Common questions about Scythe
Yes, completely free. You need a copy of the FFXI client (free to install — no active retail subscription required) and a bootloader like Ashita or Windower (also free). That's it. There will never be a cash shop, donation perks, or premium tier — FFXI private servers cannot legally monetize.
All expansions are enabled through Rhapsodies of Vana'diel. The level cap is 99 with Master Levels available beyond that. This is not an era-locked server — you get the full modern FFXI experience with custom additions on top.
We're a growing community. Join our Discord to see current player counts and activity. The NM hunt system is designed to be fun whether you're solo or in a group, so even during off-peak hours there's always something meaningful to do.
475 regular hunt NMs spread across 146 zones throughout Vana'diel, plus 25 elite bosses gated behind full completion (500 total). Each NM has a unique name from real-world mythology, a distinct visual model, and hand-crafted combat behavior. Level 100 with 10x stat multipliers, respawning every 9-11 minutes. Kills award Scyld currency — spend it on rewards including Mog Kupons for gear and weapons. Kill all 475 regular NMs to unlock the Elite Hunt. See the Features page for full details.
Yes. All relic weapons have been rebalanced with dramatically improved weaponskills (fTP 5.0/9.0/13.0, full multi-hit fTP replication, triple damage procs). Mythic, empyrean, and aeonic weapons are also available through their standard upgrade paths. Every weapon type is viable endgame.
The hunt NM system is designed to be soloable — most of the 475 regular NMs can be fought alone with proper preparation. Trusts are available. The 25 elite hunts, Dynamis Divergence, and Siege raids are tuned for groups. The Colosseum arena has a dedicated Solo challenge mode with 0.5x boss HP and 2.5x EP reward. The server works whether you prefer to play alone or with friends.
Yes — up to two accounts per player online simultaneously. A third slot is planned for a future update. This is lower than most private servers on purpose: group content is meant to still require real people, while two accounts gives you a free support character for soloing.
No planned wipes. Your characters, items, and progress are persistent. If a major database change ever required a partial reset, it would be announced well in advance with full transparency.
Most private servers are either stock LandSandBoat with no custom content, or era-locked 75-cap nostalgia servers. Scythe gives you the full modern game plus hundreds of hours of original endgame: 500 hunt NMs across 146 zones, 25 gated elite bosses, a planned 5-tier Colosseum arena, 50 master levels, server-wide siege raids, rebalanced relics, Dynamis Divergence, Fay weapon augments, and more. 4× EXP with no death penalty and equal subjob ratio means you spend less time grinding and more time doing actual content. Start with the Guides page for a step-by-step first-hour walkthrough and four recommended progression paths.
Warp to Eastern Adoulin and talk to Eppel-Treppel to enter the Celennia Memorial Library. Inside, the NM Hunts Master is your progression hub — daily/weekly bounties, unique-kill tracker, Elite progression board. The NM Hunt shop NPC is right next to him for spending Scyld. Full walkthrough on the Guides page.
Chocobo Circuit is the server's dedicated hub zone. It has the auction house,
all 9 crafting guild material vendors (always open, no rank required), a crystal
vendor, a crystal storage moogle, and the Advanced Support NPC for the 15-minute
Imagery craft buff. Type !cc in chat to warp there from anywhere.
Kill all 475 regular hunt NMs first. Unique kills only — re-killing the same NM does not count. There is no skip. Once unlocked, elites progress in strict stages: Seals → Champions → Specials → Supremes → Absolute Virtue. The Elite Hunts page has the full tier table with spawn conditions for every boss.
Exemplar Points (EP) are the Master Level currency — each ML gives +1 to every stat, +7 HP, +2 MP, tracked per-job. On Scythe right now, EP comes from siege participation and boosted Abyssea NMs. The Colosseum is in development and will become the highest-throughput EP source when it ships. See the Master Levels page for the full EP curve.
Use the #bug-reports channel in our Discord. Include as much detail as possible — zone, what you were doing, what happened, what you expected. Screenshots help. Bug reporters are appreciated, not punished.
FFXI private servers exist in a legal gray area. Scythe is a fan project — we do not distribute Square Enix copyrighted files, we do not charge money, and we do not claim any ownership of FINAL FANTASY XI or its intellectual property. Players use their own legitimately obtained FFXI client installations.