MMOs are generally about getting the shiniest equipment to boost your effectiveness in battle, and Final Fantasy XIV is no different. The path to acquiring endgame gear in Endwalker isn’t too different to previous expansions, though there are a few key differences this time around due to how certain gear is being handed out. In this Final Fantasy XIV gear guide for Endwalker 6.1, we’ll get you up to speed on kitting out each of your battle jobs at level 90 ahead of the upcoming raids.
Endwalker Gear ilvl 560 - Starting Out
Despite level 90 being the max level, your journey to increasing a job’s ilvl (the higher this is, the better geared you are) actually starts a level earlier. Your first set of endgame equipment will be obtainable by completing the main story quest A Bold Decision. Doing so will unlock the vendor Varsarudh at X: 11.8, Y: 9.9 in Old Sharlayan who will give out ilvl 560 gear.
Said gear is unique to each job, and you can grab every set straight away if you feel like it — for inventory space’s sake, you probably shouldn’t do this. These sets are known as the “Artifact Gear” of Endwalker, and will serve as a baseline when starting out at level 90.
However, Artifact sets only consist of left hand side armor pieces, and will not include accessories. For these, you need to head to the initial three level 90 dungeons: The Dead Ends, Smileton, and The Stigma Dreamscape. Chests found throughout these dungeons will contain ilvl 560 accessories that are an upgrade over whatever level 89 or below items you likely have equipped.
Endwalker Gear ilvl 570 - Aphorism Tomestone Gear
The next level of gear comes via Allagan Tomestones of Aphorism. Aphorism can be obtained via level 90 duties, along with certain daily roulettes. Doing these duties with a new player (including yourself) will also reward extra tomestones, so helping out fresh level 90 characters is usually worth it.
After acquiring enough tomestones, you can trade them in via the vendor Cihanti at X: 10.8, Y: 10.3 in Radz-at-Han. Not only will this give you ilvl 570 left side gear pieces, but accessories as well. We’d recommend picking up your weapon, a ring (you can’t have two of the same gear piece), and all of the left hand side armor.
If you don’t plan to do harder content, this is as far as you can improve your equipment at least ilvl-wise) for now, with other available upgrades requiring extreme trials. Feel free to grab the other Aphorism Tomestone accessories if this content doesn’t appeal to you.
Endwalker Gear ilvl 575 - "Darbar" Equipment
The new Alzadaal's Legacy dungeon (unlocked via playing through the Patch 6.1 main story) offers both ilvl 575 Darbar armor and accessories. This is an easy way for newer players to boost their ilvl before entering raids.
Endwalker Gear ilvl 580 -The Minstrel’s Ballad
Once you complete the main story quest Endwalker, the Wandering Minstrel will appear in Old Sharlayan at X: 12.6, Y: 14.2. He gives out harder versions of the level 83 and 89 trials, which in turn offer ilvl 580 equipment.
More specifically, The Minstrel’s Ballad: Zodiark’s Fall drops accessories, and The Minstrel’s Ballad: Hydaelyn’s Call drops weapons. If you don’t manage to get the drops you want from each fight, there’s also a totem system. By completing a specific extreme fight you gain a totem, and enough of these can be traded in for the item you want.
The vendor Nesvaaz in Radz-at-Han at X: 10.6, Y: 10 (the same alley as the tomestone vendor) will take these totems. You need five Astral Totems (gained from Zodiark) for an accessory, and ten Umbral Totems (gained from Hydaelyn) for a weapon.
Endwalker Gear ilvl 580 - Pandaemonium: Asphodelos Gear
Patch 6.01 introduced the normal version of Pandaemonium: Asphodelos, a raid dungeon that can be cleared weekly to earn ilvl 580 gear. However, instead of earning the gear directly, you will instead gain Unsung Asphodelos tokens, which are then traded in for gear.
A full overview of this raid can be found via our Final Fantasy XIV: How To Unlock Pandaemonium Asphodelos & Tokens Guide.
Endwalker Gear ilvl 580/590 - “Classical” Crafted Gear
Another quick option for ilvl 580 is the Classical crafter gear, introduced in Patch 6.05. This can be crafted directly (if you have appropriately geared level 90 crafting classes), though the easier option is to buy them from the market board. As time goes on, this gear will get cheaper and cheaper, making it a decent way to increase your ilvl later in the patch cycle.
Additionally, this gear can now be upgraded to ilvl 590 "Augmented Classical" versions in Patch 6.1. Trading in the crafted Classical version to the vendor Rashti in Radz-at-Han at X: 10.8, Y: 9.9 gives you Hannish Certificates of Grade 1 Import. Crucible Rain, an item costing 100 Aphorism Tomestones, can also be bought via the tomestone vendor in Radz-at-Han. Trading in enough of both will let you acquire Augmented Classical gear, which has better stats than the standard versions.
Endwalker Gear ilvl 590 - Aglaia
Following the Patch 6.1 storyline will unlock the sidequest "A Mission in Mor Dhona" in Old Sharlayan, which can be accepted via the "Fresh-Faced Student" NPC. Progressing this questline unlocks the first 24-man raid of Endwalker, Aglaia. Bosses in Aglaia drop ilvl 590 equipment, though you can only get one piece of gear from the raid each week (this resets every Tuesday).
Endwalker Gear ilvl 595 - The Minstrel's Ballad: Endsinger's Aria
New to Patch 6.1, the Wandering Minstrel now allows you to unlock a harder version of the Endsinger 8-man trial. Completing this will drop ilvl 595 "Bluefeather" weapons, both directly and as part of the Bluefeather Weapon Coffer. Each completion will also give you 2 Ultimatum Token (more than the previous Extreme trials), with 10 being traded for a Bluefeather weapon of your choice.
Endwalker Gear ilvl 590/600 - Astronomy Tomestone Gear
Allagan tomestones of astronomy, gained through level 90 content, are the entryway to ilvl 590 equipment. However, unlike Allagan tomestones of aphorism, astronomy is capped at 450 per week. This means that you won't be able to buy any of the more expensive items until your second week at max level.
The easiest way to cap your weekly astronomy tomes is by doing a daily expert roulette. Each one will give a total of 90 astronomy tomes, meaning that 5 daily roulettes will get you to cap with no additional content required.
You can also buy a weapon with these tomes, though this also requires another item called a Discal Tomestone. To get this, you either have to complete Asphodelos: The Fourth Circle for weekly Unsung Blade of Asphodelos tokens (7 of these can be traded in to the Pandaemonium Relic Exchange vendor at Radz-at-Han), or via Asphodelos: The Second Circle (Savage) — more on that later in the guide.
Each piece of astronomy tomestone gear can also be upgrade to ilvl 600 via “Radiant” items. These are the Radiant Coating for accessories, Radiant Twine for armor, and Radiant Roborant for weapons. The only way to earn these currently is by challenging Pandaemonium Asphodelos (Savage).
Pandaemonium Asphodelos (Savage) - ilvl 600 armor / ilvl 605 weapons
Pandaemonium Asphodelos (Savage) can be unlocked via the NPC Nemjiji in Labyrinthos at X: 8.4, Y: 27.4 after completing the normal mode questline. It’s currently the hardest challenge in Endwalker, ideally requiring you to find another 7 players of equal skill level to tackle it each week.
Rewards have a weekly lock like the normal version, though each encounter will drop gear coffers directly instead of tokens. To guarantee full rewards, the entire party must not have cleared the fight for that week — more than 4 players with a clear already means that no loot will drop.
Gain Extra Stats With Materia
All the previous steps will give you equipment with progressively better ilvls, but there is also a way to gain even more stats. This is done via materia, which can be melded onto equipment for substat bonuses. The main methods of getting materia during 6.0 include trading in sacks of nuts earned via hunts, getting clusters from the adventurer in need bonus during certain roulettes (this will usually be tanks) and trading them in at materia vendors, or just buying them directly via the market board.
While getting extra stats sounds great, there are a few things to keep in mind. For starters, you can’t meld materia onto your own gear without having the correct level 90 crafting class — i.e. you need armorer leveled to meld metal armor. The workaround to this is visiting a Materia Melder NPC — one of which being found in Radz-at-Han at X: 11.3, Y: 8.6 — who can meld materia to your gear for a small fee.
You also need to pick the right materia. In Endwalker, the most relevant materia for non-crafted equipment is grade VIII and grade X. Grade X will give the best stat gains but is relatively hard to get, while grade VIII is cheap and has higher stat bonuses than grade IX (confusing, we know).
You must also take into account the stats your gear already has. For example, a piece of gear that has critical hit as the highest secondary stat will not be able to gain any more crit via materia. This will be represented as red text in the melding menu along with a warning if you attempt this.
Secondary stat priorities will change based on the job, but most can get away with crit rate as a priority, and the determination. As long as you have somewhat relevant materia melded, you’ll be fine — it’s not even required for standard content like dungeons and normal trials, even if the extra stats will help out.
Better gear will become available during Endwalker’s life, with the main upgrades coming in 6.2 and 6.4. Make sure to check back for further guides once this new equipment is added to Final Fantasy XIV.
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Guide Updated 4/13/2022 for 6.1
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Isaac is a Staff Writer at TechRaptor, handling guides — and the occasional review — for games throughout many genres. Some of his more extensive work at… More about Isaac
