The state of SAM, BLM, and MNK is disappointing. "Selfish" isn't viable in this game.

[Nominous]

Below that party count, party-independent classes will be superior. Beyond it, party-dependent classes will be superior.

Which is why party-independent Jobs aren't valued as much as Jobs that have something to offer to the party. Any 'meaningful' (opinions and all) content in the game is balanced around 8-people parties, and it's been that way for years. The developers themselves talk about how they look at Savage (and now Ultimate) to make their decisions on what needs changed, so there's really no question about it.

Which is why it's strange that they went in to 4.0 with BLM the way it is, and introducing a Job (SAM) that has the same design flaw in common. Their decision to do so is even more mind boggling when you realize they're clearly aware of the value some of these other Jobs bring. They acknowledged as much with the change to Disembowel, yet now we're almost back to double phys-ranged that prevailed so much during mid-late HW. Yet NIN has been post-god-tier relevant since ARR. I'm not saying it could never be viable in the game, but with the design philosophy they apply to the majority of the Jobs, and the way this game works currently, it isn't likely. Plus, even if they were balanced against their lacking characteristics properly, I don't think the community at large would be accepting of it. When SB launched, and people thought SAM was about 5% higher in personal contribution than the next best DPS (putting it about 15% higher than the lowest contributing DPS), they were livid.

It's just too tight a line to walk, and frankly, it's not worth it just to be unique in spite of the party.

[Shurrikhan]

Which is why party-independent Jobs aren't valued as much as Jobs that have something to offer to the party. Any 'meaningful' (opinions and all) content in the game is balanced around 8-people parties, and it's been that way for years. The developers themselves talk about how they look at Savage (and now Ultimate) to make their decisions on what needs changed, so there's really no question about it.

Which is why it's strange that they went in to 4.0 with BLM the way it is, and introducing a Job (SAM) that has the same design flaw in common. Their decision to do so is even more mind boggling when you realize they're clearly aware of the value some of these other Jobs bring. They acknowledged as much with the change to Disembowel, yet now we're almost back to double phys-ranged that prevailed so much during mid-late HW. Yet NIN has been post-god-tier relevant since ARR. I'm not saying it could never be viable in the game, but with the design philosophy they apply to the majority of the Jobs, and the way this game works currently, it isn't likely. Plus, even if they were balanced against their lacking characteristics properly, I don't think the community at large would be accepting of it. When SB launched, and people thought SAM was about 5% higher in personal contribution than the next best DPS (putting it about 15% higher than the lowest contributing DPS), they were livid.

It's just too tight a line to walk, and frankly, it's not worth it just to be unique in spite of the party.

(Sadly, perception will always be a sword without a handle (often even with a flat, somehow), and I don't think the first few weeks out (usually undue) outcry should be anywhere near a primary concern for balance. There has to be a point where an outcry over higher personal dps cannot be taken seriously from the same voice or crowd bewailing lower rDPS for that same job.)

This imbalance by design leaves two possible solutions: give every job a somehow equal portion of party-dependent rDPS contribution, or rework the way raid bonus effects work.

Personally, I'd prefer the latter, thereby reducing the increasing party dependence over party size of supportive jobs and evening out their contribution so they don't feel undertuned when solo or in light parties. Essentially, it's then just spreading out the resource, and should inflate at most by the same rate other tools deflate (similar to how Smokescreen can solve all opening enmity issues in a 4-man, but becomes almost irrelevant in an 8-man unless the other DPS have additional enmity-reductive tools such as Lucid Dream).