I thought I'd post this here on the Flameboard instead of General Discussion so we can really take this topic all the way. So, why is there so much buzz about having a leveled sub? There are three reasons for that.
1. Abilities
In the case of melee jobs, abilities are widely spaced apart. A DRK would not find much interest in Defender, but Double Attack would probably be lusted over once his main can support it. In the case of mages though, it's fun when someone besides the WHM can cast Silena. Heck, I used Poisona as the BLM all the time because I was faster at spotting who was poisoned. Sadly, a lot of people only look at this reason to get their sub up to a certain point.
2. Statistics
There are three ways to boost your stats besides leveling up: eating food, having a sub and wearing +stats gear. Eating food is the quickest way to invest in stats, and it's quite affordable, though of a temporary nature. Gear can range from easily obtainable to ridiculously prized. Leveling your sub lands in the middle. It requires an investment of time mostly, and a bit more into good gear. I won't count spells towards it as they are still available once you have the job subbed. So if you get a crappy streak and get one level every 2 hours, is leveling your sub worth it?
Yes, missing one level in your WHM sub might only cost 6MPs, which is not even enough for throwing a Cure I. But go take a look at those +2MP rings on the AH. I think they're around 20k a piece. That means leveling your sub can end up being a 60k Gil investment! That's 300k for five levels! And it stacks! How 'bout melees you say? 5 levels is probably giving a bit more of a boost than a Haubergeon +1, and they're 700k! 700k for 5 levels' worth of stats in a sub!!!
Of course there are other pieces of equipment available with similar stat boosts, but equipment doesn't stack upon itself. You can only have one Mercenary Captain's Belt. And yet, people are ready to also buy that Haubergeon +1. Now why would someone missing a few levels on his sub pay such an exhorbitant price if getting their sub up to speed can provide the same boost? Think about it, in the case of the haubergeon, it'd take more than 23 hours at 30k per hour to get it. While with the pessimistic predictions I gave about exping, you'd take only 10 hours and 20k Gil to get those 5 levels. I think it's a pretty sweet deal all around.
3. Dedication
When people invite you to a party for the first time, they have only a limited number of ways to figure out if you're up to snuff or not before you arrive to camp. Here's what I can see when I make a /sea for invites.
- Race
- Level
- Subjob choice
- Subjob level
- Rank
- Search comment
Each one of those make seekers more or less attractive to me. A Galka WHM18/BLM9 will seem odd with me, but if he has a leveled sub and he's Rank 6 or more, I can suppose he's wearing Astral Rings and might be leveling his sub for BST. He might even mention his +MP gear in his Search Comment. While a Tarutaru WHM18/BLM1, Rank 2, no comment in the dunes seeking are good clues that the person might still be within his first two months of the game. If I was building an average party so I could potentially provide some tutorship to newer players, I'd invite the Tarutaru, and mention those +2MP rings in order to convince him about the impact a leveled sub can have. If I'm making a party geared towards hauling the best exp./hour possible, I'd have a much better chance with the Galka, as he might very well be a cook and have MP regenerating juices as well as hobgoblin chocolate... or not. It's always a gamble.
---------------
Conclusion
---------------
Having a slightly out-of-date sub isn't a deadly sin, and is not drastically hurting your party. It won't make you lose out on a supplemental 2k an hour. But it could make the difference between occasionally hitting that chain #5 or not, as that little 30 extra damage per fight could have ended the battle 5 seconds earlier, might have saved an extra cure from the WHM, or nuke from the BLM. It's not a gap as big as the grand canyon, but it's one extra little bit. And every little bit helps.
Most people put a lot of dedication and pride in their characters. In return they half-expect others to have the same level of dedication and pride in scraping out all those tiny bonuses, especially when they don't cost too much in terms of Gil or time. Of course someone going apes and pounding you in the ground for missing one single level is taking the issue a bit too far. But remember, leveling it up might help yourself more than you think.
1. Abilities
In the case of melee jobs, abilities are widely spaced apart. A DRK would not find much interest in Defender, but Double Attack would probably be lusted over once his main can support it. In the case of mages though, it's fun when someone besides the WHM can cast Silena. Heck, I used Poisona as the BLM all the time because I was faster at spotting who was poisoned. Sadly, a lot of people only look at this reason to get their sub up to a certain point.
2. Statistics
There are three ways to boost your stats besides leveling up: eating food, having a sub and wearing +stats gear. Eating food is the quickest way to invest in stats, and it's quite affordable, though of a temporary nature. Gear can range from easily obtainable to ridiculously prized. Leveling your sub lands in the middle. It requires an investment of time mostly, and a bit more into good gear. I won't count spells towards it as they are still available once you have the job subbed. So if you get a crappy streak and get one level every 2 hours, is leveling your sub worth it?
Yes, missing one level in your WHM sub might only cost 6MPs, which is not even enough for throwing a Cure I. But go take a look at those +2MP rings on the AH. I think they're around 20k a piece. That means leveling your sub can end up being a 60k Gil investment! That's 300k for five levels! And it stacks! How 'bout melees you say? 5 levels is probably giving a bit more of a boost than a Haubergeon +1, and they're 700k! 700k for 5 levels' worth of stats in a sub!!!
Of course there are other pieces of equipment available with similar stat boosts, but equipment doesn't stack upon itself. You can only have one Mercenary Captain's Belt. And yet, people are ready to also buy that Haubergeon +1. Now why would someone missing a few levels on his sub pay such an exhorbitant price if getting their sub up to speed can provide the same boost? Think about it, in the case of the haubergeon, it'd take more than 23 hours at 30k per hour to get it. While with the pessimistic predictions I gave about exping, you'd take only 10 hours and 20k Gil to get those 5 levels. I think it's a pretty sweet deal all around.
3. Dedication
When people invite you to a party for the first time, they have only a limited number of ways to figure out if you're up to snuff or not before you arrive to camp. Here's what I can see when I make a /sea for invites.
- Race
- Level
- Subjob choice
- Subjob level
- Rank
- Search comment
Each one of those make seekers more or less attractive to me. A Galka WHM18/BLM9 will seem odd with me, but if he has a leveled sub and he's Rank 6 or more, I can suppose he's wearing Astral Rings and might be leveling his sub for BST. He might even mention his +MP gear in his Search Comment. While a Tarutaru WHM18/BLM1, Rank 2, no comment in the dunes seeking are good clues that the person might still be within his first two months of the game. If I was building an average party so I could potentially provide some tutorship to newer players, I'd invite the Tarutaru, and mention those +2MP rings in order to convince him about the impact a leveled sub can have. If I'm making a party geared towards hauling the best exp./hour possible, I'd have a much better chance with the Galka, as he might very well be a cook and have MP regenerating juices as well as hobgoblin chocolate... or not. It's always a gamble.
---------------
Conclusion
---------------
Having a slightly out-of-date sub isn't a deadly sin, and is not drastically hurting your party. It won't make you lose out on a supplemental 2k an hour. But it could make the difference between occasionally hitting that chain #5 or not, as that little 30 extra damage per fight could have ended the battle 5 seconds earlier, might have saved an extra cure from the WHM, or nuke from the BLM. It's not a gap as big as the grand canyon, but it's one extra little bit. And every little bit helps.
Most people put a lot of dedication and pride in their characters. In return they half-expect others to have the same level of dedication and pride in scraping out all those tiny bonuses, especially when they don't cost too much in terms of Gil or time. Of course someone going apes and pounding you in the ground for missing one single level is taking the issue a bit too far. But remember, leveling it up might help yourself more than you think.
