Merit Poin Additions (07/22/2006)

Quote:

---

With the upcoming merit point additions, you will be able to improve your character even further with all-new abilities and spells in the existing 15 job categories.
Merit point job categories will also become available for blue mages, corsairs, and puppetmasters.

Merit Point Categories
The existing 15 job categories will be improved to allow players the opportunity to further customize their level 75 characters with unique abilities.
These improved categories will include 4 to 8 abilities for each job. Depending on the distribution of merit points, it will be possible for players to access multiple new abilities.
Check out the upcoming version update news for what's in store.

- Subcategories
The 15 existing job categories will be divided into subcategories. Group 1 will include conventional abilities, while Group 2 will include the new job abilities, job traits, and spells.

- Accessing New Abilities
You can access Group 2 abilities by spending 1 point on the ability you wish to learn. Additional points spent on the same ability will shorten the recast time or enhance the effect (refer to the help text for each ability to learn the specific bonus).
Lowering the number of merit points in an ability to zero will cause it to disappear from your ability list.

- Ability Point Maximums
The Group 1 and Group 2 subcategories have separate totals for the maximum number of possible ability increases. Spending merit points to improve conventional abilities will not affect the acquisition of the new abilities.

Merit Points for Blue Mages, Corsairs, and Puppetmasters
In the upcoming version update, merit point job categories will be added for the three new jobs introduced in the Treasures of Aht Urhgan expansion disc.
These categories will initially contain only the Group 1 subcategory, allowing players to improve the basic abilities for these jobs.

---

http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics...84/detail.html


Looks exciting and perhaps a nice cushion for the blow that will be the upcoming 'nerf'.

I'm personally hoping for new things such as Massacre Elegy.

I wonder what the new merit abilities will be for Black Mage and White Mage.

ZOMG! They had better give Dark Knight something uber like Souleater II, lol that'd be so dumb :P

I'm placing bets that BLM will get either Tier V single target nukes or tier II AMs. Could be worse though... they could get Tier II elemental enfeebles.

I could see WHM getting Diaga II, maybe a higher banish. They honestly don't need any higher tier Cures... Cure VI? Maybe for a Galka MNK with HP gear and food on that just happened to get knocked down to 200 HP... then maybe you'd have an excuse to cast such a spell to fill his 2.5k HP or whatever.

Sounds pretty exciting to me, but I'm not even level 75 yet. =3

My bet for blm is tier II ancient magic. SE wants to give blm spells that will make regular endgame parties want to invite us. Ancient Magic II would contribute absolutely nothing towards that cause. SE doesn't seem to understand the mentality of its playerbase. They don't know why we do what we do, resulting in adjustments that hit the wrong targets. I think Ancient Magic II seems about right. SE probably thinks parties aren't inviting us because we lack in damage. Ancient Magic II will probably offer tons of damage - best spike damage ever, I'll bet. However, SE doesn't seem to understand the importance of MP conservation and doesn't realize that with an mp cost of 400+, these spells will be for impressing newbs in sarutabaruta only.

I hope paladin gets something worth having. Probably our own kind of provoke. God only knows what else though. Shield Bash II? :/

http://ffxi.somepage.com/news/283

How do you get Merit Points though?

You can exp for them at lvl 75 only, if you are 74 you cannot. 10K exp for one point.

I myself really can't wait to try : Berserk -> Sharpshot -> Flashy Shot -> Sidewinder on Kirin this weekend. Flashy Shot completely ignores level difference between player and the mob, so it should be great damage.

http://www.ffxionline.com/forums/bla...tml#post617499