Scholar's Identity Transformation

[the-kuponut]

SCH is just healer summoner, Seraph is their Ultimate summon, similar to how Bahamut is with SMN.
Its LB has always been Angel Feathers, while WHM got the generic LB (Aerith's) that used to belong to all healers.

Seraph is an actual healing FF summon from VI and not just from FFXIV, imo it makes sense that their "trance" would be their Ultimate summon, like how SMN grows Bahamut wings on LB.

The job that struggles with its identity is WHM, with the nature theme being overwritten by the holy theme. The job quests are all about WHM being powers bestowed by the elementals. And its relation to nature. But it lost that identity with ShB sadly.

They're tacticians but the core of the job was always the bond of the SCH with their fairies, the quests have the fairy accompany you to save her previous summoner, you only do tactics in the ACN quest. SCH quests are about saving the cursed owner of the fairy.

[E4EO]

The angel transformation in the Dawntrail trailer being formed out of two fairies definitely doesn't communicate any "military tactician" vibes to me.
So I'm a bit confused on what Scholar is supposed to be.

Looks like SE doesn't either.

They messed up so bad even JP doesn't like this change. Whether or not SCH still possesses it's military tactician look is another issue if we really get down to it, the main issue people absolutely do not being forced to wear something they don't want and that's where they messed up.

I DESPISE it, since I came back I've been making Chocobo glams you see with the mask on my char, I plan to make one with SCH's EW gear dyed but the fact I know this change is coming kills my desire to even level the job as I know the glamour I wanted to make is going to be taken away in the future.

My advice to anyone else who dislikes it is to never ever stop voicing your concerns, this is a universally disliked change from NA to JP and the more both complain the more likely they are to change it.

[Supersnow845]

The idea that SCH’s are “healer summoners” is flawed because neither SCH nor SMN summons the same way that ACN does nor do either summon the same way as each other. Arguably despite its gameplay being the most pet based SCH doesn’t even summon, lily is the constant companion of the SCH, you can away her and summon her back but summoning is not actually part of SCH’s lore beyond lily being an independent aetheric construct

So having an “ultimate summon” when summoning is barely part of the identity is flawed in it of itself. Is seraph lily? Is seraph something borne entirely of your own aether? Is seraph neither? Is the fairy in angel wings even Seraph? If not what’s her connection to us? Are LB3’s even canon lore beyond just a massive release of dynamis? Like the old astral statis lore implied we actually moved into a different timeline where the people we rezzed weren’t downed. That has 102059601062968286 lore problems associated with the doomed graha timeline and the elpis loop. So can we even say LB3’s are actually canon in what they do as an action

Seraph just has no real lore grounding outside of “we gave SMN Phoenix better give SCH a new “summon” (read rouse repackage) as well”. Every other part of SCH’s kit fits within itself neatly except for seraph. If they wanted SCH to be a fairy mage they would have written the lore far differently. Seraph is just dicey as an entity herself and then seraphism is diceyness on diceyness

[the-kuponut]

The idea that SCH’s are “healer summoners” is flawed because neither SCH nor SMN summons the same way that ACN does nor do either summon the same way as each other. Arguably despite its gameplay being the most pet based SCH doesn’t even summon, lily is the constant companion of the SCH, you can away her and summon her back but summoning is not actually part of SCH’s lore beyond lily being an independent aetheric construct

So having an “ultimate summon” when summoning is barely part of the identity is flawed in it of itself. Is seraph lily? Is seraph something borne entirely of your own aether? Is seraph neither? Is the fairy in angel wings even Seraph? If not what’s her connection to us? Are LB3’s even canon lore beyond just a massive release of dynamis? Like the old astral statis lore implied we actually moved into a different timeline where the people we rezzed weren’t downed. That has 102059601062968286 lore problems associated with the doomed graha timeline and the elpis loop. So can we even say LB3’s are actually canon in what they do as an action

Seraph just has no real lore grounding outside of “we gave SMN Phoenix better give SCH a new “summon” (read rouse repackage) as well”. Every other part of SCH’s kit fits within itself neatly except for seraph. If they wanted SCH to be a fairy mage they would have written the lore far differently. Seraph is just dicey as an entity herself and then seraphism is diceyness on diceyness

Yes it is the same fairy from the LB, and is even included in the HW artbook.

While true that your fairies aren't arcane entities born from your own aether like ACN does, it still operates on the same concept. The SCH forge bonds with fairies then use the soulstone to summon them (from Encyclopaedia Eorzea). And Seraph is the ultimate form of the fairies. Selene/Eos are both the same fairy but with a different form.

Our soulstone is Surito Curito's, and so, the fairy is Lily, and the Seraph is also Lily, just her ultimate, most powerful form.

Angel feathers has its own section in the first EE, with a quote from a SCH about how they thought they will die when their fairy sprouted angel wings and saved them from their fatal wounds.

AST lore has nothing to do with this, and G'raha's timeline shenanigans are an entirely seperate issue. Plot holes always open up when you bring timelines but that is an entirely different can of worms that has nothing to do with SCH and is in no way connected to the discussion. There already exists "102059601062968286 lore problems" with the introduction of Dynamis and time travel, but none of these are relevant.

You can dislike the transformation, but it is in no way lore inaccurate or in clash with the job's identity, that is my point, SCH always had angelic connections, since ARR.

[RethDaron]

Yes it is the same fairy from the LB, and is even included in the HW artbook.

While true that your fairies aren't arcane entities born from your own aether like ACN does, it still operates on the same concept. The SCH forge bonds with fairies then use the soulstone to summon them (from Encyclopaedia Eorzea). And Seraph is the ultimate form of the fairies. Selene/Eos are both the same fairy but with a different form.

Our soulstone is Surito Curito's, and so, the fairy is Lily, and the Seraph is also Lily, just her ultimate, most powerful form.

Angel feathers has its own section in the first EE, with a quote from a SCH about how they thought they will die when their fairy sprouted angel wings and saved them from their fatal wounds.

AST lore has nothing to do with this, and G'raha's timeline shenanigans are an entirely seperate issue. Plot holes always open up when you bring timelines but that is an entirely different can of worms that has nothing to do with SCH and is in no way connected to the discussion. There already exists "102059601062968286 lore problems" with the introduction of Dynamis and time travel, but none of these are relevant.

You can dislike the transformation, but it is in no way lore inaccurate or in clash with the job's identity, that is my point, SCH always had angelic connections, since ARR.

I think most people are just not liking the direction SE is taking Scholar. I've been playing it from the start and I remember the Scholar moveset was mathmetician/strategist themed while the fairy had the heals/angelic motif. They've been eroding that over the last few expansions and making it such a mismash of lore it feels like it doesn't have a real defined identity anymore with the last bit of Lily being crammed in to fit with what SMN got. My opinion, of course.

[the-kuponut]

I think most people are just not liking the direction SE is taking Scholar. I've been playing it from the start and I remember the Scholar moveset was mathmetician/strategist themed while the fairy had the heals/angelic motif. They've been eroding that over the last few expansions and making it such a mismash of lore it feels like it doesn't have a real defined identity anymore with the last bit of Lily being crammed in to fit with what SMN got. My opinion, of course.

According to the EE it's the fairies who bestow the restorative magic to SCHs, Nymians invented the SCH art to aid in their tactics, so healing = angelic/fairy While the SCH attacks still maintain their strategic theme. The new chain strategem and its related new abilities still have that theme.

It makes sense for a healing buff to borrow from the fairy's powerful form. The real problem is that current healer job design lacks DPS skills, you get a DoT, a ST attack, and an AoE. With maybe one additional attack. That wasn't the case before and jobs had way more DPS and debuff tools, which balanced the two themes. That's the real problem, and it's why there's a lot of fairy/angelic abilities now. Causing people to think the theme "shifted". When it's more like the debuff/attacks and healing spells balance that shifted. Few attacks/debuffs but a large amount of buffs/healing abilities.

Of course aesthetics are subjective and I'm not at all saying that people should like it. I'm just saying that angelic/fairy aesthetics were always part of the SCH's identity, that the angel transformation is in line with the SCH aesthetics and lore.

[GrimGale]

that the angel transformation is in line with the SCH aesthetics and lore.

I am sure it does make sense "lore wise". I am sure you can justify it considering the salad of inspirations that go into SCH's aesthetic.

I still despise it. I still feel like it does not convey any form of power up. Summoning a shinier, stronger creature onto the battlefield under your command feels like a power up. Dressing yourself up in more chaste, modest clothes, white to symbolise purity, and withered golden angel wings on your back doesn't really convey "power" to me. I felt more powerful before, when I was a war tactics academic- when I felt my knowledge about war and strategy gave me the authority to command and guide others on the battlefield. That was the fantasy I liked about SCH. If I had wanted light, purity and holy powers I would have chosen WHM.

It seems to me like there is a SCH consistent way of utilizing the Fairy/angelic aesthetic. In the same way there is an AST appropriate way to use the Tarot/divination aesthetic. If AST had a skill that suddenly threw a deck of cards in the air and the cards started shooting blasts of energy at the enemy like a well coordinated drone swarm you wouldn't say "Well, it's lore appropriate because the card aesthetic was there from the beginning."

[GrimGale]

From the perspective of gameplay, the scholar gameplay loop has involved cycling between states that change which abilities are available/stronger (Dissipation - Seraph - Aetherflow). If Seraphism adds another state to this gameplay loop, then it fits in.

I’m not super sure about what it does though, possibly upgrades succor and adlo because they used ET. Maybe seraphism is just an upgrade to dissipation.

The magical girl transformation is awful and jarring. Really wish they went with something subtle instead like an aura.

Really the criticism of Seraphism here is generally purely about the looks of it. Nobody has really touched about how it fits mechanically in the SCH's kit. (Mostly because he have no details about how works and what it does, beyond what we saw in the trailer.)

We know we're not "merging" with our fairy/seraph, given the trailer shows Seraph being summoned while Seraphism is active. We know it gives us access to 2 "barrier looking" spells, one single target cast on another player and an AoE one. Wether those are two new skills, or "upgrades" to Adlo and Succor, we don't know.

[OliviaLugria]

Really the criticism of Seraphism here is generally purely about the looks of it. Nobody has really touched about how it fits mechanically in the SCH's kit. (Mostly because he have no details about how works and what it does, beyond what we saw in the trailer.)

We know we're not "merging" with our fairy/seraph, given the trailer shows Seraph being summoned while Seraphism is active. We know it gives us access to 2 "barrier looking" spells, one single target cast on another player and an AoE one. Wether those are two new skills, or "upgrades" to Adlo and Succor, we don't know.

Well, if it's some sort of healing ability (which it is) it's probably unneeded and extremely replaceable. Scholar's kit is already a cacophony of mismatched abilities, so in regards to "fitiing into the kit" ... it won't. This is doubly so if the ability only increases healing spell potency and upgrades Aldo and succor (the spells you want to use as little as possible.) I'd easily take an extra charge of recit, fey bleesing, summon seraph, whispering dawn, or fey illumination as the 90 level ability and would be way more pleased with it.

I feel like the lore reasoning is pretty thin as well. An "Anonymous adventurer describing the healing power of a scholar’s faerie companion" doesn't sound like a qualified expert on what a scholar can and can't do. They were close to death, if a summoner casted psysic on then they'd describe them as godly as well.

The past 2 expansions have used butterflies in a number of scholar moves, and I feel they would be a much stronger visual to associate with than angels. Furthermore, scholar's abilities have been closely associated with the colors green,yellow, and purple. They keep
adding blue colored abilities that tear the visual cohesion of the job.

In conclusion, the ability looks ugly, , barely is in line with lore, and is expected to be niche to the point of useless outside endgame content.

[GTK0HLK]

I feel like the lore reasoning is pretty thin as well. An "Anonymous adventurer describing the healing power of a scholar’s faerie companion" doesn't sound like a qualified expert on what a scholar can and can't do. They were close to death, if a summoner casted psysic on then they'd describe them as godly as well.

The past 2 expansions have used butterflies in a number of scholar moves, and I feel they would be a much stronger visual to associate with than angels. Furthermore, scholar's abilities have been closely associated with the colors green,yellow, and purple. They keep
adding blue colored abilities that tear the visual cohesion of the job.

In conclusion, the ability looks ugly, , barely is in line with lore, and is expected to be niche to the point of useless outside endgame content.

TLDR: You make feeble attempts that don't pass muster to disregard the lore.
In this game filled with many lore Enthusiasts who even if they hated it, wouldn't go as far as to deny it, based only on their dislike of a visual effect.
(note, this is only you, it's fine to hate the look. it's fine for a section of JP players to hate the look. <the common thing being that people don't take note of the lore, or the fact that the silent majority isn't really adding into it.> this quite literally isn't as large like the Benchmark issues)

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The Butterflies and green,(and selenes yellow and purple) are largely just colors based in the fairy that is used. Suddenly Summoning a bunch of Fairies in Lower level skills? sounds op.(more so when the main fairy/seraph is our only partner)

Ever Since Seraphs Evolution it clearly has grown, and Lily(Eos) connection has grown. and now with Seraphism do we have real connection to temporarily get more aid when needed from other Fairy/Seraph.

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Literally some of yalls dislike is coming out as grasping at straws.

You literally do not know how it'll work.
It's almost a amped up situation of Expedient.
Except only cause you dislike the look of it, and it ruins your perception of what a scholar always has been. (that you claim a small lore tidbit automatically dismisses everything. if that was the case, we wouldn't care as adventurers what some tomb raiders/adventurers that changed of heart, and wanted to free the tonberries in Wanderers Palace 2. Said in the first place.)

Respect to those who moved on from the Lore.

and focus more on other parts(even though we cannot speak on How it works Mechanically, completely)

As for the visual, they could simply adjust it to have more Tactician, or Give an Air of Knowledge/Wisdom Appeal. (Which apparently angelic leaning Fairy evolutions do not give)

Maybe have a blue glow to the wings or other things.

Have Glowing runes like that of Our newly expanded debuff.

[Personally do not dislike Seraphism. but overall I think it only needs a few adjustments in its visual or glow, and it'll calm most players. that are withing the section of players that care. let alone play SCH.]