This would make the range LB stronger due to its versatility. I know that what we have right now isn't balanced, but that would simply flip the coin.
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And a5s. And a10s if you didn't skip adds. After all, caster LB on 2 targets > melee LB on one so even caster LBing the boss+apanda on o3 would make sense if not for caster high personal dps. I can see SMN lbing there being the optimal solution in some compositions, however.
But in all cases mentioned caster LB is preferred over ranged LB. Ranged LB is harder to aim and *it deals less damage* (because they're support jobs, huh). I know BRD LB was reworked which brings me to the point...
Would it make ranged LB better if it just was damage reduction+hp/mana restore? It's still very niche but realistically ranged don't LB anyway and if it was half the tank lb mitigation and half the healer lb healing it could be useful (o4 springs to mind when sometimes after the healer death on some of the grand crosses the remaining healer has to deal with alma and heal lb usually doesn't help)?
Or the ranged could go the real support role of a buff that increases damage dealt, decreases damage received, increases movement, attack and cast speed as well as critical. Then divide the buffs strength appropriately and you have a true support limit break that depends on the players actual abilities.
That being said, I would like the limit break to be personal, though I don't think there is a reason to remove the revival from the healers limit breaks. It doubles the amount of party revivals in trials, yeah...so what?! If a party gets near-wiped twice, like that, either the healers are focusing too much on their own survival (hence why they are in the position to use them in the first place), or the party just isn't up for it and will wipe afterwards anyway. Besides, a personal limit break would also mean personal limit break gaining, and that could mean that the healers wouldn't even get to third level depending on their actions.
This would solve the issues of limit break being lost if anyone gets disconnected or leaves for whatever reason and is replaced (at least, for the party), as well as allow limit breaks in solo content...which honestly I don't know why is not allowed.
A unique limit break for every class would be nice too, but there's just so many "unique" ways of dealing damage...
We used caster LB on A5S and A10S and caster LB in OS3 is also higher DPS than ranged LB (although most groups use melee LB there anyway). Since caster LB is higher damage, it only makes sense to use ranged DPS in fights where you can't reach all targets with caster one, and the only case I can still think of is Sephirot ex... Since you could use caster one in all the examples you mentioned.
On SephEx? I was frankly surprised the first time i ever saw ranged LB there but i only got to do it when not relevant anymore. Also it's apparently a server-based difference, most groups from Odin i've met since would prefer melee LB, some groups from... Shiva? used notably different strats in the first part and were used to ranged LB as well.
No, it would not be close to flipping the coin, at all. You can count the number of times a ranged/caster ever gets to use their LB with a melee in the group on one hand, so the "versatility" is hardly a noteworthy advantage. It would simply bring both ranged/caster/melee more on par with each other. Definitely more than they are now, so even if what you say is true (it isn't) it's still far better than what currently exists without complicating things unnecessarily.
Only question I have: Do you try to use LB when it's ready, or when the boss is at less than 5%? Because if it's being saved to kill the boss, then it's basically wasted. Since I main RDM, whenever I get paired with a melee that doesn't use the LB when it's ready, I will pop it because of the fact that most of that damage would have gone to waste using it for a killing blow(most of the time).