Thoughts on Holy Sheltron changes? (PLD)

I only play PLD casually and at first glance I wasn't very happy about Holy Sheltron's changes.
To me it feels like the class' consistent/continuous utility is decreased for, what to me, looks like a comparably "small" (relatively speaking) damage increase every minute or so (I don't know how long PLD's LB actually charges).

The Confietor buff is nice but as a casual player I felt as if over time I got a lot more value out of my primary defensive CD and could contribute more to the team.

So I wonder if PLD mains who play it at high levels feel the same way or view it very differently?

Is the increased damage worth more in the hands of a skilled player at high levels than the the old HS and the overall decrease in defensive traits is a fair trade-off?

Is this what PLD needed to be better and more competitive and was HS too op in the hands of good players?

I'm still surprised though because I thought they adjusted jobs based on Japanese feedback and on tournament results and from what I have gathered PLD wasn't really represented there so as a non-pro I'm puzzled where the decision to change HS comes from.

The burst potential went up the ceiling with confiteor tbh. It's very valuable being able to add that damage to the team. So yes this is definitely way more impactful at high level than low level. If anything the job has been nerfed at low level with this.

But I liked PLD being more defensive, and I don't even thing it was even remotely close to tank junction GNB to begin with. So I don't know...

( I'm not a high level PLD main, I just play it casually )

Thank you for your insight! This probably explains then why I feel more affected at lower levels but you are right. It makes sense that a consistent increase in damage via Confietor may bring more value to the team if you already know how to maximise your defensive play (which I don't lol). I hadn't looked at it through that lense.

I agree though, I did/do like PLD fulfilling the role as the defensive, persistent class. It's a job fantasy that's very fun to me.

Well... It is bad for me. I never use sheltron offensively, and l never use lb offensively... If l Want to play offensively, l play Gnb and monk.

saying it was a dumb change would be putting it mildly, also i might be mistaken but im pretty sure this change runs counter to what they said last patch or two when they buffed the dmg of the LB then afterwards they said they wanted to focus more on PLD"S defense more, this came after HS was buffed, and this is coming from someone who plays PLD aggressively

PLD one-trick here.

• On paper Sheltron is weaker. On practice it doesn't feel much different, more so after growing used to it being only 10% mitigation for a long time. It helps reduce damage spikes on yourself although big bursts will get you the same way they did before the nerf. Makes me wonder why Melees have stronger defensive tools compared to the Tanks themselves. At least I would make it so it applies the Heavy effect if the shield is fully consumed so you have a reason to use it in the middle of the fray.
• Offensively speaking the extra Sheltron hit can help secure kills but it forces a bad playstyle if you rely too much on it with a lot of downtime. Imagine a Tank afk half the time around a corner trying to sneak an extra 12k damage, it sounds more of a ninja playstyle rather than a tank. Not to mention some map layouts don't allow this. The only reasonable offensive use you can make of sheltron is as an opener when coming back from respawn, elixir, during Hallowed or after ganking someone away from the fight. Although all it takes is a small hit to make that Sheltron damage negligible, more so now that the shield is 8k down from 12k, which leaves you with no extra burst and no self mitigation for the next 20 seconds. The reduction from 5 to 4 seconds makes using it offensively a bit easier since it goes off faster. Overall an unreliable source of damage. I agree Sheltron pre nerf was already worse than Nebula.
  It seems as though the reason for this change was rushed or came with short notice on last minute given they had issues with the tooltip display.
• The Confiteor change is noticeable and impactful. Exceeds what I had hoped they did to the ability.

I have more thoughts on what could be changed but I don't think this is the thread for the full break down.

Not going into Frontlines.

The combo is easier to set up in frontlines, and the buffed confiteor makes for a strong and safe burst damage. It's very valuable if you have teammates you can combo with.