Quote Originally Posted by ssunny2008 View Post
What if MNK gets a better graphical feedback, but stays like it is? Would you play it? Or are positionals still an issue for the most?
I would not play monk with an update alone, but not because of positional abilities. Positionals as a pain point for monk are a biiiiit of a false problem. They aren't really that important and when they are you have True North.

The overall issue with Monk is that too many of its elements were punishing. Not CHALLENGING. Punishing, the job is all stick, no carrot. The job needs 'mechanical moneyshots' that makes its internal structure more obvious and execution more rewarding. DPS is not a reward, the game actively hides it (and thus the number one complaint I hear about monk is "I don't know if I am even doing damage...").

The obvious point of comparison is Samurai, because of how similar the jobs are: Melee job that hits positionals over a somewhat non-standard combo weaving oGCDs in for extra damage or self buffs that actually change what you are trying to do.

But Samurai gets a lot more love, and is is easier to be a good SAM. Not because its vastly simpler (they don't compare directly very for many reasons, mainly being 'more effects that alter core rotation vs a more fluid core rotation), but because the job has good built in rewards into its rotation that make it REALLY clear what you are trying to accomplish.

Unlike most newbie monks, most newbie Samurai actually learn to hit their positional because Kenki forces you to do it to cast your abilities, and most samurai learn to do their rotation correctly because you get your Iaijutsu doing it. Lacking these feedback elements doesn't make Monk a 'harder class' and adding them wouldn't make it 'more casual.

This isn't to say "Monk should become Sam 2.0" as much as "You can look at other jobs, see common threads among popular ones, and look and see if they can be added to jobs that are struggling or people are bouncing off of." A Chakra on positional hits while your buff and debuff are up would both make Monk 'harder' (If you miss any one of those 3 you lose more DPS), but also easier (its now WAY easier to 'see' when you mess up on monk, just like when you over-write an Iaijutsu seal on SAM), and more engaging for newer players ("If I do these things I get this really cool attack I actively want to use!"). That still is fairly different than Sam but incorporates its design strengths of using the meter mechanic as a feedback tool.

TL;DR: Monk really doesn't need further difficulty reduction. It needs things in its rotation that say 'Good job, you did your rotation' and gives you something for it. Positionals are fine (if probably annoying to the encounter designers), and in fact probably need to be emphasized more, ironically, to help make them easier.