Dear Square-Enix: You Forgot About Buffs to Dark Knight's Off-Tank Utility.

[Jpec07]

If they modified DRK's abilities to inflict magic vulnerability on the target periodically (say tie it to Blood Weapon), then there's some utility right there. The raid-wide DPS boost that would come from that could easily be tuned to match WAR's raw DPS output (possibly even beating it in some comps), and it could amplify coordination to boot. PLD's utility might even need a boost to help them keep up (maybe).

(and yes, Syz, I know your guide says to drop Grit while MT when you can to use Blood Weapon so you can go crazier with your MP, but most DRKs I've seen don't do that, and only use Blood Weapon while OT - it would just be an added boost to those of you whose healers enable you to pull that off)

[MagiusNecros]

What if Power Slash applied Int Down(So it has similiar function to the PLD's RoH) and Delirium inflicted Magic Vulnerability(Similar to a WAR's Storm's Eye but for magical damage)?

[Tanathya]

What if Power Slash applied Int Down(So it has similiar function to the PLD's RoH) and Delirium inflicted Magic Vulnerability(Similar to a WAR's Storm's Eye but for magical damage)?

No thanks, don't ever make the enmity combo have any utility beyond grabbing hate.

[SpookyGhost]

Take RoH's STR down, throw it on RA, and lower Path slightly. That'd balance that bit, at least.

[FinalWolf]

What if Power Slash applied Int Down(So it has similiar function to the PLD's RoH) and Delirium inflicted Magic Vulnerability(Similar to a WAR's Storm's Eye but for magical damage)?

As much as I want this they probably won't ever do it

[TouchandFeel]

I think that the most appropriate way to slot in more utility would be through DA usage, Blood Price, Blood Weapon or maybe even a combo of both since those are a big focus for DRK's mechanics.

Random off-the-cuff, half-thought out ideas as potential jumping off points for brainstorming of better ideas.
- DA+Reprisal allows you to use Reprisal without relying on a parry proc, essentially allowing to take a potential slight dps or defense loss for utility gain.
- DA+Plunge applies a magic vulnerability debuff (6-8%, instead of 10% for balance considerations).
- DA+Salted Earth provides a HP regen buff to all allies in its field.
- DA+Salted Earth provides a MP refresh buff to all allies in its field (may be weird as casters tend to be farther away and Salted Earth has a very confined range).
- DA+Salted Earth places a magic vulnerability debuff of X% on enemies within the field.
- DA+Blood Price results in the additional effect that every time the DRK is hit and Blood Price restores some of the DRK's MP it restores X% of the MP or HP of allies within Y yalms.
- DA+Blood Weapon: Gains the additional effect that when Blood Weapon is activated it applies the buff "Dark Celerity" that increases attack speed (or skill speed) by X% for all allies within Y yalms for the duration of Blood Weapon.

I do like a lot of the other ideas that have been tossed out and would be happy with many of them, just wanted to throw out some extra ideas that I haven't seen mentioned.

[WolfKid]

Blood Battle: "Release a wave of shadows enveloping party members, increasing their attack speed by 10%, while reducing action cost of TP/MP by 20%".
Duration: 15s
Recast: 180s

That is all.

[Brian_]

Everyone wants a raid spot for their Job. Everyone here commenting has a dog in this fight. You have the first and claim to not have the second. Why are you here?

The point is this -- I will have a raid spot regardless of the job I am playing. This has nothing to do with my current static -- a static I have only been with since a month or two into HW. So, I have no vested interest in the balance of the jobs or anything to gain from lobbying for a specific job. As a result, I have no bias.

You can continue to blame your lack of progression on the job you play but as many others have repeatedly said, outside of world progression with exceptional players, most balance issues don't matter. I don't see any world progression players in any topic worrying about losing their raid spot because of these changes.

So I take a step back just like I do in any topic about PLD or WAR and I can see many blatant flaws caused by individual biases. DRK when tanking gritless is the highest individual DPS tank. They are also half of the highest raid DPS tank pairing and half of the highest raid mitigation tank pairing. To me, that seems to be a pretty damn good position if all you are concerned about is whether or not they are raid viable. They are raid viable.

What I don't agree with is the separation of OT and MT utility. No such separation exists in real content. Tank utility is tank utility. Overall balance is what matters.

You should probably not throw terms around you do not understand. It only makes you look stupid. Power creep in relation to game design does not mean what you think it means. When you buff something outside of the meta, that is not power creep. When you buff something or release a stronger version of something within the meta, that is power creep. Buffing PLDs when PLDs are not a viable tank in the progression meta is not power creep. If you buffed DRK, a viable tank within the progression meta, that would be power creep. Adding more utility to a tank job that is already a staple within the meta is power creep.

[Valkyrie-Amber]

So umm people claim plds have large party utility skills.
lets see rage of harlone: single target 10% dmg down debuff in old days pre hw you could just roh several mobs but now we have a few other important combos to use.
cover: well if someones about to die and healer fails to heal them fast enougth can save, combine that with hallowed 2 immortal objects 10 sec.
Devine Veil: basicly party stoneskin after reciveing a cure but its 10% based off plds hp.
Clemency: now with 2 second cast could becomesomewhat better but can still only use 2 in a chain till not enougth mp.

and the buffs people want for Dark is like damage boosters and wars slashing debuff..... I think utility like that is far more better anything plds have if you have good healers you all know right?

If drk got a slashing debuff then pld would always be sidelined worse than in 3.1.... ballance please concider it when thinking up buffs for your class....

All PLDs utility is healing surport...
Wars is slashing debuff and drks want to be like wars. so if dark got a buff like storms eye where would PLD go?

Cause all darks seem to want a actual usefull utility over pld fluff if healers are good in party...

[Syzygian]

snip

I'd imagine most DRKs out there wanting a slashing debuff just want to be able to be in a raid group with you PLDs and not have both of our personal DPS be screwed by 10%, short of asking a NIN to shaft themselves by 60 potency every other combo by using a suboptimal rotation (this would make NINs happy too, as they could then enjoy additional AE regardless of if a WAR is there or not).

Its a benefit to you guys as well. It means you PLDs can be in a group with DRK -OR- WAR and get your 10% that you rightfully deserve. It wouldn't sideline PLDs and it would do nothing for DRK/WAR comps because the effects would not stack. Please, please stop being such a Bitter Britney. Us DRKs just wanna raid with you PLDs too, without us both being gimped.

I personally would love getting Cover during a fat physical TB, or to enjoy a sweet DV during a big raid-nuke. But I never see those things (outside the DF, anyway) because I main DRK and I need a WAR in order to bring the most to my group.

While I can think of many more creative ways to give DRK OT utility, giving it a slashing debuff would actually fix *many* problems.