The Item Search Feature (12/21/10) (Also Version update patch notes)

[Stiker]

I do get what FFXIV is trying to do with market wards, I really do. It's a more "personal" approach--I'm sure someone pitched this idea of being able to go to a player's individual shop, and having developing business relationships and such. Sure that's great on a small scale, but when you have as much clutter with retainers as you do in the wards, it's pointless.

Running around in the wards trying to find your buddy amongst a clutter of hell does not a personal system make. Even if they are loaded first with this new search system.

Hopefully this search is step one to finding a compromise in between the two. Personally though, I think they should scrap wards, but keep retainers since I can't see the system being scrapped completely for an AH. Basically keep the search function in place, yet stop the pointless running to said retainer once your search is done.

Say for instance, instead of the current ward entrances taking you to the wards as we have them, have it take you to a separate "zone" in which you have the search interface up. You can search for either item or retainer. A completed search will then allow you to select said retainer and have them appear on screen (think search up on left side, retainer up on right side). You get to see all the "personal" touches of the retainer and their store, eliminate the pointless need for separate ward zones, and basically have an AH interface as well.

Seems like a good compromise to me (as well as a possible pipe dream).

[Arximiro]

After using the search feature for a few days I kind of like it. Having 3 cities with wards is kind of a pain, there should just be one zone that you warp to like the chocobo circuit was. One person said earlier in this thread that the search feature would make YG that much better. I think it was before we actually used it, but the fact is that it makes YG worse.

We no longer have to skim through bazarrs to find shit thus it doesn't get scanned to YG anymore. Last night I was looking for a lot of mid-level gear for my Lancer and everything I looked up on YG almost was either 2-3D old. So without people hardly scanning retainers randomly YG is going to become less useful unless more people start taking advantage of it.

All the other features of YG will still be cool, but shopping is gonna take quite a hit once the search feature becomes commonplace. For me it already is how I find most things now.

[Ferr]

It's a more "personal" approach--I'm sure someone pitched this idea of being able to go to a player's individual shop, and having developing business relationships and such.

Hell, Phantasy Star Universe have personal shops (with a proper search system) and it worked better than the wards system

[Vacht]

I do get what FFXIV is trying to do with market wards, I really do. It's a more "personal" approach--I'm sure someone pitched this idea of being able to go to a player's individual shop, and having developing business relationships and such. Sure that's great on a small scale, but when you have as much clutter with retainers as you do in the wards, it's pointless.

Running around in the wards trying to find your buddy amongst a clutter of hell does not a personal system make. Even if they are loaded first with this new search system.

Hopefully this search is step one to finding a compromise in between the two. Personally though, I think they should scrap wards, but keep retainers since I can't see the system being scrapped completely for an AH. Basically keep the search function in place, yet stop the pointless running to said retainer once your search is done.

Say for instance, instead of the current ward entrances taking you to the wards as we have them, have it take you to a separate "zone" in which you have the search interface up. You can search for either item or retainer. A completed search will then allow you to select said retainer and have them appear on screen (think search up on left side, retainer up on right side). You get to see all the "personal" touches of the retainer and their store, eliminate the pointless need for separate ward zones, and basically have an AH interface as well.

Seems like a good compromise to me (as well as a possible pipe dream).

I havnt played yet because im on PS3, but can you not do /check <name> to pull up their bazaar? or whatever the equivalent?

[ZarakiKujata]

Hell, Phantasy Star Universe have personal shops (with a proper search system) and it worked better than the wards system

Honestly, its not too fucking late to steal PSU's entire system while keeping the idea of retainers and a personal shop system.

Turn Wards zone into MH, keep search function and let you search from your MH, when you find the item, it ports you to the 1st listed persons's Shop/MH and they can buy off the retainer.

[Selamis]

I havnt played yet because im on PS3, but can you not do /check <name> to pull up their bazaar? or whatever the equivalent?

Your retainer is an npc that you name, unless you tell people what your npc name is there isn't a way to find out which retainer belongs to what player. At least there wasn't, not sure if it does now. I just started playing like a few days ago since my hiatus from beta, and haven't ventured into the wards yet.

[miokomioko]

I don't know why they didn't include the player's name in parenthesis or something when you're perusing their retainer's bazaar.

[Arximiro]

I havnt played yet because im on PS3, but can you not do /check <name> to pull up their bazaar? or whatever the equivalent?

To answer your question no there is no /check command in the game and no /target. The Red Star eliminates the need for any of that though, not that I ever had a problem loading retainers in the first place except for the lulz battleward. Even if there was a check command though it wouldn't do any good since that's not how you access the bazarr anymore.

[ZarakiKujata]

/c works on players..

[Arximiro]

Yes, but you have to be targeting them thus not making anything any easier. On FFXI you could /check name and check people even if they weren't loaded on your screen, or /target name to target in the same manner for cures.

You are right though /c and /check will examine another player as long as you have them targeted, but yeah that doesn't really help anything on any level.