healers more rare than tanks?

[Eidolon]

It's actually a number of factors, including which way you are facing while que'ing as well as the wind direction of the day.

But seriously - It's going to fluctuate. I've had times where I got instant-DPS que's depending on the time of day, and was an 'adventurer in need' on my last trial roulette as DRG. It just kind of comes-and-goes. ^^

[MartaDemireux]

I think a lot of it (possibly all of it) has to do with the two new tanking mounts. You have to tank 200(?) dungeons to get a new mount. PLD and WAR have their own. So someone who might normally go DPS or healer might be going PLD for 200 runs and then WAR for another 200 to get both mounts.

This also brings in a lot of people inexperienced in tanking now suddenly tanking a lot which then frustrates other players, primarily healers.

[Kinseykinz]

The Tank Mounts indirectly affect your average queues....as you can only earn these mounts from doing Binding Coil 1/Ex Primals+ 8 man-content. So yeah, a couple more folk interested in playing and gearing their tanks to earn said mounts are now showing up in Daily Roulettes, but overall, unless you happen to be queuing for 'Mount' content, the mounts have little influence on the amount of tanks vs. other party members you see in each duty queue.

What is most likely affecting it more:

1. Pre level 30: CNJ is the only native healing role. ACN is treated as a DD until the player decides to be a SCH/SMN post level 30. Not every ACN will decide to be SCH, so even of those who level ACN, not all=healers post 30. So pre level 30,while you have 2 options for tank/4 options for DPS, you only have 1 option for healer (unless you get a level-synced SCH). So even with a level-sync'd SCH, you don't have quite the same ratio of healers endgame as you do Tanks (MRD/GLA ONLY unlock tanking roles WAR/PLD meaning if you're leveling them 100% of the time you are the tank but CNJ/ACN don't quite do this....so while every CNJ=WHM and remains a healer, Every ACN is not forced into the SCH healing role, meaning that if even 50% of all ACN's unlock SCH, you potentially have less healers (compared to tanks) in game as the other half of ACN's=SMN a DD role)

2. More new players rolled as non-casters (Melee/Bard/Tanks) over Healers and Casters when PS4 released. This also leads to a low-level (now starting to hit endgame) healer shortage. Less people leveled CNJ first...and even less messed around with ACN as their first Role. This is NOT to say, they won't be leveling them soon....but for many, their 'first' role choice simply wasn't healer.

This is in part why, you often see 'Healer' as the player in need for low-level content (Low Level Roulette/Guildheists/Mainstory Scenario).

3. Pressure. This again, has 2 parts

Primals: Well again with the trial quests, many people doing them outside their daily needs, are doing them for either weapons, or to earn their relic. As the game simply has more Non-Healer roles/players than healers, it's reasonable to assume more people are going into Titan HM hoping to clear for a Gae Blog or Stardust Rod, over a Thryus. Since you need to win this battle on the role you want the weapon for, there is a slight disparity in favor of DPS, then Tanks, then Healers.

But another problem, is the simple pressure on healers in these pugs. Best example I can give:
-If I queue as healer for these DR trials, I have a 100% win rate, even on titan
-If I queue as DD and let others heal...not even kidding 50% win rate....even less on titan HM.

Many parties, even if they end up winning will start chewing out a healer for the groups mistakes (not the healers) if/when crap goes wrong in there. Furthermore, a 'rookie' healer is more a hindrance than a help in these fights...if you get two...or two who can't dodge well, it makes the battle, even with echo buffs challenging. Other roles can more easily 'derp' and be saved by the healers...

Oh and every time I work my rear off and save it for them (we're talking OMG they massively derped that!), I'm lucky to exit with even 1 commendation. and even less lucky to exit without a single person chastizing a healer for their mistakes the healer had no control over (I got yelled at for dying in titan yesterday...I was gaoled and the broke me out into the landslide....I even tried to sprint out...but it was MY fault somehow)

And while my example is DR trials, this is magnified in EX primals/Coil in many cases.

So in this instance you either have:
- Newer healers/less confident/less skilled healers avoiding this content to avoid the bashing (they can comfortably do with FC mates without the harshness)
- Veteran/Skilled healers either downright avoiding the content, doing it as different roles, doing it 'as needed' (w/ FC mates....for tomes) again to avoid the harshness

....because it's harsh in there, no matter your skill level.

4.The Speed-run Bandwagon

Speed runs put more pressure on the healer than any other party member. Now this is not to say 'tanks do not feel the pressure' or that 'dps don't do anything' But in order for a speed run to work, the healer more than any other member, needs to do more work, be on their 'A-game' and pre-emptively fix any party 'stupid'....and if it fails, they are almost always blamed for the failure....even if the failure was 'tank didn't even wait for buffs' 'dps was way too low' 'everyone stood in the poo' etc. But asking them to not only be the healer, but also fellow DPS, and off-tank, is above and beyond what anyone else in the party is expected to do.

So in these cases people are avoiding because:

-They simply don't have the gear/skill to handle it (and know it)
-The have the skill/gear but don't wanna deal with the bashing if/when they get a random PuG that screws it up and blames them
-They have the skill/gear but don't wanna concentrate THAT hard atm....they just want a simple, peaceful run. There are just days where pushing everything you have to it's limits is not relaxing or fun.

In all of these cases, this means these healers are less likely to queue for that roulette...leaving the spot more empty.

5. Personality Type drawn to healing roles:
This is seldom discussed, and not true for every healer (of course!), but many drawn to Healing and other types of 'support' roles, aren't looking for glory, high numbers or fame. They want to help. They want to be useful. They tend to be generous and kindspirited, and are easily hurt when blamed for crap they didn't do. This doesn't mean they don't 'tell you where to stick it' but typically, that only happens after provoked....or they've just become jaded because they've been abused so much. (Oh or are not actual dedicated healers, but rather role as a healer in some content to speed up their queue....and therefore are predesposed to being impatient as well 'their time is important' because if it wasn't, then they would have waited the DD queue on their beloved role)

So it's both a 'numbers' and a 'respect' thing. Yes, there are point blank, less dedicated healers in this game than any other role (look at how often Endgame Raid groups are actively seeking them :P) but also, of those that are dedicated healers, not all are willing to subject themselves to constant berating over stuff that is supposed to be fun and typically not even their darn fault. Lastly, not every healer you meet in a PuG is even a dedicated healer.

[Enepttastic]

~sniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiip~

Very well said, and many of your points are valid in regard to tanks as well. Just wanted to state that I'm somewhat trying to get to leveling a healing class myself. However, while I tank to help people, I have every intention of healing in order to teach. Easier to teach DPS some hard lessons as a healer than it is a tank(damn near every time I try, healer instinctively heals the insane DPS member...).

[Chiramu]

When the roulette is on a certain spec everyone queues as it. So when it's tank, healers get instant queue :/. I wish it would change more frequently.

[Cherie]

I have to admit that I agree with Kinseykinz above on a lot of things. Especially about healers not being in it for the glory. I've known very few healers that pick healer cause they want to be bossy (where I have known some, but much less than other classes).

Also, I think most people these days choose tank so they will have some kind of "authority" not because they actually want to tank or feel they will be good at it... On the contrary, they pick tank because they *think* they will be judged less harshly (cause well, they feel people won't want them to peace-out, because of queues). Of course, it doesn't play out that way when it comes to any serious content if they don't actually try at their jobs. I guess the situation is kind of a perpetual motion machine in that, here you have a bossy tank that is bad at their job, they tick off everyone else in the party and maybe one of them thinks: "Hey, I'm going to switch and be a tank from now on, they get away with crap!"

I've known awesome, altruistic tanks as well, just saying the job of tank, which gets rewarded cause it is played less, draws out the sketchy people too.

[Moirear]

You know what I think? The rewards for tanks specifically (roulette gil bonuses, tanking reward mounts, etc) are finally paying off and we're getting plenty of tanks now. Also, the myth about tanking being oh-so-difficult is dying down a bit.

Now we just have to tell people that healing isn't all that terrible, and maybe see to it that we're given some incentivizing rewards for healing, too, and then we'll be golden. :P


Edit: I've also noticed some trends as to where healers are in shortage, specifically. It's usually Trials, Raids, and Guildhests. Everywhere else you can pretty much insta-queue as either tank or healer, so the balance is kind of kept there. But when it comes to the duty types I mentioned, you're usually waiting on healers to join and I usually can insta-queue as a healer there. At least in the server cluster I play on, that is.

[Nayto]

Also, the myth about tanking being oh-so-difficult is dying down a bit.

It's not difficult. It's just that mistakes are as clear as day if your a bad tank.
Since there's an influx of even more bad tanks, healers are fed up and are on strike.

[jars]

my expert roulette is usually instant on healer. can't really provide any more input than that though

[Gormogon]

I can tank, just don't do it because of the jerks that tend to be demanding on how one should pull to their convenience. So I don't tank for anyone other than friends or guildies.
I am incapable of healing. It literally makes me fall asleep. I don't know how people can heal. Tried it in FFXI, WoW, SWTOR, RO, TERA Online, and tried WHM just ain't happening.

Props to healers for being able to heal I just can't do it and my real life friends, who play healers from time to time, have tried to make it fun for me but it never works.