Add Blue Mages Already

[Claire_Pendragon]

other things

what else?

No one can say blue mage is going to be "most likely" this or that, given the nature of the job. The reason is right there within both of your posts.

Well, its a bit of old news, but one thing I remember devs behind FF11 said back during the 1st patch after BLU was released.
They said the westerners turned BLU more into a melee mage DPS, who focused more on melee/physical magic, where they originally envisioned it being more caster, less melee.
The japanese player base was more interested in making it go /WHM and main healing, to fill in the harder to find healer role for parties. So they nerfed physical spell damage, and raised magical damage, and improved their healing potential.
(I was one of the people disappointed, but it wasn't the end of the world. Over the years, BLU was given more than enough options to be able to be every role nearly as good as another job.)

But over all, the japanese mostly saw BLU as the "Caster" type, and not the "Melee mage" type we tend to see ti and RDM as. (Not just in FF11s lore, but in FF lore over all.)

So while theres more "We want BLU Tank!" demand in the west, there's more "We want caster strago styled BLU!" in japan. (Sort of, again things might have changed over the years, and idk what the japanese are currently asking for.)

Imagine having blue mage in any raid type content compared to other tanks. What would that blue mage have to be to actually tank? I feel it would need to specialize so heavily on one aspect of being a blue mage that it would lose out on actually being a blue mage.

It would have ranged spells, and melee spells, cone and circular AoEs (So far sounds like a tank)
It would have a tiny bit of healing, but not too much. (Sounds like BLU)
It would have some debuffs/buffs (sounds like all jobs in the game)
I dont quite get this comment. Maybe im misunderstanding what you're saying?

I think the best option is a dps blue mage with an extensive utility kit. He isn't a tank but he has an ability that lets him tank for 20 seconds. He's not a healer but he has some potent heals he can throw out in a pinch. Trying to focus something as versatile as a blue mage into one small part of what it should be wouldnt do the class justice.

Currently we have jobs who can be 2 different things;
DPS
Tank
Healer
Support

All tanks can switch between pure DPS or pure mitigation. PLD having emergency heals, and WAR having offensive support with slashing debuff. (In case of no NIN or SAM, which my raid group encountered, so our DRK went WAR)

All healers can pump out heals and DPS, with AST/SCH offering offensive support.

RDM currently has ranged, melee, AoE, emergency heals, and its main role of DPS.
and SMN used to tank Ramuh EX, and ive tanked most leveling dungeons as SMN. (I even main healed lower dungeons as ACN, because i didnt want to be a DPS lol)

It wouldnt be breaking new grounds to make a job that can cover multiple fields. So your version doesnt sound any different from what we currently have, along with being any different from what can be done as a tank or healer (not just DPS)
(I also remember the japanese players being the ones who used DRGs to tank one of the adds in Garuda EX, and having my group try the same.)