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Final Fantasy 14 has experienced a leap in popularity thanks to its expanded free trial and revamped experience for new players. One of the main draws of the game is the ability for a player to try out all jobs on one character. Without needing to create any alternate characters, players are able to try out any job they want and experience all of the related storylines.
Since there are so many jobs in Final Fantasy 14, it can be a little daunting to choose which one to play. Thankfully, the game is balanced extremely well and players should look to choose a playstyle they enjoy. However, while all of the jobs are balanced, not all of the job questlines are created equal. Some job questlines in Final Fantasy 14 are much better than others, and players looking for a comparable experience to the main storyline might favor certain job quests over others.
The Best Job Storylines in Final Fantasy 14
Naturally, the jobs that appeared in later Final Fantasy 14 expansions are usually better written than their A Realm Reborn counterparts. Although what constitutes the best job storyline might be subjective, there are a couple of highly regarded ones that shouldn't be skipped by any Final Fantasy 14 player. The best job storylines usually feel like a natural extension of the players' journey and feature an interesting cast of characters or unique quest objectives.
Dark Knight
Of all the Final Fantasy 14 jobs available, Dark Knight is often cited as the one with the best story and writing that's comparable to the quality of the main storyline. This shouldn't be surprising considering it's done by Natsuko Ishikawa, writer of the Shadowbringers main scenario, and the upcoming Endwalker expansion as well. Whereas other jobs seemed to have a separate narrative, the Dark Knight questline actually feels like an extension of the player character, Warrior of Light. With phenomenal writing and emotional moments, the Dark Knight questline is easily one of the best.
Samurai
The Samurai questline in Final Fantasy 14 really feels like an action flick full of surprise twists, high stake fights, and emotional moments. Although parts of the storyline could be a little slow at times, it managed to wrap itself up nicely in a satisfying conclusion. There's plenty of interesting thematic elements to the story, like having a student surpass the master, and this was executed well during the Samurai quests. The Stormblood questline also has some interesting parallels to the honor system of feudal Japan and political tension as well.
Dragoon
The Dragoon questline further expands on the events of Heavensward in Final Fantasy 14 and it delves into the lore of the Dragonsong War. While the Dragoon questline is fairly solid throughout each expansion, it really shines during the earlier levels as a buildup to the events of Heavensward. The questline also does a good job of fleshing out Estinien's character and motivations a little more. During the Stormblood quests, the Dragoon story incorporates elements from the Heavensward quests which help ease it into a storyline that doesn't feature dragons as heavily.
Alchemist
Alchemist is a crafting class in Final Fantasy 14, but it deserves a special mention for how good it is despite what players might imagine the storyline to be like. Similar to the Dark Knight questline, the Alchemist questline was also written by Natsuko Ishikawa and features interesting forensic investigations, ethical dilemmas, and themes of grief and loss. It's definitely a storyline that has to be experienced firsthand and shouldn't be missed by new Final Fantasy 14 players.
The Worst Job Storylines in Final Fantasy 14
Unfortunately, there are a number of job storylines in Final Fantasy 14 that are far weaker than some of their counterparts. Although it's subjective, it is hard to argue against the idea that some of the original A Realm Reborn storylines aren't as interesting as the ones that would appear in later expansions. While most of them don't have terrible storylines, they are grouped together with boring quest objectives or annoying characters. Furthermore, the pacing of some job quests can be awkward and can feel like filler content.
Warrior
A lot of Final Fantasy 14 players refer to the Warrior questline when talking about the worst job storylines in Final Fantasy 14. While the initial Marauder quests are interesting, the later Warrior quests become overly repetitive and feature some really annoying characters. During the Stormblood expansion, it transforms into a strange rom-com of sorts. While it doesn't take itself seriously, it does feel like a far cry from the traditional Final Fantasy 14 storytelling experience.
White Mage
The White Mage storyline is especially disappointing in Final Fantasy 14 because it sets up a really engaging concept that ultimately falls apart from all of the boring quests. Of the healer classes, White Mage's lore regarding the elementals is one of the most interesting, but it's never expanded upon properly. Instead, players mostly repeat the same cleansing ritual for a good chunk of the questline and by the time more lore is revealed, the pacing of the story is quite disjointed. White Mages are set up to be a special kind of Conjurer that deals with elementals but the story doesn't really reflect that well.
Paladin
The Paladin storyline also has an interesting setup in Final Fantasy 14, but feels poorly planned out. The direction the quests take is often confusing and the actions of the characters are questionable at best. A lot of the backstory surrounding the level 50-60 quests feels incomplete, and players are often left confused unless they finish some side content. While the tournament arc in Stormblood is a little more interesting, it's also entirely predictable and gets repetitive fairly quickly.
Bard
The Bard storyline in Final Fantasy 14 is a little stronger than the ones listed above but it still suffers from an underdeveloped plot and uninspired characters. The main problem with the Bard storyline is that it's forgettable and the character development feels contrived. Furthermore, the player character often takes a backseat to the events of the questline and feels more like an observer than someone who is actively involved.
Final Fantasy 14 is available now on PC, PS4, and PS5.