Step into the mysterious world of FFXIV’s Occult Crescent, where a new era of combat awaits with the enigmatic Phantom Jobs. Unlocked through quests, rare drops, and strategic purchases, these specialized mini-roles offer unique abilities that can turn the tide of battle. Ready to master this fresh frontier and uncover all 13 Phantom Jobs? Here’s your essential guide to unlocking and dominating the Occult Crescent’s most intriguing new feature.
It should be noted that under the “Unlocking Phantom Jobs” section in the tutorial booklet, it does say “Soul shards are obtained from treasure chests, certain critical encounters, and more,” though we have yet to find a soul shard in a treasure chest. This isn’t ruling out the possibility, but we can’t confirm which job shards come from chests as of writing this.
All players will start with the Phantom Freelancer job, but there’s more to unlock. There are a few ways to unlock the various Phantom Jobs in FFXIV, which we’ve detailed below.
Completing Occult Crescent quests
To complete Occult Crescent quests in FFXIV, start by unlocking the field operation through the quest “One Last Hurrah” from the Expedition Messenger in Tuliyollal after reaching level 100 and finishing the Dawntrail main story. Progress through the questline, including key missions like “New Job, Old Tricks,” which unlocks the initial Phantom Jobs such as Phantom Knight, Monk, and Bard. Along the way, you will interact with survey points and explore the Phantom Village hub, gradually unlocking new areas and content. Completing these quests is essential for accessing further Phantom Jobs and advancing your knowledge and power within the Occult Crescent zone.
This is the first way you’re going to unlock a chunk of the Phantom Jobs. This job serves more or less as a tutorial, so you shouldn’t really have much difficulty in talking to the nearby NPCs and completing it as part of the Occult Crescent story.
By completing the quest “New Job, Old Tricks,” you unlock three jobs: Knight, Monk, and Bard.
Buying them for silver and gold coins
In FFXIV’s Occult Crescent, players can unlock several Phantom Jobs by purchasing their soul shards with special currencies: Enlightenment Silver and Gold Pieces. The Expedition Antiquarian, a merchant at the base camp, sells shards for certain Phantom Jobs-Time Mage, Cannoneer, and Chemist shards cost 1,000 silver pieces each, while Geancer and Thief shards require 1,000 gold pieces each. Silver pieces are mainly earned through participating in FATEs and critical encounters, whereas gold pieces are obtained by defeating monsters in the area. After buying a shard, players can use it directly from their inventory to unlock the corresponding Phantom Job, expanding their combat options within the Occult Crescent.
The merchant at the base camp (“Expedition Antiquarian”) will sell you job shards for a hefty sum, under the “battlecraft items” category of whatever currency you have to use.
- In exchange for 1,000 silver pieces each, you can buy the job shards for Time Mage, Cannoneer, and Chemist. You can amass silver pieces quickly by doing FATEs and critical encounters around the map.
- In exchange for 1,600 gold pieces each, you can buy the job shards for Samurai, Geomancer, and Thief. Gold pieces drop from killing regular monsters on the map.
Once you have the job shards, you can just use them from your inventory (the same way you would a minion or potion) and they’ll be added to your options.
Completing specific critical encounters
To unlock certain Phantom Jobs in FFXIV’s Occult Crescent, players must complete specific critical encounters in the South Horn area. These encounters, such as “The Unbridled,” “The Black Regiment,” and “On the Hunt,” drop soul shards required to unlock the Phantom Berserker, Phantom Ranger, and Phantom Oracle jobs respectively. Participating in these critical encounters is essential because they provide more significant rewards, including Phantom EXP and Enlightenment Silver Pieces, compared to regular FATEs. Players need to be inside the designated battle area when the critical encounter starts to join in, and successfully completing these challenging fights grants access to some of the most powerful Phantom Jobs available in the field operation.
Three critical encounters also have a chance to drop job shards, as marked below on the map.
- “On the Hunt” drops the Oracle’s Soul Shard
- “The Black Regiment” drops the Ranger’s Soul Shard
- “The Unbridled” drops the Berserker’s Soul Shard
Note that these are not guaranteed drops from the above encounters. In the times I’ve ran these, a shard has dropped about 50% of the time, but that isn’t to say that 50% is the actual drop rate. Just keep doing them as they pop up and you’ll get the soul shard eventually.
What secret methods are there to find Phantom Job soul shards in FFXIV’s Occult Crescent
In FFXIV’s Occult Crescent, secret methods to find Phantom Job soul shards include:
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Completing specific critical encounters: Certain critical encounters have a chance to drop soul shards for Phantom Jobs. For example, “On the Hunt” can drop the Oracle’s Soul Shard, “The Black Regiment” yields the Ranger’s Soul Shard, and “The Unbridled” drops the Berserker’s Soul Shard. These drops are not guaranteed but have roughly a 50% drop chance based on player reports.
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Purchasing with silver and gold coins: The Expedition Antiquarian vendor at the base camp sells various Phantom Job soul shards for 1,000 silver pieces (e.g., Time Mage, Cannoneer, Chemist) or 1,600 gold pieces (e.g., Geomancer, Samurai, Thief). Silver pieces are earned mainly through FATEs and critical encounters, while gold pieces come from defeating monsters in the area.
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Completing Occult Crescent quests: Some Phantom Jobs are unlocked by progressing through the questline, such as the “New Job, Old Tricks” quest which unlocks Knight, Monk, and Bard jobs.
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Exploring Demiatma zones and defeating specific mobs: Certain Demiatma zones spawn after killing Crescent Inkstains, which can lead to encounters and potential shard drops, though this method is less documented and relies on RNG.
While treasure chests are mentioned as a possible source, no confirmed Phantom Job soul shards have been found in chests as of now.
These methods combine questing, combat, and currency farming to gradually unlock all Phantom Jobs in the Occult Crescent.
Are there hidden locations or events where soul shards might drop unexpectedly
There are no confirmed hidden locations or surprise events specifically documented for unexpected drops of Phantom Job soul shards in FFXIV’s Occult Crescent. The known methods to obtain these shards primarily involve completing designated critical encounters, quest progression, and purchasing from vendors using earned silver or gold coins. While some rare spawn events like Demiatma zones appear after killing Crescent Inkstains, these are part of the regular gameplay loop rather than secret or hidden events. No reliable evidence suggests that soul shards drop unexpectedly in hidden locations or from unmarked events beyond these established methods.
