Sure, there are already guides out there for soloing pets as BLM and gearing the job properly. But there are just a few tidbit of tips and common sense that wasn't really mentioned to me anywhere (as far as where I was looking).
All of my past jobs I got to 75 were melee so leveling BLM is my first true mage job. Although exp parties are stellar, it was a nice break to solo beastmen pets and fight something other than a colibri.
So if you're thinking leveling BLM as well, here are some tips I can offer. I know some are tried and true as well as common sense, but it doesn't hurt to mention them again!
1. Refresh is your BLM drug. So long as you aren't gonna unsync/sync constantly with a duo partner or party, Field of Valor buffs are great! Hope you saved all those tabs from doing Field of Valor pages. I always grab the Refresh option as well as Reraise if needed. On that note, also don't forget the refresh options with Allied Sigil and Sanction. It's expensive, but buy the Vermillion Cloak ASAP and then sell it back once you can start wearing the Black Cloak.
2. Reraise! Reraise scrolls, reraise earrings and reraise hairpins really help with downtime as well as keep your spirits from dropping too low. Because, yes, you WILL die a lot during certain stages or your BLM career.
3. Keep your magic skills capped! This really helps with your nukes hitting harder, your sleeps, binds and stuns landing as well as the effectiveness of drain and aspir (the best spells evar!). Depending on your level, find some T-IT worms to bully around. In your 60s, the Mold Eaters in Aydeewa Subterraen work great. Just keep an eye out for Stonega III and GTFO. When Besieged is up, sub WHM or RDM and get ready to dia/bio spam some beastmen. If you have access to sea (Al'Taieu), try torturing some goldfish (hpmende) with all your non damaging debuffs.
4. Elemental Obis go great with your elemental staves and grips! I got my first one when hitting 74. I wish I had a few at 71. Soloing Gigas Tigers in Vunker Inlet? Thunder weather comes up often. Tearing up tigers in Xarcabard [S]? Ice weather and Dark weather come up often. On Ice Day and weather, my Blizzard 3s were hitting as hard as some of my tier 4s!
5. Gear updates! The better the gear, the harder your nukes hit. Duh! Don't forget about the gear available from NPCs that give out Allied Sigil. Windurst's Ariesian Grip gives +1 hMP. During campaign, +20 hMP. Having resist issues, throw Sturm's Report in your ammo slot from the Bastok vendor.
6. Desserts! Know when to use cookies (hMP+) and puffs/pies (INT+). When I'm soloing pets that con Tough to me, I'll eat cookies to reduce downtime. I sometimes use them versus VT pets if and only if my magic skills are capped and my gear is up to par with my level. For IT pets or if I just leveled recently, I typically stick to my Cream Puffs.
7. If you've arrived to a brand new camp that you've never tried before. Take your time! Familiarize yourself with nearby aggro radiuses of other monsters. Check if the undead come out at night in/around your camp. What about elementals? Learn the pathing habits of the beastmen and their pets. If they stop for long periods, Ancient Magic go go go! If not, pull with a small/fast spell. Know your angles of where you can nuke pets too.
8. Get crackin' on creating your Oh Shit! Macros! Elemental Seal + Sleepga II, Retrace/Warp-ing yourself. Don't forget about Manafont. Your spells can't be interrupted while active. Don't forget equip macros. A good set of emergency gear set filled with -Spell Interuption rate, evasion skill, VIT, etc.
9. Keep the chain 4s or 5s coming! Once everything starts coming into a good rhythm, keep fine tuning your strategy to maximize your exp chain bonuses. Know how chains work and find a good way to maintain a balance with nuking and resting for MP along with Beastmen Pet respawns. A good chain timer comes with Windower's Exp Bar plugin.
10. Know when to stop. There are gonna be days when things aren't going your way. Death after constant death, unlucky pulls/links/aggro and resists are all part of the game. If you find yourself in a ton of bad luck, reassess what your doing, adjust and adapt. If Lady Luck still doesn't respond, it's time to log off and take your mind off the game.
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