POL News: Augment the Size of Your Weapon!

There are just too many good jokes to be made about the Augment system, but I will leave that for another day. Today the news on POL is that the next update will feature further (final?) expansion of the Augment system to top-level (useful?) gear. I understand the nature of things like this being rolled out over time. SE wants to test it out first, see if it works, if there are problems or whatever, but I don't understand why after they know it works they would still want to piece it out over time. Anyway, there are two different parts of the Augment announcement, the first deals with Fields of Valor. SE is adding new "elite" training regiments to the Zilart-era "high level" areas:

Cape Teriggan / Eastern Altepa Desert / The Sanctuary of Zi'Tah / Ro'Maeve / Yuhtunga Jungle / Yhoator Jungle / Western Altepa Desert / Valley of Sorrows / Ru'Aun Gardens

The only really important thing to note about this is that you will be able to hand in high-level gear. Not only will this let you actually get some gear that you might use out of Fields of Valor, but it might be a huge boon for crafters. I am not into the economics of crafting like some people but my thoughts are that if you take something, make it so that you can't sell it again, you are going to need more of those things. Which is what Fields of Valor should do for some of this gear.

The second thing of note from POL is that there something to do with Augments and Pixies, and it gets kind of convoluted from there. All I know is that I will get to hear Omoikitte squeal like a school-girl about the "fairies" in her best British accent. This is what I can glean from the situation so far: there will be new craftable weapons, that will be commissioned by the Pixies, you will fight a monster with your friends, that will give you a random Augment, that you can change up to five times, and other people can get it too, or they can get another reward. I think I covered everything with that run on sentence.

Check below the cut for the full update notes.

Hear ye, mighty champions of Vana'diel!
Have you gazed longingly at the augmented apparel donned by your lower-level peers, wondering when similar equipment would be introduced for those of powers puissant?
Consider your wait over! A host of new augmented items designed especially for high-level characters will be one of the many exciting additions in the upcoming version update.

Further Fields of Valor!
Elite training regimes will be added to the following areas:
Cape Teriggan / Eastern Altepa Desert / The Sanctuary of Zi'Tah / Ro'Maeve / Yuhtunga Jungle / Yhoator Jungle / Western Altepa Desert / Valley of Sorrows / Ru'Aun Gardens

Thus far, Elite training regimes have yielded augmented items intended for players level 50 and below. Those who demonstrate their valor by completing the new regimes in the fields above, however, will be rewarded with a new selection of augmented items suited for levels above 50.

A New Challenge Awaits!
The greatest heroes and heroines of Vana'diel—those who have achieved the pinnacles of their respective professions—can also look forward to a new quest that will test the limits of their prodigious powers, and promise rich rewards in kind.
With hordes of fell beasts threatening their ancestral homelands, the pixies would entreat your aid. By entering into a pact with the fey folk to slay one of their notorious foes, high level players will have the opportunity to obtain an augmented item to add to their arsenal.
While Fields of Valor and the elite training regimes offer quick, straightforward objectives that can be enjoyed by lone wolves, this new quest is intended to provide a significant challenge to full parties of up to six veteran adventurers.

To participate in this quest, players must first craft a suitable weapon via a set of new recipes that will be introduced in the coming version update. Entrust one such weapon to the new quest-giving NPC and successfully complete the assigned task, and your weapon will be retuned, freshly endowed with an augment of impressive potency. Should the initial enchantment not be to your liking, you will also have the opportunity to slay a different foe—up to a maximum of five times—to receive a new augment that may better suit your needs.

This quest will offer something for everyone, as each member of the victorious party who has accepted the quest will be eligible to reap the augmented reward. Even players who have not accepted the augmentation quest will be compensated for assisting fellow adventurers with a bounty of their own.