Dark Knight 6.0: Wishlist

[Lyth]

I was just thinking about how to put together some of the ideas in this thread. In particular, how do we:
1) Change the levels at which actions are gained so that the levelling experience works out a bit better
2) Implement a second combo
3) Make the job faster
4) Fix Living Dead
5) Bring in an common theme unifying everything together

My apologies if this is a bit dense, I usually avoid going into minutiae. Total action count is 26 (25 if you exclude Shadowskin), which is only two actions over our current count. I've avoided listing further descriptions if I've left things unchanged.

Darkside: Reduces weaponskill cast time and recast time, spell cast time and recast time, and auto-attack delay by 15%.

Combo 1: (Lower Potency)
Hard Slash Lv.1
Syphon Strike Lv. 4 (Combo from Hard Slash/Unleash)
Souleater Lv. 26 (Combo from Syphon Strike/Spinning Strike/Stalwart Soul)
Combo: Creates a barrier which nullifies damage on player highest on enmity list.

Combo 2: (Higher Potency, reduces Darkside Timer)
Spinning Strike Lv. 30 (Combo from Hard Slash/Unleash)
Combo: Reduces timer on Darkside. Additional Effect: Restores MP.
Power Slash Lv. 72 (Combo from Syphon Strike/Spinning Strike/Stalwart Soul)
Combo: Reduces timer on Darkside. Additional Effect: Increases Blood Gauge.
Additional Effect: Creates a barrier which nullifies damage on player highest on enmity list.

AoE Combo:
Unleash Lv. 6
Stalwart Soul Lv. 35 (Combo from Hard Slash/Unleash)
Combo: Restores MP.
Abyssal Drain Lv. 56 (Combo from Syphon Strike/Spinning Strike/Stalwart Soul)
Combo: Increases Blood Gauge.
Additional Effect: Creates a barrier which nullifies damage on player highest on enmity list.

Comments: This is basically MNK's free-form combo system to allow DRK to have some flexibility as a resource driven, as opposed to rotational job. This also gives your Darkside timer some actual (albeit optional) risk of falling off.

Unmend Lv. 15

Bloodspiller Lv. 62
Quietus Lv. 64

oGCDs:
Edge of Darkness Lv. 30 > Edge of Shadow Lv.74 (Trait)
Flood of Darkness Lv. 30 > Flood of Shadow Lv. 74 (Trait)
Plunge Lv. 54
Delivers a jumping attack. Maximum Charges: 2.
Carve and Spit Lv. 60
Delivers an actual threefold attack. Each individual attack has a potency of 150. Additional Effect: Restores MP.
Delirium Lv.68
Your shadow counterattacks (using the Heavensward Reprisal animation). Whenever your barriers prevent damage, there is a chance to reset this cooldown, up to a maximum of once every 30 seconds. Increases timer on Darkside.

Comments: Delirium rework version 4, this time as a counter-attack. You must be seeing things. Also, let three-fold attacks be three-fold attacks, yeah?

Offensive Cooldowns:
Blood Weapon Lv. 35
Increases Blood Gauge, Darkside timer, and restores MP upon landing the next five weaponskills or spells. Effect does not stack when hitting multiple targets with a single attack.
Living Shadow Lv. 80

Comments: Two offensive cooldown windows, now at 60/120s so that there's no unsyncing issues. I'd personally like DRK to be more sustain orientated anyways.

Defensives:
Shadowskin Lv. 8
Shadowwall Lv. 38
Dark Mind Lv. 45
Creates a barrier around you that absorbs damage totaling 10% of your maximum HP.
Shadowform Lv. 50 (Replaces Living Dead)
If an attack would reduce your HP to less than 1, you are rendered impervious to it. Damage prevented in this way triggers Dread Spikes. Duration: 8 seconds. Recast: 360 seconds.
The Blackest Night Lv. 70
Runic Lv. 76 (Replaces Dark Missionary)
Creates a barrier around you and nearby party members that nullifies magic damage up to 10% of their HP.

Comments: Dark Mind now bridges the defensive gap on not having access to TBN at lower levels. Weaker, but more universal. I don't know what a Dark Missionary is, but we should be using classic FF ability names wherever possible. Shadowform replaces Living Dead as a conditional Hallowed. If implemented this way, you would also have to adjust Superbolide's recast such that it is shorter than this. Did I say Dread Spikes? Never mind that yet.

New:
Shadowstep Lv. 74 (Ability)
Duration 10 seconds, Recast 90 seconds
Teleport 15 yalms backward, leaving behind a simulacrum of yourself in place for the next 10 seconds. Nullifies most knockback and draw-in effects while active. Using this ability a second time swaps your positions (Recast 3 seconds).
Shadowbringer Lv. 80 (Ability)
Multi-hit attack drawing on the vengeful specters of your past. Replaces Living Shadow when Living Shadow is active. Number of strikes proportionate to remaining time on Living Shadow. Living Shadow ends upon use.

Comments: I like mobility actions, what can I say. I'm also a bit obsessed with the idea of getting multi-hit sword attacks like Omnislash and Lionheart in the game as a window finisher. Cecil's Shadowbringer seems to be a good fit. It also gives you the option of cashing in your Living Shadow window early if you have to because of an imminent phase change. Otherwise, it's functionally Confiteor.

Common Actions
Low Blow Lv. 12
Provoke Lv. 15
Interject Lv. 18
Arm’s Length Lv. 32
Hide Presence (Stance) Lv. 48
Removes enmity bonus of Tank Mastery. Effect ends upon reuse.
Shirk Lv. 48

Comments: I just inverted tank stance here. Eliminates issues where people forget to toggle stance after syncing. This also lets you push back stance acquisition until later on, as you only need it once you're doing two tank content.

Traits
Tank Mastery Lv.1
Reduces damage taken by 20% and significantly increases enmity generation. Grants a bonus to maximum HP based on your vitality attribute, and a bonus to damage based on your strength attribute.
Dread Spikes Lv. 30
Whenever your barriers prevent damage, or whenever Shadowform prevents damage, drains HP from attacking enemy and increases your Darkside timer.
Blackblood Lv. 62
Allows for Blood Gauge accumulation upon landing of certain actions or while Blood Weapon is active.
Darkside Mastery Lv. 74
The Power of Friendship Lv. 86
Your shadow gains bonus attacks when Darkside is up. Effect applies to both Delirium and Living Shadow.

Comments: This is where the unifying theme was hiding. Dread Spikes. The last one is just for the Moogles. I had nothing to do with it, I swear.

I'm sure I'm missing something critical here that turns this concept into a dysfunctional mess, but that's how I would do it. Feel free to dissect and scrutinize.

[Danelo]

I wish SE would just admit this last version was functional but lackluster, like almost all of the iterations throughout 4x, compared to HW version and go in the direct of the above build. I know Yoshida is not above saying: this is not really the direction the fans want to go so let’s start from scratch. Let’s try again and take the totality of their feedback into consideration, the theme/spirit of their feedback and detailed ability critiques instead of “no dark arts spam? Problem solved” mentality.

[currentlemon]

snip

I really like this. Not just because of how playful and unique DRK would potentially be, but the Souleater combo would help alleviate DRK's low mitigation problems in levelling dungeons before TBN. Great solution! I still want Dark Arts back though.