Background

Ok now that I have more time today i figured i would go into more detail about who I am. I like to babble on sometimes so this may get wordy. Oh well not like you have to read this.

So anyways if you haven't figured it out yet this is a blog about my FFXI character. I currently play on the leviathan server but some people may be surprised to learn i actually first started this game on Carbuncle.

You see I first started playing this game after moving to another state. When I first moved I didn't have a place to live in for a few month's as me and my wife just decided almost on a whim to up and move closer to her family. So when we first got here we lived with her sister and brother-in-law. It just so happened about a week after we moved in her brother -in-law (hence forth referred to as Niege) bought a ps2 with a hard drive and got this game. I officially started playing in April of 2004, making me a somewhat older player now. My original character on that server was Ravenstrike if anyone can remember that far back, my highest level was only about 36 DRK if I remember correctly.

Eventually me and my wife moved out and got our own place and for a long while I didn't have access to ffxi. This was because I did not have a ps2 nor did I have a very good computer. It wasn't until Feb of 2005 that i was once again able to play.

By this time however, my friend Niege had already left the game. You see he works a lot and quickly discovered that ffxi was just too time intensive for him. He never did make it past the dunes after several months of playing. He retired having got blm and whm to level 18.

With that said there was no real reason for me to choose to go back to carbuncle. I only remembered a handful of people from my old ls and back then with the game being still new people came and went and started new characters a lot anyways. Odds are they wouldn't even be around. My ls leader back then was Underwatersquid, hard name to forget, and he was a very nice person at the time. Wonder if he still plays or if the game has changed his persona?

So I loaded up the game chose the name Malaketh, first try and the name went through so i got the name I wanted, and saw my first new day in Vana'diel as a hume in bastok on the Leviathan server.

I picked RDM from the very start. I knew what i wanted to be and had researched a lot about all the job classes before i ever started my new endeavor. RDM just seemed to be able to do so many things and other jobs just seemed to be missing out on some stuff. I mean i could cast spells with blm but would never be able to do much in melee. As a mnk i could beat on things as much as i like but would never be able to cast spells. It just seemed like I would be missing out on a part of ffxi if I couldn't do a bit of everything.

Now as I have progressed a long I realize that was some flawed thinking as leveling other jobs to a high level isn't as difficult as I thought. But remember, when I first started playing few people had even xped beyond Crawler's Nest. 50 + was just down right rare to see on a none JP. The dunes ALWAYS had 150-200 people in it leveling or looking for a party. If you think those merit parties in ToAU are crowded you aint seen nothing. Hell I remember the jungles would have 6 parties camped right outside Khazam with 3 more camped further out by the goblin spawns. Pulling there was truly a competition. Now if there are 2 parties there it is a rarity.

Anyways, my very first day leveling RDM I had gotten to about level 5 and saw someone running for the zone about to die from a Quadav. I tossed this guy a cure and then zoned with him, to avoid my own death. He gave me a peal to my first LS and it was here I would meet friends I still have to this day. It was here that I met Damn, Janaka, Darknessfalls and a few others but it was those three that would stay together throughout all the changes we would face.


The 4 of us moved through different LS's together so no matter where we went it always felt like home as long as those guys were in the ls with me. Very recently, October 31st, Darknessfalls had decided it was time for a break. It was a very sad day for me personally as its hard to lose a friend you have known for nearly 2 years... I really should email him soon. Damn took a break recently but seems to be back and Janaka and myself are still going strong.

Our current LS will no doubt be our last LS. Spirit link is filled with nothing but great people. A lot of us are probably a bit older than the average ffxi player and as such it's just an all around more mature atmosphere and everyone gets along great. I can't even remember one time were there has been any drama involved in the ls. I feel really lucky to have found such a great home in ffxi.

I think that's enough for today. But at least you can see how it all started for me. I have Dynamis tonight so tomorrow will be more of a current events post.