Regarding future update for BST and SMN Commands

[Gwydion]

Beastmaster and summoner pet commands
As a plan for a future version update, we are looking into making adjustments to the range in which pet commands for beastmaster can be used. Beastmaster is a job that we’ve balanced with close to mid-range engagements, but at the moment only pets are being sent close to enemies and players are standing in the back. We feel that there isn’t enough risk being taken on by the beastmaster despite their damage output.



If you reduce the distance that Ready moves can be executed by the Beastmaster, you're going to cause issues with the engaging of trusts and general balance for Players. As a result of this, we will still run in and out of range of AOEs because Beastmasters simply cannot protect themselves. I understand you want us to take more risks, but we will need significant (new) abilities to help mitigate this risk.

[Crevox]

It's no different a situation for most other melees. They deal with it, you can too. You do not need your own special defense tools.

This is a good change in my opinion, because every single Beastmaster I encounter is playing like this. It's a melee job, come on. Ranger also completely lost its place because of it.

As for the change to Summoner, which you neglected to quote:


In regards to summoner, this is a job that was created to be a back line job, and we are looking into making adjustments to increase the range in which pet commands can be executed so they can function better in the back.


This is completely welcome, as this is not a melee job.

[Gwydion]

It's no different a situation for most other melees. They deal with it, you can too. You do not need your own special defense tools.

This is a good change in my opinion, because every single Beastmaster I encounter is playing like this. It's a melee job, come on. Ranger also completely lost its place because of it.

As for the change to Summoner, which you neglected to quote:



This is completely welcome, as this is not a melee job.

I disagree. Beastmaster has been as you described since release date. I don't see a reason to change it now.

[Zeargi]

To be honest, the biggest draw back for BSTs as a melee is they don't have the DEF/HP Pool to take multiple hits from AoEs. If they had a boost to DEF or a decent shield to off-hand and take advantage of the Fencer trait (ones that can replace the Merlin's Charm...) Or even the Max HP Boost. But then it also becomes tough to balance a melee job when you have to maintain another person, one that can't be healed quickly or buffed. Plus, BST have to constantly re-establish the target they want to have their pet on.

[bazookatooth]

It's no different a situation for most other melees. They deal with it, you can too. You do not need your own special defense tools.

This is a good change in my opinion, because every single Beastmaster I encounter is playing like this. It's a melee job, come on. Ranger also completely lost its place because of it.

This is false. RNG is still very good in every event it was good in before the BST update. BST is just an option now (one that people seem to prefer, but optional none the less). It will not be after the update. When people want a front line DD, they will bring SAM, MNK, THF, etc. before BST every time. This change will for the most part eliminate BSTs usefulness in pretty much any event besides CP farming. No one wants a DD that requires healing / defense for 2 while outputting less damage than 1.

To elaborate, when a player gets hit with break, the whm must stona that player. When a BST gets hit with break, even when the bst gets stona, the pet is still useless. When a bst gets hit with paralyze, the bst must be paralynaed, but then the pet is still paralyzed. Pets can only have debuffs removed once a minute and it is on the same timer as their curing, so you can't effectively remove buffs and / or cure at the same time. BSTs / pets are far more susceptible to damage and status effects due to the fact that they can't stack defensive / offensive stats on the player and the pet at the same time. One or the other will always get nailed. Being in melee range means that the BST will have to stack DT- gear on the master. Effectively killing the pets damage output / defense.

SMN and PUP can use support jobs like red mage etc. to cure themselves, buff themselves and remove status ailments. BSTs cannot do that due to the requirement to use a level 75 axe for ready recast. Using a sub that doesn't provide dual wield would effectively lower pet damage output by 33%. That is huge. Using NIN provides shadows, which are for the most part ineffective in this world of NMs that spam aoe. Subbing DNC still puts you with a 75 axe in the offhand that will miss 80% of the time.

TLDR; This is a ridiculously huge nerf.





This is completely welcome, as this is not a melee job.

This is completely unnecessary. SMN was doing great already. SMN has been soloing damn near everything and putting out incredible damage from safe distances without this buff.

And FWIW I play summoner. This nerf is effectively just replacing the BST in events with a summoner. People will continue to use the same "No frontline DDs allowed" strategies. The only difference is now they will use SMN instead of BST.

[kylani]

This is false. RNG is still very good in every event it was good in before the BST update. BST is just an option now (one that people seem to prefer, but optional none the less). It will not be after the update. When people want a front line DD, they will bring SAM, MNK, THF, etc. before BST every time. This change will for the most part eliminate BSTs usefulness in pretty much any event besides CP farming. No one wants a DD that requires healing / defense for 2 while outputting less damage than 1.





This is completely unnecessary. SMN was doing great already. SMN has been soloing damn near everything and putting out incredible damage from safe distances without this buff.

I couldn't agree more. I've been enjoying the game, but I'm so sick of this discussion, and SE changing the way BST has worked FOREVER just because it is now useful in end game content. Where was SE when BST was completely unwanted in endgame and the job worked this way? But instead of adjusting the content, they adjust how BST has always worked. Joy... I was hoping to enjoy the game till it ended, but all these depressing threads, and now this, have sucked the joy of playing right out of me.

[Ulth]

Personally I think this is a waste of the developers time. It won't actually change the way people play bst. If the distance thing actually gets added then bst will just act even more like a smn and run in briefly to use it's command before running back out.

Zeargi makes a good point about defensive stats. However it really affects all melees. Since new and better gear has been added there is a pretty noticeable increase in offense. Defense has pretty much remained unchanged though. Armor sets still give about the same amount of hp, defense, evasion, and magic evasion, and with the content getting harder it's a lot easier to see how paper thin we are. Pretty much the only defensive quality that does anything anymore is damage taken reductions.

[Vold]

Don't get me wrong here, I'm all for BST getting it's 15 min of fame finally after 13 YEARS, but I think you guys are over stating the severity of this. All that's happening is that you no longer will be able to use ready moves from afar, right? All that is going to change for you is your FFXI lives becomes more lively than it was before. So they are changing how the job is played. So what? Welcome to the club :/ other jobs have been going through that for years. I would just be incredibly glad they didn't out right nerf pet damage.

Still, they may as well restrict ranged attack to 10-15 yalms and magic to the same if they really think there needs to be risk involved for ranged jobs. But let's be realistic here. They are choosing to make you risk stuff in order to keep your damage. Usually they'd just nerf bat your ass. Not in this case. In this one case they have chosen to hold back the bat so you can pwn. They had to do something so this is it. You cannot complain too much. They just gave you the biggest break ever in the history of this game so you wouldn't go straight back to the dumps. I would humbly take this "nerf" as a win and quietly ride off into the sunset before you upset the order of things.

[Draylo-]

This is a good change!

[bazookatooth]

Don't get me wrong here, I'm all for BST getting it's 15 min of fame finally after 13 YEARS, but I think you guys are over stating the severity of this. All that's happening is that you no longer will be able to use ready moves from afar, right? All that is going to change for you is your FFXI lives becomes more lively than it was before. So they are changing how the job is played. So what? Welcome to the club :/ other jobs have been going through that for years. I would just be incredibly glad they didn't out right nerf pet damage.

Still, they may as well restrict ranged attack to 10-15 yalms and magic to the same if they really think there needs to be risk involved for ranged jobs. But let's be realistic here. They are choosing to make you risk stuff in order to keep your damage. Usually they'd just nerf bat your ass. Not in this case. In this one case they have chosen to hold back the bat so you can pwn. They had to do something so this is it. You cannot complain too much. They just gave you the biggest break ever in the history of this game so you wouldn't go straight back to the dumps. I would humbly take this "nerf" as a win and quietly ride off into the sunset before you upset the order of things.


It's not the biggest break ever in history though. Almost all of BSTs damage output comes through Ready moves which are on a ten second timer. There is no running in and running out. If you do that, you become the weakest DD in the game. BST damage doesn't "PWN" as it is. I wonder if people who say things like that even play the same game. Almost every DD / nuking job in the game has higher damage output in a party environment. BST will go straight back to the dumps with this nerf.

[Arthos]

It's not the biggest break ever in history though. Almost all of BSTs damage output comes through Ready moves which are on a ten second timer. There is no running in and running out. If you do that, you become the weakest DD in the game. BST damage doesn't "PWN" as it is. I wonder if people who say things like that even play the same game. Almost every DD / nuking job in the game has higher damage output in a party environment. BST will go straight back to the dumps with this nerf.

Even more, it will also loose it's solo niche it had before. Atleast parts of it.

The problem is not Beastmaster.
WHY are people looking for range jobs?

[Allestra]

This is a good change!

its a bad change!