Expeditionary Force

Source
 * Original Author:Arsienne of Titan

Conquering Vana'diel - A Guide to the Conquest and the Expeditionary Force


 * The most efficient way to conquer a region of Vana'diel is through Expeditionary Force (EF) missions.


 * First off, all players in an EF group must have Rank 3 in their nation. You can also not EF for a nation that is not your own.


 * You must gather a group of 4 to 6 (the number varies with your nation's rank) of your countrymen and speak with your local Signet guard. You can only take EF missions from the guards in your home city; you cannot take them from Jeunoan Ducal Guards. I do not know if you can accept EF missions from guards at foreign consulates.


 * Upon speaking with the guard regarding the Expeditionary Force, you will be offered a selection of Regions to Conquer. To be offered a region you must have visited at least one zone in that region, most likely the Outpost region (not sure on this), and your country must not currently be in control of the region.


 * Next to each Region is a "X~" where X is a number referring to the minimum level required to join that particular EF. What is not stated is that the NM monster battles you do in an EF are level capped. It's best to have a group consistant with the level cap. Higher level players will be de-leveled to this cap, so it's best to have level appropriate gear. These are the four starter EFs. There are more at higher levels.

Derfland/Pashhow Marshlands 20~ NM Goblins and NM Quadav Norvallen/Jugner Forest 20~ NM Goblins and NM Orcs Aragoneu/Meriphataud Mountains 20~ NM Goblins and NM Yagudo Qufim Island 25~ NM Goblins and NM Gigas
 * Level Cap 30 EFs, their minimums, and what you fight.


 * Once your party all chooses an EF to join (it must be the same one), you must all speak to the guard again to receive your Gate Crystal and to be teleported to the zone in the Region in which you will be fighting. The Gate Crystal you receive is essentially a free Warp back to your city, so make sure you have inventory space or else you have a long walk back.


 * Once you arrive in the zone your party must hunt down a Beastman flag. These randomly spawn in one of five static spawnpoints found throughout the zone. You can go to www.prideofbastok.com for some great maps of the four level 30 EFs I mentioned above.


 * Once you find a Beastman flag, gather everyone together to buff up before the battle. Then have one player, preferably with high evasion or blink, go and check out the flag, which is targetable. This will spawn a number of Beastman NMs that you must defeat. A 6 man party will spawn roughly 4 NMs (more if the NMs have pets).

You may also gain influence in the Region by going to the local regional dungeons and opening treasure chests. This only counts while you have that Region's EF marker.
 * To be successful in EF, you must be able to quickly dispatch this group of monsters and then find the next Beastman flag and fight once again. This has the effect of a Conquest Chain., i.e. the more flags you can defeat in succession, the more influence you will earn for your nation in a region.


 * If you and your group are able to influence the region, and if that region does switch to your nation at the next conquest tally, you can then go to your Signet guard to receive your reward, which is a large number of Conquest Points.


 * You can form alliances to do EFs, however, it is a bit tricky. Each group must be the exact size for the EF (which is normal). Each group must then seperately be teleported out to the region. Only then at the region will you be able to form an alliance. Be cautious though, because an Alliance will spawn more NMs from a flag than a smaller group would.


 * Keep in mind that during an EF you are gaining "high levels of experience," as that is the only way to capture a region (hence the level caps). You do gain XP while EF'ing, and it's comparable to normal XPing - just a lot harder and takes more skill. You will also lose XP upon dying (I do not know how this effects higher levels doing lower capped EFs).


 * If your country already controls the region, you cannot EF there. You can however XP in the region, which will help gain influence over time. Beastmen have a chance of dropping armor when you fight them. You can turn in this armor to the local Regional Outpost's shopkeeper, which will further help you gain influence in the region.


 * Although a little unorthodox, if a group or LS is really interested in the Conquest of Vana'diel, then they would be best to only XP where they are needed (as opposed to the "common" XP zones). They would also raid dungeons together and turn in armor to the shopkeepers.


 * Another good thing about the EF is that you never really "graduate" from it - that is, you never have to stop EFing in a certain zone because your level has become too high. Just make sure you have the right equipment and you're good to go at every EF.