3.3 AST adjustments

[technole]

Indom is probably the most powerful healer ability in game right now. Also when talking about about SCH and AST aoe healing comparisons, why would you not talk about indom?

I'd put Assize as the most powerful healer instant in the game because of triple-threat action and that it doesn't consume resources like Lightspeed or Indom does, despite Indom's lowest CD time. Considering no one else has 10% MP restore, and with Indom you are using a possible MP restore capability for an AoE. The only comparison AST has to these skills is Lightspeed as a reduced-instant cast/cost resource. Regardless, all three healers have some method to near-instant AoE that doesn't require Swiftcast. One of which is "free and clear".

I can't see Nocturnal AST being bad on Nidhogg Ex, but it's also easy enough that you can go with any healer composition and not care much.

There's no situation in the fight where spamming Helios (which is where Nocturnal AST has an edge over SCH in terms of healing) offers an advantage over SCH's CDs. I guess Akh Morn should be very comfortable to heal through with AST+WHM. Disable would beat Virus uptime for Ala Morns early on, I don't think it'd last long enough to cover Akh Morn though. There's also not a whole lot of running around in it, although I can see Lightspeed being useful for the High Jump/Geirskogul/Super Jump combo. Not sure how it'd go in terms of DPS, both WHM and SCH can have a lot of DPS uptime with Regen + fairy.

I still haven't gone Noct AST myself, and that's mainly because of being in the main healer seat for statics I've been with and running with a SCH, but hopefully soon I can get in on off-healer action. D.AST is fine, lightspeed is your quick option in substitute of Assize and I would basically use it early, so you can get it on cooldown in-time for the later phases. About the only differences you have between WHM/D.AST is with Cure III/DS uptime, but you have Disable/Helios/Synastry which i'd argue is just as good. Heck if you get lucky with an AoE Bole it's good here too, it's not needed just like Mantra isn't. But having free mitigation as a main healer always turns me on.

But yes, you don't really need shields that much unlike Thordan Ex when that was new to pad up and carry mistakes. Off-healer here is more for DPS uptime, patchwork, and virus mitigation. WHM/N.AST combo is obviously much better than WHM/WHM but I think we can agree it is another fight where SCH has too much upside. Fairy and Bane use is hard to ignore.