Latent Effect: Treasures of Aht Urhgan Rings.

Latent Effect is our newest column from Samuraisoldier, as he sets out an aim to challenge your preconceptions about what you can and can't do with your character and choices in gear in the world of Vana'diel. Sammy is as Sammy does. You can't stop him, you can only hope to contain his love of gear that he still needs to get.

The world of internet gaming is a booming industry, and everyone picks up the remote for their own reasons. Whether its to pwn someones face in Halo, or helping a friend through a tricky part in a game, there is a greater sense of fulfillment when connecting with other real people through your favorite video game, over playing with yourself (lol).

People play MMOs for a few different reasons. Some people play because their friends play it so much, there has to be something fun about it. Others play it because of the cool gear they can attain through arduous hours of game play, just to stand around and gloat in their sexiness. Final Fantasy players? We have been lured in by great story lines, kick-ass cut scenes, and well, really awesome gear. Luckily, for us FFXI players, completing story lines not only furthers our achievements while unlocking further territories, missions, and quests, but it also gives us access to some of the most worthwhile pieces of equipment.

Everyone who has completed the Rise of the Zilart missions remembers the time they beat those hellish Ark Angels, stood out in Sky, and contemplated where they want to go with their earring selection. When you finish Chains of Promathia, you'll probably even screen shot yourself receiving your Rajas Ring, or any other ring for that matter (get a Rajas Ring =Þ).

Today's topic: Treasure's of Aht Urhgan rings.

While I am quite sure that you will love being the submissive slave to the tyrannic tirades and tasks of Naja Salaheem, you're most likely to work on your ToAU missions to receive Salvage access (you bet we're gonna discuss that place quite a bit in the future), and to get hold of one of these unrivaled rings. We're going to take a quick look at the three rings, and then discuss possible alternatives for each.

The Ulthalam's Ring - Level 50 - great to have an end game item at such a low level. Accuracy and Attack +4 - one of the games few rings to combine both accuracy and attack on the same ring. In assault (these stats are NOT only limited to Assault's, but also to Nyzul Isle Assault's, and Salvage) - Strength and Dexterity +4 - some amazing stats, even better for the two-handed weapon wielders. Adds "Regen" effect - any extra ticks of HP can help us achieve our goals, so any item with Regen effect is a good thing.

The Jalzahn's Ring - Level 50 - same thing for all the rings =). Ranged Attack (RAtt) and Ranged Accuracy (RAcc) +6 - wow. Anyone who uses ranged weapons for their damage output, will surely appreciate all that sexy, and wants a piece of that. In Assaults - Agility +6 - some more ranged accuracy, and a boost to ranged weapon skills that have AGI as a modifier. Enhances "Snapshot" effect - reduces the delay of your ranged attacks. Sounds like Haste for a RAtt player, more attack rounds equal more damage, remember? All Right!

The Balrahn's Ring - Level 50 - yadda yadda yadda. Magic Accuracy +4 - from what I see, and correct me if I'm wrong, this is the highest amount of pure magic accuracy (MAcc) you can have in the ring slot. In Assaults - Intelligence, Mind, and Charisma +4 - all amazing stats on a ring. Adds "Refresh" effect - okay, broken. Refresh, like Regen, is one of those effects Square Enix places on certain pieces of gear, but in the case of Refresh, EVERYONE WANTS THAT GEAR!

Being that we all want to get the most out of our equipment and the slot they occupy, let's take a deeper look at each ring and its possible alternatives.

The Ulthalam's Ring. Accuracy and Attack +4. No other rings barring a Divisor Ring and Mars Ring (I am going to continuously LOL Absolute Virtue drops) give you both accuracy and attack. ANY damage dealers dream. Anyone who adds Accuracy and Attack to their build, will directly increase their damage dealt. Plain and simple. During Assault's is where this ring really shines. Adding the STR and DEX just adds more accuracy and attack, again, especially for the two-handers. Mr. Iron Will himself described this ring to me as a mini Mars ring during assaults, to which I have to agree. Adds "Regen" effect is always a nice thing, but its not any reason to sway to to pick this ring over any other ToAU reward. Possible alternatives. Well, you can spam the assault that gives you the Divisor Ring, I know after this post, I sure as hell will! Accuracy +6, Attack +3, when your players level is a multiple of 5. Great! 75 IS a multiple of 5, sweet deal for us DD's. Aside from our lottery drop, we have a Sniper's ring and its +1 version. The normal quality (NQ) has both 5 Acc and RAcc on it, while the white boxed +1 (everyone loves the white box) has +7 Acc and RAcc. Level 40 and +7 to those stats? Yes please. A Toreador's Ring, at level 57, which is a bit above the Ulthalam's 50, has 10 HP and 7 accuracy. A great ring for someone who doesn't need the extra RAcc. Seems as if Monks benefit from this one the most. Blood Ring is a free level 70 Sniper's ring without the RAcc, gives some added "resist" stats, and is obtained from a low tier Zeni Notorious Monster.

The Jalzahn's Ring. RAcc and RAtt +6. Close to heaven for a RAtt user. Why close to heaven? Bellona's Ring (lol) is heaven, thats why. RAcc and RAtt +8 on Bellona's Ring is unmatched. Where else can we get RAcc and RAtt on the same ring? There is a Bowyer's ring, at level 29 you get +3 on these stats, which isn't close to the stats of Jalzahn's ring. During Assaults is where we get some added amazing stats, however my only concern with this ring is that it is VERY limited to the jobs that can benefit from them. Possible alternatives. Behemoth ring (+1)- HP +10(+12), accuracy -11(-10), ranged accuracy +11(+12). Okay, no more NQ on this, spend the money on the +1! Full time this on both ring slots if you're a Ranger - unless you don't need the RAcc, and there are very juicy possibilities for the second ring for your RNG. Seriously, HP +12, RAcc +12? WHEE!!! Other top tier options are the Coral ring or the much nicer HQ (remember, we love white boxes) Merman's Ring. Acc -8, RACC +10, and magic damage taken -4%. Well, I think most End-game RNG's can cream right now. Firstly, if you pull hate at end game RNG, go sell your bow and sit in a corner. NO! I SAID NO! Stop showing off and let your team do its thing. You (yes, YOU ranger bots sniping arrows at the mob from a distance, better not take any physical damage, because THAT will most likely cause a HUGE distraction to your Linkshells fight, and cause the mob you've all gathered together to fight to move and chase you) need to learn to control your hate and if by chance you take damage, make sure its the ranged magic damage you're taking. And guess what? that -4% magic damage you get on the Merman's ring is great if you're sitting at a distance. Mage's pay extreme amounts for some damage down gear, and RNG's get it along with other juicy stats on these rings.

The Balrahn's Ring. Magic accuracy +4. No other ring rivals this statistic at level 50, and nothing rivals it until level 75, when you can obtain the Omega Ring (INT, MND, CHR, MAcc +3), and STILL, the pure MAcc stat is unrivaled. *breathe* Possible alternatives? Insect Ring? MAcc +2 falls a bit short. Fail. INT or MND rings? They're nice to look at but no. Fail. During Assaults - INT, MND, and CHR +4. All of these stats boost that beautiful MAcc even more when casting spells on the mob, or casting spells on yourself. Adds "Refresh" effect. Okay, go ahead and find me another ring with Refresh on it! Hercules ring? Two jobs only, and Paladin is the only job that really gets that ring. So, back to Refresh. A MP users dream. Wait. Wet dream. While a players HP can be replenished over time with Regen or direct cure spells, MP refreshing is not so simple. Devotion is the closest ability to "curing" a mage's MP pool. With capped Tier two merits on your White Mage, you'll have this ability at a ten minute recast. Not exactly an efficient method of Refresh, but seems to be an awesome ability to merit. You will either need pieces of gear to have "adds refresh effect" on them, or to have a spell cast/ability used upon you, to slowly recover a certain amount of MP per tick of time.

Sammy says:

I don't see much of an option here. Unless, AND ONLY UNLESS, you decide that you will never level a mage job, or don't give a damn about it, pick a different ring. As for me, I'm going with the Balrahn's Ring. Hell, my highest mage job is 44 (yeah, yeah, currently leveling it), and even with 5 melee jobs at 75 that can benefit from an Ulthalam's ring, I'm still picking this ring. As any mage job that has to directly effect a mob through spells or songs, landing your spell on its first cast is not only crucial to your limited MP pool (damn you Taru's), but usually crucial to the turnout of each fight you engage in. All of the melees, tanks, and other mages in your party will appreciate the extra haste/cure/protect/shell/refresh(RDM's) MP you will have, or simply the extra time you have to focus on the parties needs, all while your enemy will have to suffer the negative stat you've just imposed on them. No one wants to enter a fight and see their mage cast Paralyze three times before it lands. Think an MP ring can replace this ring? Wrong! Except for the tiny, tiny spot where Red Mages convert their HP to MP, and have that limited amount of MP to cast cures on themselves and maybe others, stats, especially one like MAcc will always be greater than a few extra MP (Credit to Potpressure for the persuasion). Like a baseball player who can throw the ball 100 miles per hour, what does it matter if you can't hit the side of a barn? Need some accuracy to support all that trash you're throwing!

Aside from all that, it has THE highest amount of pure MAcc piece usable by all jobs, barring Aureole, which is a ranged item Absolute Virtue drop (again, lol) and the new ammunition piece, Sturm's Report, that gives you +15 MAcc, however, only during Campaign. This ring is a Red Mage's godsend, especially when the additional stats are available. Count with me now. Dualist Chapeau, Morrigan's Robe/Dalmatica, Poison Taster's cape (poison potion needed - don't worry, stoneskin will take care of that), this ring, and Sanction refresh adds up to what? 5MP/tick! Sex anyone?

No other ring will give you the MAcc needed for your spells/songs at such low levels, and during Assaults/Nyzul Isle/Salvage, THERE IS NO BETTER RING! Now, now. All you damage dealers, hold your horses. Get a Sniper's ring +1 or Toreadors ring. Granted, at times where the additional stats come into play, you won't find a ring matching an Ulthalam's, but we don't all live in Salvage (although, sometimes I wish I did). Any DD will be able to appreciate almost double the accuracy gained from these Auction House alternatives and at full time. Ranged attack user? Get a Merman's or Behemoth's Ring +1. Jalzahn's Ring is just too limited for me to think its worth Naja Salaheem's biddings.

Agree? Disagree? Think I'm a Dum-Dum? Leave a comment either way ^.^ Next weeks discussion: A low level earring that will make your mages hate you. Until then, Happy Hunting!