Why are our group 1 merits so bad?

[ManaKing]

As usual Supersun brings me good news. Here's hoping it turns out as good as that sounds.

[Seriha]

Hmm, if we're gonna redesign merits for shiggles...

T1:
Convert Recast: I'm gonna be bold and propose this changed to 1m per level.
Enspells: +2 damage, +5 element magic accuracy, and +3 subtle blow per merit.
Magic Accuracy: +3 per merit.
Fast Cast: +3% per merit.

T2:
Composure: +5% JA haste per level.
Slow Potency: +3% potency and +3 accuracy per level.
Paralyze Potency: Increased potency and +3 accuracy per level.
Blind Potency: +3% potency and +3 accuracy per level.
Phalanx Potency: +5 damage reduction per level.

Slow II (60), Paralyze II (62), Phalanx II (70), Bio III (75), and Dia III (75) would be changed to level learned scrolls with lowered MP costs.

T3:
Saboteur Effect: Increases the amount of enfeebling spells you can cast before Saboteaur wears by 1 per level.
Enhancing Magic Duration: Increases duration of Enhancing Magic spells by 20% per level.
Elemental Reclaim: Gain 1 MP per level when an Enspell lands.
Precision: Ignore 3% of a target's Defense with Composure active per level.


Anyway, backline RDMs would probably be more inclined to go Convert, Fast Cast, Slow, Phalanx, Sab, and Enhancing. Front-liners would go Enspell, Fast Cast, Composure, Phalanx, Precision, and either Reclaim or Enhancing. I'd imagine the T3 landscape would change if we're actually given some new things come 91-99, though. Still, I think spells/JAs locked behind merits is dumb, as it strips us of potential job diversity since you can't get 'em all, or at least well enough to use.

[Neisan_Quetz]

5% JA haste per level which nice seems excessive, 3% capping at 15% sounds reasonable.

[Seriha]

Desperate Blows disagrees, and DRKs get an ATK boost on top of that. Remember, part of our melee issues stem from the infrequency of swings alongside casting. Either way, I doubt it'll ever happen, but a girl can dream.

[ManaKing]

Desperate Blows disagrees, and DRKs get an ATK boost on top of that. Remember, part of our melee issues stem from the infrequency of swings alongside casting. Either way, I doubt it'll ever happen, but a girl can dream.

That she can! Nice list BTW, I like everything i see. I'd say shoot for 5% per level on composure and let it get adjusted later if it is actually OP.

[Daniel_Hatcher]

Hmm, if we're gonna redesign merits for shiggles...

T1:
Convert Recast: I'm gonna be bold and propose this changed to 1m per level.
Enspells: +2 damage, +5 element magic accuracy, and +3 subtle blow per merit.
Magic Accuracy: +3 per merit.
Fast Cast: +3% per merit.

T2:
Composure: +5% JA haste per level.
Slow Potency: +3% potency and +3 accuracy per level.
Paralyze Potency: Increased potency and +3 accuracy per level.
Blind Potency: +3% potency and +3 accuracy per level.
Phalanx Potency: +5 damage reduction per level.

Slow II (60), Paralyze II (62), Phalanx II (70), Bio III (75), and Dia III (75) would be changed to level learned scrolls with lowered MP costs.

T3:
Saboteur Effect: Increases the amount of enfeebling spells you can cast before Saboteaur wears by 1 per level.
Enhancing Magic Duration: Increases duration of Enhancing Magic spells by 20% per level.
Elemental Reclaim: Gain 1 MP per level when an Enspell lands.
Precision: Ignore 3% of a target's Defense with Composure active per level.


Anyway, backline RDMs would probably be more inclined to go Convert, Fast Cast, Slow, Phalanx, Sab, and Enhancing. Front-liners would go Enspell, Fast Cast, Composure, Phalanx, Precision, and either Reclaim or Enhancing. I'd imagine the T3 landscape would change if we're actually given some new things come 91-99, though. Still, I think spells/JAs locked behind merits is dumb, as it strips us of potential job diversity since you can't get 'em all, or at least well enough to use.

I would cry if those were the merits, wouldn't know what to pick.

[ManaKing]

I would cry if those were the merits, wouldn't know what to pick.

But at least you could complain that your problem is that you would have too many good choices instead of no good choices.

[Kuvo]

Hmm, if we're gonna redesign merits for shiggles...

T1:
Convert Recast: I'm gonna be bold and propose this changed to 1m per level.
Enspells: +2 damage, +5 element magic accuracy, and +3 subtle blow per merit.
Magic Accuracy: +3 per merit.
Fast Cast: +3% per merit.

T2:
Composure: +5% JA haste per level.
Slow Potency: +3% potency and +3 accuracy per level.
Paralyze Potency: Increased potency and +3 accuracy per level.
Blind Potency: +3% potency and +3 accuracy per level.
Phalanx Potency: +5 damage reduction per level.

Slow II (60), Paralyze II (62), Phalanx II (70), Bio III (75), and Dia III (75) would be changed to level learned scrolls with lowered MP costs.

T3:
Saboteur Effect: Increases the amount of enfeebling spells you can cast before Saboteaur wears by 1 per level.
Enhancing Magic Duration: Increases duration of Enhancing Magic spells by 20% per level.
Elemental Reclaim: Gain 1 MP per level when an Enspell lands.
Precision: Ignore 3% of a target's Defense with Composure active per level.


Anyway, backline RDMs would probably be more inclined to go Convert, Fast Cast, Slow, Phalanx, Sab, and Enhancing. Front-liners would go Enspell, Fast Cast, Composure, Phalanx, Precision, and either Reclaim or Enhancing. I'd imagine the T3 landscape would change if we're actually given some new things come 91-99, though. Still, I think spells/JAs locked behind merits is dumb, as it strips us of potential job diversity since you can't get 'em all, or at least well enough to use.

These are very cool ideas. I was looking at your post and just thinking which one's I would pick to cap out. Eventhough these are great ideas I highly doubt SE would add anything like these to our list. I hope they truly will rework the merit's system for all jobs and give us a lot of choices like you said. It's better to have a lot of great choices and can only pick a few then have a series of crappy ones. This way you can really have the same jobs but each one can specialize in different merits to utilize.

[Kristal]

T1 merits are generally weak, but T2 merits it utter fail. No other job has to deal with choices RDMs have to make.

The proposed changes are a bit overpowered though.

T1 merits:
* Convert Recast (-20 seconds per upgrade)
* Magic Accuracy (+3 magic accuracy per upgrade)
* Blind Potency (+2 potency per upgrade)
* Gravity Potency (+2 potency per upgrade)
* Paralyze Potency (+2 potency per upgrade)
* Silence Potency (+2 potency per upgrade)
* Slow Potency (+2 potency per upgrade)
* Sleep Potency (+2 potency per upgrade)

T2 merits:
* Dia III (fixed duration of 150 seconds, +1 effect per upgrade)
* Slow II (remains the same)
* Paralyze II (remains the same)
* Phalanx II (fixed duration of 240 seconds, damage reduction equals Phalanx, +2 reduction for each upgrade)
* Bio III (fixed duration of 150 seconds, +1 effect per upgrade)
* Blind II (remains the same)

If anything, T2 needs to change. Badly. We can live without decent T1 merits, T2 merits will prevent a RDM from taking all and boosting some. (Which every other job can do.)

[Neisan_Quetz]

Spells should never have been T2 merits in the first place imo.