There are always lots of things to do in Final Fantasy XIV, and now, the much-anticipated Island Sanctuary content is finally here. With this addition to the MMO, you can live a simple farm life on a lush island. Saving the world of Hydaelyn can take a toll, so why not take this chance to kick back, grow crops, raise animals, and relax?
That said, the intricacies of the Island Sanctuary—the farming, merching, and gathering system, to be specific—can be challenging to understand. Not to worry, though, because, in this beginner’s guide, we’ll walk you through the basics of getting started on the right foot.
Unlocking the Island Sanctuary
Before you can build a special place where you can explore, tame creatures, and farm items to your heart’s content, you’ll need to know how to unlock the Island Sanctuary first. You must find the quest “Seeking Sanctuary” and look for the Clueless Crier NPC in Old Sharlayan. After starting it, FFXIV will take you through a series of small quests that’ll introduce the concept of the island. Note that the Island Sanctuary feature is only available for those who have at least completed the main scenario quest ‘Endwalker’ (through 6.0). If you’ve yet to reach that point, I suggest finishing it pronto.
The “Seeking Sanctuary” quest is essentially a tutorial in the form of quests that will walk you through the basic activities of what you can do in the Island Sanctuary. Once that’s said and done; however, you’re very much left on your own afterward. Island Sanctuary is an active experience sprinkled with several unique mechanics and systems to tinker with. The best part is even though gathering and crafting are the core parts of Island Sanctuary, you don’t need to have Job-based prerequisites for Disciples of the Land or Hand. You’ll be able to enjoy the content even if you don’t have prior experience in gathering and crafting.
How to Visit Your Island in Island Sanctuary
The great thing about Island Sanctuary is that you can come and go as you please. You can leave the island using Return, Teleport, or the boat on your island. When you want to return, you must go to Lower La Noscea and talk to Baldin near the Aetheryte. After talking to him, Baldin will give you the option to visit your island anytime and even someone else’s island if you’re thinking of visiting a friend.
Managing Your Island
The core of Island Sanctuary revolves around gathering materials on your island to craft various things. Whether it’s tools for gathering, more buildings for your base, food for livestock, or handicrafts to exchange for Cowries, everything is up to you on what you want to prioritize first. There are general quests called Visions, where you can earn Island EXP when completing various tasks. These Visions level up your Sanctuary Rank and, in turn, reward you with new structures to build and more nifty features.
You might think it will be a pain to keep all these things on track. Don't worry because the Islekeep’s Index will be your best friend throughout your stay in Island Sanctuary. The Islekeep’s Index has everything you need to interact with the island. With it, you can craft tools and food, place your minions in specific regions, and even check your gathering log to see everything you’ve collected and the item locations.
What Are Visions?
I’ve skimmed over Visions for a brief moment before, but let me explain further. Island Sanctuary has a rank system; you can gain experience doing almost everything on the island. One way to nab EXP is by completing missions called Visions. The various NPCs typically give them in the area. Not only will Visions give experience points, but they can also give you access to new facilities, crafting recipes, and construction spots. Luckily for you, Visions are scoffingly easy to complete; they usually only require you to have a certain quantity of items. You can opt to gather on your island to get experience, but they yield so little when compared to Visions.
Gathering Across the Island
There are a lot of systems at play in Island Sanctuary, and they all feed into each other, resulting in one whole ecosystem. Now that we’re finished with the basics let’s talk about each gameplay element you can do on your island.
Gathering is what you’ll mainly be doing in Island Sanctuary, and to do so, you must be in Gather Mode, which you can toggle via the Islekeep’s Index. Gathering nodes will spring up across the island, with different objects yielding unique materials. The action of gathering is relatively easy—just walk up to the object you’re interested in and click it to pick it up. By exploring the island, you’ll hit a variety of gathering nodes.
Keeping mental notes on where to find each object is ideal, especially since you’ll need specific materials to craft buildings/tools for your island. If you need a reference, the Sanctuary Gathering Log is your guide, as it has information on material locations for every item you’ve gathered. Moreover, the Sanctuary Gathering Log also features an in-game map that marks where you can find each material. It won’t show every area the material is found, but hey, it’s better than nothing.
As for tracking the quantities of the materials you need, you can use the Sanctuary Crafting Log, Material Allocation, and Manage Hideaway menus found in the—you guessed it—Islekeep’s Index. You can simply leave these menus on your screen to keep tabs on your gathering progress. Note that each of the menus caters to certain types of crafts.
- Sanctuary Crafting Log: Features tabs for key items (Restraints, Tools, Feed).
- Material Allocation: Features the materials required for the Handicrafts queued in your production schedule.
- Manage Hideaway: Features buildings you can renovate and construct with your available materials.
Catching and Feeding the Animals
When compared to gathering, catching animals is a bit more…involved. Switch to Capture Mode when you’re out in the field and select a Restraint (these can be made using the Island Sanctuary’s crafting system). When you have a Restraint equipped, the wildlife will become targetable; simply walk up and click on them. Once you’ve successfully captured an animal, you’ll be able to see them back at the Pasture in your Hideaway.
At the start, your only available Restraint is the Makeshift Nets. These are more than fine for capturing Opo-opos, Ornery Karakuls, or Lost Lambs. But later on, as you pretty up your island, you’ll discover animals that can escape a capture—some will need more than a rinky dinky net to be caught. You can unlock better Restraints in the future to get yourself some Island Nannies and Chocobos. And the fun doesn’t stop there either; you can capture bigger (and rarer) creatures as you progress. It’s good to have all sorts of animals that yield different materials in your Pasture.
So how can you get materials from these animals, you ask? By feeding them, of course! You must feed animals in your Pasture on a regular schedule if you want them to produce materials. To do so, switch to Feed Mode via the Islekeep’s Index to select the type of food you’d like to give them. The better the food quality, the happier they’ll be, and the better materials you’ll get from your animals. There are three types of Feeds you can craft:
- Island Sweetfeed: This feed can only be made with Island Apples which you can gather around your island. Since it’s relatively cheap and easy to make, it will only boost an animal’s mood to “content.”
- Island Greenfeed: To craft an Island Greenfeed, you need two of the products you’ve grown from your crops. This feed boosts your animal’s mood to “chipper.”
- Premium Island Greenfeed: Required two crops of any kind. This feed boosts your animal’s mood to be “gleeful.”
As long as you craft as much Feed as you need, taking care of your animals is easy. In a way, managing them is similar to maintaining your crops—except you don’t have to check on them if they need water constantly.
Crafting 101
The tutorial teaches you how to craft the Islekeep’s Stone Hammer and Islekeep’s Stone Hatchet. With these tools, you’ll be able to mine rocks and chop trees on your island. More advanced tools will be available once you progress, and you can track everything related to crafting from the Sanctuary Crafting Log. If you need help tracking how many items you have and need, I recommend keeping this menu open during your gathering expeditions.
You’ll be happy to know that the tools in Island Sanctuary don’t break, and newer (and better) ones become available to you. However, Feeds and Restraints are consumables that you must continually craft. As we’ve stated before, Feed is made from various food materials, and you’ll need it to keep your livestock happy and produce materials. For example, you can only gather items like the Sanctuary Fleece and Sanctuary Milk from happy animals. Meanwhile, Restraints are used to capture wildlife that you can bring back to the Pasture to be taken care of.
Tending to Your Crops
If you want to craft Feed to make your animals happy and healthy, you need to grow some produce, which you can do at the Cropland. To yield crops, you need seeds in your inventory; these can be gathered from the field. Then, switch to Sow Mode to plant seeds in your Cropland. Next, you’ll have to enable Water Mode if you want to water your crops and see them grow. If it’s already raining in-game, your crops will automatically be watered.
For your crops to grow, you’ll have to wait in real-world time; this process can take upwards of two full days. The crops will be dry and need water after 36 hours, so you’ll need to water them at least once per cycle. Here’s a list of seeds you can sow:
- Island Cabbage Seeds
- Island Pumpkin Seeds
- Island Onion Set
- Island Wheat Seeds
- Island Corn Seeds
- Island Parsnip Seeds
- Island Radish Seeds
- Island Tomato Seeds
- Island Popoto Set
You’ll know when the crops are ready to be harvested when they’re sparkling. To gather them, switch to Gather Mode.
Earn Cowries and Rewards
You can earn two types of currencies in Island Sanctuary:
- Seafarer’s Cowries: These are the premium currency earned by doing Visions, performing different tasks, and developing your island. Seafarer’s Cowries are also what rules the Handicraft market. In short, they’re what you use to buy cool stuff.
- Islander’s Cowries: These can be earned by selling the materials in your inventory to the Enterprising Explorer NPC in your Cozy Cabin.
To sum it up, Seafarer’s Cowries are used to buy cosmetic-based items such as armor, mounts, and furnishings. On the other hand, Islander’s Cowries are usually sold for Materias of different varieties.
Build Your Perfect Getaway
Congratulations! You’re finally ready to build your very own Island Sanctuary. Whether you’re creating a place to escape from the busy vibe of Eorzea or just want to kick back and relax with your friends, the Island Sanctuary is your best bet.
