To the devs!

[Mageoholic]

The problem with most RDM's is that they argue over secondary skills. I used to argue about melee, and healing, because at the times that I did they were bottom of the barrel. The issue is now that our primary focus is also very weak and this is not good. Ive said it I think in this topic (if not at least my own). RDM is not invited for its ability to heal, or its ability to nuke, or its ability to melee. There are jobs in this game that simply do these things better. RDM was invited to enfeeble mobs, and enhance party members, its secondary abilities of healing, nuking, melee were just holes it could fill, need more magic damage it would nuke, need more healing it would heal, need more melee it would melee.

RDM is none of those things at its core, RDM is a support mage, it weakens mobs and buffs party members, what it does after that is highly situational and at the 75 cap at least was fairly well balanced.

But SE has let the strengths that define our job diminish, SE has let the abilities that allow us to use our secondary skills deteriorate. Why bring a RDM when /RDM provides haste and refresh as well as their own buffs/debuffs/damage. Why bring a RDM when WHM or /WHM can provide haste and other buffs a RDM can't(boost as main WHM).

The simple fact is everything a RDM provides to a group is based on its ability to buff and debuff, otherwise there is no reason to bring a RDM when WHM and SCH heal better, or BLM and SCH nuke better or <insert melee> melee's better.

You can bitch all you want about the secondary aspects of nuking and healing and melee, but the fact is RDM is never going to be picked over the jobs that excel in these fields. Even if you needed a hybrid nuker/healer SCH is much more useful in this vein, similar to DNC who is a more efficient hybrid healer/dd.

Until SE fixes the issues with the core abilities of RDM (enfeebling and enhancing) the job will be passed over, unless SE decides to make the job over powered and capable of taking a spot from WHM or BLM or <insert melee job>.

So yes go off to your nuke needs a buff, melee needs a buff, healing needs a buff threads, adjusting those individually will not get you anymore invites, because frankly SE will have to add a lot to make the SECONDARY skill set of RDM match the PRIMARY skill set of other jobs.

Before Mrs. Semantics jumps all over me, I don't think healing magic works right in general, not just in terms of RDM. There is no reason a job using /WHM or /RDM should be able to cure for the same base amount. I don't care if RDM WHM and SCH can break cure potency or not, the fact is without the gear any job in this game can hit 400 cure 4's, and that is not right and needs to be fixed. Through an adjustment to healing magic separating those with native skill and those without, before gear is applied. A naked MNK/RDM will cure for nearly the same amount as a RDM SCH or WHM casting Cure 4, this is not right. Just like it isn't right a WHM can cast Slow I as strong as us, or that a SCH/RDM can give the same haste as us. What really isn't right is a SCH being able to AoE Phalanx as strong as our merited (5/5) Phalanx II single target, what really isn't right is that a lvl 44 NIN spell provides the exact same benefit as a merited (5/5) Blind.

But yes go ahead and bitch about our secondary skills, ask SE to make you gods of nuking healing and melee, at the end of the day they will either nerf it, or it still won't be as good as dedicated jobs. RDM's road to utility lies in its enhancing and enfeebling, using its secondary skills to support the group in whichever role needs support. Until SE addresses the issues with the primary abilities (enfeebling and enhancing) RDM will be considered useless in group play. (outside its T2 procs which may or may not disappear with SE's change to procs in VW).

[Daniel_Hatcher]

RDM is none of those things at its core, RDM is a rubbish mage, it weakens mobs via enfeebles (well it's supposed to in words only) and that's it.

Fixed for ya!

Big walls of text changes nothing.

Haste + Refresh != Enhancer. Argue all you want, the only enhancing RDM does well is on itself which is apparently the way SE wants it.