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The Challenge

Filed Under: Final Fantasy XIV by Holy Dragoon — Leave a comment
June 29, 2011

Hello again!

Today I stand along the streets of Ul’dah, bow in hand. I do frequent these streets here quite a bit. It happens to be the place where Seraphim likes to hangout. If you’re ever looking for us, keep your eyes peeled across from the Bric-a-Brac. I’m sure you’ll see us there laughing, chatting, or partaking in some kind of hijinks.

It seems I’ve gone off topic. I really want to talk about how I came to don this bow that is now strapped to my back. First though, I thought I would share what I’ve been up to in regards to putting my other skills to good use. The Notorious Monsters that roam Eorzea are a great source of weapons or armour. To an up and coming adventurer, these spoils are a great way to get geared up for training and future battle. Now I take great pride in saying that I can put my lance mastery to good use against these beasts, or support a group of adventurers using my fairly proficient elemental conjury skills. Together we can obliterate these beasts and receive the spoils of war. Many Seraphim have now benefited from these trips into the wild. I feel now that I am well trained it is my duty to pass on not only my knowledge, but to use my skills to aid my fellow Seraphim. All in hopes they come to call it “home” as I have.

Now, on to why I am carrying a bow. Many weapons and tools have graced my hands since setting foot in Eorzea. However, I’ve had no intention of learning archery. I once received a reward from a citizen for aiding them, was 100 arrows I quickly gave away. Somehow shooting pointy sticks at large beasts just does not appeal to me. Not to mention the cost of purchasing decent arrows. It was thanks to a challenge, that I am now standing on these streets of Ul’dah with a large bow accompanying me.

I made the mistake of telling my fellow Seraphim that I had no intention of training in archery for a long time. That I would never purchase a bow, which means I would never have to learn. Well a well trained Carpenter got wind of this. A fellow Miqo’te and member of Seraphim, Tempest Reve, decided they would make me a bow on the condition that I use it to achieve a proficiency ranking of 30 with it in a short period. Well a few people argued on my behalf, and got that requirement down to 25. I began feeling that as a Council of Seraphim, backing down to at this point would be in bad taste. To make matters worse, Tempest made me a bow alright. Not only did she make a me rather nice bow, but crafted one of High Quality. Then she gave me a rather large stack of arrows to go with it. More than enough to complete the challenge even.

Hook, Line, and Sinker.

How could I say no, after she crafted such a fantastic piece of equipment. Even I couldn’t deny the skill she had put into it. I took the bow, the arrows, and then stopped by my retainer to get outfitted in some reasonable gear for Archery. I made sure to stop by the adventuring counter for some Guildleves, and off I went.

Let’s just say the first shot wouldn’t have hit a stationary Fat Chocobo, let alone a Coblyn.

The Challenge had begun.


Holy Dragoon
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Complimenting the Lance

Filed Under: Every Day by Holy Dragoon — Leave a comment
June 1, 2011

Phew…. All that wood cutting sure is tiresome.  It seems that when I decided to learn to be a carpenter, I didn’t quite know what I was getting myself into.  The life of a Lancer is filled with excitement, the life of a Carpenter, seems much more subdued and calm.

How am I to combat this?  Holy Dragoon is a defender of Gridania, one who battles the great beasts of Eorzea, and the Empire!  Cutting wood all day long is calming, and makes me thirst for the hunt.  I won’t give it up, but I need something more…

Something more is what I’ve found, and I found it in the art of Conjury.  Now, this is not the first time I’ve dabbled in magics.  I always knew I would dabble in beneficial magic, as my ancestor Holydragoon did in Vana’diel.  I am finding it quite exhilarating, and I do hope that I am able to become fairly proficient in my casting ability as well.  It will allow me to be quite useful down the road.  I’ve now gained a skill mastery of rank 40 in Conjury in a short time.

One last thing before I head back to Eorzea.  Don’t think I’ve not been busy with my Lance either.  A true master of his art continues to learn, even after achieving mastery.  There are great beasts to down, and many types of armour in the world that only master lancers can hope to obtain.


Holy Dragoon

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The Saws of Gridania

Filed Under: Final Fantasy XIV by Holy Dragoon — Leave a comment
May 8, 2011

Now that I have mastered the Lance, I use it to protect my home. I now also seek training in lancer repairs. I am sure entering the Guilds of the Disciples of the Hand will be a difficult task for me, for I am well trained in the excitement of battle as opposed to the steady patient hands of the craft.

Eerie quiet nights are upon us.

Hunting Notorious Monsters with Seraphim, and doing a few local Guildleves in Ul’dah has taught me I have much to learn about woodworking, and that is ok. I have the basics down, and I feel I am proficient in creating basic parts and minor repairs. Though, to further my training, it will require me to visit my home in Gridania much more often. It provided an excellent opportunity to help out the Dreamer, who had of her eggs stolen by the Spriggans.

Collecting our Egg Hats

The citizens of Gridania, as I have realized, are in dire need of assistance. With so much talk of the impending doom, I worry that the return to my homeland has come with a dreadful omen. It is as if fate has brought me back at the perfect time. So many in Eorzea seek to let Gridania burn. I cannot allow this, and I will bear my lance against any who seek to harm it.

In the meantime, I will help it’s citizens. The common folk of the wood are in need of aid, be it botanist or conjurer. There is only so much one Miqo’te can do against the shifting of an Era though, and I would hope that aiding those who wish to restore the Order of the Twin Adder will provide enough morale to restore this Grand Company from it’s former glory. If the Seventh Umbral Era is upon us, I will help make sure that Gridania is ready.

I have sworn my lance to protect this land.


Holy Dragoon

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Lancer Mastery and Treasure Hunting.

Filed Under: Every Day by Holy Dragoon — 1 Comment
April 25, 2011

Greetings once again,

I would take a moment to thank my Seraphim comrades, for without them, I would not be able to claim mastery of my Lance. After all my hard efforts, I achieved proficiency rank 50 in the skills of the Lance. I am a full fledged Lancer. I also quickly have put those skills to use.

Monsters have began appearing all over Eorzea as of late. These beasts are not for the weak to mess with. They are notorious in nature, and have been thus dubbed by many as the Notorious Monsters of Eorzea. Now these beasts resemble that of mere common wandering fodder, but they pack a much bigger punch. It is best to tackle them in groups to ensure safety. Most of them are quite aggressive, but those who have mastered their Disciples of War or Magic should have no problem taking them down.

Seraphim gathered 2 parties, 8 man strong each, and began an adventure to track and hunt the beasts. We took our strongest adventurers, we split up the Council in order to maintain effectiveness, and headed out. Keeping in constant communication of course, we gathered all kinds of information about these NMs. We also killed many of them, and their spawned offspring. It was rumoured they carried unique equipment, which made them prime for hunting.

After our initial hunt was over, a few of us went back and to hunt the Downy Dunstan. Here we met a lovely group of adventurers who spoke a foreign tongue. This did not stop our treasure hunting though! We formed a larger party together and hunted the Dunstan until we could no longer stand. Everyone one of us obtained a Canvas Cowl for our efforts, along with the unique treasure we were seeking. Thank you to the members of NobiNobi for assisting us.

Until next time Eorzea!

Holy Dragoon

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The Garlean Empire

Filed Under: Every Day by Holy Dragoon — Leave a comment
April 4, 2011
Spoilers Ahead!!

I’ve finally done it. I’ve reached the completion stages of my Lancer advancement. At this point I consider myself fully trained, and ready to take on anything. At Rank 48 proficiency, I am a force to be reckoned with. Last night I decided to test that theory against the Garlean Empire…

My companion Mhira had run off, the poor Hyur. She’s gone through much hardship, and she had left for a mission that seemed to be suicide. Of course I could not let that happen, so I set off for Mor Dhona. Once there I began tracking the Empire, which lead to some rather unexpected results.

Let me say that the Empire is powerful. I can’t even begin to think of how we simple citizens of Eorzea are going to penetrate it’s defense. I feel as though I was only lucky with the soldiers I ran into. Thank the Twelve I was able to save Mhira in time, but I arrived too late for her comrades. My thankfulness was cut short, things became rather ugly fast, and I thought all was lost for the both of us.

If it were not for Papalymo, Yda, and their companions I don’t know if either of us would still be alive. Swords that fire bullets? A strange airship in the sky? The technology the Empires possesses is beyond anything I’ve ever seen. How were they able to obtain such strength? What arcane sciences have they put research into?

I don’t even know how the 6 of us survived… Everything went black… The only clue being an Echo, and a message from Papalymo and Yda…

Holy Dragoon

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Holy’s Log, Stardate (ahem) Eorzea Date 6/3/12

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March 1, 2011

The gods have began to shine their light upon me.  I have began to master my trade it seems, last week Krausus and I recruited a few Seraphim members (Kai, Talon, Apricoth, Adaraa, Dashka, Brussel), and introduced them to some of the thing they have to look forward to.  The goal was show them how Faction Guildleves worked.  They are the Guildleves that adventurers really strive for.  The big game so to speak, and the right Faction Leve can help you earn the gear you really want.  Krausus and I handled the large game while those with us helped provide us with support.  It worked really well, mind you at one point I put the gods to work by tackling monsters that were beyond our means.  We came out of it completing 3 Faction Leves, all 3 were in preparation of the Notorious Monster of Eorzea.  Thanks for the awesome support all of you, and Kai for somehow staying alive.

Faction Battle

Coordinated Efforts Take down the Wolves.

Now, about those Notorious Monsters.  While Krausus and I both are just entering that phase of our class mastery, others in Seraphim are a little further along, like Caidryn and Etna.  As a group we decided use Faction Points to trigger Tarbh Uisge. We were in for a real challenge as we soon found out.  Knowing I was a little under skilled to take on this beast, I brought with me a set of skills that could support our party.  The fight was fierce, and the Aetherite was kind to me a couple times, giving me the chance to recuperate and jump back into the battle.  The mammoth buffalo hit hard, but we persevered.  We did manage to fell the beast after a lot hard work, balancing curing between different gladiators, and throwing out a lot of tactical point generation.  All of it paid off when Seraphim’s first Notorious Monster tasted death.

Tarbh Uisge FightTarbh Uisge FallsTarbh Uisge SpoilsSeraphim has also started some new fun things that I wanted to share, but I’ll save that until next time.

Holy Dragoon

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Ch..Ch.. Changes.

Filed Under: Final Fantasy XIV by Holy Dragoon — Leave a comment
February 18, 2011

As I sit here, in a chair in the Ul’dah Adventurer’s Guild, I think to myself, “my my have we changed in recent months.”

Change, the biggest thing that has been happening in Seraphim lately. Members of the council have stepped down, but new members have come to replace them are shaping up to be amazing leaders as well. Together, we are working as one team, for the better of our Company. With the fishing events, guildleve events, behest training, and our latest photography event; we are on our toes. None of it would be possible without being able to lean on each other for help.

This has translated to the battlefield as well. As the demons of Eorzea fall, we have found that many of us are climbing the ranks of our respected class guilds. I have attained the rank of 38 in lance mastery. I now don the fabled Yarzonshell Harpoon, and geared in a lovely yellow acton set. I feel I nearing my preparation to tackle some of the biggest monsters that Eorzea has to offer.

Many moons ago in the land of Vana’diel, my ancestor Holydragoon fought hard to train his wyvern. Despite his efforts, he was never able to fully obtain the power that he sought out. I plan to honour him by becoming what he could not, and I am well on my way.

Holy Dragoon

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Long Time No Holy

Filed Under: Every Day by Holy Dragoon — Leave a comment
February 11, 2011

Apologies right now for my adventure tracking lacking.  This does not mean I have not been busy either.  In fact, quite the contrary…

Currently, my lancer development is in full swing.  The regimental training of the lance has been a tough road.  It seemed for the longest time that my skill level progressed slowly.  Then suddenly, it was as if a fire was lit under me and I took off.  Obtaining level 2 proficiency in Doomspike, Ferocity, Skewer has been quite beneficial.  I am beginning to feel as though driving my lance through the beasts is simply exhilarating.  Scores of beasts have now fallen at the hands of Holy Dragoon.

Seraphim continues to prosper, and some of that is more recently tied to the fire that seems to be lit under everyone in Eorzea.  This drive has come back to the souls that walk the land.  It is great to see indeed.  Caidryn, our lovely conjurer has started journeying again with us in a timely manner.  I was beginning to feel overwhelmed, taking up an absolute leadership that I had not planned on.   Perseverance  has been key to making sure the ranks of Seraphim continue to grow.  Battling through the rough time when Eorzea was in slumber was certainly worth it’s weight in Gil.  We also just recently promoted 2 Seraphim to the ranks of the Council.  Their help will be very much appreciated, and I can’t wait to see what we all come up with.  A few weeks ago, a fishing tournament was held on the ferry between Thanalan coast and Limsa Lominsa.  Congratulations to Adaraa for the fine fishing efforts, shocking that Miqo’te can catch loads of fish isn’t it?

On to the Guildleve situation,  which has become the perfect place to work on those Disciple of War and Magic skills.  A core group in Seraphim has been pushing hard, learning the skills of their jobs.  True Heart of the Seraphim mentality right there I must say.  I’m proud to see it!  It seems that the Guildleve givers of the adventurers guild don’t mind us killing all types of beasts for them, especially if we don’t take the rewards.  It’s like a free service for them, and the speedy mastery of our class is the benefit for sacrificing Gil rewards.

As a final note in today’s log, I would like to thank Etna and Sendo for crafting me the bulk of my new Velveteen Acton set.  I will also leave a small screenshot gallery of some recent things we’ve been doing together.

See you again soon,
Holy Dragoon

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My Struggles

Filed Under: Every Day, Final Fantasy XIV by Cyandvai — Leave a comment
January 17, 2011

I’m writing this post not to say anything specific, but more or less just a general update on what has been going on.

Lets start with Final Fantasy XIV.
I love the game. A lot of people have their complaints, and some of them are justified. It lacks real Eng-Game content, there’s some things that need to be tweaked here and there, but over all it’s a good game that will keep getting better with the input from the players and a development staff that has demonstrated that they are listening to what players want.

I have not progressed as far as I would have liked in the game, I’m only Physical 26 Rank 25 Gladiator. I have not been able to play the game the way I would like for the past 2 months, this has a lot to do with my personal life, which I will get to in a few. The group that I belong to, Seraphim, is a good group of people. There’s a real family feel when you get to know them. I know that this group will go far in the game, and I look forward to progressing with this bunch.

Now onto the reason I’m not playing as much as I would like.
The week before Thanksgiving we had a water pipe in our house bust. Had about 1/4 inch of water through the whole house and we moved into a hotel. As of this writing we are still living in that hotel, we took the opportunity to have some minor remodeling done while the house is being repaired. I’m looking forward to being able to move back in. My wife and I are hoping to buy the house from my Mother-in-Law once everything is fixed up the way we want.

Well, that’s about the sum of it all. I look forward to seeing everyone around.

Cyan D’vai

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The Lance Brings the Fight to Me!

Filed Under: Final Fantasy XIV by Holy Dragoon — Leave a comment
December 2, 2010

Greetings again from Gridania!

It appears that I lost my pen and paper, but that is not the case. My journeys have continued, and I have discovered a few things along the way.

Discovery #1 - Social Linkshell events are just as important as Goal oriented events. Taking up a fishing rod and hanging out with the gang by our Mor Dhona fishing spot has been nothing but fun. Especially after tipping back a few ale we brought along from Ul’dah.

Discovery #2 - Always changing your skill set has benefits. In my Lancer journeys I am continuing to work with the skills I have available. Right now I am finding the Ferocity and Bloodbath work very well together for self healing when used before weapon skills, saving my precious MP for more important spells like Shell and Protect.

Discovery #3 - Slaughtering Puks is fun. I’ve been able to really hone down my skill set doing this, minimizing down time, while still growing at a fairly modest rate. I keep Protect and Speed Surge on at all times, and then focus on TP generation. This allows quick kills, but more importantly has been very good for learning skill timings and efficiency. I feel I am a better Lancer for doing this, as opposed to finding the biggest monsters in Eorzea, which I will be well trained take on soon enough.

There you have it, in between participating in Guildleves, I have been able to grow more as a Lancer. My skill set is growing and I can now focus on TP generation for offense while still being defensive with magic. I am a Rank 18 Lancer, where has the time gone?

Holy Dragoon

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