**WARNING: VERY LONG** ><
Mal,
Since I only have a level 8 DRG, the best advice I can give you that is DRG specific is to use a spear, and hit stuff with the pointy end directed towards the monster. That about covers it. Ok you got me... I'm not really sure about that much even.
What I will say though is something that is more common sense than revolutionary, and it applies to all jobs that don't currently enjoy a lot of popularity or even widespread acceptance as well as the ones that do. Ok here it goes:
Don't try to be the best DRG you can be.
No I don't mean get another job, I mean don't shoehorn yourself into focusing on being a better DRG than the best ones you know. The main thing I would recommend to you is to focus your energies on being the best PLAYER you can be. There are several reasons for this. People are going to have their preconcieved notions about DRG. There are plenty of equipment guides and macro and sub and everything guides out there. If you can pay for the best stuff you can have the same or even better numbers than good players. That's not what makes a good player though, and that's not what makes a good DRG.
You will NOT be able to convince the whole server that DRG is awesome. Ele for example is widely respected and viewed as a great player, and he is a DRG (grats on 75 btw!). Even so, you've already seen the barrage of negativity that comes up when people talk about DRG. I know you weren't here before Zentatsu was gone, but he was a VERY good player, and a very good DRG. All the disrespect towards his job constantly got him down though. It was said of him that he was proof that DRGs didn't have to suck, but that didn't make him feel any better. The negative view towards DRG was one of the factors that made him quit the game, and Vana'diel lost a great man when he did.
Enough of what not to do, let's focus on the constructive end. There are people in this game who are known to be great, knowledgeable and VALUABLE players to have in your party, no matter what job they are currently playing. Abilities and levels don't transfer from job to job, but knowledge, experience, and skill do. This is the type of player that you will want to strive to be in order to achieve your goal. You need to know as much as you can about everything and be able to present it in a way that comes across as helpful and competent, not superior, bragging or lecturing.
How do you do this? You will want to know all about the possible skill chains and weapon types in a group, and the weaknesses of the mobs they can exploit. You will want to know how to put together a successful party, not just grab a bunch of RNG and a NIN and go at it, but build a well balanced group whose abilities mesh and make a whole greater than the sum of the parts. You will want to know the hazards and benefits of not only the common but also the less common XP areas, and know how to make the best of both. Something like an emergency situation tends to stick in a person's mind, and if you can handle yourself exceptionally well in one, you tend to get remembered yourself. Always be prepared to get to a camp site and handle whatever may be there.
I can guarantee that you will be in groups with "rival" DDs like DRKs or SAM, and the best thing you can do is to not make it into a pissing contest. Figure out ways that you can get kills faster by working with them instead of against them. If people find themselves in good parties consistently with you and you are one of the few constants, they will eventually start to realize that you are the life of the party, so to speak.
A lot of times you will find yourself building your own PT as a DRG, and as leader you may have to think for your members on occasion. If you're camping in a remote location for example, you may want to grab a stack or two of cheap arrows or bolts, in case the party goes long (which is good) and the puller runs out of ammo (which is bad). Maybe a few juices or cookies or cheap DD food, anything to shore up the weak spots or the unprepared. It's easier for one person to mess up a great party than it is for one to create one, but you can at least try to minimise the damage. You'll make a lot of friends that way, bringing backup supplies to give or sell for cheap to fellow PT members.
That's how you get remembered well. Being remembered well often leads to being sought after, and being sought after and constantly performing above ever-elevating expectations is the surest way I know of to be considered "great". Maybe even the best.
One more thing; The people who are deemed to be paradigms of a particular job, such as Eleibfrid or Ellion and numerous others, should be seen as guideposts or treasure maps of insight (sorry about the cheesy metaphor), and not obstacles along your path. I know if I wanted to be the best I could be at something, I'd want to glean the knowledge of people who had it figured out rather than drawing a line in the sand and declaring them on the losing side. There's confidence and there's conceit, and text is not the best medium to tell the difference.
I probably left plenty out, but I think you get my point. I offer you no equipment advice or even specifics for the most part, but I hope this will at least give you a direction in which to set sail. Take it for what it's worth. If I knew all the answers there would be a whole lot less people thinking, "WTF! Who is this guy and why is he posting here?" as they trudge through volume 475637 of Encylopedia BS.
Good luck on your quest Mal, and when you get to the 40s I'd be happy to teach you how to be frustrated at being unable to pull hate off the tank! MUAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
**Disclaimer: This man is full of crap. Please disregard anything that comes out of his mouth. Not responsible for accidents. **
