My observations/thoughts about Grand Company RP (1500+ words warning)

[Seriphyn]

Hi all,

 

Feeling in a bit of a constructively critical mood at the moment. A lot of you may remember me as founder and leader of the Flame Yataghans from about October 2013 to March 2014. Upon its founding, YATAG was defined by being very NPC adherent, to the point that we would wear the uniforms in accordance with rank and class. Contrary to popular belief, this was not just the overcoats, but the field gear you see NPCs wear on the field. This was to add authenticity and validity to the roleplay, but not necessarily authority. The Immortal Flames are not law enforcement after all!

 

The following are my thoughts on how people have roleplayed Grand Company material as my FFXIV career has taken me beyond YATAG (esp. as the military has become a RL thing for me now), but suffice to say a lot of these observations applied during and before YATAG, too. It has to be stressed that these are my own opinions and there are not seeking to proscribe anything. After all, each Grand Company has an 'adventurer unit' that all PCs are assumed to be in by default (RP aside), those being the Immortal Flames Free Brigade, the Order of the Twin Adder Yellow Serpents, and the Maelstrom Foreign Levy.

 

The below targets those that I assume are not 'adventurer' volunteers but are trying to roleplay a full-time soldier.

 

 

Everybody is Second Lieutenant

 

 

This is a big one I see. The logic is benign; the game lets me go up to 2nd Lt, so I suppose I should RP 2nd Lt. Since the game has a linear progression in rank (rather than rank-and-file vs officer being two separate tracks), it feels like it has more authority than it actually does. If we assume these Grand Companies follow their design as a modern military that far (modern insofar 18th-19th century in terms of organization), a Chief Sergeant is going to have more experience and respect than a 2nd Lieutenant. Hell, unless the 2nd Lieutenant came up from the rank-and-file (and they don't have to be the highest sergeant rank to do this), they'll basically be a new recruit. But because the game promotes you through these ranks, it can easily make one think "I'm a big deal".

 

Why is this even an issue? No hierarchy, and hierarchy is central to any military! If we're all second lieutenants, who the hells in charge? Secondly, you could all technically be fresh recruits! Thirdly, no sense of progression simultaneous to an increase in experience! Why not actually -start- as a private IC (ignore your in-game rank) and RP up through the ranks, only doing so via IC achievements? Fourthly, no station with the rank. You're a junior officer. Who are you in charge of? Staff officer? Who are you assistant to? What do you actually do? Most of the 2nd Lt characters I've come across don't have answers to these questions, again, because of the benign logic of "it's what the game says I am". If you RP'd a private, on the other hand, all you have to do is say 'I stand watch at aetherytes'.

 

Fifthly, no bearing. This relates to the points down below, but few (not all) don't seem to RP the weight of the rank. You're an officer in a Grand Company; you are held to a higher standard than all the rank-and-file beneath you. In fact, the game uses the term 'commissioned'...that's going to be a commission from the Chief Admiral, the Sultana, or the Elder Seedseer respectively. You represent them. This is unique to officers over soldiers.

 

The list goes on, but in short, one doesn't HAVE to RP the rank the game tells you you're at, and it might be rewarding! See what happens when a character is disciplined or ordered around by a character of higher rank! The player doesn't like having their character ordered around? They probably shouldn't be roleplaying in a military organization in the first place...

 

 

Uniform? What uniform?

 

 

Square Enix are meticulous about designing their NPCs and making it very clear who this NPC is and what they are supposed to do. Every tier of Grand Company NPC in the field are dressed according to their rank; private, sergeant, lieutenant/captain, and commander. The private and sergeant NPC sets are available on the GC store. For Immortal Flames, look at the Northern Thanalan settlements for the full array of outfits and weaponry.

 

Outside of the overcoats, I have yet to see any professed GC RPer try this out, bar YATAG and one other solo RPer. Of course, if one roleplays an officer (which is statistically likely), you're SOL finding the officer field uniform. Nonetheless, I found it gratifying standing around next to an identical-looking sergeant NPC. Yeah, I was the real deal alright! Ha!

 

Why is this even an issue? Well, why do soldiers wear uniforms IRL? It shows you are part of this organization and the real deal. When I had Kale as a sergeant, I left all sorts of cool RP outfits rotting with a retainer because it's just not his uniform. He is a soldier. Individual expression is left to civilians. As a soldier you will dress the same to show you are not an individual, but part of a team, and equal to your comrades. Want a terrible example of an army's uniformity? TERA's Valkyon Federation; one Tribune is wearing bikiniplate, while another is dressed up for a ballroom dance. No; SE designed those NPCs with a specific vision in mind, and I feel I've outlined it here.

 

 

Weekend Warriors

 

 

An Eorzean Grand Company is an army, and being in the army is a career. Very few seem to roleplay their Grand Company association with the weight that it ought to carry; in fact, it seems to be a loose commitment (which again is fine if your character is part of an adventurer unit). The most egregious example I've seen of this 'weekend warrior' thing is during conflict RP where someone needs to assert authority over another. They will mention their rank in the local Grand Company (second lieutenant to nobody's surprise, ha!) and will claim entitlement and authority because of it.

 

And then you never hear of their GC involvement ever again. Keep in mind that's an egregious example I've seen a couple of times, but not often. When I was RPing Grand Company, I was in only two states...

 

On-duty: Uniform as appropriate (Flame Sergeant's Shirt/Sarouel/Crakows set, with Ul'dahn Hoplon/Winglet), stationed at one of the many Immortal Flames in the Thanalan region. The Flames were lucky in this regard, as out of all the Grand Companies, they have the most outposts. This meant I hardly ever roleplayed outside of Thanalan, but why would I? I'm trying to roleplay a full-time soldier of a Grand Company. He has no reason to be outside Thanalan! Limiting, yes, but that's the price for authenticity, if y'like. Just like being a military member IRL comes with a whole lot of restrictions with what you can do even off-duty.

 

Off-duty: Something unassuming; an average soldier isn't going to be wearing anything amazing. Quicksand, Coffer and Coffin, some other tavern-esque location in Thanalan. Again, hardly ever seen in the Shroud or La Noscea. Unless there was some server event, where Kale would spend a month's pay to go visit!

 

Why is this even an issue? Because how might my character even expect to believe you're a legitimate Grand Company soldier if my character never sees your character do anything related to the GC? Mine was 90% in uniform all the time standing around other NPCs, or spearheading missions and events that would pertain to Ul'dahn military business, and ignore official business RP that would not have anything to do with the Immortal Flames. Yes, that meant missing out on awesome plots in, say, Limsa Lominsa, because why would an average Flame be out there in the first place? That's the Maelstrom's job!

 

 

Special Commando

 

 

Perhaps the most obvious example of my personal taste in RP coming through is with this one. A justification for the above 'Weekend Warrior' is that one's character is part of some special unit within the Grand Company ([playful jab] this giving them an excuse to sit in the Quicksand all day [/playful jab]). I feel this is more an effort to remove one's character from the system of accountability that militaries have. "Have your cake and eat it too". I mean, sure, it's fine I suppose. Personally, I'd like to see more average soldiers in the RP mix, who would suffer IC consequences for getting involved in other players' RP plots. Of the Disciples of War characters that I have seen, Average Joe types are almost non-existent. Again, personal taste, but most of this really is to begin with!

 

Why is this even an issue? Mm, well, the Grand Company can't have that many special commandos, can it? Heh...

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

 

In the end, people are gonna roleplay whatever the hell they want, and that's cool, because no one's telling us we have to RP with anyone we don't want to. As such, the above is merely suggestions and thoughts from someone who really gives a shit about this stuff. Most of us have better things to do, and just want to let our hair down, pick a cool RP outfit, and play pretend! What's with all this unfun stuff, eh?!

 

Thanks for reading if you made it down here! Despite being the length of a freshman college essay, this is all effectively stream of consciousness. Apologies for poor grammar, syntax, and wording. I have time to talk about all this nonsense; no time to proofread it

[LiadansWhisper]

My character doesn't wear the Gridanian uniform most of the time because I consider the Grand Company to be something of a "reserve corps" for adventurers/those who have other occupations.  If/when she's called up, she'll wear the uniform, but otherwise she's busy with other things and would not wear the uniform because she's not on duty.

[Edda]

And this is why I keep Edda out of all this Grand Company hullabaloo, not like any organization with a grain of self-respect would allow such a useless person to join their ranks. Not only would I feel obligated to make her wear the uniform, but I feel like she'd just automatically be stuck in some nondescript "No Fun Allowed" club. By herself. I can't speak for everyone though, but I like to imagine people don't let themselves be confined by it because it simply feels too restricting in how far you can go in the world, and for how long. Ul'dah is literally "Big Dick Swingin' The City" The Movie: The Game so I doubt those players would have as much issue, but Twin Adders might not be so lucky (if they want to follow lore as strictly as possible, anyway).

 

Of course, if you have enough organization and enough people I think it could be really cool. Like the Sultansworn (though not GC related) seems to be a popular angle, and from what little I've seen of it it works out really well for them. I for one would love to see some Yellowjackets running around Limsa, but I'm afraid the color yellow doesn't inspire the same level of devotion in RPers as does blue, silver and gold.

 

Now, those are the reasons I don't commit to any type of GC RP. However, should YoshiP deign to release those outfits the OIC Administrators wear as hunt rewards, I'M THERE. I would gladly spend hours doing the most mindless, soul-draining activity ever conceived in an MMO for the chance to wear those sinfully sexy outfits. Seriously, have you looked at those things?

[Berrod Armstrong]

I portray minimal Grand Company involvement with Berrod simply due to the nature of his character-- though he does have a connection to the Maelstrom, of all things (he was caught committing a crime, and managed to bargain his freedom by means of offering occasional service to them for a time. That arc has long since been concluded, however).

 

If I DID play a Grand Company ground stomper I'd likely go for a private, since the grunt side of things is just so much more interesting to me. As it stands, Berrod remains a non enlisted thug. 

 

While I agree that people should roleplay what they want, I'd endorse the above guidelines -- one may find them more enriching to one's roleplay than one may think.

[TheLastCandle]

I do roleplay Yvelont's association with the Yellow Serpents, but I see his role as a foreigner and an "adventurer" very differently. My view is more along the lines of Liadan's: the adventurers that help make up the bulk of Yellow Serpents, Foreign Levy, et al are more akin to organized militia, with commissioned officers in charge of them, and perhaps a number of contracted specialists. Yvelont would be one of the latter.

 

He does hold the rank of Serpent Sergeant, but tends to act alone or with other adventurers he trusts, who may or may not be Serpents themselves - so frankly, the question of "who is in charge" has yet to come up. If it did, though, I don't think it would be an issue. Because frankly, though he would take charge of the situation as needed, I as a player would much rather play out the sharing of ideas and collaborating to execute them than bark out orders. Perhaps that's just Yve's "neutral/chaotic good" outlook bleeding through to the player.

 

Edit: Aaaaand I just saw your disclaimer about everything stated above not applying to the adventurer units. Knew I should've had more than one cup of coffee this morning. We are on the same page here!

[Flickering Ember]

I can see how this stuff would be problematic, especially when you are required to join a grand company to progress in the game. I happily avoid it though since my character is a free spirit and would never join something so rigid and strict as a military organization. Though, I also OOC-wise just don't like the grand companies. I don't find any of them interesting and view them as just a means to an end to get to certain content. If I ever get around to making alts, I won't be RPing them as being a part of grand companies either. 

 

I do like that there are folks around who are seriously into RPing them, though, such as your FC. I may not like them but another player's passion towards RPing them can help bring the world to life.

 

 

Honestly though, I haven't seen too many RPers roleplay their character as having anything but a minor association with their grand company.

[Aldotsk]

I don't disagree with Kale regarding to everyone claiming 2nd Lt because the game gives them the option to do so. But I think it's possible for sergeants or regular officers not officially Lt can wear bucket head and thick jacket? 

 

Honestly... they actually look more like a police officer outfit than a high ranked military officer outfit.

 

But I find that it'd be rather interesting to play as Sergeant and Private too. Privates can be pretty bad ass.

[FreelanceWizard]

I feel like I ought to echo the OP in noting that adventurers that are part of a GC are, by default, part of the "adventurers' brigade" of that GC, and the game seems to frame that as basically being a free agent and resource for the GC -- someone who can take on sensitive missions and might be drafted in the event of dire need. If you have a rank, it's largely ceremonial, since you're really outside of the normal command structure. Your superior officer in that group is more like a handler, a contact, and a case officer than your commander. Really, I view it as the same sort of situation as the heroes of Star Wars have with regards to the Rebel Alliance. Sure, Luke has a rank, but he's largely an operative who acts on his own, doing things that need doing. When the Rebels need his assistance, they can reach out to him, but they're not giving orders so much as making requests to someone who typically shares the same goals. On the other hand, it's not like Luke can really give orders and expect them to be followed solely due to his rank (he's a special case since he's also famous and well-regarded).

 

That said, I agree with the OP 100% that those who RP being regulars of a Grand Company should pay attention to how militaries actually work and make an effort to portray such a character correctly. I personally think this is especially important given the "out" SE has provided for everyone in the "adventurers' brigades;" since you're making an active choice to RP something different and more restrictive, you should, IMO, put in the effort to make it different and more restrictive so that it feels more real. Step up to the challenge of the concept!

[Berrod Armstrong]

 Step up to the challenge of the concept!

This. This, this, this, this! It applies to so much MORE than  just roleplaying within the Grand Companies!

[Sounsyy]

The list goes on, but in short, one doesn't HAVE to RP the rank the game tells you you're at, and it might be rewarding! See what happens when a character is disciplined or ordered around by a character of higher rank! The player doesn't like having their character ordered around? They probably shouldn't be roleplaying in a military organization in the first place...

 

I agree with pretty much all your points, especially this. I had really hoped that new and higher ranks would become available to us at 2.3, but sadly no. (If you right click on your rank insignia in Profile Menu, it'll actually show you all the available Foreign Brigade ranks available to the player. In-case someone in here didn't already know.) So my main character was a Storm Captain before she went MIA in the Calamity. The rank isn't yet available but I play it anyways. And Saehri, my other character, while the game forces her OOCly to join a GC, she has no IC military inclinations. Nor will she ever. I like playing it this way.

 

For me it's fun to balance the responsibilities of being a Storm Captain versus having none with my other character. I report to an NPC Commander, and wear a made-up version of what I think a Storm Captain would look like. (Storm Elite Bicorne, Lieutenant Coat, mix and match of Elite and Lieutenant mostly.) Sadly, there are no Storm Captains represented in game. Pirate Captains aplenty, but no Storm Captains...

 

I will say, what sucks most about playing as a Maelstrom is that outside of the Coat Uniform (which I've always viewed as a more formal uniform dress as opposed to what one would wear in combat/fieldwork) Maelstrom don't get much representation in the field. Almost all of the Barricuda we see out in La Noscea are all Yellowjackets. (aka 1st Squadron) If you belong to 3rd or 5th Squadron for example, you don't have any in-game representation of what your character should dress like for fieldwork.

[Pumpkinweed]

I read so many positive things and I agree with most of the varying ideas. Outstanding...!

 

[align=center]http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m6odkq8jNo1qbolbn.gif[/img][/align]

 

For me, it's been very difficult to find the proper FC due to Gus's focus on what he does. I always wondered whether Gus might crack somewhere down the line and enroll in the military but figured it would be too far out of his spectrum. Thus, furthering his aether knowledge seemed like a better idea.

 

The point is, if you're going to role-play something of the sort, you will find the greatest character development is when things are out of your hand. It is humbling to play someone at the lowest end of the stick so that when your character does reach that Second Lt. rank, it feels well earned.

 

I know a few characters who have made military decisions strictly for IC reasons and I absolutely respect their commitment to the ideal.

 

Perhaps here, in this particular forum, lies the strength to make a completely new FC dedicated to our ideology. Might be interesting to see it held to such standards by talented players. Just a thought!

 

[align=center]:thumbsup:[/align]

[Aduu Avagnar]

I thought I would take a moment to reply to this, given that I am a member of Yatag, and each and every one of those comments does or has applied to Nako in the past, for the duration of his association and membership with the group.

 

Everybody is Second Lieutenant:

I never played Nako as a 2nd Lt because it was the highest I could go, instead, going with Nako's backstory and the organisation he was a part of, it was initially an 'equivalent rank' that he was able to call upon to requisition support from the hall when it was needed. At that same mark, he had no direct authority over anyone, and if he was assigned to help out in any manner, he followed the Chain of Command of that group.

 

Uniform? What uniform?:

Nako was primarily an inteligence operative. Now, I don't know about you, but being behind enemy lines, wearing the uniform of the organisation you work for, sounds like a bad idea to me. And again, he was not a member of the Flames directly, so it would be disrespectful of him to wear their uniform. However, after joining the unit, he wore the uniform when he was on duty, and it was required of him.

 

Weekend Warriors:

I would like to think that this is the one part of it that doesn't apply to Nako. My RP has kept me pretty firmly within Thanalan, beyond the occasional forray into the other areas, but they were always a rarity. And the majority of my RP has been related, in some way back to his membership/relationship with the flames, dependant on which part of his arc we are refering to.

 

Special Commando:

Perhaps probably the most pointed thing here, Nako being a member of a special organisation, but at the same time, there was no shirking of accountability, if he did something, and got involved in something with consequences, then damn I'll take it. I personally feel that if there is no risk of consequence then there is little point in doing it beyond a filler activity. and your point regarding the number of special commandos, i guess the thing to take into account is that the PC's are in fact the minority within the game.

[Coatleque]

I also agree with the very well stated OP. There is not much more I could add.

 

Coatleque is not affiliated with any Grand Company. As a Sultansworn she will cooperate with the Flames as required by politics, and even in that situation she would be considered a private - following rank rather than pulling it.

[Zyrusticae]

So I have to ask, since this has kind of been glossed over in this thread:

 

Just what does the rank actually mean in regards to the adventurer units? If it doesn't really have any correlation with your level of authority (and why would it? It's not like you're ever actually out in the field doling out orders in a fire team), what does it actually mean for someone in the Foreign Levy/Free Brigade/Yellow Serpents to be a Second Lieutenant?

 

Is it just prestige? Incentivization to go out and do things? Are the weapons I have (Serpent Elite, from the Hunts, but pretty obviously intended for a higher GC rank) things that I could actually have IC?

 

I need to knoooow!

[Kage]

Personally I think the higher ranks just mean that the adventurer in the respective adventurer enlistment campaigns are just for the adventurer to essentially gain the same perks etc as those of that rank.

 

I mean, the adventurer is not going to be able to help lead attack a Garlean stronghold as a Private.

[FreelanceWizard]

Just what does the rank actually mean in regards to the adventurer units?

 

Going just by the quests provided based on rank, it seems you're trusted with increasingly dangerous and politically sensitive missions as your rank increases. You're also granted access to materiel in return for services rendered (via company seals) and trusted to take on certain tasks (expert deliveries, for instance). Other than that, it seems largely ceremonial to me, at least.

[Sounsyy]

I imagine the ranks listed under Petty Officer & Soldier (Private 3rd Class > Chief Sergeant) mean next to nothing as far as the Adventurer Unit is concerned. However, once you reach the rank of Second Lieutenant you begin the Commissioned Officer category of ranks.

 

Commissioned Officers most notably, lead. In the 1.0 GC Storyline, once you achieved the rank of 2nd Lieutenant, you actually LEAD an assault on Castrum Novum in Mor Dhona, and you had several adventurers and other enlisted under your command.

 

If you look at some of the upcoming ranks in the Commissioned Officer list, you'll see First and Second Commander. This means that eventually we're going to be passing the NPC that gives us GC quests at our respective HQs. High Commanders control more than one Unit in their respective GCs. So does this mean that we'll be in control of the Foreign Levy or the Free Brigade eventually?

 

I have a strong feeling that the reason they haven't raised the GC ranks more is that once we reach Captain/Commander, we're going to be thrust into a GC specific storyline that will cause us to rise through the ranks similarly to the very involved GC storyline in 1.0. Why do I think this? Because near the top under Champion is the title "Grand Marshal." Each GC currently has one Grand Marshal that is a named NPC that appears in quests. So I have a feeling poor Eynzahr Slafyrsyn of the Maelstrom is going to die... =/

[Lady Rivienne]

I never officially gave Rivienne a title among the ranks, to put it frankly, she does report to her Commander and also The God's Quiver as well. She is an operative (Bond?) who does not wear a uniform (since she isn't to let her cover be blown) and receives special instructions about her orders from higher command, though I play it that it is the Npc's that do that.

 

She is an Adder, of course, by affiliation. But, she isn't one to give orders to anyone that is a PC. I never encountered an issue with this in game however.

[Kage]

I imagine the ranks listed under Petty Officer & Soldier (Private 3rd Class > Chief Sergeant) mean next to nothing as far as the Adventurer Unit is concerned. However, once you reach the rank of Second Lieutenant you begin the Commissioned Officer category of ranks.

 

Commissioned Officers most notably, lead. In the 1.0 GC Storyline, once you achieved the rank of 2nd Lieutenant, you actually LEAD an assault on Castrum Novum in Mor Dhona, and you had several adventurers and other enlisted under your command.

Isn't it the same for when the adventurer leads the attacks CM and Praetorium? Granted ranking in GC wasn't required but I assume that the storyline in 2.0 is more moving you along that you'll work with the "new" "company" that isn't meant to be a GC but kinda is.

 

Then again we're all still affiliated with choosing GCs but then again... well... it could be a reason to be in the new one.

[Melkire]

I agree with some of the constructive criticism in the original post. Folks shouldn't roleplay as 2nd Lt. just because the in-game mechanic says that's what they are (I play Osric as a Chief Sergeant, and use the Search Info box to denote that). The "weekend warrior" approach undermines any attempt to roleplay as a soldier, and "special commando" status should not be an excuse to sit around in taverns all day.

 

That said, as someone who roleplayed as a stand-alone Immortal Flames regular (read: NOT an adventurer) for quite a few months (read: no fellow IF folks to consistently RP with, no GC-oriented FC of IF regulars, etc.) there are quite a few points that I take issue with.

 

When I started out, I decided that I wanted to roleplay as a Ul'dahn soldier who'd inadvertently found himself drawn into the political struggle between the Royalist and Monetarist factions of the Syndicate.

 

The very first issue I ran into while leveling was gear. This was back before the glamour vanity system was in place, so I couldn't run around dressed as an IF soldier while progressing through the story (this is still an issue for new characters). So I told myself that I'd wait until I could dedicate the proper time to roleplaying instead of leveling, and that I'd save up seals for an outfit while I did so.

 

The second issue I ran into was this: without other people to play off of, roleplaying a regular gets tedious fast. You're essentially on your own, writing for yourself; you just happen to be throwing that writing out there into a public space for others to witness and maybe, just maybe, interact with. At the same time, you don't really want to go out of your way to contrive chance meetings with fellow regulars outside of your off-duty hours (that doesn't really feel dynamic, and as a soldier you have a schedule to abide by, so finding yourself out of your usual way is a rare occasion).

 

The third issue I ran into was "what exactly should my character be doing with most of his time?" I wasn't going to go the "standing around a Thanalan outpost" route; that would cut meaningful interactions down to almost nothing because for some reason roleplaying outside of a city, tavern, or residential area is anathema to most roleplayers. That same phenomenon is why, when I finally decided to go the Full Metal Jacket route of "I'm training recruits, duh", I opted to do so within Ul'dah as opposed to, say, Drybone. No one roleplays on a regular basis at Camp Drybone, despite it being an excellent location for such. So Osric ended up as a Chief Flame Sergeant who'd crossed the Monetarists, so they stuck him in a time-consuming post at home to keep an eye on him.

 

Last but not least, the issue of uniform. While the Flames are by far the most visible of the three Grand Companies when it comes to soldiers out in the field, there arises of the issue of just what constitutes the uniform. Case in point: Sidimund's outpost at the Forgotten Springs. They give every indication of being regulars (as opposed to irregulars), and yet their "uniform" differs.

 

 

When I saw they were standing around wearing unattainable brown Sipahi-esque turbans and shirts, I more or less threw my hands up into the air and cried, "open season".

 

So I took a Flame Private's Jerkin (which I have YET to notice a NPC wearing), and Flame Private's Jackboots, threw on a Sipahi Turban (trying to break that public perception of "fly-mask means Brass Blade"), and opted for goatskin armguards and a fuma hakama for aesthetic purposes to bring the ensemble together. Was it strictly uniform? No. Did I have reasonable/feasible/plausible IC justifications for it? Yes ("what do you mean, our suppliers ran out of materials because they're all going to spring skirts for the ball?"). Did it make my character a "special snowflake" to walk around not in a Sergeant's shirt (despite that he looks awful in it and a pot helm)? Depends on your perspective, especially considering that the outfit was, more or less, a Flames outfit.  

 

I imagine Osric used to get a lot of flak from his direct superiors for not being "in uniform".

 

He's an irregular now (moreso than most, helloooooo black ops). His duties more often than not require him to not be in uniform. As a final note, I skipped over the Ul'dahn Soldier set and went straight for the Officer one. Is it an officer's set ICly? No, I'm taking the same approach with ranks and applying it to gear: the Soldier set looks awful due to darker tones, whereas the Officer's pops more.

 

 

 

tl;dr:

 

1. Playing a standalone GC soldier is difficult due to lack of command structure owing to the nature of RP.

 

2. Playing a GC soldier in a GC-oriented free company is difficult because most FCs are irregular organizations by default. Those that come close to being "regular" are still, by the nature of free companies, somewhat independent of the overall hierarchy.

 

3. Folks who are not level 50 are going to have a hard time dressing up in the appropriate gear. This is understandable and something that has to be tolerated.

 

4. Folks who are 50 might dress up in GC gear that isn't, strictly speaking, "uniform." This should be looked at on a case-by-case basis.

[TheLastCandle]

I imagine the ranks listed under Petty Officer & Soldier (Private 3rd Class > Chief Sergeant) mean next to nothing as far as the Adventurer Unit is concerned. However, once you reach the rank of Second Lieutenant you begin the Commissioned Officer category of ranks.

 

Commissioned Officers most notably, lead. In the 1.0 GC Storyline, once you achieved the rank of 2nd Lieutenant, you actually LEAD an assault on Castrum Novum in Mor Dhona, and you had several adventurers and other enlisted under your command.

 

If you look at some of the upcoming ranks in the Commissioned Officer list, you'll see First and Second Commander. This means that eventually we're going to be passing the NPC that gives us GC quests at our respective HQs. High Commanders control more than one Unit in their respective GCs. So does this mean that we'll be in control of the Foreign Levy or the Free Brigade eventually?

 

I have a strong feeling that the reason they haven't raised the GC ranks more is that once we reach Captain/Commander, we're going to be thrust into a GC specific storyline that will cause us to rise through the ranks similarly to the very involved GC storyline in 1.0. Why do I think this? Because near the top under Champion is the title "Grand Marshal." Each GC currently has one Grand Marshal that is a named NPC that appears in quests. So I have a feeling poor Eynzahr Slafyrsyn of the Maelstrom is going to die... =/

 

Don't you dare. Don't you dare. He's going to retire happily and marry Admiral Merlwyb. Don't show SE's writers this post!

 

Pulling myself back to the topic at hand, I agree with you on where the GC story is likely heading. The story presented in the game is very much a typical JRPG "Chosen One" tale, so it's only natural. As for how he/she gets there: well, I'm looking forward to witnessing the journey. So long as what you suspect does not come to pass. ;_;

[Aya]

At the same time, you don't really want to go out of your way to contrive chance meetings with fellow regulars outside of your off-duty hours (that doesn't really feel dynamic, and as a soldier you have a schedule to abide by, so finding yourself out of your usual way is a rare occasion).

 

that would cut meaningful interactions down to almost nothing because for some reason roleplaying outside of a city, tavern, or residential area is anathema to most roleplayers.

These two go together, I think

 

There aren't that many places that attain critical mass so that you can just walk in and find RP - these areas are limited, not coincidentally, to "cities, taverns, and residential areas" in particular.  Finding RP outside of these areas usually requires planning of some sort, i.e. contrived instead of dynamic.  Not to say that there are not wonderful possibilities in these other settings, its just a little different!

 

I think discussion of the in-game ranks versus in-character ranks should be pretty obvious.. I mean "everyone" is a 2nd Lt. for the exact same reason that "everyone" is level 50.  MMO game mechanics do not translate well into a world defined by varied ability and varied experience.

 

I'm just going to add that I think its quite neat that FF provides and builds up these organizations for players to interact with or play off of.  They add an interesting element to the game world, and I really have appreciated those that I've interacted with in-character (mostly Flames, by dint of Aya's present occupation ).

[TheLastCandle]

Just what does the rank actually mean in regards to the adventurer units?

 

Going just by the quests provided based on rank, it seems you're trusted with increasingly dangerous and politically sensitive missions as your rank increases. You're also granted access to materiel in return for services rendered (via company seals) and trusted to take on certain tasks (expert deliveries, for instance). Other than that, it seems largely ceremonial to me, at least.

 

I very much agree. I personally see the adventurer ranks as a way of recognizing outstanding service, with benefits.

[C'kayah Polaali]

I think discussion of the in-game ranks versus in-character ranks should be pretty obvious.. I mean "everyone" is a 2nd Lt. for the exact same reason that "everyone" is level 50.  MMO game mechanics do not translate well into a world defined by varied ability and varied experience.

This is something you see a lot of in games where rank is an integral part of the leveling experience. In Star Trek Online, for example, all max rank Federation characters carry the title Admiral. It's of course ludicrous that everyone is an Admiral, so most people play their IC ranks as far lower than that (mostly Commanders and Captains, as most players want to retain ship command ICly).

 

FF is a little bit of a special case, in that everyone has a GC rank they've obtained as part of leveling their character, but it's not a really integral part of the experience. I think that's part of why it's not so widely acknowledged that IC GC rank should be different than OOC GC rank.

[Kage]

If I remember correctly, there is nothing in the MAIN story quest line that requires you to be higher than the beginning GC rank.

 

Sure if you want to PVP, chocobo, relic... but they're not the MAIN story quest...