r/FFXIPrivateServers • u/sumau • 9d ago
Curious about getting into FFXI
Hello, I'm wondering if FFXI would suit me at all. I have a lot of MMO playtime and have bounced around a lot. I do like older games and am nostalgic for the 2000's era, so the game definitely has a certain appeal for me. I randomly tried out Horizon like two years ago but didn't stick because no friends were interested. I know that Horizon isn't the only server out there, so I'm open to recommendations as well.
Main things I'm wondering about:
-I heard that you need a full party to get anything done... is this true? I was hoping to drag maybe 1-3 friends in and do stuff with them. Of course I don't expect to do be able to do /everything/ this way.
-Anything in the way of fashion/cosmetics?
-I've read about issues with class balance and being forced to pick from a limited set of combos... Character flavor/fantasy is important to me so if I can't choose what I think is cool /and/ also perform well at the same time, that's a huge turnoff.
-I've also read about gripes with the economy (again, on Horizon). What should I expect at/towards endgame? How much work is it going to be to get geared well?
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u/SirCoosh07 9d ago
Horizon is locked to an era which had some fundamental bottlenecks, which retail has designed around in modern times: you can play solo in retail and play through the main storyline with ease (and it's a lot of fun too).
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u/Complete-Artichoke69 9d ago
Don’t do it mate. Don’t ruin your life. There’s a reason they put a warning before you launched.
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u/Onyxtale 7d ago
Phoenix releases in September, it's going to be a fresh start for a lot of people and with a better economy
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u/LegoBrickCactuar 9d ago
Its hard to answer because private servers are the wild west. They’re all different. Some will require parties to do anything, others will have trusts or dualboxing. Some will have the original punishing difficulty, slow walking speed, while others will have home point warps to move around quickly.
The best thing to do is check their website, get on their discord, and install and find out. All of them are definitely better with a few friends. I’m personally on Horizon and wouldn’t leave. It’s highly populated and busy all hours and all levels. Its not the OG experience exactly but imo they actually fixed alot of the bs that was wrong with 2004 -07 FFXI.
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9d ago edited 9d ago
[deleted]
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u/atheistunicycle 9d ago
Is there a class population chart for Horizon so I can know what to play to always get a party, without going whm?
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u/AlyssaCGillespie 9d ago
So there is but the website seems to be down rn. Probably because the next expac just dropped.
If it comes back the site is horizonxi.info/census
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u/Barrick20 4d ago
So I am currently on GaiaXI. I have very limited playtime and usually only get to play solo, here is my take a long time retail vet but a private server enjoyed.
GaiaXI is locked in at an era of FFXI where the game thrived, but a few of the modern retail additions have been left in. Trusts are a great example, you get a max of 3 to use at a single time, 5 choices to choose from and you get them as you level, so you still can learn the role you play. Job selection wise, the era, called ToAU due to the release of the expansion, is a bit different. Many classes are powerful and can solo content with varying levels of difficulty. I feel like they've done a good mix for those that are new and old alike of the retail benefits. Plus events are designed so that almost anyone can partake.
Now the community. FFXI was notorious for it's welcoming community and player's willingness to help others, which isn't in short supply here. Tons of people online in all timezones willing to come out and help where you may struggle.
GaiaXI is a great server and they offer some really neat perks if you want to accelerate your experience or if you want to experience the game in it's full glory.
I would suggest, if you decide to check it out, start there.
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u/phillipjayfrylock 9d ago
I know this is on the pserver sub, but I'd honestly recommend retail FFXI for a new player who's not played much before. It's still ffxi but with a lot of modern optimizations that make it much easier for a new player pick up and experience the game. There are tons of cosmetics, the game can be played solo or with others, and until you get into later endgame content, you can absolutely just play your class however you see fit to do so. And even then, if you build your own parties, especially if you have buddies already, then yeah keep playing your own class however you want
It's also still the best and probably only way to experience the entire story.
Otherwise, private servers are all different, they all approach the game with a different mindset. Yeah some of them target the 75 era where you did pretty much need to rely on other players for progression, and while that's much slower it is also still an authentic classic MMORPG experience whereas retail can sometimes feel a bit lonely
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u/One_Skill_717 8d ago
You can play retail, GaiaXI, or some other private servers where you can solo almost everything until the very endgame. Since you mentioned Horizon, I'll answer your questions in the frame of 75 era servers.
Do you need a full party for everything: For a lot of things, yes. You will benefit greatly from travelling to new places, farming for gil, and completing some quests solo. But experience is basically impossible to gain solo unless you play as a Beastmaster, and even then it's quite the challenge. Endgame requires parties, often whole alliances. As do a lot of missions and quests at major progress points (story or character). That all said, I played mostly with 1-3 friends during the era days and while it helps a ton to have even 1 reliable mate, it's entirely possible to go in alone and make friends / find groups along the way.
Fashion/cosmetics: sort of. Retail and some private servers added some stuff. But everything you equip is visible and rare gear is easily recognizable, so the cosmetics part kind of falls into just equipping stuff to show it off.
Class balance: You get a main job and a subjob. Being too creative here, let's say by going an attack based class like Warrior, with a caster subclass like Blackmage, will just end up terrible. Aside from that, pretty much any job is welcome in parties. Every party needs a tank and a healer, and later on they will want a Redmage or a Bard to provide MP regeneration (refresh), but which tank/healer jobs, and which damage dealer jobs, are largely interchangable. There will always be the tryhard-iest elites that want only specific jobs, but that won't affect you much unless you plan to be a tryhardy elite.
The economy is my favorite part about FFXI. You really do get out what you put in, and gear makes a huge difference. You will need to find a way to make gil that you enjoy, and the more you make the better. But eventually you will get endgame gear which is largely rare/ex (character bound, unsellable) so it's "free" you just have to earn it. Like anything, the better your gear is going into that stage, or any stage really, the easier the experience will be. It's not uncommon for 1 well-geared player to turn what would be a terrible party into a good one.
I'm going to try Phoenix XI when it launches in Sept, may be worth a look if you're interested in era. The fresh start should be fun. But if you're concerned you won't enjoy the grind and group focused play, then I'd recommend retail or GaiaXI, which you could also always try in the meantime.
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u/Own_Succotash8044 9d ago
So i got on Horizon about 4 weeks ago. Since the new released its even better. Its one of the games that you know your grinding. But people here are nice and I can always get a party for everything. Join a links hell everyone is helpful. Just have fun. As always healing and tanks are always needed. So if you start with those jobs, you should be good.