little-patchy

Ahhhh! Sooooo pretty! Please, please, can I follow you on Pixiv or Tumblr or Deviantart or something?! I love these anime-style arts with those extra-clean lines :bouncy:. After all, it was the artists of Pixiv who inspired me to start drawing seriously.

@ExKage: Thanks for the info! Since my gear is way lower than level i80, I still sorta benefit from this arrangement. @Clover: Yeah, PvP seems like a intimidating beast, doesn't it? Maybe you and I can team up so we can die together :thumbsup:. Really, though, having someone to share the pressure should make things fun rather than completely nerve-racking.

So, as the title says, is anybody going to jump into Frontlines when 2.3 goes online? Naturally, I'm afraid of going to such a dangerous place alone (and with barely any PvP gear and no Relic at all). I also have no idea how it works...:dazed:

A work-in-progress depicting Roxas S. and Y'kana I.. Sorry for the long wait; I was super busy, but I'll do my best to finish it (and the perhaps ones for Is'thera and Barbarccia's new Lala) soon after I return (have to go somewhere this weekend)! I promise (give or take a month)! :angel: :angel: :angel:

Thanks!! But, your art is cuter!

Thanks, Xieveral! Now I want an emote where our characters whip out a camera and take an actual screenshot, haha :lol:

I...LOVE...YOUR...ART! :bouncy: Just, wow! Are you a freelancer, or do you work at a studio?

Hi!! I'm going to post my FFXIV-related drawings and stuff here. I think I'll make it seem like my character has a camera of some sort and snaps pictures of people she meets...I don't know, I'll see where this goes...:blush: Feel free to critique and give suggestions!

Thanks for showing interest If no one creates such a linkshell (or one hasn't already been created), I might try to start one when I come back from vacation in a week's time -- providing, of course, that there are enough people who think it's an okay idea.

I agree that focusing on the healer is strategy, like how in PvE we want mobs to focus on the tank so no one else in the group takes damage. However, in PvE the group makes a collective effort to keep the tank from dying; the healers heal and buff the tank, the Black Mages perform crowd control to minimize the number of mobs beating on the tank, the Bards silence the mobs' big attacks, the Dragoons stun and slow mobs, etc.. In PvP, the healer (and in many cases, the Black Mage, as well) is the de facto "tank," but, unlike the tank in PvP, gets left alone to defend himself/herself while everyone rushes to down the opposing healer. Yes, the healer is usually the best target. But I believe, from my experience with ffxiv's PvP thus far (with pre-mades and PuG's), that taking steps to protect the healer (and whomever else being targeted) increases the success rate of matches and allows for more complex strategy.

"Winning Not Necessary," or "Losing is Fun"...or "The Great Losers' Brigade" I don't know...I don't even know if such a linkshell already exists. But, what if we had a PvP linkshell where participating in a PvP match is all about building camaraderie, where all participants don't give a flying toss* about win/lose ratio, where one can just take a break from the more static PvE and jump into the unstable land of PvP -- knowing that your buddies are perfectly fine with getting knocked out in ten seconds? * "a flying toss": quote by the great and lovely Stephen Fry, who narrates your Harry Potter audiobooks. UPDATE (2014-01-09): My Spring college/work schedule just became really complicated; I won't be able to play on a consistent basis. I also don't have any experience maintaining linkshells. If someone creates such a linkshell, let me know; I'd like to join yours! :thumbsup:

I do feel that grouping up with people you know is necessary. Otherwise, the Duty Finder group defaults to "kill opposing team's healer before your healer dies," which is as strategic as...well...it's not strategic at all, I think (._.). It's even less strategic than tank-and-spank for PvE, 'cause at least in tank-and-spank the group contributes to keeping the tank alive (healing, crowd-controlling enemies); whereas in default PvP the healer usually runs a solo marathon, healing himself/herself and praying that the other healer gets K.O.'ed. From my experience, a group that stays together -- with every member keeping tabs on each other and crowd-controlling any attempts to zerg one member -- can play a much more successful and fun game for all involved. In fact, I think I'll create a thread proposing that someone make a linkshell solely focused on "fun, friendly PvP," where "winning" has absolutely no place...because PvP can be so fun.

I do love it when I get to party with a BLM who takes care of me by sleeping those who attack me. That way I can keep the Adloquium shield on myself and the BLM to protect both of us from interrupts. I also appreciate the tanks and dps who stun my attackers (I agree with Tlamila: hang around the tank so they can see you). PvP seems to really require party members to protect each other -- maybe even more than offense. Oh, and to counter sleep, Purify (the PvP ability) is like warm vanilla cake fresh from the oven with whipped cream and strawberries -- can't do without it. :lol: Edit: And dueling only in housing areas? Sorta makes me think of those usable-only-in-inns emotes.

What do you think about the PvP? Any tips and tricks? As for me, I find that the Scholar's Adloquium shield is one of the more useful ways to prevent the barrage of interrupts (getting pummeled by relics hurts!). I get knocked out in, like, half of my matches (/cry). Also, do you think they'll be adding dueling any time? Would be so useful for role-playing, like a character teaching another character martial arts, or the settlement of a personal vendetta, or a mud fight with Tias/Nunhs clad in speedos!

I get the feeling that playing a brooding character requires a lot of narration, perhaps through custom emotes, since brooding is all about being -- you know -- subtle? Though, there are great writers out there who are masters of dialogue who can convey such a personality through what a character says.

I'd love to join such a linkshell as well. And using Haukke Manor as a "haunted mansion" setting for RP sounds great!

Thanks for the quick replies! I always worry about these kinds of things in games.

I ran across quests where I was given several choices to answer a question, such as one with a "wild rose" password and another, in the "Coming to Ul'dah/Limsa/Gridania," where we mention our purpose for becoming an adventurer. I wonder if our answer affects our progression in any way? And if the answer doesn't matter, should Square-Enix make some of them do so?

I think of my main character (Ame) as someone similar to Marisa Kirisame, in that she is ambitious and clever -- especially in magic -- but not talented with anything. Though, Ame is not as selfish and crass as Marisa. But that was my initial impression of Ame; like with most of you, as time went by I found my characters growing into their own selves.

"Ah!" That was what Ame heard from Kumo'ya before seeing him jump from the brush toward the Miqo'te, who from the impact with her chocobo seemed poised to fall into the stream. Ame saw the branches fly from his hair, saw his arms reach out, saw him trip on a rock and fall -- face first -- into the clear water.

I'm also low-level at the moment, and a worrywart, too. But it's never too early to be prepared :thumbsup:! Asking questions is always a good thing, especially if your community is so welcoming.

Thanks for the info, S'janna!

Do attribute points carry over from the arcanist to the scholar? I'm wondering how to spec my arcanist class with the aim of branching into the scholar profession.

Kumo'ya was surprised by the sudden increase in people in the area; what appeared as a Hyur and chocobo duo swelled to a party with the addition of two Miqo'te. "Maybe it's a meeting," he pondered. "No," responded Ame, her green eyes studying the scene in an offhand, carefree way. "They're introducing each other. I think the Hyur said his name is Andre--" and she glanced over to Kumo'ya, raising her eyebrows "--and the Miqo'te he's talking to is Keru." "Keru is attractive, too." Ame scowled and gave Kumo'ya another shove. She then pointed to the ground beside him. "By the way, lil bro, we can't 'hide' with your tail sticking out from the bush and wagging with every bad joke."

"We need to get a chocobo..." murmured Ame Azalea as she stared at the bird. "If only we weren't so poor." "Not my fault, though," said her brother Kumo'ya. His brown hair was tussled from crawling through the bushes, and branches and leaves stuck to his scalp. "Are we still hiding from them?" "Are we hiding? I thought we were just 'observing.'" Ame kept her eyes on the chocobo and the hyur beside it even while rearranging the branches in Kumo'ya's hair to make an organic crown. Kumo'ya let out a light chuckle -- the characteristic suppressed burst of humor that Ame heard so often; as if an idea formed in his head that, on its way to exit his face, was quickly gated and filtered by years and years of practice. "Are you interested in the chocobo, or that hyur?" he asked. Ame rolled her eyes and gave him a shove. "You assume too much," she replied. "Mister 'I-somehow-accidentally-ended-up-in-a-brothel-because-I-thought-it-was-a-restaurant.'" "But I didn't know that it was-- But nothing happened--," Kumo'ya stuttered.