What role are you?
Most players already know what role they would like to play, so skip this if you do. However, if you are unsure let me list the responsibilities and difficulties of each role. Each role will be taught by the specific class guide, so don’t worry about not having the skills to play them already. You can learn easily and play any role.
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Tanks are the shields of the group both in symbol and role. Tanking requires managing enmity (aka aggro, rage, attention) of enemies through skills, combos, and stances. Tanks utilize Defensive Cool Downs and Stances to minimize the Effective damage they take as almost all damage should be received by them. Tanking requires a multi target attention span, knowledge of fights (which can be gained through guides or asking your other FC and Party members), positioning skills, target priority, knowledge of enmity, Cool Down management skills.
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Healers are the final stop on the responsibility chain. Powered with both the ability to heal and destroy, the Healer is perhaps the most diverse role. Healers use shorter cast healing spells, alongside Buffs and damage spells to help the group in whatever way possible. Healing requires a multi target attention span, projection/planning skills, quick reactions, Cool Down management, and multitasking skills.
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DPS are perhaps the simplest role in the game, but arguably the hardest to play the best. While Tanks and Healers have greater responsibility in most content, DPS have the higher skill cap and greatly affect the flow of combat. DPS utilize powerful destructive capabilities to eliminate enemies and damage sources to the Party. DPSing requires target prioritization, ability/synergy knowledge, Off Global Cool Down management, DOT/Buff/Debuff management, Disrupt management, compensating nature to the situation.
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After deciding which role among these interest you, please head to the section appropriate, or read them all.
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Tanking Classes
Here we will review the 3 Tanking classes and their style to determine which is for you.
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Paladin: Paladin is the mitigation Tank of the game. They have a far superior number of defensive Cool Downs to the other Tanks at the tradeoff of lower damage. Paladin Tanking is very challenging before level 40 but pays off in the end. Paladins are much preferred for harder content with heavier hitting enemies. Paladins should be the Main Tank over the other two Tanks in full Parties for this reason.
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Warrior: Warrior is the power Tank of the game. Warriors utilize high DPS and have a health and healing boost as their defensive stance. Warrior has much fewer Cool Downs and uses life steal abilities and a last hit restore move to supply defense against damage. Warriors are, however, limited to a single resource without cross-class of Flash, so they require more resource management and ability prioritization than the other Tanks, as they can easily run dry if they don’t pay attention when blasting AOEs. Warrior is the higher skill cap Tank and is currently the preferred Off Tank for its damage utility.
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Dark Knight: Dark Knight is a nice middle ground between the two previous Tanking styles. They have fewer Cool Downs than Paladin but more than Warrior. They pull DPS between the two (according to top parsers). Dark Knight is very balanced, mixing mitigation with lifesteal and decent DPS. Dark Knight has the easiest resource management strictly Tanking but trying to cap out DPS adds many resource management layers. Dark Knight also has the easiest Emnity management and possesses a ranged AOE pull skill that has no equivalent amongst the other Tanks. Dark Knight is a good fit for Main(Better) and Off Tanking.
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Healers
Here we will review the 3 healing classes and their style to determine which is for you.
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White Mage: White mage is the easy Healer of the game. There are no weaknesses to white mage healing, and arguably their specialization is in ease of use. White mages utilize direct heals and regen heals to sustain the group. White mage abilities stack with all Healers and are a good fit for any Party.
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Scholar: Scholar is specialized in single target healing and damage prevention. Scholar is a far more tactical Healer than the others and rewards preemptive healing/shielding. Scholar is unbeatable in single target healing , however is more tactical in AOE healing having raw aoe healing power locked up in cooldowns (but not shielding). Scholar utilizes a pet as a source of free healing and Buffing/cleansing/Debuffing. Scholar is a high skill cap Healer and synergizes well with either of the other healing classes, but requires a lot more management to synergize with itself as shields and identical Buffs do not stack.
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Astrologian: Astrologian is specialized in speed, versatility, mana efficiency, and Buffing/Debuffing. Astrologian is the most diverse healing class with a skill cap arguably equal to scholar. Astrologian is arguably the strongest healer in the game and without arguement is faster and cheaper. Astrologian utilizes Buffing and Debuffing much more than the other Healers with a card system for Buffing and a disable Cool Down for Debuffing enemies. Astrologians cards make them a necessity for raid utility, as the damage increase they provided for the group is far greater than any dps difference the other healers can muster. Astrologian also possesses two healing techniques, one similar to white mage (Diurnal, also better damage), and the other similar to scholar (Nocturnal; your shields are bigger but no fairy), giving you variability and the ability to compensate to both situation and composition. Stances can be switched out of combat, but not in combat (because being able to switch between shielding and regen is ridiculously overpowered). Astrologian synergizes well with the other Healers in diurnal stance, and with white mage in nocturnal stance. Two Astrologians forces one to enter nocturnal stance as Astrologian regens do not stack as white mage regens.
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DPS
Here we will review the 3 types of DPS classes and their style to determine which is for you.
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Melee: Utilizes combos/rotations to maximize single target DPS. More risky as enemy AOEs are generally in your area. Utilizes stuns to disrupt certain enemy abilities and damage. Higher Skill Cap.
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Ranged: Utilizes Cool Downs and Off Global Cool Downs to maximize damage. Least risk for ranged and more mobile than casters. Uses silence and for Machinist a stun as well. Restores resource to other Party members. Draws a balance between AOE and single target damage. Lower Skill Cap, Higher Skill Floor.
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Casters: Casters specialize in powerful AOE damage at the cost of mobility. Casters also Offer more tactical control with sleep for Black Mage and resurrection and healing for Summoner. Moderate Skill Cap.
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Continue reading more detail ahead.
Melee DPS
Here we will review the 3 melee DPS classes and their style to determine which is for you.
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Monk: Monk utilizes a stance based rotation that requires a lot of positioning on enemies, proper execution of order, and Maintenance of Debuffs/Buffs/DOTs in order to maximize DPS. Monk is the quickest attack speed DPS but has build up before its DPS reach on par and higher points with other DPS. It also gets a stun gap closer but no ranged attack. Monk is lots of speed execution and rewards a skilled player well.
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Dragoon: Dragoon utilizes a longer rotation with a medium amount of positioning, and DOT/Debuff management. Dragoon has more Cool Down and Off GLOBAL COOL DOWN management than the other melees and is rewarded aptly. Dragoon also possesses two stuns and a slow for disruption and damage management. Dragoon requires a moderate amount of skill among the melees. Dragoon has moderate bursting capabilities with its Cool Downs and Off Global Cool Downs in synergy.
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Ninja: Ninja has some positioning, but a moderate amount of DOT/Debuff management. Ninja also must utilize the ninjutsu system to maintain high DPS. Ninja is the easiest of the melees (outside of fitting ninjustu in off gcd) with the least risk and offers versatility with the ninjutsu system.
Ranged DPS
Here we will review the 2 ranged DPS classes and their style to determine which is for you.
Bard: Bard utilizes Buff and DOT management to maximize Off GLOBAL COOL DOWN resets. This class requires a lot of management for Off Global Cool Downs but the rewards for these skills are great. Bard is more player skill reliant than Machinist. Bard has moderate bursting abilities with Off Global Cool Downs.
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Machinist: Machinist utilizes Cool Downs and Buff to Maintain DPS. It is more reliant on Programmed Random Occurrence (PROC) than Bard so although it requires skill to play, the Random Number Generator can gimp the DPS of the class if one is unlucky (only minorly). MCH has powerful bursting capabilities with its Cool Downs, which are up moderately frequently. MCH has less Emnity than other DPS as a portion is diverted into pet (or rather the pet composes a portion of their DPS and has a separate Emnity pool)
Caster DPS
Here we will review the 2 caster DPS classes and their style to determine which is for you.
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Black Mage: Black Mage is the power forward caster. Large burst damage with large cast times is how this class rolls. Utilize rotations and resource management skills to maximize DPS, on top of some occasional yet powerful Programmed Random Occurrence effects (which stop at 60). The down side is mobility wrecks a Black Mages DPS. Sleep is a powerful crowd manager that will have your Healer thanking you, allowing the Party to devastate single targets down in trash fights (however this strategy becomes null as other dps gain strong aoe damage).
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Summoner: Summoner is a putty class. They can help catch responsibility mistakes and realign the Party into proper order. Summoner utilizes DOTs and a pet for DPS and Offers low Emnity AOE damage like none can. Summoners also possess the ability to heal(weak) or revive allies without cross classing those skills. Furthermore if the Tank is messing up the Summoner may pull out their Tank pet to take the beating for the group. Summoners require DOT, pet and Cool Down management. A Summoner has the highest potential Party management skills of the DPS and alongside has the highest skill cap when attempting to do so. Additionally summoner does not suffer as severely from high movement in fights.
So…Now refer to the specific class guides for more details on how to play the class. Remember to have fun out there! =)
Most players already know what role they would like to play, so skip this if you do. However, if you are unsure let me list the responsibilities and difficulties of each role. Each role will be taught by the specific class guide, so don’t worry about not having the skills to play them already. You can learn easily and play any role.
-
Tanks are the shields of the group both in symbol and role. Tanking requires managing enmity (aka aggro, rage, attention) of enemies through skills, combos, and stances. Tanks utilize Defensive Cool Downs and Stances to minimize the Effective damage they take as almost all damage should be received by them. Tanking requires a multi target attention span, knowledge of fights (which can be gained through guides or asking your other FC and Party members), positioning skills, target priority, knowledge of enmity, Cool Down management skills.
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Healers are the final stop on the responsibility chain. Powered with both the ability to heal and destroy, the Healer is perhaps the most diverse role. Healers use shorter cast healing spells, alongside Buffs and damage spells to help the group in whatever way possible. Healing requires a multi target attention span, projection/planning skills, quick reactions, Cool Down management, and multitasking skills.
-
DPS are perhaps the simplest role in the game, but arguably the hardest to play the best. While Tanks and Healers have greater responsibility in most content, DPS have the higher skill cap and greatly affect the flow of combat. DPS utilize powerful destructive capabilities to eliminate enemies and damage sources to the Party. DPSing requires target prioritization, ability/synergy knowledge, Off Global Cool Down management, DOT/Buff/Debuff management, Disrupt management, compensating nature to the situation.
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After deciding which role among these interest you, please head to the section appropriate, or read them all.
-
Tanking Classes
Here we will review the 3 Tanking classes and their style to determine which is for you.
-
Paladin: Paladin is the mitigation Tank of the game. They have a far superior number of defensive Cool Downs to the other Tanks at the tradeoff of lower damage. Paladin Tanking is very challenging before level 40 but pays off in the end. Paladins are much preferred for harder content with heavier hitting enemies. Paladins should be the Main Tank over the other two Tanks in full Parties for this reason.
-
Warrior: Warrior is the power Tank of the game. Warriors utilize high DPS and have a health and healing boost as their defensive stance. Warrior has much fewer Cool Downs and uses life steal abilities and a last hit restore move to supply defense against damage. Warriors are, however, limited to a single resource without cross-class of Flash, so they require more resource management and ability prioritization than the other Tanks, as they can easily run dry if they don’t pay attention when blasting AOEs. Warrior is the higher skill cap Tank and is currently the preferred Off Tank for its damage utility.
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Dark Knight: Dark Knight is a nice middle ground between the two previous Tanking styles. They have fewer Cool Downs than Paladin but more than Warrior. They pull DPS between the two (according to top parsers). Dark Knight is very balanced, mixing mitigation with lifesteal and decent DPS. Dark Knight has the easiest resource management strictly Tanking but trying to cap out DPS adds many resource management layers. Dark Knight also has the easiest Emnity management and possesses a ranged AOE pull skill that has no equivalent amongst the other Tanks. Dark Knight is a good fit for Main(Better) and Off Tanking.
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Healers
Here we will review the 3 healing classes and their style to determine which is for you.
-
White Mage: White mage is the easy Healer of the game. There are no weaknesses to white mage healing, and arguably their specialization is in ease of use. White mages utilize direct heals and regen heals to sustain the group. White mage abilities stack with all Healers and are a good fit for any Party.
-
Scholar: Scholar is specialized in single target healing and damage prevention. Scholar is a far more tactical Healer than the others and rewards preemptive healing/shielding. Scholar is unbeatable in single target healing , however is more tactical in AOE healing having raw aoe healing power locked up in cooldowns (but not shielding). Scholar utilizes a pet as a source of free healing and Buffing/cleansing/Debuffing. Scholar is a high skill cap Healer and synergizes well with either of the other healing classes, but requires a lot more management to synergize with itself as shields and identical Buffs do not stack.
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Astrologian: Astrologian is specialized in speed, versatility, mana efficiency, and Buffing/Debuffing. Astrologian is the most diverse healing class with a skill cap arguably equal to scholar. Astrologian is arguably the strongest healer in the game and without arguement is faster and cheaper. Astrologian utilizes Buffing and Debuffing much more than the other Healers with a card system for Buffing and a disable Cool Down for Debuffing enemies. Astrologians cards make them a necessity for raid utility, as the damage increase they provided for the group is far greater than any dps difference the other healers can muster. Astrologian also possesses two healing techniques, one similar to white mage (Diurnal, also better damage), and the other similar to scholar (Nocturnal; your shields are bigger but no fairy), giving you variability and the ability to compensate to both situation and composition. Stances can be switched out of combat, but not in combat (because being able to switch between shielding and regen is ridiculously overpowered). Astrologian synergizes well with the other Healers in diurnal stance, and with white mage in nocturnal stance. Two Astrologians forces one to enter nocturnal stance as Astrologian regens do not stack as white mage regens.
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DPS
Here we will review the 3 types of DPS classes and their style to determine which is for you.
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Melee: Utilizes combos/rotations to maximize single target DPS. More risky as enemy AOEs are generally in your area. Utilizes stuns to disrupt certain enemy abilities and damage. Higher Skill Cap.
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Ranged: Utilizes Cool Downs and Off Global Cool Downs to maximize damage. Least risk for ranged and more mobile than casters. Uses silence and for Machinist a stun as well. Restores resource to other Party members. Draws a balance between AOE and single target damage. Lower Skill Cap, Higher Skill Floor.
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Casters: Casters specialize in powerful AOE damage at the cost of mobility. Casters also Offer more tactical control with sleep for Black Mage and resurrection and healing for Summoner. Moderate Skill Cap.
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Continue reading more detail ahead.
Melee DPS
Here we will review the 3 melee DPS classes and their style to determine which is for you.
-
Monk: Monk utilizes a stance based rotation that requires a lot of positioning on enemies, proper execution of order, and Maintenance of Debuffs/Buffs/DOTs in order to maximize DPS. Monk is the quickest attack speed DPS but has build up before its DPS reach on par and higher points with other DPS. It also gets a stun gap closer but no ranged attack. Monk is lots of speed execution and rewards a skilled player well.
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Dragoon: Dragoon utilizes a longer rotation with a medium amount of positioning, and DOT/Debuff management. Dragoon has more Cool Down and Off GLOBAL COOL DOWN management than the other melees and is rewarded aptly. Dragoon also possesses two stuns and a slow for disruption and damage management. Dragoon requires a moderate amount of skill among the melees. Dragoon has moderate bursting capabilities with its Cool Downs and Off Global Cool Downs in synergy.
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Ninja: Ninja has some positioning, but a moderate amount of DOT/Debuff management. Ninja also must utilize the ninjutsu system to maintain high DPS. Ninja is the easiest of the melees (outside of fitting ninjustu in off gcd) with the least risk and offers versatility with the ninjutsu system.
Ranged DPS
Here we will review the 2 ranged DPS classes and their style to determine which is for you.
Bard: Bard utilizes Buff and DOT management to maximize Off GLOBAL COOL DOWN resets. This class requires a lot of management for Off Global Cool Downs but the rewards for these skills are great. Bard is more player skill reliant than Machinist. Bard has moderate bursting abilities with Off Global Cool Downs.
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Machinist: Machinist utilizes Cool Downs and Buff to Maintain DPS. It is more reliant on Programmed Random Occurrence (PROC) than Bard so although it requires skill to play, the Random Number Generator can gimp the DPS of the class if one is unlucky (only minorly). MCH has powerful bursting capabilities with its Cool Downs, which are up moderately frequently. MCH has less Emnity than other DPS as a portion is diverted into pet (or rather the pet composes a portion of their DPS and has a separate Emnity pool)
Caster DPS
Here we will review the 2 caster DPS classes and their style to determine which is for you.
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Black Mage: Black Mage is the power forward caster. Large burst damage with large cast times is how this class rolls. Utilize rotations and resource management skills to maximize DPS, on top of some occasional yet powerful Programmed Random Occurrence effects (which stop at 60). The down side is mobility wrecks a Black Mages DPS. Sleep is a powerful crowd manager that will have your Healer thanking you, allowing the Party to devastate single targets down in trash fights (however this strategy becomes null as other dps gain strong aoe damage).
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Summoner: Summoner is a putty class. They can help catch responsibility mistakes and realign the Party into proper order. Summoner utilizes DOTs and a pet for DPS and Offers low Emnity AOE damage like none can. Summoners also possess the ability to heal(weak) or revive allies without cross classing those skills. Furthermore if the Tank is messing up the Summoner may pull out their Tank pet to take the beating for the group. Summoners require DOT, pet and Cool Down management. A Summoner has the highest potential Party management skills of the DPS and alongside has the highest skill cap when attempting to do so. Additionally summoner does not suffer as severely from high movement in fights.
So…Now refer to the specific class guides for more details on how to play the class. Remember to have fun out there! =)