How to ask for help: An allakhazam repost

[Prrsha]

Have you ever had to get something done and needed help to do it, but you just couldn't seem to get the help you so desperately sought?

Have you ever felt like your LS were a bunch of selfish n00bs because every time you asked for help, all you ever heard was crickets chirping?

Well, I'd like to offer some tips for success when things like Prime avatar battles, limit quests, AF quests etc. stand between you and ultimate victory. You may not like what I have to say, and that's fine. Just keep one thing in mind: if you're having difficulty arranging assistance for your grand master schemes of world domination, try something different.

Part One: Overview

FFXI was not developed for bed-wetters. It was originally developed in Japan, for a Japanese market that consisted of the 24-40 age demographic. For you young people out there, I'm not trying to be condescending, but I am pointing out a fact in a blunt fashion.

This game was not developed in such a way that REQUIRES lvl 75 help to complete quests at lvl 30. If you can find higher level help, or are silly enough to shell out 10-100k+ gil to get it, more power to you, but I'm here to tell you it's not necessary. If you can't get it done with a group around your level, you shouldn't be expecting to get it done yet. You want Rank 5 at level 30 so bad that you'll spend day after day in Jeuno shouting for help? Hey, go nuts...just remember that you have basically committed yourself to wasting a ton of time. Your time would have been much better used preparing yourself for exp groups and gaining some more levels.

Does this mean that if you have an opportunity to do some things at a "lower than ideal" level that you should turn them down? Of course not. Just try not to make it a priority.

Part Two: Reputation

Do you do stupid things? For example, do you quartermaster loot in BCNMs? Do you try to MPK people because they claimed the NM you were camping or because their party was in the same exp zone as yours?

Do you spam stupid emotes/shouts in Jeuno? Even worse, do you have stupid emotes in your combat macros? Do you beg for gil (either from random people or people in your LS)? Do you "borrow" gear or gil from people and then pretend they never gave it to you?

If you do any of these things, stop it. Now. Not only are you being an irritating player, you are earning a terrible reputation for yourself. People who know you, and people who know the people who know you, will eventually avoid you like the plague. They won't see "Random player X" shouting in Jeuno for help getting Papyrus for Limit 1, they'll see "That irritating, thiefing jackass" shouting in Jeuno for help.

What goes around comes around...remember that. It will serve you well in life, and in the game.

Part 3: Your LS and You

I can't tell you how many times I've had to counsel disheartened LS mates that they are expecting too much from their LS. Remember, almost everyone logs into the game with some idea in mind of what they would like to do with their playtime. They may have plans to find an exp group, or to take care of some quests/missions of their own.

Logging into the game and saying to your LS, "Hey guys! I want to do mission 5-2 tonight! Who wants to help me?" is not a good idea. Remember what you are asking for. Beyond Rank 4, pretty much every mission in the game requires at least a couple of hours from the time you have a group/alliance assembled to the time you expect to be done the mission. Hopeing to find people who are ready, willing, and able to commit several hours to help you on a moment's notice is not a wise expectation.

If you are hoping to get some help from your LS to accomplish a particular task, give them some advance notice...preferably at least 2 or 3 days. You'd be much better of saying, "Hey guys, it's Wednesday. I'm hoping to get Mission 5-2 done sometime this weekend. Are any of you going to be around this weekend that might want to help?"

If you try it from that aspect from time to time and you still hear crickets chirping, ask yourself a couple of questions:

1) How often to I ask for help? If you are always asking for help to get this, that or the other thing done, odds are your LS has "donor fatigue". They're tired of helping the same person over and over again. Other people in the LS likely want help as well. Don't be unfair to your LS by monopolizing their time.

2) How often do you contribute to your LS? It doesn't really matter what level you are or what level they are. If you are serious about being a welcome member in any group for any period of time, you have to find some way of your own to contribute. Saying, "I'm only xx level and they are all yy level so I can't help with anything" is sort of a weak way out. You don't have to be lvl 70 to take up a craft that can benefit members of your LS. You don't have to be Rank 10 to be one of the first people to offer to check the price of something on the AH if you're near one when somebody asks.

If you ask for LS help no more than once or twice/month, and consistantly find yourself making whatever contributions to the group you can and you STILL can't get them to agree to help you with something at a later date, find another LS. Odds are, the one you have has some issues that you aren't going to be able to remedy on your own.

Never try to force an issue. I was once in an LS with a lower level member who was always asking for one thing or another. I was new to the LS and he needed 3k gil to buy a new spell. I lent him the gil when he told me he'd pay me back that night. The next day rolled around and there was no gil in my in-box. I had to ask him for it and he sent it right away. (3k gil is less than 15 minutes worth of ammunition to me...it was the principle of the situation).

Later, he was asking for more gil. Actually, he was asking for someone to either lend him some gil or buy some spells for him. Good lord, that was annoying. The LS leader warned him that begging was not acceptable. He stopped...for a day. The next day he was right back at it. He even sent me a /tell directly, asking for me to go to Selbina and buy the spells for him, or at least lend him the gil. He was booted from the LS, and he proceeded to whine to me that the LS never did anything for him anyways.

Be honest with yourself in evaluating your contribution to any group. YOU may not thinking asking for free teleports or a few k gil here and there means much, but I can tell you first hand that your LS likely finds it irritating as hell. All you are doing by constantly nagging for little things is ensuring that when you have a legitimate need for assistance, everyone will be so sick of hearing you asking for stuff that they're going to tune you out simply out of habit.

Vana'diel at Large

So your LS is unwilling or unable to help you, or you just want to get something done and don't feel like planning an event for it. Shouting for help in Jeuno is often a good way to get help. As with most things, however, there is a right way and a wrong way to go about doing it.

WIIFM = What's In It For Me? Remember, shouting for help to random strangers means that they are going to be much more willing to help you if there is some benefit in the situation for them. This doesn't make them selfish people, it makes them human. If you can't find a way for them to benefit in the process of helping you, you're going to have a very tough time. (Keep in mind that offering to pay people for their help is a last resort, and is frowned upon by many people).

A great example of this is trying to get help for coffer key hunting. If you assemble a group of 6 or more people, all of them needing a coffer key, you're going to be hunting coffers for a very, very long time. You're better off finding some other way for people to benefit. Getting together a group of people for a skillup party is a much better means of not only attracting larger numbers of higher level people to assist you, but it means when that elusive coffer key drops, there are going to be fewer people competing for the highest lot.

This same thing can apply to such things as Genkai 1 items. Genkai 1 is probably the single most hated quest in the game. Finding people to help you out of the goodness of their heart is a shot in the dark at best. Nobody wants to re-visit the hell that is camping Liches unless there is some other way they can benefit.

Summary

The "me me me" attitude that is prevalent amongst many players of this game is totally counterproductive. It's certainly an aspect of our culture that we could do away with. "I want it, and I want it now" is an attitude that will only lead to frustration and disappointment.

If you've tried other avenues of seeking assistance and haven't had the results you would like, try some of the things I have suggested. Remember, it's a big game with a lot of people. If you know how to ask, pretty much anything you could ever want can be yours if you're prepared to take the necessary time to do it right.

Good luck ^^

[Prrsha]

Woah! I'm a King Cat now. Shouldn't that rread Queen Cat or King Kat?

[Dukuji]

Very interesting stuff, thanks for sharing.

Just one question, who wrote this, and if it wasn't you why are you afraid to tell us who the author is?

[Prrsha]

Oh, no. It wasn't me who wrote it. It was a repost from allakhazam (as was denoted in the topic title). The original post can be found here:

http://ffxi.allakhazam.com/forum.html?f ... 752&num=13

It was written by AureliusSir. I thought the post was interesting so I reposted it herrre. Sorry for the mixup.

[Kopopo]

ANTI-ALLA!!

[Josiejo]

Heh... PRO-ALLA! I love checking stuff out there... it helps fill in the holes that the Official Guide leaves out, or is simply ignorant to.

I find that the best way to get a party is start one yourself. Even if you don't have the "optimum" job/sub combination, or not a preferred job at your level, as long as you get enough of the "desired" jobs in your party, people will join. However, it is nice to not have to be the organizer every single time.

[Maezen]

hehe josiojo broaden your horizons...

don't get me wrong, I check Alla too, but I like to reference other sites too just to make sure the info is right. Also Alla has a lot of people on there that post wrong material or flame each other constantly

mysterytour is straight information if you can decipher the broken english

http://mysterytour.web.infoseek.co.jp/ffxi/us/

[Josiejo]

Haha... just go to the Windurst Mission walkthroughs for all you need to know about that site before chucking your monitor at cute furry woodland creatures. I'll take English (Allakhazam) for 1000, Alex.

[Dukuji]

hehe josiojo broaden your horizons...

don't get me wrong, I check Alla too, but I like to reference other sites too just to make sure the info is right. Also Alla has a lot of people on there that post wrong material or flame each other constantly

mysterytour is straight information if you can decipher the broken english http://mysterytour.web.infoseek.co.jp/ffxi/us/

Amen. Alla is nice but . . . yeah . . . it's gets old and 99% of the people who post there are idiots.

As for Mysterytour . . .

[Maezen]

Really the only thing that Alla has that Mystery tour doesn't is the "Quote of the day" it brings a smile to my face whenever they change it.

my favorite to date is "why are poison potions listed under medicines at the AH?"

[Alya Mizar (Tsybil)]

Amen. Alla is nice but . . . yeah . . . it's gets old and 99% of the people who post there are idiots.

The only reason you say that is because you do not read GameFAQs.

[Sivara]

Very good post!

I don't check Alla's forums anymore unless I'm REALLY bored. Every time I go back, it's always the same old stuff: "I hate Chinese gilsellers botters GMs are stupid CoP is stupid this game is stupid I'm going to WoW my LS sucks this person MPKed me."

There's still some great info there, just like this post.

When I'm hunting info, I usually go to Alla and Mystery Tour. MT has links to useful mining/logging maps and treasure chest/coffer maps. Alla does not. MT also has thoroughly checked and corrected information. Alla sometimes has incorrect guides followed by a series of posts debating about the information, and sometimes someone will post the right info, but the main guide isn't corrected. And, of course, someone has to post a random flame as well; on a post about some random piece of equipment (the Phalanx ring, I think) someone posted some random flame about DRK being stronger than DRG.

Back on topic: Too many people have quit FFXI in disgust because they can't get help or can't get a party. They don't realize that (1) it's how you ask, who you know, and what kind of player you are that matters and (2) every day the server has a different set of variables.

By variables, I mean that X number of people are seeking parties, and Y number are seeking missions, and Z number are farming/fishing/solo questing/crafting. Ever had trouble finding a tank when there are 5-6 mages seeking? Check the next day, and there will be 3-4 tanks seeking and NO mages. There have even been days when I couldn't find a good DD! Sometimes you walk into Jeuno and there are people forming a G1 alliance. Sometimes people are piecing together parties for a Promyvion run. Sometimes there's nothing but lag and casino spam. The variables change.

Yes, people get into this "I want it NOW!" mentality. "I want a party NOW! I want my paper NOW! I want Rank 5 NOW!" Then, when the server variables are not favorable to them at that moment in time - "This game sucks! My LS sucks! I hate FFXI! I hate you all!"

Easy solution: TRY AGAIN LATER. Yeah, it's frustrating to plan on getting something and then not getting it, but that's Life and that's also Life in Vana'diel. You kinda have to log on with the intention of doing something and the willingness to let the adventure spoil your plans and sweep you into something else. What's the saying... "Life is what happens when you're busy making plans"?

Example: I went to Beadeaux the other day to steal some Quadav Stew for my AF1 knife. After snagging the stew, a little Tarutaru asked me to help him kill some Quadav for his Bastok mission. I gladly helped him out, delaying my plans for getting a sexy new knife. We had fun, and he was very grateful for my assistance.

And so ends a long and rambling post.

[Kopopo]

I wanna turn this site into a place where people can get info. I want quests, missions, spell/item/armor/weapon/accessory lists. Maps... Everything!

[Maezen]

that would definately be awesome kupopo!

unfortunately some Taru i know is too busy being teh Cutaru and not working on it.

i'm trying to record what i've been using to skill up cooking and make a good guide for those out there that would like to learn how to do it and not go broke. If you check under the alexander kitty tradeables, I started a thread called "yummy dishes" which i try to update with useful foods to consume that won't put a hole in your purse or wallet.

the thread can be found here

[Dukuji]

Amen. Alla is nice but . . . yeah . . . it's gets old and 99% of the people who post there are idiots.

The only reason you say that is because you do not read GameFAQs.

=>.>=
=<.<=

I have . . .
GameFAQs is a brutal brutal brutal place full of nasty trolls and nameless monsters that have crawled out of the darkest abyss.

Sound about right? Well, at least that's my impression of place.

[Lihera]

http://www.cheatcc.com/pc/finalf11.html
seriously, where do these guys get this garbage? Seems worse than http://www.rpgexpert.com

[Kahvi]

i would call gamfaqs, rpgexpert, and cheatcc "Mainstream orifaces of gaming in general" and as such they are a magnet for Trolls, Flame Magi, and lurkers that go bump in the night.

but as a source of information, it seems that people usually write guides, stick them there, and never come back sometimes.

[Alya Mizar (Tsybil)]

Amen. Alla is nice but . . . yeah . . . it's gets old and 99% of the people who post there are idiots.

The only reason you say that is because you do not read GameFAQs.

I have . . .
GameFAQs is a brutal brutal brutal place full of nasty trolls and nameless monsters that have crawled out of the darkest abyss.

Sound about right? Well, at least that's my impression of place.

Yeah, that's about rrright. The Trolls and Flamers are often graded on a 1 - 10 scale. The weak kneed ones go to lesser circles of the pit. Alakazam perhaps?

Like every other fourm, there is good info there too, you just need to lick yourself clean after visiting that one.

[Josiejo]

Oh, I don't bother reading the forums on Allakhazam, just the facts ma'am. The only thing I could get off of the mission/quest walkthroughs on Mysterytour is either a laugh or a headache. Engrish in small doses can be amusing, but in large quantities is quite frustrating.

When I was beta-testing WoW, I was like so many FFXI Alla posters... "I'm never going back to FFXI, WoW is so much more fun, blah-dee-dah". Boy was I wrong! WoW has its place, but there just seems to be something more grandiose about FFXI that, even though there's incessant grinding, it still is more fun and more epic. I think it's partly due to the fact that PvP is never an issue. If you want to do it, you go play Ballista. But otherwise, everyone on the server is united under a common goal, and instead of fighting each other, they're helping each other progress. People are more impressed by accomplishment than PK count, and you tend to make less enemies. PvP WoW is a ganker's heaven, and a respectable player's nightmare. Too many times I was just minding my own business, trying to complete quests or kill mobs for experience when I'd get hit from behind by someone 20+ levels above me who had nothing better to do. Let me tell you.. it gets old quick.

So, for people who want a fast game without any sort of epic feeling of accomplishment or difficult hurdles to face to progress their character, WoW is for them, but I'll be on FFXI scratching my way to the next level. And that's all I'll say about that.

[Meesa]

Woah! I'm a King Cat now. Shouldn't that rread Queen Cat or King Kat?

Just be glad it's not Kit Kat though that would be "sweet". LOL hug

[Meesa]

WoW has its place, but there just seems to be something more grandiose about FFXI that, even though there's incessant grinding, it still is more fun and more epic.

I heartily agree. FFXI certainly makes even the most menial task seem important. I've tried for instance Saga of Ryzom where they just give you fetch quests and the way you choose is off a list from an NPC. That just seemed so impersonal. But with FFXI, even though you may be playing messenger to a housewife, you are actually truly doing someone a favor and not just going on some "menial duty". You get the worry from the wife and the husband's annoyance at being worried about when he gets your message and then the wife's relief when you report back. Very human and much more rewarding.

That's what the FFXI world means to me: the human factor and the community, which includes being with all of you guys out there. People such as you especially make the game worthwhile, making it not just a game but an actual world and community. Much of my joy comes from the chatter on the channels whether party or linkshell and the camaraderie. Thanks for the joy. Thanks for the fun. Thanks for the world.

[xaresity]

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[xaresity]

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[xaresity]

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