#FFXIVHEALERSTRIKE

[ForsakenRoe]

And all the healers deserve some overall buffs to bring up their DPS to similar base level as tanks. They still theoretically wouldn't do as much as DPS as tanks though as Healers are intended have downtime to their DPS as they heal.

I don't think this matters at all. The issue has never been 'how much damage does Healer do in comparison to Tanks', it's 'by what method/rotation does the Healer do the damage'. Healers have never been dealing equal damage to Tanks, outside of SHB, so it seems to be a clear design decision the whole way through the game's lifespan that Healers should not do as much as Tank. The fact we do as much as we currently do (around 50-60% of a DPS's output) is a miracle in itself, given the next closest competitor in the MMO scene has their healers sitting at around 20-25% of a DPS's output

I just don't like the 'healers should do tank level of damage' line, not because I disagree with it (I don't really care if we do or don't), but rather, I don't want the waters to be muddied with 'we should do more damage' because I don't want SE to be given the free 'escape route' of 'well we buffed the healers and now they do the same damage as tanks, why are they still complaining'. I want them to address the actual issue

[AnotherPerson]

I don't think this matters at all. The issue has never been 'how much damage does Healer do in comparison to Tanks', it's 'by what method/rotation does the Healer do the damage'. Healers have never been dealing equal damage to Tanks, outside of SHB, so it seems to be a clear design decision the whole way through the game's lifespan that Healers should not do as much as Tank. The fact we do as much as we currently do (around 50-60% of a DPS's output) is a miracle in itself, given the next closest competitor in the MMO scene has their healers sitting at around 20-25% of a DPS's output

I just don't like the 'healers should do tank level of damage' line, not because I disagree with it (I don't really care if we do or don't), but rather, I don't want the waters to be muddied with 'we should do more damage' because I don't want SE to be given the free 'escape route' of 'well we buffed the healers and now they do the same damage as tanks, why are they still complaining'. I want them to address the actual issue

It matters when things begin to drag out in MSQ and solo instances but all they do is make healers dps instead of healing, but you're right that it's a far smaller problem -- but it still exists and only tackling one problem doesn't really make the other problems go away either. It's not a big concern as long as the viability and strengths between the rotational choices are competitive enough to change how healers play the game based on what the fight wants at that situation, but it's definitely one pain point in FFXIV if people want to play as a healer and then realize besides party content, every other piece of content makes healing painfully tedious as they're all designed mainly the same way as far as the healing experience goes. I myself started playing healer in other games and I can safely say that I enjoy healing far more in other games than this one, both in breadth of choices + customization and depth of the toolkit. I did not realize how sorely lacking FFXIV was in this regard until other games gave me the feeling that my choices in my build path and playstyle actually matter instead of giving an illusion that it does. Both in terms of doing damage and adjusting to damage.

[CaptainLagbeard]

I don't think this matters at all. The issue has never been 'how much damage does Healer do in comparison to Tanks', it's 'by what method/rotation does the Healer do the damage'. Healers have never been dealing equal damage to Tanks, outside of SHB, so it seems to be a clear design decision the whole way through the game's lifespan that Healers should not do as much as Tank. The fact we do as much as we currently do (around 50-60% of a DPS's output) is a miracle in itself, given the next closest competitor in the MMO scene has their healers sitting at around 20-25% of a DPS's output

I just don't like the 'healers should do tank level of damage' line, not because I disagree with it (I don't really care if we do or don't), but rather, I don't want the waters to be muddied with 'we should do more damage' because I don't want SE to be given the free 'escape route' of 'well we buffed the healers and now they do the same damage as tanks, why are they still complaining'. I want them to address the actual issue

The thing is, Healers do need to do more damage for non-group content such as the various MSQ solo duties that exist throughout the game, as these bits of content are currently they're ultimately designed with the player doing DPS in mind and so being a role that's by design doing less damage is just the devs punishing players for playing that role.
Now, the discussion should be how they achieve that increase in damage. If they're so afraid of giving healers more gameplay, then just boosting the potency and the dot is one route. But they can always give Healers more of a rotation or other attacks that lets them do more damage.

[Dante131]

The thing is, Healers do need to do more damage for non-group content such as the various MSQ solo duties that exist throughout the game, as these bits of content are currently they're ultimately designed with the player doing DPS in mind and so being a role that's by design doing less damage is just the devs punishing players for playing that role.
Now, the discussion should be how they achieve that increase in damage. If they're so afraid of giving healers more gameplay, then just boosting the potency and the dot is one route. But they can always give Healers more of a rotation or other attacks that lets them do more damage.

The other issue is that if you overdesign a healer by giving them a lot of damage-dealing abilities, many players might question, "Where's the healer part?" At that point, aren’t you more of a sub-DPS than a healer? It’s a tricky situation because, on one hand, you need to make story progression enjoyable, even for a class that deals less damage. While the FFXIV community is often obsessed with optimizing damage across all roles, I feel that if you have a healing role, it should focus on what it’s meant to do heal.

For the story, I don’t know if the solution is to introduce buffs or different NPC interactions to make the experience more engaging for healers. What I do know is that we’ll inevitably see the community split into two factions, both unhappy with any changes. If SE increases damage output for healers, players who enjoy the core healing gameplay will be upset. On the other hand, if they adjust content so healers focus primarily on healing and not damage, those who prefer the sub-DPS playstyle will be just as frustrated.

That said, I don’t often hear players complaining about struggling with story progression as healers. Personally, I only had difficulty once, during the first Zenos fight in Stormblood, back when I had just started playing. But now? I can easily handle it. Ultimately, SE has to choose one of three paths: enhance healer damage, adjust content to prioritize healing, or leave everything as it is. Unfortunately, they risk alienating part of the community with any choice they make.

So, the real question for me is: how can they resolve this issue at all?