7.0 BLM Changes that wouldn't kill the job

Here is a simple rework to the proposed 7.0 Black Mage changes, without scrapping every single thing the devs have done with new animations and job gauges and stuff:

• Astral Soul: A new effect added to Amplifier. Grants x6 Astral Hearts to the new job gauge, each Heart upgrading Fire IV to Flare Star, a high-potency AOE nuke. Astral Hearts carry over across Ice phases until you use all of them, meaning you have x6 total buffed Fire IV casts every 2 minutes, giving BLM a bit more of a real burst window, while keeping shorter non-standard Fire lines viable. (While "Astral Soul" could be its own cooldown button to press, BLM doesn't have many weave slots as is. Additionally, we rarely drift Amplifier in any fight, especially compared to Ley Lines or Manafont, making this a true 2-minute burst option.)
• Keep Umbral Ice Paradox. Why was this removed. Lol
• Mana is regenerated by any and all GCDs pressed under Umbral Ice, including Xeno, High Thunder, and ice Paradox.
• Revert to the current system of random Thunderhead/Firestarter procs and Sharpcast. However, the proc-less High Thunder cast would also be instant, just without the added potency of the full dot tick added to the initial hit.

This would be the best of both worlds—new, flashy 7.0 skills added and mana regen simplified, without dumbing down the job to the point of tedium due to ill-conceived mana changes. There are other small changes, like fire Paradox not being instacast or making Scathe not useless, but these are the major changes that would significantly improve the game experience, both for new players and veterans.

plz square, i beg

This way to handle Flare Star charges would be light years better. To me, that's the most egregious part of the bad BLM new stuff, because given how inflexible/static is, Flare Star could've been a follow-up action to Despair and Flare with minimal differences.

That new gauge is mostly cosmetic, if we're only meant to press Flare Star to end the fire phase.

An alternative way would also let us have a very fast cast, but weaker Flare Star at 1 stack, and the cast time + potency goes up as we gain more stacks. Would have a smiliar effect, but a more flexible usage.

If you want to fix black mage, the first thing that has to happen is fixing the actual problem with blackmage. Its structure is built on a rotten foundation. All other problems with the class stem from this, and these supposed fixes or changes wouldn't actually help anything other than further entrench the class in its bad design.

For example, BLM stopped being a proc class in heavensward. Keeping procs is just bloating the class out on something that was marginalized as soon as sharpcast got a 30s cooldown, and was already marginalized when BLM only cast 2 abilities per cycle that could even proc to begin with. Giving mana from any GCD is basically saying "We don't want to cast blizzard 4." Which is more an indictment of just how bad blizzard 4 is as a button in general that the playerbase is champing at the bit to have the ability to pretend it doesn't exist again. If I were to add anything to amplifier, it would first be to merge it with manafont, and the second thing would be to give it literally any new button that doesn't exist. Not flare star, not despair, not fire 4s. Think ultimas or zettaflares. It also wouldn't care if you were in AF or UI to begin with because your burst shouldn't be slaved to some exact point in your rotation, like it is now (esp for manafont.)

The problem with black mage is that the class is an extremely old design. Looking to the past isn't going to fix any of its problems, and people should be much more forward-thinking with these supposed fixes.

For example. Why not make the umbral ice rotation more meaningful? You only get X mana per blizzard spell cast in UI. You get 3500 mana per blizzard 4, so you need to cast 3 of them. Let's make them do, oh, 450 potency per cast (fire 4 equivalent would be ~500 if cast times were the same.) At full mana, you cast freeze, a reworked despair, and let's say it does 500 potency (despair equivalent would be ~510.) Only castable at full mana, gives 3 umbral hearts when mana is full. If you cast a flare star in astral fire, have full MP and umbral hearts, you can cast a new ice spell, I'll just say ultima again.

Then, let's think of looking a bit further. What if flare star automatically kicked you into umbral ice on casting it, and ultima automatically kicked you into astral fire. No longer using an ARR ability to transition between phases unless you really want to. Hell, with the right balancing, you could go into UI, cast 1 or 2 blizzard 4s, transpose firestarter into AF anyways, and get 3 fire 4s and a despair (with 2 blizzard 4s,) so you can keep that lovely nonstandard option for boss jumps.

BLM needs to let go of the past, it needs a structure rework. Instead of trying to cling to its broken past, it's better to find ways to grow it bereft of this, fix its problems, and actually make the class a black mage.

Astral soul:
I can see that kind of skill coming for 8.0 or 9.0.
A skill to manual fill it, similary to Umbral soul or the other shard. But, that will very likely not coming for 7.x. Whe had that filler allways in later expansion (with Umbral Ice very late).
The keeping, even in the ice phase would be nice quality of life. But i think that the devs are thinking, that it would take out the "fun" from it (arent the people complaining, that the classes should be more complex and so one? This is what i would understand to that phrase.).

Paradox
Like i stated in other threads, is it probably removed, because it has as good as no purpose. The ice phase is very short now. There isnt much of reason to stay longer there, as maybe 1 thunder spell (to not distribut the time in fire phase). The dmg paradox would do, is probably very good covered with the fire spells (esspecialy Flare star).
The only truly use it had would be in running phase.
To keep it would be nice quality of life. But in terms of usefullness had it a very low priority now (at last, under the standard flow).

Mana regeneration
I simply can not understand this hate boner again ice spells.
Yeah, it would be nice to has the same option with other spells to. But, at last has now ice spells a additional use and fit the theme of Fire and ice more (fire burns the mp, ice recovers it).
You only need 2 ice spells, who even Support fire phase (B3 to go into ice phase and b4 for the shards and Max mp). That can not be to much. Its a nice and acceptable mechanic and idea. There isnt much of a reason, to complain about it.
It Support the way, the Blm should be used.

Sharpcast
Aside of a early Thunderspell do i not see any reason, why the thunder and fire should changed back.
The power looks to be the same or higher by thunder and it prefent missplays. In addition has 1 Button vanished. There is no drawbacks to the change. Because the skill is now permanent included in the spells, who used it (at last i used it only for thunder, rarely for fire).

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Originally Posted by Keichi

Paradox
Like i stated in other threads, is it probably removed, because it has as good as no purpose. The ice phase is very short now. There isnt much of reason to stay longer there, as maybe 1 thunder spell (to not distribut the time in fire phase). The dmg paradox would do, is probably very good covered with the fire spells (esspecialy Flare star).
The only truly use it had would be in running phase.
To keep it would be nice quality of life. But in terms of usefullness had it a very low priority now (at last, under the standard flow).

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They could have just made it so Paradox also gives mana. They completely butchered the meaning of this spell, namely the mastery to cast it in ice and fire phase. There was absolutely no reason to delete it. Short ice phase be damned. There are far mroe useless skills in this game.

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Mana regeneration
I simply can not understand this hate boner again ice spells.
Yeah, it would be nice to has the same option with other spells to. But, at last has now ice spells a additional use and fit the theme of Fire and ice more (fire burns the mp, ice recovers it).
You only need 2 ice spells, who even Support fire phase (B3 to go into ice phase and b4 for the shards and Max mp). That can not be to much. Its a nice and acceptable mechanic and idea. There isnt much of a reason, to complain about it.
It Support the way, the Blm should be used.

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The "Hateboner" is not against ice spells but against only them regenerating mana.
Is the ice phase short? Sure, but you know what would be even better? Having the choice and freedom we had before and not being on rails.
Also your last sentence:
Its fine if you support it, I don't because I think players should have some kind of freedom in playstyles and not be forced to what some random dev wants.

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Sharpcast
Aside of a early Thunderspell do i not see any reason, why the thunder and fire should changed back.
The power looks to be the same or higher by thunder and it prefent missplays. In addition has 1 Button vanished. There is no drawbacks to the change. Because the skill is now permanent included in the spells, who used it (at last i used it only for thunder, rarely for fire).

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While sharpcast removal isn't the big end of the world it still was some nice skill expression to keep the flow.
The problem here is that it was removed, all it's stuff was streamlined AND the mana regeneration only with ice spells was added. That is one big swoop of simplification at once on a job we all thought was almost perfect.

I'm really, really tired of the entire game be compressed just so no one has to see failure anywhere.
If you don't do extremes or savage (mind you I do them sometimes) then this all feels like old players are no longer welcomed in this game.

Edit: I apologize if I sound aggresive here. I have just seen too much non blm players commenting (not entirely here) and aggresive dismissive opinions (Mr. Happy) lately.

I disagree with some of this.

I think all that needs to happen is:

• Astral Souls carry over between AF phases
  
  Flarestar refreshes AF
  
  Return Ice Paradox
  
  Blizzard 3 restores 2k MP upon entering UI
  
  Non-Fire GCDs restore 3k MP in UI
  
  B4 restores full MP in UI

This supports turret moments, doesn't invalidate short lines, and can create meaningful decisions on how to utilize Flarestar as a 0 MP, high potency, AF refresher.

I honestly don't care about the thunder changes because Endwalker already killed thunder management.

This means your ice phase has a few choices you can make, either casting B4 to plant yourself for a longer AF phase, 2 gcds for 8000 MP, or 3 GCDs for full MP and a long mobility phase. You're guaranteed two instant casts every phase via Thunderhead and Ice paradox, and can consume a polyglot. This cements UI with three clear paths, each with purpose. Flarestar as a 0MP AF refresher adds further possibilities as it can replace FireDox and instead allow another Fire 4.

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Originally Posted by Kabooa

I disagree with some of this.

I think all that needs to happen is:

• Astral Souls carry over between AF phases
  
  Flarestar refreshes AF
  
  Return Ice Paradox
  
  Blizzard 3 restores 2k MP upon entering UI
  
  Non-Fire GCDs restore 3k MP in UI
  
  B4 restores full MP in UI

This supports turret moments, doesn't invalidate short lines, and can create meaningful decisions on how to utilize Flarestar as a 0 MP, high potency, AF refresher.

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If Astral Souls carry over across ice phases until used, then any Fire IV cast after obtaining x6 Astral Souls is a major potency loss. Flare Star would therefore not be as flexible as intended.

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Originally Posted by Kabooa

I honestly don't care about the thunder changes because Endwalker already killed thunder management.

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I disagree. Any system works with the job's toolkit as a whole, not as individual pieces; taken in isolation, Thunder "management" isn't really management at all, true, but with Thunder vs Fire procs making certain non-standard lines possible, it definitely has its place. DoT management could be made *more* complex, sure, and I'm sure BLM mains would love that, but I am describing a set of ideas that would result in minimal changes to how the job currently exists in the devbuild—i.e., feasible changes that could be implemented in time for 7.0.

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Originally Posted by Hana_Monogatari

If Astral Souls carry over across ice phases until used, then any Fire IV cast after obtaining x6 Astral Souls is a major potency loss. Flare Star would therefore not be as flexible as intended.

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What, Flare Star is anything but flexible - it does have an extremely cemented place in the rotation, to the point that I even question the actual usefulness of a whole gauge dedicated to it. If it was a "Despair finisher" action the difference would be pretty small, other than not punishing people who forget to cast all 6 F4's.

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Originally Posted by Hana_Monogatari

If Astral Souls carry over across ice phases until used, then any Fire IV cast after obtaining x6 Astral Souls is a major potency loss. Flare Star would therefore not be as flexible as intended.

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Because Flarestar requires all Souls and not partial, it's only a loss of DPS if you cast a total of 6 Fire 4s or more that overflow the gauge.

Much like how 30 Heat for the Machinist isn't a DPS loss, because they couldn't do anything with it anyways.

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Originally Posted by Kabooa

Because Flarestar requires all Souls and not partial, it's only a loss of DPS if you cast a total of 6 Fire 4s or more that overflow the gauge.

Much like how 30 Heat for the Machinist isn't a DPS loss, because they couldn't do anything with it anyways.

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True, but if Flare Star is intended to do things like refresh the AF timer, then you would be chewing through several Fire IV casts before this became useful. For example, P11S kills see BLMs casting upwards of 90 Fire IVs, making overcapping Astral Soul stacks, even only once per AF cycle, fairly punishing.

I agree that Flare Star, as is, is limiting and is basically just a very weird forced follow-up to Despair, and so any flexibility would be an improvement. I am just not sure if carrying over Astral Souls would make that large of a difference (compared to the suggestion to make Astral Soul buff x6 Fire IVs total, or having Flare Star gain potency for each Astral Soul stack consumed upon cast).

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Originally Posted by Hana_Monogatari

True, but if Flare Star is intended to do things like refresh the AF timer, then you would be chewing through several Fire IV casts before this became useful. For example, P11S kills see BLMs casting upwards of 90 Fire IVs, making overcapping Astral Soul stacks, even only once per AF cycle, fairly punishing.

I agree that Flare Star, as is, is limiting and is basically just a very weird forced follow-up to Despair, and so any flexibility would be an improvement. I am just not sure if carrying over Astral Souls would make that large of a difference (compared to the suggestion to make Astral Soul buff x6 Fire IVs total, or having Flare Star gain potency for each Astral Soul stack consumed upon cast).

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It wouldn't be "Intended" to refresh it. It would be an additional property that you can take into consideration for using it, much like allowing carryover doesn't mean you're intended to do it, it's an additional consideration for when you cut your lines short.

It is not a problem to have some restrictions on actions, because it is through restrictions that we can find ways to make creative use of an ability. The opposite is that we eventually boil down an ability so much that it can be used regardless and thus no longer has weight or consequence, and therefore it can be removed or ignored due to automated use.

While perhaps not developer intended, the appeal of Black Mage has always been about opportunity cost in a system where timers conflict with each other and change the relative value of one to the other.

I believe Astral Soul having carryover continues this spirit while addressing the major problem in that you are punished if you have to cut a line short. You can play standard and never worry about it, but in the inevitable event that the boss forces inopportune interruptions, you gain an additional element to play around, or ignore at your choice for a minor loss to reset back to standard.

That said, I am just one person, and acknowledge that both current and adjusted Astral Soul simply won't appeal to some. I just personally would rather not see it go the way of just a visual upgrade during the "2 minute" window.

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Originally Posted by Kabooa

It wouldn't be "Intended" to refresh it. It would be an additional property that you can take into consideration for using it, much like allowing carryover doesn't mean you're intended to do it, it's an additional consideration for when you cut your lines short.

It is not a problem to have some restrictions on actions, because it is through restrictions that we can find ways to make creative use of an ability. The opposite is that we eventually boil down an ability so much that it can be used regardless and thus no longer has weight or consequence, and therefore it can be removed or ignored due to automated use.

While perhaps not developer intended, the appeal of Black Mage has always been about opportunity cost in a system where timers conflict with each other and change the relative value of one to the other.

I believe Astral Soul having carryover continues this spirit while addressing the major problem in that you are punished if you have to cut a line short. You can play standard and never worry about it, but in the inevitable event that the boss forces inopportune interruptions, you gain an additional element to play around, or ignore at your choice for a minor loss to reset back to standard.

That said, I am just one person, and acknowledge that both current and adjusted Astral Soul simply won't appeal to some. I just personally would rather not see it go the way of just a visual upgrade during the "2 minute" window.

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This is true, and would definitely be better than nothing (i.e., the current Flare Star system). It seems as if the devs are so intent on killing non-standard that they went out of their way to design all of BLM's new systems to be as non-standard-unfriendly as possible—chiefly, Astral Soul stacks not carrying over into ice phases.

I personally see 3 issues.

1- Thundercloud being given on each stance shift.
With the DoT portion being much more important but BLM rotation requiring flexibility, refreshing the DoT exactly at the end will be much more important than it currently is as the initial impact damage will become negligible.
This will make BLM rotation feel awkard as you might end up having to refresh the thunder dot at a bad time.
With a 30s DoT, there'll be a frustrating feel that you simply "waste" one every 2 proc.

Some solutions would be
- Bring back the initial impact damage to bring it back to its current state
- Reduce the DoT duration so that it simply cannot be kept indefinitely (not enough stance shift). 12s would suffice
- Make the DoT duration stack (max 60s). Let say there are 12s left and you recast thunder, the DoT goes to 42s.

All of these could work together.

2- Flare Star
Flare Star requiring 6 F4 is a bit annoying as you might not always be able to finish your fire phase, but I suppose that's everyone.
The biggest issue is its nature of being a finisher. We already have Despair which, imo, felt just right. Flare Star just feels like "yet another" finisher ala RDM.
Flare Star damage being barely above Despair also makes it quite underwhelming.
It might be an oversight, but its cast time being above recast makes it a go to candidate to swift cast which just feels boring. (I like that it has a longer cast)

To me the biggest issue with Flare Star and the fact that it is too spammable. It feels like a despair 2.0 when it shouldn't. It should be a bigger hit. (Perfect for AoE tho)

A solution would be to make Paradox and Despair grant a stack instead of FireIV. (With possibly Amplifier granting 6 to give it some womph)
This would result in us making 1 Flare Star at the opener and one every 3 cycles.
With a rarer occurence, the damage could be raised and the spell would feel more special.

However, this would bring the issue of miss alignement of Amplifier, what if when you're at 2min you have 4 stacks? or 5? that'd be a bummer.
A simple fix would be to allow the gauge to actually reach 12 stack. (like a more red-ish arrow for 2 stack). Allowing up to 12 stacks, so 2 FlareStar, would eleviate the issue.
In order to avoid "keeping everything for 2mins to cast maybe 3 Flare Star", because that's something I suppose they wouldn't want, a very easy fix would be to simply add 15s CD to Flare Star.
Obviously, this would require us to not loose the stack upon entering umbral phase.

This way
Flare Star becomes part of the 2 min cycle as big button.
It does not compete with Despair in term of design as a finisher, it instead becomes a 1min-ish button.
It can be cast more freely which is important considering its cast time.
More can be done in further expansion to expand on its design such as making Xenoglossy add a stack.

3- Transpose FireIII :
So, in itself I like the idea of transpose fireIII, but I definitely see it as the last remaimnent of "non regular blm rotation".
While not for DT, the easiest fix would be to to make the proc become FireV while in Astral Phase. Done, simple, best DPS is to cast it during the firephase.

And I agree with what Kabooa said overall.

People really don't like that they're going to miss flare star during astral fire huh? Non-standard got a bit too comfy once you memorize all the lines huh?