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 I'm a madman.  Let's get the obvious out of the way first. What is Final Fantasy XIV? An MMORPG with a heavy emphasis on story content. Why? Because I like the game, and the story is legitimately good. How? Screenshots, and videos for particularly important cutscenes. Mostly ones with voice acting or weird animations. With all that out of the way, time for some backstory. Final Fantasy XIV 1.0 came out in 2010. It was completely terrible. A trash fire. From what I understand, the gameplay was repetitive, the story was practically nonexistant, and it looked like a graphically uprezzed FFXI. It was the sort of game designed by the "old guard" at Square. The kind who made 11 infamous for being the sort of game that hates you for existing. The urban legend is that a random barrel in the background would have more polygons and vertices in its model than the whole rest of the scene. It was the kind of game where one person was hired to the team and never given any instructions but "make me a rock" so he made that rock for 3 straight years. Is it true? It doesn't really matter. It's so widely reported that it's the Liberty Valance effect in action. For those of you too lazy to click the links, it's literally "when the legend becomes fact, print the legend." The horror stories you hear about FFXIV 1.0 are so effective because they're plausible. Anyway, 1.0 shut down in 2012? I think? The game popped back up in 2014 with A Realm Reborn and has been running ever since. The turnaround between 1.0 and 2.0 was nothing short of a miracle. The higher ups at Square brought in a new director, Naoki Yoshida, who has been a miracle worker. There have been some stumbles along the way, but they've learned from their mistakes. If you're interested in learning a whole lot more about the history of the Final Fantasy XIV that used to be, then please give the Noclip documentary a watch! Will you be playing the other expansions? This is a LP of A Realm Reborn. That alone is a massive enough undertaking. Let's just take this one baby step at a time. I can't wait until you show off-- No spoilers. Ever. Period. Non negotiable. The FFXIV general discussion thread is right here. I don't want to sound like a dick about this, but the story is kind of the whole point of this game. Spoiling stuff is bad form. It's a slow burn, but once that boil gets going, it stays going and doesn't let up. Are you gonna talk about lore? This game has lore? Blatant Shilling This is a Ko-Fi link. It's just there as a tip jar in case you like my stuff and feel like you want to show your appreciation! The Updates The first 11 updates were done as the game was in July of 2019. A year later, Patch 5.3 introduced a trimmed down A Realm Reborn story. All updates past 11 were recorded after that rework. Icon Explanations  - The update contains important cutscenes - These are the "main story" of Ginger's adventure through Eorzea - These are "bonus" updates, most often used to cover holiday events - These updates feature important or cute sidequests that I like / / - Class icons like these mean that a class story is covered in the update. The bolded number means which class quests are covered - Hall of the Novice content is covered in this update - A dungeon run features in this update! - A trial fight features in this update! These are big setpiece bosses! - A raid is covered in this update. These are dungeons on a much wider scale. - Beast Tribe story quests are covered in this update The Adventurer's GuildI - Answers II - Hear, Feel, Think III - The Quicksand IV - The Moonfire Faire 2019 (Part 1) V - The Moonfire Faire 2019 (Part 2) VI - Close to Home VII - Way of the Thaumaturge 1-5VIII - Underneath the Sultantree IX - The Threat of Intimacy 5-10X - Way Down the Hole XI - Last Letter to Lost Hope 10XII - So You Want to be a Pugilist?  1-10XIII - Oh Captain, My Captain  15XIV - Duty, Honor, Country XV - A Royal Reception XVI - BONUS - The Rising 2020 XVII - Teach Me, Lord of the Dance! Moving Up in the WorldXVIII - The Ul'dahn Envoy XIX - It's Probably Pirates XX - Into a Copper Hell XXI - The Scions of the Seventh Dawn XXII - Return of the Holyfist 20-30XXIII - A Wild Rose by Any Other Name XXIV - Lord of the Inferno Silly Little SylphsXXV - Way of the Lancer  1-15XXVI - Questions and Lancers 20-30XXVII - A Hero in the Making XXVIII - Hello Halatali XXIX - Sylph-management XXX - Starlight Festival 2020 (Part 1) XXXI - Starlight Festival 2020 (Part 2) XXXII - Brother From Another Mother  30  30XXXIII - Dance Dance Diplomacy XXXIV - Druthers House Rules XXXV - Into the Beast's Maw XXXVI - Back from the Wood Ascian InvestigationsXXXVII - A Dainty Dilemma  1-5XXXVIII - On to Little Ala Mhigo 35XXXIX - Stray into the Shadows 10XL - Big Trouble in Little Ala Mhigo XLI - Stifled Screams 15XLII - Dishonor Before Death XLIII - Grinners in the Mist 20XLIV - Sweet Sorrows 25XLV - Skeletons in her Closet XLVI - Market for Death 30 The Company of HeroesXLVII - Wrath of the Titan XLVIII - Brutal Strength 1-15XLIX - Port Paradise (April Fool's 2021) L - Bringing Down the Mountain 20-30LI - Peasants by Day, Ninjas by Night  30  30LII - The Things We Do for Cheese LIII - Lord of Crags LIV - The Monster of Bronze Lake Final Flight of the EnterpriseLV - Way of the Conjurer 1-15LVI - Like Mother, Like Daughter 20-30LVII - Eyes On Me LVIII - The Rose and the Unicorn LIX - Unicorn Power 35-40  30 LX - The Final Flight of the Enterprise LXI - By the Lights of Ishgard Corrupted CrystalsLXII - Brotherhood of Ash 40 Amalj'aa 1LXIII - Good Vibrations 45LXIV - Into the Eye of the Storm LXV - The Curious Case of Giggity LXVI - Lady of the Vortex Rescuing the ScionsLXVII - Footprints in the Snow LXVIII - Getting Even with Garlemald LXIX - Every Little Thing She Does is Magitek LXX - Escape from Castrum Centri LXXI - The Black Wolf's Ultimatum Operation ArchonLXXII - Operation Archon LXXIII - Rock the Castrum LXXIV - The Ultimate Weapon LXXV - The Seventh Astral Era (The Ending of A Realm Reborn) A Realm Reborn (Patch 2.0 Postgame)LXXVI - The Threat of Superiority 15 - 20LXXVII - The Hidden Chapter 25 - 30LXXVIII - Taking the Black  30-40LXXIX - Always Bet on Black 45-50LXXX - A Recurring Problem LXXXI - Primal Awakening A Realm Awoken (Patch 2.1)LXXXII - Legacy of Allag LXXXIII - Labyrinth of the Ancients LXXXIV - Way of the Archer  1-15LXXXV - The One That Got Away 20-30LXXXVI - The Rise and Fall of Gentlemen LXXXVII - The Immaculate Deception LXXXVIII - The Price of Principles LXXXIX - Hail to the King, Kupo XC - Build on the Stone XCI - It Could Happen to You  XCII - Embracing the Beast 35-50XCIII - Martial Perfection Amalj'aa 2-4XCIV - The Man in Black FF15 Part 1XCV - Messenger of the Winds FF15 Part 2XCVI - A Song of Bards and Bowmen  30-50XCVII - Maniac Manor Through the Maelstrom (Patch 2.2)XCVIII - Still Waters Veotax's Prelude to CalamityI - Know Your Enemy II - Like Father, Like Son III - In for Garuda Wakening IV - Don't Hate the Messenger V - United We Stand VI - To Kill A Raven VII - Living on a Prayer YappingEevee's GuidesI - Out of the Blue  Level 50 OverviewII - Way of the Carpenter  1-25III - Between Captain and Conjurer 30-50IV - Way of the Blacksmith  1-25V - As Iron Sharpens Iron 30-50VI - Way of the Armorer  1-25VII - May the Best Armorer Win 30-50 ExtrasDramatis Personae - A listing of every major character Ginger has met in her travels. Typically if someone has a portrait, they're gonna appear here. There are unmarked spoilers for the LP in here, so read this last! DoubleNegative fucked around with this message at 17:36 on Jan 3, 2022 |
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Aug 3, 2019 17:14
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Fanart YappingEevee went out and commissioned an actual artist to create a comic of what happens whenever Ginger comes across a new dungeon in-game.  Solitair comes up for an alternate ending to the Titan saga. DoubleNegative fucked around with this message at 02:08 on Apr 16, 2021 |
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Aug 3, 2019 17:14
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And then for good measure... I mentioned it in the OP, but all updates will be hosted on the test poster. So click the pretty fiery image above to watch the world end.
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Aug 3, 2019 17:15
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Catgirls rule
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Aug 3, 2019 17:16
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Wow an entire update dedicated to half a cutscene this game sucks. Anyway, always glad to have another thread to fill with my desires to return to 4.5 MCH.
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Aug 3, 2019 17:20
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What in the world inspires people to throw themselves upon the altar of LPing this MMO? Is it really that good and worthwhile to run the treadmill again? I'm genuinely curious. Anyways, good luck!
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Aug 3, 2019 18:24
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Roluth posted:What in the world inspires people to throw themselves upon the altar of LPing this MMO? Is it really that good and worthwhile to run the treadmill again? I'm genuinely curious. Self loathing, an abundance of free time, and a desire to see how the story looks with the benefit of hindsight. Although I didn’t realize when I posted the thread that there are two others already running. The story is legitimately good though, and I wanted to share it with those who can’t stand the treadmill.
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Aug 3, 2019 18:46
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There are never enough final fantasy 14 LPs. Because somehow, whenever I see multiple LPs of the same game, the people who read the threads end up being completely different. Anyway, I like your deep-dive style with how much you're putting into this. The only thing I don't like is you calling doing something you wanna do "self-loathing" 
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Aug 3, 2019 20:24
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I am interested in this so I can get your deep dive lore out of it. Teach me about Eorza!
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Aug 3, 2019 20:47
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It'll be interesting to see how your LP plays out. I can't imagine any two LPs of this game turning out too similar just with its sheer size. And right as I started a new character too, so there's some good timing.
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Aug 3, 2019 21:55
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As a friend and fellow Eorzean, I wish this LP all the best... and look forward to indulging in plenty of nostalgia and/or schadenfreude.
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Aug 4, 2019 00:25
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I'm the kind of person that doesn't forget how to spell things or whether things have names and what they are. So I'll be looking close when names of things start to become more relevant. Just in case. Also interested to know what class you'll be starting with, but that'll come in due time, no?
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Aug 5, 2019 06:22
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 (Click for update) ~~~~ ~~~~ Like I said in the update, if you all don't want to see a potato lady, then just let me know. While I think Ginger would make a fine main character, I'd be happy to make a different character on either Ultros or Excalibur... or any other world on the Primal DC. The only stipulation is that it can't be a male character. I wasn't kidding when I said female character armor is better in almost every circumstance.
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Aug 5, 2019 15:50
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Well that due time came up real quick. I actually split the difference when I made a Lalafell character - his name is perfectly lore-compliant yet also cutesy (Serano Habarano, both parts of which are just very slightly off from actual names of peppers). Wrong data center, though, even if my sub was up.
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Aug 5, 2019 16:08
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Oh, another FF14 LP. Female potato is an odd choice, but okay. Pity you're starting in Ul'dah like the other LP, though. The most important city-state to the game's story, and also the shittiest.
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Aug 5, 2019 16:10
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DoubleNegative posted:Like I said in the update, if you all don't want to see a potato lady, then just let me know. While I think Ginger would make a fine main character, I'd be happy to make a different character on either Ultros or Excalibur... or any other world on the Primal DC. The only stipulation is that it can't be a male character. I wasn't kidding when I said female character armor is better in almost every circumstance. i'm down for continuing on with Ginger tbh my personal favorite is xaela au ra (for reasons we won't be seeing in this lp for a very long time indeed) but lalafell are great also, and having the warrior of light be a lalafell makes lots of cutscenes very amusing
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Aug 5, 2019 18:55
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I like your potato and didn't even realize we had access to "Roe hair" as I call it. Also, it's good to see you picked Ul'dah, as in my opinion it has the best intro story. SpruceZeus posted:my personal favorite is xaela au ra (for reasons we won't be seeing in this lp for a very long time indeed) but lalafell are great also, and having the warrior of light be a lalafell makes lots of cutscenes very amusing Almost wished we started as arcanist just for the double whammy of "Lalafell" and "threateningly pulling out a book" during cutscenes.
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Aug 5, 2019 18:56
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So, let's say I pick this up. When should I buy the expansion? I've read that I don't necessarily have to until I'm finished with everything in the base game or I am level 50. Is this generally correct?
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Aug 5, 2019 20:51
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Roluth posted:So, let's say I pick this up. When should I buy the expansion? I've read that I don't necessarily have to until I'm finished with everything in the base game or I am level 50. Is this generally correct? Yes. You need the expansions if you want to play red mage or samurai right away (which require level 50) or progress above level 50. Dancer and gunbreaker are also available immediately upon hitting 60. Dark knight, astrologian, and mechanist also require the expansions, but are locked behind reaching a particular point in the main story rather than just levels. You also need the expansions if you want to play an au ra, viera, or hrothgar. Do note that the free trial lets you play as long as you want with a level cap of 35.
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Aug 5, 2019 20:59
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Roluth posted:So, let's say I pick this up. When should I buy the expansion? I've read that I don't necessarily have to until I'm finished with everything in the base game or I am level 50. Is this generally correct? Free trial lasts forever and is capped at level 35. The only missing feature you will care about are the retainers who are basically extra inventory storage, but if you're careful about how much crafting stuff you buy you won't need to care about this. Then, buy the starter game for 20$. This is A Realm Reborn (ARR) and lasts until level 50, and is a fuckton of content. Then, buy Shadowsomething for 40$. This has all the expansion packs, three new races, and new classes that you won't care about until you're deeper into the game. As races are cosmetic and you get a free chance to remake your character, well... I rec trial -> ARR -> Shadows spaced apart, because then you'll get the most bang for your buck, and give you a chance to back out of the game if you burn out or something. (Which is a real concern, ARR so far is hella long and a ton of content) Alternatively, be me and buy everything at one because you got a surprise belated birthday gift and decided to blow it on ffxiv because hello I love this game. PS do gridania first, it has a pleasing quest chain where they make you help out at the chocobo stables and it's really charming. StrixNebulosa fucked around with this message at 21:13 on Aug 5, 2019 |
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Aug 5, 2019 21:10
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Yeah, Trial->ARR->Shadowbringers is probably the best way to go. Free trial until 35 means you have a real good chance to see how much you like the game. Just watch out. If you buy the game on Steam, you have to buy everything on Steam. Steam codes don't work on Square's site and vice-versa. So if you pick it up, just keep an eye on what the code you're getting is for.
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Aug 5, 2019 21:23
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I'd highly recommend getting the non-Steam version so you don't have to deal with all that jazz.
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Aug 5, 2019 21:23
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I've been playing a lot of this recently and I'm excited for an in-depth look at lore. Are we voting on what race you're going to play as? Are you going to play as The Warrior of Light, trying to make yourself an identical copy of the human? e: hadn't read the second update, potato girl is cool. MatchaZed fucked around with this message at 23:06 on Aug 5, 2019 |
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Aug 5, 2019 23:01
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Nice to see an LP of FFXIV. This might also be kind of an insane undertaking. I'm completely fine with a potato girl though. Lalafells are cool and cute. Waffleman_ posted:I'd highly recommend getting the non-Steam version so you don't have to deal with all that jazz. Yeah, I have the game on Steam, and I sometimes wish I didn't.
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Aug 5, 2019 23:18
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It's just a shame Ul'dah is so important to the story, because it is just the worst place. Limsa Lyfe.
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Aug 5, 2019 23:25
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Definitely keen for this, FFXIV has taken an unreasonable amount of my time in the past. Ginger Pepper seems cool enough, I would be happy with that, but I would also love to see the Lalafell name scheme because it amuses the hell out of me. I've been thinking of creating an alt to redo ARR, maybe a Viera or something, so if you want someone to run some dungeons with you, let me know. Edit: Arcanist could be interesting to begin with, and at least Scholar seems to be roughly the same gameplay style as it was. Although, I would love to see what Summoner plays like at the moment as it seems like a beautiful disaster. Deadmans Tea Party fucked around with this message at 04:29 on Aug 6, 2019 |
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Aug 6, 2019 00:30
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I started in Uldah too so I kinda wish an LP would do Gridania or Limsa so I can see the story behind those, but I guess I can just make a quick alt for those. I vote for thaumaturge/BLM. Blowing poo poo up rules.
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Aug 6, 2019 01:45
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Your first 80 should be weaver.
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Aug 6, 2019 01:50
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The only thing you need to know about starting in Gridania is this.
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Aug 6, 2019 02:26
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aaw yea, a fresh ffxiv LP. I can finally experience the game without actually, like, playing it, I'm grateful for this
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Aug 6, 2019 02:58
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Well I just got done getting through my ARR content on one of my alts while eternally putting off gearing my main, may as well sit down and re-experience the story here. Good potato.
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Aug 6, 2019 04:12
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Ibblebibble posted:I started in Uldah too so I kinda wish an LP would do Gridania or Limsa so I can see the story behind those, but I guess I can just make a quick alt for those. I think the VLP thread that's around here somewhere started as Arcanist. I'm terrible at following those and I'm aware those aren't really everyone's cup of tea, of course... but yeah alts are easy.
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Aug 6, 2019 06:04
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If you're starting in Ul'dah then a Lalafell thaumaturge is probably the most appropriate. I'm looking forward to seeing the THM content in LP form. Also, I didn't realise there was a second LP thread still around here. The game deserves it and I'm looking forward to all the different takes.
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Aug 7, 2019 15:45
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 Today's update is a pretty long one. It's somewhere around 41,000 characters according to the "check message length" button. This puts it within spitting distance of the longest update I did for Pokemon Insurgence! Also if you look carefully you can spot the exact point that I stopped transcribing by hand and started using one of the wikis to copy from. Also also, last night there was a Live Letter From the Producer, and he had this to say at one point: Yoshi-P posted:Q41:
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Aug 7, 2019 15:57
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Aw, I was hoping you'd ask for names because I've always wanted to see an LP where the female protagonist is named Karen and she saves the world by speaking to the manager
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Aug 7, 2019 15:58
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I was just about to say. Should make the game easier to recommend to new players, though. ARR is....well....long.
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Aug 7, 2019 16:20
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For those of you not aware: FFXIV releases .X patches roughly every 4-ish months. 5.1 will release around October or so. This ARR revamp won't be hitting until a good ways into 2020. is the correct response.
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Aug 7, 2019 16:38
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Re: getting used to seeing the sprout icon, you can always turn off showing your character name. Showing it never struck me as a terribly useful feature since you presumably know it. Can also turn off names on random people if you want, personally I found it mostly useless and vaguely immersion-breaking to see that someone nearby named themselves Lacuna Catnipslip or whatever.
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Aug 7, 2019 19:36
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Kinda forgot how dark the Ul'dah start gets. I would join for some content, but I'm unfortunately not on the same data center. Or even the same region. Oh well.
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Aug 7, 2019 22:55
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Cyflan posted:Kinda forgot how dark the Ul'dah start gets. As I said, Ul'dah is probably the worst of the three city-states, though its worst crimes are hidden in a comedy sidequest series. But every city-state in Eorzea has serious problems. Ul'dah's flavor is being corrupt to the bone. At least in Limsa Lominsa, the city of bloodthirsty pirates, the admiral's secret police enforce the Code - the top of which is no dealing in slavery or human trafficking. And they enforce the Code with knives.
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Aug 7, 2019 23:08
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