I don't think SE consider D4 RDM in the mechanics in this patch

[AmiableApkallu]

All of this sounds pretty positive?

As in, you can't just blindly press your melee combo. That's good. Now let's apply this design to the other 20+ jobs, because hell I'm tired of just doing everything as the button lights up...

So long as fights proceed on strict timelines, it doesn't matter how jobs are designed. For any given encounter, you'll still be pushing your buttons in the same order every time. The fact that one encounter might need one order, and another encounter needs another order, doesn't change much.

[Carighan]

So long as fights proceed on strict timelines, it doesn't matter how jobs are designed. For any given encounter, you'll still be pushing your buttons in the same order every time. The fact that one encounter might need one order, and another encounter needs another order, doesn't change much.

You're right insofar that the existing random elements of Red Mage ought to have a bigger impact, precluding knowing that you'll generate enough energy to run the odd combo and the double combo every time. That might happen. Or not. But with a by-now 40% proc chance IIRC, that just evens out too much. An easy fix here would be to reduce the chance to 15% or 20% to get a proc, but increase the energy obtained from a proc by 100%-125% to compensate. Same energy gain over time, but it might be utterly skewed.

And again, this focus entirely on static rotations in job design is the problem. It needs to go. It precludes designing interesting gameplay in the first place.

[AmiableApkallu]

And again, this focus entirely on static rotations in job design is the problem. It needs to go. It precludes designing interesting gameplay in the first place.

This is backwards. Static encounters lead to static rotations. Dynamic encounters lead to dynamic use of skills. Throwing (more) RNG into every job's kit is hardly a solution, nor is it even necessary.

Look at PvP. There is certainly an optimal, static rotation if all you're doing is thwacking a striking dummy in Wolves' Den. But step into an arena, with the randomness and variability that is other players, and that static rotation is dead in the water. Same kit, but different encounter designs.

On the other hand, we have PvE, where SE has all but said that they wanted to design a certain kind of encounter this patch, so as a consequence, they changed BLM to better fit that design. SE's problem starts with the fact that they're fixated on a particular, singular style of encounter design.

[Carighan]

This is backwards. Static encounters lead to static rotations. Dynamic encounters lead to dynamic use of skills. Throwing (more) RNG into every job's kit is hardly a solution, nor is it even necessary.

No, not really. Although we might be talking about different things. The type of class design is based on standing in front of a target dummy. Whether you can actually pull this "ideal" gameplay off or not in front of a specific boss is a separate issue. Note how people don't do a non-static rotation in fights that include strong randomization like Seat of Sacrifice EX.

A non-static-rotation means your job is principally based on procs, resource starvation, resource overflow or non-reliably effects leading to dynamic branch choice. This are then, just like a static rotation, further impacted by the fight design. I think we were just talking about different things. And I'd be on board for less static fights, I loved SoSEX, one of the best fights ever made. But it's an independent thing from what I want, which is classes not based on the static rotation archetype. That ought to be reserved to max 1 class per role, to contrast against all the non-static classes.

[AmiableApkallu]

But it's an independent thing from what I want, which is classes not based on the static rotation archetype.

So long as encounters are centered around static timelines, the only thing such a class design brings to the table is, "well, I guess I stunk this run because my class's RNG didn't favor me." See also: The evolution of any class/job in FFXIV who's earlier designs featured RNG elements. Because, as I said before:

SE's problem starts with the fact that they're fixated on a particular, singular style of encounter design.

You want to move away from the static rotation archetype? Hallelujah.

But by the evidence available to us, it seems clear that SE's first problem is encounter design, because that's all but their stated reason for smooshing every class/job into a static rotation. And the general praise for PvP proves the point that less static encounter design is a good thing, even in the presence of job kits with little or no RNG.