FINAL FANTASY XIV Online: Beginner-to-Endgame Guide

Everything a new or returning Warrior of Light needs: how to start, which job to pick, how the story and leveling actually work, what to do at level 100, and what is happening in the game right now ahead of the next expansion.

Researched September 2026 — current as of Patch 7.56 (Dawntrail, released September 8, 2026). Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

• The Free Trial is huge. It covers A Realm Reborn, Heavensward, Stormblood and Shadowbringers, up to level 80, with no time limit. Restrictions are social/economic (no /shout, /yell or /tell, no Free Company, no market board or trading, no retainers, 300,000 gil cap), not story or job restrictions.
• One character can play every job. Changing your weapon changes your class/job. You never need an alt to try a tank or healer.
• The Main Scenario Quest (MSQ) is the spine of the game. Almost every dungeon, trial, feature and zone unlocks through it. Follow the meteor-shaped MSQ icon on your map and do not skip it.
• Pick your starting class for fun, not optimization. Every class is viable, and you can pick up the others later in the three starting cities.
• Do your Duty Roulettes daily once you unlock them. They give large bonus experience and tomestones. This is the main leveling engine for alt jobs.
• Use the Hall of the Novice for your role (tank, healer, DPS). It teaches aggro, positioning and basic mechanics, and hands out a ring and gear.
• Duty Support lets you do MSQ dungeons with NPCs. If you are nervous about queuing with players, you can clear every story dungeon solo with NPC allies.
• Watch out for glowing orange/red floor markers (AoEs). Moving out of them matters more than your damage rotation early on.
• Wear a full set of gear at your level. Many "this boss is too hard" moments are because a piece is 20 levels old. The Armoury Chest and "Recommended Gear" button fix most of this.
• Join a Free Company or Novice Network once possible. The Novice Network (green sprout chat) is a helpful chat for new players and mentors.

How the Game Is Structured

Expansions and the level cap

Expansion | Levels | Jobs introduced | In Free Trial?

A Realm Reborn | 1–50 | Base classes/jobs | Yes

Heavensward | 50–60 | Dark Knight, Machinist, Astrologian | Yes

Stormblood | 60–70 | Samurai, Red Mage | Yes

Shadowbringers | 70–80 | Gunbreaker, Dancer | Yes

Endwalker | 80–90 | Reaper, Sage | No

Dawntrail | 90–100 | Viper, Pictomancer | No

Evercold (upcoming) | 100–110 | Bastion (tank) plus one physical ranged job | No

The current level cap is 100. The sixth expansion, Evercold, is expected in January 2027 and raises the cap to 110. Announced features include a new tank job (Bastion), a second new job in the physical ranged role, and a system that gives every existing job two modes (called Reborn Mode and Evolved Mode on the wiki) with different actions, switchable outside combat. Treat details as preliminary until Square Enix publishes final notes.

Classes vs. jobs

You start as a class (e.g. Gladiator, Conjurer). Around level 30, after the class quest line and the MSQ step unlocking it, you take a job quest that turns it into the full version (Gladiator becomes Paladin, Conjurer becomes White Mage). Always play the job once unlocked; jobs get the real kit, and group content requires them.

Later-expansion jobs start at higher levels and require the relevant expansion: Dark Knight, Machinist and Astrologian start at 30; Samurai and Red Mage at 50; Gunbreaker and Dancer at 60; Reaper and Sage at 70; Viper and Pictomancer at 80.

Roles and jobs

Role | Jobs | What you do

Tank | Paladin, Warrior, Dark Knight, Gunbreaker | Hold enemy attention, face the boss away from the group, use cooldowns on big hits

Healer | White Mage, Scholar, Astrologian, Sage | Keep the party up, but also deal damage between heals

Melee DPS | Monk, Dragoon, Ninja, Samurai, Reaper, Viper | High damage, positional bonuses (rear/flank) on many jobs

Physical Ranged DPS | Bard, Machinist, Dancer | Mobile damage plus party utility

Magical Ranged DPS | Black Mage, Summoner, Red Mage, Pictomancer | Casting damage; Red Mage and Summoner can raise dead allies

Queue times: Tanks and healers get near-instant queues. DPS can wait several minutes in dungeons. If you want fast leveling, a tank or healer alt is worth it.

Limited jobs: Blue Mage and the new Beastmaster (Patch 7.56) sit outside the normal system. They cannot use role actions or queue for most normal content. See the Beastmaster section below.

Early Game: Levels 1–50

Starting cities

City | Starting classes

Limsa Lominsa | Marauder, Arcanist

Gridania | Lancer, Archer, Conjurer

Ul'dah | Gladiator, Pugilist, Thaumaturge

Rogue (Ninja) unlocks later in Limsa Lominsa. Your starting city only affects the first several hours of story; everyone converges soon after.

What unlocks along the way

• Level 10: Class quests continue; you can pick up other classes at their guilds.
• Level 15–17: Dungeons begin (Sastasha, Tam-Tara Deepcroft, Copperbell Mines). Leveling Roulette unlocks after your first dungeon.
• ~Level 20: Chocobo mount via the Grand Company quest line, and you choose a Grand Company (Maelstrom, Twin Adder or Immortal Flames). This choice is cosmetic plus the rank-up gear/seal vendor; it does not lock story.
• Level 30: Job quests; the Armoury System lets you swap class by weapon.
• Level 50: A Realm Reborn's main story finishes, followed by the long post-ARR patch quests (2.1 to 2.55) before Heavensward. These were trimmed, but they are still mandatory and they matter for later story.

Leveling tips

• MSQ experience alone gets your first job to cap, as long as you do the story dungeons.
• Alt jobs level fastest from: daily Leveling Roulette, daily Frontline (PvP) and other roulettes, deep dungeons (Palace of the Dead for 1–60, Heaven-on-High for 61–80, Eureka Orthos for 81–90, Pilgrim's Traverse for 91–100), FATEs with Shared FATE rewards in later zones, and Wondrous Tails once per week.
• Rested experience builds in sanctuaries and cities. Log out in town.
• Armoury Bonus: jobs below your highest level get extra EXP.
• Use Duty Support or Trusts if queues are long; slower than players, but reliable.

Combat Fundamentals

• Global Cooldown (GCD): Most weaponskills and spells share a roughly 2.5-second cooldown. Your goal is to never let it sit idle ("Always Be Casting").
• oGCDs and weaving: Off-global abilities should be fitted between GCDs, usually one or two per GCD.
• Combos: Many melee and tank jobs have combo chains; follow the highlighted buttons.
• Positionals: Some melee skills do extra damage from the rear or flank of the enemy.
• Mechanic literacy: Stack markers mean group up; spread markers mean separate; tankbusters target the tank; "raidwide" damage hits everyone and healers should shield/heal before it.

Useful settings

Setting | Why

Enable "Auto face target" and ground-targeting options that suit you | Fewer failed casts

Turn on nameplate/enemy cast bar display | See what a boss is about to do

Use a controller or keyboard-plus-mouse, both fully supported | The cross hotbar on controller is excellent

Set up the Party List with status effects visible | Healers need to see debuffs

Endgame at Level 100 (Dawntrail, Patch 7.56)

Once you finish Dawntrail's MSQ and the patch story up to 7.56 ("Trail to the Heavens"), the endgame loop looks like this:

Gear progression

• Catch up with crafted or tomestone gear. Allagan Tomestones of Mnemonics are the current capped tome (450 per week, introduced in 7.4). Poetics is the uncapped catch-all currency for older gear.
• Dungeons and roulettes feed tomestones. The Expert and Level 100 Dungeon roulettes are the best tome sources.
• Normal raids (the Arcadion series in Dawntrail) and Alliance Raids (the Windurst-themed series, most recently Windurst: The Third Walk in 7.5) give gear tokens once per week.
• Extreme trials such as The Unmaking (Extreme) from 7.5 drop weapons and mounts.
• Savage raids: The current tier is the AAC Heavyweight tier. As of 7.56 its weekly loot restrictions were removed and the Echo (a damage/HP buff) is enabled, so it is the easiest it has ever been to clear.
• Ultimate: Dancing Mad (Ultimate) arrived in 7.51, for dedicated statics only.

Other level 100 activities

Content | What it is

Occult Crescent (South Horn, North Horn) | Field operation zone with its own leveling (phantom jobs) and a raid (Forked Tower). North Horn arrived in 7.55

Phantom Weapons | Relic weapon series; concluded in 7.55

Cosmic Exploration | Crafter/gatherer mission zone on other planets, including Auxesia added in 7.51

Deep dungeons | Pilgrim's Traverse is the Dawntrail deep dungeon

Hildibrand quests | Comedy side story; continued in 7.55

Allied Society quests | Daily beast tribe quests; the capstone quests came in 7.55

Unreal trial | A rotating older trial scaled to level 100, currently Shinryu's Domain (Unreal)

PvP | Crystalline Conflict (ranked 5v5), Frontline (large-scale), Rival Wings

Crafting and gathering (Disciples of the Hand and Land)

There are eight crafting classes and three gathering classes. They level separately from combat jobs and are how you make gil. Start them after your combat job is comfortable. Quick path: class quests plus Grand Company supply/provisioning turn-ins plus leves, then Custom Deliveries and Cosmic Exploration at higher levels. Crafters are also the backbone of the market board economy (which Free Trial players cannot use).

Beastmaster (New Limited Job, Patch 7.56)

• Unlock: Level 50 on any job, completed "The Ultimate Weapon" MSQ, and ownership of Dawntrail. Start "Strangers in the Wood" from the Excited Adventurer in New Gridania (X:11.8, Y:13.6).
• Role and gear: Melee DPS using one-handed axes and shields, Strength primary stat, Striking armor.
• Level cap: 50.
• How it plays: You capture wild beasts as familiars (up to 50 in the Master's Bestiary) and swap between three assigned beasts in combat. The job's quest hub is in Central Shroud.
• Crucible of the Unbroken: Its exclusive roguelite-style solo challenge, unlocked at level 30, with board-game style maps, difficulty modifiers and seasonal leaderboards. Check the Beastmaster wiki page for the current best leveling route.
• Like Blue Mage it is designed around solo play and has no role actions, so do not expect to queue into roulettes with it.

Seasonal Events Running Now (September 2026)

Event | Dates (PDT) | Notes

FINAL FANTASY XV collab: A Nocturne for Heroes | Sept 24 – Oct 13, 2026 | Level 50+, "The Ultimate Weapon" done. Talk to Kipih Jakkya, Ul'dah Steps of Nald (X:8.5 Y:9.7). Rewards include the Regalia Type-G mount and Lucian Prince set

Moogle Treasure Trove: First Hunt for Astronomy | Sept 9 – Oct 19, 2026 | Irregular tomestones for older content; the special reward is an uolon horn mount item. No tomes from Duty Support/squadrons; unrestricted parties need Level Sync

Yo-kai Watch collab | Aug 4 – Oct 5, 2026 | Level 15+, talk to the poor-heeled youth in Ul'dah (X:9.2 Y:9.1)

Moogle Treasure Trove is the best time to run old raids and trials with other players: the Trove makes them fill quickly.

Money, Housing and the Economy

• Retainers (after a Limsa/Gridania/Ul'dah quest around level 17) can sell on the Market Board and gather/hunt for you with ventures.
• Treasure maps from gathering are a good early gil source.
• Housing: Apartments cost a flat 500,000 gil; houses are distributed by lottery in residential wards. Free Companies can own a house for the group.
• Do not buy gear with gil while leveling; quests and dungeons give plenty.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Skipping MSQ cutscenes and then being lost. The story is the main draw; if you must skip, read summaries.
• Buying level-skip potions or story skips on a first playthrough. You miss the core of the game, and you arrive at level 100 with no idea how your job works.
• Standing in AoEs to finish a cast. Movement comes first.
• Healers only healing. Casting damage spells (e.g. Glare, Broil, Malefic, Dosis) during downtime is expected.
• Tanks forgetting tank stance. Turn on Iron Will, Defiance, Grit or Royal Guard (depending on job) in dungeons.
• Pulling ahead of the tank as DPS. Let the tank lead.
• Ignoring the job gauge. Most rotation mistakes come from not watching it.
• Forgetting daily/weekly resets. Daily Roulettes reset once a day, weeklies once a week; the game shows the timer in the Timers window.

Advanced Tips

• Weave, do not clip. Using two oGCDs after a long cast can delay your GCD; learn which of your abilities are safe to double-weave.
• Learn your "burst window." Most jobs align two-minute buffs; if the party stacks buffs together, damage spikes massively.
• Use Party Finder for Extremes, Savage and Treasure Trove farms; read the tags ("practice", "farm", "clear") before joining.
• Level every job in its own role to understand what your healer or tank needs from you.
• Mentor roulette becomes available after meeting mentor requirements; it pays well but only take it if you can guide new players patiently.
• Glamour: The Glamour Dresser and Plates let you keep one look while swapping stats. Seasonal event gear is often only available during the event.
• Prepare for Evercold: Finish Dawntrail's patch MSQ through 7.56, level any job you want to try at 110, and bank crafted materials. Level cap increases make current gear obsolete quickly, so do not overspend on it.

FAQ

Is FFXIV free to play? The Free Trial is free up to level 80 with the content through Shadowbringers. Beyond that you need to buy the game (which includes the later expansions up to Dawntrail) and have an active subscription.

Do I need to play A Realm Reborn, or can I skip to the good part? You can buy story skips, but most players agree the payoff in Heavensward and Shadowbringers depends on knowing the ARR cast. Play through it; the post-ARR patches were shortened.

What is the best class for beginners? Any job is viable. Paladin and Warrior are forgiving tanks, White Mage is a straightforward healer, and Dragoon, Machinist or Black Mage are popular DPS picks. Pick the fantasy you like.

What is the current level cap and when does Evercold come out? Level 100 in Dawntrail. Evercold, raising the cap to 110, is expected in January 2027.

How do I unlock the Beastmaster job? Level 50, completed "The Ultimate Weapon," own Dawntrail, then take "Strangers in the Wood" in New Gridania (X:11.8, Y:13.6).

Can I play solo? Most of the story yes: Duty Support and Trusts cover MSQ dungeons. Trials and raids required by the MSQ still need a player party, but queues for them are fast.

What is the fastest way to level alt jobs? Daily roulettes plus deep dungeons, with FATEs and Frontline to fill gaps; turn in Wondrous Tails weekly.

Sources

• Steam news: FINAL FANTASY XIV Online
• Patch 7.56 (Console Games Wiki)
• Patch 7.5 (Console Games Wiki)
• Evercold (Console Games Wiki)
• Beastmaster (Console Games Wiki)
• Free Trial (Console Games Wiki)
• Allagan Tomestones (Console Games Wiki)
• The Lodestone (official news and patch notes)