In Final Fantasy XIV, achievement hunting often leads to awfully long grinds. Sometimes, new chores mean I’m committing to the same monotonous routine for months, and sometimes that means I’m queuing up for duties long-abandoned, like the MMO’s MOBA-like PvP mode, Rival Wings.
When it comes to achievement hunting, I’m one of those people. Outside of simply playing games I paid for, one of my favorite RPG chores is the thrill of making dinky little to-do lists. I like it when the list gets smaller. I like the satisfying ping with every new accomplishment. I like when Number-Goes-Up. In FFXIV, being one of those types is challenging, especially when queuing up for encounters in the Hidden Gorge.Â
Forward and Back
FFXIV’s less popular large-scale PvP mode debuted years ago in Stormblood. And to the thrill of 2017 me, it tickled the parts of my brain super into League of Legends. She’s dead now, but I still adore the vie for control of map objectives and a thrilling base rush. Unfortunately, most other folks weren’t digging it as much, and the Rival Wings queue times grew longer. On a typical day, I’m fairly certain the Duty Finder just displays “Who the hell knows?” as the estimated wait time.
Anyway, there’s a long history of threads on the FFXIV official forum and subreddit eulogizing the 48-man PvP mode. A handful of dedicated community members out there coordinating times for players to get together certainly helps, but outside of that, trying to get in on a normal Tuesday is rarely a fruitful endeavor. I want those achievements, so of course I’m scrambling to find that information, but what about Rival Wings for folks with normal schedules?
That’s where the Moogle Tomestone event comes in. If you’re unfamiliar, the Moogle Treasure Trove is one of FFXIV’s limited-time festivities, usually celebrating a patch, but this one is a little different. Instead of serving wholly as a hoorah for Patch 6.5’s debut, we’re celebrating the 10th anniversary of Version 2.0, A Realm Reborn, and its defiant relaunch. To incentivize queuing for older duties, FFXIV adds Irregular Tomestone bonuses to select instances. The currency earns you quest-limited rewards, along with other rare in-game goodies.
I’m still ill there are no MGP rewards, but this iteration of the event shapes up to make Rival Wings one of the fastest ways to grind tokens. We’ve seen it as an option in the past, but it’s not usually this active. Typically, there’s much faster routes to farm Irregular Tomestones—routes that don’t involve this many people. But this time, y’all are stuck helping me add more Hidden Gorge battles to my 1,000-match goal.
No Mercy
That’s a lot to say I am on the FFXIV Rival Wings train again, figuratively and literally. I’m kind of glad there are no faster Blue Mage-cheese alternatives. Rival Wings is chaotic, and I mean that in the best ways. Matches are fast enough that losses don’t frustrate me long, but I love running the clock on a close 15-minute game.
It lacks the polish of a MOBA because, well, it’s not a MOBA. The 48-man matches feel a bit like herding cats. It’s not like Rival Wings explains itself very well, so usually half the instance has no idea what’s happening. Sometimes, you’ll get one brave soul who’s prepared a few macros. They play some attention-grabbing sound, followed by callouts like “Defend north,” “Help kill the merc,” or “Are y’all intentionally feeding?”
In two days, I’d already added 50 matches to my achievement progress. That’s a lot compared to the zero I was adding before, and I’m obviously not alone in the grind. Over on Reddit, players like Garuketo shared data documenting the Hidden Gorge player queues on one FFXIV data center, and survey says it’s poppin’ on Primal.
It’s just refreshing to see an old mode I’ve got a soft spot for receiving another wave of popularity. Waits for a match are over almost as soon as I register, and swarming player masses are mostly in good spirits. The mode is far more dynamic than grinding a normal raid for hours and busier than the monotony of some Frontlines maps. In Rival Wings, there’s always something I can do that feels like it makes a tangible difference in the way the match plays out, even if some plays are a little broken.
Gobbies Rise Up
Perhaps it’s just my enchantment with the mode, but I think the community is feeling it this time, too. Trying to coordinate through the whole cat-herding thing rarely works out on all fronts, but I’m having a blast trying. When matches begin, some of us all rush to the middle objective, trying to secure goods from the mode’s passing train. Others run to the fields to collect ceruleum tanks to power our mechs, and a few brave folks quickly suit up in a Cruise Chaser or Oppressor.
Sometimes, matches go poorly from the start, but I love the desperate plays that remind me of my League of Legends days. Even when all seems lost, I’ve had rounds where a desperate Brute Justice runs down the middle and somehow goes unnoticed by the enemy. If we manage to keep them safe, it results in a clutch win. More than anything else, I’m convinced map awareness is the biggest factor in how PvP goes.
I don’t think events are the only solution to revitalizing mostly dead content like Rival Wings, but they certainly help. I’d disagree the Hidden Gorge needs massive overhauls for balance and precision; that’s already missing a lot of its appeal. However, Rival Wings—and a lot of other FFXIV fundamentals, frankly—would benefit from additional tutorials.
Anyway, I’m sure it’ll be a ghost town again in a week weeks, but for now, I’m enjoying the resurgence. And if you see me in-game, being the only player getting hit by the mode’s very obvious train, no, you didn’t.
