Summary: The paladin quest sputters. The dragoon quest blows me away on wings of awesomeness. This is FFXI at its best.
-I’ve looked again at the list of extra jobs to get, and I don’t think I’ll do this all at once. My new plan is to unlock jobs as I reach the expansions where they were key. Starting with the “release jobs:” Dark Knight (done), Paladin, Ranger, Beastmaster, Bard, Ranger.
-The Paladin and Ranger quests start in places I’ve been, the cities of Windurst and San d’Oria. Beastmaster and Bard start in Jeuno, so I’ll do those when my core missions get me there.
-I’m already feeling better. I didn’t love the idea of cramming in all the job quests at once because it would just be such a huge time commitment, so weaving them in with the main story sounds better to me.
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Job Quest: A Squire’s Test (Paladin)
-The Adventuring Primer tells me that this one starts in San d’Oria. Makes sense, since San d’Oria is the city that feels most classically high fantasy-medieval.
-The person I speak with is Balasiel, and older Elvaan. Sounds martial, dedicated, very much about the blades of the Elvaan protecting San d’Oria.
-How do I learn to be (presumably, a paladin) like him? I have to go to King Ranperre’s Tomb and bring back a “revival tree root.”
BALASIEL: “How, you ask? Use your head. Now begone!”
-Again, I won’t be super shy about looking up the answer to this if I need to, but my first step is to find King Ranperre’s Tomb and explore it for this revival tree root. It could be an item dropped by an enemy or it could be something I have to click around for on the ground.
-It’s one of the maps I bought before, so no need to go through that again. It’s off East Ronfaure, one of the zones near San d’Oria.
-I find it, in the southwestern part of East Ronfaure.
-It has one of those floating tomes at the front which gives repeatable “training regimens,” quests to kill groups of enemies. It has a similarly terrifying message as the one in Dangruf Wadi: about 2/3 of the enemies are lower level, and 1/3 are around high-70s and 80s. (I’m currently level 33.)
-Found a little stony maze, with a “???” at the center. Is that the root?
-no. It ports me deeper into the tomb. The second floor. Which happens to have the really high level enemies. There’s still more of the first level to explore, so I’ll continue checking up here. Worse comes to absolute worse, I can spend tabs at the floating tome to get an “invisibility and sneak” buff, but no idea how long it lasts.
*much walking and wandering later*
-I’ve wandered through the first floor, searching for ground stuff, killing enemies. Nothing. Going to try the second floor. Hopefully I won’t draw the attention of the high level creatures here.
-lol nope. Again, no idea. I give up. I don’t even feel bad anymore. Well… a little bad.
*looks up the next step*
Lolol nope I don’t feel bad at all. Apparently, the answer is that I had to find a rare ghost that only spawns at night and kill it before 4:00am (in-game). I found the ghost (“spook”) on my map scan at about 2:45am, raced to reach it, and it hit 4:00am and despawned when I was like THREE SECONDS AWAY GRRRR.
Gonna go afk a while and come back when night falls.
-Night came. Found the Spook and killed him, but he didn’t drop what I needed. A second Spook spawned a bit later, dropping again not what I needed. I hope this isn’t a rare drop.
”Playing the game.”
-Killed a third one, no drops. 4am. Gotta wait for the next night.
-Really mixed feelings on the job quests so far. (Not the puppetmaster quest since I only started it.) Part of me appreciates the camping and grinding because this is EXACTLY what I expected when I started this game. It’s what I remember from EverQuest.
But on the other hand, it’s boring. It’s super boring. So I’m leaning hard towards just unlocking a few jobs that interest me as I go, and sticking with red mage for the moment.
To be specific, the jobs that most interest me right now are Bard and Dragoon. Dragoon is from an expansion, “Rise of the Zilart,” so I’m not sure I’ll be able to do it, but I kind of want to try anyway. I saw a dragoon running around with a motherfucking DRAGON pet. So… yes.
Maybe summoner too.
-Another full night passes. And y’know what? I’m done. I’m out. I don’t care enough about this to keep camping this Spook that spawns three times a night and seems to only rarely drop the item I need. I don’t care. Maybe later.
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Rumors of Dragons (Dragoon)
-This is the one that most interests me for now. Let’s see if I can do it. I pick the quest up in Port San d’Oria.
-Dragon King Ranperre (whose tomb I just visited) had a top vassal who was a dragoon. To become one, you have to make a pact with a living wyvern, but dragonslayers have killed off most of the dragons.
-Apparently, a new dragoon appeared in San d’Oria. Cyranuce, locked up in a dungeon.
-Now THIS sounds awesome! In all likelihood, I’ll have to prove my worth to a wyvern by killing 400 sheep or something, but whatever.
-So I have to find this potential dragoon, Cyranuce, locked in a dungeon. Hopefully they’ll teach me their ways.
-I head into Chateau d’Oraguille, the main castle. Dungeon is likely here.
-Arrived here, in the Bostaunieux Oubliette. The dungeon. …no map. Shit.
-Found the prison guard, Novalmauge. He says Cyranuce is dead. His cellmate “called forth a terrible creature and fled.” RIP Cyranuce.
-A prisoner speaks up, saying that the cellmate was jealous that Cyranuce became a dragoon. He framed Cyranuce so that Cyranuce would get thrown into jail here.
JURGENCLAUS (the prisoner): “That is how Rahal, the dragonslayer tainted with drakes’ blood, seized the office of general. You knights were left in the dark.” This feels like I’m stepping into the middle of an ongoing San d’Orian piece of political intrigue.
-Rahul sounds like a respected general in San d’Oria, but one who has a secret bloodthirst for killing dragoons and dragons. Fuck that guy then. Dragons are awesome.
-My next stop is to talk to Oiheaurese, an archeaologist, here in the city.
-He’s not here. However, I found the “manuscripts room,” and one of the archaeologists here heard of Doctor Oiheaurese.
-oh lol he just snuck up behind me there. Hi, Oiheaurese!
-Oiheaurese is happy to talk to me. Says that there are holy dragons and evil dragons both. Good to know that a dragoon isn’t just pledging herself to evil.
-Rahal comes by. The jealous and dragon/dragoon-hating general. Looking for “suspicious characters.” More specifically, he’s concerned that someone’s body hasn’t been found. CYRANUCE IS STILL ALIVE!! I might become a dragoon yet.
-Rumor is that a wyvern laid an egg in the Maze of Shakhrami. I have to find that. To “excavate the egg.”
-Let the trek to that place begin.
-My map tells me that Maze of Shakhrami borders Tahrongi Canyon. It takes me some time, but eventually a heap of dragon bones tells me I’m in the right place.
-I wander throughout this place, and eventually reach the point I have with my other job quests. I have no idea what to do. I found a rock that looked like it might do something, but when I inspected it I basically got the message “this is just a rock.”
-Ah! I have to treat that rock that’s “just a rock” like a mining node. I have to get a pickaxe back in town, come back here, and mine it. Ok.
-So I traveled back to the warp point, warped to dear old Bastok, warped back to the Maze of Shakhrami, and traveled back to the NotJustA!Rock.
-Huh. The rock wasn’t it. Could it just be a normal excavation point I have to use? …YES! I have a wyvern egg.
-Not sure what to do with it, so will return to the dude who gave me this quest in San d’Oria. I doubt that’s the end of the quest since we still haven’t heard the resolution of the Rahul/Cyranuce story.
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Heating Up (Dragoon)
-Doctor Oiheauses is away. His student, Yachemidot, is here.
-Two awesome things happen:
1)Yachemidot wants to help me hatch it.
2)HE TELLS ME EXACTLY WHERE TO GO. “Take the egg and place it on the far eastern tip of Drogaroga’s Spine located in the Meriphataud Mountains.”
3)If it has what he calls “the holy crest” – which I assume means, if it’s a good wyvern rather than an evil one – I might become a dragoon.
-I head to the Meriphataud Mountains, and… wow. I thought Drogaroga’s Spine was a metaphor, like a large craggy spine-like mountain range. Nope. It’ s giant bone spine of some ancient dragon that is long enough to stretch across this entire frigging zone.
-Found the spot, and laid the egg down. Yachemidot arrives, and is excited. Me too bud.
-SO CUTE LOOKIT HER!!!
-WAIT WHAT THE SWEET FUCK
YACHEMIDOT KILLED HER! YOU ASSHOLE YOU KILLED MY DRAGON
-Or not? He hit her with her sword and she looks dead, but he says: “Stay where you are! Take a single step, and this dragon’s life is forfeit…” so she must still be alive but wounded.
-Rahal came. I thought he was the bloodthirsty one?
-OH SHIT PLOT TWIST, Yachemidot was actually the dragoon Cyranuce in disguise!
Your Yachemidot evolved in the Evil Dragoon Cyranuce!
He called Rahul “Rahul Dragonslayer,” saying that the seal upon Cyranuce has now been broken. I guess Cyranuce was evil?
-I see. The one who died in the jail cell was the beastmaster, NOT Cyranuce. Cyranuce escaped.
-Cyranuce wants to use the blood of this infant dragon to become a dragon himself. Dude. That’s like getting Pikachu and killing him to drink his blood and become a lightning pokemon yourself. Just be friends with it!
-Cyranuce takes in the blood and seems to vanish. I don’t think we’ll have seen the last of him.
-Rahul walks up to the wounded infant dragon, sword drawn.
RAHUL: “This wyvern will grow to maturity knowing only the need for revenge in its heart…” NO!! LET ME TAKE CARE OF HER!! I’ll give her the full Peridot treatment and teach her what friendship is and stuff.
-Rahul hesitates. He’s looking for “the unholy sign,” but doesn’t see it on the drake. He also doesn’t see a holy sign.
-By the way, the music right now during this whole scene? Phenomenal. So good.
-He’s seen a wyvern free of holy and unholy sign before. Cyranuce forged a pact with it. But as the dragon grew, Rahal saw that Cyranuce’s dragon had the unholy sign after all, and it began to corrupt Cyranuce.
Ah! So THAT’S why Rahal locked away Cyranuce. Not because all dragoons are bad, but rather because the specific dragon that Cyranuce bonded with was bad and was taking control of/corrupting Cyranuce.
-RAHAL I FORGIVE YOU – He looks at the unmoving dragon, meaning to kill it just in case… but can’t because IT’S SO ADORABLE. (jk he doesn’t kill it because we might need her power against Cyranuce.)
-Rahal wants to redeem his friend, Cyranuce. He thinks it’s still possible.
-This quest has been going a while, but idc. This is awesome. THIS is what I wanted from the paladin and dark knight quests. Heading back to find Rahal back in San d’Oria.
-Rahal isn’t in the Cathedral of San d’Oria, but I find him in the Chateau, the castle. The dragon is safe, and Cyranuce is in the Ghelsba Outpost.
-Rahal gives me a “dragon curse remedy.” Drinking it might separate him from the dragon feeding on his soul. He gives a remedy to me as well, which is ominous.
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A Dragon Falls, a Dragon Rises (Dragoon)
-I head to Ghelsba Outpost, the orcish fort, and start hunting the main places.
-I think I hit paydirt. A huge tent by the entrance, and when I click on it, it asks me to enter a battlefield for “The Holy Crest.” This quest. I last saw this message with the huge boss fight that kicked my ass. Ruhr oh.
-Rahal comes here, with the wyvern in tow, to help me.
-Cyranuce is in the tent… AND CUTS DOWN RAHAL JUST AS RAHAL IS ASKING TO HELP HIM.
-I head up to the battlefield. Cyranuce is here. He transforms from a dragoon into a giant black dragon. “Cyranuce M Cutauleon.” I guess that’s the controlled or fused version of him with his evil drake.
-crap crap crap I can’t use my trust NPCs or trust magic. It’s just me.
-You know what? Fuck it. Let’s do this.
-It doesn’t obliterate me immediately. I can do this.
-It’s got some nasty attacks but as a red mage I can buff and heal myself and use this spiffy dagger.
-Come on come on….
_YESSSSSSSSSFHDJKLSH VICTORYYYY
-Cyranuce reverts to his old self. Rahal tries to give him the remedy, to save Cyranuce, but Cyranuce fears if he lives then so will the dragon, and his corruption will return. He wants to die to take the dragon with him.
CYRANUCE: “Rahal, you of all people should know. By bringing it here, you proved you believed in me… I knew you could come to save me. Though my death is near, I am glad.”
I SHIP THE FUCK OUT OF THESE TWO
-Cyranuce asks if Rahal will slay the cute lil dragon flapping overhead. Rahal says yes... but Cyranuce pleads him to not do it.
CYRANUCE: “Hear my last wish! You must believe in dragons, as we did long ago.”
I'm legit tearing up at this. This is sad and crushing and hopeful and wonderful.
If I have “holy will,” I might bond with this dragon and stay pure.
-With that wish, Cyranuce fades away.
-A flash of light emerges from the dragon as it stares at me.
RAHAL: “How can this be!? The sign of holiness!”
RAHAL: “You were right, Cyranuce. The dragoon born today shall inherit your purpose. Be at peace, my friend.”
-I GET TO SELECT A NAME FOR MY WYVERN
I’M SO FUCKING HAPPY RIGHT NOW
-The game gives me a pre-selected list, but a long one. Names ranging from Hien to Fyrewing to George (lol). 32 names. It’s an easy choice for me though.
“Lady.”
I am now a dragoon.
OK. Whoever designed the dark knight unlock job, listen up: THAT IS HOW YOU DO A MOTHERFUCKING JOB QUEST. Like an awesome short story, with great music and twists and combat challenges and emotion and... Bravo. Bravo.
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Next time: leveling up my dragoon, an appropriate support job, and then back to the main stories.
The beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Yeah, I’m done with going for new jobs for now. This is the one for me. No idea what the playstyle is like and idc. Lady and I got this.
