FFXIV: Alexander Attempt
We’re continuing to make progress in upgrading gear by running Expert Roulette, and Tai finally hit ilvl 173 this weekend. Since I’m not keen on dungeon running, I’m doing my best to balance Roulette with down-time in the game to mitigate risks of burnout. I know if I push it too hard and too fast that I’ll just get tired and need a break from the game, which is not something I want to do (I have too many goals I want to achieve). But I have no other option to earn Law Tomes but to run Roulettes, so I’ve cut daily Trial and Leveling in exchange for one daily Expert.
This works more or less for me since I don’t have to run Expert solo. We’re usually running it with other FC members, which is a much more relaxed atmosphere for me to learn and practice. We usually roll up Fractal, which I’ve become more and more comfortable with, though the final boss is always frantic, it seems. The game loves to torture me by sticking red circles under my feet just after I start a Limit Break! I’ve died more often to that than anything else the past few weeks. >:(
Hey There, Alexander!
So, Syn got it into her head that we could try Alexander Normal yesterday. I was more keen on waiting until reset and for certain FC folks to return from vacation, buuuut she wanted to try it, so I gave it a shot. This is the first time I’ve attempted any sort of 8 man raid in FFXIV as I was too chicken to do any Coil. However, I keep hearing that it’s pretty easy, just a bit above Crystal Tower difficulty, so that encouraged me to give it a shot.
After watching a video on the mechanics of A1 – I was surprised that this wasn’t really a dungeon. It was, actually, a mini-boss followed by a boss fight. Is this how Coil usually worked?
Despite that, we still spent a good deal of time attempting to beat the Oppressor when we got there. Sunday night is really not the best time to PUG something like this, I think. The folks who are most serious about getting their Alex drops probably already have earlier in the week, for one. I just remember the same held true for Crystal Tower when we used to run that.
Needless to say, we didn’t beat it. After three tries, and getting very close the final time, we came to the conclusion that the DPS just wasn’t there on either version of the boss. I was worried that being just above the cap would drag the raid down, but from what I understand, our side of the fight was ahead of the other side (not significantly, but ahead). I think I can still do with some more stat boosting, however, as many of my lower ilvl items on Tai are major armor pieces.
Even though we didn’t beat it, it was still a good learning experience. Next time we try it, I’ll have a better idea what to do, and will hopefully approach it with another upgrade. Maybe.
Hello, Chocobo!
I was excited when I discovered I got the refer-a-friend draught chocobo this weekend on Zuri. Though I’ve referred plenty of folks to the game, this is the first time anyone has requested a referral code before subscribing. I didn’t expect them to subscribe to the point that I’d get the chocobo, however! It’s a mount I’ve wanted, but didn’t think I’d get — I love that you can ride a friend on the back!
Even more exciting, when I logged into my Cactuar character, I discovered she had one, too. Tai didn’t get one in the mail, so I figured it might have been just for the first character on your account or something. So, I went and did some investigation to learn that my FFXIV mog mail was full, and couldn’t get any new letters. Oops!
After getting scolded by the mog mailman, I cleared things out, relogged, and sure enough, Tai got a chocobo, too! Woo!
Other Progress
I’m still working through Heavensward on Zuri, who is now a level 55 Bard. I’m still not feeling a whole lot better about the Bard playstyle, but if I don’t choose something and progress, then it’s not going to happen anytime soon. XD
I’ve also continued leveling Warrior on Tai, which I continue to enjoy. We’ll see if I ever get the courage to do anything but level it! I really do hope so, because there’s been a number of times tanks are in need in our groups.