Exploratory Missions are a type of duty in Final Fantasy XIV. They are large-scale public duties that allow multiple individuals or parties to share a single instance, generally without role restrictions. The objectives in exploratory missions can vary greatly between each mission, and they often feature mechanics unique to them. Originally designed for both combat and gathering disciplines, the concept underwent several revisions until they were split into separate categories for the respective disciplines— Field operations and gathering forays.

Exploratory missions contain several FATEs that make up the bulk of their content. Under certain circumstances, special dungeons within the mission area may become accessible, called open dungeons or large-scale battles. Similar to Alliance raids, these areas are large "duties within a duty" that allow multiple alliances-worth of players to enter, with their own time limits to complete separate from the mission which houses them. Much like the exploratory mission themselves, they can be entered by multiple parties of any size without role restrictions.

The original Diadem[]

Introduced in patch 3.1, diadem was the first exploratory mission, and it has undergone several revisions in its history. It originally allowed up to 72 players of any role, and featured activities for both combat and gathering disciplines. Patch 3.4 introduced the Diadem Hunting Grounds, a combat-only version of the Diadem that existed in addition to the original. In patch 3.55b, all prior versions of the Diadem were removed and replaced with the combat-based Trials of the Fury and the gathering-based Trials of the Matron. Despite their focus, players could still freely switch between role in the Trials. The 3.55b version of the Diadem also featured what was called an Emergency Mission that could spawn in either version of the duty, which allowed players to enter a previously inaccessible area to challenge a raid boss, being the precursor to open dungeons.

The Hunting Grounds and the Trials would be a precursor to the split of exploratory missions into adventuring forays and gathering forays, while the Emergency Mission would be the predecessor to open dungeons. The original version of the Diadem was removed in patch 5.1, replaced with a new version that was exclusively a gathering foray.

Banner	Name	Player Limit	Level	Item Level	Open Dungeon	Unlock	Release	Removed
	The Diadem (Easy)	72	60	179		Heavensward	3.1	3.5
	The Diadem	72	60	179		Heavensward	3.1	3.5
	The Diadem (Hard)	72	60	179		Heavensward	3.1	3.5
	The Diadem Hunting Grounds (Easy)	72	60	179		Heavensward	3.4	3.5
	The Diadem Hunting Grounds	72	60	179		Heavensward	3.4	3.5
	The Diadem - Trials of the Fury	72	60	220	Emergency Mission	Heavensward	3.55b	5.1
	The Diadem - Trials of the Matron	72	60	179	Emergency Mission	Heavensward	3.55b	5.1

Field Operations[]

Field Operations, previously known as Adventuring Forays, are special duties available in Final Fantasy XIV designed for Disciples of War and Magic. They borrow many aspects of overworld maps, including mount traversal and FATEs (repurposed in various formats). Though the instances have no set goal within them, various gameplay elements specific to them are used to progress relics and side stories.

Banner	Name	Player Limit	Level	Item Level	Open Dungeon	Unlock	Release
	The Forbidden Land, Eureka Anemos	144	70			And We Shall Call It Eureka	4.25
	The Forbidden Land, Eureka Pagos	144	70			And We Shall Call It Pagos	4.36
	The Forbidden Land, Eureka Pyros	144	70			And We Shall Call It Pyros	4.45
	The Forbidden Land, Eureka Hydatos	144	70		The Baldesion Arsenal	And We Shall Call It Hydatos	4.55
	The Bozjan Southern Front	72	71 (80 sync)	430	Castrum Lacus Litore	Where Eagles Nest	5.35
	Zadnor	72	71 (80 sync)	430	The Dalriada	A New Playing Field	5.55
	The Occult Crescent: South Horn	72	100	700	Forked Tower: Blood	Unfamiliar Territory	7.25

Note: For the Bozjan Southern Front and Zadnor, players must be a minimum of level 71 to enter, but will be synced upwards or downwards to level 80. There is no minimum item level requirement, but all equipped gear will be synced upwards or downwards to item level 430.

Gathering Forays[]

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Banner	Name	Player Limit	Level	Discipline	Unlock	Release
	Ocean Fishing	24	1	Fisher	All the Fish in the Sea	5.2
	The Diadem	72	10	Disciples of the Land	Towards the Firmament	5.21

Open Dungeons[]

This section about Open Dungeons in Final Fantasy XIV is empty or needs to be expanded. You can help the Final Fantasy Wiki by expanding it.

Open Dungeons are special large-scale raids that cannot be queued for via the Duty Finder, and usually (but not always) tied to an Exploratory Mission. Unlike most instances in the game, Open Dungeons cannot be done using using an unrestricted party (i.e., with character and item level sync disabled), although there are no role restrictions when forming parties for these.

Name	Player Limit	Level	Item Level	Region	Final Boss	Unlock	Release	Removed
The Missing Gem	72	60		The Diadem - Trials of the Fury The Diadem - Trials of the Matron	Buer	Heavensward	3.55b	5.1
The Baldesion Arsenal	56	70		The Forbidden Land, Eureka Hydatos	Proto Ozma	And We Shall Call It Hydatos	4.55
Castrum Lacus Litore	48	71 (80 sync)	430	The Bozjan Southern Front	Lyon the Beast King and Dawon	The Lady of Blades	5.35
Delubrum Reginae	24	80	430	The Bozjan Southern Front	The Queen	Fit for a Queen	5.45
Delubrum Reginae (Savage)	48	80	430	The Bozjan Southern Front	The Queen	A Seaside Story	5.45
The Dalriada	48	71 (80 sync)	430	Zadnor	The Diablo Armament	March of the Bloody Queen	5.55
Forked Tower: Blood	48	100	700	Occult Crescent: South Horn	Magitaur		7.25