Absolute Virtue feature on Massively.com

[Ruiner]

To put this all into perspective, arguably the best AV drop, Ninurta's Sash, was just stolen from a player and sold to another for 200 million. I'm not too up to date on the price of Dynamis currency, but I'd estimate that you could probably finish a relic weapon and be well on your way to a second with that amount of money.

You could do three easily, although I believe it was 134m + Gaiters + KC + Sonic. The value of those probably come out to 66m though.

[tymora]

It is stupid to fight JoL for ~45 min to 1 hour each with multiple tries and then have AV pop when people are too tired to go on. SE is assuming unrealistically that everyone can or would play straight for 8+ hours without taking a break.

Even if people are willing to team up on AV, it is like nearly impossible to invite people at a moment's notice on a pop. Bad game design here - They might have tested the mob but I bet they never tested how to assemble a full team from nothing.

If anything, JoL should drop a pop item for AV and AV should be a separate ???. At least people can then properly schedule a full day and properly assemble a cross-ls team for an EPIC fight even if said EPIC fight ends up finishing in 2 min (because of wipe).

With more tries available, we would be able to figure out stuff more efficiently (assuming we could and there is something to figure out) but not before.

[Chupunpupun]

They might have tested the mob but I bet they never tested how to assemble a full team from nothing.

I agree, gathering usually takes over an hour. From trying to sort out jobs for the people that are coming and making the PT to travel time.

[Toxictaru]

I think the worst thing about the video was simply the fact that we had to piece together 4 different videos. If they were dropping hints, it was lost in the fact that 4 different videos needed to be translated and then pieced together to get nothing more than further fractured look at how to "defeat" AV.

Sadly, I once had an obsession with AV, I looked for videos, looked for information, whatever I could find. I eventually made it to sea, and hoped to one day actually give JoL a shot.... When I finally did, AV did pop, but I sort of just stopped, looked, smiled to myself knowing that I'd seen it. It was a sarcastic smile, because I knew that it was impossible to beat.

I still maintain a game goal of wanting to beat AV, but its not something I dwell on. I don't care for the 80+ pages of crap, because it can be summarized in one sentence: AV cannot be defeated. Despite the fact that SE claims it can be, most people tend to agree that SE is full of it, and we're all being duped. Sadly, unless SE outright tells us, there will only be 2 legit sashes (iirc) across all servers, as few Mars's (though I've had the pleasure of partying with someone who actually has one). For what? 2 years ago, it mattered, but they really are just +1s of items that are far easier to obtain.

I think the only reason there is any interest in AV any more is because some people just don't want to let it go... the bulk of the community don't seem to give half a damn about popping AV and actually giving it a shot. I wonder if there will be a time AV will be defeatable... and whether or not people will even have the desire to try to farm drops.

[orson]

Think you gonna have to reread and edit your post a bit. I'm not sure what you are trying to say but I've experience party aggro from AV when I was in an PT with a SAM who did a gekko to test his damage. After it chopped the SAM into pieces, it came after me even though I was miles away watching.

As far as I care, if AV pops, it's running to the hills time.

I have not tried it more then once but I personally have voked AV off the Thf/Nin it aggroed on pop, it killed me, and it stopped completely (returned to spawn point and did nothing.) Every other time we've encountered it people in alliance I'm pretty sure have been resting, curing, or some form of hate generation. Even then it tends to be that he deaggros without killing the whole alliance often when he gets claimed.

Maybe there's something more to it but I'm pretty sure that AV acts like any other regular aggroed mob except that it has alliance hate (until "claimed".)

[Virtuous Saint]

AV is 100% possible to kill, and it is extremely likely the video does show, or in some manner hint at the way to actually prolong reuse timer, or even... lock it's 2hrs, yes I said it.

There is only 1 monster in the game that cannot be defeated, and that is Dark Rider, this was purely introduced to help ToAU plot line, and this perticular monster has no title, no possible drops based on .dat mining, and has never been said to be killable by SE.

Anyone who says AV is impossible not only sounds dumb, but they are saying a monster which has a title AND drops cannot be killed, not only would SE not lie about the fact that it CAN be killed, but they 100% FACT WOULD NOT take 20-25 people to make some video out of THEIR own time which they would NOT at all have had to make to drag on people to ask more, and more questions about AV. Let me tell you people something, and I don't care what you think about it: SE clearly DOES want people to fight and KILL AV, but they also CLEARLY want people to find the way to kill it by themselves, THIS is exactly why SE holds back on most questions asked about AV, however they have given numerous hints and tips now, and the answer is still not found. SE truely does want people to find the answers to things on their own, the latest interview the dev team talked about the fact that they wanted players to see what campaign held and what to do ect, they do NOT want to give an update and tell EVERYONE what to do/how to kill NMs.

Ixion for example was released with no tip on how to claim/kill, nono this was found BY player base, which is exactly what SE intended when they placed it in the game for players to fight. Just think how long it would have been a mystery as to how to claim it if it wasn't for .dat mining... some random guy just decided to try the new throwing item which has no stats, all jobs, and drops with frequency from pixies, now this all does give someone the thought that it might work, which is why it was tried, and did work... If it wasn't for .dat mining however, this could have taken weeks or months to figure out.. with all things considered. Everyone searches .dats ect on update, do any of you think SE WANTS you to find what the .dats hold? Well I can assure you the answer is 'no'.

I know as well as anyone else AV has been out forever and player base still cannot kill it based on the actual SE developed way to kill it, I know it is easy... very easy to give up on such a mob, but the true fact is there is a way to defeat this NM, and it has not been found yet. When/if it ever is found you will clearly see what kind of (hint, tip, strat) was intended to be seen from the video.

SE wants people to keep playing the game, and making them huge amounts of money, they develope HNM and NM for this very reason, and the longer it takes for someone to figure out how to kill something the more people will remain playing to figure that very thing out, and it works incredibly well in their favor... You may think them not giving the secret out is hurting them, but all it is doing is helping them just as it has the passed what... 2-3years+ now? This same exact thing holds true with drop rates... Items are rare for a reason, and that is to keep people playing for extremely LONG periods of time for the drops, and my god it works perfectly... If everyone had all items that were released right after an update, the next update seems just longer and longer.. anyway I think everyone gets where I am going with this so I will end this long post.

[Turambar]

AV is 100% possible to kill, and it is extremely likely the video does show, or in some manner hint at the way to actually prolong reuse timer, or even... lock it's 2hrs, yes I said it.

There is only 1 monster in the game that cannot be defeated, and that is Dark Rider, this was purely introduced to help ToAU plot line, and this perticular monster has no title, no possible drops based on .dat mining, and has never been said to be killable by SE.

Anyone who says AV is impossible not only sounds dumb, but they are saying a monster which has a title AND drops cannot be killed, not only would SE not lie about the fact that it CAN be killed, but they 100% FACT WOULD NOT take 20-25 people to make some video out of THEIR own time which they would NOT at all have had to make to drag on people to ask more, and more questions about AV. Let me tell you people something, and I don't care what you think about it: SE clearly DOES want people to fight and KILL AV, but they also CLEARLY want people to find the way to kill it by themselves, THIS is exactly why SE holds back on most questions asked about AV, however they have given numerous hints and tips now, and the answer is still not found. SE truely does want people to find the answers to things on their own, the latest interview the dev team talked about the fact that they wanted players to see what campaign held and what to do ect, they do NOT want to give an update and tell EVERYONE what to do/how to kill NMs.

Ixion for example was released with no tip on how to claim/kill, nono this was found BY player base, which is exactly what SE intended when they placed it in the game for players to fight. Just think how long it would have been a mystery as to how to claim it if it wasn't for .dat mining... some random guy just decided to try the new throwing item which has no stats, all jobs, and drops with frequency from pixies, now this all does give someone the thought that it might work, which is why it was tried, and did work... If it wasn't for .dat mining however, this could have taken weeks or months to figure out.. with all things considered. Everyone searches .dats ect on update, do any of you think SE WANTS you to find what the .dats hold? Well I can assure you the answer is 'no'.

I know as well as anyone else AV has been out forever and player base still cannot kill it based on the actual SE developed way to kill it, I know it is easy... very easy to give up on such a mob, but the true fact is there is a way to defeat this NM, and it has not been found yet. When/if it ever is found you will clearly see what kind of (hint, tip, strat) was intended to be seen from the video.

SE wants people to keep playing the game, and making them huge amounts of money, they develope HNM and NM for this very reason, and the longer it takes for someone to figure out how to kill something the more people will remain playing to figure that very thing out, and it works incredibly well in their favor... You may think them not giving the secret out is hurting them, but all it is doing is helping them just as it has the passed what... 2-3years+ now? This same exact thing holds true with drop rates... Items are rare for a reason, and that is to keep people playing for extremely LONG periods of time for the drops, and my god it works perfectly... If everyone had all items that were released right after an update, the next update seems just longer and longer.. anyway I think everyone gets where I am going with this so I will end this long post.

Sage Sundi posting under an assumed name? Oh yes.

Bolded part in particular: Yes, the method to kill Ixion was determined within a week of when it was added. AV has been in the game for over 2 years now, and the same playerbase hasn't gotten anywhere. Doesn't that tell you something?

[Virtuous Saint]

Sage Sundi posting under an assumed name? Oh yes.

Bolded part in particular: Yes, the method to kill Ixion was determined within a week of when it was added. AV has been in the game for over 2 years now, and the same playerbase hasn't gotten anywhere. Doesn't that tell you something?

No, I think you missed my point which was that yes... Ixion was figured out extremely quickly due to .dat mining; nothing more nothing less.

[Sagacious Sundi]

Learn your FFXI update history, guys. AV is 3 years old.

[Turambar]

Learn your FFXI update history, guys. AV is 3 years old.

3 years is "over 2 years" in every numerical system I'm aware of. You do bring up a good point though. According to the update history on lolwiki, Sea HNMs were added exactly 3 years ago yesterday.

[vagus]

Kaeko's post has a lot of information about AV. This article should be an interesting read and i hope people at SE catch a clipse of it. It seriously is a joke of a NM, almost impossible without using the "wall of justice". GL with the article.

[Linktri]

AV is 100% possible to kill, and it is extremely likely the video does show, or in some manner hint at the way to actually prolong reuse timer, or even... lock it's 2hrs, yes I said it.

You said it and everyone else said it over the course of three years. Blah, blah, blah.

[ronin sparthos]

No, I think you missed my point which was that yes... Ixion was figured out extremely quickly due to .dat mining; nothing more nothing less.

Even without .dat mining, how long do you think the cat would have stayed in the bag about Pixies dropping Stygian Ash? (The ash has even has a rare flag on it... thats a hint)

We've seen this kind of system in the game before and granted Stygian Ash shares the same model as the other 4 sky god throwing items (since they changed the model) it really wasnt hard to logically assume a theory that throwing the Ash causes Ixion to attack you instead of running off and then actively field testing it yourself. At the best, you get mauled by Ixion - at the worst you just wasted a few hours of time farming ash and testing it on Ixion.

Thats where things go sour for our friend Absolute Virtue - you cant do shit by yourself and how easy is it to get 30+ people to gather on a spot, everyone accepts they are going to most likely die multiple times, spawn a 1-2hour JOL and then HOPEFULLY your test subject spawns and gives you time to start experimenting before he kills all of your tanks and proceeds in ripping your alliance to ribbons?

Absolute Virtue may not be literally impossible but he has so much going against him that he may as well be. Its been years, the developers cant see pass their own 'genius', the video was received as shit globally and AV is as beaten to death as kings are.

-You need to farm JOL pop sets which takes weeks
-spawn JOL - a pretty annoying/boring/snoozefest fight
-hope that your weeks of grinding leads to the appearance of AV
-Use some sort of completely unorthodox strategy involving multiple people, coordination and time to defeat him in what seems like a 5-6hour fight on top of an already stressful 1-2hour JOL fight.
-Hope through all this that he doesnt pop the Benediction card or the Manafont WMDs that both lead to massive wiping or a huge waste of time. Did i mention this is demoralizing as fuck and in no way 'fun'?

SE can speak because they know the secrets and how exactly the Aern works but do they have any expierience forming an HNM alliance, how the common endgamer views events, how long it takes for players to organize a typical JOL pop set or exactly how long a typical JOL takes for an endgame shell? Hell-fucking-No.

Ixion took 48 hours and without .datmining i doubt he'd have taken much more than a week to figure out. (how to claim at least) If anything Pandemonium Warden should be compared to AV and even he can be spawned whenever the LS wants to and the two/three attempts on his life have made some significant progress.

AV hasnt been past 79% legitly in years.

[kayn]

Hay guyz! This just in, AV isn't broken!
It's an 18 hour fight! There is no trick! You just keep throwing bodies at him!

[Surealistic]

if they say it can take up to 18 hours, to me that means your waiting on something, like a specific day or something, dunno, just something that popped in my head

[Drex]

if they say it can take up to 18 hours, to me that means your waiting on something, like a specific day or something, dunno, just something that popped in my head

Waiting for it to die of old age

[Kirbyprime]

Or, easiest way ever. Take 500 BLMs to sea. And once AV pops, CFH on it and have all the BLMs sync ES Thundaga III on it. >.> If it benes, well, just keep spamming, it'll either die or the server will crash, one or the other.

[nitsuj]

Or, easiest way ever. Take 500 BLMs to sea. And once AV pops, CFH on it and have all the BLMs sync ES Thundaga III on it. >.> If it benes, well, just keep spamming, it'll either die or the server will crash, one or the other.

This is my planned strategy. Who cares about drops. Let's just kill it.

In fact, let's all server transfer to one server and zone into sea and just rape him.

[Therin]

I disagree with Virtuous Saint in that I believe it would be a very good idea (financially) for SE to release more information (albeit not hold our hands) about AV, because now rather than having a largely ignored super-monster we'd have an extremely challenging but possible fight that literally every HNM LS and end-game LS on every server throughout the entire game would want to fight.

Could you imagine the resurgence in Sea farming if SE were to reveal enough about AV that it actually made a difference? I'm sure people would come back from quitting or just in general spend more time playing when they would otherwise be playing WoW or doing something else entirely.

[Jaffar]

When is this article supposed to be published?