My idea for Living Dead (DRK)

[Shurrikhan]

You and me both, I'm mad WAR beat DRK to the self-heal gimmick because that's the thing I identify most with DRK, even over the whole "use HP for damage" thing Cecil does because FF Tactics is my favorite entry.

I'm mostly cool with it because it just felt so right for their kit at the time (in some ways, Warrior's first major revisions were a tremendous disappointment to me, given that I'd have preferred that PLD gain more player-scaling defensive output instead of both swapping to content-scaled mitigation), but... c'mon... if it's Blood for Blood? People have been having fits about that skill going to anyone but DRK, or at least a very different version of Lancer/Dragoon that could make better use of its risk and aesthetic, since seeing the skill. Banking an AD for an LD on add phase would, again, just feel right.

Aside: How would you feel if the self-heal was given on Bloodspiller instead, as to allow more flexible timing, or if Bloodspiller at least increased the HP to be generated by your next SE or AD? (In the prior case, gauge skills would have to be given earlier, ofc, albeit likely at reduced potency.)

[InfiniDragon]

Aside: How would you feel if the self-heal was given on Bloodspiller instead, as to allow more flexible timing, or if Bloodspiller at least increased the HP to be generated by your next SE or AD? (In the prior case, gauge skills would have to be given earlier, ofc, albeit likely at reduced potency.)

I think if it's tied to GCD I'd rather it be on Souleater than Bloodspiller if we had to pick, but my actual answer is put HP steal on both, lol.

The small moderate heal on SE, and the big ol' Nascent Flash + Inner Chaos type of heals on BS.

[Shurrikhan]

I think if it's tied to GCD I'd rather it be on Souleater than Bloodspiller if we had to pick, but my actual answer is put HP steal on both, lol.

The small moderate heal on SE, and the big ol' Nascent Flash + Inner Chaos type of heals on BS.

That would probably cut into our defense budget... Is there any way we could leverage some other effect not to lose our ability to survive one-shots despite the loss in active eHP bonuses?

[Conando]

Now I admit I didn’t touch DRK at all in SB, but in that didn’t they reduce living dead to needing half health to not kill you? Why did they go back to 100%.

[Lodi]

Now I admit I didn’t touch DRK at all in SB, but in that didn’t they reduce living dead to needing half health to not kill you? Why did they go back to 100%.

As far as I can tell, LD has been unchanged since 3.0. Scary.

[Windwalker]

So, as most people can agree, Living Dead can be quite a resource hog if you don't have a WHM sitting on Bene for it. After playing GNB and using Superbolide for a bit I think a similar solution for DRK would work and still give the "job flavor" Yoshida claims is the reason it can't change.

Make it drop you to 1 HP on activation, 10 seconds of no damage like Superbolide, but to balance the extra two seconds, all incoming healing from outside sources does 0. Instead, the DRK's damage during LD is converted to HP (their own self heals work also), so they have to whack the boss to get themselves to a comfy HP.

Thoughts?

I agree about living dead being a dumb ability, the problem is that.... if the healer cannot heal you fully or misses it, your dead. Came across a few DRK's in dungeon that decided it would be a good idea to pop living dead after pulling a massive amount of monsters, only to suddenly die instantly, something the healer could have healed normally without wiping. Playing DRK, i avoid using this ability due to a huge risk of wiping, should the healer miss it.

[Shurrikhan]

I agree about living dead being a dumb ability, the problem is that.... if the healer cannot heal you fully or misses it, your dead. Came across a few DRK's in dungeon that decided it would be a good idea to pop living dead after pulling a massive amount of monsters, only to suddenly die instantly, something the healer could have healed normally without wiping. Playing DRK, i avoid using this ability due to a huge risk of wiping, should the healer miss it.

The thing is we already have "Heal them to full or they die!" 3D graphical markers in the form of Doom debuffs, which could thereafter take on visible and audible timers. I don't see why the same wasn't applied to Living Dead, even if only technically needing for 100% of HP to be filled instead.

[Lammas]

I find it rather amusing that Holmgang got an extra 2 seconds added to its duration in 5.1 while Living dead went untouched yet again.

So we have one ability that makes you unable to drop below 1 and lasts 8 seconds with a 4 minute cooldown.
Then we have another that makes you unable to drop below 1, lasts 10 seconds, 5 minute cooldown and it will outright kill you if you don't receive 100 % healing during it. It's also easier to time for max duration because of the living dead > walking dead transition but harder to make use of that full duration because, you know, it'll kill you.

Any other invulnerability pretty much just needs enough immediate healing so that the tank can survive the next auto / mechanic. Also since I'm comparing LD to Holmgang as that is the closest comparison lets not forget that WAR can use Thrill, Equilibrium and Nascent Flash to recover HP if any of those are up at that moment. Thrill also gives WAR a 20 % healing received buff.

I think the most elegant solution would be to very simply remove the whole healing requirement + doom out of LD. Just:
Living dead: lasts 10 seconds, if you take a lethal hit activate walking dead instead
Walking dead: lasts 10 seconds, you can't fall below 1
Holmgang with 2 seconds longer duration and easier timing because of the living dead > walking dead transition offset by having that 1 minute longer CD. That's pretty much what it already is, so if it would be possible for it to not kill me that would be swell. As an additional bonus you would no longer die to a poorly timed Benediction either, because it definitely makes so much sense right now that it loses the beneficial effect too when you get healed.