Leveling crafting jobs in Final Fantasy XIV can be a rewarding but time-consuming endeavor. Fortunately, there are several methods to significantly boost your experience gain and speed up the process. This guide will walk you through the most effective strategies to maximize your crafting EXP in FFXIV, ensuring you reach your desired levels quickly and efficiently.
Road to 80 Buff: The Ultimate Leveling Advantage
For players on Preferred Worlds, the “Road to 80” buff is an incredible boon. This buff grants a massive +100% bonus to all EXP earned until you reach level 80. If you’re on a Preferred World, this essentially halves the time and effort needed to level any crafting job up to level 80, making it the most impactful EXP boost available.
Engineering Manuals: Your Early Leveling Companion
Company-Issue and Commercial Engineering Manuals provide a substantial +150% EXP bonus specifically from crafting. These manuals are practically essential during the early levels, especially from levels 1 to 21, due to the significant boost they offer. While their impact diminishes at higher levels where EXP from sources other than crafting becomes more prominent, Engineering Manuals still contribute to faster leveling by reducing the number of crafts needed overall, particularly when combined with the EXP Scaling method.
Free Company Buff: Helping Hand II for Extra Gains
If you are part of a Free Company, activating the “Helping Hand II” Company Action can provide a helpful +10% EXP bonus for all successful crafts for a full 24 hours. While it’s a smaller boost compared to other methods, it’s a consistent bonus that can accumulate over time and contribute to faster leveling. It’s worth noting that this buff does not affect EXP gained from Ishgard Restoration hand-ins.
Bonus EXP Gear: Equip for Enhanced Leveling
Certain pieces of gear offer bonus EXP, further accelerating your crafting journey. The Friendship Circlet provides a +20% EXP bonus up to level 26, while the Ala Mhigan Earrings offer a +30% EXP bonus up to level 51. These bonuses stack with other EXP buffs, making them valuable additions to your leveling strategy. Equipping these items within their level ranges will noticeably increase your EXP gains without interfering with crafting macros or rotations. Similar to the Free Company buff, these gear bonuses do not apply to Ishgard Restoration hand-in rewards.
EXP Scaling: Craft Smart for Maximum Rewards
To maximize the EXP you receive from Ishgard Restoration Recipes, utilize the EXP scaling method. This involves crafting the required materials for hand-ins at the lowest possible level and delaying the actual hand-in until you’ve accumulated enough crafts to reach the next tier. EXP rewards from crafting diminish as you level up, so completing your crafts at a lower level ensures you gain the highest possible EXP yield for each item. This method is especially effective for Ishgard Restoration content, allowing you to leverage the scaling system to your advantage and level up more efficiently.
By combining these strategies – utilizing the Road to 80 buff if available, consistently using Engineering Manuals, benefiting from Free Company buffs, equipping bonus EXP gear, and employing EXP scaling for Ishgard Restoration – you can significantly expedite your crafting leveling in Final Fantasy XIV and reach your goals faster than ever.