Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail was released this past summer, and fans have been ready for what comes next. The next major update will take place in patch 7.1, entitled Crossroads, which fans have been eagerly awaiting news of. At the Tokyo Games Show this year, director/lead producer Naoki “Yoshi-P” Yoshida and global community producer Toshio “Foxclon” Murouchi hit the stage. They live-streamed the latest installment of the Letters From The Producer series, frequently known as live letters. This contained the first bits of information about patch 7.1 given to us. Let’s go over some of the exciting news, both expected and unexpected.
The Basics
Every major patch for Final Fantasy XIV that follows an expansion launch has an expected set of content that will be added. Patch 7.1 follows the pattern of its predecessors, starting with an update to the Main Story Quest (MSQ) of the game. This is the primary storyline that the players’ main character follows. This includes a dungeon as usual, in this case the “Yuweyawata Field Station.” We will also see the next Extreme Trial, difficult solo boss fights, which will be the harder version of Dawntrail’s final boss. The Unreal trial series, updates to even older fights, will begin again with the boss Byakko from the Stormblood expansion.
We will also see the conclusion to some storylines introduced in 7.0. This includes a resolution to the role quests for combat jobs and a follow-up to the Wachumeqimeqi quests for gathering and crafting jobs. Additionally, the first Allied Society Quest of Dawntrail will be added. These are repeated daily quests that involve a new faction to befriend, this time being the Pelupelu. These specific ones will be for combat jobs, with crafting and gathering societies coming in future patches.
Patch 7.1 will also see a new Custom Delivery NPC, Nitowikwe, who will provide weekly content for crafters and gatherers. Of course, we can’t forget about the beginning of a new Hildibrand storyline, the side quest series about everyone’s favorite inspector.
Big New Raids
Some of the most exciting content for MMOs is the raiding content. Patch 7.1 will see the start of the next Alliance Raid series for Final Fantasy XIV, large-form raids that require 24 players to team up to take on massive bosses. This new series is titled Echoes of Vana’diel and is a crossover with the other MMO in the franchise: Final Fantasy XI. The artwork provided showcases the throne room of the Shadow Lord, a major villain in the game. Coming a few weeks after the patch launches is also the new Ultimate raid, Futures Rewritten. Based on the Eden raids, this is some of the toughest content in the game.
A surprise announcement came as a follow-up to previous news about high-difficulty 24-player content, something frequently requested by some fans of the game. Entitled “Chaotic Alliance Raid,” this appears to be an enhanced difficulty of an older boss fight. In this case, the Cloud of Darkness from the Crystal Tower Alliance Raids will return. She will have new mechanics that make her a threat to be contended with. Players in patch 7.1 will get to try their hands out at this entirely new form of content. If players like it, the developers say we could see more updated boss fights in the future.
Bits and Bobs
Patch 7.1 will have plenty to offers a New Game +, a way to replay completed content, will add in the major quests from patch 7.0. Duty support, a tool to help players tackle content with NPC helpers, will start adding optional dungeons now that every MSQ dungeon is available. Of all things, the Hall of the Novice is getting an update as well. Long decried as a relatively useless tool, this will start to see more complex mechanics available for players to learn solo before entering into group content. Additionally, a new major update for PvP is coming that will revamp many old jobs with new actions and updated net code.
Fans of housing received a confirmation that announced updates will be available in patch 7.1. This includes the ability to change the interior design of your house, even getting rid of annoying columns that take up space on the walls. Much to folks’ surprise, it was even announced that you will eventually (not in patch 7.1) be able to make the internal space of your house bigger.
Traditionally this has been tied to the initial size of the house you bought, but it seems restrictions are being lifted to allow you to build more space internally. This is something of a “bigger on the inside” situation but is a welcome update, albeit one that will cost a lot of gil.
Conclusion
As the first reveal of patch 7.1’s details, this presentation was quite appreciated. Given that it was only part 1, we haven’t seen any video footage or been given a release date. Despite this, it is great to see the amount of content fans can look forward to whenever the patch does launch sometime in the (hopefully) near future. Another presentation will come before then to give us a release date and a trailer. Those fans who want more reasons to log into Final Fantasy XIV only have to wait a bit longer. It is certainly the case that patch 7.1 will bring enough exciting features to the game to keep fans occupied for a good while.
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