FFXI Mog Satchel - Registering your Security Token

Here is a run down of the procedures you must follow in order to successfully register your FFXI Security Token so you can log in with your new one-use passwords and enable your Mog Satchel.

1. Open the box and navigate to the internet address provided.
2. Create an account and log in. (Accept the usage agreement.)
3. Enter your email address.
4. A verification email is sent to the address you entered.
5. Click the URL provided in the verification email.
6. Enter your desired ID. (Check for availability.)
7. Enter a password. (Enter in the password confirmation.)
8. Enter your birthday.
9. Select a security question. (Just in case you lose or forget your password.)
10. Enter the answer to your security question.
11. Confirm the data and submit.
12. Login using the account you just created.
13. Select the Security Expansion. (Click next.)
14. Select the Security Token Registration. (Click next.)
15. Accept the terms. (Click next.)
16. Enter the seriel number located on the back of your Security Token.
17. Press the red button on your Security Token to display a one-use password.
18. Enter the six digit code displayed on the device. (Click next.)
19. Complete the Registration.

Well, that wasn’t so bad, was it? But wait! You aren’t done! Now that you’ve registered your Security Token, you’ve got to add it to your PlayOnline account! I know, right? But don’t worry, this is pretty quick and easy too.

1. On the left of the screen, click Link Settings.
2. Select “Add a link” (Click next.)
3. Select PlayOnline. (Note: trial accounts cannot be linked.)
4. Select PlayOnline Info. (Click next.)
5. Confirm your account.
6. Confirm Add.
7. Open PlayOnline.
8. Edit login settings to include “One time password”

Congratulations! You have now added the Security Token to your FFXI account. You will now be required to enter two passwords each time you log in. The first password will be the one that you created in the registration portion of this guide. The second password will be generated by pressing the red button on your Security Token device. “One time password” does not indicate that you will only enter the password once, but instead that each password the device generates will only be good for one use. You will still be required to enter in a new password in this field each time you log in.
If you have found this guide useful, I would also like to recommend my other articles on Final Fantasy XI.

• Mog Satchel and Security Token for FFXI
• Tips on How to Avoid a Ban from FFXI for Real Players
• Thinking About a Return to Final Fantasy XI?

Read more: http://gameolosophy.com/games/fantasy/final-fantasy/registering-your-security-token-for-ffxi-mog-satchel/#ixzz1a9cP73KR

How to Beat FFXI

Okay, so the game isn't really beatable, it just isn't designed that way. But there are things within Final Fantasy XI that were very hard, or next to impossible, to do without a dedicated group that have become much easier with the increased level cap. As a bit of a disclaimer, I was recently prescribed Prozac for some service related anxiety problems and as a result my desire to play the game has all but faded away in the last couple of weeks. I'm a disabled veteran, you see, and as a result I sometimes have a hard time dealing with everyday situations. I haven't given up the ghost yet, and still plan on spending more quality time within vana'diel.

Some of my recent accomplishments include progressing further in both the ToAU and WotG story lines, getting my soboro great katana, and getting my joytoy. Classic items such as the Blau Dolche dagger have become incredibly cheap, but are still just as effective in their normal level range before you begin upgrading to new weapons and gear from the add-ons.

I haven't experienced anything new from the recent level cap increase to 95 yet. I just log in and do some crafting, post to the auction house, and check on my chocobo. Other than that I've been pinging around the house doing things I haven't done much of in years. It's both good and bad. Sometimes I feel like I'm burning the fuse at both ends. Panic attacks are not uncommon.

I've been trying to think of other things I can do in FFXI that might have a more calming affect. Maybe I Gould spend more time working on the magian weapons, or leveling RDM from 75. I don't know. It seems that the key to having a great time in the game is still based on the idea of having core friends you can do things with. I mean, I can solo Shinryu, but that's not much fun after the first few times. I could probably go solo some of the old gods in Sky, but I never learned much about that area and how all of that works.

I have been meaning to level up my synergy skill, but that honestly sounds so boring.

So how about you guys? What have you been doing lately in FFXI that seems worthy of your time?  Have you gone back to lay some of those elusive notorious monsters like Charybdis? Have you been looking for things to do while leveling multiple jobs to 90, now 95? Give me some feedback here.

FFXI Thunder Magian Staff Trials

I managed to hit level 90 on my Black Image after leaving it at 61 for the longest time, so I figured that it might me a good idea to start working on the magian staves to replace my old elem staves I've had laying about. One of the first things I noticed was that the first trial overlaps for several staves. While inventory slots are precious right now, I decided to grab a few so the trial staves and headed out to Grauberg (S) to smack down some treants with the frequent wind weather there.

Trial 790
Treants
50 while
weather must be present
5 points per kill
Grauberg (S)

This was slow going solo, but it wasn't long before someone else showed up with a lot more to kill than I needed for one staff. Taking advantage of the momentum, I warped back to Jeuno and turned in the trial for the first, then a second, and a third staff. Note: you can't have the same trial on more than one weapon. You have to warp back and accept 790 on the next staff once you've completed one.

Trial 791
50 Spiders
Weather: Heat, Wind, Thunder, or Light
5 points per kill
Kuftal Tunnel

I tried for hours hanging out in the Boyahda Tree for thunder but it was a no go. I'd read about this being the same experience for some on the wiki talk page for this trial and they'd ended up heading to Kuftal to finish. After several levels of staff skill dorking around in the Tree as BLM/BST, I caved and headed for the hills. Finishing this trial was super quick with another duo I ran into there. And just as we finished we ran face to face into Guivre. Yikes! Okay, not so much anymore. I popped manawall, hit manafont for giggles, and went to town. I'd say the poor guy didn't have much of a chance, but I don't feel that bad for him. That day vengeance was mine!

Trial 816
50 Monsters
Weather or Day: Thunder
1, 5, or 6 points per kill
The Boyahda Tree

By the time I rolled around to this trial, the weather npc gave favorable chances for lightning in the Tree, so I headed out to kill spiders and shrooms. It was easy enough, nothing too interesting to report here. I did go as BLM/BST for more staff skill and the kills were super easy, as they should be at this level. The numbers listed above for kills are as follows: 1 for a kill on Lightningsday, 5 for Thunder weather, 6 for both at the same time.

Trial 817
75 Beasts
Weather or Day: Thunder
1, 5, or 6 points per kill
The Boyahda Tree

Again, weather was feeling stormy in the Tree, so that's where I went. Only this time the target was the bunnies, Moss Eaters. Super easy, went /bst for staff skill. Ran out of weather and finished the last 20 or so with day kills, which was a bit slower but did the trick.

Trial 822
150 Vermin
Killing blow >= 50 Thunder damage
1 point per kill
Grauberg (S)

For this trial I headed back to Grauberg to hunt down those pesky chigoes. I ended up getting a group for a little less than half of these and with another BLM in the group we totally smoked them. Thundaga III followed by a Thundaga and that was that. Soloing took some time, but it wasn't too bad since I no longer had to wait for weather and the kills were easy. En-disease did suck when it landed so I just tried to keep refresh up and convert handy from my RDM sub.

That's all I have for now. Next on my list is trial 823, 200 slimes with Thunder killing blow of 150+. Den of Rancor is supposed to be good. I'll update later as I progress.

FFXI Ultimate Collection Abyssea Edition

After several months trying to like FFXIV and many attempts to go back and try to get into the game, I finally made my way back to Final Fantasy XI. It seems like now was the perfect time to return with the release of the Final Fantasy XI Ultimate Collection - Abyssea Edition. You can get right back into the game with all of the expansions and add-ons for only 20 bucks and it's available as a digital download through Amazon and Steam. This was perfect for me since I had missed the latest addons and at the normal 10 bucks a pop I saved a good ten bucks at least. I honestly can't recall where I left off with the addons since I didn't really end up doing any of the story lines for them past the first one, and of course I stopped playing right before I got the sweet end piece of augmented gear.

Now there is Abyssea and a level cap of 90. I'm left wondering which class I should play. I've spent the last couple of days dorking around on BST and finishing an old 290 axe trial. Is it just me or did experience points from mobs get increased? I started the quest to get into the new areas, I just need to go enter one of the maws and turn in my key item for some visitation time. Without a linkshell, though, it seems a little scary. I mean, what's to lose except a little experience points, right? Still, I wish I could find some Abyssea mentors to help me understand all these time extensions, at as, and insane experience points groups that are available. I guess the first step to that would be to just ask, but I guess I've been busy with other in game things so far. It goes back to th question of what job I want to play. While I've been thinking it over, I've been leveling up some crafts, spending some Gil, making some Gil, and LOVING how the auction houses are all tied into Jeuno now. Take that, FFXIV, why can't you get it right like XI? Superior retainer system my ass.

Another cool thing about this Ultimate Collection is that it comes just in time to snag the 9th anniversary experience points bonus ring and outfits. The Novennial ring comes with an experience point bonus of +100% for a maximum of 9000 extra points per charge and a duration of 720 minutes per go. This puppy has 10 charges, so if you don't let any go to waste that's 90,0000 bonus experience points by the time you're through. Amazing! As far as the novennial outfits go, they are quite Victorian in style and very slick. The male version is not as colorful, but does have a bit of charm to it. Personally, I'm digging the female version. The coloring and design is breathtaking - and that's saying something coming from a hetero male.


Here's my mule, Angrymonkey sporting his bodacious digs.


The female Novennial gear has got to be one of my all time favorite armor designs.

You'll have to forgive me for the quality of the photos, I took them off my big screen TV with my Xoom. They aren't to show off the quality of the game, which has improved by the way with adjustable background ratio up to 16:10, but to highlight some of the things I'm excited about. So, without further delay, I will introduce the Destrier Beret that comes with this collection via special code. This hat turns you into a chocobo! Not only that, but for your jobs under 30, it also adds regen, refresh, auto-raise,  increased skill gain, and increased movement speed! Is that insane? I love it! Picture added to post for awesomeness.



This helm is awesome! It makes me want to play one of my jobs I never leveled.


Here's me as a chocobo!

BTW - there are a lot of speculation threads on the internet that assume this is only for new accounts, but I can confirm that they code works for existing accounts as well.

FFXIV Auction House

It's been a while since I posted on this blog. Honestly, I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I stopped playing the game months ago. After loading it up the other day to take a peek at what's changed, I was still mostly unimpressed. Good news though, there's another update coming tomorrow (March 3rd, 2011) that quite a few people seem to be excited about. I won't hold my breath.

The going notion seems to be that the game is in a general beta state at the moment. I'd have to agree that this is true. Actually, if you're looking for an escape... the game probably isn't too shabby right now in comparison to some single player titles. In fact, to a large degree it does feel much like a single player game. Sure, there are real people walking around, but there hasn't been a lot of chatter in the areas I've been to lately. After tossing out a shout to ask for opinions of the game after months of work, I was able to connect with a player who was quite helpful. So I suppose the interaction is there if you're looking for it. Hands down, though, you can easily squeeze out more than forty hours just learning the different classes and trying out leves and missions. The update tomorrow is supposed to include side quests as well. That's always nice.

But what about the auction house in FFXIV? The developers haven't killed the idea, and may include it in the future... I really hope they do. There are some hardcore players that love the idea of the retainer market system with it's shoddy improvements. But the bottom line is that it takes far too much effort to sustain a healthy economy. Fostering player interaction? My ass. We did just fine in FFXI. I can trade off the auction house through the trade channel in World of Warcraft without much effort. I don't need the entire economic dynamic to be centered around bouncing through floor after floor of retainer areas and dealing with people bazaar'ing items in the wrong floor just to find what I want to buy or compare prices to list my own wares.

You see, to some (myself included), the economy is a very big part of an MMO. There is a whole game inside the game with comparing prices, calculating return on investment, the worth of time spent, the rates of sales, and all the intricacies of supply and demand. Just as in every MMO, the game is always full of people complaining about never having enough online currency and there will always be those who seem to have an abundance. With this comes price gouging, competition, rising and falling prices as markets are neglected or swamped. It can be invigorating.

Logging on to check your mail and see what sold is a common source of joy for many players, whether they are market barons, farmers, or the people who just sell the junk they get while completing quests and grinding.

You can argue against the auction house all you want, but it's an eventuality that must come if the game is to ever see a successful root in PS3 and further PC sales. If you are one of the ones staunchly defending the market wards, you should consider the value of broad appeal. S-E won't serve up FFXIV for free forever and I doubt that current subscriptions would be enough to sustain it -- not even counting the people who would leave if the low, low price of "free" was increased...

I can honestly say that it is a big deal to me and that I just can't see myself sticking with the game without a healthy economic system that is as simple as searching for an item and either bidding or buying with a matter of a few clicks at most.

I had planned on adding a PS3 copy to my collection so I could play between the two like I did with FFXI. So, you see, this isn't necessarily a rant post. More like a Come-to-Jesus plea for help. I was so excited for this game to have all the market intricacies that I enjoyed in XI and that I get in WoW at a very low scale. I think the basis is there between the different crafts, and the game could include a lot more complexity where it seems things were just hashed together. I'm both excited and afraid for the future of this game as a long-standing MMO title in the Final Fantasy franchise. I hope they can pull it together.