Adventurer's Journal:
Final Fantasy XIV

"For those I have lost. For those I can yet save." — Warrior of Light
Journal Contents

Introduction to Eorzea

Final Fantasy XIV (FFXIV) is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by Square Enix. The game is set in the fantasy world of Eorzea and follows the journey of the Warrior of Light (your character) through an epic storyline spanning multiple expansions.

FFXIV stands out among MMORPGs for several reasons:

This journal aims to guide newcomers through their journey in Eorzea efficiently, avoid common pitfalls, and understand the game's core systems.

"A journey of a thousand malms begins with but a single step." — Ancient Eorzean Proverb
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Getting Started

Game Editions & Subscription

FFXIV offers several purchase options:

Free Trial

Includes the base game (A Realm Reborn) and the first two expansions (Heavensward and Stormblood) with no time limit but with social and economic restrictions:

  • Level cap of 70
  • Cannot use Market Board (auction house)
  • Cannot create parties (but can join them)
  • Cannot join Free Companies (guilds)
  • Cannot use /tell (direct messages)
  • Gil cap of 300,000
  • No retainers (bank/market assistants)

FFXIV uses a subscription model:

Adventurer's Tip: Start with the Free Trial to experience a significant portion of the game before committing to a subscription.

System Requirements

Windows (Minimum):

Windows (Recommended):

Mac (Minimum):

PlayStation 4/5 Requirements:

Creating an Account

  1. Visit the FFXIV official website
  2. Click "Log In" then "Create New Account"
  3. Follow the registration process
  4. Purchase your preferred game edition or start the free trial
  5. Download and install the game client for your platform

Important Tips:

  • Your Square Enix account is separate from your FFXIV service account
  • Enable two-factor authentication using the Square Enix Security Token app for extra security and a free teleport location
  • Account management can be complex - bookmark the Mog Station (account management site) for easy access
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Character Creation

Races & Clans

FFXIV offers eight playable races, each with two clans. A ninth race, female Hrothgar, will be added in the Dawntrail expansion.

Race Clans Brief Description
Hyur Midlander / Highlander The most human-like race, with varied builds and appearances.
Elezen Wildwood / Duskwight A tall, slender, elf-like race with long limbs and pointed ears.
Lalafell Plainsfolk / Dunesfolk A diminutive and stout race, known for their child-like appearance.
Miqo'te Seekers of the Sun / Keepers of the Moon A cat-like race with feline ears and a long tail. Very popular.
Roegadyn Sea Wolves / Hellsguard A large, powerfully-built race with a rugged appearance.
Au Ra Raen / Xaela A race with draconic features, including scales, horns, and a tail.
Viera Rava / Veena A tall, elegant, rabbit-like race with distinctive long ears.
Hrothgar Helions / The Lost A large, lion-like race with a bestial appearance. (Male only until Dawntrail)
Important Note: Race choice is purely aesthetic and has no impact on gameplay or stats. Choose based on your personal preference. You can change your race later using a Fantasia potion.

Customization Limitations:

Starting Classes

Your starting class determines your initial city and gameplay experience, but doesn't lock you into a role. You can unlock all other classes starting at level 10.

Tank Classes:

Healer Classes:

DPS Classes:

Arcanist: The Two-for-One Job

The Arcanist class is unique because it branches into two different jobs at level 30: the DPS **Summoner** and the healer **Scholar**. Both jobs level up simultaneously, making it a very efficient choice.

Choosing a World

Worlds (servers) are grouped into Data Centers. While you can visit other worlds on your Data Center, your home world is where you'll have your Free Company and retainers.

Server Types:

Tips for Choosing a World:

  • Play with Friends: If you have friends playing, choose their Data Center and World.
  • Location: Pick a Data Center located in your geographical region for the best connection (e.g., North America, Europe, Japan, Oceania).
  • Get the Buff: Always choose a "Preferred" world if available for the massive leveling speed increase.
  • Community Focus: Some worlds have unofficial focuses (e.g., raiding, role-playing), but these are generally fluid. Any world is suitable for any playstyle.
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Efficient Leveling

Quest Priority System

Not all quests are created equal. Prioritizing the right ones is key to unlocking content and progressing efficiently.

  1. Main Scenario Quests (MSQ): Your absolute highest priority. This is the story, and it gates almost all content in the game. It also provides the majority of the XP needed to level your first job.
  2. Blue Quests with a Plus Sign: Your second highest priority. These quests unlock new features, dungeons, trials, job abilities, and important systems like glamouring and dyeing. Do these as soon as you see them.
  3. Standard Side Quests: These are generally optional. They provide small amounts of XP, gil, and minor items. They are great for world-building but can be skipped if you want to level quickly.

Leveling Methods by Role

Once you start leveling alternate jobs (alts), you won't have the MSQ for XP. Here are the best methods:

Method Description Notes
Highest Level Dungeon Spamming the highest-level dungeon available to you. Best XP/hour. Tanks/Healers get instant queues; DPS have longer waits.
Daily Roulettes Especially Leveling, Alliance Raid, and MSQ roulettes give huge daily XP bonuses. Do these once per day for a massive boost.
Deep Dungeons Palace of the Dead (1-60) & Heaven-on-High (61-70). Randomized dungeons with their own leveling system. Great for DPS to bypass queue times. Good if your gear is weak.
Wondrous Tails Weekly "bingo book" from Khloe in Idyllshire. Completing duties places stamps. Gives a flat 50% of a level upon turn-in. Very efficient.
FATEs / Bozja Open-world events (FATEs) or large-scale duty zones like Bozja (71-80) and Eureka (70). Good for filling time while in DPS queues.

Experience Buffs

Always stack as many XP buffs as possible to speed up the process.

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Basic Gameplay

The Armoury System

The Armoury System is what allows a single character to be every job. Your class is determined by your equipped main-hand weapon or tool. To change jobs, simply equip a different weapon. You can save and link gear sets to your hotbar for instant switching outside of combat and instances.

Combat Fundamentals

FFXIV's combat is built around a 2.5-second global cooldown (GCD).

Understanding the UI

The user interface is dense but highly customizable. Key elements include:

Go to System -> HUD Layout to move, resize, and hide any element of your UI to create a personalized setup.
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Progression Systems

Gear & Item Level (iLvl)

Your character's power is primarily determined by the average Item Level (iLvl) of your equipped gear. Duties will have minimum iLvl requirements to enter. Your main sources of gear while leveling will be:

Challenge Log

Unlocked via a blue quest in Limsa Lominsa, the Challenge Log is a weekly list of objectives that award bonus XP and gil. Completing tasks like "Run 5 Dungeons" or "Give 20 Player Commendations" provides significant rewards and is a great passive way to boost your leveling progress.

Aether Currents

To unlock flying in expansion zones (Heavensward and beyond), you must attune to all Aether Currents in that zone. Some are found in the open world, while others are rewards from MSQ and side quests. Use your Aether Compass to locate them.

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Game Features

Duty Finder & Roulettes

The Duty Finder is used to queue for instanced content:

Party Compositions:

Daily Roulettes:

  • Leveling: Random dungeon
  • Expert: Endgame dungeons
  • Trials: Random trial
  • Main Scenario: Castrum/Praetorium
  • Alliance Raid: 24-player content
  • Normal Raid: 8-player non-extreme content
  • Mentor: Random duty with new players
  • Frontline: PvP large-scale battle
  • Guildhest: Basic training scenarios

Roulette Tips:

  • Daily bonus once per day per roulette
  • Adventurer in Need bonus for in-demand roles
  • Complete Challenge Log entries for extra EXP
  • Level 50/60/70/80 dungeons give less EXP than leveling dungeons

Glamour System

The Glamour system allows you to customize your character's appearance:

Core Systems:

Advanced Features:

Tips for New Players:

  • Unlock glamour at level 15 in Vesper Bay
  • Conserve glamour dresser space (it fills quickly)
  • Join Fashion Report weekly for easy MGP
  • Check Eorzea Collection website for inspiration
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Social Features

Free Companies

Free Companies (FCs) are FFXIV's version of guilds:

Benefits:

Choosing an FC:

  • Match your playstyle (casual, raiding, RP, etc.)
  • Check active hours against your schedule
  • Verify FC buffs are regularly maintained
  • Ensure healthy member count (not too small/large)
  • FC focus (social, raiding, crafting, etc.)

What to Avoid:

  • Random invites without conversation
  • Massive "zerg" FCs with impersonal atmosphere
  • Inactive leadership
  • Strict requirements for casual players
  • Drama and elitism

Community Etiquette

FFXIV is known for its relatively positive community, maintained through shared etiquette:

General Guidelines:

  • Greet parties when joining duties
  • Avoid unsolicited advice (especially during combat)
  • Respect cutscene watchers
  • Use auto-translate function for language barriers
  • Don't spam chat or abilities with visual effects

Dungeon Etiquette:

  • Tank sets the pace of pulls
  • Let sprouts (new players) know mechanics if they ask
  • Roll Need only on items for your current job
  • Wait for everyone at boss doors
  • Let people watch cutscenes uninterrupted
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Endgame Content

Raid Tiers & Progression

FFXIV's endgame raid cycle follows a predictable pattern:

Savage Raid Cycle (Every ~8 months):

  1. Normal mode raids release (4 encounters)
  2. Savage difficulty releases one week later
  3. Weekly lockouts on both loot and books
  4. Catch-up patch midway through tier
  5. Lockouts removed near end of expansion

Encounter Difficulty Progression:

  1. Extreme Trials: Entry-level challenge
  2. Normal Raids: Story mode with moderate mechanics
  3. Savage Raids: Primary endgame challenge
  4. Ultimate Raids: Highest difficulty, prestige rewards

Gearing for Raids:

  • Crafted gear at tier start
  • Extreme weapons as first upgrade
  • Normal raids for weekly token gear
  • Weekly limited tomestones for best pre-raid gear
  • Savage drops for best-in-slot

Crafting & Gathering Endgame

Crafting and gathering have their own endgame systems:

Crafting Progression:

  • Master recipe books
  • Scrip gear progression
  • Crafted combat gear (early raid advantage)
  • Cosmetic items (glamours, furniture)
  • Gil-making opportunities

Gathering Progression:

  • Timed nodes for rare materials
  • Scrip gear and tools
  • Collectables for weekly rewards
  • Custom deliveries for weekly scrips
  • Legendary/Folklore nodes

Additional Activities

FFXIV offers numerous side activities for varied gameplay:

Gold Saucer:

  • Mini-games with MGP rewards
  • Weekly Fashion Report (easy MGP)
  • Triple Triad card game (400+ cards to collect)
  • Chocobo Racing with breeding system
  • Mahjong (authentic Japanese rules)
  • Leap of Faith (jumping puzzle)
  • Mini Cactpot (daily) and Jumbo Cactpot (weekly) lotteries

Special Content:

  • Eureka/Bozja: Special areas with unique progression
  • Blue Mage: Limited job with spell collection
  • Variant & Criterion Dungeons: Flexible difficult content
  • Island Sanctuary: Relaxed solo content
  • Hildibrand Quest Chain: Comedy storyline with trials
  • Sightseeing Log: Vista hunting
  • Fishing Log: Catch all fish species
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Advanced Gameplay

Job Optimization

Moving beyond basics to master your job:

Understanding Damage Calculation:

Rotation Optimization:

  • Proper opener sequences
  • Maintaining uptime during mechanics
  • Minimizing clipping (delaying GCDs)
  • Aligning burst windows with party buffs
  • Adjusting for specific fight timelines

Resources for Improvement:

  • The Balance Discord (job guides and advice)
  • FF Logs (compare your performance)
  • xivanalysis.com (automated log analysis)
  • ACT (Advanced Combat Tracker) and plugins
  • Job-specific mentors and communities

Raid Preparation

Comprehensive preparation for high-end content:

Pre-Raid Checklist:

  • Optimal gear for your job
  • Proper materia melds
  • Food and potions (HQ)
  • Fight research and video guides
  • Stable internet connection
  • Voice communication setup

Consumables:

  • HQ Food appropriate for your job
  • Grade 8 Tinctures/Potions for burst phases
  • Raid repair materials (Grade 8 Dark Matter)
  • Glamour prisms for new gear appearances

Self-Improvement:

  • Record and review your gameplay
  • Ask for specific feedback
  • Practice rotations on dummies
  • Study top players' logs
  • Be open to strategy adjustments
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Useful Resources

Official Resources:

Community Sites:

YouTube Channels:

Remember that FFXIV is designed to be enjoyed at your own pace. While this guide provides optimization advice, the most important thing is to play in a way that's enjoyable for you. The community is generally helpful and welcoming to new players, so don't hesitate to ask questions in-game.

Good luck on your adventures in Eorzea, Warrior of Light!

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"The fate of this star has ever been shaped by the deeds of Hydaelyn's chosen heroes. You now stand among them, a new light to guide us through the coming darkness." — Minfilia Warde