[pathwriter]

I'm not even going to lie, I've done the fastest and most cursory glance possible at this topic and found nothing that satisfactorily answered my question. I'm sure it's been answered, but I'm feeling lazy.

So I've hit 53 on my Ranger and one thing I've observed while running around Whitegate is the remarkable number of 50-something Rangers I see with a Fire or Vulcan's Staff equipped. I make a habit of /checking anyone I recognize of a job I'm leveling and I don't think I've yet seen a one of them with /Samurai. That makes sense, too, since Third Eye without Seigan is basically a death sentence.

I cannot grasp the purpose of the staves, though. In a choice between ~24 Ranged Accuracy or 4-5 STR and 10 Ranged Attack, at this level, I've been opting for the former. I miss often enough that I occasionally get irritated with eating Meat Mithkabobs, but I'd rather get my Ranged Attack from food than making such a substantial trade-off in gear.

So am I missing something or am I just witnessing the usual misapplication of that which is normal at 75 to that which is abnormal at 55 (or whatever)? Especially as I'm about to start dealing with rutting Colibri and the high likelihood that I won't even be able to keep Mithkabobs down my gullet for long, much less pissing away money on sushi, I can't easily justify using a Fire Staff, but I'm open to the possibility that I'm doing it wrong.

On a related note, is /Samurai even remotely viable prior to level 70? I'm guessing not, since I've only met one Paladin who could reliably keep aggro off me and I doubt even that will persist once I have Sidewinder.

Thanks for any insights.

[Wakmidget]

http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Pot-au-feu

Not sure about the validity of Vulcan's staff in the earlier levels since I'm only 48. But I know the accuracy/ attack bonus on this food has been kicking ass on my RNG since the dunes.

[Fobos]

If you wanna go with the route of wearing r.acc gear, and using r.attk food, make sure the food you are eating actually gives r.attk. Meat mithkabobs dont. If you want something dirt cheap to pop everytime the colibri snatches your food, use roast pipira.

Prior to 70, i think i'd stick with /nin and axes/daggers with r.acc (trailers kukri at 60+ i believe, hawkers before that, fransisca/trailers, etc).

[pathwriter]

Goodness, that's egg on my face. I'd quite forgotten that Mithkabobs don't have Ranged Attack in them.

[rambus]

i did /war with staff at 55 just to challage kap in e peen shot.. that andi had merits....

[Matsuo]

Honestly I'd say do whatever lets you eat attack food consistently. Rice Dumplings are another option that aren't terribly expensive. Not sure what I think about pot-au-feu at that level, seeing as how given it's % it's probably giving no better than what you could do with your weapons in Ranged Accuracy. However meat (read: any R. Att food) gives you access to far more Ranged Attack than you're capable of getting otherwise, really.

Disclaimer: not knocking pot-au-feu at later levels, I've been going through it like candy @ 75 & loving every minute of it! REally nice HQ rate if you get someone to craft it for you.

[Spider-Dan]

Fire Staff pre-70 is just stupid. I don't care what gear they have.

At those levels, pot-au-feu is something to be eaten in conjunction with dual knives, not instead of them.

[Draxyl]

I didn't want to create a new topic and search has failed for this...

Since we're going over how meat mithkabobs don't give ranged attack (they used to on Asura back in the day Path!) - WHAT do you guys spam for food @ Colibri meritpo camp?? Can't seem to find a decent cheap food to spam eat out there, and pot au feu is a bit pricey @ 10k/stack on Fenrir. I seem to hit hard enough, 1500 sidewinders w/ attack buff and no food @ 74, but I feel like I should be eating *something* - aside from pecking flurries to the face.

[Kuz]

From my own experiences...

RNG 50+ using a Fire/Vulcan Staff has best be subbin WAR or SAM.
But honestly... neither is viable till 70+ (due to Warcry and Seigan/3rd Eye)

IF you DO choose to use a staff...for the love of god please don't sub NIN
Because honestly you can pop STR food and dual wield for the same effects.

IF you find you're having trouble hitting shots with a staff equipped, swap food to an r.acc food since the STR you'll be getting from a Staff+Axe grip is nice.

If you AREN'T having trouble... then by all means grab some coeurl subs.

I find that RNG/SAM with subs rocks my world with capped archery merits and some decent r.acc gear on.

But as i said... I don't see staff being viable at all till the 70's

As for Bird Camp food... I usually go without and just gear for r.acc.
we slam them no matter we do. no point in having food for one or two birds till your food is sucked outta your throat.

[Draxyl]

Gotta be someone out there that spams food. I'm just looking for something roughly similar to mithkabob, but I'm coming up dry on FFXI Wiki looking @ ranged attack foods.

[rambus]

From my own experiences...

RNG 50+ using a Fire/Vulcan Staff has best be subbin WAR or SAM.
But honestly... neither is viable till 70+ (due to Warcry and Seigan/3rd Eye)

IF you DO choose to use a staff...for the love of god please don't sub NIN
Because honestly you can pop STR food and dual wield for the same effects.

IF you find you're having trouble hitting shots with a staff equipped, swap food to an r.acc food since the STR you'll be getting from a Staff+Axe grip is nice.

If you AREN'T having trouble... then by all means grab some coeurl subs.

I find that RNG/SAM with subs rocks my world with capped archery merits and some decent r.acc gear on.

But as i said... I don't see staff being viable at all till the 70's

As for Bird Camp food... I usually go without and just gear for r.acc.
we slam them no matter we do. no point in having food for one or two birds till your food is sucked outta your throat.

i thought people subed war for berserk

Gotta be someone out there that spams food. I'm just looking for something roughly similar to mithkabob, but I'm coming up dry on FFXI Wiki looking @ ranged attack foods.

coeurl subs?

[Kuz]

i thought people subed war for berserk

True, but Subbin WAR just for Berserk is like Subbin SAM just for Mediate...or just for Hasso.
It's good and all...but better things down the line at 70+ that when used together are awesome

Velocity Shot + Berserk + Warcry = sexy on a ranged attack or WS's

[rambus]

True, but Subbin WAR just for Berserk is like Subbin SAM just for Mediate...or just for Hasso.
It's good and all...but better things down the line at 70+ that when used together are awesome

Velocity Shot + Berserk + Warcry = sexy on a ranged attack or WS's

but it only lasts for like....30 seconds....

[Kuz]

but it only lasts for like....30 seconds....

Again... correct...
but now apply that to say.... Barrage.... which is a 5 minute recast.

macro that in and your barrages are a lot stronger

[rambus]

Again... correct...
but now apply that to say.... Barrage.... which is a 5 minute recast.

macro that in and your barrages are a lot stronger

true, now back to berserk, you froget kaparu's 2.2 sidewinder at 55?

[Kuz]

true, now back to berserk, you froget kaparu's 2.2 sidewinder at 55?

...ok... go on...

[Rhayve]

Colibri ranged attack food would either be Rice dumplings which add STR+3 and up to +45 Ranged Attack or Roast pipira with only Ranged Attack, but up to +85. If you have at least 21 Cooking, you can make Roast pipira for cheap yourself, only requires a Fire crystal, a Pipira and Rock salt. You can also buy them for 846-956 gil each from a Vendor (probably too expensive), or the Pipiras for the recipe from the Windurstian fishing guild merchant & the AH... or you fish them up.

[Matsuo]

Colibri ranged attack food would either be Rice dumplings which add STR+3 and up to +45 Ranged Attack or Roast pipira with only Ranged Attack, but up to +85. If you have at least 21 Cooking, you can make Roast pipira for cheap yourself, only requires a Fire crystal, a Pipira and Rock salt. You can also buy them for 846-956 gil each from a Vendor (probably too expensive), or the Pipiras for the recipe from the Windurstian fishing guild merchant & the AH... or you fish them up.

This. Both were mentioned previously... not really sure how the people asking missed it tbh.

[Draxyl]

Couldn't find the above with search, because search hurts on forums that have been around since the dawn of time...too many hits when you try to find something simple like this.

Coerl subs are just a bit too pricey. Subs are 9500/stack and Dumplings are 7k/stack...mithkabob is 3500/stack, as is crab sushi - which is what I'll probably spam instead and use kclub.

[1]

KC is your problem. It's fun and all to spam out Slugwinders non stop but your just asking for pecking flurries and morsel snatches. You could use a 3hr food and not see a morsel snatch but you would have to be using a staff, standing at a distance and only use slugwinders when you know it will kill the mob. Also requires holding back when TP'ing : but when you regular range attack is doing between 400-600 a hit you realize it only takes two shots to do around 1k and you can sit back and WS every 2 mobs and throw a barrage in for good measure every now and then. When you jack out 2.5-3.5k in WS damage you know its fairly safe to go from around 50% of mobs health; and from about 80-90% if closing a SC off a WS that a melee used to open the fight with.