I've been wanting to make this post for a while now after seeing one circulating with helpful sprout advice. This is for something I had to figure out on my own as it's not really mentioned or explained in game (that I remember, though it's been a while). While thisnpost is aimed at Sprouts, it might be new to others too!

Let's talk about items! Specifically, how do I know where to look for This Thing?

Ever seen something on the Market Board you wanted but it was far out of your budget? Accidentally thrown away your beloved Summoner Horn? Or even just want to know if you can make it yourself? XIV's interface has a few subtle ways of helping you figure this out. The first is via the image colour:

Purple items will almost always be via a Class/Job Quest or a Chain Quest (as in Relic weapons and Skysung Tools) or very high level crafts.

Blue items are usually raid drops, purchased via raid token or tomestone bought. For tombstone gear you can find level 50 gear in Mor Dhona, 60 in Idyllshire, 70 in Rhalgr's Reach, 80 in Eulmore. One exception is the Job Gear; 70 job gear is tied to your class quest, 80 job gear is obtained via role quest completion and bought from a special vendor. BLU Mage has its own vendor.

Green items are either standard dungeon drops or crafted. You can narrow down the dungeon if you can see the level on the piece. I.e. A level 65 top would drop from Bardam's Mettle, the level 65 dungeon.

Pink items are enhanced versions of white gear and come from Levequests & lowbie dungeons.

White gear is the common stuff. It can be bought from vendors, obtained via quests, levequest rewards etc. The exception to this rule is PVP gear as it only comes from the PVP vendors in the Wolves' Den.

Now for the sneaky bit! "Shop Selling Price" is labled on almost every item and this is how we further track down our coveted Thing.

Restricted means one of two things. Either the item is from a Beast Tribe vendor or another specialised vendor such as the Calamity Salvager and not obtainable by normal street vendor. In the case of crafting materials it is always the former.

The dreaded None. This doesn't necessarily mean you can't buy it. Indeed, most 'none' labled items can be obtained from your Grand Company vendor (such as these Cordials as well as Glamour Prisms) so long as you habe the required rank. However, there are some items that have this that will be dungeon drops, obtained via tomestone vendors, allied seals, PVP or via the Gold Saucer.

Another quick give away for an item's obtainability is if it has a player name attached to it. This will be found on the bottom right side of the information panel. A player name indicates this item can be Crafted and, in some cases such as specialised/glamour gear, cannot be obtained any other way.

So, now we know how to narrow our search significantly, but how do we know what we can and cannot toss out? The same information helps with this problem, too.

Remember the (Restricted) tag? This is how we can tell whether the piece of gear we have can be easily picked back up later. Restricted gear can be of any level and all this tag means is that it's special in some way. A small amount of these items can be found bought from Beast Tribes, but we will be focusing on the gear clogging up our retainers.

These items can be re-purchased at any time from the Calamity Salvager vendor. This NPC exists in each of the 3 main cities and hoards everything from quest conclusion items, to job gear, to seasonal gear. They are always dressed the same.

So, where are they? Let me mark the location on your map...

And for saving on inventory space? Look out for this little box to be highlighted.

This chest icon on the right means the item can be stored in the Armoire, located in any inn room. Thus, freeing up retainer and inventory space for absolutely no cost. Not even a glamour prism!

Usually this is only for seasonal gear or special job gear, but sometimes SE picks the most random things to shove in there...

And there you have it! With just a few little pieces of info we can track down/tidy up just about everything in the game or at least make a damn good guess as to where it might be. Of course, there's always google or your trusty FC members if you're truly stuck.

Oh, and if you're looking for your level one racial gear/hempen underwear, those vendors are always in the same section of the city as the main aetheryte. Usually very close by it ;3

Best of luck out there, and happy shopping! 🧡