Abyssea happenings

I’ll say this about Abyssea. I think it’s far and away the best event SE has injected into this game in a long time. For the work you put in and what you get out of it it’s a no brainer, but it can also be a bit overwhelming. In regards to getting gear specifically not just the shout experience parties, being unlucky with key items is very frustrating. I’m not sure what the average Abyssea group size is but the group I am in has roughly an alliance worth and overall I was hoping we would have more drops and more boss attempts by now. It seems with a two day a week presence we are limited too because of stones availability, linkshell events, ect ect the time to get sets gathered and boss attempts done can take weeks if not more. I guess SE intended this, I just have this growing feeling that Abyssea will end up being like Dynamis and I wont be able to escape it for years to come. I guess time will tell but having seen the upcoming updates from SE and the focus they have put into Abyssea and completely making (multiple not just one) content events obsolete I really am disappointed they are focusing only on Abyssea and not adding something else to help replace the outdated content.

Beyond that finding time to do my trails is almost impossible!! (/sigh) With the upcoming FFVIX release myself and other leaders have had to re-evaluate what is in store for our linkshell but at the moment it only looks like a handful of current members and allot of retired members are thinking of making the move to FFIVX, but we shall see I suppose.

More to come…..

Amazing drops for people who well deserved them. Lets hope this is one of many more in our future. To quote a member from Eminence on the kill “We are all only as good as the people that stand beside us.” Congratulations everyone ^^

Blog gets a Facelift!

Through the years I had a lot of compliments on the look and design of my blog and it was much appreciated but it was due for a new look! This theme is not by me but I like it allot and think it works well with what I need to do. Hope you guys enjoy it. More updates to come and new forums soon!

I am one of the leaders of one of, if not the largest, and in my opinion one of the most successful Linkshell’s in the FFXI community Eminence of Lakshmi.

Experiences good and bad:

Helping or Leading a linkshell can be a very rewarding and fun experience. It will also be a painful, annoying experience. Let me say this right off the bat, if your wanting to be a leader for personal gain, praise, or for power. Do yourself and others a favor and don’t bother. Those are all the qualities of a horrible leader and you and your fellow linkshell members will be doomed for failure and hardships if you do.

The shell holder of my linkshell told me something in a private conversation that I will never forget and still rings true today.

“99% of all people who play FFXI are followers, the other 1% are leaders.”

If you fall into the 1% you know what he is talking about. My linkshell consists of some of the most amazing and skilled players I have ever seen grace this game. With knowledge and skill far surpassing the average FFXI player. But even some of the most gifted players need direction and a strong leader they can rely on.

No linkshell leader is perfect, far from it. But a good leader can control a chaotic situation, know how to deal with members issues BIG and SMALL, and lead with the confidence and backing of their linkshell members. Some leaders are good at everything, some leaders are only good at specific things. Its good to have a strong mix of both because realistically, you will not have more than 1 or 2 people who can do everything for everyone in the shell.

Patience is a must. Yes, people will need you to hold their hands from time to time. That’s all part of leading though. Eventually expectations should be met for members once they have put in their time and had the proper exposure and experience to different events in end game but remember, everyone has to start somewhere so your job is to instill the knowledge and confidence in your members so that later on you can all support each other and know exactly what your role is. Losing your temper with members on a constant basis especially unwarranted freak-out’s will just cause resentment and a break down in the leadership not to mention lost of respect amongst the people you are expected to lead. I my self have fallen victim to this many times and spoke or reacted before I should have thought things through.

I’m not going to lie and say their aren’t times when you should lay into your members after stupid mistakes or expectations are not met in the simplest form, because sometimes people need to shut up, and listen to you when mistakes happen so that they don’t happen again, but as always, use discretion. New and old members can make the biggest blunders but remember, in the end, its just a game.

Don’t try and do everything for everyone. The way I came into leadership in my shell was exactly this reason. At the time most of our old leadership had stopped playing the game or quit all together and had left at most maybe 3 people left to lead but the majority of the time it was left on one persons shoulder. During an Odin event our current and only active SH was so overwhelmed with members, complaining, members asking questions, trying to distribute loot and so on, that loot was not distributed properly and they were just overcome with trying to do everything at once for everyone. I had known for awhile that our leadership was in desperate need of help so I stepped up and offered anything I could do to help the situation and was then made a SH even though the LAST THING I WANTED was any type of responsibility or duties. I knew though, I couldn’t just see one person do the work of many. It’s been the best decision I have ever made honestly.

I helped with anything I could, but my biggest impact was in the area’s of help setting up linkshell policy’s and being that person that got the linkshell to do things, from HNM camping to events, to crowd control. So that our other leader could focus on leading specific events without being expected to do everything for everyone. Help your fellow SH’s leaders whenever you can. I have been in many shells were many were called “leaders” but really, only a couple actually did any leading. They of course failed in that regard even though a few of them did their jobs. A strong leadership equals a strong shell but one person cannot be expected do it all.

Play by the rules you have laid down or don’t play at all. This falls into the the personal gain, or power section. YOU CANNOT EXPECT YOUR MEMBERS TO RESPECT YOU OR FOLLOW YOUR LEAD IF YOU YOURSELF DON’T MEET THE EXPECTATIONS YOU HAVE LAID DOWN FOR OTHERS. I cannot stress this enough. Respect is earned, not given. Example A. Linkshell members are out camping an HNM yet one of the leaders is exp’ing or doing anything but leading the event. Member A says “why the hell should I be doing this when the leaders don’t bother themselves”. It’s called practice what your preach. I really shouldn’t have to explain this but I couldn’t tell you how many times I have seen this happen not only in my shell but in other shells resulting in nothing being done and members just being pissed off and frustrated.

Recently myself and the another leader of my shell got flooded with an overwhelming linkshell response about having people with the title and SackHolder but never did any type of leading ever and demanded they be stripped of that privilege. We couldn’t have agreed more. So everyone who wasn’t leading or doing anything was stripped of their status in a respectful manner and after months and months of careful decision making new active SH’s were put in place. Each leader knows the expectations that are put forth upon them by not only the senior leadership and the leader of the linkshell but the shell’s expectations as well.

Listen, and embrace your members, but know your role as a leader because in the end your the leader for a reason and your actions and the rules you and other leaders laid down should be respected. You are the 1%. Yes, you want to please and make everyone happy but you cannot please everyone all the time. Don’t forget that. Listening to your members weather it be idea’s or suggestions is always a good thing and will help you deal with various events and situations but YOU ARE THE LEADER and the decisions you make should always be in the interest of the linkshell and once the policies are laid down they should be in-forced and respected.

When the last content patch was released it was a leadership decision to give the linkshell 3 weeks off to exp all of their jobs and explore some of the new content on their own or with their friends and linkshell members. Every member was told to level one or more jobs they got accepted into the linkshell with and expected it to be at level 80 with a full buffer at the end of the 3 weeks. For the most part everyone complied, but a few did not. One of them being a very high attendance member who felt they did not have to level the job for various reasons and used this opportunity to essentially retire the job. When confronted with the issue, they still refused to level their jobs even after I had tried to explain how it was not fair that everyone else did their part yet they did not and it was explained before the 3 week break that it was expected of them to do this. Though this person was a value and an asset to the linkshell in attending events on a top tier level, I removed them from the shell.

The rules have to be in-forced and respected for you and your linkshell members at all times. Sure there are exceptions to the rules, for example we are a very relaxed end game linkshell when it comes to personal or real life commitments and responsibilities. But this was a case of outright refusal of a linkshell rule, and action had to be taken. Though these types of situations are not enjoyable in the least, they will happen and you as a leader will need to make the right decision.

Give credit where credit is due. I am a very strong believer in positive reinforcement. Don’t be afraid to tell your shell they have done a good job after a successful event. And when things go bad but you know it was because a bad situation, bad luck, or someone made an innocent mistake, be that positive attitude and try to explain what and why mistakes happened and how they can be corrected the next time. Your linkshell will have highs and lows, take advantage of these moments in positive ways if possible. Moral can be good even in a loss.

Sometimes the best and only praise is the successes of others and your linkshell’s accomplishments. At one point I dropped my position as a SH out of frustration and the feeling of not being appreciated enough. One thing you must must must know is, as a leader of a linkshell will you rarely receive any praise or credit for linkshell successes or accomplishments even if it was based on work you had done in the past or direct involvement by yourself. This is the unsung part of being a leader. Take pride in what you have helped built and don’t expect the red carpet to be laid down every time you feel you “made it happen“. The successes of others and the your linkshell is the reward.

I could go on but maybe for another day. I know at times I was a bit all over the place in this post but I just wanted to share a small light into my experiences having helped lead a very successful linkshell I call family.

Eminence Linkshell on Lakshmi defeats Pandemonium Warden!!!! First attempt and only kill on the server!

The fight has to be one of the funnest kill in FFXI hands down. Our first Kill was months and weeks into planning and everyone’s efforts were second to none. It was down the the wire, and we got everything but the h2h. Enjoy a few of these pictures below.

More pictures to come for sure and also a highlight video. I still can’t believe how epic the whole experience was and to get the body piece was truly humbling. Eminence for life.

Hachiryu Haramaki – Sydney
Nanatsusayanotachi – Epyon
Dorje – Peti

When I’m not exping my RDM I am trying to give another shot at ZNM’s and getting those elusive pants for my Samurai. So much work for such a horrible drop rate, I seriousely hope someone at SE gets caught in a falling elevator for what this puts me through.

Trying to do everything I can to help Ali with her relic, I really want her to get it soon so we can do more with our time than just try and make gil and more enjoy playing the game but I always enjoy spending time with Ali and doing stupid things with her or my LS.

I guess after Ali is done with her relic I will stake a craft to 100, atleast then I will have something to pour my gil into. Even though crafting is “dead” according to some of my friends.

I got sky tomorrow so I will take some pictures for fun. Until next time.

Well besides being incredibly busy with real life work and playing FFXI things seems to be ok in life. I just hope I can somehow find more time to play and enjoy the fruits of my labor in game. Until then here is a couple screenshots of random events.

Sydney Kaiten Session v.1 from Leo on Vimeo.

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The first video is the unedited Amanomurakumo turning in event in its entirety. The second is a little Kaiten fun video I made to go with the first. Hope you guys enjoy the videos ^^.

Finally after 3+ years the dream has become reality. Yesterday I finally turned in eveything to recieve my Amanomurakumo. I honestly never thought I would ever obtain this but with the encouragement of my friends and linkshell’s, its finally in my hands. I have so many people to thank so I’ll try my best to remember you all. First off and most importantly, Alibeemac. My best friend in game and the person that has supported me since day 1 and has sacrificed her time and own gill to help me with my Amanomurakumo. I owe you so much I just hope someday I can find a way to repay you.

To everyone who donated one, ten or any ammount of currency to my cause, I thank you with all my heart. Every donation or deal or whatever counted, and I will forever be greatfull. To those of you who donated with large amounts of gil, Nith, Geditheh, Trivan. You guys did something most people wouldn’t nor couldn’t, I just hope by still playing the game to my full potential and showing you guys it was all worth it I honor your incredibly unselfish acts of kindness by donating your gil to me. You truly are good friends and I will never forget the help you gave me.

My Linkshell Eminence and my Dynamis shell FB. This would not have happened without your help. I tried everything in my power to show you I deserved this and with your help you made it happen. I hope to have many continued adventures with all of you!

This is truely one of the best things I have ever expierienced in game and I am so happy that so many people on Lakshmi thanked me and wished me congratulations on this achievement as well as shared the moment with me.

I will have a video of the entire event later. For now, enjoy these pictures I took. ^.^

Hope you guys like it, its my first video ever ><;