Treasures of Aht Urhgan will introduce approximately as many new zones as Chains of Promathia, so players should expect around forty new zones as well as old and new characters. One of the more interesting revelations was that there would not be level capped areas for the new missions, although there may be some level capped battlefields. Much emphasis was placed on the port town of Mhaura being the entry point to Aht Urhgan, but that players would be well advised to not log out there, although logging out near there may be a good idea. Presumably, there will be missions that will need to be completed before access to the new zones is enabled.
The two new gameplay types on display were Assault and Besieged. Assault is Final Fantasy XI's more casual oriented gameplay type, finally allowing players to embark on missions with less than a full, perfectly balanced party. Three to six players will be able to get together to take on these missions, and a variety of different party makeups will be viable, although this content should be limited to characters of level 50-75. Accomplishing these Assault missions will earn the player Assault points, which in turn can be turned in for items, experience, or gil. Completed quests will also reward the player with unappraised items of some worth. These items can be fully utilized after getting an expert to appraise them in town. The more missions you complete, the higher your Mercenary rank, and with greater rank you will gain access to more quests and purchasable items.
Besieged is one of the more exciting new facets of the game, basically allowing players to defend a town under siege by bands of roving beastmen. When a town is under attack, everyone currently in the town becomes engaged in the battle. Since the fight is pretty much forced upon you, players won't take an experience penalty upon death. While you won't be rewarded with experience points, there will be a rewards system for taking part in staving off the invasion, which in turn should grant access to new quests or items.
