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Me and some friends just came back to FFXIV recently..we have a 4 person setup for dungeons.. one plays a white mage, the other a warrior and 3rd is a Black mage.. I am the 4th person and can't decide what best compliments this group.. I have a Ninja, Red Mage, Bard and Summoner and like them all.. what class would compliment the other 3 in dungeons and otherwise? or is it comething I haven't listed here? I appreciate all your input, thanks!
From your list of classes, i'd pick NIN to have an access to melee lb and role actions, and otherwise pretty party-play oriented kit with aggro help and TA. Also resistance stacking with the WAR.
Out of those four jobs, Bard seems like the most obvious choice. Your healer and the other DPS are sort of lacking in party utility, and that's an area where the Bard really excels. Plus, it's a physical DPS job to complement the Black Mage's casting.
Edit: Pallero responded while I was typing. I'm unfamiliar with Ninja, still being fairly new to the game and all, but Pallero makes a pretty strong case for it.
hmm almost got Summoner to 40 now and it's been fun but sounds like it would increase DPS more but not necessarily compliment the group as well. Seems like every time I examine the options it comes down to Ninja and Bard.. I guess the real question then is WHICH one compliments better as they both have daunting combinations to remember and combine..so I have to weight the pros and cons..
Bard is fairly complex, to be totally honest. It's got several simple and straightforward things all going on at once, which adds up to a complex playstyle when you have to keep an eye on all of them. I actually decided at about level 67 or 68 that it probably isn't the job for me in the long run because I favor a simpler playstyle. I was always looking up and thinking, huh, how long ago did my song/DoTs/whatever expire? Guess I'd better put them back up...
Summoner also seems pretty complex, so if complexity is a downside for you I don't think I'd recommend it.
Red Mage, from what I've read, is one of the easier jobs to play, and the utility it brings is the sort that's only really needed in emergencies (extra healing and raises). That seems like it might be more my speed, and I plan to give it a try, myself, once I've got a little more experience at healing. It kind of seems like it might be a good fit for you, too. It'd make your party really magic-heavy, which might make some fights more difficult, but bringing Vercure and Verraise can make up for a lot of party weaknesses.
I agree Biff, the only backdraw to RDM seems like so far is that it's almost too easy to play.. and the ONLY utility you got are the heals and rez's and they aren't till higher level so until my friends get caught up (they are in their 30-40s now) I can't use those in their groups. Summoner ain't too bad.. I've played it now to 40 and haven't had much trouble, unless it get more complex. But with Bard I leveled mine to 58 now and you are right it's gotten alot more complex.. memorizing all the Ninja combos ain't much better lol..
In Wow my favorite classes where Warlock, which is why I like summoner, and Demon Hunter
Here's a thought.. how would Dragoon fit into that group? how is their DPS? I hear they bring alot of utility and decent DPS but would they do well with a WHM, WAR and BLM?
In most content the answer is that it doesnt matter a ton. Any 2nd DPS will be sufficient to clear 4 man content. As half of an 8 man group for bigger content any deficiencies can theoretically be covered by the other 4 people. But you asked about complementari-ness, so lets give you an answer. Samurai offers nothing that benefits this group. Monk has brotherhood(melee damage boost) for the tank and mantra(increased healing) for the healer. Dragoon has dragon eyes(damage boost to 1 party member) and battle litany(crit boost), both useful to anyone in the group(though dragoons will rarely give the eye bonus to a healer). Ninja has trick attack(damage boost) that benefits the whole party, and can use their enmity skills(shadewalker and smoke screen) to assist the tank. Machinist has dismantle(lowers targets outgoing damage) which is useful to the tank/healer, hypercharge(damage boost) and access to the ranged role skills(mp/tp regen, reduced incoming damage, out of combat run speed) which benefit everyone. Bard offers a ton - three seperate songs with a group crit buff(constant uptime possible), a direct hit buff, a damage boost(with an area affect, so it can affect multiple targets), a single target healing boost(increases healing taken, not healing done), they can heal or negate incoming status effects, and they have the same role skills as machinist. All of the above classes also use a different armor set then the BLM, so no one needs to directly compete for gear. A second Black Mage really doesnt offer anything to this group aside from a second person who can mana shift the healer. Red Mage has embolden(melee damage boost) for the tank, a raise, a heal, and can theoretically mana shift either the BLM or healer from time to time. And finally summoner has a res, has a mana shift(same as RDM), and their pets have a variety of useful abilities(devotion, contagion, radiant shield).
So whats the best combo? Probly bard number 1, with ninja and dragoon being 2 and 3. But as the above list shows, almost any DPS has something they offer to someone on that team.
Honestly for dungeons it doesn't matter that much what class/job you choose. I would recommend choosing a job that fit your playstyle. They are all different enough that you can probably find a class to your liking.
Like the others written before: Dungeons are made for Tank/Healer/Dps/Dps. Thats all what you need. Choose the Job that fits to you and not to the others in the party :)