Preparing for the Journey
-Before I head out, I stop by the magic shop to buy some new spells, including Shell. Red mages are nice and versatile.
-Also made my first visit to the chocobo ranch in Bastok. Someone here says if I trade him a chocobo egg, I can join this chocobo society or something? GOtta keep an eye out for one of those.
-Aha! Found the chocobo tutorial guy, Gonija.
-The Vana’diel Chocobo Society (VCS) is the chocobo-centered organization across the world.
-It takes about one month (earth time) from hatching a chocobo until it’s rideable. So this is a process.
-Interesting! The way I treat the chocobo over that month determines its stats. Strength, endurance, discernment, receptivity, energy, affection, satisfaction. This is the most in-depth mount system I’ve seen in an MMO.
-It’s a bit overwhelming. Like Clasko’s FFX-2 chocobo ranch on steroids.
-OMG THERE’S A TRAINING CAMP CALLED “KAMP KWEH” TO HELP NEW CHOCOBO OWNERS
-Just checked the Adventurer’s Primer, and to start out with all this stuff, I have to complete a quest in Jeuno. So… not yet for me the chocobo life. But soon!
-WAIT NEVER MIND I CAN TRADE ONE OF MY FREE CHOCOPASSES NOW!!! FUCKING YES!!!!
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On the Road
-Now I got my chocobo, and it’s adorable, and the music is a very peaceful version of the classic FF chocobo theme.
-Aw… well. It lasted about halfway through the first zone before running off.
-So I can head first to either Windurst or San d’Oria. Even though San d’Oria is on the same continent, I think it’s way far north, so I’ll first hit Windurst. South Gustaberg > North Gustaberg > Konschtat Highlands > ?? (I haven’t been past the Highlands yet.)
-Selbina looks like it’s west of here on the world map. There’s what looks like a western exit from the Konschtat Highlands, but I’m unsure whether it leads anywhere. It’s unmarked.
-There’s a cave tunneling under the mountains in that western path, but… it doesn’t go anywhere. It’s not blocked, it just looks dark and the game doesn’t let me go through it. Will head up to the Valkurm Dunes (the zone to the north) and see if I can loop around there to Selbina.
-Well… crap. There’s no map for the next zone, the Valkurm Dunes. Looks like a desert.
Going to walk around the western wall and hope to find a zoneline.
-THANK GOODNESS! I found an outpost, with a home point so if I die I won’t be fucked. Headed through a tunnel and into an open desert.
-Some more wandering and I find Selbina. *dances*
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Rhapsodies of Vana’diel
[Later edit: These next two parts, "Rhapsodies of Vana'diel" and "Selbina," happened simultaneously. I bounced between them rather than doing one then the other.]
-Music feels very… Irish? Sea shanty-ish maybe? I dunno.
The port town of Selbina.
-Someone approaches me with the very Irish name of Esteban. The Selbina mayor wants some help… OH! That’s for the “Rhapsodies of Vana’diel” mission chain. I almost forgot. I had to come to Selbina or Mhaura for the next step in that. This is that continuation.
-I head to the mayor, Abelard… oh god oh god oh god.
ABELARD: “A pira… entrepreneur associate of mine known as Gilgamesh has had your name on his lips the past several days.” GILGAMEEEEESSHHH
-Gilgamesh rescued a young woman at sea who spoke highly of me. Hm. Not sure who that could be. The woman from the first Rhapsodies cinematic, with the massive crystal? Have I met her yet, or is this some prophecy thing?
-Gilgamesh wants three “clumps of bee pollen” from around Crag of Holla or Crag of Dem for… “medicinal purposes.” Suuuuure.
-So I moseyed on back to the Konschtat Highlands, killed the wasps, got three clumps of bee pollen, and returned back. I trade the three clumps to the mayor, and…
In. Walks. Gilgamesh.
HFDJSFHDS
HI GILGAMESH I MISSED YOU
-So now he’s a hume pirate with an Elvaan compatriot. I wonder if he’s hiding some arms under that garb of his.
-He says he’s known for roaming the Bastore Sea. The oceans have been stormy of late, and he found a rowboad that just started flashing red. He found a woman aboard the rowboat and took her to Norg. (lol, nice FFVIII flashback)
-The first words she spoke upon waking up were my name. Wtf? He wants to take me to meet her.
-YUS!! Gilgamesh leaves for his boat, but gives me an introductory letter. That’s what I needed for Isacio’s quest.
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Selbina
-This place is mana from heaven. There’ s a map vendor. I blow 3,000 gil on maps of Ordelle’s Caves, Ghelsba, the Windurst region, the San d’Oria region, and the Jeuno region. It’s a lot of money, but I don’t care. Maps are priceless to me.
-I don’t exactly know what this music sounds like, but it’s absolutely my favorite in the game so far. I fucking love it.
-I can now teleport from a home point here in Selbina to a home point alllll the way back in Bastok for a mere 500 gil. I don’t have to constantly do that run I just did. I am dancing in my apartment. DANCING I TELL YOU.
-Picking up some standard quests in the town, but one particular dude says he’ll teach me techniques if I bring him two things: a damselfly worm and… “GILGAMESH’S INTRODUCTORY LETTER” ARE YOU SHITTING ME
Around Selbina.
-This is the quest to unlock a Support Job. I’m super excited, but more for getting to meet Gilgamesh in FFXI than for the support job.
-Unfortunately, there’s no guidance as far as where to find Gilgamesh. It doesn’t say where he is, what I do to find him, or ANYTHING like that. I’m going to give it the old college try, talk to everyone I see in the vicinity, but if a while passes and I don’t find him, this is a case where I may just end up looking up a hint. Not there yet though. [Later edit: I wrote this before I did the Rhapsodies of Vana’diel follow-up with the mayor, which answered my question.]
- The mayor, Abelard, is researching the life of Gwynham, a traveler… oh, I remember him! He’s the guy who created that stone monument I found back in South Gustaberg with the beautiful and poetic language about exploration. Abelard asks me to find more of those monuments and create rubbings for his collection. Next is in West Ronfaure. I’m happy to meet another Gwynham fan.
-Someone in Selbina mentions that pirates roam the seas. I wonder if this is just flavor text, or if I actually have to fight off pirates when taking a ship for transportation between continents.
-I went out to grind for that damselfly worm to the desert. It took me about 45 minutes of killing damselflies, but I got it.
*at this point, I progressed in the Rhapsodies quest, met Gilgamesh, and got his letter of introduction*
-Ok. I turn both these over to Isacio. He tells me about support jobs.
-I can only get a support job that I’m “proficient” in. (Dunno what this means.) That support job can never exceed half my main job – so that must mean if I’m a 30 Red Mage, my support job can’t go past level 15.
ISACIO: “Since it is merely a support job, you’ll never advance through experience.” Again, not quite sure what this means, but it might mean I have to… like… go back to level 1 with the new job and level it up rather than being able to just level it up while it’s the support job.
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Next time: I could continue with the story by crossing the sea with Gilgamesh or crossing the sea to reach Windurst for the emissary mission, but first will backtrack and try to come up with a support job.
