Healers: Leading the party. Anybody else?

[Kusumura]

Alright! So, for time immemorial in MMO's, it's been a thing. The tank leads and lets everyone else in the party know how they want things done. Problem in this game in particular, is that the tanks absolutely suck balls.

Playing a healer most of the time, I usually just dull myself out and follow along, speaking up if I've got a better idea or know how things can be done better. However, again in this game, I'm finding it far more frequent where I am actually the one leading the party. Obviously no the mob encounters - what, I'm gonna' charge in? - but the strategical and tactical side of things is all on me.

( Breaking the post up for the character limit )

[Kusumura]

I'm the one calling out adds, AoE's, skill timers, assigning tasks around the party, and organising the pre-battle gameplan... and somehow managing this while keeping everybody else alive with what is probably the most stressful role in the party as it is. It doesn't bother me, but it.. disappoints me? It feels like your dad when he's just about given up on you being able to ride a bike without the training wheels. It's your mother when you fail an exam. Your lover the first time you screw up cunnilingus.

It's not outrage as much as, ".. Oh, come on. Really? Do I have to do it? This is something you are meant to be learning do. Just because I can doesn't mean you should be relying on me."

[Kusumura]

And it hasn't really hit home that it was even a thing until last night where I tried doing Sunken Temple for the first time (And still have yet to do) with a PuG. First boss, we couldn't do it. I was the one calling out bees, Doom timers, and ordering everybody to their respective things. Which the DPS seemed to forget about the frelling bees, anyway.

I'm a Scholar healer. In this fight specifically, I'm overloaded as it is - I've got to not only get myself to a glowing pedestal, but command my Faerie onto it as well, which takes a bit of focus with an over-cluttered UI that leaves me with about two millimetres of clicking-area. I can't babysit an entire group, the mentally handicapped AI, heal, and look around for the impossible to see glowing pedestal (When the AoE's are flying and added to the mix is poor eyesight, it's abhorrent trying to find which one's glowing. Especially with THu'uM AoE's. Like there was last night!).

[Kusumura]

Tanks: Do your job! You're leading the show, not me!

Any others healers experienced this type of thing? Bothered, stressed, etcetera? I should reiterate - it doesn't bother me or stress me out or anything! But it's not my job to do it. It isn't my job description!

[Shmashed]

lol, you just made four posts about this?

I think the server being down is hitting some people harder than others.

[hours]

Glad I am not alone on this.

I've led at least 75% of the groups I've been with. I have to be the one to explain the strategy, do the marking, pull the appropriate mobs, call out adds, call out boss moves, call out when someone is trapped in something, tank, bring down adds, and so on. It's frustrating because it takes my attention away from more important things (moving away in time) as I have to type and I should not have to be responsible for ALL of the aforementioned duties. Geez people, learn to look after yourselves!

[Tokochan]

I've had this only when people don't know the fights.. But I haven't reached 50 yet so I can't help with that
I have noticed however they're are a lot of tanks and dps who don't care how fights work.. That's always fun..

[Eldaena]

Maybe it's just coincidence, but I've had similar experiences. Even sometimes where the tank tries to lead and explain, but they are just flat wrong and I have to pick up the pieces. There isn't really much to be done about this, though. And as long as we get things done, I guess there isn't much of a point to complain. Just saying with this post, "Hey, me too."

[Demise]

Lets face it. The pro-ass tanks that take the lead and know what they're doing, already have their static groups and their pocket healers and don't queue alone. We don't get to play with those tanks when we queue in DF. ;_;

We queue mainly with the new guys who are still learning, and we end up being the ones to teach them. Rest assured, that once we have taught them, they will go on to find their own pocket healer on their own server and will never need us again.

That said, most of my experiences in DF have been good ones. I choose to explain things before hand, usually doing a rundown of boss mechanics before we engage, and taking it from there. I just present the mechanics, during the fight itself I usually don't call things. I concentrate on my job, and pray that the others in my party will concentrate on theirs. Thankfully, this is what usually happens, and I've had more good experiences than bad.

I do love running across the odd badass tank that knows exactly what he's doing and just wants you to sit back and heal like a good little healer, though. It always makes for a much more relaxing dungeon.

[YukiKoneko]

I share your pain. How often does your party run into battle without buffs. I just want them to die once, but I know that if they do, I'll be blamed because I didn't heal them... I've come to terms with the simple fact, healers are under appreciated, and disrespected. It's only when the party is at the brink of death, and we land that all so needed cure, that we get even remote praise... or, "I almost died, you suck". One day, I'm just going to drop the controller. "Oops, my hand slipped, sorry"

Anyways, that aside, I like to be the party tactician as well. I constantly am panning around the field, looking for threats, helping to sleep adds, checking time, assessing progress, oh crap, CURE 2 GOOOOOO, shew. It may as well be the healer leading, or rather, navigating, with the tank driving. Never, NEVER let the DDs drive though.