Final Fantasy XI/Characters

FFXI Races
In Final Fantasy XI there are 5 different races to choose from, each with their own unique advantages and disadvantages. All of them (except for Mithra and Galka) can be played as a male or female character and can, to an extent, be customized in appearance. However, the selection for these customizations is much smaller than it is in other MMORPGs, and therefore you are bound to run into several characters who look exactly like yours.

Hume
The Hume tends to be the most popular choice, as they are the only human-looking race. They are also a completely balanced character, having no particular strengths or weaknesses. Some argue that the Hume is the best race for playing multi-purpose jobs such as Red Mage.

Mithra
The Mithra is a cat-like race that can only be played as female. Having high dexterity and agility, it can become a great Thief or Ninja. It also has the ability to eat raw fish; something the game will allow you to do with no other race.

Tarutaru
The Tarutaru is the smallest race in the game. They have low strength and vitality so they tend not to make the greatest melee or tank. Their extremely high intelligence lets them become powerful Black Mages, and while having low mind, their large MP pools allow them to make great White Mages and Summoners as well.

Galka
The Galka, technically not having a gender, are huge and generally thought of to all be male. Their high vitality and HP make them perfect for tank jobs such as Warrior or Paladin, and their above average dexterity and strength make them good melee damage dealers. Having the lowest MP pool out of all of the races, Galkans tend to stay away from the mage jobs. The Galka have a unique ability similar to the Mithra's; they can enjoy the boosts of any raw meat.

Elvaan
The Elvaan are a tall race (It's argued whether the average Elvaan or Galka height is taller) that have high vitality and strength, but in exchange have poor dexterity and agility. Elvaan are well-suited to playing Paladin, Warrior and Ranger, although they can hold their own with other melee jobs.

FFXI Jobs
Final Fantasy XI has an unique job system (or class system) with two distinguishing features. First, after completing a certain quest each character can have both a main job and a support job. The support job grants the character all its abilities and stat bonuses, but its level is capped at half the main job level. Second, all characters can change main and support jobs at any time in certain locations in the game. A character can only gain experience points for their current main job, and must level support jobs separately. A character's stats will only be affected by its current main and support jobs, with the exception of merit points that can be gained after the maximum level of 75 is attained.

There are 6 basic jobs in Final Fantasy XI: Black Mage, Monk, Red Mage, Thief, Warrior and White Mage. There are also 12 advanced jobs which can be individually quested at level 30 in any job. Three of the advanced jobs require the Rise of the Zilart expansion pack, and three of the advanced jobs require the Treasures of Aht Urhgan expansion.

Black Mage
As in all Final Fantasy games, Black Mage's main focus is magical attack. The main attributes affecting this job are intelligence and MP. Equipment can also be used to boost magic attack bonus and the amount of mp gained while resting. Spells are not learned at certain levels. You have to buy them at a magic shop, clearly. Same applies for any other jobs that use spells.

Monk
The monk is a melee damage dealer proficient in the use of hand-to-hand weapons such as katars and patas. Aside from weapon proficiency, Monks are unique in that they are the only job that can guard (halving physical damage from an attack) or counter (nullify an attack and deal damage).

Red Mage
Red Mage is usually the best solo job, with a combination of healing and attack magic, a proficiency with swords as well as the Refresh spell to restore magic points over time. Red Mages specialize in enfeebling magic, drawing on both intelligence and mind to slow, blind, paralyze, etc. their foes.

Thief
The thief is a nimble warrior who uses their speed and sneak attack ability to deal large amounts of damage if positioned correctly. Thieves also get an ability called trick attack which tricks the enemy into thinking another character dealt the following attack. The combination of these two abilities can make for excellent hate management, but only if used carefully. Thief has proficiency with daggers, although they can make good use of crossbows as well. The ideal sub job for a thief is to use ninja for Utsusemi: Ichi and Utsusemi: Ni for pulling but also for dual knives for more damage.

Warrior
Warrior is the most balanced of melee jobs. They can load up on attack gear and be a respectable damage dealer, or load up on defensive gear and be a tank. Their strongest weapon proficiency is with axes (two handed and one handed), but they can do well with a variety of other weapons if needed. I recommend you to use a one hand axe so you can equip a shield as well. Warrior is quite possibly the most mis-played job in the early levels, because they start with a sword rather than an axe or great axe.

White Mage
As with all Final Fantasy games, White Mages are the best at healing. A high mind stat can marginally boost their healing spells, and increase the accuracy of their paralyze and slow spells, but a large MP pool is more important in the long run. White mages are also in charge of removing negative status ailments such as poison or paralysis, which often keeps the job from being incredibly dull. White Mages are useful in the end game due to their Raise III spell which greatly reduces the experience points lost on death.

Bard
Bard is a support job, similar to Red Mage in a party situation. They sing songs for the party or against the enemy, and can eventually boost any resistance or strength in the game. The number of concurrent songs is limited, however, so most of the time accuracy and attack songs are used. Like Red Mages, Bards can easily get party invites, but the job can get repetitive.

Beast Master
Beast Master is very different from all other jobs because it is usually played solo or in small groups, rather than the traditional group of six. Beast Masters have the ability to charm some monsters, and to have them attack other things. This job is very slow before level 35, and even after that it can have a hard time in a crowded area. Still, Beast Master is near Red Mage in terms of solo ability, because it can charm some powerful monsters.

Dark Knight
Dark Knight is somewhat like a cross between Warrior and Black Mage. Their highest weapon proficiency is scythe, although great sword is at least as good for most of the game. Dark Knights rely on dark magic spells to drain the stats of its enemy, effectively buffing themselves and debuffing the enemy at the same time. Dark Knights are also able to drain HP and MP, to save themselves some resting time.

Dragoon
The dragoon is a melee damage dealer that primarily uses a polearm. Their distinguishing feature is the wyvern they can summon to fight alongside them. Aside from attacking, the wyvern will also perform certain actions depending on the Dragoon's support job. For example, if a Dragoon/White Mage with low HP casts a spell, his wyvern will use a healing breath to heal him.

This job requires the Rise of the Zilart expansion.

Ninja
Ninjas get special spells called ninjutsu which require the use of items in the inventory. Most notably, the utsusemi ninjutsu will give the caster copy image, so they can get attacked three times without taking damage. At level 37, Ninjas get a second utsusemi which can be used with the first to blink tank, which involves holding hate without taking any damage. Other ninjutsu can rebuff the enemy, deal elemental damage or make the caster invisible. Due to the use of items with ninjutsu, Ninja is arguably the most expensive job.

This job requires the Rise of the Zilart expansion.

Paladin
The Paladin is somewhat like a mix between a Warrior and a White Mage, and is almost exclusively used as a tank job, with Warrior as the support job. Their highest weapon proficiency is in the sword, and they also have the highest shield skill. Of all the tank jobs, Paladins are desirable because they are good at holding hate, and bring an extra MP pool to the party. Don't ever make fun of Paladins again!

Ranger
Ranger is usually considered a melee job, although they are most effective at a short distance with a ranged weapon. Rangers have equal proficiency in bows, crossbows and guns, and their melee weapons are selected based on stat bonuses alone. Because ammo is a finite resource in Final Fantasy XI, Ranger is arguably the second most expensive job.

Samurai
Samurai are the masters of weaponskills, and specialize in the great katana. Samurai are known for their meditate ability which generates tech points (TP) without having to attack anything. Samurai are also somewhat proficient with a bow, and with a Ranger support job they can use the powerful sidewinder weaponskill. (the ability to use ranged weaponskills are limited to Ranger as a main job, solely)

This job requires the Rise of the Zilart expansion.

Summoner
Summoners have low physical stats, and have no offensive or healing spells of their own. Instead, they rely on summoned avatars and spirits to do their work for them. A summoner's avatars must be quested and defeated before they can be used, and gain abilities as the summoner levels up. At level 70, summoners become a formidable damage dealer due to the abilities their avatars get at that level, although avatars can only use abilities once per minute. In general, summoners use the White Mage support job so they can assist in healing while not summoning or resting.

Blue Mage
Like the Red Mage, this job is a more well-rounded magic-user class capable of melee fighting as well as magic-based damage-dealing. The primary difference is that Blue Mage spells are actually enemy weapon skills, acquired by seeing them performed by the enemy in combat. While Blue Mage seems like an ultra-powerful solo class due to spells that significantly boost defense and self-healing spells, the advantages of the job even out at higher levels, making its solo capabilities roughly even with Ninja. Its primary weaknesses are no latent stat bonuses (bonuses are gained through learning spells) and an inability to use almost all shields.

This job requires the Treasures of Aht Urghan expansion.

Corsair
The best way to describe this class would be a gambler, but the Corsair functions much like a damage-dealing Bard. Corsairs have the ability to raise various stats of the party like accuracy and attack rating, but unlike Bards, Corsairs do so with the roll of dice and, depending on the value of the roll, the variance of the boost changes. Generally, the higher the roll, the greater the effect, but rolling 12+ results in a bust, removing the effect and penalizing the roller. Also, as one would expect from a pirate, Corsairs acquire the ability to use guns in combat. Their ranged damage dealing ability, while expensive, sets them apart from Bards and Red Mages, but their lack of enfeebling effects, most notably Dispel, makes them slightly less sought-after.

This job requires the Treasures of Aht Urghan expansion.

Puppetmaster
This job class is another pet-based job like Beastmaster or Dragoon, but unlike the others, the player is given a companion puppet. Unlike the other jobs, however, the puppet's abilities are completely independent from the player's abilities, depending instead on attachments purchased by the player. In this way, the puppet is customizable and therefore more like an NPC Buddy than a pet, though the player assumes direct control of the puppet's actions. As a puppeteer, this job also excels in hand-to-hand weaponry, but not to the same degree as Monk.

This job requires the Treasures of Aht Urghan expansion.

Subjobs
While FFXI gives you the freedom of selecting ANY job combination for use with your character, not every combination is going to be as beneficial as it might seem. It is important to note that while a subjob may give you access to its passive abilities and weapon skills, you will not have access to its 2-hour ability and your weapon choice and equipment remain limited to your main job. As a general rule, main jobs make the best subjobs and advanced jobs often do not, but there are exceptions. Here is a list of commonly used subjobs and how they effect the main job.

Warrior
Warrior is, with one exception, the BEST subjob for a tank-class character in party situations. The ability to use Provoke is an essential tool for Ninja and Paladins, and the Warrior's enhanced defense offers plenty of survivability to these roles. The only exception being Ninja sub Black Mage, where the ninja uses elemental damage to keep monster hate. However, this only works at higher levels. Low level Blue Mages may consider taking Warrior as a sub for limited tanking (Cocoon makes for an absurd defense rating), Blue Mages won't want to be tanking past level 20. Also, with its bolstered attack abilities (and later, double-attack), Warrior makes a superior subjob for most melee-based damage dealers like Monk, Dark Knight, and Dragoon, though others may prefer Ninja or Thief. While Warrior may seem promising to weak mage classes attempting to solo, selecting it as a subjob does not significantly increase any stats and cripples your character's potential, as job abilities like Provoke and Berserk are worthless.

Thief
Thief is arguably the most popular subjob, if not main job, for farming purposes. Access to the Treasure Hunter ability, as well as Sneak Attack, make it a quick way to earn items and gil off of easy monsters. However, with the exception of Evasion Boost, Thief has no abilities that boost its main job's tanking ability, making it a less popular solo sub for more difficult enemies. In party situations, Thief's ability to Sneak Attack and its higher dexterity stat make it a popular choice for melee damage-dealers like Dark Knight, Warrior, and Dragoon, though advanced jobs will most often prefer Warrior for melee purposes, as Thief offers little to increase damage over time. Blue Mage/Thief couples significantly well because, as Blue Mage spells are enemy weapon skills, Sneak Attack can be used with Blue Mage spells to produce absurd damage. Other mage classes will not benefit from Thief in party situations.

Monk
Monk is almost exclusively used by two characters: tanking Warriors and damage-dealing Puppeteers. Because Monk's abilities focus almost entirely on hand-to-hand melee and puppeteer is the only other job to do so, it does not match up well with any other main jobs. What makes Monk a significant benefit to tanking Warriors, however, is an increased HP and the ability to Boost attacks, making the Warrior/Monk almost as effective at keeping hate at low levels as the Paladin.

Red Mage
Red Mage is such a well-rounded main job that it adds very little as a subjob, even for other mage classes. Its primary advantages are the Fast Cast ability, quickening spell casting spell time, and its high intelligence, making it a possible alternative to White Mage for the Black Mage's sub. Despite increased damage, however, the Black Mage/Red Mage will never gain access to Raise, Poisona, Curaga, Divine Seal, and other abilities which make Black Mage/White Mage the most popular choice.

White Mage
Arguably the most popular subjob due to its versatility with various main jobs. Every support job class should consider White Mage as its sub for an increased MP pool and the indispensable ability to cure and heal status ailments in a tight spot. Bard/White Mage is perhaps the most sought-after party member in experience parties aside from White Mage itself, and Corsair/White Mage can be played very similarly, adding in the ability to damage-deal with guns. Summoners may choose Black Mage to boost damage dealing ability and MP, but most Summoners, particularly at high levels, will want to choose White Mage as their sub, leaving their summon to do the damage while they assist in healing. Soloing, White Mage adds significant survivability to various jobs that already have an MP pool like Paladin and Dark Knight, and gives Beastmasters the ability to stay alive long enough to charm something if things go ill. Other melee jobs like Warrior and Thief will not want White Mage as a sub, as the MP gained is insignificant. Dragoon/White Mage remains a special case, as their pet gains the ability to heal the Dragoon each time a weapon skill is used without the use of MP, making it a highly soloable job combination.

Black Mage
While not as popular as the White Mage sub, Black Mage can offer significant benefits to the magic-user. Because Black Mage has a higher intelligence and MP pool than White Mage and the unique abilities to randomly reduce the cost of spells, boost the effect of a single offensive spell, and drain MP from an enemy, it isn't uncommon for a damage-focused Red Mage or Summoner, who already has access to healing abilities, to choose Black Mage as their sub. Whether or not Black Mage or White Mage is a better subjob for those jobs, however, depends entirely on the party setup. Dark Knight may choose to take Black Mage in party situations because, at low levels, this adds to the MP pool and increases their non-physical damage ability. However, by end-game Dark Knights will want to be more reliant upon physical strength, relying on MP only to drain enemy abilities, MP and HP, so getting used to Dark Knight/Warrior is generally recommended. Ninja and Corsair have the unique ability to lower an enemy's resistance to a certain element and consequently Black Mage can be used to exploit those weaknesses, however, such a character is difficult to play.

Ninja
Ninja is by far the most useful subjob of the advanced jobs. Not only does the main job gain the ability Utsusemi, allowing it to go without taking damage for three hits, but it also allows for the ability to wield a weapon in the off-hand. Warriors will most often take Ninja after level 20 for its threefold benefits of boosting damage output, building hate, and reducing damage taken. Rangers and Corsairs will love the fact that they can pull and occasionally take hate without having to worry about their defense rating, as well as being able to equip two knives which boost ranged accuracy. While the Thief/Warrior specializes in high-damage output per hit, Ninja's Dual Wield ability allows Thieves to build TP faster and increases the time between attacks, allowing them the ability to Sneak Attack their Weapon Skills more often and giving them more time to set it up, all but guaranteeing incredible damage output. White Mage/Ninja is capable of blink-tanking without taking damage, but keeping hate with this method will burn a lot of MP and is very difficult to master. Jobs which focus on two-handed weapons like Dark Knight, Dragoon, and Samurai will not benefit from Ninja as a sub, as Dual Wield becomes useless, and Monks do not benefit because they already dual wield fists. These high-level damage dealers will not want Utsusemi either, instead focusing on spreading out their damage evenly so as not to take hate from the tanking jobs. The only major drawback of this sub is the significant expense it adds to your main job.