Will Beastmaster appear in any Endwalker content patches?

[Gaethan_Tessula]

BLU's kit presently sucks without enemy weaknesses...

What you do instead then is offload a large portion of the impact those mechanics from the mobs' characteristics to the BLU's own mechanics.

I'm entirely up for improving BLU's rotation. Assuming there is room to fit it into available spell-slots, I certainly agree that rotating between elements via applying weaknesses from one type to another would be better gameplay between-burst than we have now.

As for the meme spells (e.g., lvl 5 Death), in a world with unlimited BLU, they could probably be safely consigned to be Carnivale only, or otherwise restricted somehow. Trying to give 128+ spells on one job unique niches in regular content is probably futile.

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On the contrary, it could greatly improve the available depths of its rotation and freedoms of skill choice precisely by giving it that increased balance that would ready it for full access to content. Put quite simply, the majority of the work is just replacing lazy design, where present, with actual internal balance.

In an ideal world, I'm sure it could, and I would enjoy that.

In this one, I just don't find it likely the devs would put in the needed effort and upkeep. Were BLU to become an unlimited job, they'd more likely raze BLU as-is to the ground. It's just easier to create a job that fits cleanly into the established design parameters, than to constantly struggle with one that doesn't (unless set it aside from the current endgame, which is what they've done). The flexibility that endears BLU to me is, in my opinion, safer as a limited job for which balance is no concern.

So what if it's different in Duty Finder? It's already different in the sense that it can't participate. Do you want no one to have the choice to join DF with a predetermined set of spells just because you prefer Party Finder?

That's a rather silly bias to presume I would have. But no, my actual reasons are:

1. BLU's current core identity is being able to granularly adjust its kit and role between instances (and, to a much lesser degree, in-instance). Developing a fixed kit for DF directly contradicts that core-identity. The devs would have to settle for picking one of BLU's sub-identities defined by the three extreme corners of its role selection: flute-burst, oGCD, and weakness-targeting DPS; ARR WHM, including Stoneskin II, but with more damage buttons; and a tank that uses actively cast mitigations, along with abilities that "reflect" damage back at the target (Chel' Gate, Veil of the Whorl, Cold Fog, etc.). Probably the DPS one exclusively since that's what BLU would queue as, unless they actually find a way for BLU to actually count as a healer or tank in terms of mechanics.

I somehow think that BLU having to play the "diet coke" version of itself to use DF would continue to cause displeasure in the playerbase. Furthermore, locked-kits in DF would have a knockon of making it harder to balance BLU for current content; e.g., if the devs balance around their DF BLU, then PF BLU could be too strong. This would be especially problematic on JP servers, where DF is actually used for harder content.

2. Making the two distinct, and the DF set likely suboptimal, creates a perverse incentive for players to not use Duty Finder. I've already seen some people complain that BLU as is made it harder to participate in the moogle-tome events as other classes, since so many went to BLU-burn parties in Party Finder. Permanently instituting this problem via having unequal DF and PF BLU as full jobs seems like something SE would want to avoid, as Duty Finder is the primary means by which new players progress through the game.

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Overall, I think people are underestimating how much extra work it would be to adapt BLU's current flexibility and logistical considerations (e.g., needing to create several different spell-loadouts and hotbar configurations) into coherence with the rest of the game's design. Especially when the alternatives are the present "balance? who cares, it's side content" or ripping out the customization to create a curated kit a-la any other job (where some people gain caster DPS #4, and everyone who enjoys BLU as it is now loses everything).

Could it hypothetically be done? Yes.

Would I like for it to be done? Yes.

Do I trust that Square Enix Business Division 5 has the will or capability to pull it off? No. If healer design ever gets better, maybe I'll change my mind.