Quote Originally Posted by Singforu View Post
One involves getting hit, one does not. I know this might be hard for you to understand, but there are people who do use damage taken sets and the difference between the two situations is one of them, you don't have to.
While you're not incorrect, therein lies the big problem for BST, being the only true pet job that is in close range after this update. Damage Taken sets are a thing, but by loading yourself up with Damage Taken so you don't die, your pet becomes vulnerable. BST has the second longest pet recall time (Dragoon has it worse, but our wyverns have plenty of defensive bonuses to make them a bit more survivable), and if your pet is dying faster, that's that much longer that you're completely non-viable as a damage dealer while they're down. BST's -only- role is as a damage dealer, and if we have to be in range to deal damage, we need to be able to receive it in a way that makes us viable. Basically, we need to be able to handle our primary problem of gearing for two people at once.

I'm not against having to be in range to fight. I like the "easy mode" as it were, but I don't have a problem moving into range. I have sets for when I need to engage too. But then if I'm gearing for myself, my pet suffers. If I don't swap my offhand axe for Charmer's Merlin, my Ready timer increases by 50% (from 10->15), and that lowers my overall DPS significantly. If I do swap my offhand axe, then I lose TP every time I use a Ready move, meaning that I can't weaponskill and that I'm basically there to do minimal white damage. If I gear for my own accuracy, my pet loses accuracy. If I gear for my pet's accuracy, I can't hit anything. The problem, again is "gearing for two." If they can address this issue, then I think the problem with having to be in range is severely mitigated.