PLEASE, stop teaching/telling new healers to DPS

[Sirantha]

While I will always DPS when I can, and have no trouble doing so (except the odd minor slip-up where I accidentally forget to disable CS, cough) and keeping everyone alive, I do think it's ridiculous that healers are expected to DPS or they're considered "bad". Worse still that the people perpetuating this are usually DPS mains. Even those who have well-geared 50 WHMs or SCHs and say this, will almost always seemingly have a DPS main.

I am not saying don't DPS if you feel capable, but seriously, if you're not the one currently working your butt off (or not, as the case may be) to keep the party alive, you probably shouldn't dictate how the healer does it, assuming they're doing just that: keeping you alive.

[givemeraptors]

dps are like idiots, they dont use their healing spells when needed, dont use pots, they just stand there take damage and expect healers to deal with everything, rezzing, debuffing, buffing, crowd control, healing and dpsing while they just erm lets see, dps..

lol

My main class is Summoner and I'm always trying to keep up Eye for an Eye or stick on Virus at crucial moments and I think so many DPS classes forget all their alt non-DPS skills and just attack with tunnel vision. I grant that some classes have more support or debuff skills than others, but seriously, WHM/SCH can't do everything.

[Ramira]

Personally, I use Aero II + Aero on the toughest trash mob and leave it to that, or add few stones as well if I really want to rush it.

WHM has an absurd enmity gain, especially from the mob. And Shroud of the Saints ability takes far too long to recharge.
SCH or SMN will DPS? Well sure, logical and understandably, but don't assume WHM should spend the slightest time in DPSing.

[lxSch]

So far discussion was about if healer can keep everyone alive and speed up the run, but i wanted to say there is one more important thing.
DPS/speed running (usually) is a bad thing for a duty finder team: you do not know those people, you do not know their reaction. I never speak in team chat - because i do not know how other people will react. I often see people not saying 'hi' at the start of the dungeon - the first sign they are in a bad mood.
If healer starts to dps - some people will get very nervous, especially tanker (after dropping to like 30% hp). If someone messed up (healer or not) and dps gets killed (or even team wiped) and they saw healer in the cleric stance - they will easily freak out, or get very upset and start messing up the run.
It is true healer dps can speed up the run and help weak dps to pass some stages, but it often causes a big stress on the duty finder team (especially 49- content, where overgearing is synced and new players are more common).

[lxSch]

I wrote it all based on my understanding of people's attitude towards the healer role. So far the most rec i got was from overhealing everyone, and i often got no rec if someone's hp ever dropped very low. 1000 char.

[Sirantha]

<snip>

Honestly I don't think most healers will struggle even in a DF team, but I do agree. Don't expect a healer to DPS when they're with people they don't know. They want to make sure you can handle the damage, and they can handle the healing. If they're with a group of people they don't know, they can't be sure what the party dynamic will be like.

[Versiroth]

I have Aero, Aero II and Stone II on <tt> macros and I'll only DPS if the incoming damage is slow. If the tank is tanking heavy hits, I don't DPS. If he's taking hits, but not at a huge rate, I may pop in and out of Cleric Stance, but normally just DPS out of Cleric. If regen is keeping him up by itself, I go into Cleric and go all out for 3 or 4 globals.


DPSing as a healer is fun as long as you keep healing the priority.

[myahele]

Yeah, I normally throw in an aero 1 and 2 and then stone 2 if I have the chance. But I rarely switch to CS. Since so much can go wrong in btw casting an offensive spell then gcd then casting cure.

[Rein-Yagami]

good idea. next time, i will ask the dps do heals while dpsing also.

it's only fair.

regardless whether WHM can dps and heal at the same time is moot.

dps are like idiots, they dont use their healing spells when needed, dont use pots, they just stand there take damage and expect healers to deal with everything, rezzing, debuffing, buffing, crowd control, healing and dpsing while they just erm lets see, dps..

Lol No~ Dragoons and Monks in particularly are always watching their own hp~
we top up our own health when hit with things like soul drain and on enemies that reflect damage (second boss of brayflox with flame coating)
Using bloodbath we gain health with each hit, we use second wind for attack-stat heals, and Dragoons use Lifesurge to automatically crit+heal up to 10% health in 1 hit.
Monks INCREASE healing recovery by 20% for all in-range party members when they use Mantra
Don't generalise please? k thanks bubi now~

[Zaels]

I remember one time getting Tam-Tara on SCH and completing the entire dungeon fine with Cleric stance on and letting Eos solo-heal.

After that I asked my friends if they wanted to try running that dungeon with me going afk auto-following a DPS. They still won.