Gameplay Hopes for the next Physical Ranged Job

For fun effort post

TLDR: What kind of gameplay are you hoping for with the next physical ranged job? Does it maybe match the theme of a potential wish list job of yours?
Did read: See above + Any unforeseen problems with something like I proposed? Does it seem fun? What would you add/remove?



Since VPR and PCT are our two most recent jobs, I am going forward with the assumption that SE would design the next phys ranged under similar thinking. What stands out to me about VPR and PCT is their supreme flexibility in their rotations and in regards to dealing with melee downtime/cast times respectively. This isn’t exactly anything groundbreaking for melees and casters in FFXIV, but I feel that these two jobs were crafted in such a way that you are given the tools to play around what an encounter throws at you without having to resort to odd holdings of certain actions or usage of far inferior options.

To provide a couple of examples: VPR disengaging from a boss with coil/adjusting their rotation order to avoid risking losing a follow up oGCD or PCT having a generous amount of time to choose their best spots for motifs and having the option to bank a bunch of instant cats to utilize if need be.



Now to the physical ranged role. It’s always felt odd to me that not only does phys ranged get complete freedom of movement, but they also have the easiest gameplay in the game (imo). You sometimes get some random proc you press occasionally on BRD/DNC with an otherwise rather bare bones main rotation, or as a MCH, be able to map out your entire rotation for an encounter to the GCD. (I mainly play MCH no h8) This is again all compounded by the fact that there is zero consideration for maintaining melee uptime/cast times. Phys ranged just doesn’t hold a candle to the extra thinking and risk/reward that comes with melee/caster gameplay.



So what sort of more robust gameplay could a new physical ranged job bring to the table that maintains their freedom of movement while also keeping in line with the design trend of VPR and PCT's lower emphasis on very strict cd timers, but greater freedom of skill/spell placements? My thinking is a heavy and strict- but manipulatable weave economy with added potential extra potency bonuses provided you meet given range requirements.



This is largely inspired by VPR's many oGCD follow ups that can only be used following certain actions, else you lose them. I'm thinking most of your GCDs, maybe ~80%+, will always followed up with low potency oGCDs that would occupy the following weave window. 2 oGCDs after a base sks 2.5 weapon skill, or 1 oGCD after a 1.5 weapon skill. Hell, throw some mudra-like 1 second GCDs with no room for oGCDs in there as well. If the job being too high apm/ping reliant is a potential issue, having some of the skills be cast while moving like in PvP could be used to similar effect.

Basic thought process is you have mitigations, possible party buffs, and your own hard hitting/important oGCDs that you want to utilize at certain points of the fight, but a majority of your rotation works in a way that if you don't plan around it, you would risk overwriting one of those constant, ever present damaging oGCDs, and thus suffer a slight damage loss.

To deal with this, you are given a few GCD options, ideally through a resource + skills with charges for flexibility that do not trigger follow up oGCDS. You decide where to place these throughout a fight for mitigation placements and burst windows to fit other important oGCDs separate from your main filler rotation. Think BLM placing instant cast spells throughout their rotation for planned oGCD usage, except your issue isn't that you have cast times, it's that you'd otherwise have to lose out a damaging oGCD to use something else if not planned correctly.

Even with all of this in mind, I have no doubt this would still fall victim to having your rotations feeling nearly the exact same across every fight as a phys ranged, so I would also propose that a fair number of your weapon skills/abilities have close range or far range damage bonuses. Something like <=~3y for close, >=~10y for far. Think melee positionals, where the skill is still usable in range regardless, but has a base potency with a potential for additional potency provided you meet the requirement. Perhaps have the associated actions on your hotbar do a sort of glow when their range bonus is met + a job gauge that also indicates whether you're currently in one of the ranges. You too as a phys ranged would be able to play and optimize around what space the boss is allowing and denying you pull to pull.



This is fundamentally pretty blueprint level with a lot of room for some sort of added gauge(s), other resource management, and general GCD to GCD gameplay rules. But I think something of this style for a new phys ranged would offer the sort of positioning, movement, and extra thought put into the roles' rotations that it is currently comparatively lacking to its melee and caster counterparts.

For aesthetic funsies, I'll just add that a dual wielding crossbow job is my ideal; have main hand be the GCDs and off hand be the oGCDs. Maybe mix instant cast magic usage that would comprise a lot of your free weave windows (thematically I'm thinking something along the lines of D3 Demon Hunter). Phys ranged kind of lacks a "cool" job, BRD and DNC are more whimsical and MCH feels a bit goofy and over the top. (I still love it though)