Shadowbringers RDM Wishlist

[Mansion]

VerCure is a spell that is used either for solo content, or for Dual casting when a boss becomes untargetable. Nothing else really.
In optimized gameplay, you won't sacrifice a DPS GCD for a weak heal outside of horrible emergency. We should not get too much on the "hybrid" nature of RDM, it has been sacrificed and now RDM is a pure DPS job. The opportunities of DPS or buffing actions traded in 70-80 for unbalanced healing in the sake of hybrid would kill the job for me.
Unless the game changes fundamentally, two healers (and a few oGCD abilityes like Mantra, Second Wind, Mana Ward) are more than enough to cope with the raid damage.

[Dualgunner]

Unless the game changes fundamentally, two healers (and a few oGCD abilityes like Mantra, Second Wind, Mana Ward) are more than enough to cope with the raid damage.

This is a pretty good summation of what I was trying to get across earlier, thank you

[Kalise]

Yeah, healing on RDM will always be imbalanced.

Either, it's too weak to really be notable, so you'll still run with 2x Healers which will be able to handle everything the game throws at them (Otherwise content is being balanced around RDM being mandatory) leaving it so that RDM's healing skills are just useless. Just like it currently is.

Or, RDM's healing is so powerful that it becomes possible to replace a Healer with a RDM and thus the meta becomes that as RDM would push out more DPS than a healer even with dropping GCD's on the occasional heal.

As such, if you want to entertain the idea of fulfilling the fantasy of White Magic on RDM, it would need to be in the form of non-healing based utility. That isn't to say they cannot have heal skills, just that the balance around their utility must come from something other than healing. For example, if they had something like a form of Aurorastorm as a CD that provided SkS and a HoT in its area, it would be primarily used for the SkS buff but would also still be a healing skill.

[Seraphor]

RDMs heal is a self sustain, like Second Wind, and that's all it needs to be.

But it could be useful if it contributed to DPS given it's a GCD with a cast time.

So perhaps it shoukd generate white mana.
Then if we balance that with a new black magic utility spell that generates black mana...

[Leidiriv]

Well, there's a couple ideas I can see on BLM's end that could be shifted to RDM as part of their hybrid nature.

Verum Oratio (Enochian): Grants the RDM a SpS buff that stacks up to 5 times as they cycle through Verfinishers, probably capping out at 10% or so. (Gain 1 stack each time you use a Verfinisher, 45s duration)

Aetheric Reversal (Transpose): Swaps your White and Black mana totals, on something like a 60s cooldown.

Either or both of these might be terrible ideas, but they're the best I could come up with for how to incorporate more Black Magicks into RDM. Thoughts?

[Sylvain]

My wishlist :
I think RDM has a good enough amount of skills, and more would just bloat the UI so instead of properly adding new button to push, I rather add new functionnality to existing skills so we keep the same number of skills but with more things to press and more options.

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lv72 [Trait] Improved Dual Cast
Dual Cast also reduce the recast time of your next spell by 0.7s (down to 1.8s)

lv74 [Trait] Improved Acceleration
Acceleration also double the mana generation of VerAero and VerThunder to 16 and Impact to 8/8. While under the effect of Acceleration, Ver-Cure becomes Ver-Medica.
Acceleration Recharge is now 20s.


lv76 [Spell] Ver-Blizzard/Water
Grant access to Ver-Blizzard or Ver-Water depending on which Mana is currently the lowest. If both mana have equal value, a random spell is activated.

lv78 [Trait]Vermillion Art&Style
Excecuting Enchanted Redoublement grants Vermillion Art, increasing the critical hit chance of your next spell to 100%.
Executing Enchanted Moulinet grants Vermillion Style - Last 60s (3 stack max).
Having two stack of Vermillion Style changes VerHoly and VerFlare to Vermillion Blade

lv80 [Spell] Vermillion Splendor
Deals unaspected damage with a potency of 850.
Additional Effect: Increases Black and White Mana by 15
Additional Effect: 20% chance of becoming Impact Ready
Duration: 30s
When under the effect of Vermillion Attunement, both Ver-Holy and Ver-Flare become Vermillion Splendor.
Can only be executed after landing Enchanted Redoublement.
Consumes White Attunement, Black Attunement and Vermillion Attunement.


New Spell description

[Spell] Ver-Blizzard - Instant
Deals Ice damage with a potency of 210.
Additional Effect: Increases White Mana by 4 and proc Dual Cast
[Spell] Ver-Water - Instant
Deals Water damage with a potency of 210.
Additional Effect: Increases White Mana by 4 and proc Dual Cast

Vermillion Blade
Deals unaspected damage with a potency of 450.
Duration: 30s

VerMedica - Instant
Restores own HP and the HP of all nearby party members.
Cure Potency: 200

Old Spell Change (lv 80)

VerHoly
Now grants "White Attunement". If Black Attunement was up, also grant Vermillion Attunement.
White Attunement grants a 2 White Mana every 3s unless the Balance Gauge has too much white mana. Last 60s.
Also restore 10% max mp


VerFlare
Now grants "Black Attunement". If White Attunement was up, also grant Vermillion Attunement.
Black Attunement grants a 2 Black Mana every 3s unless the Balance Gauge has too much black mana. Last 60s.
Also restore 10% max mp

Scatter [change]
Additional Effect: Based on your current highest Mana, you have a chance to be granted Enhanced Scatter. (100% for 0mana, 50% for 50mana, 25% for 75mana)
Duration: 10s


Thought behind the new spells
First, only one new button has been added, VerWater/Freeze. This ensures ShB RDM doesn't have any Skillbloat issue. All the new functionnality are traits enhancing the current set.

To me, RDM is all about keeping the balance between B&W mana. I've always concidered
the RDM to be the fast paced BLM. While BLM has to stand still (as much as possible) casting long and powerful spells, RDM would have shorter cast and good mobility.
To "some" extent this is the case, but as many people have noticed, this delay after casting VerAero/Thunder kind of kills it, we basically spend half our gcd waiting to be able to cast the next spell. This is where Improved DualCast comes into play.
The goal is to make RDM gameplay faster, exploit its simplicty to allow a more nervous and fast paced rotation.
I am very aware that a recharge cast of 1.8s (minus spellspeed) could create some clipping issues with too much SpellSpeed, but since they're already avoiding it, 1.8s should be enough to weave 1 ogcd (not dual weave tho)

I wanted to make Acceleration more interesting. It is (imo) a very boring spell with very little to zero thought required behind its use. You press it on CD and use it on wathever the spell you don't have the proc yet. its impact is also limited has it only has 50% chance to granting you the proc (since the other 50% would be you procing it anyway).
The new acceleration also has an important play with the whole Black and Mana attunement helping the player restoring the slowly, but steady, imbalance created by the buff. Regarding VerMedica, I wanted to add another support skill (that we would avoid anyway) but not at the cost of an actual new trait/spell.
Ver-Medica would be a powerful assisting tool but gated behind a 20s CD while would, on top of it, cost a buffed VerThunder/Aero.
Definitely not something people would abuse, but always handy if the need arises.

VerBlizzard/Water is here to answer a few issues the new RDM will have.
First, because of the new Improved Dualcast, RDM mobility would be severely impaired.
VerBlizz/Water is basically RDM Ruin2, it's instant, procs DualCast so you can still keep up your rotation. And can be use for Dualweaving. But due to its slightly lower potency and mana generation, you simply don't spam it.

I thought of making it two spells but after some thought I really didn't see the point. It would bloat the UI with one extra skill for no reason. But that's still something that could be done without any issue.

Vermillion Art&Style is here to solve the RDM AoE issue and give some oomph to our combo finisher. Many people proposed to use Ver-Flood/Freeze for AoE, but I don't think it is such a great idea anymore. I rather have most skill working for our Single Target rotation. With this, using two Enchanted Moulinet would grant a strong AoE finisher. With a duration of 60s people should be able to keep the stack between pulls during dungeon and steadily unleash a good burst. The basic rotation is still Scatter spam altough the rework on Scatter should help.

Finally Vermillion Splendor is here to work as the new central gameplay of the RDM.
Not only did we have to keep our mana balanced, now we'll have to balance both our use of Ver-Flare and Ver-Holy. However just this wouldn't make the whole rotation quiet new and wouldn't exploit some of our new tools to their full extent, such as Improved Acceleration. White and Black Attunement serve this purpose. By Attuning to a specific element it changes, slightly, the way you handle your rotation.
Basically you have to be more careful with your mana generation.

I've also seen many people wishing for some passive mana generation (through the use of a DoT usually) so there you go.

As a reward, we get a new more powerful finisher following the whole RDM theme. A finisher both white and black, a red finisher!


In the end not much would change for the RDM as I concider the job isn't lacking anything in particular beside a bit more exciting AoE.

The new rotation would be essentially the same but faster, you raise both mana equally, finish with V-Holy or V-Flare, do the same again with the other one and finish with a "Ver Redboom". If you need to cast while moving you now have access to verblizz/water.

[Archwizard]

I mean, firstly I certainly don't undertake dps queues to play subhealer.

Then why pick the class that's historically half Black Mage and half White Mage...?

[Archwizard]

Verum Oratio (Enochian): Grants the RDM a SpS buff that stacks up to 5 times as they cycle through Verfinishers, probably capping out at 10% or so. (Gain 1 stack each time you use a Verfinisher, 45s duration)

Aetheric Reversal (Transpose): Swaps your White and Black mana totals, on something like a 60s cooldown.

Not thrilled about Verum Oratio, partly since Spell Speed isn't of huge value to us and partly because that's an awfully roundabout way to give us Enochian, which I for one jumped to RDM to avoid.

I'm kind of wondering what the practical function of Aetheric Reversal would be, since both Verholy and Verflare are presently identical just with different totals. I suppose maybe if you have a Verfire/Verstone proc of the wrong mana type, but even then a 60 second CD is a bit much and we have plenty of other control tools...

-snip-

I like the idea of upgrading Vercure to affect the party (or at least targets around your target), but... I have a few concerns.

1) If Verblizzard and Verwater both deal the same damage as Jolt II and have a faster cast time, what's to stop them from simply replacing Jolt II so you can spam instants? Combined with Improved Dualcast and uninterrupted movement, it's easy to see that as being a total throughput upgrade.
2) Why change both Verholy and Verflare into Vermilion Blade, rather than Enchanted Moulinet? Why allow Vermilion Style to stack to 3 if the effect only requires 2 stacks? Is Vermilion Blade intended to be an AoE? The description just says it does heavy damage.
3) Wouldn't Improved Acceleration encourage holding Acceleration's buff to get more mileage from Impact? Would it be consumed by Vermedica?
4) Is it intended for the change to Enhanced Scatter to encourage players to hit Enchanted Moulinet as soon as it comes up to keep below 50 MP?
5) If your overall concern is button bloat, why not advocate for the compression of existing skills, like our melee combo or proc-exclusive spells (a la PVP)?

[Dualgunner]

Then why pick the class that's historically half Black Mage and half White Mage...?

Because it's the closest we currently and probably will ever have to a dps that fits the spellblade archetype. Regardless if I wanted to play a healer I'd play a healer.

[Archwizard]

Yeah, healing on RDM will always be imbalanced.

Either, it's too weak to really be notable, so you'll still run with 2x Healers which will be able to handle everything the game throws at them (Otherwise content is being balanced around RDM being mandatory) leaving it so that RDM's healing skills are just useless. Just like it currently is.

Or, RDM's healing is so powerful that it becomes possible to replace a Healer with a RDM and thus the meta becomes that as RDM would push out more DPS than a healer even with dropping GCD's on the occasional heal.

As such, if you want to entertain the idea of fulfilling the fantasy of White Magic on RDM, it would need to be in the form of non-healing based utility. That isn't to say they cannot have heal skills, just that the balance around their utility must come from something other than healing. For example, if they had something like a form of Aurorastorm as a CD that provided SkS and a HoT in its area, it would be primarily used for the SkS buff but would also still be a healing skill.

Not necessarily. You're thinking in the binary sense of comparison to a healer.

In past FFs, where Red Mages shined was in the areas they could do things other classes couldn't, becoming a subcategory of their own.

Consider this, for instance:

Vercure now heals all allies within 5y of the target. For every ally that receives healing (not overhealing), the potency of your next spell increases by 10%, stacking up to 5 times. Can consume Acceleration to automatically generate 5 stacks.