AST's weakness in end game

[AzureFlare]

Also, I line up my LA with cards so I can use CO to buff the party.

For anyone who cares about comparisons on a job's true potentials: always, always, always do this in any fair comparison. Using CO on just a party buff, even if it is AoE Balance, is a huge waste except for a few very niche cases (filled all your globals and mana-sated on the fight). You'll do more with the mana you get from extending LA and tossing out more Combust(2)/Malefic2/Aero.