Final Fantasy 14 Beginner's Guide - How to Play & Tips

Welcome, future champions of Eorzea, chosen by the Crystal of Light to protect the realm and fight the darkness harkening over the world. This is the FFXIV beginner guide dedicated to new players who are getting ready to enter the game and embark on what might as well end up being the best adventure in their gaming career.

Final Fantasy 14 is an MMORPG entry into the legendary series of classic Japanese role-playing games. It is difficult to imagine something more famous than the Final Fantasy series. FFXIV has had a tough destiny; its initial release has been nothing less than a huge disaster. So much so that the game was on the brink of being discontinued and closed. The game was rescued by Naoki Yoshida, aka Yoshi-P, its director and producer, who, at the time, made a difficult executive decision to remake the game from the ground up. The relaunched game turned into a massive success that many consider a true miracle in the video games industry. What we have today is one of the most enjoyable MMORPG games in the world, and it puts its players at the center of everything.

This FF14 starting guide was written to help new players ease their first interaction with the game. FF14 is actually pretty different from most other MMORPG games. It does a lot of the same things as other games, but the way those elements are represented can be confusing. So, in this guide, we’ll go over the game’s basics, the world, gameplay, combat, questing, jobs, and much more!

Before we start, we’d like to quickly mention an excellent service for FF14 provided by SkyCoach. You can buy Main Job Power Leveling and enjoy a fully leveled character, and its main job with a bunch of extra unlocks such as teleports, hunts, Golden Saucer, etc. Basically, you get a bundle of things that will prepare your character to enjoy the abundance of endgame content. This service is performed by professional gamers who will save you the time you would waste on leveling for a very reasonable price!

 

 

The World and Races of Final Fantasy 14

Before we tell you how to get better at FFXIV, it’s really important to introduce you to the game’s world and its quirky set of races. The world of Eorzea is so vast that it includes an absurd number of locations set in all kinds of biomes and features incredible architecture. Depending on your chosen race and class, you’ll start in one of 3 major cities:

• Limsa Lominsa: This place is all about the sea life, with fishing, sailing, and trading ruling the roost. The Maelstrom's Admiral calls the shots here, part of the big three groups running the show.
• Ul'dah: It's the hustle and bustle of trade center, where merchants, crafters, and adventurers come together to make their mark. The Sultanate and the Syndicate, a bunch of big-money merchants, are in charge.
• Gridania: If you're into nature vibes, this is your spot. People here worship the Elementals and live in harmony with the forest. The Seedseers, who are like the spiritual gurus, lead the show.

And hey, when you're picking your character, you've got eight classes to choose from:

1. Hyur: These humans are all about versatility and ambition.
2. Elezen: They're elegant and proud, with a deep connection to nature.
3. Miqo'te: Think cat-like agility and a knack for tracking down prey.
4. Lalafell: Despite being small, they're cheerful and savvy in business.
5. Roegadyn: Big, burly sailors who can handle anything the sea throws at them.
6. Au Ra: They've got a mysterious vibe, with dragon-like features and ties to Othard.
7. Hrothgar: Lion-like warriors hailing from far-off lands, known for their strength and honor.
8. Viera: Rabbit-like folk with a deep connection to the forest, sharp senses, and a knack for hunting.

Here’s one of the FFXIV tips for you - the race doesn't really change how your character performs, so go with whatever feels right. Once you've got your character set up and picked your class, you're ready to dive into the action!

Core Gameplay Mechanics

Now we move on to actually answering the question of how to play FFXIV. Final Fantasy 14 is a classic MMORPG with a tab-targeted combat system and something that’s called a universal cooldown.

• Tab-targeting is when, instead of attacking whatever you aim at, you select your target and lock on to it by either clicking on it or using TAB (if you’re on PC). Once a target is locked, you can use your spells or skills or whatever. This classic system is more slow-paced and more tactical than your modern slasher-style non-target combat systems. BLOG20
• A Global Cooldown (GCD) system means that after using an ability or spell, there's a shared cooldown timer that affects most player actions, creating a brief delay before another ability or spell can be activated. After using an ability or spell, there is a brief period known as the Global Cooldown (usually around 2.5 seconds) before another ability or spell can be activated. The Global Cooldown applies universally to all player actions, regardless of their type or class/job. Mastering the GCD is the answer to how to get good at FFXIV question.

The game has a massive open world spread into smaller locations. You have your huge multi-leveled cities and rural areas interconnected. You are free to move between any zones and locations using teleports, mounts, and public transport. One of the FFXIV tips from pros for better traveling is to definitely unlock some free mounts by doing dungeons and special quests. It should be said that not all locations will be open to visiting at the start of the game, but as soon as you progress through the story a little bit, you’ll have an entire map of Eorzea available for exploration.

In your adventures, you’ll be mostly completing quests with occasional detours to dungeons, side quests, and side activities.

Activities and Content

Moving on to another set of FFXIV basics, there are many types of quests in the game, but you only need to know a few essential ones:

• MSQ - the main story quests will lead you through the plot arcs and pivotal events in the game’s world. It is very much a personal adventure, much like classic Final Fantasy games.
• Side Quests - your MSQ quest NPCs will be surrounded by a bunch of NPC who will offer side-quest that are there primarily for the world-building and unlocking some minor features.
• Job Quests - your chose job has its own story arc, where each quest marks and important step in the job progression path, unlocking new abilities and gear.
  Hunting Log - a side activity where you need to hunt down specific monsters and defeat a required number of them
• FATEs - dynamic events popping up in different places around the world. You can participate in them by going to the area where the FATE takes place, and you will be provided with a set of objectives.
• Beast Tribe Quests - each land in the game has beast tribe that has a questline that you can do. They grand reputation rewards and unique rewards.
• Deep Dungeons - these are procedurally generated dungeons with multiple levels within. They provide a challenge with scaling difficulty.
• Gold Saucer - a location with a huge amount of side activities and festive mini-games that have their own reward track.
• Eureka - a special area where players can engage in relic weapon questlines, undertake notorious monster hunts, and participate in large-scale public events.

This isn’t even the most FFXIV complete guide list ever, but it definitely covers the basics. We’ve intentionally left out dungeons and raids because they deserve to be talked about separately:

1. Dungeons - self-contained adventures for a party of several players, each playing a specific role in a group. Completing dungeons rewards players with experience points, gear upgrades, and valuable loot, contributing to character progression and enhancing the overall gameplay experience.
2. Raids - challenging group activities featuring epic storylines and complex boss encounters. Players must coordinate with their teammates to overcome formidable foes and earn valuable rewards, including powerful gear and unique cosmetics.

Both dungeons and raids are arguably the most exciting content one can do. It’s the kind of content that brings players together, making them work towards the common goal while surprising players with the setting and memorable boss encounters.

 

FFXIV Jobs Explained

The class system in the game is truly impressive. Knowing how to start FFXIV involves knowing the class system. Therefore, it’s time to introduce you to the Armoury System.

In the Armoury System, you level up your class until you can further specialize in a few jobs available to that class. There are two types of classes called:

Disciples of War - honed their skills using various melee and ranged weapons, undertaking physical and mental training, and turning themselves into instruments of war.  
Disciples of War Classes are:

• Gladiator
• Pugilist
• Marauder
• Lancer
• Archer
• Rogue

Disciples of Magic - use sorcery in combat either to deal damage or protect themselves and their allies.
Disciples of Magic classes are:

• Conjurer
• Thaumaturge
• Arcanist

Jobs are obtained by mastering classes and undertaking a new form of training (via Job quests). The appeal of jobs lies in access to the most powerful abilities available in any role. Even though you can have multiple classes and jobs on the same character, one of the best FFXIV tips for beginners you can get is - stick to one job and max it out.

In a group setting, however, you have your typical roles. Each job fulfills a certain role, so when selecting which job to unlock and even what class to pick during character creation, it is absolutely imperative to think about what kind of role you wish to take when you are running dungeons and raids with friends or randoms. Are you asking yourself how to start playing FFXIV as a beginner? Then, think about the role you want to fulfill in group activities.

Tanks

Tanks are stalwart defenders who protect their party members by drawing enemy aggression and mitigating damage. They are characterized by their high health pools, heavy armor, and defensive abilities. Tanks excel at keeping enemies focused on them, allowing their teammates to perform their roles without being targeted by foes. In group content, tanks lead the charge into battle, establish aggro on enemies, and position them strategically to minimize damage to the party. One of the tank-related FFXIV tips would be to know when to aggro and when not to. They are responsible for mitigating incoming damage through defensive cooldowns and abilities while also managing the flow of combat and executing mechanics to ensure the safety of the group. BLOG20

Healer

Healers are the ultimate support in their groups. Their main goal is to heal or revive party members while staying out of harm’s way. This could be a very stressful role, and you must closely monitor the game’s UI, tracking everyone’s HP levels while at the same time dodging the boss's AoE attacks and whatnot. Besides that, healers also buff allies or debuff enemies, depending what a job can do.

DPS (Damage Dealer)

DPS, also known as damage dealers, play a crucial role in battles by dealing damage to enemies and boosting the group's overall damage output. They come in various types, including melee, physical ranged, and magical ranged DPS, each with unique combat styles and tactics. Melee DPS excels in close-range combat, using combos and mobility for maximum damage, while physically ranged DPS provides sustained damage from afar. Magical ranged DPS relies on spells for burst damage but may have limitations due to casting times. To succeed, DPS must master rotations, execute mechanics, and coordinate with their team for victory.

FFXIV Gearing

Moving on with our FFXIV gaming guide, let’s shift our attention to gearing. In Final Fantasy XIV, gear plays a crucial role in your character's power and progression. It comes in various qualities, classifications, and item levels, each affecting your effectiveness in combat and your ability to access certain content.

Quality-wise, gear ranges from normal to high quality (HQ). Higher quality gear offers better stats and can last you through several levels before normal gear catches up. However, both types retain the same item level, which is important for accessing dungeons with minimum item-level requirements.

Even though this probably won’t be the most useful part of this FFXIV beginners guide 2024, here goes. Classification, on the other hand, determines the item level of gear. Here's a breakdown of gear classifications from worst to best:

1. White: Basic gear with no special attributes or bonuses.
2. White HQ (High Quality): Improved version of white gear with slightly better stats.
3. Pink: Gear with random stats upon acquisition, which may or may not be beneficial.
4. Green: Gear with enhanced stats compared to white gear.
5. Green HQ (High Quality): Enhanced version of green gear with even better stats.
6. Blue: Gear with superior stats and bonuses, often obtained from challenging content.
7. Augmented Blue: Upgraded version of blue gear, offering additional bonuses or customization options.
8. Purple: Relic gear has unique abilities and customization options. It was initially weak but can be strengthened through progression.

There are a few FFXIV tips for new players regarding item rarity. While better-quality and higher-classification gear offer superior stats, be mindful of your overall item level. Even if you've optimized your gear for maximum stats, having an item level that is too low may restrict you from entering certain dungeons. In such cases, you may need to prioritize gear with a higher item level over better stats to meet dungeon requirements and continue progressing.

So far, we’ve avoided this topic in this FFXIV new player guide. However, gear sets or loadouts are super important. You can use them to optimize your stats for different roles and types of content. Good players always have a few sets prepared for different tasks, like raiding, solo content, and professions.

FFXIV Character Progression

Character Progression in the game is about your character gaining new abilities and improving the existing ones. You’ll also be getting access to better gear and new activities. Here’s how it works:

Gaining Experience Points (EXP) and Leveling Up

• Characters earn experience points by completing quests, exploring dungeons, participating in Full Active Time Events (FATEs), and defeating monsters in the world.
• Accumulating enough EXP allows characters to "level up," enhancing their statistics performance and learning new abilities.

Questing

• Quests, including the main scenario questline, offer specific tasks from non-player characters, rewarding items and EXP upon completion.
• The main scenario quests advance the game's overarching plot, while daily quests and Levequests provide additional opportunities for EXP and rewards.

To truly unlock the potential of your class, it's crucial to engage in job-specific quests. These quests not only grant you access to new abilities but also pave the way for advanced job classes. For instance, as a Marauder, completing these quests not only enhances your skills but also leads you to unlock the esteemed Warrior class.

As you progress through these quests, you'll find yourself facing various challenges, from battling monstrous creatures to unraveling the mysteries of ancient artifacts. Each triumph adds to your character's growth, reflected in your increased prowess and access to powerful equipment.

Dungeons and Duty Roulette

• Dungeons require players to form parties and cooperate to progress through challenges and defeat enemies.
• The Duty Roulette system randomly assigns players to accessible dungeons, rewarding bonus EXP upon completion. BLOG20

Character progression isn't just about individual quests; it's also about the broader narrative woven throughout the game. Your choices, alliances, and actions shape the world around you, influencing the course of events and determining your role in the grand scheme of things.

Full Active Time Events (FATEs)

• FATEs are location-specific events where players can join together to complete shared tasks, such as battling monsters, defending locations, or escorting NPCs.
• Participating in FATEs provides EXP and rewards for all participants, regardless of party affiliation.

Enemy Encounters

• Defeating enemies in the world grants EXP, with additional rewards available from the Hunting Log for targeting specific creatures.

Endgame Progression

At the maximum level, character progression shifts towards acquiring stronger equipment to increase the character's "item level." Players can obtain powerful gear from endgame dungeons, crafting, raids, primal battles, and elite mark hunts.

Player versus Player (PvP) Combat

Final Fantasy XIV offers various forms of PvP combat, including arena battles in Crystalline Conflict and large-scale battlegrounds in Frontlines.

Rival Wings introduces battle arena modes where players manipulate minions and pilot mechs to destroy enemy objectives. By engaging in these activities, you can reach the max level 90 and continue taking part in the most challenging endgame activities.

FFXIV Tips & Tricks

Let’s culminate our epic guide with some useful FFXIV tips and tricks that cover different aspects of the game.

We’ll start with character progression, as it is a vital part of your gameplay experience:

1. Focus on completing the main scenario quests (MSQ) to unlock new areas, features, and access to expansions.
2. Participate in job quests to unlock new abilities and traits unique to your chosen class.
3. Engage in daily roulettes to gain bonus experience points and rewards while queuing for dungeons or trials.
4. Join a Free Company for social interaction, assistance, and access to company buffs.
5. Utilize the Hall of the Novice for tutorials on class mechanics, role-specific gameplay, and earning useful gear.

Now, let’s turn our attention to combat tips. It’s going to take you some time to get used to the global cooldowns and master your job’s rotations. Here’s our list of some additional tips for combat encounters:

• Learn to recognize and react to boss mechanics during encounters, as they often require specific actions to avoid damage or status effects.
• Experiment with different job rotations and ability combinations to optimize your damage output and effectiveness in battles.
• Customize your user interface to display important information such as enemy health bars, party member statuses, and ability cooldowns.
• Take advantage of role actions to enhance your role in parties, whether it's providing support, mitigating damage, or increasing your own survivability.
• Practice your skills in the Hall of the Intermediate to refine your understanding of advanced combat mechanics and improve your performance in challenging content.

Even though we haven’t talked about crafting and gathering professions from Disciples of the Hand and Disciples of the Land, as we want you to discover this element of the game, here are some tips that you will find useful:

1. Level up your crafting and gathering classes to unlock abilities, recipes, and access to valuable resources for crafting and selling.
2. Participate in crafting and gathering collectibles for Scrips to exchange for exclusive items, gear, and materials.
3. Use the market board to buy and sell crafted items, materials, and gear for profit or to obtain necessary supplies for your crafting endeavors.
4. Invest in gear upgrades, materia melds, and food buffs to improve your crafting and gathering success rates and efficiency.

These tips will be enough to get you going in the game. As you play more, you’ll start learning some of the things on your own, becoming more experienced as a FF14 player. If there’s one thing that every gamer knows is that the community of this game is extremely welcoming to newcomers. They’re always willing to help and the game itself encourages veteran players help newbies though the Hall of the Novice, Duty Support and other in-game systems.

Conclusion

To sum things up, Final Fantasy XIV is a unique online game that has united gamers and fantasy fans across the world. Even though the game offers more or the less the same experiences as other games in the game genre, it does so in such a unique way that makes you remember every step of the journey.

In our guide, we attempted to cover most of the basics this game will throw at you. Looking back at the content of this guide, you could say that it is still pretty complex. So, here’s one final piece of advice for you - take your time, and enjoy the game as if you were playing a stand-alone game. Follow the MSQ, taking in the sights. If you have the time, do some side quests. Sooner or later, you’ll be ready to pick your Job and start on the Job quests. Somewhere at the same point, you’ll start getting access to your first dungeons, where you can team up with other newcomers and try your luck at group content. Slowly but surely, you’ll get used to your class character progression and get more and more invested in the story. And once that happens, you can consider yourself a full-blown member of the FFXIV community!

F.A.Q.

Is Final Fantasy 14 easy for beginners?

Final Fantasy 14 can be challenging for beginners due to its complex mechanics and expansive world. However, the game provides tutorials, starting quests, and a supportive community to help newcomers acclimate.

How do beginners get better at FFXIV?

Beginners can improve in Final Fantasy 14 by familiarizing themselves with their chosen class/job, completing tutorials and job quests, joining a Free Company for guidance, and seeking advice from experienced players or online resources.

Is FFXIV hard for new players?

While Final Fantasy 14 can be daunting for new players due to its depth and complexity, the game offers ample resources, tutorials, and a welcoming community to help beginners navigate its intricacies and grow accustomed to its gameplay mechanics.

What is the best way to start FF14?

The best way to start Final Fantasy 14 is by creating a character, following the main scenario quests (MSQ) to progress through the game's story, and exploring different classes/jobs to find one that suits your playstyle. Engaging with tutorials, joining a Free Company, and seeking advice from veteran players can also enhance the initial experience.

Is FFXIV beginner friendly?

Yes, Final Fantasy 14 is considered beginner-friendly due to its comprehensive tutorials, intuitive user interface, and supportive community. New players can ease into the game's mechanics and content at their own pace, with ample guidance available along the way.

Is FFXIV hard to play?

While Final Fantasy 14 offers depth and challenge, it is not inherently difficult to play. The game provides tutorials, tooltips, and on-screen prompts to assist players in understanding its mechanics, making it accessible to a wide range of players regardless of experience level.

What should I do as a beginner in FFXIV?

As a beginner in Final Fantasy 14, focus on completing the main scenario quests (MSQ) to unlock new areas and features, experiment with different classes/jobs to find your preferred playstyle, participate in tutorials and job quests to learn essential mechanics, and engage with the community for advice and support.

Is it easy to start FFXIV?

Yes, starting Final Fantasy 14 is relatively easy. Simply download the game client, create a Square Enix account, purchase the game, or subscribe to its service, and follow the on-screen prompts to create your character and begin your adventure in the realm of Eorzea.

Is FFXIV good for new players?

Yes, Final Fantasy 14 is an excellent choice for new players looking for a deep and immersive MMORPG experience. With its engaging story, diverse gameplay options, and supportive community, the game offers a welcoming environment for players of all skill levels to enjoy and explore.