1. Chrono FFXIV Mastery Guide

Rating: ★★★★★ 

Chrono FFXIV Mastery Guide has just been released on the same day as FF14’s official release. Previously only Killerguides guide was available, and while I thought highly of it before, Chrono guide just showed me what a real guide should contain!

Chrono Guide contains a very detailed leveling guide for Limsa Lominsa, Gridania and Ul’dah. If you’re looking for a FF14 leveling guide, this one is exactly what you need, period. It’s far more detailed and updated than any other FF 14 guide you’ll find, and the contents inside are actual insider secrets and strategies, not just some generic information you can find anywhere else. The author clearly spent a great deal of time researching Final Fantasy and knows what he’s talking about.

My favorite part of Chrono FFXIV Mastery Guide is the fact it’s a complete game strategy guide with a great deal of quality content other than the leveling guide: it has an impressive gil making guide, gathering guide, mining guide, crafting guides, leve guide, monster farming guides, disciplines, battlecraft, recipes, … and a number of useful tutorials and FAQ’s answered. All in all, Chrono FF14 Mastery Guide is your ultimate resource for anything FF14 related, and for a bargain price. Absolutely recommended!

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2. Killerguides Final Fantasy XIV Leveling Guide

Rating: ★★★☆☆ 

Killerguides is a good publisher of strategy and leveling guides which I frequently mention on this blog. They have over a hundred different guides for many games and their latest addition is a few FFXIV guides, namely FFXIV Class Secrets (link), FFXIV Gil Secrets (link), and most importantly FFXIV Leveling Secrets guide. I won’t be reviewing the first two guides, but the leveling guide is the one that interests us most anyway.

Killerguides FF XIV leveling guide contains quest walkthroughs designed to help you gain levels as fast as possible. However, their leveling guide is simply not as detailed as I’m used to seeing in other guides. It simply doesn’t have not information about quests, other than what you can read in game. Sure it’s better than not having any leveling guide, but it’s simply not enough. Chrono guide offers a lot more in this department. The leveling guide is not the primary focus of Killerguides FFXIV Strategy Guide, and unfortunately neither are other guides: although there is information on character skills, armory system, guilds, attributes, zones and some more, it’s not researched and thorough enough to make you feel like you know the game any better.

Overall I think Killerguides Mastery Guide is merely a shadow copy of the top-rated and no doubt best guide ever written for this game, Chrono Guide. By skipping Killerguides guide entirely you won’t miss out on anything. Chrono guide however is a must have!

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3. FFXIV Domination Guide

Rating: ★★★☆☆ 

FFXIV Domination is a huge disappointment for me. I expected far more when I bought it and was quite surprised with how bad it actually is. It only has the most basic disciples and races overview, which everyone already knows. Other than that, there is a 1-15 leveling guide included, which is not all that bad but I was hoping it would be complete by now. Also, a beginners gil making guide is present, but the one in Chrono guide is a lot better. In fact, everything in Chrono guide is much better.

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4. FFXIV Secrets Guide

Rating: ★★★☆☆ 

FFXIV Secrets is pretty much the same as FFXIV Domination. The same 1-15 leveling guide, the same gil making guide, the same useless class and race info… I honestly don’t see a reason why you would want this guide, unless you really really want to waste money.

It does however seem the author intends to update it so perhaps it will get better in time. But by then Chrono guide will be an encyclopedia.

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5. FFXIV Mastery Guide

Rating: ★☆☆☆☆ 

First of all, FFXIV Mastery Guide is NOT the same guide as Chrono FFXIV Mastery Guide and should definitely not be mistaken with it. Chrono guide is amazing and my top rated FF14 guide, and FFXIV Mastery Guide (by Steve Benwell) is crap.

I’m not trying to be overly harsh here but Steve’s Mastery Guide only has a gil making guide which has the same info as FFXIV Secrets & FFXIV Domination, and all those three don’t come close to the Chrono guide anyway. As I understand the leveling guide is coming, but advertising for something that doesn’t yet exist is not the way to get a good review. Skip it, and get Chrono guide. Seriously.

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