If you’re a mount collector, Final Fantasy XIV will definitely keep you busy. But after almost a decade of updates, the process of getting them can be really intimidating. Most mounts have some sort of prerequisite, and there’s no one process that will get you every mount. You’re going to have to familiarize yourself with a lot of gameplay systems if you want to build a big collection.
I’ve been looking for a detailed mount roadmap for Final Fantasy XIV for a really, really long time. While there are comprehensive lists, I’ve not been able to find one that walks you through the process of which mounts to get and when. So I decided to make one myself. Yes, the task is gargantuan, but I think I’m up for the challenge.
So I’m going to walk you through every mount you can acquire in Final Fantasy XIV, in the order in which you’ll most likely acquire them. This will give you an understanding of what you need to do and when you need to do it. For the first part of my guide, I’m going to focus exclusively on A Realm Reborn. That means I won’t be talking about any mounts that you can’t get above Level 50 or outside the regions from the base game.
Oh, and I should point out that every mount in the game can fly, but you have to unlock the flying ability first. The same is true of diving, which you’ll unlock as a part of the Stormblood expansion’s campaign.
So let’s begin!
Fat Chocobo
So, I’m going to mostly skip any mounts that need to be purchased with real-world money, but the Fat Chocobo is worth mentioning because it’s a bonus for purchasing the Collector’s Edition of A Realm Reborn. You can upgrade to the Collector’s Edition from the standard edition at any time, and doing so will get you the mount (and some other goodies).
When you ride the Fat Chocobo on land, you will guide it with a cabbage on a stick. However, if you make it fly, you will guide it with a piece of cake. Also, the theme music that plays when this mount is active is pretty hilarious.
Coeurl
Like the Fat Chocobo, the Coeurl mount is included in the Collector’s Edition of A Realm Reborn. This one doesn’t have hilarious theme music, though.
Your First Chocobo
The Company Chocobo is almost certainly the first mount you’ll get in the game. You will be asked to join one of the three Grand Companies during the MSQ (main scenario quest), and once you hit Level 20, you should have access to a quest called My Little Chocobo. This will ask you to purchase chocobo insurance. When you turn it in, you’ll get the Chocobo Whistle, which will let you summon your chocobo mount.
While you’re riding it, the “Chocobo Theme” will play, which is a nice touch.
You can also customize your chocobo a bit. You can dress it up in barding, which generally comes in three pieces (head, body, and legs), and you can also change its color. Barding is a whole thing, so here’s a guide to that, and I’ll also link you to a guide about changing your chocobo color.
I do wish you could capture your own chocobos in the Chocobo Forest, but that’s perhaps a ramble for another time…
Hybodus
If you pick up the Fishing job, you’ll be able to go on ocean voyages. Don’t worry, the early fishing quests should walk you through the whole process. If you can score 10,000 points on a single voyage, you’ll earn the “No More Fish in the Sea II” achievement and unlock the Hybodus shark mount.
Unicorn
The Unicorn mount is exclusive to the Conjurer class. In order to acquire it, you must level up a Conjuror to 30 and complete all your class quests. You should then be offered a quest called Unicorn Power (if you can’t find it, look for Braya at the Conjurer’s Guild). Completing this quest gives you the Unicorn Whistle, which lets you summon your Unicorn mount.
Magitek Armor
If you beat the vanilla A Realm Reborn MSQ (main scenario quest), you’ll earn the Magitek Armor mount. You’ll also unlock flying in (almost) all of the regions in A Realm Reborn. I have written a very thorough guide to this specific mount, so if you want more information, you can check that out.
The MSQ is a long journey, and there are some things you can work on while you’re still pushing through the campaign. For instance…
Jonathas, Master of the Rolls
You’ll find a fellow in Old Gridania by the name of Jonathas, Master of the Rolls. The map above shows you exactly where to look for him.
He’s a merchant who stocks a whole bunch of unconventional wares, such as minions, mounts, and barding. The way this currency exchange works is that he’ll look through your Achievements, then award you Achievement Certificates based on how many you’ve completed. Don’t worry, this isn’t just a one-time thing. You can revisit him whenever you’ve earned enough Achievements and he’ll give you more certificates if you are eligible.
There are three mounts you can buy from him. (When you open his shop window, you’ll see four tabs. The Accessories tab is open by default, but you’ll need to navigate to the Others tab to find the mounts.)
Behemoth
Jonathas will sell you the Behemoth Warhorn for 6 Achievement Certificates, which summons the Behemoth mount. This mount is quite large, and also quite common. Note that the Behemoth mount used to be a reward for players who subscribed for 270 days, but now you get it from Jonathas.
Magitek Death Claw
Jonathas will sell you the Magitek Death Claw Identification Key for 6 Achievement Certificates, which summons the Magitek Death Claw mount. This is a mechanical hand that picks you up by the scruff of the neck. Yeah, it’s kind of weird. It seems to be a lot less common than the Behemoth, and I’m guessing that’s just because people don’t like it as much. It’s just as easy to acquire.
Ahriman
Jonathas will sell you the Voidal Resonator for 6 Achievement Certificates, which summons the Ahriman mount.
Note that the Ahriman mount used to be a reward for players who subscribed to the game for 90 days, but now it’s acquired from Jonathas instead.
Commendation Rewards
At the end of any dungeon, you can give out commendations to other players who you think did a good job.
There is actually a weekly challenge to give out commendations to other players. Because of this, you’re more likely to get commendations on Mondays (the last day of the FFXIV week) and on Tuesdays (the first day of the FFXIV week). You’re also more likely to receive commendations if you hang around at the end of a match for a little bit. Most players bail on the dungeon the second the loot roll ends, which doesn’t give other players enough time to give them a commendation. This gives you a better chance at getting one, even if you weren’t a particularly noteworthy player.
I have noticed that I get way more commendations when I play as a tank than as a DPS class (I rarely play as a healer, but I assume this would be true of healers as well).
Gilded Magitek Armor
If you earn 500 player commendations, you’ll unlock the Gilded Magitek Armor. At one point you had to talk to Jonathas to claim Achievement rewards, but now you can do it directly from the Achievement menu.
Parade Chocobo
If you earn 3,000 player commendations, you’ll unlock the Parade Chocobo. Like the Gilded Magitek Armor, you can claim this directly from the Achievements menu.
Palace of the Dead
Palace of the Dead (Deep Dungeon) is a dungeon consisting of 200 randomly generated floors. You’ll find the entrance in Quarrymill in the South Shroud. If you want more information, there’s a great explainer here.
Black Pegasus
You’ll acquire Gold-trimmed Sacks in the Palace of the Dead floors 150-200. The prize in each sack is random, but you have a chance to earn the Black Pegasus when you turn in a Gold-trimmed Sack.
Disembodied Head
You can purchase the Disembodied Head Resonator from E-Una-Kotor for 10 Gelmorran Potsherds. E-Una-Kotor can be found just outside the Palace of the Dead, and Gelmorran Potsherds can be found inside the dungeon.
The Manderville Gold Saucer
Final Fantasy XIV features its own twist on the Gold Saucer from Final Fantasy VII, and if you’re anything like me, you’ll probably spend a lot of time there. You can race chocobos, play Triple Triad, and partake in a whole slew of minigames. The currency you earn here is called MGP, and you’re going to need an absolute boatload of it.
You’ll want to talk to the Gold Saucer Attendant at the front desk of the Gold Saucer. He’ll have several options for you, but Prize Exchange III is the one you are looking for.
If you need to grind MGP, there are some pretty decent guides out there already. Personally, I try to do the weekly challenges every week, and I do GATEs whenever I can. I also participate in Cactpot drawings (both the weekly Jumbo Cactpot drawing and the daily Mini Cactpot drawing). You can also race chocobos and do the Fashion Report. The Fashion Report is a weekly event, but it rewards you with a ton of MGP. Chocobo racing is a faster way to earn MGP than, say, Triple Triad, but you’ll earn nowhere near as much as you would from doing GATEs or completing the Fashion Report.
Adamantoise
You can buy the Adamantoise Whistle for 200,000 MGP. It allows you to summon the Adamantoise mount. This one is fun, because when you fly, it spins and shoots fire. Sure, your character probably wants to hurl, but it looks awesome!
Fenrir
You can buy the Fenrir Horn for 1,000,000 MGP, which allows you to summon the Fenrir mount.
Archon Throne
You can buy the Archon Throne for 750,000 MGP.
Korpokkur Kolossus
You can buy the Korpokkur Kolossus Horn for 750,000 MGP.
Typhon
You can buy the Typhon Horn for 750,000 MGP, which allows you to summon the Typhon mount.
Sabotender Emperador
You can buy the Sabotender Emperador Horn for 2,000,000 MGP, which allows you to summon the Sabotender Emperador mount.
Reputation Quests
There are five reputation factions in A Realm reborn, and every one of them will sell you a mount. Of course, you must get your reputation up before they’ll sell you one, and that means you’ll be grinding daily reputation quests.
You can take 12 reputation quests per day, and each faction will give you three per day. In A Realm Reborn, you can increase the number of reputation quests each faction will give you by ranking up your reputation with that faction. This is not true in the expansions.
Calvary Drake
You’ll find the Amalj’aa in the scorching desert of Southern Thanalan, in an area called the Ring of Ash. Once your reputation is Trusted (Rank 4), the tribe vendor will sell you the Drake Horn for 120,000 gil.
Laurel Goobbue
The Sylphs are fairy-like folks who lives in the East Shroud in a settlement called Little Solace. You’ll be introduced to them in the MSQ, but if you return at around level 43, you’ll be able to start increasing your reputation with them. If you rank up to Trusted (Rank 4) with the Sylphs, they’ll sell you the Laurel Goobbue Horn for 120,000 gil.
Calvary Elbst
The Sahagin are sea-dwellers who lay their eggs on land, and you’ll find the friendly ones in Novv’s Nursary in Western La Noscea. It’s located on a peninsula northwest of Aleport. Once you rank them up to Trusted (Rank 4), they’ll sell you the Elbst Horn for 120,000 gil.
Bomb Palanquin
You’ll find the Kobold Beast Tribe in Outer La Noscea at the 789th Order Dig. Once you rank your reputation to Trusted (Rank 4), they’ll sell you the Bomb Palanquin Horn for 120,000 gil.
Direwolf
The Ixal Beast Tribe is the easiest to overlook and the most tedious to master. You’ll be introduced to them by Scarlet in New Gradania via a quest called A Bad Bladder, and their camp is located in the Northern Shroud.
Their quests tend to have more steps than other Beast Tribe quests, and you’ll need to equip the Ehcatl Wristgloves in order to craft the things they ask for. Yes, you have to do these quests with a Disciple of the Hand, and you’ll need to grind your way through seven ranks instead of four if you want to collect their mount. Once you reach Sworn (Rank 7) with the Ixal, you can purchase the Direwolf Whistle for 120,000 gil.
It’s a lot of work, but the mount looks really cool and I don’t see other players using it very often.
The Ponies
There’s a collection of ponies (and one unicorn) that you can get, and it’s pretty much the ultimate mount hunt in A Realm Reborn. These require you to complete the Primal fights on Extreme difficulty. Note that you can do these fights in “unsynched” mode, which preserves your current job level and allows you to bring a small party into the fight. So if your character is level 75, you can run these battles at 75 instead of synching to 50. You can actually complete a lot of these fights with two or three players instead of eight, which increases your chances of getting the loot you want.
And yes, there’s an element of randomness. More often than not, you’ll complete the correct fight and no whistles will drop. Don’t get discouraged; just keep trying. The whistles will eventually drop in the raids specified below.
Nightmare
The Nightmare Whistle has a small chance to drop after completing the Navel (Extreme), the Bowl of Embers (Extreme), or the Howling Eye (Extreme). This allows you to summon the Nightmare mount. Note that Nightmare doesn’t actually count as one of the ponies, but I’ve included it here because you can try to earn it while working toward the pony mounts.
Gullfaxi
Defeat Titan in the Navel (Extreme) trial for a chance at getting the Gullfaxi Whistle, which allows you to summon the Gullfaxi mount.
Aithon
Defeat Ifrit in the Bowl of Embers (Extreme) trial for a chance at getting the Aithon Whistle, which allows you to summon the Aithon mount.
Xanthos
Defeat Garuda in the Howling Eye (Extreme) trial for a chance at getting the Xanthos Whistle, which allows you to summon the Xanthos mount.
Enbarr
Defeat Leviathan in the Whorleater (Extreme) trial for a chance at getting the Enbarr Whistle, which allows you to summon the Enbarr mount.
Markab
Defeat Ramuh in the Striking Tree (Extreme) trial for a chance at getting the Markab Whistle, which allows you to summon the Markab mount.
Boreas
Defeat Shiva in the Akh Afah Amphitheatre (Extreme) trial for a chance at getting the Boreas Whistle, which allows you to summon the Boreas mount.
Kirin
Once you’ve collected all six of the previous pony mounts (Nightmare doesn’t count), you are eligible to earn Kirin, the ultimate pony. Once you have all six ponies (after using their whistles), visit the Wandering Minstrel (who hangs out in the Seventh Heaven bar in Mor Dhona). He’ll offer you a quest called “A Legend for a Legend,” which earns you the Kirin Whistle. Give that sucker a puff to summon Kirin.
PvP
If you’re a fan of PvP, you can bulk up your mount collection by participating in the more competitive aspects of the game. PvP unlocks at level 30, but I’m pushing it to the bottom of this list because it’s more than likely the last thing most people will actually work on. PvP isn’t super popular in Final Fantasy XIV, and most people ignore it entirely. Mount hunters, though, are going to want to put in some work.
Note that you can unlock limited-time mounts by ranking in the top 100 in any season of the Feast, but I’m not going to go through all of these mounts because if you’re starting the game now, you can only obtain the future Feast mounts — the past ones are no longer available, and probably won’t ever return.
It’s important to note that PvP is getting a complete overhaul in Endwalker, and it’s hard to say what that means for getting these mounts.
Magitek Sky Armor
You can buy the Magitek Sky Armor Identification Key at the Wolves’ Den for 20,000 Wolf Marks. You earn Wolf Marks by participating in PvP matches.
Gloria-class Airship
You’ll unlock the Gloria Ignition Key by completing the “You Are What You Eat” achievement, which requires you to win 200 PvP matches at the Feast or Crystalline Conflict. You can claim the Gloria Ignition Key from the achievements menu, and it allows you to summon the Glora-class Airship.
Aerodynamics System
You’ll unlock the Aerodynamics System Identification Key when you earn the “In a Blaze of Glory V” achievement. Using this key will allow you to summon the Aerodynamics System mount.
To earn this achievement, you’ll need to win 100 matches in Fields of Glory with any Grand Company. Note that if you earn 99 wins as one Grand Company, then switch to a new Grand Company, the count will start over. However, if you then switch back to the original Grand Company, your original win total should be preserved.
Logistics System
You’ll unlock the Logistics System Identification Key when you earn the “Behind Enemy Lines Achievement.” Using this key will allow you to summon the Logistics System mount.
To earn this achievement, you’ll need to win 200 Frontline matches with any of the Grand Companies. The same rules apply to this one as the Aerodynamics System.
Safeguard System
You’ll unlock the Safeguard System Ignition Key when you earn the “Front and Center V” achievement. Using this key will allow you to summon the Safeguard System mount.
To earn this achievement, you need to win 100 matches in Frontline PvP.
Storm Warsteed
You’ll earn the Storm Warsteed Horn by completing the “A Line in the Storm IV” achievement. This requires you to win 100 Frontline PvP matches with the Maelstrom.
Serpent Warsteed
You’ll earn the Serpent Warsteed Horn by completing the “A Line in the Glade IV” achievement. This requires you to win 100 Frontline PvP matches with the Order of the Twin Adder.
Flame Warsteed
You’ll earn the Flame Warsteed Horn by completing the “A Line in the Sand IV” achievement. This requires you to win 100 Frontline PvP matches with the Immortal Flames.
Construct VII
You’ll earn the Construct VII Core by completing the “One Steppe at a Time V” achievement. This requires you to win 100 victories with any Grand Company on Onsal Hakair.
Magitek Avenger
You’ll earn the Magitek Avenger Identification Key by completing the “Die Another Day III” achievement, which tasks you with winning 100 Rival Wings campaigns.
Magitek Avenger A-1
You’ll earn the Magitek Avenger A-1 Identification Key by completing the “Out of Hiding” achievement, which tasks you with winning 100 Hidden Gorge campaigns.
The Disreputable Priest (PvP)
For these mounts, you’re going to want to talk to the Disreputable Priest in the Wolf’s Den (for the exact location, check out the map above).
Once you find the Disreputable Priest, you need to purchase one full gear set off of her. This can be for any class, but you must purchase and equip the full set. This includes:
- Main Hand Weapon
- Head
- Body
- Hands
- Legs
- Feet
This gear can be purchased for Wolf Marks, so you’ll need to grind some PvP matches before can buy a full set. Once you have the set equipped, talk to the Disreputable Priest again and choose the “Receive a new title” option. If you’ve done all this correctly, you should earn a Makai title. This should be Makai + (Name of Class), so if you’ve equipped the full Black Mage set, your title will be Makai Black Mage.
Now, go to the Character option in the Character menu to open up your profile.
Hit the “Acquired Titles” button to open up a list of your currently available titles, and select the Makai title from the list to make it active.
In order to earn the next three mounts, you need to complete the following achievements while the Makai title is active. Note that you don’t need to stay on the same class. For instance, you could be playing as Dark Knight but still have the Makai Black Mage title active. The requirement is simply that this title is active.
Goten
Win 30 Feast or Crystalline Conflict matches while having the Makai title equipped to earn the Goten Pipe, which lets you summon the Goten mount. These matches can be won on Casual or Ranked, and it’s a lot easier to win matches on Casual.
Ginga
Win 10 Frontline or Rival Wings matches while having the Makai title equipped to earn the Ginga Pipe, which lets you summon the Ginga mount.
Raigo
Win 60 Feast/Crystalline Conflict and Frontline/Rival Wings matches while having the Makai title equipped. You can mix and match, so you could win 30 Crystalline Conflict matches and 30 Frontline matches and still get the Raigo Pipe.
A Few Odd Ducks (or Odd Chocobos)
There are a few more mounts you can earn for doing some random things in Final Fantasy XIV.
Amber Draught Chocobo
If you participate in the Recruit a Friend campaign, you can earn Gold Chocobo Feathers for getting your friends to sign up for the game. If you can collect eight Gold Chocobo Feathers, you can exchange those to a Calamity Salvager for the Amber Draught Chocobo Whistle.
Draught Chocobo
You’ll get the Draught Chocobo from the Recruit a Friend campaign once your friend has subscribed to the game for 90 days.
Managarm
You can purchase the Managarm Horn for 8 Gold Chocobo Feathers from a Calamity Salvager.
Twintania
You can purchase the Twintania Neurolink Key for 15 Gold Chocobo Feathers from a Calamity Salvager.
Ceremony Chocobo
The Ceremony of Eternal Bonding is Final Fantasy XIV‘s version of a wedding. If you purchase the Gold or Platinum version (which costs real-world money), you’ll get the Ceremony Chocobo.
Gilded Mikoshi
This is for the super-rich only. You can buy the Gilded Mikoshi from Edelina in Mor Dhona for 50,000,000 gil.
