Wings of the Goddess : Missions and Quests

Nerves run high as the embattled Allied Forces march on the enemy’s heartland, Valdeaunia, to execute a daring operation to strike down the Shadow Lord. Charged to stand at the helm of this desperate campaign is the celebrated San d’Orian hero, Sir Ragelise B Baloumat of the Knights of the Ironcrest Hawk…

I’m smelling the incoming of the tale behind the Hydra Corps from this. Maybe we will further upgrade dynamis armor?

Dauntless soldiers who would dare follow Castle Zvahl’s perilous passageways to their end will find themselves standing before the Throne Room. There, they will learn the true identity of the imposing dark figure whose entrance is heralded by a garrulous imp…

I’d bet it’s Prishe. Totally. >_> I have no honest idea though since I haven’t really done WoTG missions. Everyone who promised they’d help pretty much left me behind.

The repercussions of Atomos’ mindless devouring of memories and time have extended even to the present. The ominous comet has again appeared, this time above the skies of San d’Oria and far closer now than ever before. What could this possibly portend for the future of Vana’diel…?

It means we get to save the world again, and yet forever remain nameless! Yay. :D

What will become of the heroes and heroines of the Allied Forces? All will be revealed upon the release of the March version update!

The Wings of the Goddess mission storyline draws ever nearer to its epic finale, with but one more set of episodes to follow those of the March version update.

So for everyone who has been whining about no WoTG content, there you go. SE apparently listens. /omggasp

– A long-awaited decoration unlocked

- New Campaign Ops

- A new battleground: Castle Zvahl

- …and all-new rewards!

I’m not much of one for Campaign unless it’s to get buffer, or just playing around with a few friends. Considering how Xarcabard was when it was first released, though, Castle Zvahl is probably going to make people need to change their pants.

Among the new rewards will be formidable weapons that allow the wielder to employ devastating weapon skills formerly exclusive to certain Campaign NPCs.

Now THIS is going to be epic. Kuftal, anyone?

With the addition of Castle Zvahl to the Campaign battlefront, adventurers who fight bravely for the Allied cause will be rewarded with a chance to square off against the Shadow Lord himself! Needless to say, those who emerge victorious will be rewarded with spectacular spoils befitting their heroic deeds.

That had better be the most epic Great Sword ever, or else we can still say lolGSDRK.

Trial of the Magians

The quests will be divided into a number of categories, and progression in each will allow players to earn different rewards. The following quest branches and more are being considered:

- Weapon enhancement.
- Armor enhancement.

Trial of the Magians will be introduced to the game in multiple stages, with the initial set of weapon enhancement quests slated for addition in the March version update.

A Trial of the Magians weapon enhancement quest can be initiated by first trading a suitable weapon to a Magian Moogle NPC, at which point a list of corresponding quests will be displayed. Players may choose a quest based on difficulty level and the enhancement they would like added to their weapon, which will be granted upon the fulfillment of the quest objective.

A single weapon can undergo numerous upgrades. By trading an already-enhanced weapon to a Magian Moogle, players can undertake successive quests to have it further improved. Multiple quests can be undertaken simultaneously.

By repeating the quests, up to 80 different features can be added to a single weapon. With figures such as Damage and Delay added to the equation, there exist 500 possible attribute patterns for a single quest branch!

There are also plans to make it possible to enhance Relic and Mythic weapons through Trial of the Magians. While players can expect quest difficulty to far exceed similar quests released thus far, we are confident the rewards will make it more than worth the while!

Uhm… so yeah. Holy crap. This will be absolutely painstaking and remarkable, all at once. Thankfully we get to choose the enhancement so it won’t be the random crap we gained through augments and pixie weaponry. Unc is going crazy because he can upgrade his Apocalypse, while I’m sitting here muttering on about how I don’t even have a relic finished yet–despite having both base polearm and great katana. x_x

Up until now, most job adjustments have been implemented with ease of party-forming in mind. From this point onwards, we plan to shift the focus towards ease of participation in endgame content. The role of each job will also come under review.

Currently for instance, the role of debuffing enemies is the exclusive domain of only a few jobs, but we intend to examine ways to enable more professions to perform similar roles, empowering each with the capacity to handle a wider range of situations. Our goal is to achieve—without sacrificing the uniqueness of each job—greater ease of participation in endgame content and provide the opportunity for all participants to contribute equally.

Job Adjustments

The scope of our vision for job adjustments does not stop there, however. Maintaining battle balance remains one of our highest priorities. As such, we intend to conduct reviews on an ongoing basis and introduce new equipment and adjust weapon skills as necessary. It is anticipated that the level cap increase will impact the balance of certain elements more than others. We will keep a close watch on these areas and, if the situation demands, review and reconsider even the adjustments that have been announced. Our ultimate goal is to provide the most rewarding, balanced play environment possible to all adventurers.

Incoming every-SAM-ever quitting the game if they nerf Gekko.

[ Beastmaster ]

The following changes will be made to enhance the usability of the job ability “Call Beast”:

- New synergy recipes for the creation of consumable items required to perform the ability will be with a higher rate of yield for HQ items.

- Certain ingredients needed to synthesize/synergize the items will become more readily obtainable.

It sounds nice and all, but like the picture entails I’d imagine BSTs are going to Crab Battle.

Avatar: Alexander

Uses “Perfect Defense” to reduce damage sustained by party members and prevent status ailments.

- Damage reduction and resistance rate will vary with the summoner’s remaining MP.

Avatar: Odin

Uses “Zantetsuken” to vanquish all foes within the area of effect in one fell strike.

- When used against NMs, will instead deal damage.

This almost made me want to level Summoner, until I noticed the Astral Flow-onry part. Gotta admit though, Zantetsuken could be helpful for if you ever got a pretty bad link in a party situation.

[ Puppetmaster ]

With adjustments to attributes of the Harlequin and Valoredge X-900 frames and the performance of attachments, automatons will be made more durable against incapacitation. In addition, the hand-to-hand combat rating of puppetmasters will be raised from rank C to A, making them formidable combatants in their own right.

Damn! No more lolPUP? Now who is the general playerbase going to make fun of? :(

New Level Cap

History is about to be made with the increase of the level cap in the March version update and beyond! The increase will take place in stages until the new maximum, level 99, has been reached.

Up until now, character strength has been limited to level 75, and additions to the game such as monsters, strategic content, and equipment had been designed to correspond to this.

However, with the game having reached a certain level of maturity and the bulk of existing notorious monsters having already fallen prey to tenacious bands of adventurers, the development team has deemed that the time is now ripe for the bar to be raised.

Uhm… what? Level 99 cap? I’m going to go solo Limbus and Dynamis to upgrade AF+1 and relic weapons, then.

We are aware that players will inevitably feel concern over how in-game elements such as support jobs, experience camps, and merit points will be affected by this change. We would like to take a moment to explain the measures that are in the pipes to preserve game balance.

Support job abilities that are not expected to steal the limelight from main jobs as a result of the level cap increase will be allowed to come into play. Furthermore, there are plans to tweak certain job abilities, job traits, and magic spells on an ongoing basis in order to further accentuate the uniqueness of each job when used in a main role, as well as its versatility when playing a supporting role.

New camping grounds are scheduled to be added to cater to the anticipated rise in demand for experience parties. Furthermore, the redistribution of monsters in existing areas is also under consideration.

An increase in maximum upgrades is being considered for existing merit point skills and attributes. Preparations are also under way for the introduction of a new type of merit point for players who have reached the new level 99 summit.

I’m just going to TP/Astral Burn with MulletHaven. Considering even now I have 214 merit points that I need to get just for my 75s this whole thing feels a bit much.

Abyssea

Abyssea is a parallel world existing beside Vana’diel. A land fraught with perils, Abyssea is home to savage hordes of heretofore unseen creatures. Ferocious, towering NMs, new-look HNMs—even the garden varieties will confound would-be challengers with their unfamiliar and formidable powers. These and a whole host more await hapless adventurers with open arms and voracious maws.

So, from what I can tell in the left picture… we have NMs that can strike a flying airship from the ground, just because of how big they are. NMs larger than crags, cities, etc. I suppose this is why the level cap is 99–we all need to be godmode to challenge these things. Remember when Fenrir was hard, and then how creatures like Hydra and Cerberus towered over him later on? Cerberus is going to be a toy puppy at this rate.

In Abyssea, concerns such as the over-population of battle areas and the need for large time investments will be a thing of the past. The development team is hard at work creating a world where parties can engage in rewarding battles with powerful foes and collect prized equipment with the least of fuss. The expansive realm of Abyssea will comprise several new areas which will be introduced over the course of three add-ons.

Yay! More armor to get. :D The melee stuff looks a little funky, but I sort of like the mage gear. I’m not even going to begin to guess what the armor does though… despite being like HQ homam and nashira, perhaps.

The Future of FFXI

With new areas to be introduced across two version updates this summer and beyond, adventurers will be able to explore the Walk of Echoes, the enigmatic wasteland of memories and time that has thus piqued many a player’s curiosity in the Wings of the Goddess missions.

The Walk of Echoes will also hold the entrance to a new realm of high-end, expanded content. In anticipation of the level cap increase, the development team is hard at work preparing formidable new challenges for high-level players.

These areas will also feature prominently as a destination in the Wings of the Goddess missions, as the epic storyline that has delighted fans the world over hurtles toward its hair-raising, heart-stirring conclusion!

Battles and tales that are the stuff of legend—adventurers of all stripes are sure to find their thirst for exhilaration quenched in the Walk of Echoes!

I, like many of my comrades, have been looking forward to this area for quite some time. It’ll be nice to not spam sky and sea so often, but instead take a daily stroll down through a venerable Memory Lane.

Following on the heels of the fearsome foes introduced in the November 2009 version update, hordes of new notorious monsters will be joining the ranks in the coming version updates. Even the most combat-honed adventurers can expect to have their abilities tested to the limit, so begin steeling yourself for battle today!

I want to fight that dragon, to maintain my title as “Skoffinrider Kyo”. >=D

Adventurers who enjoy partaking in Vana’diel’s myriad seasonal celebrations will be pleased to hear that a host of new items are in the works for these events. These will include two new reward furnishings for the upcoming Feast of Swords in May, with various other surprises to follow in the months to come.

Yeah… despite not having inventory space, I absolutely must get both of these.

Furthermore, the new set of formalwear that will accompany this year’s Adventurer Appreciation Campaign will have players looking more dapper and divine than ever as they ring in our 8th Vana’versary in style.

It looks nice and all… maybe for group screenshots.

And what better way to celebrate than with a spectacular installment of the Mog Bonanza? This year’s prize list is shaping up to be better than ever—a veritable bounty of tantalizing loot that includes spoils from the treasure hoard of none other than the infamous Pandemonium Warden!

Still more attractive items, including relic/mythic equipment—first given away right here at VanaFest 2010’s Nomad Mog Bonanza—Dynamis currency, alexandrite and more are being considered for future bonanzas. We strive to continue our mission of offering players the most exciting prizes possible while preserving game balance.

I didn’t win the Nomad Mog Bonanza, and I likely won’t win this either. If I did, I’d likely have a hard time choosing the prizes, since gear will likely become outdated soon. :(

Synergy

Whereas the recipes added in past version updates have centered on traditional synthesis, from here on players can expect a shift of focus to synergy. The new batch of new recipes scheduled for March will include new warp items and more!

Future version updates will usher in an even greater variety of heretofore unseen items. Luxurious furnishings such as guild tables and extravagant musical devices, potent and powerful equipment, and much more await skilled synergists. An elemental staff-type weapon boasting multiple effects is among the unique new articles being considered.

Going hand in hand with synergy is the evolith system, and the coming version updates will see these remarkable stones appear in ever-new and extensive varieties. What’s more, evolith will become available via treasure caskets with the next version update, making it easier than ever for adventurers to enter the exciting world of customizable gear!

I don’t really do Synergy, but if there’s something in it for Dragoons I may end up starting it.

Job-Specific Emotes

Planned for further down the line is the addition of job-specific emotes. The finer points of how these new motions will be acquired are still under consideration, but players can expect a charming set of animations that will allow them to role-play their chosen profession with greater expressiveness than ever before!

More WARs spanking their butts for provoke macros, etc.

Overall, I’d say I’m looking forward to this. Like I said on twitter, I woke up to basically a completely different game. It’s amazing how much information they crammed into that… and once FanFest comes, we’ll get, “Oh, to beat AV just stop its Regen. Or level to 99 and solo it you little bish.”

-Kyo

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