All of Astrologian abilities now known? Reddit.

[Hulan]

I am not sure about that. Remember that both SCH and WHM are getting awesome new skills as well - Fey Illumination + Dissipation + Crit Adlo + Deployment Tactics (and maybe Sacred Soil and Virus) will be the most op mitigation skill combo ever, for one.
AST will basically have what WHM and SCH have now (with the exception of Asylum), at a reduced potency (most likely). The main feature are the cards, which are very random thus might not be suited for scripted fights, at least if you are pushing for progression.

I am just saying that, in general, jobs with "random" elements are at a disadvantage, in this game - unless Alexander mechanics will differ greatly from Coil ones.

I'm sure your FC has debated this into the ground, but keep in mind the abilities relating to the cards allow you to plan pretty far in advance. I would actually say scripted fights are where AST's cards shine. Say you know that in ~20% HP, the boss is going to switch phase and you need to burn it before the next big attack. You can Draw, if it's the card you want, you Spread it, otherwise throw it out on a party member. Next 30 seconds, you Draw, if it's the card you want, apply it, if not, Shuffle, if you still don't like it, Royal Road it. As long as you're planning ahead, you have 4 different shots at the card you want in a 30 second window. By p = 1 - k^n where k is the probability of the card not being the one you want (1/6) and n being the number of tries, you have a 52% chance of pulling the right card. If you prepare for a minute (basically adding in a second Draw, Shuffle, and Royal Road chance), that chance goes up to 72%.

Not the best chances, but not terrible either. Given that all cards are moderately useful, even a "bust" would still be salvageable, since you now - by definition - have a charged up card in your pocket even if it isn't the one you wanted.

[GideonHighmourn]

Not the best chances, but not terrible either. Given that all cards are moderately useful, even a "bust" would still be salvageable, since you now - by definition - have a charged up card in your pocket even if it isn't the one you wanted.

While partly correct, the time you spend hoping to draw a proper card you could've easily been DPSing instead, guaranteeing extra DPS, rather than hoping for it. You also won't be healing in that time frame, either.

Even if the card abilities are oGCD, you still won't be able to use them at the same time as GCD abilities like SCH can with Embrace etc.

Also, it only states "Attack Speed" and "Attack Damage"; this could only mean auto-attacks rather than Skill or Spell Damage. 10% on a single target is also a very small amount, compared to the amount you could've actually added by DPSing yourself. 25% isn't bad (actually, pretty awesome) on a single-target, but again, it comes down to luck with Royal Road drawing the proper card at the perfect time.

[Hulan]

While partly correct, the time you spend hoping to draw a proper card you could've easily been DPSing instead, guaranteeing extra DPS, rather than hoping for it. You also won't be healing in that time frame, either.

Even if the card abilities are oGCD, you still won't be able to use them at the same time as GCD abilities like SCH can with Embrace etc.

Also, it only states "Attack Speed" and "Attack Damage"; this could only mean auto-attacks rather than Skill or Spell Damage. 10% on a single target is also a very small amount, compared to the amount you could've actually added by DPSing yourself.

I see it a little like stance dancing. That is to say, if you were going to use - as you say - guaranteed extra damage, you would first want to use Cleric Stance - an action with a time cost approximately the same as drawing a card - then return back to normal stance the next time you need to heal - the same as using/Shuffling/Spreading/Royal Roading (now that's a stupid made up word and I feel bad having said it) for ultimately a larger effect as long as you use a damage buffing card (20% cooldown reduction for instance being more overall damage on a DD than what a AST could put out in that time).

As an aside, the same phrase "Attack Speed" is used on MNK's Grease Lightning which reduces GCD and autoattack speed.

[GideonHighmourn]

As an aside, the same phrase "Attack Speed" is used on MNK's Grease Lightning which reduces GCD and autoattack speed.

I still think it will be far too RNG based to be reliable. You could easily just end up drawing multiple MP/TP reduction cards at the wrong time.

For every time you get lucky with drawing the perfect card at the perfect time, there will likely be 3-5 times when you don't; I just don't see it being a long-term, reliable method to receiving the proper utility at the right time. It'll be far easier to rely on Cleric's Stance or Selene for extra DPS when you need it for progression.