Tha MonkeyClan of the Angry Monkey (FFXI)
COR is not an EXP whore!
Submitted by ravenclaw on Tue, 05/23/2006 - 12:59.

First, let me apologize for this rant. This isn't directed at anyone inside of ClanAM. This is just a frustration I've been having lately and I need to vent. I'm venting here on ClanAM because this is such a nice place to soapbox (people treat you better here). My frustration stems from my experiences leveling up my new favorite job, Corsair...



Those of you who know me know that I was one of the first people in ClanAM to reach end-game. I started out as THF, and never really enjoyed it (THFs do too little damage between SATAs and SATA requires so much cooperation between other party members that I found it endlessly frustrating to try and do, no offense to those lifelong THFs out there, I just couldn't cut it).



The first advanced job I unlocked as soon as THF hit 30 was RNG. RNG became my new love. I took it to 75 (albeit with an underleveled sub, lol) and played it both before and after the so called "RNG nerf" (which wasn't a nerf, the RNGs who complain about it are just whiners).



After RNG I decided to take NIN for a go simply because I had gotten into it. I took it to 42 before I realized that I just didn't have the right gear for it and wasn't willing to spend the sort of cash needed to be a "good" NIN (as Sam puts it, lol).



With RNG at 75 and NIN as high as I wanted it, I found I had very little interest in any of the other jobs. I went back and gave THF a second chance (at Sam's and RapRot's request), and I enjoyed it for a bit. I also gave WHM a whirl before a disasterous Dunes party soured me on that job entirely.



So I just kept meritting my RNG, and hunting NMs. Well, there's only so much of this one manthra can do before he starts getting really bored...



Enter the ToAU expansion pack...



I immediately got into this pack and very quickly unlocked all the new jobs. I then took each of them for a spin. I found PUP to be too much like a bastard child of DRG and MNK (two jobs I never liked). BLU pissed me off because I got to 10 with only learning one BLU spell (and it was too high for me to use anyway). But COR, now COR was the magic goodness I had been looking for! And with all my meritted RNG items, my COR was doing a lot more damage than my COR counterparts.



For those who don't know about COR, let me give you the fifty cent explaination...

COR can best be thought of as a damage-dealing support job. We have a whole assortment of fancy "spells" that can improve the lives of those around us. In addition to all our "spells", we can deal pretty good damage.

Now, our "spells" aren't exactly spells. They are "dice rolls" that we do to buff up the party. Each roll will have a number affixed to it. We can enhance our rolls by rolling again and try for better numbers (either a "lucky" number for each roll, or 11). However, if the number gets too high, you bust. Thus, our spells are very much like gambling (which appeals to me^^).



We have rolls that can refresh MP, boost evasion, boost double attack, boost subtle blow, improve critical hits (yay! instant meritted melee!), and so on.



Sound great so far? That's because it is. There is, however, one problem...



At 5 we get our first roll, "Corsair's Roll".



Corsair's Roll grants everyone within a certain radius an EXP boost every fight. This boost seems to be approximately 25% (if you hit 5 or 11) and can stack with other EXP boost items (such as the rings).



The problem is, we can only stick two buffs on each party member at a given time. And yet everyone just wants Corsair's Roll. This means we are generally asked to keep Corsair's Roll up leaving only enough room for one other roll. The mages only ever want refresh (and I don't blame them), the melee only ever want Hunter's or Rogue's Roll, which means I never get to use even a fraction of the other rolls I have!



Thus, in most parties COR becomes effectively an EXP whore. We're brought in not for our buffing abilities but because we can boost EXP gain.



I know this isn't the first job to be a "one-spell whore", RDMs often complain they are Refresh Whores, BRDs often complain they are Ballad Whores. I just don't want COR to become just an EXP Whore when we have so many other valuable and useful rolls!



So I'm asking, nay, I'm begging! Please help me spread the word that COR isn't just an EXP Whore on our server! If you see a party leader asking a COR to just use Corsair's, stand up for that COR! Help prevent COR from becoming yet another "one-spell whore".

Becasue Mommy said so...

Well i got picked up in a party yesterday, and hit 64... here was the set up.
BLM/WHM (me)
WAR/NIN (mithra/JP)
NIN/WAR (Taru/JP)
MNK/THF (Galka/JP)
RDM/WHM (Elveen/NA)
COR/WHM (Hume/JP,NA?) (party leader)
Party Location: Bibiki Bay

From what i could tell is the COR primarly used Rogues and some other roll on the melees, and tended to put only evokers roll on the mages. Now i'm glad that he didn't spam the COR roll, but the mages often had only one buff up... i really didn't care for that too much. Even a random other roll would have been sutible. The only other problem was the NIN didn't keep hate very well, i'd often pull the mob off with a tier 2. But other than that the MNK/THF was a welcome change as it seemed to add to the dmg pool, because the mnk wasn't missing and because he could SATA on a WS. From what i could tell COR/WHM is viable as a sub... well hope that helps some on this debate... so the answer is no you don't need COR roll, and no it shouldn't be used only... actual golagres noted that a party he was in a COR would often put up COR roll before the mob died, then rebuff with something else during the fight. More compitant BRDs tend to layer buffs in this same fashion... you'll usually be able to tell those ones from the others we call them turn signals because they blink out so often. They tend to do alot of running around to... which is what our COR ended up doing most of the night.

Cookie cutters are boring



I would have to agree with you here. I hope you are not totally against Corsair's roll in all situations. I am certain most everyone in this LS is smart enough to realize that their job in the party is for the most part situational...and know better than to force something that just shouldn't happen.



As a whm, my job tends to never be the same each party. It all depends on many things...such as the type of mob we are fighting, how long the fights last, if we have a rdm or brd in the party, if we have a thf, etc. Depending on how the first few fights go, I can tell exactly what I will have to do to keep the party running the best I can make it. If everyone in the party realizes what they need to do on their own to optimize the party, then /hurray, we have a winner!




So, lets look at a certain situation...and determine if corsairs roll is better than others.

For simplicity let's go with a mob that is +10 levels from your highest member (Level 61+). This mob would check as just IT. We will have to make an assumption of how long each battle lasts on average. Let us assume that the party demands corsair's roll and wizards roll (or whatever the refresh one is), leading to an average battle time of 65 seconds. (This is just a poor example only to illustrate....well I don't really know what I am trying to illustrate. Let's continue anyway). With an average battle time of 65 seconds, and each mob being +10 levels away, you will mostly get to exp chain #2 (you have 80 seconds to kill the monster for chain 2). To achieve a chain 3, you have to kill the mob in under 60 seconds. On average, this wouldn't happen. Refrence guide.



Best case (Constant 25% bonus from cor roll)

The first kill yields 168*1.25 = 210 exp.

Second kill with chain 1 yields 168*1.2*1.25 = 252 exp.

Third kill with chain 2 yields 168*1.25*1.25 = 270 exp.

Fourth kill with no chain = 210 exp.

Fifth kill with chain 1 = 252 exp.

Total = 1194 exp in 325 seconds.



Now assume without corsair's roll, with a roll that speeds up the kill rate, our average battle lasts 48 seconds (25% decrease). This would grant you a chain #3 most of the time.

First mob = 168 exp

Second mob with chain 1= 168*1.2 = 201 exp

Thrid mob with chain 2= 168*1.25 = 210 exp

Fourth mob with chain 3= 168*1.3 = 219 exp

Fifth mob with no chain = 168

Sixth mob with chain 1= 201 exp

Seventh mob with chain 2= 210 exp

Total = 1377 exp in 336 seconds.



With cor roll => 3.673 exp/sec

Without cor roll => 4.098 exp/sec



Honestly, either party pulling in this much exp/hour is one to be in. The second scenario is pulling in about 14k exp an hour! So...as you can see, my fake party is not realistic. It is only an exagerated scenario to prove my point. The random assumptions (25% decrese in kill time?) only show at least one instance where the corsairs+wizards roll is not better than hunters+wizards roll.



Point being, an educated person should be the once who recommends which rolls the corsair should use to benefit the party, and yet this cannot be determined without first experimenting with the rolls to find out which are best for the GIVEN party! To demand from the beginning which roll to use, which songs should be played, etc is just ignorant. Most importantly, everyone should play their job to have fun.



That's all I have. I'm going to bed.

yepp yepp

Firstly i'd like to appluade you for the soapbox referance too many ppl have forgotten its referance to early americana. ^^

You'll always here me bitch about NA's and there little understanding of party mechanics. I'd totally agree that COR should not be EXP Whores... i even made a point of mentioning that upon first hearing of this ability... i said OMFG EXP WHORE time. Really i'd down play this as a situational fault... As you said each roll is a gamble, i'd prefer to not gamble with my EXP... The thing i have to state time and time again is that IT doesn't equate to good experience in fact IT's net you roughly the same EXP per hour as DC's and EM's. But common NA parties will pull them reguardless. So this is becomes another documented instance of faulty logic on the part of the majority of NA players. The others being of course:

BRD BALLAD ONRY
NIN SUB ONRY
SAM/THF ONRY
SUSHI ONRY
RDM REFRESH ONRY
etc...
NA's typicaly forget the point behind a job system is to experiment, not create hard fast standards. I personally believe Sam's benifit more from MNK sub than thf... sure they can do spike dmg, but wtf? with mnk sub they counter blows, they get subtle blow, and focus... not to mention HP... Or with RNG you favorite job... how often would you get harrassed in a NA party for subing something other than NIN? I mean its idiocy. THF, or COR could be viable subs for a RNG they boost natural Ranged skill caps, and add some other interesting abilities too.

ON COR: frankly i think SE goofed... they made it more or less BRD lite... they really maybe should have beefed its defense and HP rather than gave it a spell like ability.

well thats what i think... but hell i say give ppl in parties hell if it comes down to it. You know your job not them, after all your the one they piked up to fill that spot. If you want ppl to stop asking for it you could try to bust it whenever someone asks lol.

Life as a Support

Welcome to life as a support job. I feel your pain and I've heard of many other similar complaints.

I will say this, however, thus far I've only partied with CORs as a NIN. My personal evasion is already very high and I get interrupted rarely. Also, my ACC is already very high so I tend not to miss.

Thus, the only roll I really need beyond Corsair's is Rogue's Roll, for more criticals (and keeping hate).

I agree it's always going to be highly situational, and you may find other NINs out there with lousy EVA or ACC who need other rolls, but for me, personally I'd prefer Rogue's and Corsair's (unless we're fighting MNK mobs or something and I need Choral and Rogue's).

I guess what I'm saying is don't discount Corsair's outright because everyone always wants it. You may find situations where certain members really will only need one roll beyond Corsair's.

Vis Maior's Journeys
http://maior.samhart.net/

Support jobs

As Sam would say, “Sing it sister.”

I had a discussion about this same topic with quite a few people (mainly Sam). We came to the conclusion that most people do not really understand party dynamics or how to effectively work with support jobs. Milo, on occasion will preach this…

For example, being a BRD, most melee will always request something along the lines of “zomgom1!! I hitorz hardssz.z Minuet 14 onry!1!onetyseven.” When in actuality, I would prefer to sing situational songs such as Marches, Paeons or Etudes (depending upon Weapon Skill modifier). “Common buffs” are great, but if an alternate buff leads to faster chains, I would much rather use that.

The fact is, as a support job, you are only as effective and strong as your dumbest party member and that sucks; most players do not want to "ride out" a buff and fully evaluate its effects...

; ;

I've never been in the role of a support before. Its been really getting me down. Since I last posted this, its been bad enough i'm thinking of leaving the game over it. got in a yelling fight with someone in a party yesterday (they said they had COR at 60 and tried to tell me how to do my job) and someone called a GM on us.

Anyway, I'm sick and tired of it. I know not everyone will think this way, but it's just been my bad luck that all i get are assholes.

RavenclawX/Ranger

my party

My party broke up early last night because one of the party members had to go take care of his dryer after it caught on fire. He got it put out, guess he still needed to do some damage assessment.

So if life is more important than the game, you leave the game. If playing the game brings you no pleasure, you put the game aside for a bit. I think those are the two basic rules for online MMORPG's.

well...

My ex used to sing me this song.

"Cheer up don't be a grumpy grumpy, when the road get a little bumpy..." Ok so its not the greatest thing in the world but it did always make me smile. Ne who... if you don't like support jobs don't play them, i guess thats the easiest response anyone can give you... like everything in life there are somethings you can do and others can't... you just gotta stick to your guns and do what ya know ^^.

P.S> most players = toolbags

seee

i <3 brds that give me etudes rather than ballad I and II... fuck them dumbasses that don't understand the if my INT base = higher my spells hit harder, and if my spells hit harder the mob dies faster. This is better for alot of reasons, mainly more chains = more exp/hr and less hate. Why less hate? spells generate hate primarly based on number cast over damg/hp recover. so if i'm spamming more spells mob wanders over and eats my soft taru face. Also if mobs are dead they can't hit ppl so we take less dmg over all... i'd like to thank god for giving me the gift of understanding logic. ^^

Game too complex

I told Cyclonus last night I had come to the conclusion that FFXI was too complex of a game system for the average American Player. I am not sure Cyclonus agrees with me but FFXI is now up to eighteen jobs and I doubt that most of us understand more than a few aspects of over half of those jobs.

I think most American Party Leaders only understand "common buffs". As to any job being given an Experience Points Boost Buff...well, I feel sorry for that job. [Experience Points Party] [Yes, Please] is a very common in-game phrase so of course players are going to quickly hone in on a buff with a like description.

So I agree with Cyclonus's last paragraph with one small mod - I think "party member" might be better replaced with "party leader" as a lot of the folks putting together parties seem to have some pretty definite ideas of what they want their party to look like.

now see

I would have to disagree. I don't think its too complex, but then again i've been playing games for a number of years and have played all the FF's in fact 5 is one of my favs and so is 8 two of the worst picks by NA players. But then again i'm not you a typical NA player, i go to college (no offense cyc) for something other than business, (no offense maior) IT systems, or journalism. My thinking although it may seem hard and steed fast is not, i'm a libertarian (strict lockest actually), punk by motivation, and a proponent of philosophy as a core curriculum. I actual enjoy reading for my own gain not because some prof told me i need to. This however differs from the more common personalities floating around on FFXI. What i'm trying to get at is its only hard because these ppl make it hard, if you establish barriers in gaming or life things will become hard. Rigid thought blocks progress. I don't think that japanese are by far any more capable than the NA player... Were just limited more by the boundries we erect to guide our placid existance. I mean honestly think of it why don't more ppl vote? Run for office? protest simple things like wage cuts, or outsourcing? Whens the last boycott you've heard about? ... Why? because its easier to live life as an armchair cowboy and complain than to actual do something. Well enough on that rant... lol

I agree completely.

Well, to start things off, I'd like to state that every NA player seems to somehow know how to do your job better than you. Often, I see that our RDM needs WAR advice to keep the DRK refreshed, or the SMN needs advice to "stop using his avatar's to melee" as he is wasting precious healing MP. The other day, myself and Blackhalo got the chance to party together. Our SMN was using Fenrir as a DD...and I'd like to state for the record that he kicked ass at it. I said as much, and his response was "OMG! I got to write your name down. Everyone tells me to put him away."

Unless the player is botching the job compleatly, (And I mean compleatly, like a drk trying to tank or something, or a RDM deciding I don't need refresh) I like to assume that they've researched their job and know what the hell their doing.

Sadly, I seem to be the in the minority. People get stuck remembering that in this one really good party they had, the BRD used certain songs, therefore, those must be the best songs ever, or that a SMN has alot of mp and can heal, therefore he must be a good main heal.

....

i <3 kalaiv because he isn't a dumbass

Almost



You <3 Kaliv because he is a Galka...who can and will probably eat you. I have managed to tame the beast by offering free teleports. He is my roommate, sure, but I think without the free teleports he would have eaten me long ago.

Yum

Taru taste like Chocobos, only more boney. Lack of exercise makes most more juicy though. Chocobos can get stringy from all that running around.

Gross

Waiter, an order of sushi please. *gag*

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