Will the incoming thief job be a DPS or tank?

[Altijacek]

It makes sense as a DPS class more than anything and I honestly cannot see it being a tank...but due to the fact that there are not many tanks, and the fact that many will flock towards thief at release, means it might potentially be a tank. Give it a high party/evasion rate, steal HP abilities, and steal enemy strength etc, it can be a great tank.

Maybe it'll be rogue class and thief DPS job and ninja tank job or vice versa. Any thoughts?

[ispano]

It makes sense as a DPS class more than anything and I honestly cannot see it being a tank...but due to the fact that there are not many tanks, and the fact that many will flock towards thief at release, means it might potentially be a tank. Give it a high party/evasion rate, steal HP abilities, and steal enemy strength etc, it can be a great tank.

Maybe it'll be rogue class and thief DPS job and ninja tank job or vice versa. Any thoughts?

Not likely. Evasion tanks don't fit well with a balanced game.

[Altijacek]

I thought so, but maybe perfect dodge or artful dodger an be the level fifty move, and the evasion rate is good but not that great, and instead they will have great parries, plus they can steal stats from enemies temporarily or something. I'm sure it's possible to make it balanced. Artful dodge will be like hallowed ground or holm gang, not that Op really

[DSN]

I thought so, but maybe perfect dodge or artful dodger an be the level fifty move

So a tank who cant effectively tank until 50 and just gets tossed around like a ragdoll until then?

[CYoung187]

THF makes no sense as a tank. Heck, they didn't expect ninja to be a tank. It worked in FFXI mostly because it was single-target tanking.

[Gilraen]

No, with how they were portrayed by their particular NPC specialists it's clearly a DD class/Job not unlike lancer/Dragoon or pugilist/Monk with thief being straight melee and Ninja being a hybrid caster melee.

[Aegis]

Thief class to Ninja job would make sense mechanically: Both are suited to dual wielding short blades. The thief class could have Evasion enhancing skills while the ninja job could add enmity generating skills to that.

As for a DD class becoming a tank job; well, we already have similar with a DD class (ACN) becoming a Healer job (SCH). Ideally, though, THF would have a second, DD, job also (assassin?)

Lore-wise, it's still up in the air.

FF purists would probably balk at Ninja being a tank again, though. But it's no more sacrilege than the almighty SMN becoming a DOT job.

[Tiggy]

Thief class to Ninja job would make sense mechanically:

It wouldn't make sense for the series though. Thief is a classic Final Fantasy job just like how every other job in the game is a classic Final Fantasy series job class. The base class will be some silly named class we've never heard in the series before. Like how Conjurer is whm. Conjurer was never in the series before and whitemage was the job. Thief and Ninja will definitely have a class that follows that exact same pattern.

[Altijacek]

It wouldn't make sense for the series though. Thief is a classic Final Fantasy job just like how every other job in the game is a classic Final Fantasy series job class. The base class will be some silly named class we've never heard in the series before. Like how Conjurer is whm. Conjurer was never in the series before and whitemage was the job. Thief and Ninja will definitely have a class that follows that exact same pattern.

Conjurer has been in the series before just never as important as summoner.

[Aegis]

It wouldn't make sense for the series though. Thief is a classic Final Fantasy job just like how every other job in the game is a classic Final Fantasy series job class. The base class will be some silly named class we've never heard in the series before. Like how Conjurer is whm. Conjurer was never in the series before and whitemage was the job. Thief and Ninja will definitely have a class that follows that exact same pattern.

Actually, in the French version, the Conjurer is an Elementalist, which I believe was in FFV?

Also, remember the JP class names aren't the same as our class names, even by translation. Marauder is Executioner, I believe, in Japanese.