Party Finder
Party Finder is a system that allows the players to form groups and tackle duties and other challenges. It was introduced in patch 2.1 and exists as a separate menu from Duty Finder. Party Finder allows players to form a group for dungeons, trials, FATEs and other activities. After forming a party, players queue for duties through the Duty Finder as normal. This means that any quests that state "using Duty Finder" can also be completed via a pre-formed Party Finder group.
When players are creating parties, they can specify certain criteria such as Item Level, roles needed or playstyle etc.
When players are searching for parties, they can also specify objective, roles, playstyle etc.
Private Parties
Introduced in patch 3.5, players will be required to set a four-digit number as their password if they wish to form a private party.
Players will then be able to join the party by inputting the private party password.
Private parties can be formed with players from other Worlds as well.
The Event & Party Recruitment section of the Lodestone will now display parties recruiting within data centers and allow players to check the passwords for private parties they have created. Read on for details.
Private parties will have their own icon in the Party Finder.
Alliance Raids
Introduced in patch 4.1.
Recruiting
To begin, select the Alliance tab in the Recruitment Criteria window.
You may recruit as an individual player, or as a preformed party. The three parties of eight players are recruited simultaneously. The player recruiting for the alliance raid will always enter as a member of Alliance A.
While recruiting, you can check the status of the other members from the Party Members menu, under Party.
Participating
When searching for an alliance raid to join, the roles of each member will not be displayed in the Party Finder. The number of players in each of the three parties will be displayed instead.
Selecting an alliance raid from the Party Finder will display a list of participating parties which you may choose to join.
Custom Matches
Introduced in patch 4.1.
Recruiting
To begin, select the Custom Match tab in the Recruitment Criteria window.
The Claws, Fangs, and spectators are recruited simultaneously. The player recruiting for the custom match will always be a member of the Claws. It is possible to recruit for a custom match without any spectators.
While recruiting, you can check the status of the other members from the Party Members menu, under Party.
Participating
When searching for a custom match to join, the roles of each member will not be displayed in the Party Finder. The number of Claws, Fangs, and spectators will be displayed instead.
Selecting an alliance raid from the Party Finder will display a list of participating parties which you may choose to join.
Cross-World Party Finder
Cross-World Parties
In patch 3.5, the Party Finder has been expanded to include players from all other Worlds on the same data center. Players will now be able to recruit characters from any of these Worlds and form cross-world parties. Players will be able to use the party chat and register for duties in cross-world parties, as they would normally.
The following features can be used while participating in a cross-world party:
- Party chat
- Registering for the Duty Finder
- Registering for the Raid Finder
- Ready Check
The following features cannot be used while participating in a cross-world party:
- Forming alliances
- Registering for custom matches
- The Sort Party List function
- Actions and functions such as Protect and Teleport Offer, which affect any nearby party members.
- Spells and other effects will function normally once the duty commences.
A special icon will be displayed above party members from a different world. Upon the commencement of a duty, the party list will revert to the normal display.
- Subcommands cannot be used from the cross-world party list before a duty commences.
- Player characters cannot be targeted from the cross-world party list before a duty commences.
Players can be recruited from other Worlds by doing the following:
Recruit players from other Worlds by checking the "Recruit Members Across Data Center" option
- This option is checked by default.
Please note that cross-world parties cannot be formed for the following duties:
Cross-World Alliance Raids and Custom Matches
Cross-World Party Finder was released in patch 4.1 for Alliance Raids (24-man raids) and Custom Matches.
Recruitment for all alliance raids and custom matches will be handled in the same manner as cross-World parties.
- You may select "Recruit Members Across World Server" or "Recruit Members Across Data Center" in the search area, but alliance raids and custom matches will be treated as cross-World regardless of this selection. If recruitment begins with the "Recruit Members Across Data Center" selected, it cannot be changed to "Recruit Members Across World Server."
When first joining an alliance raid or custom match, only alliance chat will be available. Party chat can be used once the duty or match has begun.
It is now possible to register and join alliance raids and custom matches via the Duty Finder directly. As a result of this change, the previous functions for applying for alliance raids and custom matches have been removed from the Duty Finder.
When recruiting for an alliance, Undersized Party and Minimum IL can be selected for the following duties:
- When selecting Undersized Party for an alliance raid, a minimum of one player is required for each of the three parties.