AOE Toggle Needs to GO

[Rowyne]

well everyone feels lag in a different way. Slow UI might be more accurate to describe it. THE UI is slow and not very responsive in some parts, no matter what hardware you have. Some don't call it lag, some do, and some just don't care as much as others, but its definitely there. I have it on almost all menus, trading, and retainer interactions especially, and sometimes while fighting as well.

Its a known issue and im playing on an I-7 30% overclocked 580 and ssd... so its hardly a hardware issue.

^ This.

The UI is slow and unresponsive, no matter what kind of rig you're running. Add to that unnecessary roadblocks and button pushes just to get a simple spell off, and it adds up to a whole lot of frustration.

The UI definitely needs some streamlining, which could have happened without splitting out all the spells (as was suggested, the AoE toggle could have been moved to a static widget and out of the casting process). But SE has other plans. Those who are up in arms about SE removing the toggle because they're speculating that it'll just give us two sets of the same spell may find out they're wrong (so, please, can we stop the angry finger pointing). As has been stated, they are looking at spells on a case-by-case basis. Maybe we shouldn't just be able to AoE everything. Maybe AoE's will come in a handful of special spells. Maybe they're restructuring the CON/THM spellbook. Maybe it'll be granted through Materia. We don't know yet.

But a change needed to happen and I'm hopeful that it'll be for the better.

[Xenor]

The developers really need to make a large post detailing what they're doing with mage classes. It's getting ridiculous now. We're playing the game, you'd think they'd just announced FFXIV with how little information they provide about certain gameplay aspects.

I've never had a problem with hitting Z for AoE on and off. Totally agree about the bar space and I can see Fire I being non-AoE while Fire II being AoE along with lots of other spells like that. Cure I will be single target, II will be AoE and III will be a strong single target. I'm sure they will do it this way due to what they did to Lay of the Land I - V and other gathering abilities.

[Tibian]

I prodded for some more details about the system to hopefully give you guys a better understanding at what the current plan is. The current policy of allowing spells to be cast both as an individual-target and AoE will be done away with. During the armoury system improvements spells will be evaluated and determined whether they will be an individual target spell or an AoE spell on a case by case basis.

Sounds great, thank you for more clarification. That sounds like they had planned to remove the AOE toggle even before this thread came to fruition? It is wonderful to see that a more intuitive system will be coming for casters rather than having to battle with UI mechanics instead of battling monsters!

[Evenstar]

Hmmm interesting idea... does make me concerned slightly though, for example if they make Sleep single target only and you need to crowd control several mobs- hopefully cool-downs in this case would be adjusted for spells like this.

Glad that we're getting some feedback on this topic though, thanks Bayohne! ^^

Who said there is not going to be a new spell called Sleepga?

[Tsuga]

^ This.

The UI is slow and unresponsive, no matter what kind of rig you're running. Add to that unnecessary roadblocks and button pushes just to get a simple spell off, and it adds up to a whole lot of frustration.

The UI definitely needs some streamlining, which could have happened without splitting out all the spells (as was suggested, the AoE toggle could have been moved to a static widget and out of the casting process). But SE has other plans. Those who are up in arms about SE removing the toggle because they're speculating that it'll just give us two sets of the same spell may find out they're wrong (so, please, can we stop the angry finger pointing). As has been stated, they are looking at spells on a case-by-case basis. Maybe we shouldn't just be able to AoE everything. Maybe AoE's will come in a handful of special spells. Maybe they're restructuring the CON/THM spellbook. Maybe it'll be granted through Materia. We don't know yet.

But a change needed to happen and I'm hopeful that it'll be for the better.

I agree with your post 100%, except for that last sentence. This change didn't NEED to happen. The AoE toggle functions just fine, the problem lies on the user end. I play with the bare minimum of specs, and Z toggling has only benefited me. It's pretty clear that the only time people have issues with the toggle is due to common oversights with ANY AoE attack (not paying attention to your surroundings), and MP/Hate management, which have nothing to do with the toggle itself.

If AoE toggle was just a placeholder for some better asset of the revamped battle system, then I hope whatever they've got up their sleeves is 100x better. But right now all I see this as is a major nerf to the way I play my class.

I'd be happy to eat my shoe in this case, because this seems pretty set in stone, and I like playing CON. I just really hope that the change isn't in response to this (and the other anti AoE toggle) thread, because the OP, and other's proposed solutions are all a major step backwards from what we have.

[JayvirDeforte]

The way I would like to see this is like how XII handled it.
Cure -> Single Target
Cura/CureII -> AoE
Curaga/CureIII -> Single Target
Curaja/CureIV -> AoE

Obviously the single target spells should do more damage/heals than the AoE and having designated spells for each type would allow mages a greater sense of freedom than just AoEing everything in sight

[ApplePie]

Sorry, but if all my DoM spells are going to be single target, then what is the point of being a DoM compared to a DoW? Better effectiveness? Give me a break. My buff and healing spells better stay aoe otherwise it is pointless for the thm's and con's aoe stances. This is a horrible decision. I extremely hope SE does this properly, or I'm going to be very frustrated.

[Tiraelina]

What makes any DoM player think they deserve every spell they have to be AoE? Dragging up random situations where XXX spell has to be AoE is pointless, these changes are not done in a vacuum like most of you would like to believe.

[akisato]

there no need for the ff12 system with spells the way the AoE works now is like how AoE worked befor ff7. also this may seem an odd thing to say but from what i could read it seems a lot of you thinks it's ok to just not to look at what your doing in battle which is just odd if this were any other mmo the players would just blame you but here we blame SE.

[akisato]

I prodded for some more details about the system to hopefully give you guys a better understanding at what the current plan is. The current policy of allowing spells to be cast both as an individual-target and AoE will be done away with. During the armoury system improvements spells will be evaluated and determined whether they will be an individual target spell or an AoE spell on a case by case basis.

well this suck it seems if you yell loud and long enough you can get anything changed.