Disclaimer:
Long read, mostly opinion based, tl;dr at bottom.
Intro:
About 2 months ago I asked here if Eureka was actually that grindy, because I really wanted to get the Demi-Ozma mount. I finally finished Baldesion Arsenal yesterday and got it!
Here's how the experience was for me and some general thoughts about Eureka.
I actually quite enjoyed Eureka. Enough even to probably stay there for some while longer, even though I got the mount. I really didn't plan to stay any longer than I needed when I set the mount as my goal. But I also understand now that it's not enjoyable content for everybody.
It's really hard to know for sure until you gave it a honest try yourself. Some core mechanics are very different to the base game.
The Good:
# The people / cooperation inside an Eureka instance
I have never experienced so much support for total strangers anywhere else! Not even in FFXIV outside Eureka, and people in the FFXIV-community are generall really helpful anyway. But in Eureka there are people constantly stopping their own progress, walk over really long distances (no flying in Eureka) just to help someone that died or can't finish something or whatever. Not only that, but there are some more complex mechanics inside Eureka. If you ask for help in the form of knowledge (e.g. via /shout) inside an Eureka instance, you almost alyway get a detailed explanation from someone.
# It's hard - at least if you try it solo (don't)
Yes, for me personally that's a plus. I like hard content. Not that I'm particularly good at it, but I enjoy it. And the usual open world content in this game is ... easy. Really easy. In Eureka you always have an area on the map that is filled with Mobs 5 level above your level. And if you are not really well geared they'll probably murder you.
Also the actual usage of the different aggro-types makes you think how and where you move. They exist outside Eureka, but are mostly irrelevant. It get's a lot easier (and funnier) if you find a group. You really should - Eureka is NOT meant to be played as solo content.
# It's rewarding
Well, that might be a bit opinion heavy. Most of the Stuff you can get in Eureka is pretty cheap nowadays on the Market-Board. I'm still after the Eureka armor, as it wasn't really a priority. It's not just nice-looking for glamour purposes, but also pretty strong inside Eureka (I've heard), if you are going to stay there for longer. There are some mounts, housing stuff etc, but as I said, most of it is pretty cheap on the MB nowadays (ymmv). Also you can make quite a bit of Gil by doing bunny fates.
# Baldesion Arsenal
Is probably the most fun I had in the last 1-2 months in FFXIV. High personal responsibilty, (kinda) perma-death, traps, etc. On Light DC there are several communities that organize BA runs. And you NEED to join a newbie run for the first few attempts. If you fuck anything up, it's probably not just you dead, but several other people as well - or even the whole run. Which is what those newbie runs are for. You get great boss explanations, and on point callouts to every mechanic. Again, this was my experience (ymmv).
The Bad:
# The instance system
Just to be clear here - I don't have a problem with eureka being instanced. I just really dislike how it was done. You can't join a friends instance. You can't go out of an instance to, for example, empty out your Poetics. (Yes, some of us are still doing Anima quests on their alt jobs =P) For Baldesion-Arsenal it's even worse. You sometimes have to spend 20-30 minutes just to get everyone that is in your run to be in the same instance. Having a Disconnect? Well you better hurry to get back in or you are not in that instance anymore. They could have done it in a way that you see instances of your friends / fc members when you queue to enter and give you the option to join their instance if your group is < the open spots in that instance. Problem solved. (Maybe it's not that simple - but the current system is really clunky and needs to be worked around a lot).
# The emptyness
Well, this isn't really a huge problem. At usual prime times, there are almost every day at least a few people on all 4 maps. If you are working shifts or are able to play in the morning for any other reason, you might find yourself alone in an instance which sometimes limits you a bit with what you can do. You're probably just better off doing something else. Not a big deal though.
# The repetition
This is the >grindy< part I was so concerned about. And yes, it is grindy. There are basically 3 sources of exp in Eureka: Challenge Log, NM-Fates, and reflect farming. None of these options are is particularly exciting.
- Challenge log: limited exp per week and just kill x mobs of each element
- NM-Fates: kill X of a mob to spawn it's "Boss" - basically spawnable FATEs - also kinda easy boss fights (Bozja is way harder)
- Reflect: only really works on 2 specific level ranges - let mobs kill themselves via reflect logos action while running around them - naked (yeah, weird!)
Conclusion:
For me personally the bad parts are not that important in comparison to the fun time I had in Eureka. As long as you find a group that actually stays together for a while and maybe chats a bit in party chat, the boring aspects are moving to the background.
Thanks:
Lastly I want to thank everyone on Eurekan Academy and Citadel of Light Discord! Both communities have outstanding resources and very VERY good raid leaders that do newbie runs for BA regularly. Without either of these communities I'd probably never even attempt Baldesion Arsenal. If you are on Light DC I highly recommend you check them out! They are awesome!
Cheers Gosu
tl;dr: I lied, no tl;dr here!
submitted by /u/GosuSan
[link] [comments]
Continue reading...
Long read, mostly opinion based, tl;dr at bottom.
Intro:
About 2 months ago I asked here if Eureka was actually that grindy, because I really wanted to get the Demi-Ozma mount. I finally finished Baldesion Arsenal yesterday and got it!
Here's how the experience was for me and some general thoughts about Eureka.
I actually quite enjoyed Eureka. Enough even to probably stay there for some while longer, even though I got the mount. I really didn't plan to stay any longer than I needed when I set the mount as my goal. But I also understand now that it's not enjoyable content for everybody.
It's really hard to know for sure until you gave it a honest try yourself. Some core mechanics are very different to the base game.
The Good:
# The people / cooperation inside an Eureka instance
I have never experienced so much support for total strangers anywhere else! Not even in FFXIV outside Eureka, and people in the FFXIV-community are generall really helpful anyway. But in Eureka there are people constantly stopping their own progress, walk over really long distances (no flying in Eureka) just to help someone that died or can't finish something or whatever. Not only that, but there are some more complex mechanics inside Eureka. If you ask for help in the form of knowledge (e.g. via /shout) inside an Eureka instance, you almost alyway get a detailed explanation from someone.
# It's hard - at least if you try it solo (don't)
Yes, for me personally that's a plus. I like hard content. Not that I'm particularly good at it, but I enjoy it. And the usual open world content in this game is ... easy. Really easy. In Eureka you always have an area on the map that is filled with Mobs 5 level above your level. And if you are not really well geared they'll probably murder you.
Also the actual usage of the different aggro-types makes you think how and where you move. They exist outside Eureka, but are mostly irrelevant. It get's a lot easier (and funnier) if you find a group. You really should - Eureka is NOT meant to be played as solo content.
# It's rewarding
Well, that might be a bit opinion heavy. Most of the Stuff you can get in Eureka is pretty cheap nowadays on the Market-Board. I'm still after the Eureka armor, as it wasn't really a priority. It's not just nice-looking for glamour purposes, but also pretty strong inside Eureka (I've heard), if you are going to stay there for longer. There are some mounts, housing stuff etc, but as I said, most of it is pretty cheap on the MB nowadays (ymmv). Also you can make quite a bit of Gil by doing bunny fates.
# Baldesion Arsenal
Is probably the most fun I had in the last 1-2 months in FFXIV. High personal responsibilty, (kinda) perma-death, traps, etc. On Light DC there are several communities that organize BA runs. And you NEED to join a newbie run for the first few attempts. If you fuck anything up, it's probably not just you dead, but several other people as well - or even the whole run. Which is what those newbie runs are for. You get great boss explanations, and on point callouts to every mechanic. Again, this was my experience (ymmv).
The Bad:
# The instance system
Just to be clear here - I don't have a problem with eureka being instanced. I just really dislike how it was done. You can't join a friends instance. You can't go out of an instance to, for example, empty out your Poetics. (Yes, some of us are still doing Anima quests on their alt jobs =P) For Baldesion-Arsenal it's even worse. You sometimes have to spend 20-30 minutes just to get everyone that is in your run to be in the same instance. Having a Disconnect? Well you better hurry to get back in or you are not in that instance anymore. They could have done it in a way that you see instances of your friends / fc members when you queue to enter and give you the option to join their instance if your group is < the open spots in that instance. Problem solved. (Maybe it's not that simple - but the current system is really clunky and needs to be worked around a lot).
# The emptyness
Well, this isn't really a huge problem. At usual prime times, there are almost every day at least a few people on all 4 maps. If you are working shifts or are able to play in the morning for any other reason, you might find yourself alone in an instance which sometimes limits you a bit with what you can do. You're probably just better off doing something else. Not a big deal though.
# The repetition
This is the >grindy< part I was so concerned about. And yes, it is grindy. There are basically 3 sources of exp in Eureka: Challenge Log, NM-Fates, and reflect farming. None of these options are is particularly exciting.
- Challenge log: limited exp per week and just kill x mobs of each element
- NM-Fates: kill X of a mob to spawn it's "Boss" - basically spawnable FATEs - also kinda easy boss fights (Bozja is way harder)
- Reflect: only really works on 2 specific level ranges - let mobs kill themselves via reflect logos action while running around them - naked (yeah, weird!)
Conclusion:
For me personally the bad parts are not that important in comparison to the fun time I had in Eureka. As long as you find a group that actually stays together for a while and maybe chats a bit in party chat, the boring aspects are moving to the background.
Thanks:
Lastly I want to thank everyone on Eurekan Academy and Citadel of Light Discord! Both communities have outstanding resources and very VERY good raid leaders that do newbie runs for BA regularly. Without either of these communities I'd probably never even attempt Baldesion Arsenal. If you are on Light DC I highly recommend you check them out! They are awesome!
Cheers Gosu
tl;dr: I lied, no tl;dr here!
submitted by /u/GosuSan
[link] [comments]
Continue reading...