11:30
I decide that the way to move Goldsmithing forward from 41 will not require any more mythril ingots so I change them all into mythril sheets and begin to get rid of them on the AH. This requires a warp into Jeuno, where the taxes are much lower than here in Al Zahbi.
I am becoming more and more of the opinion that I will soon require a third mule - I have a name already - I'm getting more and more stuck in terms of rotation of items but I'm not sure how I will spread items across the 3 of them - 1 for armour, 1 for stacked items and 1 for...? I need a system that makes it easy for me to know where stuff is so I can collect it quickly. Need to think this part through again.
Whilst I think about this more, the two malboro vines I intended to sell are more profitable in a hi-potion synth so I collect the other items from the Alchemy guild in Whitegate and make two of them. It's very useful having a lot of items available in one place, rather than moving around the world trying to get stuff.
12:05
The idea for a third mule, which I think would work, would be for Paul to stay looking after items, David to look after the top 8 slots of equipment, and a new mule to look after the bottom 8. In this case, I think I will keep this mule in Bastok - I have much better access then to all 3 cities, much more quickly.
This is something I will complete today - if the US$ versus UK£ continues the way it is, this works out at about 65p for an extra 80 (I think) slots per month. Exchange rates - gotta love them!
12:45
I consider myself prepared now for some EXP - it is time to test out spiders against these puks - this should be easier as the spiders are a higher level.
PET: Aht Urhgan AttercopENEMY: PukAttacks: Crosswind (Front Attack), Zephr Mantle (Shadows), Wind Shear (AoE knockback and damage), Obfuscate (Flash)This is a little easier now: with full help from me, an EM spider can defeat a VT puk and I can also kill T spiders - they drop a nice item called a spider's web.
14:25
Going very smoothly - it's great the way the spiders here neither aggro nor link and they make good inbetween EXP when there are no EM pets around. I am now 21,087 TNL.
One problem I am having is trying to create enough EM pets as a lot seem to spawn as T. It's just a matter of Charming them and then Leaving them outside of their spawn radius. They then re-spawn about a minute later, hopefully as EM. This does force a drop in my EXP/min though.
15:00
A bad 30 mins, with only 1,292 EXP - too much time spent de-spawning pets and then eradicating chains. Then within a few minutes I am killed by a VT puk after failing a re-Charm on a spider. My Reraise 2 is still up so I am able to reclaim all but 500-600 of the EXP from the death.
I decide now that this is a good time to head back to Al Zahbi and start some more NPC leveling with the lesser colibri, also in Wajaom Woods.
However... NPCs cannot be used in ToAU areas - this is disappointing for sure. I re-check Allakhazam for some other BST leveling spots back in the Conquest areas and am debating head over to Cape Terrigan to try out some time with getting a Beastmaster Testimony - the goblins over there should be quite easy for Epi as she is only 58 presently.
16:15
As I get out to Cape Terrigan, I test out some of the mobs - specifically the goblin BSTs and by my second one, I have acquired a Beastmaster Testimony! I am ready now to face Maat but do I wait until 69 or attempt it now? For the moment, I will focus on some more EXP and begin to level Epi again.
17:00
Hmm, the mobs here are a little too far apart to make this decent and although not all of them aggro, all of them do link on each other. Ultimately, I gain 450 EXP here and put myself at 19,780 TNL.
I hope the update in these coming weeks allows the use of NPCs in the new areas - it will make it a lot easier, certainly.
I debate what to do now... should I return to Wajaom Woodlands and be grateful of some fairly decent EXP or attempt somewhere else? I decide that I will take some time off for the present and come back later.
21:30
I return a little more relaxed and more motivated: I shall return to Wajaom Woodlands and gain EXP there - it's faster than anywhere else, obvioulsy made easier with the Sanction EXP bonus.
22:00
Before I really get to go anywhere with it (and the zone is full of BSTs), Arquis, from my LS is asking for help with his SMN head piece. I check up on the details from Alla and Somepage and it is two seperate fights. We start to piece together a party of 6 for the Cloister of Storms in Boyahda Tree.
Without wanting to go into too much detail, because not that much happened, but Aquarius was up so 3 of us tried to kill it. To be clear, when I was 63 BST, myself and two other BSTs in 63-66 range killed this crab. Tonight, we barely made a dent and only just got to zone.
I felt bad for the 75 Taru there who was AFK and promptly got killed :(.
00:15
We finally enter the battle and complete it in just over 4 minutes - total overkill in the end but it's done.
From here we head over to the Cloister of Gales for the second boss battle. This will be my first time here.
The journey takes us back through Cape Terrigan and around manticores that are IT to me still (75-78 as I recall). We wait for the rest of the team by the Wind Protocrystal.
The battle is easy again with no problems and Jay lets me borrow his Warp Cudgel to get back into Al Zahbi. It's time to call it a night as I do want to continue EXPing on BST tomorrow - I just don't know how I did not die this evening with so much going on.
Ah, the luck of BST I guess...