Cui bono, Felidae?

The biggest attractor and detractor to the so called "end game" of Final Fantasy is the fact that to get the shinest and best of all types of gears is to gather together in large groups and regularly work to obtain such a prize. Yet the pursuit of such things often ends in such penury that it leaves many without hope and least wise without fun; and why do that to a game.

But I call back to the time when I started the "end game" as a white mage. The ultimate of the white mage gear was the Nobel's Tunic; something to provide refresh and make a seemingly weak job a little more powerful. The first step was to obtain access to sky itself, a common enough event, yet a great enough effort that not enough people were willing to complete it. In most cases, not enough people could be bothered with the effort. In other cases, too much effort by groups was established to bringing people access to sky only to see them leave. Either way, no matter how much loyalty I promised and tried to show to any one group, the only way I was given access to sky was through the efforts of people who gained no benefit at all from aiding me. The significance to myself was not lost in the least upon myself.

My next step once I had access was yet again try to find a group who would have me and attempt to earn my gear. Yet the time it took for me to gain access to sky, a change had occurred over time with sky in reference to white mages. Too often, white mages would work hard and continue to work until they obtained the great item of choice...the shining cloth to make a nobel's tunic...and then dissapear. In later times, this became much more common among other jobs, yet at that time it was most especially visible among the white mages and other jobs that had little to nothing to gain from sky.

For those who do not realize it, but for a body with only one job to beyond 70, it is the work of utter fustration to continue to attend sky events and watch everyone walk away with greater weapons, armor and other fun things and all you end up walking away with is.. crystals. I am well aware that "Zenith" gear is supposedly "the best" for white mages as well, yet I would point out the obvious fact that not only is it a dubious piece of equipment in comparison with other options for white mage, it is ungodly expensive to purchase. Yet others come along with greater and better equipment for their own jobs; and mostly for free. This is a discouragement greater among most, yet it is one that many attend to no matter what--just to get that elusive armors.

My search for an acceptable group to work with was met with suspicion and new rules invented to prevent white mages especially from walking away with anything--even going so far as to insist that no one can earn any gear, and would be required to surrender such gear at any time to the group proper for any reason. The ultimate message was this: the members of the group exist only to serve the group as a whole. Therefore all things given to the people who are members are only such to "benefit the whole." How wonderfully utopian.

The first of these groups I joined, I was a very loyal and dedicated trooper. I spent a great deal of time, gil, and my own skill showing up for events, making items for use for people, and even more--I earned my points very fast and sure. Yet, once I asked to earn items other than what I was allowed as a lowly white mage, I was greeted with labels as "Greedy" and "Out for Personal Gain." Because of the items I wished to obtain were for jobs that would not benefit the group as too low level, even though they would benefit myself as I could equip them, I was not allowed. And furthermore, I was instructed to continue the same things that I had been doing, without any hope to obtain any gear; I should just be there for the benefit of the group, period. It is simple to say that I no longer wasted my time with said group after this fact. Of course, later, I was told by other still in that group that there were many complaints about the lack of healers.

After a short time, it became apparent that these groups realized the trend, and decided to invoke people in their existing member ship to level healing jobs as secondary in order to take the main job of healing for the group. In as much as they had done this, they became elidgable not only to obtain the items dedicated to the white mage, but also to their other jobs as well. Of course, benefitting the group..half the time, I suppose.

What I am calling upon is a plea for common sense. Utopian ideals are wonderful in their glitter but cannot withstand the test of time, without taking the fundamental human nature into consideration. The idea of "who benefits" is very important because it involves the additional question of "who is motivated." In the story of the mayflower compact, a group of religeous zealots created a commune where all things were held in common, much like those made in the 60's. Food grown, animals harvested were placed in a central storage, and everyone pulled directly from it as they needed. Nobody even owned any land; it was held in common. However, while everyone pulled from the commune equally, not everyone added to the commune equally or at all. In the end, the winter was long and hard, and starvation was rampant and only the local indians who supplied them with food and teachings that saved the survivors (this is often refered to as "The First Thanksgiving" by the way). The part of the story that most people forget is that the colony did not prosper until after they gave up the commune style of existance, and established a free enterprise. The govonor of the colony gave out individual lots of land to each of the surviving members, and each were charged with the cultivation of their own land. Even John Smith, the only successfor govenor of the Jamestown colony had to declair “he who does not work shall not eat” due to the population's "gentlemen" felt hard work was beneath them. These teach the lession that there is a correlation between people's motivation and their own self interest.

What, therefore, is the goal of such "god shells" groups? To obtain gear? To gain bragging rights to the destruction of various hard notorious monsters? How can this be accomplished? Obtain people committed to doing what is required to get the job done. And once obtained, retain these people for the long run in order to continue in the whole process of the stated missions.

How can this be accomplished? I just ask, what is the coin of the land of Final Fantasy? I'm not talking about gil; I am talking about what is most valuable above all? Everyone has a different answer, but lets list some things people value: New Weapons, New Armor, Missions, Rank, Dynamis Coins, Limbus Coins... Artifact Quests, anything that people can't do on their own. If a point system can work for obtaining gear for sky, why can't it work for a rare/ex item from bibiki bay? If a person farming at 100% attendance yet cannot benefit unless the rare event that Kirin goes down AND drops an item, then why not allow that person to get another item for another job that will never benefit the group? Why can't a group supply a bunch of veteran BCNM'ers in order to suppliment their groups gil and well..just to have fun. Do not alieanate the people who are loyal to your group and cause by ignoring them. The question has to be, who benefits? Because a group of happy individuals can only be a strong group.

I just ask one thing: If you were at a job where you were told that not only could you never ever get a promotion, you would never be elidgeable for a raise, your benefits would slowly decrease over time and your work load will slowly but surely increase. How long will it take for your motivation to fail. Then wonder if this was a game you play for fun.

In the words of Shakespeare, "If it do come to pass that any man turn ass, leaving his wealth and ease, a stubborn will to please, Ducdame, ducdame, ducdame: Here shall he see gross fools as he, an if he will come to me. "