Thanks to the ongoing Fan Fest 2023 event hosted in London, the first of two new jobs in Dawntrail, Final Fantasy XIV’s upcoming expansion has been announced. The Viper job is a melee DPS class that dual-wields swords swiftly to gain an advantage over their opponents.
Fan Fest began with Naoki Yoshida on stage wearing what we now know to be Viper Job specific gear with both swords included. From here, fans viewed the above trailer which provided a brief overview as to how Viper will perform in combat. Following the trailer, Yoshida stated that Viper was created because there were many people around the world who had asked for a dual-wielding DPS class that was different from Ninja. Viper’s gear will fall under the same category as Ninja, dexterity melee.
Viper is an all-new class that has been designed specifically for Dawntrail. Unlike previous jobs which have either directly come from other Final Fantasy games, or taken inspiration from them, Viper has been created from the ground up for the upcoming expansion. The Viper job seems to align closely to the world of Tural as it was stated that the fighting style has been passed down via Turali hunters. In fact, the Viper can call on these ancient hunters for additional power while in battle. Curiously, the dual blades that the Viper wields can be combined into one singular two-handed weapon.
Like previous jobs, there will be no starting class requirements needed to become a Viper. All you will need is to have purchased Dawntrail, and have a single job at level 80 before making your way to Ul’dah to begin the quest at launch if you wish to do so.
The second job will be announced at Tokyo Fan Festival on January 7, 2024, and after how interesting and fresh Viper feels, the new class has a lot to live up to. With Yoshida at the helm, it undoubtedly will, and Dawntrail is shaping up to be another fantastic expansion to Final Fantasy XIV.
