The issues with FFXI that we don't often discuss

[Malacite]

Final Fantasy is based on heroes and their great deeds. Killing a fellow comrade does not seem like something Cloud or Squall would have done, unless that comrade had turned on them. Duels and PvP are not part of the game's lore, and would be very out of place if implemented.

Eh not really. Let's not forget that prior to the crystal war there 3 nations were all at war with each other for centuries (well, Bastok is the youngest of the 3 so maybe not that long for them) and there's still tensions between them in the present.

PvP isn't entirely out of place, which is why I like the concept of sparring in sporting events such as Ballista as opposed to straight up "I'm going to kill you because I hate you" theme in WoW (which as stated above, suits that game perfectly.)

It would be nice if we got some more PvP events that were fun and stick to game's theme. i.e., fighting each other to improve our skills, not to kill one another as in WoW. PvP and working together are not mutually exclusive.

[Feba]

Let's not forget that prior to the crystal war there 3 nations were all at war with each other for centuries (well, Bastok is the youngest of the 3 so maybe not that long for them) and there's still tensions

Let's not, then!

What, exactly, do you think would happen if someone from one nation attacked someone from another nation? It would likely ruin the peace betwen them, and possibly bring war again.

That would be a bad thing.

[KingOfZeal]

Also, something about us being "adventurers" strikes me as us not having any clear allegiance to a nation, as opposed to say, the Star Sybil or any of the other major players in the story. Being adventurers, I see us more as a "I'll help you guys out because I want to, not because I need to" attitude, and the story we go through is an extension of that. Even Ballista and Brenner are a little bit of an offshoot of that: tensions between nations were rising, and so to keep a competitive attitude between them without launching an all out war, each nation tries to recruit the best adventurers possible to compete with one another.

Although, I could certainly see a duel system put into place, it would be interesting to see how it could be played out in the storyline. Perhaps that, while as I said before we have no true allegiance to any nation, we don't necessarily have an allegiance to each other either, which certainly wouldn't be too far off from the way it would be played out by the community.

[Kittyneko]

Also, something about us being "adventurers" strikes me as us not having any clear allegiance to a nation, as opposed to say, the Star Sybil or any of the other major players in the story. Being adventurers, I see us more as a "I'll help you guys out because I want to, not because I need to" attitude, and the story we go through is an extension of that. Even Ballista and Brenner are a little bit of an offshoot of that: tensions between nations were rising, and so to keep a competitive attitude between them without launching an all out war, each nation tries to recruit the best adventurers possible to compete with one another.

Although, I could certainly see a duel system put into place, it would be interesting to see how it could be played out in the storyline. Perhaps that, while as I said before we have no true allegiance to any nation, we don't necessarily have an allegiance to each other either, which certainly wouldn't be too far off from the way it would be played out by the community.

Well, you might have noticed that Campaign did sort of strengthen the feeling of Allegiance to your nation again.

I do would like to see some sort of Dueling system though. But only in special area's so it doesn't annoy people too much. We all like to show off our skills to eachother sometimes don't we? We'd have to keep in mind though that FFXI isn't exactly PVP-friendly when it comes to ability's and such. That's why, if I want to play PVP, i'd rather do it on WoW than on FFXI (if it were available.)

[Brielle]

I do realize that the nations were at war, but they are not currently fighting amongst one another. The way the current storyline is setup, you would really need to alienate the three nations from one another to make any form of "player-versus-player" system integrate well. When watching the opening video for FFXI, I do not picture them all turning around and beating each other until the last man/woman is standing.

Of course I am bias when it comes to dueling, I was always a holy priest in WoW...everyone liked to chew me up and spit me out.

[Aksannyi]

I've never been into PvP either. Personally, I think that if people in FFXI want PvP so badly and they knew coming into the game that there really is none, they shouldn't bitch.

[Feba]

they shouldn't bitch.

That's a really, really bad attitude on the subject. By that matter, SE should never add anything to FFXI, and the players shouldn't complain about it.

Everyone wants to see their favorite games improve and be even better. This is why players think of new features and things that they think would be neat; this is why players complain about problems-- it's not that they aren't happy with it as it is as much as they want it to be even better.

[Aksannyi]

I'm just saying that this game wasn't designed around PvP and that it's never going to be centered around it the way some others are.

Of course I think people have the right to express what they dislike about the game, but making the game more PvP friendly (than it already is) would change it so dramatically that I, for one, would not want to play it anymore.

I like that PvP is its own minigame and that it's not a major part of the gameplay aspect. I would not be happy if I had to fight other players in order to advance in this game. Surely, some people would like that, and to them, I would say that this is not the game for them.

[Feba]

I would not be happy if I had to fight other players in order to advance in this game.

...Nobody has even hinted at that.

[Aksannyi]

Well if I'm not mistaken, Ballista was added later because people wanted some PvP aspect in the game, it was not originally intended, as far as I know.

So they came up with a PvP system that worked for the game, which, in a game that didn't intend to have the PvP aspect, is pretty significant, at least IMO.

I could be wrong and maybe it was intended all along, but regardless, I've always thought it was fine the way it is.

[Murphie]

They could add a PvP aspect that had nothing to do with the leveling process.

[dirtyclown]

They could add a PvP aspect that had nothing to do with the leveling process.

This.

I honestly don't think a dueling system would harm the game at all, especially if there was an option involved, hence the term Duel. Not "I'm going to kill you because I can lol, and there's nothing you can do!" Picture this: A message in yellow text pops up in the log telling you that player X challenges you to a duel. You open your menu and click the accept button, and then the fight starts. The flag for pvp could be similar to the sword used in campaigns, and if someone does not have theirs up then you can't even send them an invite to a duel.

So it's not like I'm suggesting pandemonium, I just want the opportunity to stab someone in the face when they're being a jackass. Or maybe duel a friend while waiting for a PT, mission group, etc. Also, as far as I am aware, whenever a character is reduced to 0 HP they're knocked unconscious and not actually a corpse.

Wall of text about H.E.L.M.

I couldn't agree more. In other MMOs I've played, my character is almost always a crafter of some sort that gathers materials H.E.L.M. style. If the system's done right, it's really fun but FFXI's gathering system is lame. Random points made me not want to bother in the first place, and the nerfs they made to the system later on made me decide to sell off my H.E.L.M. gear for good, as it's mostly just a waste of time now.

I'd like to see H.E.L.M. activities made more similar to fishing. If there's a pool of water, you can fish in it. I should be able to chop down every tree I see as well, not have to tab around for a logging point.

[Feba]

So it's not like I'm suggesting pandemonium,

we have a server for that too.

[dirtyclown]

we have a server for that too.

Alright you got me, I lol'd.

[MrMageo]

Just going to hit on a couple things here.

The alegiance nations hold are not really applicable to us as adventures, I am free to change my alegiance whenever I see fit in both conquest and campaign so essentally that shows how dedicated the players are to a nation. Hell I dont even need to further the story lines in these nations and be oblivious to all that is going on aound me if I wanted to.

I think SE could tie it into the story pretty easily. Especially now that we have the past, (apparently this is where balista came from but ive yet to see any playability in the past). Instead of solely focusing on Nation quests for the war they can tie in a quest that explains along the lines of.

Back in the times of war adventurers were sought out by the nations of the alliance because of their abilities. These adventures spent ages honing their abilities against one another in an ancient dueling ground. These adventures would duel until there was only one remaining and that one would be declared champion.

I don't know its kinda cheese dick story, but after finishig that quest you could go back in time and seek out the tournament grounds and register for battle (maybe even offer some type of item that will warp you to the grounds when your match is on.)

Id also like SE to delve further back in time to the age of wars, so if you go back that far you acctually have a tie to your nation. The campaign and conquest I could care less about, as long as the beastmen arent controlling anything I am happy. But if I was able to combat sandorians or windurstans Id love it.

Lets go pre crystal war so I can happily decapitate some Knights of Sandoria or Warlocks of Windurst.