Assault: OK, So I've Changed My Mind

We've done quite a few Assault missions since I last wrote about Assault, and managed to complete enough to do the quest for promotion to Superior Private.

We tried the Orichalcum Survey with Akuma (BLM), Yobun (BLM), Izan (DRG), Grymalkyn (THF), Elboron (BRD), and Kiki (PLD). I think most of us subbed mage jobs for invisible. This was much smoother than our first run at this, since we knew about getting ourselves invisible as soon as someone found the ore, and were also lucky that there weren't any Qiqirn right on top of us when someone found the ore. It was Yobun who got the ore, and he safely made it back to the NPC with it.

Then we tried Preemptive Stike, subbing Wendell's WHM in for Izan's DRG. Yobun hadn't done this one, and we'd gone on and on about how easy it was. We learned that the ease depends on the set-up, and won by the skin of our teeth, with Grym disengaging on the last Mamool, and fleeing for the Runic Portal as time was running out. BLM BLM WHM BRD THF PLD just isn't as efficient as BLM BRD THF MNK MNK PLD.

Next we did Lamia No. 13, and had no problems with MNKx2, DRG/RDM, BLM/RDM, BLM/RDM, PLD/RDM. With enough dispellers and no bad luck, this is a really fun one to do.

On another day, we headed back to beat up the Mamools in Preemptive Strike, with just 5 of us, BLM, MNK, MNK, THF, PLD. I missed having Elboron there, but we finished up with plenty of time to spare.

Still later, we opted to try Lamia No. 13, again with just 5: BLM/RDM, MNK/WHM, BRD/WHM, THF/RNG, and PLD/RDM. Grymalkyn subbed Ranger in order to be able to do more damage with her ranged attacks, not wanting to be a leech in the mission. Unfortunately, this pissed off the Lamia, and she went after Grym about the same time she re-charmed all the Fomors, and with all of us running all over the place, no one could get to Grym in time to save her from an Arrow Deluge after being hit with Firaga III for over 600 points. I raised Grym and we went on to win. We tried it for a second round, and we kept closer tabs on Grym and we all survived for the win.

Elboron, Grymalkyn, Itera and Kiki were all able to pick up the Promotion quest after these missions. I'm really enjoying Assault now that we have a few people eager to do them regularly. I'm still disappointed that the original announcements for it made it sound like something you could do with a small group, and then it turned out that it was only if you had a specific set of jobs for that small group. However, they are really fun when you can win them consistently. The assault points are buiding up. I still haven't decided what to use my points for, since the only job I have in the level range for the new armor sets is PLD, and the only set that PLD can equip is the Amir set, and I'm not sure it's anything I really want. The Paluhwan set would probably be really nice for BST, but it will be a long time before my BST can use it. There are a couple other items that would be nice to have, like the Potent Belt, but I haven't decided whether I should horde points for the eventual "expensive" items, or spend points as I earn them on lesser items that I can actually use now.