Step by step or as a job
Who runs the steps of a task, the assistant or XIV MCP, and what each costs.
A long-running tool is one tool that takes a while, such as run_duty. A job is a list of tool calls that XIV MCP runs by itself. Any task with several steps can be run either way. The difference is who runs the steps: the assistant, or XIV MCP.
Step by step
The assistant calls a tool, reads the result, and picks the next call.
- It adapts to every result: full bags, a missing NPC, a price that moved.
- It is expensive. Each call is a model request, and waiting means asking again and again.
- Each call has to finish within the AI app's time limit, often a minute, and the chat has to stay open.
As a job
The assistant sends the whole list once. XIV MCP runs the steps, passes results from one to the next, and needs no model while it does.
- It is cheap. Starting costs one request; the steps cost none.
- Steps can take hours, and the chat can be closed.
- It follows the plan and cannot decide anything on its own. If a step fails, the job waits as pending until someone retries, skips or changes it.
Side by side
| Step by step | As a job | |
|---|---|---|
| Who runs the steps | The assistant | XIV MCP |
| Model requests | One per call and per check | One to start, plus any checks |
| Surprises | Handled after every step | The step fails, the job waits |
| Long steps | Within the app's time limit | Hours |
| The chat | Must stay open | Can be closed |
Both follow the same permission settings.
Which one to use
They mix well: look around step by step, hand the long stretch to a job, then decide what to do with its result.
For your plugin
- Make long-running tools safe to stop and to run again, and return results the next step can use. See Long-running tools.
- Fail with what is left ("3 Iron Ore still missing"), so whoever fixes the pending step knows what to do.
- Jobs your plugin starts have no assistant watching. Check
GetJob(id), and cancel a pending job or tell the player. See Starting jobs. - Offer quick, read-only status tools, so checks are cheap when the assistant drives.