White Mage's 6.1 changes fail to address a core issue I have with the job.

[Semirhage]

The issue is that Energy Drain can be used on theoretically every stack of Aetherflow a SCH generates, but if your damage options have cooldowns, then you know you're getting the most value out of those options so long as you're able to keep them on cooldown. In the case of Propagation as an example, you also don't need to worry about using it during burst windows because you'll get the same damage out of it or Dia regardless of which you use. As long as you're not sitting on 2 stacks, you can use your remaining lilies freely to heal without worry and have Efflorescence to help generate a new lily if you've been managing your existing ones poorly.

Good point. I'd actually like these changes; they'd at least show the design team has an awareness of how healers actually play. I mean, given my dream design and role balance I'd love it if WHM either had significant advantages over the other three in its theme areas or got some party utility instead of dedicating itself to being 2/3 of a job (damage, healing, and something else) while not really excelling in the 2/3 it has in exchange for the 1/3 it has gutted out, but that's also another issue entirely

[ty_taurus]

Good point. I'd actually like these changes; they'd at least show the design team has an awareness of how healers actually play. I mean, given my dream design and role balance I'd love it if WHM either had significant advantages over the other three in its theme areas or got some party utility instead of dedicating itself to being 2/3 of a job (damage, healing, and something else) while not really excelling in the 2/3 it has in exchange for the 1/3 it has gutted out, but that's also another issue entirely

Something I'd love to add to each healer as well would be some kind of buff attached to your AoE spell. I'm not a fan of the total separation of Single Target and AoE in this game because very few fights require both. It can be interesting in an example like Tower at Paradigm's Breach's second boss where you have two bosses that sometimes can be hit by AoEs or the Magus Sisters at the Tower of Zot, but beyond that, you always have a few-to-a-handful of buttons that are virtually useless for the entirety of a fight. Finding ways that AoE buttons can be useful during single target as well could help healers out with having more to do during downtime and clearing up hotbar space for DPS. In the case of healers, what I have in mind would be something like:

Holy III: Increases own DPS and healing output by 5% for 45 seconds.
Art of War II: Increases own critical hit chance by 5% for 30 seconds.
Gravity: Decreases own cast time and recast time by 8% for 30 seconds.
Dyskrasia II: Changes with Eukrasia to be 60 potency with a 60 potency DoT for 18 seconds.

[Semirhage]

Something I'd love to add to each healer as well would be some kind of buff attached to your AoE spell. I'm not a fan of the total separation of Single Target and AoE in this game because very few fights require both. It can be interesting in an example like Tower at Paradigm's Breach's second boss where you have two bosses that sometimes can be hit by AoEs or the Magus Sisters at the Tower of Zot, but beyond that, you always have a few-to-a-handful of buttons that are virtually useless for the entirety of a fight. Finding ways that AoE buttons can be useful during single target as well could help healers out with having more to do during downtime and clearing up hotbar space for DPS. In the case of healers, what I have in mind would be something like:

Holy III: Increases own DPS and healing output by 5% for 45 seconds.
Art of War II: Increases own critical hit chance by 5% for 30 seconds.
Gravity: Decreases own cast time and recast time by 8% for 30 seconds.
Dyskrasia II: Changes with Eukrasia to be 60 potency with a 60 potency DoT for 18 seconds.

The changes to RDM's finisher combo made me grin with how simple they were, and how neatly they took care of the dull AOE problem while also not adding another 5 spells in the design space that only see use for trash packs. Where two expansions ago you were stuck on Scatter Scatter Scatter Scatter Scatter Scatter Scatter. I kiiiiind of want to stick whoever is responsible for RDM in a room and give them a crack at healers. Just tell them they're working on a brand new take on RDM from scratch and do a gameshow switcheroo last second, all "HA! Look at that, you were working on a healer this whole time!" When they get good design, they really seem to get it. When they don't, there's so much floundering.