Black Mage Equipment GuideFollow

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Black Mage Equipment guide (1-60)~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Layout and design inspired by the Paladin Equipment guide, which was so nice I just had to copy it for this and my WHM equipment guides.
Credit to Fisban for his thoughtful layout and organization.

The Law: Always upgrade your spells before you upgrade any armor. All the +INT and miscellaneous bonuses in the world do nothing for a BLM with gaps in his main nuke line. Never sacrifice your spellcasting ability for some shiny bauble. You are disservicing your job if you do so.

Matters of cost

The gear listed here is all-purpose gear, but it is largely tailored for the exp-earning Black Mage. Anything that is relatively expensive for the level listed is marked with orange stars, like so: *** . It's rare that I'll recommend this kind of equip before level 40, so I explain myself next to each such instance.

Whenever a piece of equipment can be had without spending any gil (CP-bought gear, quests/missions), I will provide the link to the quest. There's little reason to spend money on equipment you can have for free. On that note, I DO NOT list rare/ex NM drops that require you either get a lot of help or be far and above the equipment level to solo the mob that drops it (*cough* Moldavite *cough). This guide is focusing on things which can either be quested for easily or purchased.

After level 50 you will see some very expensive equipment show up on the list. 50 is a real breaking point for any exp-earning job. Mobs get tougher, fights longer, and everyone gains new and stronger abilities from their main and sub jobs. You equipment should follow suit. Consider this: Your AF eqiuipment is a free upgrade that lasts pretty much through the next 15 or so levels. Anything you buy during this time will be exclusively accessories, and accessories last a very long time.

Your choice of race plays a big part in your optimal equipment. Where possible I list the gear that is designed to help any stat gaps caused by your racial choice (see below). As a rule, however, Galka BLMs need more +MP equipment and Elvaan BLMs need both that and additional +INT equip. This often comes with a hefty price tag. Be prepared.

HQ eqipment is largely left of the list for 2 reasons. The first is readability. The other is this: You never NEED to buy HQ equipment. You can get by fine without any of it. Not to say that they're worthless; HQ items tend to keep their value at resale, but the money is almost always better saved for upgrading your spells. I will almost never recommend HQ equipment in the guide, with a few exceptions (see below).

Important to Note: The most expensive upgrades in the game are jewelry. This guide tries to ease some of the pain but I won't sugar-coat it. There is very little in terms of inexpensive jewelry.

What to look for

Balance MP boosts with INT boosts, but tend to favor +INT equipment. Pay special attention to what your race needs (see below). Past level 50 other bonuses become evident on armor, such as healing MP regeneration, elemental skill bonus and Magic Attack Bonus. These are luxury items but a few of them ARE affordable. Give them a try.

Weapon choices

Your choice for soloing purposes is a Staff. It is our best combat weapon (B- rating) and staves often boost both +HP and +MP, which are both great for soloing.

For all other purposes, Wands give excellent +MND/+INT bonuses so for partying they are an outstanding choice. Post 50 you will be asked to buy an Ice Staff. This replaces your need to buy any future wands.

Scythes have not yet proven effective for anything other than idle skillup. And the ones equippable by a BLM are terribly expensive. There is a new update coming later this month, so we shall see if our weapon selection broadens any at that point.

Matters of Race

BLM is kind of a spendy job. Simply keeping up with your spells after level 50 can drive you crazy. So spending a lot of equip is not a pleasure for the job. The bad news for Galka and Elvaan BLMs is that they will find themselves hamstrung by their lack of MP in general, and Elvaan by their lack of INT in particular. This guide will recommend equipment for them that is significantly more expensive than what they may be used to paying for other jobs. It is not 100% absolutely critical that they buy this gear, but if you don't you are going to have to make up for the deficiencies somehow (HQ pies, for example) and be a Jedi Master of MP and Nuke conservation. You have a steep hill to climb. Don't give up. ^^

RSE from levels 29-33 play a big part in making up for those deficiencies, but also look to the level 50 and 70 RSE Belts (big ticket) and level 62 RSE Gloves/Boots (also big ticket) for some relief on the matter (although losing the +elemental skill on your AF gloves will hurt).

Back
7 Cape
18 Cotton Cape (quest)
32 Black Cape You will basically be keeping this cape forever, or at least until 71.
43 Red Cape Optional. The benefit is to your /WHM or /RDM, and it's a marginal benefit at most. I bought this cape because I don't like to keep separate capes for my other mage jobs. ^^
55 Federal Army Mantle Rank 6 Windurstian, 24000 CP. This is perfect for Galka/Elvaan BLMs. Everyone else can be content with the Black/Red Cape, since 6MP is not that big of a deal at these levels.

Body
1 Robe (quest)
12 Linen Robe (quest) The reason to prefer this over the +1 INT tunic is that at these formative levels MP is more vital to your success than INT. Wearing this permits you to wear a +MP Hairpin.
29 Seer's Robe *** Ok, still not that cheap. RSE is strictly better for most cases. However, the +hmp on this equip is not seen again on a body piece until the level 72 Errant gear. So buy this knowing that it will last you 43 levels.
33 Elder's Surcoat (quest) Galka only. Keep until AF
33 Magna bodice/Magna jerkin (quest) Elvaan only. Keep until AF
58 Wizard's Coat Monastic Cavern Coffer. Elvaan BLMs see below.
58 Justaucorps This isn't anywhere near as expensive as the Black Cotehardie, so it's for budget-minded Elvaan. Every other race gets more out of the Wizard's Coat, however.
59 Black Cotehardie *** Elvaan only. AF/RSE is good enough for everyone else. Your Ice Staff should come first. But +2 INT and +25 MP is much better than Elvaan RSE. Wear this for general nuking, and switch to AF for the -enmity during a big MB.

Feet

8 Solea During your soloing levels, every bit of DEF helps
12 Holly Clogs
20 Mage's Sandals Not that expensive, and not bad for +3MP. These will hold you for another 8-ish levels.
29 Seer's Pumps Taru/Mithra Only. See below.
29 Custom Boots (quest) Hume only
29 Elder's Sandals (quest) Galka only
29 Magna Ledelsens (quest) Elvaan only. As you can see, much of RSE is superior to our AF boots, safe for the -enmity.
52 Wizard's Sabots (quest) Elvaan/Galka/Hume BLMs may be tempted to hang onto their RSE for their main nuking. Use these only for the -enmity, in that case.

Hands
8 Mitts
12 Linen Cuffs
27 Custom gloves (quest) Hume only
27 Elder's bracers (quest) Galka only
27 Magna Gauntlets/Magna Gloves (quest) Elvaan only
27 Savage gauntlets (quest) Mithra only
27 Wonnder mitts (quest) Tarutaru only
29 Seer's mitts Elvaan/Galka BLMs should hang on to their RSE gloves, as those offer better bonuses.
54 Wizard's Gloves (quest) These are good forever. The only upgrades that can really replace these are Rare/EX loot from NMs or Dynamis drops.

Head
1 Copper Hairpin Hairpins because +INT doesn't come affordably on headgear for a long while
10 Brass Hairpin
20 Silver Hairpin
29 Seer's Crown Galka/Elvaan BLMs may wish to continue with their hairpins, simply for MP reasons.
60 Wizard's Petasos This will also keep forever, much like your AF gloves.

Legs
8 Slacks
10 Freesword's Slops Windurstian, 1000CP, Windurst 2nd place or better. Not a bad pair of pants, if you have that many CP by the time you hit 10.
12 Linen Slops Alternative to Freesword's Slops. You really shouldn't have to worry that much about DEF once you get into parties, though.
20 Black Slacks Only if you can't stand to be wearing level 12 armor until you hit 29-31. ^^
29 Seer's Slacks
31 Elder's Braguette (quest) Galka only. Mithran and Hume legs add nice amounts of MP, but neither of those races really needs that much of a boost, making the +1 INT from the Seer's slacks preferable. Elvaan legs only add 3mp over Seer's, but no INT, so it's a toss-up.
56 Wizard's Tonban Compared to how awesome our other AF is, the legs are kind of a let-down. Still, -enmity is nice.

Waist
8 Heko Obi (quest)
14 Friar's Rope (quest) Free, and it's +MP. Not shabby.
28 Shaman's Belt OPTIONAL. Jolly Green isn't the most camped of NMs, so this can be a little scarce (and pricey) on your server as a result. Check your prices then consider waiting until 30 for the Merc. Capt. Belt.
30 Mercenary Captain's Belt Windurstian Rank 3+, 4000CP, Windurst in 1st place. Hard to beat.
40 Druid's Rope Often cheaper (by a lot) than the Mercenary Captain's Belt. Spell Interruption Down shouldn't be an issue outside of bad parties, BCNM or soloing, but it's a good bonus overall.

Neck
7 Justice badge (quest) Free +MP upgrades, yay!
20 Black Silk Neckerchief (quest) This NM is pretty easy, which makes buying this at the AH pretty cheap if you can't kill the thing yourself. This is actually it for your neckwear until you can afford one of the 500K+ bits of neckwear that give +2 (Intellect Torque) or +3 (Philomath Stole) INT. But if +INT isn't your bag, you can always save for the outrageously priced Elemental Torque at 65, but that's outside the scope of this guide.

Weapon
1 Ash Staff It's a lot better than the onion equip you're given to start, so buy it when you've sold your first few crystals at the AH.
5 Ash Pole You're sacrificing some HP/MP, but this is more than double the damage of the staff, so it's worth it.
9 Willow wand You can very much get into a party at this level, so equip this for when you're in a party. Otherwise, keep on soling with your staff.
10 Legionnaire's Staff Bastokan, 1000 CP, Bastok 2nd place or better. A BARGAIN for such a good staff. This will probably be your last staff for a while, since after this point you should start getting into parties, where your priorities change from soloing damage to job-relevant benefits.
13 Hermit's Wand This NM is camped more for the Priest's Robe that he drops, so the price on this isn't so high. Excellent wand.
18 Yew Wand
28 Eremite's Wand Be careful of the supply/demand on this item, as it fluctuates a lot as people power themselves through Promyvion raids and will pay any price for a low-level loaner.
28 Yew Wand +1 I offer the HQ Yew Wand as an alternative to the Eremite's Wand if it is too expensive. If you buy this, you don't need to buy a Chestnut at 32. Good investment!
32 Chestnut wand
48 Rose Wand Think of it as a bridge for the next 3 levels. That +int has to come from somewhere.
51 Ice Staff Ah, now we're talking. +10 Elemental Skill makes this your last weapon pretty much ever. Maybe you'll want an HQ when you're a multimillionaire level 75, but this is pretty much it for the rest of your levelling career. And it's now 1/3 of the price I paid for my staff 2 months ago.
51 Dark Staff *** Substantially more expensive than the Ice Staff, so consider this 'optional' but put it very high on your 'to buy' list. Clear Mind is great, but +10 hMP is even greater.
*** From this point on, it is tempting to spend for a full set of elemental staves. I don't list them in the guide since it's perfectly possible to just get by with the Ice and Dark staves. By the time you are 75 you will want all 8. However, since this guide covers only to 60 I'm going to say it's a better idea to save your money for later so you can properly budget between their acquisition and upgrading your increasingly expensive nuke line***

Earring
10 Onyx earring 2 of them. They'll keep a long time
29 Cunning earring (quest) Awesome! +1 INT from jewelry, and it's CHEAP. The quest is so easy it shouldn't be hard to buy a 2nd earring. If for some reason this earring is more than 10K, just keep the one, it's good enough.
30 Morion Earring *** OUCH. Incredibly expensive. I strongly recommend against buying this unless you are Elvaan or Galka and need every bit of +MP you can get. Cunning earrings are good enough for everyone else.
60 Phantom Earring *** The thought of paying 200K for a +8MP upgrade should very much offend you. Galka/Elvaan onry. Seriously.

Rings
1 Nation's Ring. Windurstians get the best ring at this level
1 Hermit's Ring Buy one and keep your nation's rings. You're only 9 levels away from a pair of much better rings, anyway.
10 Eremite's Ring All BLMs should sport a pair of these for a loooong time.
10 Astral Ring *** Galka/Elvaan only. These have more than doubled in price since they removed Astrals from Oztroja coffers, so I'm going to stop recommending the purchase of a pair of these. Buy one and hang onto the Eremite's. BLMs really don't need that much MP, anyway.
54 Zircon Ring *** I'm calling these 'expensive' because I really wasn't very rich when I was level 54 on my first job, and a pair of level 54 rings was outside of my reach. It is also to call attention to the fact that a pair of these should be put up in front of the perhaps long list of items you wish to upgrade to when you breach level 50, after of course buying an Ice Staff and a Dark Staff. These will keep for a very long time.

Suggestions/corrections are welcome. Just remember my main requirement for including anything in this guide: It must be obtainable. This means it has to be either easily bought from NPCs, inexpensively bought at the AH, or freely obtained via quests/CP expenses that are realistic at or near the level of the equipment in question. If it isn't, then the cost must be justified in the context of racial balance (i.e. Galka/Elvaan exclusives) If you come to me with rare/ex loot from level 80 HNMs, I'm going to just quote this paragraph at you until you get it. :D

I'm keenly interested in input from Galka/Elvaan BLMs. Unfortunately, it seems this game wants you to be multimillionaires before you hit 50. Any input regarding the equipment you wore to bridge the racial gap is highly valued.

Hope this was useful. Cheers.

Edit: Added Justaucorps for Elvaan, and Druid's Rope as per suggestions made a day after I posted this. Also corrected a typo on the Black Cotehardie's level. ^^
Edit2: Rewrote my spiel about the remaining 6 Elemental Staves, as I think people got the wrong impression from the first revision.

Edited, Fri Feb 4 07:50:49 2005 by Cesium

Not bad, but I'd like to amend a few things in your listings.

1) Justaucorps vs. Black Cotehardie (even with Elvaan only...but for all races). Consider the Justaucorps over the Black Cotehardie. Why? You don't lose the MND from the Cotehardie, same INT+, and it saves you a LOT of money. No reason to go big spending on the Cotehardie unless your a style junkie.

2) Weapon pre-51. I didn't notice a Solid Wand on your list, which is actually a very very good wand to use pre-51, only bettered by a Rose Wand +1 or Lilith's Rod. After 51, Ice & Dark Staff come first, get Thunder as soon as you can. By 65, you "Should" have a full set of staves. Just take your time and get them one at a time. But a Blm at 65+ is gimped without a full set of staves.

2) RSE...I'm not sure about all the Races, but Tarutaru RSE is absolutely 100% pointless to a Blm. It gives HP & STR additions that do nothing for the job. Totally avoid Taru RSE and stick with Seer's gear. Other races, again, I don't know, but Seer's gear is a very very very very very Solid Choice for any Blm past level 30.

3) This is only my personal opinion, but the +4 and +8 MP available on Morion/Phantom Earrings are negligable to the Cunnings Earring solid INT +1 without MP. It's, again, style's choice and the MP difference isn't going to affect you that much, especially at 60+. Also... MOLDAVITE EARRING!!! No Blm past level 55 should be without a Moldavite Earring...seriously. Ever...never...

4) Also very surprised to not see Combat Caster Gear on your Body list post level 40. This equip (especially +1 & +2 versions) are some pretty solid gear for Blm's.

Edit: To the OP, I rated you up...and here's why. You put your time and effort into putting together a decent list of equipment, which should be appreciated. Maybe all your suggestions were not correct, and of course some of us will argue the certain points. But I don't agree with whoever rated you down below 3.00 on something that obviously took you time and effort to not only list the items and reasons, but actually link the items for factual information. Good job to you for putting forth the effort.

Edited, Thu Feb 3 09:31:28 2005 by Ryneguy

A very guide. Only thing I think you might want to add is a couple more options for the waiste section. At level 40 there is Druid's Rope which gives +1 Mnd and Int and 10% spell interruption rate down. This isn't really a neccessary upgrade but it is nice for Ballista and other things or if you have a really bad tank. Another belt is Penitent's Rope at level 60. I know this guide was just focusing on the more reasonably priced things, but the +5 mnd, +5 Int, -3 enmity is really nice and should be good for a while if not end game (only got to 61 so I can't really say that for certain).

Good job overall though.

Agreed +1 int vs Magic attack bonus +10% (or 15% with HQ) blows away 1 point of int. INT is icing on the cake...magic attk bonuses is the delicious...moist cake itself (with elem magic blended in).

LoL

It's unfortunate that a lot of up and coming Blm's have been led to believe that Mystmaker is some sort of Uber HNM. He's a pansy, only made a pain by the variety of normal Goblins that spawn around him. Myself and a Rdm friend at level 60 went in there and took him out 3 times in a row, all for a drop each time, to help a few friends that were up and coming Rdm & Blm in their late 40's.

The Moldavite Earring is by far one of the Staple Items you should have, especially after 60. At 60+ theres no excuse "not" to go to Onzozo with a friend or two and take him out. Rdm's can solo him at 60 if they are smart and use the proper food/drink combo and have their head in the game. Mystmaker himself is a pansy Goblin NM with a priceless Rare/Ex drop Blm/Rdm's shouldn't be without for long.



After you have your Earring, you'll think differently about this statement. +Mgc Att Bonus is priceless...like Storm said...the Moist Cake itself, Baby!

Level 64 Blm, with 46 Woodworking and 147k gil to my name. I have all the Elemental Staves. Why? You mentioned asking does it "Really" make a Blm more useful?

Saying "No" to that obviously means you don't have all the staves, and you haven't experienced how "Useful" it can make us. I personally, would really step down before throwing out statements if I've no personal experience from said statement.

I'm disinclined to agree. I for one, stopped and spent the time to get all the HQ staves, and haven't regretted it for a second since. Not to say that everyone should get the HQ, the HQ are a luxury, but there is no reason not to get all the regular ones slowly as you go. The higher the tier of nuke, the more and moe you'll notice that 10% boost. That adds up fast.

And Dark staff is vital. And none of that "as long as you have a brd or rdm it's ok" nonsense. Sooner or later it's gonna be you, a whm and some melee, and you'll be crying. And if you're puller is waiting til are at full, or 20 from full to pull Without a Dark Staff no less.... they are sorely lacking in skill ><

There's so much missing from this guide it's not even funny. I appreciate the attempt, but there are other guides that do a better job, even if some of the equipment will take more time and effort to obtain.

My advice: suck it up and spend the time to get the better equipment. BLM isn't cheap, but it's not the most expensive either. People shouldn't try to make an average job, cost-wise, gimped because they're too lazy or impatient to spend time farming or questing for good equipment. Strive to be the best you can be, and take pride in presenting yourself with an array of tools that will enable you to excel in your job.

What level do you need to be to solo the RSE quest?

Waist:

40 Druid's Rope - Gives the vital stats, CHR, INT and MND, plus a little bonus, spell interruption down by 10%.

I realize you address the basic issue I'm about to bring up, but (ever notice how ", but" seems to mean the first part of the sentence is totally unimportant?") these lovely pieces of jewelery are 80K on asura. I'm now (barely) lvl 35, so I suspect that I should be able to get a key for the quest on my own, but I've so far been unsucessful. (BTW, if anyone on asura wants to help me out here, or if someone could give me some pointers on soloing for the key, I'd really appreciate it :P) With a pair of ermites, seer's crown, gloves, and boots +1, and a black silk neckerscarfthingie, a pair of cunning earings is all that I have left before I'm happy with my gear till AF (or druids rope.) (I like parentheses.)

What I wrote wasn't an arrogant flame, it's the truth. Your guide will produce mediocre mages with mediocre equipment. If you want to write a guide, then write one that encompasses the spectrum of equipment, including items like the moldavite earring. Don't make assumptions about what gear people are aware of, because if someone is new to this forum and the job, they're not going to know about them.

There's no reason why people should follow a guide that addresses the mentality of "level as fast as you can", because the game shouldn't be about hitting 75 rapidly. It's about taking the time to do quests and accumulate gil for the equipment that will enable people to do the best job they can. Guides like this cater to people who don't want to stop xp'ing to earn gil to get better gear. If you want to be a grade C mage, then by all means, follow this guide. I would sincerely hope that people visiting this site have more motivation than to be average.

I gave you a concrete suggestion, maybe I didn't elaborate well enough. List all the relevant equipment, ranging from "affordable", to best. That way your guide becomes a one-stop shop for all parties interested, from those who just want average equipment, to those who want to get exceptional equipment, and those who want to mix and match.

And this guide, as it stands, does send a message of "level as fast as you can", because the equipment you list is cheap and easily obtainable. That translates to players not having to take the time to stop xp parties to get better equipment, which in turn means people zipping up the xp ladder, and sacrificing some of the better equipment that will enable them to excel in their job, rather than just doing an "ok" job.

Don't get me wrong, I don't advocate that people who need MP should stop to farm the gil for a Serket Ring, or that those who want to get the best damage in the world need +1 Morion Earrings. What I am saying is that it's completely reasonable to stop xp parties for a week or two now and again to get some of the finer things the job makes available in equipment. This guide unfourtunately omits all of that.

I can understand that the guide is meant to be an "economy" guide, but come on... some of that stuff is rediculous.

There's no reason not to use HQ wands at low levels. They're very, very cheap.

Moldevite is not optional by any means. Without it at 60 or so you are a gimp. It's not like Mysticmaker is heavily camped or anything, and a party of 4 level 55s should have no problems with it. You don't have 3 friends?

Also Seer's +1 equipment and blazk cape +1 are relatively cheap.

Staves are more important than any other equipment. Nothing else will even give you close to as much extra damage as an elemental staff. Anyone who buys Quake, Tornado, Flood, or Flare without first having a complete set of staves has their priorities messed up.

Quick side-reply to Ryneguy waaaaay up a bit. I did. And before you attack someone w/o knowing if they have tried it, ask. That extra bit of dmg (about 1-2%) isn't worth the cost of

A) Leveling Woodworking
or
B) Buying out of the AH.

...unless you're on some strange server where they cost like 40k gil.

But yeah, I tried it Ryneguy, and like I said, not worth it.

I misquoted 1-2% difference (should be a little less than 5%, my bad) based on an experiment I did at lvl 51 dual weilding 2 Rose Wands +1 vs using an Ice Staff, casting ONLY Blizzard II on mobs.
So, with Ice Staff, I get the un-quoted extra Ice damage, as well as the +10 elemental dmg. With Rose wands, only extra INT.
Results were (30 kills for each setup):

Ice Staff mean damage: 303
Rose Wand +1 mean damage: 289

So elemental staves are nice and all, but the majority of the time, that extra 14 dmg isn't gonna make or break a battle.

Burn away peeps... or test it.

Edited, Mon Feb 7 12:23:48 2005 by HoTuS

First off, that's not elemental damage, that's +10 elemental skill, which decreases the chances for resistance. If you'd done that against an XP mob, you would have had much different results because of massive resists with dual wielding wands.

Second off, any blm subbing nin for anything other than ballista should be slapped silly.

just to be spontaneous..... is a cloak an okay replacement for say....... the seers body part? like you said, we should focus on what our race needs most and so wouldn't the great increase in def from the seer part be good?

If your first job is indeed Black Mage and you're either /RDM or /WHM, well actually, as soon as you can sneak and invis yourself, you can EASILY make over 600k. Get your Tenshodo fame up to level four (probably by farming Yagudo in Giddeus), then quest all the Ninja scrolls and sell them. On Unicorn, I made 450,000 gil with the sale of Utsusemi: Ichi alone. The smart thing to do with this money (at least to me, and what I did), is buy your level 51 essentials (Ice and Dark Staves and Stone III), and then take a little break from partying and invest the 4-500k you still have into a craft. I did that and I'm now at 47 woodworking, with 350k of that still left, but I have the ability to (with time), make however much money I need off of bolts. On a random sidenote, I do find it amusing that the game gives you 600k for deciding not to play Ninja. So to any Black Mage that is leveling that as their first job, unless you are planning on leveling Ninja in the near future, just quest and sell all the scrolls. I feel this pertains here, because it is a simple, albeit somewhat time-consuming, way to make a significant amount of gil by yourself, with or without friends. I have yet to have much of any support from friends, and I'm at level 51 now with this ( http://ffxi.allakhazam.com/profile.xml?82480 ) in terms of gear, plus a Dark Staff. So when I see the OP's list of equipment, I kind of wonder. Yes, you could conceivably get BY with this equipment guide, but why would any self-respecting Black Mage want to? First time I was in a 2 Black Mage party (as Black Mage of course ^^), the other guy was outdamaging me by quite a bit. Why? Simply because of his better equipment (mine was pretty crappy at that point). From then on, I decided that I was going to do what it took for me to be the Black Mage outdamaging the other one. Now if you're the kind of player who doesn't necessarily mind whether or not they're equipping their job to the best it can be (within reason), then you may as well follow this guide. Mainly, this is the guide for you if you really don't want to farm all that much. But I'm here to tell you folks, what you get out is what you put in. The more money you put into your character, the better they'll be able to do their job. Wow, this is so long and rambling...I need sleep ^^.

I think the list was a useful guide to novice black mages through level 60. I think that your list was labelled sufficiently to give people the understanding that the guide was not a manual to develop the "uber-leet" BLM. To that end, I believe it is successful. Some of the replies above are disappointing, but since they've got some age to them I really don't think they merit any further discussion.

That being said, it could use some tweaking and expansion. If you're going to forward the suggestions of gear you should explain WHY item X and Y are appropriate alternatives to guide Z. This would prevent assinine comments such as "you have to get all of these pieces of equipment before you do anything else", as you've explained the reason why it would be acceptable - within the confines of the guide's stated purposes - to pursue a different course of action.

Anecdotally, I was one of the "frugal BLMs" in my career. I still am, as can readily be seen by my gear list on Alla (which is kept reasonably up to date). I have rarely found myself holding the party/alliance back in the things I have done - never because of equipment, only due to lack of experience and when I was underlevelled for the task at hand.

I would offer you the following suggestions to the aspiring novice Black Mage:

1. Focus all of your equipment-purchasing decisions based on the assumption that you are a damage dealer. As with any Damage Dealer you should look to maximize your damage over time, constrained by the time-frame that you will need to do your damage. We will call this your "nuke efficiency".

2. Have a wide range of equipment to fit the various needs you will need to fill. Add to your gear as you develop your character, and seek out items that will complement your current strengths. Always seek to fill weaknesses as they become of issue.

3. Try to compartmentalize various aspects of nuke effiency based on your party experiences. If your damage output is diminished because of mob resists, consider purchasing equipment that will increase your elemental skill and intelligence. If your damage output over time is low, try to increase your Magic Attack Bonus. If adding a stack of elemental skill comes at the cost of massive damage reduction, and you are only decreasing your resists by 1 of every 10 nukes, it is probably a safe bet that you do not need to add that elemental skill at this time.

4. Consider situational factors, such as the mobs you will be fighting and the party you will be joining. If you are in a party without a WHM-main healer, consider adding +MP gear. If you are XPing on a highly resistent mob, consider increasing your +Skill totals. If you are finding yourself as a frequent debuffer, carry a set of +Enfeebling gear to help you out.

5. Study. Be vigilant, and monitor your damage output and overall resist performance. Keep track of your resists, and your bursts, and maximize your nuke efficiency by seeking out gear to address your weaknesses.

6. Do not shackle yourself with an underlevelled or inappropriate subjob for the tasks at hand. If you are in an experience party sub WHM or RDM as needed, based on the composition of the party. If you find yourself in an advanced linkshell with situational subjob needs, level those subjobs secondary to your primary roles as /WHM or /RDM.

7. If you are diligent about growing your BLM, and you are focused on maximizing your use to your party and linkshell teammates, do not listen to anyone who tells you that "you must do X and wear items Y and Z."

Edit: I must have been drunk, stoned, or just simply felt like starting a fight with this and following posts, please disreguard.

Edited, Thu Sep 1 00:02:55 2005 by Rimesume

This one too.

Edited, Wed Aug 31 23:59:43 2005 by Rimesume

Dobedobe doo.

Edited, Thu Sep 1 00:04:38 2005 by Rimesume

seriously, if you can't tell the difference between having the proper staff equiped and not equiped, you are either A)extremely unobservant or B)need to change your filters so that you see your damage. Heck, even your resists will be higher in damage with the proper elemental staff equiped. Elemental Staves are the single best source to boost your damage in the game.

What about Shaman's Cloak?
EMS > INT

<-----Dunce

Edited, Thu Sep 1 00:02:36 2005 by Rimesume