The class Beastmaster in FFXI

The class Beastmaster in the original version of sell Final Fantasy XI Gil was the only true solo job in the game, but players developed solo strategies for other jobs and new solo jobs have come from the expansions to the world of Vana'diel.

Still, Beastmaster remains the premiere solo class in the game. Its strength comes from the fact that you temporarily charm creatures in a particular region to fight other mobs for you. You are able to garner the strength of beasts that would normally take an entire party to bring down and use them to wreak havoc on your local adversaries. The style of play is very different from other MMOs where you normally keep and level a pet more like a sidekick. In the Beastmaster's case you learn to use the monsters at hand and utilize your knowledge of a creature's natural predators or a humanoid's weaknesses to tip the advantage in your favor. It is a dance of death whose steps must be carefully managed as you charm a path of destruction through the land.

Wow! It sounds like quite a powerful class, so what's the catch? Remember when I stated temporarily charm creatures? The downside to taming this power is living on the constant edge of death. You have no idea when a charm will release or whether your attempt will make a creature your friend or provoke an attack. A missed charm makes monsters angry and wants to eat your face off. Nothing says you are screwed more than having that happen in the middle of a fight when your pet drops charm and instead of facing a mob you couldn't kill alone, now you are facing two. Use your imagination because in this field there are a number of ways to get yourself killed. It's an adventure to be sure. With great power comes even greater risk and reward, thus is the life of a Beastmaster. Players that pick this class can't be afraid to break a few eggs when making an omelet and by eggs I mean every bone in your character's body. Know your home point, love your home point and remember where you set it last.