Tarutaru melee. Can it work?Follow

Well, you didn't want to hear it...but it IS true. Any class works with any race...flat out.

I've seen uber Elvaan classes with more MP then Taru....

I've seen uber Taru melee NIN characters who can tank just as good as PLDs....

Unlike EQ, equipment really DOES give you options in this game such that you aren't trapped into one committed class...it's just a matter of time and money. Which are actually tied together really.

People pay a premium in FFXI for every point of AGI, DEF, ATK, etc because each point really DOES make a noticable difference to performance. It isn't like EQ where you can add a 5 INT item and see only a 5 pt gain in mana or something negligable like that.

In the beginning stages of the game, yes....it would probably make it more difficult to play a Taru melee character. They're brittle as hell because they don't have a lot of HPs. You'd be at a severe disadvantage at first. But they look hella cool as melee. :)

All three of your job combinations can work with a taru, though ranger is a bit dangerous. Thieves don't take aggro because they get trick attack; dragoons can shed aggro with jumps, and 1/3rd of their damage comes from the dragon that doesn't share any aggro with you. With ranger, however, the huge damage that you do is going to attract attention every now and then. With a good tank, you'll rarely get hit, but it's pretty common for me to take one or two after a lucky barrage or high damage skillchain. The problem with this is a fair number of mob types have abilities that can kill a taru instantly (bee final string, exoray silence gas, scorpion death scissors, bomb explode, etc). It'll be rare, but you'll probably be mad when it does happen. ;)

Drizzt? Name sounds familiar....graffe.com poster? (LimDul)



I like how you go about disagreeing with me but then go about confirming everything I just said. /scratch. Every race comes with inherant advantages and disadvantages that *work* in some form or another towards your job of choice. You say so in your own post Mr Anonymous.

Is this the same poster? I don't understand posting Anonymously...how can good class discussions be argued and discussed without names to actually respond to? oh well...whatever.

Look, I'm not in disagreement with you...race make a difference. My AGI and DEX is on any given time 10 pts higher then my friends who are equivalent job and level as Humes and Elvaan.

No doubt..this will make a difference. I'm not suggesting that.

However, these same Hume and Elvaan players can easily buy AGI and DEX equipment to match mine, while I can probably do the same with STR equipment.

I partied with a HUME BLM once...the natural thought is "that must suck because they don't have enough mana". But you know what? The tradeoff is that this HUME could take more hits then a Taru if he ever drew hate. It turned out to be a successful night. There is something to be said of being a non-optimized template character.

It sounds like you played EQ but perhaps not very long? Aside from the fact it's mechanically impossible to switch classes in that game, I wouldn't expect to my Wizard to suddenly equip a sword to do melee and live to talk about it....

It's also the case in EQ where you can somewhat get by with inferior equipment... you can struggle for months to camp for uber gear that will earn you enough mana for an extra nuke or two. It came to the point where players would calculate numbers down to the point where they could say "I bought all this uber gear so that I can do 10 more damage on my nukes then an Enchanter". Whooptedooo! :P

The original poster was thinking from the mindset of an EQ player...something all of us ex-EQ players did. My entire guild migrated over. EQ became more work then it was fun...

FFXI is EQ-lite. And that's what I wanted to suggest to the original poster. You can go any way you like and get by with equipment that will accomidate and adjust for your weaknesses. Equipment that won't take 5 years to get either :)

Edited, Thu Jan 22 17:00:28 2004 by Kamena

I am of two minds on this.

First of all, it really is true what they say. "It's all about fun, play what you want, yada yada yada." If you want to play a taru warrior, then go for it.

BUT, one of my complaints about this game vs. EQ is exactly this one. Race/Class compatibility. When you first start the game, you'll likely know very little about race specialties, other than the obvious (taru=mage, galka=melee). If you pick the wrong race, you really will be penalized. As you progress the difference becomes more significant, not less. Groups DO pass over Taru warriors in favor of better suited races.

So, play what you want. It really is just a game.

But, if you're a power gamer, you really should put some thought into picking a race more suited to your preferred job.

(I picked Hume btw, so I'm kinda mediocre at everything, but I can try just about any job and do pretty well)

Well, I play a taru rng/nin as my main and I have no issues with reguard to my class. Its expensive to upkeep, but I took nin as a sub to augment my lower hp and for some additional agi. Although taru's don't make the statisticially best rangers, they enjoy enough advantages that a party at any level won't bypass you because of your race (which is what I think you were asking).
Other choices like galka, on the otherhand, might experience party problems at higher lvls.

-Susho
Unicorn Server

Edited, Thu Jan 22 20:23:52 2004 by Tantrin