Last week, Square Enix announced details in regards to changes that will be made to the Abyssea battlefield scenarios in the upcoming version update. Further information in regards to planned changes as well as potentially future changes has been released, laying out the planned battlefield implimentation for Empyrean +1 seals, adjustments to exploiting monster weaknesses, and more.

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From the official Final Fantasy XI forums:

As always, we appreciate all the feedback you all provide regarding Abyssea.

We spoke to the development team in regards to all your questions about [dev]1003.

To start, we would like you all to keep in mind the FINAL FANTASY XI 2011 Roadmap where we showed that we have continuous adjustments planned for Abyssea in the future. While the portions that we would like to adjust are by no means small in number, due to the fact that there are some things we would like to add after monitoring their implementation, as well as those that take a bit more time to implement, we will be releasing adjustments gradually.

Also, currently Empyrean armor has become the most powerful equipment, but as an ultimate goal we are planning to add numerous items so that you can select what you wear depending on the situation and slot. This is similar to when the level cap was 75 and you have Relic, Salvage, Einherjar, and Limbus-related gear to utilize.

Now, for the good stuff:

•Additional Methods of Obtaining Empyrean +1 Seals
With the new battlefields that will be added, players will have another venue in which to obtain +1 seals. With this factored in, the chance of obtaining seals in order from highest to lowest will be notorious monsters first, followed by the new battlefields, and lastly quests.

There will be two tiers of battlefields, one for a 3 person party and another for a 6 person party. By taking on a battlefield the possibility of obtaining +1 seals are as follows: 0-1 for the 3 person party battle and 1-2 for the 6 person party battle. While you cannot aim for specific seal rewards, we will make it possible to select which battlefield you can attempt depending on what job and slot you would like to obtain.

•Obtaining Seals via Quests
While adjustments are not being made during the upcoming version update, in regards to repeatable quests specifically, we would like to make adjustments to the necessity of having to leave and re-enter the area. We also plan to adjust quests where the reward may not necessarily be equal to the level of difficulty required. Due to the fact that we’ll need to adjust each quest individually, making changes all at once will be quite difficult; however, we would like to start making adjustments a bit at a time.

•Additional Methods of Obtaining Empyrean +2 Items
Due to the fact that it was a bit difficult to completely solve everything during the upcoming version update, this is something that we would like to continue working on in the future. We’re working diligently so that disputes arising from heavy congestion can be avoided.

•Notorious Monsters’ Weaknesses
For the upcoming version update, we are only making adjustments to blue magic, however, we would like to continue to make adjustments to magic and weapon skills in the future. At any rate, we plan to make adjustments on the basis that no job will become the be-all end-all.

•Empyrean Feet
We are not making adjustments for this during the upcoming version update, but there is a possibility that take some form of action in the future and are continuing to look into this. Currently, compared to other equipment slots, Empyrean feet are definitely harder to obtain; however, we will be thinking about this carefully as to not lower the difficulty excessively.