On Red Mage melee...

[cidbahamut]

Well it is a rather effective way to pass the time on your lunch break.

[Rayik]

This part is strange to me as well. It's as if SE's message is "We want to give Red Mage tools to melee. But...not to melee well. Tools to melee rather poorly, actually. Oh, and no new and useful enfeebling or enhancing magic. Never that."

You'd think they would either make the melee additions worthwhile or just focus on Red Mage as a casting/back-line presence. My God, what if someone at SE likes reading threads like this one?!

I really get the feeling like they are scared of what potential would be unleashed by RDM if they got really creative with it. It feels like they're handling RDM with hazmat suits, while they just toss whatever overpowered trick and ability at other jobs without a care. It just feels like every little thing we get is like a sample-sized bite, while other jobs get entire 3 course meals.

[saevel]

I really get the feeling like they are scared of what potential would be unleashed by RDM if they got really creative with it. It feels like they're handling RDM with hazmat suits, while they just toss whatever overpowered trick and ability at other jobs without a care. It just feels like every little thing we get is like a sample-sized bite, while other jobs get entire 3 course meals.

Certain RDM's running around soloing HNM's had alot to do with this. From a developers perspective seeing someone do that, in a way that was never designed for and potentially breaking the game, will wreck havoc on any game balance if your not careful. Thus SE has been over protective of it's game balance, to the point of nearly destroying RDM.

[Bubeeky]

Certain RDM's running around soloing HNM's had alot to do with this. From a developers perspective seeing someone do that, in a way that was never designed for and potentially breaking the game, will wreck havoc on any game balance if your not careful. Thus SE has been over protective of it's game balance, to the point of nearly destroying RDM.

Back at 75, I remember it was common knowledge that rdm could solo like 99.9% of game content....I think you are right that they are trying to avoid that kind of situation again.

[Swords]

Then again those major endgame soloer's were really just a small select few of highly skilled and exceptionally well equipped RDM's, and really should not have been used as a scale for gauging the job for the majority of RDM's out there. But at the same time, most every job in the game has gotten buffed to the point they can do what those RDM's did and do it even better, while RDM has more or less stagnated.

[Rayik]

Then again those major endgame soloer's were really just a small select few of highly skilled and exceptionally well equipped RDM's, and really should not have been used as a scale for gauging the job for the majority of RDM's out there. But at the same time, most every job in the game has gotten buffed to the point they can do what those RDM's did and do it even better, while RDM has more or less stagnated.

Exactly this. SE got scared and declared the Exceptions suddenly as the Rule. Just because one player got crazy good at the job, ALL of us are paying the price.

[Swords]

Nah it wasn't one person, others went out and attempted what Avesta did. Some tried and failed while others succeeded, and some even came up with better methods, but the fact remains you only had maybe 5-10 people per server capable of doing this out of maybe the 15000 RDMs out there.

[saevel]

Exactly this. SE got scared and declared the Exceptions suddenly as the Rule. Just because one player got crazy good at the job, ALL of us are paying the price.

Basically yeah, but remember this was the "old SE" we're talking about, the ones that failed in making 14. The newer guys seem to be slowly lightening up and actually wanting to fix RDM into something other then a haste / refresh / cure IV(V) bot.

[cidbahamut]

Exactly this. SE got scared and declared the Exceptions suddenly as the Rule. Just because one player got crazy good at the job, ALL of us are paying the price.

Well that's because every player has the potential to reach that level of proficiency, and then the rest of the game unravels as an army of Red Mages conquers every challenge in the game with ease. It's a valid concern regarding the game balance, even if the scenario I laid out above was always extremely unlikely(or even somewhat inaccurate).

[Swords]

Well that's because every player has the potential to reach that level of proficiency, and then the rest of the game unravels as an army of Red Mages conquers every challenge in the game with ease. It's a valid concern regarding the game balance, even if the scenario I laid out above was always extremely unlikely(or even somewhat inaccurate).

Aye, SE's fears are definitely valid in this aspect. Oh lord could you imagine how bad it would be if the gil-sellers were capable of this solobility back when they ran rampant. No one could get anything done unless they happen to just get lucky, because the gil-sellers would be crowding all the spawns.