Submarine voyages in Final Fantasy XIV offer a rewarding and engaging way to gather rare materials, uncover hidden treasures, and generate substantial Gil. This comprehensive guide will walk you through everything you need to know about submarines, from unlocking them to optimizing your builds for different purposes. Whether you’re aiming to explore new sectors, farm specific resources, or amass wealth, mastering your Free Company’s submarine operations is key.
Getting Started with Submarines
Before you can dive into the depths, you’ll need to meet a few prerequisites. First and foremost, your Free Company must have achieved Rank 6. Secondly, you’ll need a Free Company Workshop within your Free Company estate. If you haven’t already, purchase a house and then acquire the workshop through the crafting log.
Once you have your workshop set up, you can begin crafting submarine parts. The initial submarine design available is the Shark-class. As your submarines embark on voyages and gain experience, they will level up, allowing you to equip higher-level components. Unlocking advanced submarine builds requires crafting specific items within the Free Company workshop – so keep an eye on those crafting logs!
Image: Shark-class submarine model, the starting point for your underwater expeditions.
Image: Coelacanth-class submarine model, an example of advanced submarine designs available later.
Understanding Submarine Stats
To effectively manage your submarine voyages, understanding the core stats is crucial. Each stat plays a vital role in the success and profitability of your expeditions:
- Surveillance: This stat influences the weather patterns you’ll encounter in a sector. Weather is important because it directly affects loot tables. Rarer and more valuable loot is often tied to specific, often less common, weather conditions. High Surveillance increases your chances of encountering favorable weather.
- Retrieval: Retrieval dictates the yield of items your submarines bring back. It determines whether you receive a poor, normal, or optimal amount of loot from each discovery point. Higher Retrieval means more loot per voyage.
- Speed: Speed directly impacts the duration of a voyage. A faster submarine will complete voyages more quickly, allowing for more frequent expeditions and faster resource gathering.
- Range: Range determines the maximum distance your submarine can travel. Higher Range unlocks access to more distant and often more rewarding sectors.
- Favor: Favor influences the number of anomalies (loot points) your submarine can detect at a single destination, often referred to as “Double Dipping.” Higher Favor increases the potential loot from each voyage by maximizing the number of discoveries.
Recommended Submarine Builds
Choosing the right submarine build is essential for maximizing efficiency based on your goals. Here are several effective builds catering to different objectives:
Exploration Build
This build is designed for unveiling new sectors. Prioritizing exploration at the start of new content patches is key to accessing all available areas.
Modified Coelacanth-class Pressure Hull – Modified Unkiu-class Stern – Modified Unkiu-class Bow – Modified Syldra-class Bridge
- Stats: 240 Surveillance / 115 Retrieval / 125 Speed / 165 Range / 195 Favor
This configuration offers high Surveillance and Favor, crucial for discovering new areas and maximizing anomaly detection in those initial explorations. While Retrieval is lower, the primary focus is unlocking content.
Many players find that an exploration-focused submarine is invaluable at the launch of new content. It typically has a high success rate in discovering uncharted sectors, often unlocking new areas 4 out of 5 times. After all sectors are revealed and your exploration submarine reaches max level, you can reconfigure its parts for other purposes. However, keeping one exploration build is generally recommended for when new submarine content is released. While some players might use this build for general voyages, its lower Retrieval stat makes it less ideal for consistent loot farming compared to specialized builds.
Surveillance Heavy Builds
When aiming for specific, high-value loot, especially newer items or in-demand minions, Surveillance Heavy builds are your best bet. These builds maximize your chances of encountering favorable weather and discovering rare items.
Surveillance Heavy Build 1: Modified Coelacanth-class Pressure Hull – Modified Unkiu-class Stern – Modified Syldra-class Bow – Modified Coelacanth-class Bridge
- Stats: 220 Surveillance / 120 Retrieval / 130 Speed / 175 Range / 210 Favor
Surveillance Heavy Build 2: Modified Coelacanth-class Pressure Hull – Modified Unkiu-class Stern – Modified Syldra-class Bow – Modified Syldra-class Bridge
- Stats: 220 Surveillance / 120 Retrieval / 90 Speed / 215 Range / 215 Favor
These builds sacrifice some speed and potentially range (in Build 2) for significantly boosted Surveillance and Favor. They are particularly effective in the first few weeks after new loot is introduced, maximizing your chances of acquiring those sought-after items quickly. After the initial rush, switching back to a dedicated loot farming build might be more efficient for general resource gathering.
Purpose Builds: Resource Farming
Purpose builds are specialized configurations designed for farming specific materials. While less versatile, they excel at accumulating large quantities of targeted resources.
Pure Titanium Ore and Cryptomeria Logs Farming Build: Modified Shark-class Pressure Hull – Modified Syldra-class Stern – Modified shark-class Bow – Modified Coelacanth-class Bridge
- Stats: 185 Surveillance / 240 Retrieval / 150 Speed / 70 Range / 175 Favour
This build prioritizes Retrieval for maximum yield of Pure Titanium Ore and Cryptomeria Logs, valuable crafting materials. The lower Range is acceptable as you’ll likely be focusing on sectors known for these resources.
Kamacite Farming Build: Modified Shark-class Pressure Hull – Modified Coelacanth-class Stern – Modified Shark-class Bow – Modified Coelacanth-class Bridge
- Stats: 175 Surveillance / 205 Retrieval / 155 Speed / 110 Range / 195 Favor
Similar to the previous build, this one focuses on high Retrieval to efficiently farm Kamacite Ore. These purpose-built submarines are ideal if you regularly craft modified submarine parts for sale or personal use, as these materials are essential components. While time-consuming, selling these resources and crafted parts can be a lucrative venture. If you prefer a more passive approach, a general loot farming build might be more suitable.
Gil Farming Builds
For players primarily focused on generating Gil, specific sectors offer valuable items that can be sold to NPCs for a high price. Gil farming builds are optimized to target these lucrative destinations.
Gil Farming Build 1: Modified Shark-class Pressure Hull – Modified Shark-class Stern – Modified Shark-class Bow – Modified Syldra-class Bridge
- Stats: 140 Surveillance / 205 Retrieval / 145 Speed / 155 Range / 195 Favor
Gil Farming Build 2: Modified Shark-class Pressure Hull – Modified Coelacanth-class Stern – Modified Shark-class Bow – Modified Shark-class Bridge
- Stats: 140 Surveillance / 210 Retrieval / 150 Speed / 145 Range / 175 Favor
These builds are designed to visit sectors like “Unidentified Derelicts,” “The Wreckage of Discovery,” “Concealed Bay,” and “The Wreckage of the Highwind.” These locations are known to yield items like “Extravagant Salvaged Rings,” which can be sold to NPCs for around 27,000 Gil each. Gil farming builds are highly effective at bringing back multiple of these items per voyage, making them a worthwhile investment for increasing your in-game wealth.
Submarine Sectors and Loot Tables
Understanding the map and loot tables for each sector is vital for targeted farming. The following images provide visual guides to the submarine exploration areas and their associated loot.
Image: Map of the first submarine exploration area, Deep Sea Site and surrounding sectors.
Image: Map of the second submarine exploration area, The Sea of Ash and surrounding sectors.
Deep Sea Site Loot Table
Image: Loot table for Deep Sea Site, detailing potential rewards from this early sector.
Image: Additional loot table details for Deep Sea Site, expanding on the possible discoveries.
The Sea of Ash Loot Table
Image: Loot table for The Sea of Ash, showcasing the rewards available in this sector.
The Sea of Jade Loot Table
Image: Loot table for The Sea of Jade, listing the possible items obtainable from this sector.
Image: Further loot table information for The Sea of Jade, providing a comprehensive view of potential drops.
Submarine Repairs
Like airships, submarines require regular maintenance. To repair your submarines, you’ll need Magitek Repair Materials. These are crafted using 1 Dark Matter Cluster and 5 Grade 6 Dark Matter. It’s advisable to craft a substantial stockpile (50-100) as higher-level submarine parts require more materials for repair. Modified parts, for instance, typically require 6 Magitek Repair Materials per component.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully, this guide provides a solid foundation for your submarine adventures in Final Fantasy XIV. By understanding submarine stats, optimizing your builds, and targeting the right sectors, you can efficiently gather valuable resources, amass Gil, and explore the depths of Eorzea. Good luck, and happy diving!
