Black Mage Idea - Meltdown

[Ashenspire]

My idea for Black Mage is pretty simple. Reward the party simply for having them in your party and doing what they already do - melt faces.

Meltdown is a spell that's been around since FFVI, and it's come in many incarnations. For FFXIV, I'm thinking it can be a bit like the FFVIII version, but still maintaining its Fire aspect.

Meltdown - Level 62 Trait

Fire IV inflicts target with a stack of Meltdown. Meltdown stacks increase damage taken by 1%. All Meltdown stacks are lost when target is hit by Blizzard I, II, III, and IV and Freeze.

It plays on the idea that you're literally melting the targets defenses. This gives BLMs much needed utility, and most importantly offensive utility. Over a typical F4x6 Rotation, it'd be a 2.17% party damage increase.

It doesn't change the core of the job. It's not making them something BLM shouldn't be by adding a Raise. It just rewards them and their parties for doing what they already do.

[Rawrz]

Meltdown - Level 62 Trait

Fire IV inflicts target with a stack Meltdown. Meltdown stacks increase damage taken by 1%. All Meltdown stacks are lost when target is hit by Blizzard I, II, III, and IV and Freeze.

It plays on the idea that you're literally melting the targets defenses. This gives BLMs much needed utility, and most importantly offensive utility. Over a typical F4x6 Rotation, it'd be a 2.17% party damage increase.

It doesn't change the core of the job. It's not making them something BLM shouldn't be by adding a Raise. It just rewards them and their parties for doing what they already do.

Doing something like that would be fine, but it would be at the cost of lowering their personal DPS. You can't be the SAM caster, if you are padding everyone else's numbers. It is a pretty cool idea.

[Ashenspire]

Summoner is now roughly equal to, if not pulling ahead of BLM and they have utility BLM does not. There's no need to adjust BLM's personal DPS at this point with a utility buff.

[Rawrz]

Summoner is now roughly equal to, if not pulling ahead of BLM and they have utility BLM does not. There's no need to adjust BLM's personal DPS at this point with a utility buff.

Summoner isn't the only class that BLM gets compared to. The concept is called power creep.

[Ashenspire]

They're the closest comparison, and the one that should be made.

Summoners are ranged magical that are now pulling the same kind of DPS numbers as Black Mage while offering utility on top of it. Ranged magical are unattractive enough as is. If two of them do identical damage, but one brings all this other stuff as well, there's literally no reason to play the other.

It'd be like if Ninja pulled the same personal numbers as Samurai on top of all the other stuff they bring.

[Rawrz]

They're the closest comparison, and the one that should be made.

Summoners are ranged magical that are now pulling the same kind of DPS numbers as Black Mage while offering utility on top of it. Ranged magical are unattractive enough as is. If two of them do identical damage, but one brings all this other stuff as well, there's literally no reason to play the other.

It'd be like if Ninja pulled the same personal numbers as Samurai on top of all the other stuff they bring.

If that's true, you would nerf SMN, before you buffed BLM. BLM is directly compared to SAM for top DPS. If it brings the utility of a NIN and the DPS of a SAM... Then it's exactly the same hypocrisy.

[Ashenspire]

But they're not going to nerf SMN after having just buffed them. Let's not kid ourselves.

I'm aware BLM and SAM are compared in terms of the numbers they produce, but they wouldn't typically be competing for the same spot. You'd compare what they bring to the table to other ranged DPS.

[Sunako]

That suggestion would make blm stronger than mch. It seems like you wanna make blm new meta class.

[Kabooa]

Summoner isn't the only class that BLM gets compared to. The concept is called power creep.

About the only job that isn't exceeding Black Mage's DPS total to the Raid is Red Mage and even then it's close. Everyone else, all things considered, is doing the same or exceeding, and that's without considering non-damage tools they bring.

The only notable place Black mage pulls ahead is on Halicarnassus, but that's from scumbagging the Ninjas, most likely.

[Ashenspire]

That suggestion would make blm stronger than mch. It seems like you wanna make blm new meta class.

In a perfect world, Sam/mnk/blm/rdm would be just as attractive as drg/nin/brd/mch.

I'm not trying to make them the new meta class. I just want to see them with a purpose for existing, as they have no real identity currently in raid environments.