Dear Healers who don't DPS

[Ghishlain]

I automatically discount any statement of opinion by the developers that isn't directly backed up with coding. Aside from ostensibly calculating minimum clear DPS with tank and DPS role efforts exclusively in mind, they've taken no measures to enforce a vision of DPS-less healing; they just don't want to come out and tell players that they need to "git gud" since that is a poor business practice in the context of a semi-casual game.

I fall back to my usual position of "party member doing the bare minimum is a detriment." I'm amazed at the mental gymnastics some people on these forums go through to justify healers ignoring huge chunks of their kits. IMO this incredibly literal interpretation of the Healer role is damaging in that it promotes a sort of entitlement that does nothing to improve anyone's gameplay experience except arguably that of the entitled healer. Some posters go so far as to cry elitism when faced even with reasonable arguments as to why healers should attack when they can, but the idea of "I'm a healer; you should be grateful if I keep you alive and truly blessed if I deign to kill a monster (but I shouldn't have to)" reeks of its own brand of elitism.

Both extreme ends of the equation for the healer DPS debate are its own form of elitism and should be curb stomped into the ground, in my opinion.

My own thoughts about why the issue is so polarizing is because of the way the game is designed, it's entirely possible to be a successful baseline healer with a very low skill level which then in turn leading to a massive skill gap between those who are successful at a base level and those who are essentially 95+ percentile healer DPS. This in turn leads to massively varying opinions about what is "right" when the baseline for success is set at a very low level.

Outside of low ilvl progression, a zero-DPS healer won't cause a run to fail but will instead impede the speed at which success is attained. With that being said, players in general looking to confront EX Primals and Savage raiding should understand what it takes to become more successful and efficient with their kits to reduce progression failures.

I feel it's important to note the difference between DR and Savage level raiding because players looking to find success quickly in Savage raiding will need to have a mindset of continual improvement versus DRs where any Tom, Dick, or Harry will be able to succeed. As such, I also feel its important for people to distinguish between the level of skill required to complete the content and comments made towards those contexts because broad stroking generalizations just continue to stroke the the flames of this polarizing issue.

[Taika]

Both extreme ends of the equation for the healer DPS debate are its own form of elitism and should be curb stomped into the ground, in my opinion.

Really the only "extreme end" in this debate is the people who say healers should not be asked to be do DPS, ever. The so called opposite side is simply asking that healers should be open for DPSing when they have nothing else to do and they're able to do so (when they are comfortable with content, no one is in any danger, and they have plenty of MP). If there are posts asking for something more than this, I of course may have missed them and will gladly have you or others point them out to me.

[Ghishlain]

Really the only "extreme end" in this debate is the people who say healers should not be asked to be do DPS, ever. The so called opposite side is simply asking that healers should be open for DPSing when they have nothing else to do and they're able to do so (when they are comfortable with content, no one is in any danger, and they have plenty of MP). If there are posts asking for something more than this, I of course may have missed them and will gladly have you or others point them out to me.

This one quote stuck in my mind recently from a separate thread:

You could make damage spells cost no mana, have no cast time, all be oGCD and have a 1 second recast and these healers wouldn't DPS. I recently broke my right wrist (dominant hand) and I stilll DPS and heal in dungeons. It's not a matter of skill. There is something fundamentally off in the heads of these players. I wouldn't bother with them. Avoiding commending them and kick from party whenever possible.

Don't really have time to sift through the 60 pages over multiple threads though, lol.

For me I hate the extremes but I can accept the opinions of the more moderate posters. I do dislike the rhetoric about how there's an expectation for a healer to DPS. I feel the it's more important to encourage healer's to DPS and not force them to DPS. It's a minor semantic, yes, but it's important to me.

[Taika]

This one quote stuck in my mind recently from a separate thread:

That quote was about healers who absolutely refuse to DPS, I don't see how it would be about asking healers for something else than being open to DPSing?

I feel the it's more important to encourage healer's to DPS and not force them to DPS. It's a minor semantic, yes, but it's important to me.

I really don't get this. I expect my healers to DPS (when they can) just like I expect my bards to sing requiem, ranged DPS in general provide MP and TP, melees to goad and so on. All jobs should be expected, not just encouraged, to use their helpful abilities, although it doesn't hurt to present this expectation to them in an encouraging manner.

[Ghishlain]

That quote was about healers who absolutely refuse to DPS, I don't see how it would be about asking healers for something else than being open to DPSing?

To me, the context of the quote was someone who was willing to boot someone indiscriminately for not DPSing and an extreme solution to a zero-DPS healer, even if there was no discussion made previously. Stating they have something wrong in the head also shows a particular strong distaste for these types of people and just shows me the extreme other end of the spectrum that needs to be nipped in the bud.

I really don't get this. I expect my healers to DPS (when they can) just like I expect my bards to sing requiem, ranged DPS in general provide MP and TP, melees to goad and so on. All jobs should be expected, not just encouraged, to use their helpful abilities, although it doesn't hurt to present this expectation to them in an encouraging manner.

I disagree. There is a difference between clearing content and clearing it more efficiently but one thing remains the same for the two - you're clearing content. A player expecting their peers to play at a specific level different from their own expectations makes me feel those players are feeling entitled to something when they aren't entitled to anything at all.

An individual player can enforce those guidelines in their PF because they can set whatever rules they want to and the other players can decide if they want to join said PF or not. However, going into a randomly matched DR and expecting to players to play at a specific level (whether above or below their current level) is, in my mind, both foolish and arrogant of said player and makes them sound entitled.

[Taika]

To me, the context of the quote was someone who was willing to boot someone indiscriminately for not DPSing and an extreme solution to a zero-DPS healer, even if there was no discussion made previously.

If there's a healer (or tank!) who refuses to do any DPS, a BRD who refuses to use any of their support abilities, a BLM who refuses to use their fire spells - after being asked to by their party members, the party has every right to remove the party member who refuses to co-operate. I don't think there's anything extreme about removing a player from a group if the player is refusing to be helpful to their party (I do think the post you quoted was offensively worded though). And surely even you will expect these things from your tanks, BRDs and BLMs (just not from your healers...)?

However, going into a randomly matched DR and expecting to players to play at a specific level (whether above or below their current level) is, in my mind, both foolish and arrogant of said player and makes them sound entitled.

We're not talking about some ridiculously high standard for expectation, though. All that's being asked (and, again, feel free to point out if I seem to be wrong with this) is for party members to try to be active and use all of their helpful abilities instead of refusing to be helpful. What's being asked from healers specifically is that they would try to be as active as their DD and tank team members instead of choosing to stand there doing nothing (or spamming useless abilities = overhealing). There's nothing "entitled" about asking each party member to try and be useful to their team. If anything, refusing to be helpful when you could, for no reason whatsoever other than you don't want to, and asking your party members to work harder than you seems much more "entitled" to me.