An updated version of /u/AwwYiss2 's guide that takes into account the changes that have occurred with the jobs up to patch 5.25. My formatting skills aren't exactly as good as his, so any feedback/help would be appreciated. Here's the source post.
I will sometimes make reference to the overall damage output of each job, utilizing this page from FFlogs as the source, but please note that job balance is very tight right now, and any damage differences I mention are very small in the overall scheme of things. Personal enjoyment and fun with a job guarantees the best performance a person can do.
Anyway, cribbing shamelessly from /u/AwwYiss2 's intro:
Hi, welcome to a beginner's job overview as of patch 4.5 5.25. The goal of this guide is to help you make an informed decision on what job(s) to play as you journey through FFXIV.
Note that the game designers do keep the jobs very balanced by making frequent and minor adjustments, without drastically changing how they play. I also want to highlight the fact that the game's job system allows one character to be any and every job, so do not stress over your initial job choice too much. If time permitting, I encourage you to explore multiple jobs in order to get a greater understanding of how they all interact with one another.
Do keep in mind that this guide wants to showcase what the jobs are like at level cap, and most jobs will feel incomplete and slower paced before reaching it.
This guide will split the jobs into 5 major categories based on distinct role archetypes, and provide a comprehensive overview of each job’s playstyle, strengths, and weaknesses, as well as any notable quirks.
Commonly Used Abbreviations & Concepts:
Just as /u/AwwYiss2 did, I'll be breaking things up into the five different roles the game has; tank, healer, melee dps, ranged physical dps, and caster dps.
Tanks
Frontline fighters par excellence, tanks wear the heavy armor and take the heavy hits that would fell any other job without hesitation. Typically, tanks are often expected to take more of a leading role in most groups they are in, setting the pace of dungeon pulls, positioning enemies optimally, and otherwise just being a nice solid rock that the group can rely on. In addition to wearing the best defensive gear in game, tanks have a tank-specific passive that reduces all damage they take by a flat 20%. This is active all the time just for being a tank. Furthermore, tanks all have a "tank stance" that they can enable which drastically boosts emnity generation, allowing the tank to hold aggro on pretty much anything with ease while the stance is active. Lastly, all tanks have some form (sometimes multiple forms) of group mitigation that they can apply, reducing incoming damage either by buffing their party or debuffing the enemy, as well as multiple forms of personal mitigation to further boost their damage. Tank combos tend to be simpler than dps combos, as much of a tanks energy is expected to be directed at the macro-level stuff going in a fight; positioning of a boss, what mechanics are coming up next, cooldown usage and what not.
Lastly, all tanks have access to some sort of offensive gap closer.
Paladin (PLD) -
Available from the beginning as Gladiator - starting city is Ul'dah
Overview:
The classic sword and board tank. Excels at providing support to allies with holy magic. Rotates between two distinct damage phases; magical and physical, giving it a ranged option that the other tanks lack, as well providing strong party utility via defensive buffs and a dedicated healing spell. Trades some personal cooldown mitigation for strong baseline mitigation via passive shield blocking. Take up your sword and shield and become the holy bulwark that stands between your friends and destruction.
Job resource - Oath gauge (used to power three defensive abilities) and built automatically with auto attacks
Pros:
Cons:
Special Notes:
Rotation & Playstyle
Warrior (WAR) -
Available from the beginning as Marauder - starting city is Limsa Lominsa
Overview:
An axe-wielding tank, resembling a berserker in many ways, with a playstyle to match. Flows between a high-damage burst phase and a comparatively lower damage "cooldown" phase. Great at giving you a feeling of literally carving your enemy to bits, the Warrior is at home when covered in the gore of his enemies. As with all tanks, the Warrior has some team-support tools at it's disposal, as well as what is arguably the best personal burst healing options out of all the tanks. Solid overall damage, but technically the lowest out of all the tanks from a pure damage standpoint.
Job resource - Beast gauge, built via certain combo actions or by using certain cooldowns, and expended to fuel powerful attacks.
Pros:
Cons:
Special notes:
Rotation & Playstyle:
Dark Knight (DRK) -
Requires access to Ishgard in Heavensward expansion and start at level 30
Overview:
Wielding massive two-handed swords and clad in bloodstained armor, the Dark Knight exists to protect others from the things that go bump in the night. Whether it's corrupt nobles and politicians abusing the common folk, or eldritch abominations summoned from Twelve knows where, the Dark Knight stands ready to bring their all to bear against any who would prey upon the weak. Mostly a physical attacker with a dash of magical prowess thrown in, the Dark Knight brings the strongest personal mitigation out of all the tanks along with amazing AoE damage and solid party utility. Much of this power comes later on, and DRK can feel a bit squishy until their level 70 ability - The Blackest Night - is acquired.
Job resource - Blood gauge, built up through certain cooldowns and by using the final attack of their main combo. Spent to power a pair of attack skills and a powerful late game cooldown.
Pros:
Cons:
One 3-hit combo can be boring Like WAR, one of DRK’s main dps cooldowns is also on a 90s timer, making buff alignment tricky at times While DRK has a powerful mitigation cooldown in TBN, it’s unique defensive cooldown is Dark Mind, which is limited to magic mitigation only Like PLD, MP powers some of DRK’s kit. Unlike PLD, DRK doesn’t manage MP naturally by doing it’s rotation, and has to be careful not to overspend on offense lest they find themselves unable to use TBN when it’s needed Managing two sets of resources can be a bit daunting at times when you’re also focused on doing regular tank stuff It’s invuln cooldown - Living Dead - is arguably the weakest of the invuln cooldowns; heavy healer investment is required to keep the DRK alive after its use
Special notes:
Rotation & Playstyle:
Gunbreaker - GNB
Requires that Shadowbringers be installed and activated and that you are level 60 on a combat job. Unlike DRK, only the level and xpac are a requirement; GNB is not gated by the MSQ in any way.
Overview:
Named for the special forces-type group of warriors from Bozja Citadel, Gunbreakers wield a gunblade (classic FF8-style) and were tasked with charging into battle to break the backs of enemy artillery formations, hence the name “Gunbreaker.” The most offensive-oriented of the tanks with a very predatory and fast-paced-feeling playstyle, Gunbreakers embody a different kind of savagery than the berserk-type Warriors. Less of an unstoppable battering ram and more of an agile bird of prey, the Gunbreaker uses deft attacks punctuated by powerful strikes to tear their enemy asunder. Practically speaking, GNB feels similar to PLD in a lot of ways, with the same general 60s cycle, adding in more oGCD’s instead of a second damage burst window.
Job resource - Cartridges, built via certain combos and cooldowns and expended via powerful attacks and a unique, high-damage combo that forms the core of GNB’s playstyle.
Pros:
Cons:
Special notes:
Rotation & Playstyle:
Healers
If tanks are the muscle holding back the tide, then healers are the spine that supports the muscle. Clad in magically-imbued robes and wielding elemental magics, academic strategems or the power of the very stars themselves, healers naturally fill the role of support job, keeping themselves and their team healthy enough to survive whatever madness gets thrown at them. As jobs mostly dedicated to support, healers have a variety of tools available to help enhance and improve both their own ability to heal others as well as the effectiveness of their team. These range from direct damage buffs to powerful AoE damage reduction skills to a strong crit buff that can be placed on a boss to drastically boost the crit chance of anyone attacking them.
Not everyone needs healing all the time however, so healers also have their own dps kits that can be used to support their team via killing stuff faster. As healers are intended to focus on healing first and damage second, these kits tend to be simpler in nature, but they are no less effective for it. In general, while healers are expected to heal first and dps second, they are still expected to dps, and the ultimate goal of healing as a healer is to try and limit the number of GCD’s used on healing so as to more quickly bring a target down via direct damage. To that end, each healer has access to a number of oGCD abilities to help facilitate non-GCD healing.
White Mage (WHM)
Available from the beginning as Conjurer - Starting city is Gridania
Overview:
The most “traditional” of the healers, the White Mage wields elemental magics and the legacy of lost Amdapor to provide aid and succor to his allies. Clad in robes of pure white, with mastery over earth, water, air and light, the White Mage excels at bringing people back from the brink of death. While healing is the main focus of the White Mage, sometimes protecting people means destroying the source of whatever is hurting them. Powered by their own healing spells, White Mages can unleash a storm of pain and misery so powerful that it leaves even a Black Mage in awe.
Practically speaking, WHM is a very reactive healer; your team takes damage, and then you heal it. As such, WHM has the best tools for healing large amounts of damage very quickly, including the most powerful AoE healing spell in game. The tradeoff for this is a lack of shield and mitigation effects; WHM only has access to one of each, and they both come with cooldowns. WHM also has a heavy focus on regenerating spells, with access to three separate types of regeneration (single target, AoE, and ground-targeted AoE). WHM’s unique attack skills include a powerful oGCD that doubles as both damage and healing while also providing MP regen, as well as what is arguably the strongest nuke spell in the game.
Job resource - Lilies. Gained passively over time while in combat (one every 30s), Lilies are used to power a pair of strong healing spells; a powerful instant heal that costs no MP, and a powerful instant AoE heal that costs no MP. Using Lilies on these skills empowers the Blood Lily, and once the Blood Lily is in full bloom,
Pros:
Cons:
Special notes:
Rotation & Playstyle:
Scholar (SCH)
Available from the beginning as Arcanist in Limsa Lominsa, which is a dps role until obtaining the job change at level 30. Shares levels with the Summoner job
Overview:
Masters of battlefield tactics and strategems, the Scholars of Eorzea represent the lost scholarly traditions of ancient Nym, and they bring these skills and techniques to bear in the name of supporting their party. With book in hand and fairy by their side, Scholars seek every avenue of advantage over their foes, meticulously planning each move in an effort to outmaneuver their enemy.
As a healing job, Scholar naturally excels at keeping people alive, but whereas White Mage is a healer based on repairing damage done to allies, Scholar is more focused on preventing damage via proper application of shields. This isn’t to say that Scholar cannot heal in the traditional sense of course, just that their options tend to be a bit more limited in some ways. While White Mage has a number of healing options on the GCD, Scholar is limited to only three. To help make up for this, Scholar’s fairy provides a low-level consistent single target healing, akin to a regen in some ways. Many of the Scholar skills utilize the fairy for various buffs and healing powers that complement the shields that form the core of Scholar gameplay. Scholars also have access to powerful oGCD skills that utilize their job resource, Aetherflow. Proper management of Aetherflow is necessary for mastery of the Scholar, and in the right hands a Scholar can work miracles of damage mitigation.
Offensively, Scholar has less overall damage than a White Mage, but this is made up for by being far more mobile. The Scholar also has better consistent AoE damage than both White mage and Astrologian.
Job resource - Aetherflow and fairy gauge. Aetherflow is gained via using the Aetherflow oGCD, granting three stacks per use as well as restoring 10% of total MP, as well as by using the Dissipation oGCD gained at level 60, and is used to power a variety of oGCD spells. Fairy gauge is built by using Aetherflow spells while in combat, and is used to power a strong directed single target HoT effect.
Pros:
Cons:
Special notes:
Rotation & Playstyle:
Astrologian (AST)
Requires access to Ishgard in Heavensward expansion and starts at level 30
Overview:
More than mere academics who study the sky, Astrologians draw upon the aether of celestial bodies both near and far to power their healing magics. Capable of wrapping themselves in the warm embrace of the day, or shrouding themselves in the cool protection of night, Astrologians embody a flexibility that Scholars and White Mages lack. While personally the weakest out of all the healers when it comes to damage, the Astrologian more than makes up for it with it’s deck of tarot cards, reading out buffs that inspire their allies to feats of great strength, ultimately culminating in a group wide divination of the future that spurs the team to accomplish great feats.
Astrologian is arguably the most “supportive” of all three healers, with a mechanic dedicated solely to boosting the damage output of the group in addition to functioning as a healer. Astrologian can also “flex” via its two stances, Diurnal and Nocturnal Sect, allowing them to mimic the reactive regen-based approach of a White Mage, or the predictive shield-based approach of a Scholar.
On the offensive side, Astrologian is probably the weakest overall for personal damage, but again, this is made up for by the buffs to damage that are provided via the card mechanic. Astrologian is almost as mobile as Scholar; it’s main nuke, and indeed almost all of it’s casted spells, are significantly shorter in cast time compared to the global cooldown. This allows for easy oGCD weaving and means that the Astrologian can often cast it’s nuke and still have time to move during situations that demand high mobility. Astrologian also receives a cooldown skill that makes most of their casted spells instant, and proper usage of this cooldown can enable some pretty amazing stuff.
Job resource - Cards and Sects. Sects are used prior to combat and change how certain skills function for the AST. Cards are used in combat to provide buffs to party members (or the AST) with each card potentially providing one of three “seals” that are used to power Divination, the main support cooldown for AST. Divination provides a strong group damage buff for 15s that stacks with the buffs from cards, and is a major source of damage contribution when used correctly.
Pros:
Cons:
Special notes:
Rotation & Playstyle:
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I will sometimes make reference to the overall damage output of each job, utilizing this page from FFlogs as the source, but please note that job balance is very tight right now, and any damage differences I mention are very small in the overall scheme of things. Personal enjoyment and fun with a job guarantees the best performance a person can do.
Anyway, cribbing shamelessly from /u/AwwYiss2 's intro:
Hi, welcome to a beginner's job overview as of patch 4.5 5.25. The goal of this guide is to help you make an informed decision on what job(s) to play as you journey through FFXIV.
Note that the game designers do keep the jobs very balanced by making frequent and minor adjustments, without drastically changing how they play. I also want to highlight the fact that the game's job system allows one character to be any and every job, so do not stress over your initial job choice too much. If time permitting, I encourage you to explore multiple jobs in order to get a greater understanding of how they all interact with one another.
Do keep in mind that this guide wants to showcase what the jobs are like at level cap, and most jobs will feel incomplete and slower paced before reaching it.
This guide will split the jobs into 5 major categories based on distinct role archetypes, and provide a comprehensive overview of each job’s playstyle, strengths, and weaknesses, as well as any notable quirks.
Commonly Used Abbreviations & Concepts:
- GCD - Global Cooldown: A default 2.5-second cooldown timer linked to most abilities to limit ability spam. When one ability tied to the GCD is used, every GCD abilities will be subjected to the cooldown as well. This can be reduced via character stats or job abilities.
- oGCD - Off Global Cooldown: These instant abilities ignore the GCD restriction, and typically have a resource requirement and or recast timer to prevent spam.
- Weaving - The act of using oGCDs in between GCDs.
- DoT - Damage Over Time.
- AoE - Area of Effect: Affects multiple targets.
- Rotation - Sequencing of job abilities in order to maximize effectiveness.
- DPS - Damage Per Second: can also refer to damage output or damage dealer. PDPS stands for personal damage, while RDPS means raid damage.
- CPM - Casts Per Minute: A measurement of ability usage frequency.
- Combos - Abilities designed to be used in a set sequence in order to gain bonus potency and effects.
Just as /u/AwwYiss2 did, I'll be breaking things up into the five different roles the game has; tank, healer, melee dps, ranged physical dps, and caster dps.
Tanks
Frontline fighters par excellence, tanks wear the heavy armor and take the heavy hits that would fell any other job without hesitation. Typically, tanks are often expected to take more of a leading role in most groups they are in, setting the pace of dungeon pulls, positioning enemies optimally, and otherwise just being a nice solid rock that the group can rely on. In addition to wearing the best defensive gear in game, tanks have a tank-specific passive that reduces all damage they take by a flat 20%. This is active all the time just for being a tank. Furthermore, tanks all have a "tank stance" that they can enable which drastically boosts emnity generation, allowing the tank to hold aggro on pretty much anything with ease while the stance is active. Lastly, all tanks have some form (sometimes multiple forms) of group mitigation that they can apply, reducing incoming damage either by buffing their party or debuffing the enemy, as well as multiple forms of personal mitigation to further boost their damage. Tank combos tend to be simpler than dps combos, as much of a tanks energy is expected to be directed at the macro-level stuff going in a fight; positioning of a boss, what mechanics are coming up next, cooldown usage and what not.
Lastly, all tanks have access to some sort of offensive gap closer.
Paladin (PLD) -
Available from the beginning as Gladiator - starting city is Ul'dah
Overview:
The classic sword and board tank. Excels at providing support to allies with holy magic. Rotates between two distinct damage phases; magical and physical, giving it a ranged option that the other tanks lack, as well providing strong party utility via defensive buffs and a dedicated healing spell. Trades some personal cooldown mitigation for strong baseline mitigation via passive shield blocking. Take up your sword and shield and become the holy bulwark that stands between your friends and destruction.
Job resource - Oath gauge (used to power three defensive abilities) and built automatically with auto attacks
Pros:
- Great party mitigation, arguably the best overall out of the tanks, including great single target mitigation options such as Cover and Intervention
- Solid damage, and the ability to flex as a semi-ranged dps during it's magical damage phase
- Best passive mitigation thanks to having a shield
- Can clutch heal with Clemency, a powerful healing spell that also heals the Paladin when used to heal others
- MP management for it's rotation is easy; properly executing it will give you more than enough to keep your magic damage phase going every time it's available
Cons:
- Personal mitigation options are lower compared to other tanks (two for Paladin compared to three for all other tanks)
- Rigid combo rotation leaves little room for error
- While powerful, using Clemency for healing results in a large dps loss for the Paladin
- Sheltron - the personal short-term mitigation cooldown that Paladin uses most often - requires Paladin's unique resource to be spent, meaning they are unable to use it at the beginning of a fight
- Group mitigation skills require a bit more teamwork to use correctly compared to the other tanks
Special Notes:
- Paladin has the strongest of the tank invuln cooldowns, but with the drawback of having the longest cooldown attached to it
- Arguably one of the top soloing classes for older content, due to being able to both self-heal and reliably generate MP as a part of it's normal attack rotation
- Requires a large number of keybinds, with some Paladin's even opting to leave certain Paladin-only skills off their bar in order to save room
- Second highest in overall damage, behind Gunbreaker
- Tends to function a bit better in an OT role due to it's amazing support mitigation kit, but still absolutely viable as a main tank
Rotation & Playstyle
- Rigid but fun, Paladin combo feels great when pulled off correctly
- Intervention can be buffed by the Paladin to bring a tank-like defensive cooldown levels of mitigation to the Intervention target
- Simple but effective aoe options, consisting of personal circular attacks and single targeted aoe as the magic phase finisher
- Has a DoT to maintain as part of it's combo, as well as a handful of oGCD attacks to keep things interesting
Warrior (WAR) -
Available from the beginning as Marauder - starting city is Limsa Lominsa
Overview:
An axe-wielding tank, resembling a berserker in many ways, with a playstyle to match. Flows between a high-damage burst phase and a comparatively lower damage "cooldown" phase. Great at giving you a feeling of literally carving your enemy to bits, the Warrior is at home when covered in the gore of his enemies. As with all tanks, the Warrior has some team-support tools at it's disposal, as well as what is arguably the best personal burst healing options out of all the tanks. Solid overall damage, but technically the lowest out of all the tanks from a pure damage standpoint.
Job resource - Beast gauge, built via certain combo actions or by using certain cooldowns, and expended to fuel powerful attacks.
Pros:
- Solid self-healing and a self-damage buff as a part of it's normal combo rotation
- Very powerful burst phase when using Inner Release (burst damage cooldown)
- Gap closer has the lowest CD out of all the tanks, making it easier to maintain melee uptime
- Has a unique co-tank cooldown ability (Nascent Glint) that allows the Warrior to heal himself as well as target of the ability at the same; if used during burst phase, it's possible for the Warrior to keep himself and his target alive through some very high damage with minimal outside intervention
- Powerful self-healing along with strong personal mitigation skills
- Capable of boosting their max HP temporarily, as well as boosting the healing they receive
Cons:
- Damage is comparatively low outside of burst phase
- Mis-timing the use of your burst cooldown hamstrings damage even further
- Gap closer costs Beast gauge; no gauge, no gap closer
- Co-tank assist skill shares a cooldown with the short-term personal mitigation skill
- Maintaining uptime on the damage buff can be tricky sometimes
Special notes:
- Lack of a rigid rotation can be a pro or a con, depending on playstyle
- 90s cooldown on Inner Release can make buff alignment a bit of a chore
- Group mitigation skill is an aoe shield that can be buffed by "consuming" defensive buffs on the Warrior, granting a stronger shield in exchange for ending the defensive buff early
- Invuln cooldown has a comparatively low CD, but the Warrior still takes damage during it (unlike the Paladin) and so requires aid from healers in order to recover after it's used
Rotation & Playstyle:
- More free-form than Paladin; you really just want to keep your damage buff up and use your stuff when it comes off cooldown ASAP with an eye towards lining it up with other buffs if possible
- AoE combo consists of cone > circle moveset, opening up options for dealing damage to groups that other tanks don't have, but at the cost of needing a bit more practice to nail down correctly
- Capable of amazing self-healing in AoE with Nascent Glint and Inner Release active
- Comes across as very "unga bunga" in many ways; a visceral, up-front approach that just wants to rend and tear
Dark Knight (DRK) -
Requires access to Ishgard in Heavensward expansion and start at level 30
Overview:
Wielding massive two-handed swords and clad in bloodstained armor, the Dark Knight exists to protect others from the things that go bump in the night. Whether it's corrupt nobles and politicians abusing the common folk, or eldritch abominations summoned from Twelve knows where, the Dark Knight stands ready to bring their all to bear against any who would prey upon the weak. Mostly a physical attacker with a dash of magical prowess thrown in, the Dark Knight brings the strongest personal mitigation out of all the tanks along with amazing AoE damage and solid party utility. Much of this power comes later on, and DRK can feel a bit squishy until their level 70 ability - The Blackest Night - is acquired.
Job resource - Blood gauge, built up through certain cooldowns and by using the final attack of their main combo. Spent to power a pair of attack skills and a powerful late game cooldown.
Pros:
- One combo consisting of a simple 3-hit sequence with a lifesteal effect on the final hit
- A pair of oGCD attacks - a single target and an AoE - keep things interesting and also provide a damage buff for the DRK while serving as a dump to turn MP into damage
- Amazing AoE damage, easily the best overall out of all the tanks
- The Blackest Night (TBN) is the most powerful short-term tank defensive in game, providing a powerful shield equivalent to 25% of the targets max HP for seven seconds with a fifteen second cooldown
- Other powerful oGCD's, including a high damage single target attack that restores MP, and an AoE magical nuke that restores HP for every target hit
- Access to a strong anti-magic defense in Dark Mind, making DRK the premier tank for dealing with magical-heavy encounters
Cons:
One 3-hit combo can be boring Like WAR, one of DRK’s main dps cooldowns is also on a 90s timer, making buff alignment tricky at times While DRK has a powerful mitigation cooldown in TBN, it’s unique defensive cooldown is Dark Mind, which is limited to magic mitigation only Like PLD, MP powers some of DRK’s kit. Unlike PLD, DRK doesn’t manage MP naturally by doing it’s rotation, and has to be careful not to overspend on offense lest they find themselves unable to use TBN when it’s needed Managing two sets of resources can be a bit daunting at times when you’re also focused on doing regular tank stuff It’s invuln cooldown - Living Dead - is arguably the weakest of the invuln cooldowns; heavy healer investment is required to keep the DRK alive after its use
Special notes:
- DRK’s group mitigation tool is called Dark Missionary, and puts an aoe buff on allies that reduces incoming magic damage by 10%. This functions exactly like Gunbreaker’s Heart of Light and the two do not stack, so communication and careful usage is advised if both a DRK and GNB are in a party.
- If the TBN shield breaks due to incoming damage, the DRK gets access to a free charge of their main oGCD attacks via the Dark Arts buff. Proper use of TBN essentially means getting good mitigation and damage for essentially half the cost of either
- On the flip side, if TBN expires without breaking then no buff is gained and you lose out on the potential damage you could have had. Feels bad man.
- Self-healing isn’t quite as good as WAR or PLD can be against single mobs, but in a group you can burst heal quite a lot with your Abyssal Drain
- Solid as both MT or OT, with a leaning towards MT on fights with magical tank busters
Rotation & Playstyle:
- Has an “ebb and flow” to it where you find yourself pooling MP and Blood for a big damage dump during raid buffs then settling into your combo for a short while as you build your resources back up
- Simple combo lets you focus on other things like using your very powerful TBN cooldown to aid members of your party
- Occasional bursts of high CPM (clicks per minute) especially during openers and re-openers
- Heavy oGCD usage; uses oGCD’s more consistently than the other tanks tend to
Gunbreaker - GNB
Requires that Shadowbringers be installed and activated and that you are level 60 on a combat job. Unlike DRK, only the level and xpac are a requirement; GNB is not gated by the MSQ in any way.
Overview:
Named for the special forces-type group of warriors from Bozja Citadel, Gunbreakers wield a gunblade (classic FF8-style) and were tasked with charging into battle to break the backs of enemy artillery formations, hence the name “Gunbreaker.” The most offensive-oriented of the tanks with a very predatory and fast-paced-feeling playstyle, Gunbreakers embody a different kind of savagery than the berserk-type Warriors. Less of an unstoppable battering ram and more of an agile bird of prey, the Gunbreaker uses deft attacks punctuated by powerful strikes to tear their enemy asunder. Practically speaking, GNB feels similar to PLD in a lot of ways, with the same general 60s cycle, adding in more oGCD’s instead of a second damage burst window.
Job resource - Cartridges, built via certain combos and cooldowns and expended via powerful attacks and a unique, high-damage combo that forms the core of GNB’s playstyle.
Pros:
- Easy to learn rotation; each successful combo grants one cartridge that can then be expended on cartridge-specific skills.
- Resource management is a bit easier compared to WAR and DRK; no worrying about being 10 gauge short of something. You either have a cartridge or you don’t.
- Has a powerful Heal over Time skill (Aurora) on a 60s cooldown that can be used for self-healing or to support other players
- Generates a small amount of healing and personal shielding via it’s regular combo
- If the above shield is active, your short-term defensive cooldown (Heart of Stone) shares it with your HoS target for a bit of extra mitigation
- Brings an extra 10% damage reduction cooldown via its unique tank cooldown Camouflage, splitting the difference between WAR and DRK’s unique defensives
- Has a pair of DoT’s to manage as a part of it’s dps burst window
- Powerful oGCD attack skill in Danger/Blasting Zone
Cons:
- Can feel very busy at level cap, especially as a main tank
- Sometimes the necessity of the job is such that you’ll clip your GCD and there’s nothing you can do about it because you need to hit that defensive cooldown
- Lower overall personal mitigation than DRK and WAR and lacks the passive mitigation granted by PLD’s shield blocks
- No options for burst self-healing; you’re Aurora HoT is powerful but takes time to function to its fullest
- Rotation isn’t quite as rigid as PLD, but it’s still pretty rigid overall, certainly moreso than DRK or WAR
Special notes:
- Its invuln cooldown (Superbolide) sits somewhere between PLD and WAR in effectiveness. Like PLD, it grants full immunity to damage when used, but at the cost of dropping your current HP to 1 when used. Proper communication with your healers goes a long way towards getting good value out of it (and not wasting a big emergency heal by spiking your HP down to 1 immediately after you get healed).
- Solid in both the MT and OT role. Can suffer a bit in fights that involve a lot of re-positioning due to how it’s cartridge-spending combo works
- It’s cartridge combo (often called the Savage combo or Renzokuken) enables very high damage over the course of the combo, and eventually (at level 70) receives an upgrade called Continuation that procs a powerful oGCD attack that is enabled by each step of the combo. This effectively turns it into a 6-hit combo.
- Burst phase is very busy; between your Renzokuken combo, normal combo, Continuation oGCD’s and other oGCD’s, your fingers will fly trying to keep up with everything you need to do. Very fun, but potentially overwhelming, especially during mechanic-heavy portions of certain fights.
Rotation & Playstyle:
- Easy to learn, hard to master. A simple 3-hit combo as a baseline that gets expanded upon as you level up
- When you pull it off correctly, you really do feel like a raptor darting out of the shadows to tear something to shreds
- Very busy oGCD usage during burst phase, but lower overall oGCD when compared to DRK.
- Again, not as strict as PLD in a move-to-move sense, but still fairly strict on timing your dps burst buff usage
Healers
If tanks are the muscle holding back the tide, then healers are the spine that supports the muscle. Clad in magically-imbued robes and wielding elemental magics, academic strategems or the power of the very stars themselves, healers naturally fill the role of support job, keeping themselves and their team healthy enough to survive whatever madness gets thrown at them. As jobs mostly dedicated to support, healers have a variety of tools available to help enhance and improve both their own ability to heal others as well as the effectiveness of their team. These range from direct damage buffs to powerful AoE damage reduction skills to a strong crit buff that can be placed on a boss to drastically boost the crit chance of anyone attacking them.
Not everyone needs healing all the time however, so healers also have their own dps kits that can be used to support their team via killing stuff faster. As healers are intended to focus on healing first and damage second, these kits tend to be simpler in nature, but they are no less effective for it. In general, while healers are expected to heal first and dps second, they are still expected to dps, and the ultimate goal of healing as a healer is to try and limit the number of GCD’s used on healing so as to more quickly bring a target down via direct damage. To that end, each healer has access to a number of oGCD abilities to help facilitate non-GCD healing.
White Mage (WHM)
Available from the beginning as Conjurer - Starting city is Gridania
Overview:
The most “traditional” of the healers, the White Mage wields elemental magics and the legacy of lost Amdapor to provide aid and succor to his allies. Clad in robes of pure white, with mastery over earth, water, air and light, the White Mage excels at bringing people back from the brink of death. While healing is the main focus of the White Mage, sometimes protecting people means destroying the source of whatever is hurting them. Powered by their own healing spells, White Mages can unleash a storm of pain and misery so powerful that it leaves even a Black Mage in awe.
Practically speaking, WHM is a very reactive healer; your team takes damage, and then you heal it. As such, WHM has the best tools for healing large amounts of damage very quickly, including the most powerful AoE healing spell in game. The tradeoff for this is a lack of shield and mitigation effects; WHM only has access to one of each, and they both come with cooldowns. WHM also has a heavy focus on regenerating spells, with access to three separate types of regeneration (single target, AoE, and ground-targeted AoE). WHM’s unique attack skills include a powerful oGCD that doubles as both damage and healing while also providing MP regen, as well as what is arguably the strongest nuke spell in the game.
Job resource - Lilies. Gained passively over time while in combat (one every 30s), Lilies are used to power a pair of strong healing spells; a powerful instant heal that costs no MP, and a powerful instant AoE heal that costs no MP. Using Lilies on these skills empowers the Blood Lily, and once the Blood Lily is in full bloom,
Pros:
- Amazing heal potential; nobody can bring someone back from the brink like a WHM
- Proper use of regens allows for a very hands-off approach to maintaining HP on allies
- Capable of powerful AoE heals both over long and short range
- MP usage is very forgiving; WHM has the most MP regen/management abilities available out of all the healers
- Thin Air temporarily removes MP costs, allowing for some truly heroic moments in healing
- Temperance is a powerful AoE damage reduction and healing boost, giving the WHM even greater ability to keep people alive while also boosting any healing done by their allies. Also it gives you an awesome pair of holy wings for it’s duration.
- Afflatus Misery is the most powerful nuke in game, as well as being an AoE attack
- Regen’s can be stacked with other WHM or AST regen’s for lots of passive healing from a single spell
- Benediction is a powerful 100% heal to the target that’s oGCD with no MP cost; pairs great with a DRK and their Living Dead invuln cooldown
- Highest personal damage out of the healers
- Holy is a spammable AoE attack with a stun, giving WHM a strong CC option while also dealing group damage
- AoE ground-targeted regen skill Asylum is a great tool for keeping a group up against lower, consistent damage
Cons:
- Being almost purely reactive can have its drawbacks, especially if both healers in a group end up being WHM’s
- Nearly all of it’s offensive attacks have a cast time, restricting mobility compared to the other healers
- Almost all of it’s AoE healing comes from GCD-casted spells
- Damage options during high-movement situations are incredibly limited
Special notes:
- Has a number of strong oGCD healing abilities that require careful cooldown management
- Presence of Mind is a strong utility cooldown that lowers both spell cast time and the base global cooldown for it’s duration
- Potential for very high damage output if allowed to spam nuke while Presence of Mind is active
- Proper coordination of Temperance with an AST or SCH can allow for very long periods of time where your group receives a global reduction to incoming damage
- If need be, Temperance can be stacked with AST or SCH damage reduction cooldowns for even more overall damage reduction
- Low overall button presses compared to most other jobs
Rotation & Playstyle:
- Potentially pretty complex for healing, WHM is at it’s best when it knows what’s coming down the pipe. Even as a reactive healer, being able to plan ahead is still key
- Dps rotation is fairly simple; maintain your DoT, use your single target nuke, and try to dump Afflatus Misery during a burst window or in a big AoE pack
- AoE rotation consists of using Assize and spamming Holy, interspersed with Afflatus Misery and the occasional GCD or oGCD heal as necessary
Scholar (SCH)
Available from the beginning as Arcanist in Limsa Lominsa, which is a dps role until obtaining the job change at level 30. Shares levels with the Summoner job
Overview:
Masters of battlefield tactics and strategems, the Scholars of Eorzea represent the lost scholarly traditions of ancient Nym, and they bring these skills and techniques to bear in the name of supporting their party. With book in hand and fairy by their side, Scholars seek every avenue of advantage over their foes, meticulously planning each move in an effort to outmaneuver their enemy.
As a healing job, Scholar naturally excels at keeping people alive, but whereas White Mage is a healer based on repairing damage done to allies, Scholar is more focused on preventing damage via proper application of shields. This isn’t to say that Scholar cannot heal in the traditional sense of course, just that their options tend to be a bit more limited in some ways. While White Mage has a number of healing options on the GCD, Scholar is limited to only three. To help make up for this, Scholar’s fairy provides a low-level consistent single target healing, akin to a regen in some ways. Many of the Scholar skills utilize the fairy for various buffs and healing powers that complement the shields that form the core of Scholar gameplay. Scholars also have access to powerful oGCD skills that utilize their job resource, Aetherflow. Proper management of Aetherflow is necessary for mastery of the Scholar, and in the right hands a Scholar can work miracles of damage mitigation.
Offensively, Scholar has less overall damage than a White Mage, but this is made up for by being far more mobile. The Scholar also has better consistent AoE damage than both White mage and Astrologian.
Job resource - Aetherflow and fairy gauge. Aetherflow is gained via using the Aetherflow oGCD, granting three stacks per use as well as restoring 10% of total MP, as well as by using the Dissipation oGCD gained at level 60, and is used to power a variety of oGCD spells. Fairy gauge is built by using Aetherflow spells while in combat, and is used to power a strong directed single target HoT effect.
Pros:
- Nobody stops incoming damage on a group like a SCH
- Proper usage of its primary shielding skill Adloquium combined with the fairy and a few oGCD’s means SCH can dedicate a lot of time towards helping out via nuking
- Like WHM, has three possible sources of MP regen; MP management isn’t too difficult on SCH
- Powerful oGCD attack skill in Energy Drain, allowing for consumption of Aetherflow stacks that weren’t needed for healing
- Energy Drain provides an alternate form of MP restore as well as restoring a small amount of life
- Healing from the fairy is great at cleaning up little bits of spot damage or topping off someone who isn’t hurt enough to warrant a full-on heal
- Wide variety of oGCD’s enable lots of fun combinations to address whatever the game throws at you
- A critical shield can provide an amazing amount of mitigation, and SCH eventually acquires a skill to force a crit for clutch moments
- Powerful group mitigation via Sacred Soil that further enhances the mitigation provided by shields
Cons:
- While potentially more mobile than a WHM or AST, this comes at a cost to personal damage
- Ability to properly function is very much based on preparation and planning. Being caught without an Aetherflow stack at the wrong time can mean a wipe
- Fairy has to be re-summoned if you die, hamstringing you further until you have time to re-cast her
- Rarely fairy skills will decide to not fire off even after you order the fairy to use them (this issue sadly occurs with both SCH and SMN, but is thankfully uncommon)
- MP costs for shields can be prohibitive; proper MP management is key
- Reliance on crit for super shields introduces an element of RNG that WHM and AST don’t have to deal with
Special notes:
- SCH really is all about planning; if you’re the kind of person who enjoys thinking ahead and pre-planning, then SCH will be a natural fit for you
- SCH still has some powerful tools to use in a reactive healing situation, they just tend to come with cooldowns as opposed to WHM who isn’t restricted in the same way
- Careful management of Aetherflow is absolutely essential to getting the most out of SCH
Rotation & Playstyle:
- As with the other healers, has a single DoT to manage as well as a powerful single target nuke
- Unlike the other healers, has a weaker instant-cast nuke (Ruin II) that can be used freely while moving to maintain damage.
- Thanks to the instant cast nature of Ruin II and Art of War, SCH is punished far less in movement-heavy situations than a WHM or AST would be
- Still a very simple rotation of “maintain DoT then spam single target nuke” or “spam aoe nuke” interspersed with Energy Drain to dump Aetherflow stacks that aren’t needed for healing
Astrologian (AST)
Requires access to Ishgard in Heavensward expansion and starts at level 30
Overview:
More than mere academics who study the sky, Astrologians draw upon the aether of celestial bodies both near and far to power their healing magics. Capable of wrapping themselves in the warm embrace of the day, or shrouding themselves in the cool protection of night, Astrologians embody a flexibility that Scholars and White Mages lack. While personally the weakest out of all the healers when it comes to damage, the Astrologian more than makes up for it with it’s deck of tarot cards, reading out buffs that inspire their allies to feats of great strength, ultimately culminating in a group wide divination of the future that spurs the team to accomplish great feats.
Astrologian is arguably the most “supportive” of all three healers, with a mechanic dedicated solely to boosting the damage output of the group in addition to functioning as a healer. Astrologian can also “flex” via its two stances, Diurnal and Nocturnal Sect, allowing them to mimic the reactive regen-based approach of a White Mage, or the predictive shield-based approach of a Scholar.
On the offensive side, Astrologian is probably the weakest overall for personal damage, but again, this is made up for by the buffs to damage that are provided via the card mechanic. Astrologian is almost as mobile as Scholar; it’s main nuke, and indeed almost all of it’s casted spells, are significantly shorter in cast time compared to the global cooldown. This allows for easy oGCD weaving and means that the Astrologian can often cast it’s nuke and still have time to move during situations that demand high mobility. Astrologian also receives a cooldown skill that makes most of their casted spells instant, and proper usage of this cooldown can enable some pretty amazing stuff.
Job resource - Cards and Sects. Sects are used prior to combat and change how certain skills function for the AST. Cards are used in combat to provide buffs to party members (or the AST) with each card potentially providing one of three “seals” that are used to power Divination, the main support cooldown for AST. Divination provides a strong group damage buff for 15s that stacks with the buffs from cards, and is a major source of damage contribution when used correctly.
Pros:
- Ability to flex between regens and shields means an AST is never the odd one out
- Double AST? No problem! One can go Noct while the other goes Diurnal.
- Like SCH, has a number of powerful oGCD spells
- Like WHM, is able to utilize powerful GCD heals if necessary
- Capable of some truly amazing burst healing, although not as consistent with it as WHM can be
- Synastry is a powerful healing cooldown that enables the AST to effectively heal two separate targets at once; great for situations where both tanks have to soak a tank buster for example
- Card mechanic and other oGCD’s ensure that the AST never feels bored
- Visually impressive animations that can be quite beautiful
- Lightspeed cooldown halves MP costs and makes most casted spells instant
- Loads of utility with oGCD spells like Collective Unconscious, Earthly Star, Celestial Opposition, Celestial Intersection, and the very powerful Neutral Sect
- Aspected Benefic is a solid instant cast heal that will either add a regen or shield effect based on Sect
Cons:
- Not quite as good at shielding as a SCH can be, nor quite as good at reactive healing as a WHM can be
- Card mechanic adds a lot of additional actions, which can be overwhelming at times
- MP management is the hardest out of the healers; only one MP regen skill is available (Lucid Dreaming) with Lightspeed only reducing MP costs by half
- Proper timing of Earthly Star can be difficult, especially in pugs or when learning a new fight
- The RNG from cards can be frustrating at times
- Visually impressive animations that can create a lot of beautiful visual noise, obscuring stuff that’s happening on the battlefield (can be mitigated by turning certain effects off, but that comes with its own problems at times)
Special notes:
- AST tends to be pretty reliant on it’s oGCD’s to get the job done
- But when used correctly, AST is arguably the most versatile of the healers overall, capable of pulling off some truly amazing feats
- Earthly Star can be awkward to use at first, thanks to its “priming” function, but with practice is a both a powerful healing and damage tool
- Like SCH, AST benefits greatly from preparation and planning in order to maximize oGCD usage
Rotation & Playstyle:
- As with the other healers, a single target nuke and DoT comprise the bulk of it’s dps rotation.
- Earthly star is a powerful oGCD, but takes some practice to use correctly for damage (and is most often used for healing before damage)
- AoE attack is a targeted AoE spell, allowing AST to nuke from safety (unlike WHM and SCH which need to be in the thick of things)
- Many oGCD’s will be used as a result of the card mechanic; you will always be busy as an AST
- Minor Arcana allows for a stronger damage buff and preservation of Divination seals when used correctly
- Occasional bursts of very high activity thanks to Sleeve Draw
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