Retainers

See also: Retainer Ventures

Introduction

Retainers can store items and gil for you and sell items on the Market. In 2.2 players can use their retainers for Retainer Ventures. Players can assign their retainers classes and give them gear. Then players can send them out for expeditions for items and experience. Retainers with a class can level up by performing Retainer Ventures, but their maximal level depends on the player's level in the same class.

Unlocking and hiring Retainers

Retainers are unlocked after completing the Main Story Quest The Scions of the Seventh Dawn (Quest).

Players can hire Retainers by talking to a Retainer Vocate near the Marketboard of the 3 main cities. By default, you can only hire two Retainers, but you can add up to 6 additional retainers(for a total of 8) from the Mog Station on the Final Fantasy XIV Lodestone. The FFXIV Companion App also gives you an extra retainer if upgraded to premium, along side double Chocobo Saddlebag space.

Using Retainers

To interact with your retainer, use the Summoning Bell found in Inn rooms, the markets of the 3 main cities, residential areas and other locations such as Revenants Toll. Pick the retainer in question from the menu if you have more than one. You'll then be given a menu of options:

• Entrust or withdraw items from your retainer: Opens the retainer inventory alongside yours to manage items. Retainers have 7 tabs of 25 slots each for a total of 175 items. You cannot give them items to equip with this option.

• Entrust or withdraw gil from your retainer: Opens up an exchange menu for gil. There is not much of a reason to store your gil with a retainer, but any gil earned from selling items on the market by the retainer will be deposited here

• Sell items from your inventory on the market: Opens up your inventory to select items you want the retainer to sell. Each retainer has 20 slots for selling items.

• Sell items from your retainer's inventory on the market: Opens up the retainer inventory to select items you want the retainer to sell. Each retainer has 20 slots for selling items.

• View sale history: Accesses a list of recent sales made by the retainer.

• Assign class: Only available if the retainer has no current class. The four options below will appear instead if the retainer does. A level 1 primary weapon or tool of the class must be in the players armory or inventory to assign the class.

• Assign Venture: Assign the retainer a venture if they aren't on one or have a report waiting. Retainer Ventures

• View Report: Only available after the retainer has finished their venture. Shows the result of the venture, transfers the item rewards to your inventory and grants the retainer the experience earned. After the result window is closed, they can be assigned a new venture.

• View Retainer attributes and gear: Displays a screen similar to the character screen for the player with the attributes and equipped gear. This screen is also used to equip and unequip gear on the retainer, but this cannot be done while the retainer is on a venture.

• Reset retainer class (retainer class level): removes the class from the retainer so a new one can be assigned. Experience gained in the old class is lost permanently. Cannot be done while the retainer is on a venture.

• Assign retainer job: Adds a soul stone to the retainers equipment allowing them to equip job specific gear. Assignment of jobs requires book purchased from a Retainer Vocate for 40 ventures.

• Quit: Ends the interaction with your retainer.

You can access your retainers at any time, even in the middle of a venture. However, they will stop selling on the market until the interaction is complete.

Article

Funnily enough, the Retainer isn’t actually a piece of equipment that your character can wear on their face, but instead it allows them the chance to summon their own, personal NPC that has a number of different uses that I will get into in just a moment. Firstly, let’s find out how we actually get hold of the item, first and foremost!

To gain access to the Retainer system, you’re going to need to have completed The Scions of the Seventh Dawn (Quest) story quest first of all to gain access to it. Once you’ve done that mission for your character you’re going to need to locate a Retainer Vocate to hire one. There are a maximum of 3 different Retainer Vocates that you can speak to, so that you can finally hire yourself a Retainer.

These NPC’s that you need to talk to, so you can hire a Retainer are as follows:

• Parnell – Can be found at Gridania
• Chachabi – Can be found in Ul'dah
• Frydwyb – Can be found in Limsa Lominsa

So, you’ve just hired your first Retainer; now what happens next? Well, you’re treated to creating your Retainer with whatever look you’d like them to go for, similar to that of the character creation screen that you see whenever you first create a new character.

After you’ve decided on the look of your Retained, you are then given the option to choose from 6 different personalities for the character, but what that essentially boils down to is the sort of dialogue you will see when interacting with the character; nothing too special.

Now that you’ve set up your Retainer, it’s time to figure out what you can actually do with them; with the main one being using them as either bank storage or your own, personal marketplace that you can set up anywhere in the game.

I’ll start off with using them as bank storage and it’s exactly as it sound; they have certain amount of storage space inside their backpack, storage space that you have full reign to use as you see fit. Plan on selling a bunch of junk when you can be asked to do so? Just store it in your Retainer and take them out of that character to do with it as you please. With this storage system, you can also store Gil into the Retainer, so that if you don’t wish to carry a mad amount of cash around with you everywhere you go, simply hide it inside your Retainer and you know it will be safe and sound in there.

Moving onto the more major use of the Retainer as your own, personal marketplace allows you to set up the character in whatever friendly city you feel could get you the most attention and amount of customers and leave them be to do all the hard work. All you’ve got to do is set up some items that you intend to sell to anyone who is interested and then once you’re done, enjoy the more fun and enjoyable aspect of the game while your own NPC/Retainer makes you money for dealing with your unwanted items that you have no need for.

This is a great system and prevents players from being forced to sit around and barter with other players, without completely stripping them of the opportunity to do as such.