Random Question Thread XXI: You're Not My Random Question Thread Dad

[Mojo]

Very nice post on Shinryu I've been meaning to go back in there to fight it normally. Your comment about comet being dangerous due to instant cast is because it will double and triple cast it too, right?
How long does it take to alternate between open and closed wings modes? Is it purely time-based?

Yes that's why it's dangerous. Comet does a respectable amount of damage, thus you need to be fast with cures between casts or it can wipe you. Wing mode rotation is time based, although lots of damage 'might' be able to trigger a change (maybe people can start timing it and seeing if there is a difference), I don't know for sure. Also, both players using Doom Screen + Terror Screen right after the wing change (at around 35%) will probably allow enough time for a solid win without any luck regarding Supernova.

[Saiken]

Solid Wildfire setup for most situations? just stack mab? or AGI? atmas enough to gear towards ODD?

[Skeelo]

My wife has Gandiva and she has full af3+2. She also has ACP body augmented with +5 snapshot. Is it worth using that preshot then swapping into af3+2? Or just full time af3+2? Basically +5 snapshot vs. % of af3 proc. Also does the Augmented velocity shot on af3+2 work if you put it on midshot?

[xerodok]

Ideal Raging Rush inside and outside of Abyssea?

[Deader2818]

Solid Wildfire setup for most situations? just stack mab? or AGI? atmas enough to gear towards ODD?

Rule of thumb is 2 agi > 1 mab > 1 agi

[Kishar]

5/5 reward
5/5 call beast
5/5 beast healer
5/5 beast affinity

optional 1/5 feral howl, 4/5 beast affinity, but this is only useful if you need to claim shit

I'd disagree with this, actually. Beast healer is fairly useless (1 hp/tick added to food regen per merit), especially with the changes to pet food, addition of dawn mulsum, and atma. I'd go 5/5 Killer Instinct instead, as it adds a damage increase vs. the appropriate family, which is further improved by AF3 body and killer effects merits.

Beast Affinity is debatable. Used to be a no-brainer, but at the moment will only affect Nazuna (caps at 86 iirc). Once the cap goes up again it will let you get Nazuna to 96, but there might be better options for cheap DD pet by then anyway. I'd say: merit this to 2/5 now (enough to cap NN), but be prepared to either increase or decrease this after level cap lift.

I'd put the other 3/5 into feral howl probably, or maybe just hang onto them til level increase. Feral Howl is handy to get hate on a link so you can then snarl onto your pet, or as a poor man's stun for -agas etc in times of desperation, but it's nothing to write home about and it doesn't seem to work on NMs unless they are 50+ levels below you.

Category 1 is a bit up in the air at the moment. 5/5 reward is a good call whatever, but the rest depends what you do with your BST. If all you're going to do is abyssea parties, 5/5 killer effects to boost KI damage. If you solo a lot, 5/5 CB might be better.

[Cail]

Forgot to ask earlier in my other BST question...What're the best solo BST atma, and best for say, an ally xp?

[Pendulum]

bit of a 'how long is a piece of string' but how much bandwidth would you say ffxi uses on average per hour/day/month?

[Valisk]

Forgot to ask earlier in my other BST question...What're the best solo BST atma, and best for say, an ally xp?

So needy.

[SephYuyX]

BST Merits:
5 in Killer Effects, Sic Recast, Affinity, and Feral were the correct answer at 75.
Id wait till cap personaly, as BST will go through another change by then.
I think KillerE is a no brainer; everything else can be argued for now a days, minus KillerI and Tame, -15 sec reward also isnt worth it.

bit of a 'how long is a piece of string' but how much bandwidth would you say ffxi uses on average per hour/day/month?

Less than browsing to Google, probably.

[sedna]

Do the higher level Hydra's in Dyna-Glacier have a higher drop rate on NM pop items (such as odious talisman, etc)?

[Kaisha]

Farming some BLU spells, decided to check something that always bugged me about Delkfutt, the basement blockade.

So what's the dilly-o with this 'gate' in Delkfutt's basement? I never recalled it having a targetting point way the fuck back in the day, and looking through the wall (still surprised SE never bothered fixing that ancient camera clipping trick) shows there's a fair bit behind it other than a dead-end that I thought it used to be.

I always figured it was an incomplete location back in the day that was blocked off prematurely because the map gives the usual 'transitions to another map' look to it at that spot. The gate target makes me wonder if there's more to it now. I'm an explorer damnit, I need to know what's behind it!

Spoiler: show

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...xidelkfutt.jpg

[EDIT] Nevermind, after some searching through otherwiki's horrible search engine, apparently the target is involved in the CoP series of quests associated with naming C.I.D that I ignored way back.

Bit disappointed that you don't get to go behind that gate, it's just an NM trigger/CS.

I really, really hate it when SE deliberately blocks off location due to change in plans during development, like that large large-as-fuck open space in the northern sector of Passhow[S] that's blocked off by some rocks, or the infamous soccer field in Fort Karugo. Actually, thinking about it, did they ever give purpose to that out-of-reach location in E.Ron[S], or that gate in the far NE corner in Sauro[S]?

[Ocara]

Farming some BLU spells, decided to check something that always bugged me about Delkfutt, the basement blockade.

So what's the dilly-o with this 'gate' in Delkfutt's basement? I never recalled it having a targetting point way the fuck back in the day, and looking through the wall (still surprised SE never bothered fixing that ancient camera clipping trick) shows there's a fair bit behind it other than a dead-end that I thought it used to be.

I always figured it was an incomplete location back in the day that was blocked off prematurely because the map gives the usual 'transitions to another map' look to it at that spot. The gate target makes me wonder if there's more to it now. I'm an explorer damnit, I need to know what's behind it!

Spoiler: show

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...xidelkfutt.jpg

[EDIT] Nevermind, after some searching through otherwiki's horrible search engine, apparently the target is involved in the CoP series of quests associated with naming C.I.D that I ignored way back.

Bit disappointed that you don't get to go behind that gate, it's just an NM trigger/CS. ;/

That's the spot that pops an NM weapon I think for some quest/mission. I think a CoP thing around the airship missions.

Edit: damn your edit while I was posting.

[Kaisha]

I tend to do that a lot. ;/

Still makes me curious about the other locations I ninja'd into the edit of the edit also. Fuck, I need a better tool to examine zone dats in. The JP one I got is flaky and crashes here and there.

[Ocara]

You could also use fillmode to see behind it a bit more from at the gate, but I'm guessing like most halls like that, it goes just far enough to look like it's real from the perspective of the door and then cuts off. I tend to do a lot of poking around with fillmode when I'm wandering around because the zone design from a modeling/artistic point of view is interesting to me.

[Obsidian]

I've been using Asuran Fists. Get upwards of 1200 with just GH atma on normal mobs, and the last NM I fought, Berstuk, I saw 400-700~ damage on. Not the best in the world, but better than Backhand Blow damage.

I'll be working on getting Ascetic's Fury asap, but I've got subs and crap to deal with still.

Note: Reported damage are with DMG+3 Crit+4 Savate Fists.

Gnarled Horn does literally nothing for Asuran Fists. I'd say Ascetics is more important than getting the +2 stats from subs being at 45.

[Chun Liroy]

Is there any way to do alfard without it turning after it tails each time?

[Kaisha]

You could also use fillmode to see behind it a bit more from at the gate, but I'm guessing like most halls like that, it goes just far enough to look like it's real from the perspective of the door and then cuts off. I tend to do a lot of poking around with fillmode when I'm wandering around because the zone design from a modeling/artistic point of view is interesting to me.

I play vanilla here.

In the Delkfutt pic I was expecting just a short hallway behind the blockade, but it actually loops around, has a staircase leading up to the next floor, and then another hallway that gets cut off due to FFXI's engine not rendering out-of-view details.

[Mercilessturtle]

Is there any way to do alfard without it turning after it tails each time?

Play with position on the terrain. Depending where you have him sometimes he spins around all the time, but if you get the right spot you can get him to sit still.

[Churchill]

Do the higher level Hydra's in Dyna-Glacier have a higher drop rate on NM pop items (such as odious talisman, etc)?

Pretty sure only the T-VT mobs drop those pop items, so the answer would be yes.