SCH/WHM??

So i really only invested alot of my time into my DRG, but i'm wanting to branch out to a healer role, while i also lvl up BRD for my FC but i'm kinda torn. I have a lvl 42 SCH but i feel like WHM might have greater impact in instances and raids. I'm really new to healing and just want advice or tips from people who have mained healers for awhile. Any advice will be appreciated.

Thank you!

Neither healer really has a 'bigger impact' on raids as you put it, they are just different.

As a SCH you'll be mitigating damage (shielding, being mainly in charge of Virusing things [when not faced with multiple enemies/adds etc.]) and exceling in single-target healing. Also, as a SCH you will have better sustainability over time, so you will resurrect people over the WHM, always, if possible. (If not for a SMN in the party). Obviously, good WHMs manage their MP well, but that's another thing already.

On a WHM, you will have the raw power to heal through more things (burst healing) and superior AOE-healing, but you can also burn yourself out resource-wise easier. Enmity problems can ensue if you are not careful with your heals and or have subpar tanks.

Just depends which is more your thing, but I would say the WHM is slightly less daunting to approach if you're new to healing. Both great jobs to play.

I would say, if you are new to healing in general, WHM is the way to go. The design is pretty straight forward (heal, heal, and heal) so it is a good job to introduce a newbie into healing. If you are up for more of a challenge, go SCH. Has a vastly different toolset and requires a different mindset, as well as harder to master, but it is a much more powerful contribution to endgame parties because it offers greater versatility and less MP problems.

Thank you guys! I really am grateful for all the advice

I resent the comment about SCH being more of a challenge and a more powerful endgame contributor.

First off, enmity and mana conservation are part of the challenge involved in WHM. Otherwise WHM throughput would be catastrophically broken. WHM must also better predict precast for large hits as we don't get a shield if we heal early. I'm not saying that SCH is easier as micromanaging a bet I'm sure is not a whole lot of easy.

As for endgame. I believe SCH shields still do not stack, limiting their 8 man ability. A WHM is almost always needed for difficult 8 man content, something no other class can effectively boast.

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Originally Posted by PinkDeadly

I resent the comment about SCH being more of a challenge and a more powerful endgame contributor.

First off, enmity and mana conservation are part of the challenge involved in WHM. Otherwise WHM throughput would be catastrophically broken. WHM must also better predict precast for large hits as we don't get a shield if we heal early. I'm not saying that SCH is easier as micromanaging a bet I'm sure is not a whole lot of easy.

As for endgame. I believe SCH shields still do not stack, limiting their 8 man ability. A WHM is almost always needed for difficult 8 man content, something no other class can effectively boast.

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Playing either to maximum potential has its own challenges, but I don't think anyone will argue against SCHs being more micro-intensive. From a per-button-mash perspective, WHM is far easier to play decently and that's where the whole "WHM is easier than SCH" thing comes from.

Both are fairly simple when it comes down to the basics though, in my opinion.

SCH has a much bigger learning curve than WHM. WHM is pretty straight forward, SCH will definitely take repetition to master. I can go into great detail on both heals, but thats a lot of info. You will see more WHM than you do SCH, so in terms of usefulness (thought both are equally useful) play a SCH

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Originally Posted by PinkDeadly

I resent the comment about SCH being more of a challenge and a more powerful endgame contributor.....

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Didn't you know? Pressing Physick Physick Adlo Physick Physick Adlo (occasional Lustrate, maybe a little Sacred Soil, little bit of Whispering here, little bit of fey light there) is harder than:

Cure Cure Cure Cure Cure Cure..............
/sarcasm mode off.

Both classes have different difficulties, Scholar difficulty comes in having more button to press (since when this is difficult? But that's another discussion).

WHM's difficulty is in RESTRAIN, a GOOD WHM will be one who can complete ALL content WITHOUT the use of Ballad (possible, shocking, I know right?!).
But since bards are in abundance, the difficulty is alleviated immensely, although if we were to consider a BARDLESS situation, IMHO, WHM is harder to play than SCH.

In a bardless situation, a SCH can just press everything he has like a hyperactive child and still have MP to spare at the end of the day.
in the same situation, a WHM who ABCs (Always Be Casting), will run out of MP not even 50% into the battle.

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Originally Posted by PinkDeadly

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As one who plays both WHM and SCH (i pretty much like them evenly)

WHM: i basically spam Cures. I can do other things, but I see damage done, I cure it. I see a lot of damage done, I cure II it. Everybody got hit? Easy AoE heal

SCH: Manage my Aetherflows well so I have what I need for emergencies, making sure i use Aetherflow every time its up, placing my fairy, knowing when to use my faeries skills (with good placement) to benefit from them. Pre-empting Adlos/Succors so that the shields are used to their best potential.

I feel that I actually do more on SCH, so its more difficult. But I would choose a WHM over SCH for a solo heal anyday.

Another notable difference - do you like big numbers? WHM holy and Cure II crits are huge, so is enmity.

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Originally Posted by MrDiezel

WHM: i basically spam Cures. I can do other things, but I see damage done, I cure it. I see a lot of damage done, I cure II it. Everybody got hit? Easy AoE heal

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One challenging thing about WHM is that you often have to start casting before people get hit because in some fights you have to move right after that or you have different priorities after that. Ultima HM is the best example here as you need to move to avoid things or pop next orbs or heal tank that is about to be hit by that greeny laser splash. I have little SCH experience though as I stopped leveling is as soon as I got e4e but I have an impression that precast and movement management is a bit more important to a WHM than to a SCH.

Generally SCH looks more interesting and challenging, but look at those heal crit numbers! HEAL POWAAAAH!

In choosing between whm and sch there's a few things to consider in how they play.

First, which complexity do you want at high level? Micro-managing a pet and not having to worry about your mp, or managing your mp and only having your own skills to worry about.

Second. Single target vs aoe. Although both classes are perfectly capable of both, sch has an edge in single target, and whm in aoe. So MT healer or party healer?

Third. Big heal vs mitigation. Or how I like to put it, would you rather be able to recover easily from an 'oh crap' moment or more easily prevent an 'oh crap' moment? Whm has bigger heals for sure, and can heal up that player that just sucked that aoe much faster. Sch can have adlo and stoneskin on someone and have them survive the "instant death" skill Final Sting, for instance (I say that one in particular because I know I can do this on sch from experience).

I'd say try them both and see which you like. You would need 15 Conjurer for Sch anyway, and Conjurer is the easiest class to level from 15 to 30 to ever exist (don't mean it's the easiest to play to clarify - merely the experience earning quickly).

Then again, if you do just want to get right to healing, you can only heal on dungeons 15 to 30 on Conjurer. Another thing to consider.