FFXI Guide to Character Creation

Choosing your Race in Final Fantasy XI

Jul 17, 2007

This article gives an overview of the races available to play in Final Fantasy XI (FFXI) and what jobs they are most suited for.

There are several races (or species), a person can choose from when they first create their character in the popular MMORPG Final Fantasy XI (FFXI). Each of the races available has their own particular strengths and weaknesses. While no choice is wrong, it can be helpful if you choose the correct character type when you first start the game according to how you like to play. That's not to say you can't play any job effectively, no matter what race or character. However, some may give you a slight edge on certain jobs.

Hume

In appearance, the hume race on Final Fantasy XI is similar to that of the human in the real world. The hume race in FFXI can be considered the jack-of-all-trades race. This is because their stats are neutral so they so they can be a decent race for any chop the player chooses to play.

This however, creates the issue that they are a jack-of-all-trades, yet master of none. While humans can excel at any job in the game, there are other races that may be better suited to certain jobs. However, this is a great character choice if you feel like you may wish to play a variety of different jobs or if you're a sure which job you want to play. They are also a great choice if you want to play red mage as they benefit from the varied stats that are offered by this race. Humes account for over 30% of all characters in Final Fantasy XI.

Elvaan

Not as popular as humes, elvaans account for slightly over 18% of final fantasy characters across all servers. Elvaans are particularly well suited toward melee jobs. This is due to the fact that they have slightly more strength than other races. If you plan to be in a job where you will stack strength elvaan may be a good choice for you. However, if you plan on playing mainly mage type jobs, you may wish to consider a non-elvaan character. You can play a mage job well on an Elvaan, however it may be easier on another character.

Galka

Galkas are the large, muscle-bound, all-male race of Vana’diel. Similar to Elvaans, Galka can also excel in melee jobs. And while there will always be debate as to what race is best suited to what job, Galka can also make fantastic tanks. They have high hit points and can take more than a few hits in most cases. Galkas are also an excellent choice if you prefer to not look like every other character on your server. Galkas account for only around 7.5% of characters across all servers.

Mithra

Mithra are also known as the cat women of Vana’diel. While according to the story line there are male mithras in existence, the only ones revealed so far are all female. This race is attractive, if you are considering leveling a job that requires high dexterity. The job of thief is especially suited to mithras. Mithras account for nearly 15% of the character population across all servers.

Tarutaru

Tarutaru are near the popularity of humes across all servers. Overall, they account for over 29% of characters. These cute little beings from Windhurst are very suited to magic using jobs. In particular, this race is especially suited for white mage, summoner, and black wage jobs, although they can perform other mage jobs well. This race, while perhaps slightly less suited to melee and tank jobs and other races can still perform these jobs decently. There is some controversy about whether or not tarutaru make some of the best paladins. Many would argue that they make excellent paladins, simply because they can keep hate more easily because of their large magic point pool.

This article can give you a general idea of which races may be more suited to which jobs in Final Fantasy XI (FFXI). However, keep in mind that player ability and gear matter much more than race in this game.