Astrologian struggles

Hi :)

I have previously levelled a White Mage and Scholar to 70 and am currently levelling an Astro but having problems with it:

I’ve tried several runs of Aurum Vale and am finding it hard to keep people’s health up. It feels like the healing power is much less than White Mage and even not as strong as Scholar with its shields. I also seem to run out of mana faster. Does it get easier or stronger as you level up?

Also it feels like the Astro deals much less damage than the other healers which may make healing tougher I guess as things take longer to die. Does it get better later on damage wise? I’ve not noticed any strong aoe like Holy, assize or miasma 2. Does Astro get anything later like asylum or the scholar version?

Thanks!

Well before I say anything else, you do have diurnal on right? ( literally seen a few people at seventy who have no idea what that is so just want to get that out of the way first) also Mana wise Ast is really good with mp regen at lv60 to 70, it's one of the best imo. But yea Ast shouldn't have a problem healing those dungeons tbh.

Yep, I have diurnal on and I’m level 47. :)

It’s strange, the Astro’s cure and cure 2 equivalent (don’t remember the spell names!) seems to take longer to take effect after casting, so the tank seems to die more often because the heal doesn’t “kick in” fast enough, compared to the other healers, if you see what I mean :)

O, the thing is at that lv it's iffy but like at 60 and up Ast is faster than whm in my opinion, Ast end game really shines, it's ability to increase the duration of a buff for others and they're self is OP, level 70 Ast has 8 k regen for 40 seconds

WHM has 50 more potency than Benefic, Benefic 2, and Physick so an AST & SCH will have weaker heals than a WHM. Noct and SCH AoE shield are pretty much the same, their big difference is the power of aspected bene and crit adlo. If you feel like your heals aren't strong enough the you could try leveling as Noct to get the extra 15% boost to healing potency while in Noct stance. AST is more of a versatile utility healer so they can assume the shield healer or the throughput healer but they won't be king of it like their healer counterparts.

AST is really underwhelming before levels 60+, and especially under level 52 and Gravity. Use your cards as well as you can (feel free to Bole your tank if the damage seems high), use Essential Dignity as often as possible (and not too early), and use Largesse + Lightspeed healing to get out of a bad situation. You don't have Gravity yet, but you do have two DoTs and Malefic to cast on things whenever you can.

Edit: Keep your gear up to date and if you're struggling, check if the tank's gear is up to date... I've seen tanks with level 20 pieces in Aurum Vale.

There is a difference, but not so much that it should be giving you a hard time across the board. How is your gear? AST doesn't get lvl 45 artifact gear from a class quest. Give your gear an update and reattempt.

Hmm I think it’s in the level 41 range.

Upgrade that gear. That will help.

Aurum Vale is a big heal check. It rolls out damage hard, and the other players have to watch the different poison stacks themselves and eat fruit accordingly, are they start melting. If they wait too long, there isn't much you can do.

AST at that level is very underwhelming DPS wise. Card use should make up the difference with the party.

You get two very useful AoE skills later, Gravity (which is similar to Holy) and a unique spell called Earthly Star (you drop it like a zone on the ground, but as the clock ticks it gains power. When you set it off or let the timer finish, it has a huge burst of enemy damage and party healing on anything thing in the zone.) At level 70, AST does perfectly fine with doing damage amoung the three healers.

Honestly, other than your gear needing an upgrade, I can't see anything wrong other than AST is meh at that level and Aurum Vale can be painful.

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Originally Posted by TitaniaYaerem

WHM has 50 more potency than Benefic, Benefic 2, and Physick so an AST & SCH will have weaker heals than a WHM. Noct and SCH AoE shield are pretty much the same, their big difference is the power of aspected bene and crit adlo. If you feel like your heals aren't strong enough the you could try leveling as Noct to get the extra 15% boost to healing potency while in Noct stance. AST is more of a versatile utility healer so they can assume the shield healer or the throughput healer but they won't be king of it like their healer counterparts.

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Diurnal Benefic: 440
Nocturnal Benefic: 460

Diurnal Benefic II: 715
Nocturnal Benefic II: 748

AST is on par or better than WHM with respect to benefic and benefic II...

I felt the exact same way on my AST and I also leveled it after doing WHM. It just felt underwhelming to me.

I genuinely feel that it stayed that way pretty much until 70 but at 70 it's got a nice flow to it. The 40 second CD on ED is amazing and not to be understated and the regens you can put out on AST are also nice.

I think it's just that you get comfortable on WHM's plethora of oGCD options and AST doesn't stack up in that department.

I also agree with Taika - you aren't raiding on it right now, Aurum Vale doesn't have a hard enrage, I would just Bole the tank when they feel squishy. Also don't be afraid to Ewer yourself.

The Ewer and Lucid Dreaming both help AST maintain MP. Also a caster DPS with Mana Shift can help too.

Furthermore, if your gear needs updating it's a good idea to do that, and use Largesse if your Healing still falls short. Also make sure your Tank isn't pulling too big and DPS aren't throwing themselves at AoEs or pulling ahead of the Tank.

P.S. Diurnal Aspected Benefic stacks with Aspected Helios.

Aurum Vale was definitely one of the harder ones to heal as I have been leveling my AST recently as well. If you're running out of MP often try and stop and see where its all going. Are you topping people to full too much? Are you wasting heals on people even though they aren't in danger. Are you using your aspected benefic/helios enough, or too much(clipping ticks). How is your card usage, it can make a big difference.

The #1 thing that makes Aurum vale harder to heal though is people not clearing their poison stacks with fruit and that is not on you.

In AV, it is best to keep your aspected benfic on the tank nearly all the time when in combat. This will help with keeping the group up, as there is a ton of potential group damage in the dungeon. Also at 70 imo after leveling all 3 healers to 70, AST is the most fun :)

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Originally Posted by Thoosa

Hmm I think it’s in the level 41 range.

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Yeah, the struggle is from gear. It's a lvl 47 dungeon + WHM and SCH get that nice artifact gear upgrade that AST doesn't.

You're lvl 48 atm and since AST is just an alt, I don't think it's worth buying nice gear off the market. I'd recommend just upgrading with vendor/GC gear. You're quickly approaching lvl 50 and will have access to ironworks gear, which should solve your struggles.

I find this odd.. I don’t recall have many issues with pre-60 AST. I know that in ARR content it seems to be the case that our heals seem weaker, but I just heal and put my DPSing aside. Maybe throw out a combust or two.

What really confuses me is that it feels like Autumn Vale has been nerfed since 4.1. I can go on my AST and the tank can pull the entire first room and I’m fine.

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Originally Posted by SolarisAstraeus

What really confuses me is that it feels like Autumn Vale has been nerfed since 4.1. I can go on my AST and the tank can pull the entire first room and I’m fine.

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They nerfed the hp of mobs in pre 60 leveling dungeons, so they die really fast now.

edit on topic: overall ast has a vastly superior healing kit before 50 to whm, most of their heals cost less mp and heal for more, and they have an ogcd which whm doesn't have an equivalent to in essential dignity. The one thing I could see causing you mp problems is over use of aspected benefic; unlike whm, ast's regen is not their most mp efficient heal, in fact it's only marginally more efficient than benefic 2. Aside from the gear thing others have mentioned, there's 2 other areas that might be giving you grief at this particular level; lack of stun from holy, and card management.

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Originally Posted by Deathgiver

edit on topic: overall ast has a vastly superior healing kit before 50 to whm, most of their heals cost less mp and heal for more, and they have an ogcd which whm doesn't have an equivalent to in essential dignity.

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This. AST was always the one healer I had the easiest time with in AV because at level 47 you already have both Aspected Benefic and Aspected Helios. That's two regens you can slap on everyone even with the MP costs - literal life savers when the stacks start piling on that last boss. WHMs don't get Medica II until they're 50, but you're synced at 49 in AV, giving AST an edge.

It is mostly a gearing problem. Why? Because "older" jobs like Whitemage and Scholar get their shiny level 45 Job armor, which gives a huge boost in stats, while Astrologian, Machinist and Dark Knight have to go all the way with normal gear.