FFXIV players disappointed with lack of Relic Weapon grind in Patch 6.35
Square EnixFinal Fantasy XIV players have expressed disappointment in Square Enix due to the lack of grinding required for the newest Manderville Relic Weapons introduced in Patch 6.35.
Final Fantasy XIV is currently in its post-patches for Endwalker, with the game slowly adding new content in the lead-up to the next major expansion. So far players have seen a wealth of content, including new story quests, dungeons, raids, ultimate fights, and more. With the recent release of Patch 6.35, there are plenty of things to achieve whilst in the downtime between major patches.
One of these big achievements is acquiring the Relic Weapons. Relic Weapons are fancy weapons for each combat job. These weapons come with their own VFX and shiny particles surrounding them, often making them desirable for the players who are willing to grab them. Relic Weapons provide an alternative for players who want clean cosmetics without needing to complete an ultimate or craft them.
However, Relic Weapons would take a decent amount of grind, requiring players to complete several quest steps in order to gain the weapon. This is known by the community as the infamous Relic Weapon grind and can take several days to complete. The reward is well worth it, however, and the grind keeps players engaged whilst working on the weapon.
The next tier of Relic Weapons was released in Patch 6.35, being the second step of the Manderville weapons. Whilst the weapons are looking clean, players are not too satisfied with the lack of a grind that comes with them.
The second tier of Manderville weapons requires the players to farm 1500 Tomestones of Astronomy. Tomestones of Astronomy can be gained in most activities within Final Fantasy XIV, from daily roulettes to end-game story activities. This is in direct contrast to previous tiers of Relic Weapons, which had players complete multiple dungeons multiple times to gather the materials.
Players express disappointment due to lack of incentive for relic grind in FFXIV
Players were able to grab the next step of the Manderville weapon instantly on the release of Patch 6.35, provided they had the Tomestones saved up. As such, the community has expressed their disappointment at the lack of the grind, wishing to experience the satisfaction of receiving the weapon after the long trek.
This has also resulted in a bit less content for players to look forward to, as the grind for a Relic Weapon incentivized players to continuously hop online day after day. This allowed for more development time on major expansions as players are satisfied with something to aim for in the game.
It’s uncertain if Final Fantasy XIV will continue to reduce the requirements for Relic Weapons. However, these are only the first two steps of the Relic Weapon questline for Endwalker, meaning there are still plenty of steps to go. This gives Square Enix the opportunity to add the grind back into the game if they wish to do so.