It's time to level a healer but I'm not sure which one to pick!

I have leveled my tank of choice and a dps of choice and I intend to move on to my healer of choice... except I can't decide on which one. My fc members did strongly recommend Whm but I'm kind of conflicted cause I like the thought of having a slave by my side. Is Scholar really all that bad? Been only hearing bad things about non-Whm this expansion
:(. As for Ast, I tried playing during HW and I did not really like all the card mechanics.

Just play the one that appeals to you the most.

I'd recommend to play with the three jobs to see what clicks best for you. All three have their merits.

WHM is pretty fluid and easy to get the flow of things. Right now, it's the better healer and does the most damage.

SCH has a bit more nuance to it. It's not bad by any means, but the general complaints you'll hear from it, myself included, stem from what we lost compared to past expansions, with nothing very interesting to compensate for it, also some fairy issues. But, it's very efficient and a very strong healer.

AST.... has issues. Mostly potenticies and a gutted card system. However, if you've never really experienced Stormblood's AST, you might find it enjoyable, and you always be occupied. AST depends on its GCD healing more than WHM and SCH.

Since u never delved deep into any healer role, i think it would be fine to pick any healer, to me SCH is still a fun job, just less dps option. WHM is just the preferred healer of this expansion. AST is fun too, the card is simplified if u don’t like the previous card system.

Were supposed to get another patch soon I would wait till then.

WHM has always been the go-to "vanilla" healer that's easy to understand and gets the job done. Recently though, after the expansion changes, it's currently the strongest healer with a lot of practical tools and a gauge at later levels that steadily builds and rewards free, instant heals that culminates in a relatively powerful DPS spell. My only issue with it is I am usually bored playing it, though with their job gauge being updated in Shadowbringers, I'm less so than I used to, since it gives me something else to pay attention to.

AST isn't in a particularly nice place for now, and hopefully it changes soon, but I've always enjoyed the extra layer of nuance in drawing a card between healing and deciding the best way to use it in the current circumstances. The card system has been simplified, yes, but I don't think it's bad per se, just not as thought-provoking. You're essentially now just picking the correct DPS player to use the card on (either melee or ranged) and playing "Bingo" as a secondary objective for your AoE buff (which right now is on a way too long cooldown for its low potency). But so far most of it's extra tools/abilities range from gimmicky to inferior to the other healers as it stands. If you'd like a healer with a little more to keep you busy, or rather- another "activity" to do, you could consider AST, but I highly recommend trying WHM first to see if that's even something you care about.

SCH... I know little about, especially after Shadowbringers launched. It's never been my cup of tea, so I'd let other people describe it. It's... Shield oriented though?

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Originally Posted by Naychan

Were supposed to get another patch soon I would wait till then.

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When is the next patch?

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Originally Posted by glamazon

When is the next patch?

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Supposedly Tuesday.

WHM then SCH the AST, if you want to level them all, from easy to hard healer to play to get you familiar with healing system of this game

I don't know if things will change in next patch but currently AST healing spell feel so weak, will take you alot of effort to keep up with big pull in current patch 4 man dungeon run where you have to solo heal it (i dont say it's impossible just hard)

Scholar is by no means bad performance wise (all the complaints are related to it's gameplay, not its healing/DPS output), so if the job appeals to you and you find yourself enjoying playing it, there's absolutely no reason for not picking it.

WHM is easy to play and i think that it is most comfortable of the three for someone new to healing.

However if you want to try SCH then you definetly should. Its not that much harder, performs well and is not overwhelming with so many buttons to press like it was before. And you are Lalafell which is plus lore wise :)

Sch seems easier than whm. Hard to heal when you only slot holy. :D

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Originally Posted by Minnel

I have leveled my tank of choice and a dps of choice and I intend to move on to my healer of choice... except I can't decide on which one. My fc members did strongly recommend Whm but I'm kind of conflicted cause I like the thought of having a slave by my side. Is Scholar really all that bad? Been only hearing bad things about non-Whm this expansion
:(. As for Ast, I tried playing during HW and I did not really like all the card mechanics.

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If you aske me (I'm about to level up healer as well, want to get those role side quests in Crystarium) - I would choose the SCH. 1st of all he have a fairy - plus for me everytime. Love 'em. 2nd If i'm not mistaken, you will recieve an EXp for ARC, so you will simultaniously lvl up the SMN as well. If I'm not mistaken, tho I CAN BE.

WHM is kind of the flavor of the month at the moment, they put out great damage and can heal almost solely with ogcds.

AST has historically been the balance job, can play like both SCH and WHM depending on what was needed, cards were gutted recently so it's become nothing more than find who does the most DPS and spam every card on them.

SCH is serviceable, not bad, not great. Gets the jobs done.

If you haven't healed in previous versions, you're in a good place. A lot of the negativity of the healer camp right now is about what was changed from before. But not all.

WHM is straight forward, strong heals. Always has been. It's the easiest to pick up, IMO. 5.0 has a much better job gauge that's easy to use. They kitted us with some insta-heals and fixed a few weird abilities like Plenary Indulgence. DPS is also very good and Holy spam is as ridiculous as ever. WHM are very happy right now. You wouldn't be wrong to pick it.

SCH negativity is primarily focused on the loss of their DPS package from before. That was the draw for a lot of SCH mains. However, SCH is absolutely still a formidable healer that plays well. It's just not as DPS focused anymore. Plus the new Seraph is pretty rad. Fairy auto-healing makes a lot of dungeons a no-brainer. The fairy can heal most damage without a whole lot of player intervention.

AST negativity is pretty well deserved, IMO. The uniqueness of the card system was steamrollered and made cookie-cutter simple. There's very little decision making anymore. Just flat attack bonuses with short duration, so you're constantly having to throw them out. It keeps you really busy and requires several button presses at times (distracting you from healing and mechanics) and culminates in a pretty lackluster ability with a really long CD. The potencies of AST abilities seem a bit low, especially considering how much else they have to do for cards. Celestial Opposition in particular is pretty meh. It's the only healer with a ranged AOE though. It might be worth waiting to see if this class gets a patch soon...

Otherwise, a big difference between healers is the "type" of healing. WHM have good Regen and restorative healing, while SCH have shields for damage mitigation and the fairy for auto-healing. It's all healing, but they play and feel different. AST have the ability to swap stances and do either Regen or Shields.

Anything but AST, it's trash now compared to the other two. ;)