Tips and Tricks for the FFXIV Newbie (Guide)

Since FFXIV is still so foreign to most of us, I thought it would be a good idea to share our own tips and tricks. Here’s a disorderly list I wrote up this morning. I’m going to compile these into a bigger guide, so please help to make it better!

1. Make sure to spend your stat points when you level! It’s entirely possible to be at level cap with level 1 stats
2. Strength, Vitality, and Dexterity are important for melee classes, Intelligence, Mind, and Peity for Magic users
3. Make sure to pick up guildleves from your capital city. If you don’t register for them in town, they won’t be available at the aetheryte stone
4. You will only regen HP if your weapon is put away (also known as being in Passive Mode); MP is only regenerated at aetheryte stones or through certain abilities
5. Change classes simply by changing weapons! You can pick up the appropriate weapons at the desk merchants of each guild in the capital cities. Not all guilds are available in each city, so be prepared to travel if you want them all
6. Classes are only a guideline! You can equip any skill from any class, which means how your character ends up is up to you. As a rule, melee class skills tend to compliment each other, as do magic. Find skill lists here and here
7. While it’s possible to level every class, it would take forever to do so. We suggest choosing a main class and a sub-job which compliments it
8. New story quests typically become available every ten levels
9. Guild leves are the most frequent type of “guided content” available in FFXIV and are available for crafters, gatherers, and combatants alike; they’re on a 24-hour timer and are very rewarding. The first leves are typically available in the inn where you receive your first story quests. Find the quest givers by looking for glowing blue aetheryte and by the crowd of people usually surrounding them
10. You do not have to quest to progress in the game. Grinding is one of the best ways to progress your character and is encouraged during your downtime. Note that grinding is not required early on unless you want to. If you’re comfortable playing for an hour or so a day, guild leves should nicely sustain you
11. Use your mini-map! White dots are players, yellow dots are mobs, and red dots are guild leve targets
12. Monster loot automatically goes into your inventory
13. Don’t be so quick to vendor that “trash.” Even things useless to you might be important to crafters. Be sure to check before losing out on the extra gil!
14. Don’t always assume “solo” is the best option for guildleves. As you level, try the higher options for better rewards and more challenge.
15. Get used to playing *only* with the keyboard. You can use your mouse, but the game controls much better if you “two hand” it and leave the mouse to the side. Alternatively, the game is also optimized for use with a controller
16. Equip new skills by going to “Actions & Traits” and selecting your weapon/class.
17. When you die in the field, don’t wait for a ressurect! Choose “return” from the menu to warp to your aetheryte binding
18. Don’t feel like running? Use the teleport option to warp to any aetheryte you’ve previously visited– but be careful, as it uses Anima to avoid abuse.
19. Guilds in FFXIV are known as linkshells and you can join up to eight of them!
20. – Check your inventory often! Loot rewards will often scroll by in your chat unseen, so make sure not to miss out
21. Hit Ctrl+R to quickly reply in chat
22. Num Pad – to open the menu
23. Move the camera with J, I, K, L and zoom with O,P
24. To take a screenshot, hold Scroll Lock + Print Screen (Scroll Lock hides the UI)
25. /tell to tell, /sh to shout (good for talking to the wider region – text appears orange in chat)
26. Don’t be afraid to help a stranger. This is a group-based game and the kindness of strangers will often make the difference between life and death
27. There aren’t as many random mobs as there are in other games (for now). Maximize the grinds and guildleves by grouping up. Don’t be nervous about asking new people for help or offer your own
28. Keep an eye out for chests! You’ll often find these while out completing leves. Word has it that higher difficulty often means better rewards in chests, too! (unconfirmed)
29. Keep an eye out for the exclamation point on the top of your screen. It means there’s something to interact with nearby. Examine it by opening the menu and selecting the top option.
30. Finished all your leves in one region but haven’t got your “daily 8?” Make a trip to another capital and start on those
31. Not all professions are offered at every city. While you’re traveling, pick up the leves there!
32. Enable the hardware mouse in the configuration utility (located in your Start Menu->SQUARE ENIX->Final Fantasy XIV Config)
33. Not sure if your computer can handle it? Try starting the game at its lowest settings and work up. This can be done by accessing the same configuration utility and going to General->Video Settings (thanks Kailea!)
34. When an NPC “marks your map,” check the mark by clicking “map” at the bottom of your journal entry. These marks do not appear on your normal map.

That’s all I have. How about you?