I wish Gunbreaker would be a DPS class.

2014: Dark Knight announced for Heavensward. Players complain over it not being a DPS.
2017: Samurai announced for Stormblood. Players complain over it not being a tank.
2019: Gunbreaker announced for Shadowbringers. Players complain over it not being a DPS.

....okay, fortunately this year, it's nowhere near as bad. I remember all five stages of grief out in full force over Samurai not being a tank and having enough tasty salt from that announcement to last me a good three months. But you can definitely see how this cycle always plays out. At least this time around, I see it as efficiency toward fanservice. Players want a new tank? Players want a gunblade job? They'd be stupid not to combine the two.

As for the "parry logic" argument, do those who make that argument realize that weapons and gear can be repaired? Might not hurt either to go watch some videos of Zweihander use too.

People come complain about a new tank, while they just got a new toy to play with as a brand new limited Job.
Nothing will stop you playing Gunbreaker in your solo content (MSQ, Daily Quests, etc).
You can be happy that Gunbreaker didnt end up as a new goldsaucer minigame where you collect different ammunation for your Carneval.

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Originally Posted by Dualgunner

Just means we get hammer dps next time around, and tanks gotta deal with all their "toys" being slashing. :P

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To be honest, with damage types seemingly staying, this is probably best.
If we have different DPS synergies of slashing, piercing and blunt (if we get blunt DPS in 6.0+) then to make these also synergise with the Tank as well is just adding another layer of enforced optimisation.
Or at the very least, they couldn't exactly bring out a blunt tank when we currently only have the one blunt DPS.

I wonder if Gunbreaker will be able to apply slashing debuff. Maybe that would shake up the meta.

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Originally Posted by Reinha

I wonder if Gunbreaker will be able to apply slashing debuff. Maybe that would shake up the meta.

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i doubt those are even staying tbh

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Originally Posted by Kazrah

2014: Dark Knight announced for Heavensward. Players complain over it not being a DPS.
2017: Samurai announced for Stormblood. Players complain over it not being a tank.
2019: Gunbreaker announced for Shadowbringers. Players complain over it not being a DPS.

....okay, fortunately this year, it's nowhere near as bad. I remember all five stages of grief out in full force over Samurai not being a tank and having enough tasty salt from that announcement to last me a good three months. But you can definitely see how this cycle always plays out. At least this time around, I see it as efficiency toward fanservice. Players want a new tank? Players want a gunblade job? They'd be stupid not to combine the two.

As for the "parry logic" argument, do those who make that argument realize that weapons and gear can be repaired? Might not hurt either to go watch some videos of Zweihander use too.

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You forgot the mention people complaining that Ninja wasnt a tank job xd

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Originally Posted by Kazrah

2014: Dark Knight announced for Heavensward. Players complain over it not being a DPS.
2017: Samurai announced for Stormblood. Players complain over it not being a tank.
2019: Gunbreaker announced for Shadowbringers. Players complain over it not being a DPS.

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The thing is, when saying "players", you are in fact not always talking about the same people. Both groups exist simultaneously, and I guarantee if Gunbreaker had been announced as a DPS, there would be a "I wish Gunbreaker would be a tank class." thread in this forum right now.

For my own perspective, I agree that it's only fair that the career tanks get a new job this time round - they've had to watch us DPS mains get the new toys last expansion. For the same reason, I hope the career healers will have something to get excited about at the JP Fan Fest.

Putting an iconic weapon like the gunblade in the hands of a tank is also a good move on SE's part in that they've been struggling to get people to play tank jobs for years. I don't see a logical issue with it either, insofar as logic can be applied to a world where everything just works because of aether. A (relatively) light, manoeuvrable weapon that can enhance the force of a strike to deflect as though it were a heavier weapon is basically ideal for parrying.

Definitely time for a new tank and I hope the other job is a healer.

Post 2.0, four dps have been added. Ninja, MCH, RDM, SAM.

Only one tank and healer have been added. DRK and AST. I'm not counting BLU as a dps here because it's a limited job.

It's time for tanks and healers to get new toys. And I hope we get a healer too to round things out because I suspect going forward we may not always get 2 full jobs each expansion as the overhead from previous expansions carries on to new ones. Artifact sets for every job, new weapon models for every job, new job stories, new abilities and traits, balancing them all etc. I wouldn't honestly be shocked if 6.0 came with only one new regular job.

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Originally Posted by Reinha

I wonder if Gunbreaker will be able to apply slashing debuff. Maybe that would shake up the meta.

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It won't, it would just make SAM's only utility even more redundant.

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Originally Posted by linay

It won't, it would just make SAM's only utility even more redundant.

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Isn't SAM supposed to be a 'selfish dps' anyway lacking utility but with high personal dps?

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Originally Posted by linay

It won't, it would just make SAM's only utility even more redundant.

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Which is already redundant to WAR and NIN anyway...

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Originally Posted by Bright-Flower

Isn't SAM supposed to be a 'selfish dps' anyway lacking utility but with high personal dps?

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Sure, so either way, a slashing debuff from gunbreaker won't do anything to the meta (by itself).

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Originally Posted by Seraphor

Which is already redundant to WAR and NIN anyway...

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Hence more redundant.

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Originally Posted by linay

Sure, so either way, a slashing debuff from gunbreaker won't do anything to the meta (by itself).

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There’s currently a 33% chance that your tanks won’t have the ability to apply any slashing debuff (PLD/DRK) that makes having a NIN or a SAM more important.
Now that half of our tanks will be able to apply a slashing debuff (WAR and GUN) that NIN and SAM will be less essential.
While this might be a mark down for the somewhat neglected SAM, it’s a bonus against the essential inclusion of NIN.

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Originally Posted by Seraphor

There’s currently a 33% chance that your tanks won’t have the ability to apply any slashing debuff (PLD/DRK) that makes having a NIN or a SAM more important.
Now that half of our tanks will be able to apply a slashing debuff (WAR and GUN) that NIN and SAM will be less essential.
While this might be a mark down for the somewhat neglected SAM, it’s a bonus against the essential inclusion of NIN.

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I was under the impression that current meta includes WAR.

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Originally Posted by linay

I was under the impression that current meta includes WAR.

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"The Meta" goes further than one precise load out, or it wouldn't be that big of a problem. The problem is that people try to replicate it to some extent in content that it isn't necessary to do so.

All in all Gun Breaker will probably be more popular and appealing than a hammer using class, but part of me kind of wishes we'd gotten one similar to hammers I think we saw Grynwaht and Nero use at different points unless I'm mistaken, if only to give another job that does blunt damage like monks so they're not the only one, but I guess adding it for the sake of doing that may just complicate things and make the new tank less desirable in the meta not being able to sync up with other slashing damage tanks or something. I don't know. Though it may all be moot anyway if they end up adjusting how it works in the combat system changes, but we won't be getting that info for quite a while still.

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Originally Posted by Ekimmak

Honestly, by that logic, nobody other than Paladin should be able parry at the moment, though. And I shouldn't be able to tank Head On so effectively with Raw Intuition...

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You can parry anything with anything, provided you can move fast enough with it in comparison to the attack to hit it from the side. It's just going to be a lot easier when you use small weapon in comparison to a large weapon.

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Originally Posted by Ekimmak

I guess trying to bring logic into this isn't really working...

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Logic never could have been included with parrying because you still receive most of the damage. A successful parry prevents the attack from hitting at all. There's no damage to be had from an attack parried. Basically, parrying forces the opponent to miss.

But that would be overpowered, hence why parrying is used in games with the lowered damage mechanic. It's actually quite irksome, especially when there's "block". Unlike parrying, block actually allows for damage to "pass". Since it does not deflect force away from the user but adds a middleman (shield or weapon), some of the force is still passed unto the users hands (and possibly more if the attack is powerful enough). Whatever is used to block can also be destroyed in the process. Maybe not as easily in real life, but I can imagine a giant dragon to wreck a wooden shield rather easily. But hey, parrying and block were different for the sake of paladin and his shield and there's no third option, unless a rough "mitigate".

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Originally Posted by Ekimmak

What does the gun provide to the tank class, other than more "Beefy DPS Meta" that I could really do without?

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Um...this may get a bit long...but let's see here.

Let's start with this. What IS a tank?! In real life from which the term comes a tank is a vehicle that have three traits.
It's armored, it protects its users and it does have high firepower. Yes, high firepower. It's not a tank if it does not have a cannon of some sort. That would be just an armored vehicle. A tank is an offensive powerhouse that protects on the side, not a shield that can also attack. There are tons of armored vehicles, on wheels and on tracks, that are not tanks because their heaviest weaponry is the like of a minigun (a powerful weapon itself).

In a game, which "borrows" the term, a tank is the class that draws enemies enmity, surviving more than other classes. As a bonus, tanks usually have high-damage weapons (unless they have shields). Their damage is reduced for balances sake with low-damage skills and slow attack rate, but their weapons themselves are high-damage.

In a games lore, what is a tank?! This is a little bit less obvious. Because people tend not to read lore in games or just forget. In lore in just about any game that makes it explicit, enmity (or however it's called in a given game) is a measure of how much mobs want to kill a given person. That is usually born from anger (Provoke uses this) and...most often...from the threat the character poses to the enemy (gruesome attacks, which tanks certainly have thematically). That's why part of the equation for enmity generation is damage. The only reason why tanks don't have the highest damage is for balance, but in the games lore, they ARE the highest damage dealers. They ARE the most destructive (alright, Warrior and Dark Knight in FFXIV, Paladin just gets himself in-between the enemy and ally...hence "Cover").


Now, if we combine that...what do we get?!

A tank needs armor for itself. Check. Fending gear is mostly rather heavy armor, regardless of the material. It does represent heavy armor stat-wise in all cases anyway.
A tank needs to protect others (their party). Check. Tanks have enmity bonuses that are a balanced way of them taking hits for others.
A tank needs high firepower. Kinda. Their high firepower is represented in weapons base attack and enmity bonuses, but not in damage over time. Paladin is a special case due to it being more defensive. There were tanks with weaker cannons though, so it's not too much of a stretch. Besides, the magic makes up for it.


A gunblade does work well for that. A weapon is NOT what gives "tanks" their survival, that's what armor is for. A weapon is meant to give firepower, which tanks lore-wise should have in excess. A gunblade is a "cannon" among weapons alright.

So, sorry, but thematically gunblade does actually fit a "tank". You can say that you don't like the idea, but you cannot really say it doesn't fit it.

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Originally Posted by loreleidiangelo

People are misunderstanding and thinking I'm talking about individual class balance, when what I mean is that the tank and healer roles in this game have serious design issues that affect individual class balance.

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No one misunderstood you. But again, the same issue applies to DPS to a greater degree. The in-between balance for DPS is bigger than it is for the tanks or healers. And since there is even more competition, they suffer a lot more as well.

I don't know bout you, but I see DPS complaining about being kicked for their job a lot more than tanks. And as was said earlier, the supposed "weakest" healers and tanks were prominent in the top groups for high-end content. The worst tank and healer is in much better position than the worst DPS, so if there's one role they should focus on balancing first, it should have been DPS in the first place.
That's, of course, useless as I said. Balancing stuff that will change right after it's done (if it will be done in the first place) just cause level cap is increased is a poor mans excuse not to make job of a given role.

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Originally Posted by Kazrah

As for the "parry logic" argument, do those who make that argument realize that weapons and gear can be repaired? Might not hurt either to go watch some videos of Zweihander use too.

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Might not hurt to read carefully what you respond to either. I made the "parry logic" argument, and I don't recall every saying anything in any way relevant that would combine "weapon breaking" and "parrying" in one sentence.

Furthermore, yes, weapons can be repaired. But you should read a bit more about reality if you think that's an argument to make blocking with weapons (which I said may damage weapon) a desirable method of defense. In real combat if your weapon breaks from blocking it means that there is someone that wants to kill you. And if you have no weapon from blocking and they DO have a weapon (if theirs didn't break)...you're dead. In other words, you're unlikely to have an opportunity to repair a weapon that breaks.

Naturally no one is stupid enough not to block if they need to. But in terms of priority it's better only than getting a clear hit on yourself. Anyone fighting will prioritize dodging (which is best option, but least likely to be possible), parry (which is unlikely to really damage your weapon and will put you at an advantage like dodging to boot) and only then blocking (which puts strain on the weapon, may allow some force to get to hands etc. possibly risking letting go of it and forces you into a position from which attacking may be ineffective).
That it was used is absolutely beyond the shadow of doubt. There were weapons (not shields) actually made to make blocking more effective.
That people parried with larger weapons is also beyond shadow of doubt, because as I said above, you can parry with anything.

What I said is that smaller weapons are better at parrying and larger weapons are better at blocking. Nothing more, nothing less. All the other stuff is just in your head.

As a tank main whose favorite DPS job is MCH.. I'm excited :D

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Originally Posted by kikix12

A gunblade does work well for that. A weapon is NOT what gives "tanks" their survival, that's what armor is for. A weapon is meant to give firepower, which tanks lore-wise should have in excess. A gunblade is a "cannon" among weapons alright.

So, sorry, but thematically gunblade does actually fit a "tank". You can say that you don't like the idea, but you cannot really say it doesn't fit it.

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Yep. And PLD is really the only overtly 'defensive' tank in the game when it comes to weapons, having a shield. There's not really anything defensive about giant swords and axes.

Mechanically, the gun can give a tank some tools for pulling, or ranged attacks when you have to run out of melee range, etc. Tanks normally won't be at range, but it doesn't mean they can't make use of ranged attacks now and then, like holy spirit for paladins.

On top of that, these are FF VIII style gunblades. The gun parts of these weapons are not generally used as a long range attack anyway. In FF VIII it was mostly used to 'fire' while slashing an enemy for extra damage. Contrast Squall in VIII with the cowboy character who just had a straight up gun. Irvine was it? Been a long time.

All tanks need some offensive capability. Even PLD focuses on expert swordsmanship, occasional offensive spell casting with holy spirit, and using the shield offensively with shield lob/bash/swipe. A tank will still make plenty of use with the gun part of a gunblade.

If I can heal someone by throwing a card at them (Lady of Crowns) then I think that "but it doesn't make sense" is no longer an appropriate argument. "But magic"? Ok, well, but magic. That's why gunbreaker works.

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Originally Posted by InkstainedGwyn

If I can heal someone by throwing a card at them (Lady of Crowns) then I think that "but it doesn't make sense" is no longer an appropriate argument. "But magic"? Ok, well, but magic. That's why gunbreaker works.

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I think it's a bit early to really say much anyway. We've only seen a handful of animations and have no idea what their toolkit is or what the lore of the job is. My GUESS is that the name gun breaker is because it's a style designed to counter Garlean guns and artillery and defend against them and counter them but until we get those quests we won't really know what the in lore explanation for it is.

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Originally Posted by kikix12

snip snip about tanks and stuff

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I think your reasoning is a bit of a stretch. Tanks are historically any armored vehicle that run on treads. Theyre not always mounted with 'cannons', nor are they always the 'highest destructive force' in combat. Even initially, tanks were more for crossing trenches and assisting in troop movement rather than being a firepower force. As a result, tanks actually vary in their capabilities when it comes to fire power.

At the end of day the argument you should be making isnt about firepower at all. A gun blade doesnt bring anything to tanking that a Sword and Shield, or an Axe, or a Greatsword couldnt bring, in terms of damage per say. They all hurt, but at varying degrees and in varying ways (just like actual tanks). Point of a tank isnt to be the biggest baddest most DPS-ing person on the battle field with the addition of having armor. Theyre supposed to fit a role of an armored unit that may provide support. Sometimes that is more along the lines of protecting allies (like a paladin does), and sometimes that more like being a menace (like a Warrior or DRK does). Im not sure what a gunblade will bring, tank wise, but that point is irrelevant. Its what their entire kit brings that makes a tank a tank, not the weapon they carry. So long as the GB class is armored and works in tandem with mitigation, it will fit the role of tank regardless of how it uses its weapon.

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Originally Posted by Melichoir

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Consdiering we see that Magic Bullets play a large role in Gunbreaker's abilities and the magitek inside their gunblade as well, I am assuming a lot of the tank skills will focus on using the Magic Bullets by shooting the bullet into the air so it breaks apart into magical energy that creates the magical barriers.

In my perspective it is basically like a magical Shotgun with different types of magical bullets for different tasks.

Explosive bullets for EXPLOSIONS to cause damage.

Barrier Bullets that breaks apart when shot out of the Gunblade to disperse Magical energy to create a barrier.

and etc....


I will not be surprised if they even have a Healing Magical Bullet they shoot into the air to disperse magical Healing energy once it breaks apart as their "self-heal" Tank skill.

As I said before, anything can be a tank or healer with the right imagination but how far are we willing to let that go for the sake of more Tanks and Healers is up to the majority.

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Originally Posted by Burningskull

With the Magicked Ammo and the way people are speculating on the job it somewhat sounds like the Gun Mage job from FFX-2.

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From what I've seen it basically is but that is how Squall's Gunblade has always worked even before X-2 Gun Mage was introduced.

That is actually the original use for Gunblades in FF8 being "insert Magic Bullet for X effect"

With the Magicked Ammo and the way people are speculating on the job it somewhat sounds like the Gun Mage job from FFX-2.

I wished Samurai was a tank and DRK was a DPS.

Didn't happen. Live in reality.

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Originally Posted by Melichoir

I think your reasoning is a bit of a stretch. Tanks are historically any armored vehicle that run on treads.

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You would be right...if the term "tank" was first used for defensive character in games early on.

By the time MMO games were made, tank was a heavily armored fighting vehicle I spoke of. That's the meaning of the word "tank" that is the origin of the gaming term.

You see, history may be unchangeable, but it's neither linear nor unchanging. Whenever looking at the origin of something you need to go from "now" to the point it was used the first time for the purpose you're interested in.

And sorry, but even the lightest tanks nowadays have more firepower than majority of other land-based weapons. Exceptions are probably only heavy artillery that are...well...being almost as large as tanks they are purely weapons, no armor included.

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Originally Posted by Melichoir

Theyre supposed to fit a role of an armored unit that may provide support. Sometimes that is more along the lines of protecting allies (like a paladin does), and sometimes that more like being a menace (like a Warrior or DRK does).

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I explained the origin of the term for the "aesthetic" reason why Gunblade fits a tank and you try to counter it with an argument about mechanics, completely ignoring lore. Congratulations. By your logic Warrior and Dark Knight are not tanks, they're DPS. Do you realize that?!

Warriors lore is ALL ABOUT them being that unstoppable, destructive force. Literally everything in the quests is about them being walking walls of destruction.

Dark Knights story line is all about being the stronger force that destroys the strong oppressors to protect the weak. The "one fighting against many". Both of these classes are fundamentally about protecting through DESTROYING opposition.

Their mechanics being less so is purely balance matter. But mechanically anything fits any role, so it's utterly pointless to discuss.

Thats kind of my point. The weapon is irrelevant ultimately as long as the class with its skills functions as a 'tank' type job (job that mitigates damage, typically holds threat in the holy trinity setup, and relies on some level of damage/utility). It doesnt matter what the weapon is at that point. You could make Machinest a tank if you got creative about it. You could easily make Dragoon a tank, or Ninja, or Monk. You could have a Caster like Summoner or BlackMage be tanks depending on how you handle skill and the like. It ultimately doesnt matter what the weapon is, but the kit.

Granted people associate certain weapons with tanks (typically sword and board as the go-to), but beyond that, anything goes.

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Originally Posted by kikix12

snip snap

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Oh christ crispies, what are you taking about? My criticism lied with how you tried to equate the tank to actual real life tanks and how it makes sense (talking about firepower and etc), where Im pointing out that youre analogy doesnt make sense in that line of thinking and even more so that that facet is irrelevant. The only real distinguishing thing from both real life and from a gameplay perspective is its an armored unit that usually works with other units and may or may not be the 'biggest' firepower on the field. It was a bad analogy you were making, and you shouldve relied more on the facet if the classes kit rather than what weapon theyre bringing cause that is more logically consistent even within your analogy and more relevant. It really shouldve been a simple "It doesnt matter what weapon is being brought, only what the kit is like."

Play a machinist and stand in melee. Wish granted.

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Originally Posted by kikix12

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Originally Posted by Melichoir

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Um not to meddle buuut I was under the impression that you were both on the same side of the debate? Why are you arguing? ^^

I hope that Gunbreaker can be a Tank and the new healer won't be a dancer, but Geomancer instead.

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Originally Posted by miraidensetsu

I hope that Gunbreaker can be a Tank and the new healer won't be a dancer, but Geomancer instead.

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It -is- a tank.

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Originally Posted by Bonbori

Um not to meddle buuut I was under the impression that you were both on the same side of the debate? Why are you arguing? ^^

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I dont know! Good question! Im probably being overly nit picky.

I guess I thought his analogy was semi silly. Wouldve made more sense if he was just like "Who cares what it is, Gunblade, Axe, Sword, whatever. A tanks a tank cause of their kit, not their weapon".

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Originally Posted by miraidensetsu

I hope that Gunbreaker can be a Tank and the new healer won't be a dancer, but Geomancer instead.

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Thought it literally said in the story for AST that AST and GEO are essentially the same class, just called AST by western standards, and GEO by eastern ones?

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Originally Posted by Melichoir

Thought it literally said in the story for AST that AST and GEO are essentially the same class, just called AST by western standards, and GEO by eastern ones?

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They compliment each other, but they are pointedly not the same thing. Aside from a similar method of channelling, AST being from the stars and GEO from the earth. In a similar fashion to FFXI, as I've come to understand it. Likely as it is to happen as a healer, I envision GEO more as DPS in the same vein as bard. If it was ever added. Geo-clocure spells like in FFXI, focus on group buffs.

Just give me BLU as a full class and Spellblade/Mystic knight as a melee dps and I'll be fine. Tanks can have whatever else. Personally, I've wanted a Viking or something Similar with a Massive hammer for a tank class. WHY DONT WE HAVE A MASSIVE HAMMER TANK?

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Originally Posted by Dralonis

Just give me BLU as a full class and Spellblade/Mystic knight as a melee dps and I'll be fine. Tanks can have whatever else. Personally, I've wanted a Viking or something Similar with a Massive hammer for a tank class. WHY DONT WE HAVE A MASSIVE HAMMER TANK?

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So much this...

they keep teasing with that garlean hammer tech too...

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Originally Posted by Rowde

So much this...

they keep teasing with that garlean hammer tech too...

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I'm surprised they haven't yet besides that it's not a highly requested class like gunblade,beastmaster,puppet master, and dancer. I just hope they don't give spellblade/mystic knight to tanks. It's been the only melee dps class I've wanted since ARR haha. I'd be torn if melee got a giant hammer.. I feel it would work better with a Viking hybrid class as a tank with a Hammer.

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Originally Posted by Melichoir

I dont know! Good question! Im probably being overly nit picky.

I guess I thought his analogy was semi silly. Wouldve made more sense if he was just like "Who cares what it is, Gunblade, Axe, Sword, whatever. A tanks a tank cause of their kit, not their weapon".




Thought it literally said in the story for AST that AST and GEO are essentially the same class, just called AST by western standards, and GEO by eastern ones?

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However in the 4 lords questline we see that GEO is compared to WHM, however GEO deals with more conjuring of different elements not just earth, water and wind.

Geomancy would go into a much deeper aspect of conjuring with the mixing of the elements like how geomancer was in tactics. But I think it will be dancer instead due to the sheer amount of requests for it.

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Originally Posted by kikix12

Um...this may get a bit long...but let's see here.

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Honestly, I'm willing to concede here, not because my subjective opinion on what should or shouldn't be tank worthy has changed, but because it's such an impressive and well thought out definition on tanks in general.

I just hope they don't tie ammo to defensive AND offensive play, because I know exactly how the forums are going to react to that.

To everybody who wanted it to be ranged dps specifically:
- level MCH
- run Stone Vigil until you get Blue Steel as drop
- glam it on

Congratulations, you are playing a ranged dps, gunblade user.

https://img2.finalfantasyxiv.com/acc...66101801f6.jpg

Talk about "not bringing anything unique to the role".

Ever and always, it's the lore of jobs that have intrigued me in the FF series, more so when they have real world basis. So for my part Samurai should have been a Tank in all honesty.

The samurai (or bushi) were the warriors of premodern Japan. They later made up the ruling military class that eventually became the highest ranking social caste of the Edo Period (1603-1867). Samurai employed a range of weapons such as bows and arrows, spears and guns, but their main weapon and symbol was the sword.

The bushidō code is typified by eight virtues:

Righteousness (義 gi)
Be acutely honest throughout your dealings with all people. Believe in justice, not from other people, but from yourself. To the true warrior, all points of view are deeply considered regarding honesty, justice and integrity. Warriors make a full commitment to their decisions.

Heroic Courage (勇 yū)
Hiding like a turtle in a shell is not living at all. A true warrior must have heroic courage. It is absolutely risky. It is living life completely, fully and wonderfully. Heroic courage is not blind. It is intelligent and strong.

Benevolence, Compassion (仁 jin)
Through intense training and hard work the true warrior becomes quick and strong. They are not as most people. They develop a power that must be used for good. They have compassion. They help their fellow men at every opportunity. If an opportunity does not arise, they go out of their way to find one.

Respect (礼 rei)
True warriors have no reason to be cruel. They do not need to prove their strength. Warriors are not only respected for their strength in battle, but also by their dealings with others. The true strength of a warrior becomes apparent during difficult times.

Honesty (誠 makoto)
When warriors say that they will perform an action, it is as good as done. Nothing will stop them from completing what they say they will do. They do not have to 'give their word'. They do not have to 'promise'. Speaking and doing are the same action.

Honour (名誉 meiyo)
Warriors have only one judge of honor and character, and this is themselves. Decisions they make and how these decisions are carried out are a reflection of who they truly are. You cannot hide from yourself.

Duty and Loyalty (忠義 chūgi)
Warriors are responsible for everything that they have done and everything that they have said and all of the consequences that follow. They are immensely loyal to all of those in their care. To everyone that they are responsible for, they remain fiercely true.

Self-Control (自制 jisei)

Part of being a Samurai was having someone to protect a swear fealty to.

What we got was Ronin masquerading as Samurai.

Ronin
The word rōnin literally means "wave man". It is an idiomatic expression for "vagrant" or "wandering man", someone who is without a home. The term originated in the Nara and Heian periods, when it referred to a serf who had fled or deserted his master's land. It then came to be used for a samurai who had no master. (Hence, the term "wave man" illustrating one who is socially adrift)
The key difference between Samurai and Ronin is, they were masterless samurai, kind of like soldiers that have abandoned their fight, dismissed, or had their nation conquered. They are trained, but they have no direction of loyalty.

Now lets look at Gunbreaker...
The job itself is a call back to Squall and Seifer. lets see... what were they called again?
https://kunzelman.files.wordpress.co...psogl2_078.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/w8wMeX3.jpg
https://lparchive.org/Final-Fantasy-...VIII_16179.jpg

Hmm... well Siefer was the antagonist so what he say doesn't matter. Surely no one else cared about such a throw away title. I mean it wasn't really a thing was it?

https://lparchive.org/Final-Fantasy-...VIII_19993.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/taASz7g.jpg

Huh, seems like a Gunblade using warrior was always Tanking for others they had sworn to protect. Now if only we could have that reflected that in FFXIV...
https://66.media.tumblr.com/172f1b55...0tgno2_500.gif

How cheap so many Samurai hold their vaunted blades, so ready to cast them aside for something new and shiny. The definition Ronin if I ever saw it. From a lore perspective, it's no wonder Tanking is foreign a concept for so many, you have to be willing to lead and carry others through while willingly sacrificing yourself.

Serve... Save... Slave... Slay...
Fray Myste-