Advanced chocobo raising

[Talila]

So...sorry for the necro bump, seems like it has been a long time since anyone posted here!

I quit playing for almost a year, and now that I'm back I've decided to raise another bird. The last C1 race (wtf at the race schedule change! I like it better now but was so surprised!) I lost to VenusWind and CobaltTail. Are these known NPC raised birds? Or are they from random ppl on my server? I can never be sure.

Either way they kick my butt. VenusWind is 8/3/8/3 with G&C on the board, not sure what saddle. CobaltTail is 8/1/7/5 with G&C. Venus Wind came in first and CT came in second, with my bird coming in third. My bird is 8/7/4/4 G&C.

I'm starting to think that 8/3/8/3 or something close might be the ideal setup, since she won by a lot! Just wanted some input from you guys since it's been forever, thanks =)

[urat]

From what I've seen on races, it tends to seem the all out burst speed birds beat the smart offensive birds, but endurance birds win over all otu speed birds, yet smart offensive birds beat endurance birds.

I just race between JP/NA primetimes when there's no one at the circuit, NPC birds don't stand a chance against my bird.

[nitsuj]

So...sorry for the necro bump, seems like it has been a long time since anyone posted here!

I quit playing for almost a year, and now that I'm back I've decided to raise another bird. The last C1 race (wtf at the race schedule change! I like it better now but was so surprised!) I lost to VenusWind and CobaltTail. Are these known NPC raised birds? Or are they from random ppl on my server? I can never be sure.

Either way they kick my butt. VenusWind is 8/3/8/3 with G&C on the board, not sure what saddle. CobaltTail is 8/1/7/5 with G&C. Venus Wind came in first and CT came in second, with my bird coming in third. My bird is 8/7/4/4 G&C.

I'm starting to think that 8/3/8/3 or something close might be the ideal setup, since she won by a lot! Just wanted some input from you guys since it's been forever, thanks =)

My bird is also 8/7/4/4/G/C and I've lost to birds like that, but also beat them... good ol' random number generation.

As to them being NPC birds, I think all NPC birds have single word names. 2 word names are usually PC's right? Either way, check the betting table. If they have a nation flag, it's a player. Otherwise it's NPC

[urat]

My bird is also 8/7/4/4/G/C and I've lost to birds like that, but also beat them... good ol' random number generation.

As to them being NPC birds, I think all NPC birds have single word names. 2 word names are usually PC's right? Either way, check the betting table. If they have a nation flag, it's a player. Otherwise it's NPC

ShilverChariot, MegaFlare, and I think there's a third; are "npc pc" owned, in which they are owned by an NPC attending the races, you can hear thenm commentate on the race as it starts with their bird.

If I recall the snooty elvaan F who always wodners where her butler is is the owner of shilver... Maybe, that or mega I dunno for sure

[Talila]

So then...is the circuit random now? It just picks a random number between the strongest birds and whichever number is picked...then that is the bird that wins?

Seems super shady. I raced again last night and came in second to a SS/B/A/C G&C PC bird, so I'm starting to think that a strong circuit racer is actually going to be 8/4/7/4 bird with Gallop and Canter INSTEAD of an 8/7/4/4 G&C bird.

I'm also thinking while I was gone SE must've updated things, because my 8/7/4/4 bird used to be unbeatable most of the time and now he sucks >.> I've already started racing again to get bucks to raise another, probably going to be 8/4/7/4 since that combo seems so strong these days

[nitsuj]

So then...is the circuit random now? It just picks a random number between the strongest birds and whichever number is picked...then that is the bird that wins?

Seems super shady. I raced again last night and came in second to a SS/B/A/C G&C PC bird, so I'm starting to think that a strong circuit racer is actually going to be 8/4/7/4 bird with Gallop and Canter INSTEAD of an 8/7/4/4 G&C bird.

I'm also thinking while I was gone SE must've updated things, because my 8/7/4/4 bird used to be unbeatable most of the time and now he sucks >.> I've already started racing again to get bucks to raise another, probably going to be 8/4/7/4 since that combo seems so strong these days

I would bet chocobucks that if you keep racing, you'll start winning more and it'll even out. I said the same thing when I started racing again last year, someone told me to chill, and sure enough they were right.

[Talila]

Just a small update:

Two nights ago I lost to a SS/B/A/C G&C bird, and then last night, it was him and I racing again but we were also up against a SS/B/B/B G&C bird, and that bird blew both of us out of the water.

I remember posting a while back about getting my butt kicked by a JP SS/B/B/B G&C bird. Has anyone else noticed that this combo is strong in the circuits or am I just imagining it?

[CDF]

If any one combination is going to be better than the rest, I would argue you have to consider how often (and how many) other PCs compete since PCs never use enfeebling items. The more PCs you face, (it seems) the less likely an 8/5/5/5 will place first compared to other PCs with higher endurance and/or discernment that would (might) otherwise be susceptible to enfeebling.

For example, I have two chocobos now (to help offset the reduction in net gil per race after the Nov 2009 update), both with Gallop/Canter. My results since the first 2010 update are

8/5/5/5 (always Elm Saddle): 33-29-20-7 (first-second-third-below third)
8/6/5/4 (mostly Cotton Saddle, so even worse net RCP): 27-14-16-11

From these results alone (confounders blah blah blah), lately my first chocobo is much more likely to place 2nd than the other, but is less likely to finish lower than 3rd. I did 8/6/5/4 the second time around since I thought RCP would be devalued a bit with so many JPs racing, but wanted enough RCP to compensate for saddle penalties.

I would laugh if saddles actually didn't increase STR beyond 255...

[Talila]

So your 8/5/5/5 bird places (either 1st, 2nd or 3rd) roughly 92% of the time, whereas your 8/6/5/4 bird only places around 83% of the time. I'm assuming both have gallop and canter?

For me it just seems that I used to get beat by 8/5/5/5 birds, and I'm still getting beat by them so it makes me lean towards the fact that they are probably the best setup when there are so many NPC birds in the races. And I really do wish there was more info on the saddles you can choose xD

[CDF]

I would entertain these possibilities: a nerf since March 2010, or at least more players are racing chocobos since November so having 12 C1 races a day did effectively nothing to alleviate congestion.

Between November and March, on my "good" chocobo (8/5/5/5 GC) I still won 40/79 races, but after March, 33/90 (I got freakin' third place yesterday with no competition, no competition being a rare occurrence on this piece-of-shit server).

[Talila]

Yeah I'm just so torn. Everything since I've came back seems soooo random...but like I said that first day I raced, the 8/4/7/4 bird with G&C blew everyone out of the water. I haven't raced the same time in any two days since I've come back so I haven't seen that bird again, but it was -no- contest. That bird just rocked it....so I think that is going to be my next bird setup.

[Thistle]

It's nice to see some folks still raise chocobos! It's one of the things I really miss about FFXI (and I've been missing a lot!). I'd poke my head in for a month to say hi, if there weren't a fee on top of the monthly fee just to get my character back.

What I'd give for a round of chocobo digging! Or Hot and Cold! ...just not a fee on top of the monthly fee.

[Talila]

Alllright, I have another question for all those hot and cold players. Do you use the black or the white racing silks?

[Guppy]

Alllright, I have another question for all those hot and cold players. Do you use the black or the white racing silks?

White racing silks. I would rather have a consistent guaranteed small advantage each dig, than an occasional big advantage.

There is some debate over whether or not it is possible to swap racing silks and get both advantages (summon bird while wearing white, then swap to black) -- the randomness of the black racing silk effect makes it really difficult to test unfortunately. However, I believe that the trigger conditions (must be worn while calling bird) would most likely be consistent across both types, in which case it would not work.