Deprecated Darkstar fourms

Brand new characters walking out the gates of Bastok or Windurst.. are getting completely rocked by DC/EM mandragoras and bees. I can't get the monsters down to even 50% before my health has been dropped from 100% to 0%. For instance, I attack a Tiny Mandragora that checks even match.. my first hit is for 2 and brings it to 90%. Let's say he's got 20hp. I got him down to 13hp and he had already killed me. I'm hitting for 2 and 3 on a RDM and I missed probably 5 out of 8 attacks.

Am I missing something? There isn't a settings that really modifies this, is there? As a RDM, I should be able to kill off an EM monster without any trouble.. holding more than 50% of my health easily. It's a fresh server so I haven't done anything to it.

As someone who always starts as a taru whm, this is normal. Walk out the door, find hte weakest monster, and die to it.

Keep in mind you have no eva skill, sword skill, or any skill really. Usually the second monster is ok. Don't fight mandy's, only bee's to start. East sarutabaruta, then south in that little nook is where i like to start.

Yeah.. I guess I'm just trying to think back when I played retail. How incredibly bad would that feel dying to the first ever monster you fought? I just don't remember it being that bad. Lol. After I get to level 2 or 3.. it seems decent.

Its always been this way

Thats correct and its the old school FFXI-way. Circa. 2003 FFXI era.

Yeah.. I remember the beta being a lot more difficult. But I don't remember walking up to the first monster outside the gates of Bastok and getting rocked in the retail.. even back at the initial launch. Oh wells! Once you get to level 3, things seem pretty normal.