Ive never really gotten far in this game, i've decided to reactivate and give it another go, however I want to do things a little diffrent this time.

First off, any recommended servers for a new player? I heard odin was the most populated however when I got in game today their were absolutely no other low level players in the area, and im worried getting groups after 10 will be difficult.

Next, I need advice on a class, the last few times I played I always picked warrior, however im getting the feeling its not the best class to pick as a new player, since I don't fully understand party mechanics in this game yet. Would theif, or maybe red mage be a better pick?

Nationality, ive always played human characters in all my mmo's, and that wont change ffxi, however ive never started in any other town besides bastok because of the ring you gain if its your home city. Are one of the other 2 better places to start off as a new player? Or maybe have a larger new player crowd?

Gil, money has always been an issue for me in this game, I always have signet on and sell any stacks of crystals I gather, but it seems like im always short on cash, and the rest of my loot seems rather useless. Are their any other tricks to making cash?

Thanks in advance, if anyone can answer a few of these.

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Originally posted by Wolfenpride
Ive never really gotten far in this game, i've decided to reactivate and give it another go, however I want to do things a little diffrent this time.
First off, any recommended servers for a new player? I heard odin was the most populated however when I got in game today their were absolutely no other low level players in the area, and im worried getting groups after 10 will be difficult.
Next, I need advice on a class, the last few times I played I always picked warrior, however im getting the feeling its not the best class to pick as a new player, since I don't fully understand party mechanics in this game yet. Would theif, or maybe red mage be a better pick?
Nationality, ive always played human characters in all my mmo's, and that wont change ffxi, however ive never started in any other town besides bastok because of the ring you gain if its your home city. Are one of the other 2 better places to start off as a new player? Or maybe have a larger new player crowd?
Gil, money has always been an issue for me in this game, I always have signet on and sell any stacks of crystals I gather, but it seems like im always short on cash, and the rest of my loot seems rather useless. Are their any other tricks to making cash?
Thanks in advance, if anyone can answer a few of these.

---

Well, let's see. Warrior, or Monk, really is one of the better class at the lowest levels; mages don't have enough spells or MPs to do anything impressive yet. When you move on to the Valkurm Dunes, which is where you generally do parties 10-20, you may be expected to tank. If you're a Monk or Thief, you'll get DD duties and THF will often be expected to pull, which is tough for a newbie.

I'm not sure what MMORPG party mechanics you're used to. FFXI is pretty standard, or used to be pretty standard, but if you're from WoW you may not have seen it. Basically a party is a study in specialization--each member has his job, is set up to do it as well as possible, and lets the other members do the other jobs. The party chooses one spot ("camp") and most of them stay there. Assuming the camp is good spot not subject to wandering aggro, this helps greatly in avoiding getting adds and fighting more than one mob at a time. One character goes out, grabs a mob (usually with some sort of ranged attack, which doesn't need to hit) and runs back to camp with the monster following him so the party can fight it. This character is the "puller". Of the six basic jobs, THF often gets this duty as he has some ability with bows and his compass rose shows the mobs near him as red dots. Only one character should pull, because otherwise you may have multiple mobs showing up at camp at once, and that's bad. One character gets the mob to attack him and maintains a strong defense so that the mob doesn't hit the squishier character. This is the "tank" and of the six basic jobs, that goes to Warrior (hence the Warrior's Provoke ability). DD is the damage dealer, they're there to kill the mob. On the melee side, that's Monk. On the magic side, that's Black Mage. The healer makes sure the tank doesn't die, or anybody else who gets hurt. That's the White Mage. And finally, there's support. That's Red Mage, who can do a variety of things indifferently well, but excels at enfeebling the mob. There are many more jobs--which you can't get until you level something to level 30--so you can expect to see more than these basic six when you go out to level. Some fulfill some of these roles better than the basic jobs can. If you're in Dunes with Warrior, and another member of your party is a Paladin--he tanks.

Don't forget that FFXI allows you to switch jobs at any time you're in your Mog House, so don't sweat a choice of job too much. If it's not working out, change.

The other things you're getting are *not* useless. Very little is useless in FFXI. To quote Penny Arcade, "Crisp Basilisk Urethra? Pick it up. Put it in your bag. There's somebody out there who wants that." Sell everything. Try to get a complete stack of stackable items before you sell them on the AH. Try *not* to buy from the AH, find out what you can buy from the NPC vendors, they are generally cheaper. Some things may be harder to move on the AH than others, and while selling to the NPC vendors is usually your last resort, it *is* a viable resort if you're running out of inventory space. It's better than just dropping it. Bees are a good source of money, Beehive Chips always sell well and Honey nearly as well. Walking Saplings aren't bad; Grain Seeds are quite valuable. Amethyst Quadavs drop a Quadav Backplate that skilled blacksmiths can desymth ingots of Darksteel out of, those pull in good money and sell fast, as do Goblin Masks off any of the Goblins, which alchemists can desynth into Glass Fibers. Oh, and talk to the NPCs and get your quests; there's lots of people in town who want to give you money or nice low-level equipment if you'll just do your quests. And you get fame, which will be important later on. And don't throw away your Beastmen's Seals, they're needed to enter special boss fights later on that can be a source of really valuable loot.

Originally posted by Wolfenpride

Ive never really gotten far in this game, i've decided to reactivate and give it another go, however I want to do things a little diffrent this time.

First off, any recommended servers for a new player? I heard odin was the most populated however when I got in game today their were absolutely no other low level players in the area, and im worried getting groups after 10 will be difficult.

Next, I need advice on a class, the last few times I played I always picked warrior, however im getting the feeling its not the best class to pick as a new player, since I don't fully understand party mechanics in this game yet. Would theif, or maybe red mage be a better pick?

Nationality, ive always played human characters in all my mmo's, and that wont change ffxi, however ive never started in any other town besides bastok because of the ring you gain if its your home city. Are one of the other 2 better places to start off as a new player? Or maybe have a larger new player crowd?

Gil, money has always been an issue for me in this game, I always have signet on and sell any stacks of crystals I gather, but it seems like im always short on cash, and the rest of my loot seems rather useless. Are their any other tricks to making cash?

Thanks in advance, if anyone can answer a few of these.

Stick with Odin.  You don't seen anyone of low levels because the areas to level are so large.  When you reach Valkurm Dunes, you'll see around 8-10 parties forming each day. 

Pick a class that you want to play.  Honestly, thief and red mage are the worst classes, in my opinion, to start as.  Several members in my LS have played them and have had tremendous problems trying to find a party from level 10-20.  I recommend Monk because they have the "cheapest" armor you'll ever get.  It costs about 150,000 gil total at level 25, but it'll last you a good 15 levels at least depending on how soon you want to replace it (but the Republican subligar will last no matter what).

Newb towns are generally dead in FFXI.  Bastok is honestly the most populated of them though, and even it is still a little dead.  The second option would be San d'Oria because there's also people there; however, it wouldn't be my first choice since I'm yet to find a MOB combat pattern there from level 1-10.

Gil is an issue for everyone.  The best suggestion I have for you is to look at crafts, mining, and gardening.  See what you can make, mine, and grow to sell.  In Bastok, ores sell quickly and range from 300 gil to 900 gil for Zinc, Iron, and Silver.

 What i would do is start with Monk , tanking and provoking can be practiced later when you got monk hp and vit added to warrior.

  Gil :

       Batwing in Bastok mines , off the market

        Beehive chips from the wasp outside

        Ore : do the quests earn enough for few picks , go into Bastok mines hit some of the nodes. You can turn them into ingots. (i dont remember the recipe).

        At higher lvls about 20 you farm sheep for sheep skins. Turn the sheep skins into sheep leather. In the same area are bees for bee hive chips.

          You should make a thief at some point for Steal , Gil finder to increase farming ability.

          Last thing you should do is farm seeds , keeping some for yourself.