PLEASE, stop teaching/telling new healers to DPS

[PrincessOfSwords]

Implying one skill is more valuable than another is silly when both are valuable, and something I don't think new players should be taught.

But as a healer, your healing IS more valuable than your dps. The best experienced healers will do both and will be better for it, this is absolutely true. But for instance, I wouldn't say "I'm a great writer", write a sub-par novel and illustrate it beautifully. That is being a bad writer and a good artist. If you can't manage the switch between dps and heal, you are a bad healer. Doesn't matter how good your dps is, it doesn't make up for it. Now, if I wrote an amazing story AND made those beautiful drawings, it would only add to it, and it would be better than without them, but to say that AS A HEALER, that your healing is not more valuable would be a lie and a terrible one.

[Freyt]

Just queue'd in the DF for Haukke Manor Hard Mode before the servers went down. Got in with about 33 minutes to spare (assuming it went down on the hour). We all agreed to rush it, pretty much. I decided I couldn't just dawdle around and had to chip in too. i made a joke about it "I'm not pulling any punches!". I was the healer (Scholar). I dropped down Shadow Flare, Miasma II, Bio, and Aero whenever I could. I was popping Lustrate constantly just because it was an instant cast and didn't use MP. I used Sacred Soil every now and then so I didn't have to heal as much, and I had Selene out the whole time to increase our skill/spell speeds. I did not have Cleric Stance up.

I got 2 commendations that round.

Though it should be noted the run before that, where I healed like normal and just chipped in some DoT's on boss rooms got me 3 commendations.

Just kinda want to lay out there that no one has to play like robots, and no one can have perfect symmetry with DF groups all the time. It's the players job to be flexible not only to the monsters, but to the other players as well. It's the healers job to heal, but so long as no one dies or has any debilitating statuses, the healers job is filled, and it's up to the player to decide what to do with that.

When it's as a Scholar on a low level dungeon, I sometimes feel like just right clicking a player and clicking auto-follow. I don't do that, but the run is still incredibly boring, so I'm usually DPS'ing to make things go faster.

[Nuvem]

As a new player, still learning the mechanics, I agree that first come heals but you should also help your party when needed with dps. I just think people should be able to help new players on instances. It is just impressive that in the forums there are more posts calling people names, saying they are bad, and less posts trying to give tips or orientation to new healers. Maybe they are just learning and if you help with information, in the future you may be suffering less with random party. It is easy to say "you are bad" "you are good". just too easy.

[Niamh_Felixis]

I agree with Feyt there that you don't need to play the game as an automaton. Sure, there maybe places where you need to follow specific patterns (mainly dps optimisation), but other than that, whatever works best for you and the party.

Ran AK the other day and healer was also DPS'ing against the Demon Wall. It didn't even get to do the second repel. Since the party was over-equipped for the dungeon, we could all just burn the wall without worrying about the damage taken.

Sure, the healer's job is to heal, but it's also to see what is required by the party at the time.

[Drimiter]

About what Nuvem said, when I started this game, something I discovered by myself, others I read from forums.
So the advice that I could share with new healers players is: “Use macros”. Let me explain:
Besides “mouse over” <mo>, I think there are two main instructions for actions: “Target” <t> and “Target of target” <tt>
When you write something like:

/micon Aero
/ac Aero <tt>
/ac Aero <t>

You can use this to do your damage solo, or WITHOUT unmark the tanker or “someone else”, you can cast Aero(in this example) to their target/monster/add/boss/whatever.

The same goes to:

/ac “Cure II” <me>
/ac Cure <me>

/ac Regen <me>

/ac Esuna <me>


Which will perform those action WITHOUT unmark your primary target.

[Kelvani]

Let me start by first saying I have leveled a paladin and a bard. I am currently focusing on the WHM job. I believe in being versatile, and being able to learn other classes is important to me as it gives me insight into what challenges they have and how I can play my class better to support the group as a whole.


In very low level dungeons (say.. Haukke on down), as a WHM, we only have cure, Esuna, and Medica. Personally, as a new healer, I take a cautious stance. I don't know the tank or the DPS. I don't know if they are Zergers, ignore marks, glory hounds or what. So, I wait a bit before I cast anything but healing abilities. Once I see how much MP it is going to take to keep everyone alive, and get an idea of the pacing I will start throwing Aero into the mix if it is feasible. On non boss mobs usually they are dead before I can get more than that off in a good group. Without a huge MP pool it is nuts to try to DPS too much IMO. I would rather not wipe and have to listen to someone rant about my poor healing abilities either =p

Once stoneskin, cure2, and regen come into the picture it is easier to heal and do some decent DPS. However, I feel that my primary task is to keep everyone alive, not spamm DPS, and I will always try to get to know the party's play-style BEFORE I use any of my DPS skills. If someone wants to tell me how to "play my class better" and is nice about it I will be nice in return and share my reasoning. If they want to get nasty, I can always leave. I am not there to babysit them or take abuse =p

Overall I have had good experiences in the low lvl duty roulette. There have been a few not so good ones, and those are sadly usually invovle lvl50s set on a speed run (this does NOT include all lvl50s.. just some have stood out as SPECTACULALRLY unwilling to act according to their reduced ability lvl and mine). People trying to get experience usually are a lot more understanding of my game imposed limitations =p

Bottom line. I agree that people need to focus on their PRIMARY job first, and the healers should only DPS if it is not detrimental to their ability to heal. Putting pressure on a healer who isn't ready to do that, or capable of it is silly. Especially when you later blame them for the fail!

[Zaels]

Implying one skill is more valuable than another is silly when both are valuable, and something I don't think new players should be taught.

If you're a healer, your heals are more valuable than your DPS. If you don't DPS, you can still do your job. If you don't heal, you are not doing your job.

And this goes vice versa for casters. As a BLM, I can say with 100% certainty that Fire I is more valuable and important than Physick.

Implying that healers DPS is just as valuable as their healing and teaching that to new players will result in them developing into terrible healers when they hit 50.

[lxSch]

macro

My macro for dps is the following:
alt+3 = cleric stance toggle.
1 = macro:

/ac "Aero II"
/wait 2.5
/ac "Aero"

Applies two dots and triggers gcd, so i have time to remove cleric stance, also saves 1 hotbat slot.
2 = Stone II.

Demon wall is one of very few places where i dps as a healer. My strategy is - stand in the room center all time. Before starting - i stoneskin everyone, then DS -> Medica 2, pop CS and dps for 30s, then repeat until wall is dead. This way even if 1 dps is knocked out team will still pass.

[SeraviEdalborez]

Implying that healers DPS is just as valuable as their healing and teaching that to new players will result in them developing into terrible healers when they hit 50.

Best way to learn how to heal is to DPS. Because if you let your tank die from doing it too much, you should realize that was too much.

Not trolling.

[MicahZerrshia]

didn't read too many of this thread cause of 14 pages but there is a time and place for everything and nothing is more annoying then watching a healer do absolutely nothing. not even draw their weapon because no one needs a heal. That's just leeching imo.

As someone who has played whm and sch in everything from low lvl dungeons to coil I can say there is a time for healing and a time for dps and knowing how to balance these two things is what makes an exceptional healer versus a body. All healers should learn this balance in the lowest lvl dungeons and work up from there. By the time they hit lvl 50 dungeons they should know this balance well and if they don't they frankly should look at a different job.