Pros and Cons of each Healer Role

[winsock]

Let's say a WHM and SCH walk up and say I can build a taller stable tower out of jenga blocks than you! They proceed to start building and the WHM is definitely higher than the SCH"s. However once it reached 3 feet it fell over and the SCH just kept going and hit up to 4.5 feet. The WHM at the end says, 'well we aren't comparing stable tower anymore because mine fell over, so I had the taller stable tower."

The fact that the SCH can sustain high DPS for longer than the WHM due to MP constraints is why the SCH has higher sustained DPS.

I appreciate the analogy as it helps me understand your line of thinking. You've missed something critical in your analogy however. "DPS" = "Damage per second" i.e. a "rate". It's not about how much tower you've built, it's about the "rate" at which you've built.

Root of the problem in this example is the same that it has been in previous ones: time.

When comparing "sustained DPS" in the tower example, we're comparing the rates at which the SCH and WHM can build a tower. WHM can build more tower per second than the SCH, which is why it has the highest "sustained DPS". This metric is important in selecting the right job for the task/use case. For example, if the WHM can only build towers up to 3 feet tall, but can build them faster than SCH, it is preferred over SCH for any job requiring a 3 foot tower or smaller.

Directly addressing the topic: you are combining the categories of "MP management" and "sustained DPS". While "MP management" and even "mobility" can negatively impact a WHM's DPS, you cant know in advance if, or the degree to which, the use case will cause MP or mobility problems that negatively impact the WHM's DPS. The term "sustained DPS", at least in part, exists a measure to see where you stand before taking penalties.