Regain +1*, Latent Effect: Refresh +1**, Occasionally grants damage based on TP 5%, TP Bonus +25, Occasionally maximizes Magic Accuracy +3%, Occasionally quickens Spellcasting +3%, Counter +3, Occasionally increases resistance to all status ailments +5

*Effective when your weapon is drawn

**Effective when your weapon is not drawn

"Atma of the Future Fabulous"
- Haste+: Minor
- Fast Cast+: Minor
- "Magic Defense Bonus"+: Superior (+50 MDB)

WotG Update

Wings of the Goddess: Progress Update

Operation Kannagi

Operation "Get a Kannagi" resumes tomorrow. Lumbering Lambert here I come!

Asking for trouble

I've been reading the most retarded posts on the official forums lately and its starting to make me sick. Anyone interested in playing SMN is getting turned off by these people and their nonsense. Misinformation is spreading like wildfire and there's even a post about speculating Bahamut as a summonable avatar in the future.

I have to break my own lurking rule with them to set some facts straight and make TRUTHFUL posts.

That damn place is like a middleground that stands on the extreme end of my FFXI forum validity scale. BG is the most hardcore research group... followed by FFXIonline... followed by Alla and Killingifrit (who are barely even active) and finally... the official farce of a forum.

Wish me luck against the army of ignorance.

Photo shoot. For Science...

Also... saw my favorite NPC in the game for the first time in ages, Robel-Akbel

Badass...

EFF YEA! This almost makes me want to play again

Watch "FINAL FANTASY XIV Ifrit Battle" on YouTube