Final Fantasy XI

Thief

 

The thief is probably one of the weakest melee jobs while equally one of the most powerful jobs.  Calling the thief a melee job is sometimes a problem considering that it never does a lot of damage per hit.  Though the thief and do a large amount of damage all at once using a combination of Sneak Attack and Trick Attack with a weapon skill, in which case thief at level 32 can do 300 damage easily which for such a level is a lot.  This can make the thief a highly valued job, especially in the case of hate control.  Intro attacks using this method can give the tank a huge advantage straight off.

 

However, the job of thief is a momentary one with extreme highs but then long waits.  Knowing when to use their attacks and setting up the party is key to the thief success.  Party organize can make or break the thief as well as the tanks ability to keep hate.  A thief can find itself run around in circle trying to do its job because the tank is unable to hold the monster.  This makes thief very frustrated and can slow down the party greatly.

 

Attributes	Hume	Elvaan	Tarutaru	Mithra	Galka
HP	28	30	24	28	33
MP	0	0	0	0	0
Strength	6	7	5	6	7
Dexterity	8	8	8	10	8
Vitality	6	7	6	6	8
Agility	7	6	8	8	7
Intelligence	7	6	9	7	7
Mind	5	6	5	5	5
Charisma	5	5	5	4	4

Job Traits

Trait	Level	Description
Gilfinder	5	Increase gil drop by enemies
Evasion Bonus	10	Increases evasion
Treasure Hunter	15	Increases chances of getting treasure
Resist Gravity	20	Resistance to gravity
Evasion Bonus	30	Increases evasion
Resist Gravity	40	Resistance to gravity
Treasure Hunter	45	Increases chances of getting treasure
Evasion Bonus	50	Increases evasion
Triple Attack	55	Sometimes attacks three times
Resist Gravity	60	Resistance to gravity
Evasion Bonus	70	Increases evasion
Resist Gravity	75	Resistance to gravity

Job Abilities

Ability	Level	Recast Time	Duration	Target	Description
Perfect Dodge	1	2 hours	30 sec	Self	Allows you to dodge all attacks
Steal	5	5 min	N/A	Enemy	Steals from enemy
Sneak Attack	15	1 min	N/A	Self	Next physical hit does increased damage when delivered behind enemy
Flee	25	5 min	30 sec	Self	Increases movement
Trick Attack	30	1 min	N/A	Self	Next physical hit does increased damage when delivered behind party member
Mug	35	15 min	N/A	Enemy	Steals gil from enemy
Hide	40	5 min	Variable	Self	Allows you to hide from enemy

Life as a Thief

 

Being a thief is a bit of a tedious job at times because it requires timing and precision that the other jobs do not require.  The abilities that come with the thief allow it to take advantage of the unprotected backs of the monsters.  Using Sneak Attack and Trick Attack you deliver large amounts of damage to monsters and trick them into thinking that it was the person you were stand behind.  This is how Trick Attack works, it tricks the monster into thinking that the person the thief stood behind attack and gives hate to that person.  Such skills are greatly useful to tanks.  Sneak Attack does not work this way, it just delivers a lot of damage when behind an enemy.  Though do the both together and you increase the damage even more and all of it is transfer as hate to the person you are behind.  It is this fact that makes thieves highly respected as hate controllers.

 

When you are in a party situation as a thief you require the party to be working together as a whole or else you will find yourself running around.  Good party dynamics and teamwork are critical for any thief to be able to do their job properly.  However, this becomes a problem for thieves because parties that do not work together become disorganized and the thief is left unable to perform at their peak.

 

When leveling early on as a thief you will find that your defense is not high nor is your HP, making you vulnerable to attacks.  The thief’s only advantage is thief quick strikes and agility that allow them to evade monster’s attacks.  Being able to level early on will not be a problem, though some thieves find trouble between the levels of 10-15 because soloing becomes harder and parties do not want a weak melee job like the thief.  Though once the thief hits level 15 that changes and their Sneak Attack becomes highly valued, and leveling does not become an issue as much.

 

For a thief the stats that are important are Agility, Dexterity, Evasion and Accuracy.  Why so much, because Agility and Dexterity increase the overall damage Sneak Attack and Trick Attack does while Evasion allows you to avoid hits when you are pulling monsters back to camp and accuracy is dire because thief’s weapons skills are highly respected as some of the most powerful in the game.  The need for TP and fast is important, so missing an enemy slows down your ability to use your weapon skills in Skillchains.

 

Things to remember as thief are that your Treasure Hunter ability are highly desired, especially for quests and missions that require you to find an item.  This will make you a valued member of the party and important in item related events.  Also to note is that the thief has good ranged skills and will often be called upon to be the puller for the party.  This will be the most important task in the party, it is your job to know when to pull, what to pull and monster’s traits such as Agro, Linking and so forth.  Being a thief requires you to know your enemy and be intelligent and skillful about everything you do.