Final Fantasy XIV: March Dengeki PlayStation Q&A (Part II)

Tags : March Dengeki PlayStation, individual classes, abilities, weapon skills, ffxiv news    

 In Part I, we learned a little about the upcoming alpha and beta tests.  Part II is about the individual classes and what the developers had to say about their abilities and weapon skills.

Let’s begin with the Disciples of Magic:  Conjurer and Thaumaturge.

Conjurer

Q: It sounds like your surroundings will have an effect on your spells.  Can you give us detailed information about this?  Will there be both positive and negative effects?

A: Right now we are still making adjustments.

Q: Outside from Shock Spikes, all of the spells look like AoE spells.  Will you be able to attack multiple enemies that fall in the range of your spells?

A: Almost all spells are AoE and you can use them to attack multiple enemies at the same time.  That means you’ll want to try to gather a bunch of enemies together and attack them all at once for the most effective results.  That is part of FFXIV’s game design.

Q: So for spells like Protect as well, you’ll be able to cast them on everyone in your party at once?

A: Of course.  Just make sure everyone is within the range of your spell and you will be able to cast it on everyone at once.

Q: Will the monsters also be affected by the various elements?

A: Monsters have elements attached to them.  As such, they will be affected by elements as well.

Thaumaturge

Q: The Japanese description of Thaumaturge says they are proud of their amazing attack power.  Can you tell us more about these powerful offensive spells?

A: You’ll have to let me keep that a secret for now.  However, I can tell you that there are spells that require TP as well as ones that require MP.  That’s all I’m going to say for now though.

Q: Does Initiation have an effect on your entire party?

A: No, you only share the effect with one person.

Q: Does Gravity also decrease evasion?

A: We are still working on things but we do plan on making it decrease evasion as well.

Q: For the Siphon MP (official English name unknown) spell, it says the enemy must be knocked out.  Can you explain what that means in a bit more detail?

A: It means that the enemy has no more HP and they have been defeated.

Q: Does Siphon MP work on enemies that don’t have any MP as well?

A: No.  It has no effect on those enemies.

Of the 9 classes that will be playable in the beta, one belongs to the Disciples of the Land and one to Disciples of the Hand.  These classes will be working hand in hand to provide adventurers with the armor, weapons, and tools they need in the field.

Miner

Q: The Japanese description says that miners throw rocks.  Does that mean they can only attack by throwing rocks?

A: Right now, that’s the way things are.  However, we might add to that in the future.

Q: Will you only be able to weaken mineral-family monsters with rocks?

A: Right now we are thinking of implementing this feature where you don’t use a weapon but you use items.  This isn’t an actual example but I want to give you an idea of what I mean.  Let’s say you are up against a gold-based monster.  You would use something like Aqua Regia (a mix of nitric and hydrochloric acid) to liquefy them.

Q: The Japanese description says that miners can bring in extra income for your party.  Does this mean as long as you have at least one miner in your party, everyone in your party will benefit?

A: Yes.  We are still working on how this will happen but we’d like to make it so that if you increase the number of miners, the payoff increases as well.  However, the risk during battle would also increase.

Q: Can only miners see the places where they can mine?

A: That’s what we plan to do for the time being.

 Blacksmith

Before we get into the Q&A, let’s look at what SE says is the role of the Blacksmith when in a party.  That will help the Q&A make a little more sense.

-Can weaken metallic-family monsters.  Also, if the party defeats a metallic-family monster, they can look over the spoils for metallic objects.
-Can keep an eye on the party’s weapons and help keep them in the best condition even out in the field.

Q: Can you keep on eye on your party members’ weapons even during the midst of battle?

A: For the moment, we plan on making this something you can only do between battles.

Q: Will you be able to keep on eye on your party members’ weapons even without their cooperation?  Is this something you can do completely on your own?

A: It would be a pain to have to confirm with them each and every time so we’d like to make it to where you don’t have to do that sort of thing.  However, we also have to consider player privacy concerns.  Right now we are thinking that you’ll get permission from a player once and then you’ll be able to keep on eye on the weapon without any further confirmations.

Over half of the classes that will be playable from beta belong under the Disciples of War.  While some of their abilities may sound similar, they are used in different ways and players will need to find out what moves are most effective in different situations.  Each class also has a fighting range they need to be aware of.  The best range for a gladiator is not the same for a lancer.  Let’s take a look at what the developers had to say.

Archer

Q: So far we’ve seen short bows and long bows for archers.  Will there be crossbows as well?

A: Right now they don’t have crossbows.  If we saw crossbows in the future, they would probably go to another class.

Q: How many arrows can you walk around with at one time?

A: We are still making adjustments so I can’t really say for sure.  However, there are ways for archers to recover arrows when they run out.

Q: Can archers make their own arrows?

A: Only the crafting classes (Disciples of the Hand) can make things.  However, if you added a crafting ability to your archer, in the future you might be able to make them.  However, there would probably be limitations.

Q: Do abilities like Replenish use up multiple arrows?

A: Yes, they do.  For example, with the weapon skill Quick Nock you will be able to hit the enemies in range with the number of arrows you set.  So for example, pretend there are 3 enemies and you set 10 arrows.  You could hit two enemies with 3 arrows and one with 4.

Q: Can you drive off any enemy with Shrieker?  Or is it only enemies that you are currently engaged in battle with?

A: It doesn’t work on all enemies.  To answer the second question, you can also use it on enemies that are in Passive Mode.

Marauder

Q: It looks as if you can create an AoE attack out of any attack if you “gather your strength”.  Is this correct or is this only for normal attacks or certain weapon skills?

A: In general, this move is for creating an AoE attack out of a normal attack.  However, there are some weapon skills that are affected if you gather your strength first.

Q: Is it possible to move or do other things while you are gathering your strength?

A: If you move, you lose the strength that you had been gathering.

Q: Can you use Disorient on top of a boat or other places where there isn’t any sand?

A: It is possible but the effect might be different.

Q: The weapon skill Fracture (official English name unknown) is listed as sealing the weapon skills of your enemies.  Does it seal it for a limited amount of time or do you have to time it and watch for when the enemy uses their weapon skill in order to seal it?

A: The effect lasts for a limited amount of time.

Q: Brandish and Iron Tempest sound very similar on paper outside of the added elemental factor for Iron Tempest.  Is that the only difference?

A: In addition to the elemental difference, there are a number of differences including the shape and amount of area that is covered.

 Gladiator

Q: In the Japanese description, it says that you can become a lightweight attacker by getting rid of your shield.  Can you tell us the difference between using a shield and not?

A: When you don’t use a shield, you are decreasing your defense but you’ll see a positive change in your attacks.  However, there are abilities and things you can only do when you do use a shield.  For example, there is a weapon skill that requires you be using a shield.

Q: Can you tell us the difference between a Slash attack and a Stab attack?

A: Depending on the enemy, one type of attack might work better than another.  We are still working on things but image wise think of it this way.  If the enemy has a lot of armor, it might be better to use a stabbing attack.  However, if enemy’s flesh is exposed, a slashing attack might be the way to go.  Also, slashing is better for damage while stabbing has higher accuracy.

Q: It sounds like there are three basic patterns for gladiators.  Is there a button assigned for each so you can choose which one to use?

A: You have to select a command to use each time.

Q: It seems that almost every class has some kind of long range attack weapon.  Is there nothing for the poor gladiator?

A: Right now we are looking into the possibility of gladiators throwing swords.

Lancer

Q: There are different types of attacks for lancer.  Does the attack you can use vary by weapon type or can you select the attack type similar to how gladiator works?

A: At first, you can only use piercing attacks.  However, as your skill grows, you can learn how to use slashing and blunt damage attacks as well.  The type of weapon you use will also probably have an effect.

Q: In one of the pictures, the Japanese description talks about drawing the enemy to you.  Does this mean to physically pull the enemy?

A: It just means that the enemy will naturally go to you or that you used some method or another to get the enemy near you.

Q: The description for Overrun says you can do a procession of rapid hits if the enemy is not aware of you.  Does that mean the same thing works if you are hitting the enemy from behind?

A: Think of it as a sneak attack you can only pull off if the enemy is not in a fighting stance.

Pugilist

Q: There are two stances for pugilist.  Does your mode change depending on the abilities you use?

A: One of the special features of the pugilist class is that depending on the position of the effect gauge when you select a command, you’ll start to go towards one stance or the other.  You can go more offensive or more defensive.  If you keep going in that direction, using the same moves within a short period of time, your stance will become clearer, your status will become uneven, and you will gain special abilities.

Q: It looks like Chakra uses up TP.  Can you change the amount of TP used to get more or less HP back?

A: The effect changes with the amount of TP used.  However, you cannot choose the amount you use at one time.  There will be different levels though depending on the amount of TP used.

Q: Why do pugilists get a steal command?

A: Even within the same class, there are different ways to grow.  Just think of it as using all that dexterity for a shady purpose.

Q: Does the amount of damage you can do with tackle change with the distance you have to cover when tackling?

A: The amount of damage will probably increase with the distance ran.

Btw, DJplaeskool has a new FFXIV remix on his blog for people to listen to.  Check it out!

Source: eorzeapedia.com

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