Nuking WHM stats

[homicidaltendancies]

I'm wanting to put together a nuke set for whm but i'm a bit lost on the specifics on mage stats for this game. Is aero/stone affected by INT like blm/thm spells, or is it MND? or is the elemental+ stat by far more effective? Any help/info on tests that have been done would be amazing. I think with the DoT's, enfeebs, chainspell, and rediculous mp recovering abilities, whm could be an offensive RDM/geomancer type job. With the right equipment that is.

[Estellios]

Stats are the same, it's not dumb like FF11 where everything had different modifiers from everything else. INT and Magic attack potency will boost CNJ/WHM nukes just like they do for THM. There's very little if any overlap of INT/M Attack so I don't think you will have to pick between one or the other.

Concerning Elemental Potency vs. Magic Attack: Magic Attack is general purpose but Elemental Potency comes in larger numbers. It's up to you but most people will go for the Magic Attack.

WHM is really good at nuking, the problem really is that two of the three most prominent slots for magic attack potency or INT, Head and Feet, are most likely going to be taken up by the REALLY GOOD AF pieces available in those slots. You could probably get away with using an INT headpiece instead of the AF head, but that Regen boost on boots is just too good.

[syntaxlies]

whm can do decent damage but a damage build is a lil silly i think. that's what cleric stance is for. But if you insist, what i would do is use rings for damage, since you can change them easy, and use food:crown cake" to boost amp and int. That way you don't have to commit to the damage build on your gear.

[Estellios]

A damage setup isn't too farfetched since it makes a big difference if you actually gear up for it. My nuking set vs my non-nuking set is around the realm of 100 magic attack and 50 INT difference, which is really significant. If you have any intention of playing BLM, you can have both BLM and WHM use the same nuking armor pieces anyway.

[syntaxlies]

A damage setup isn't too farfetched since it makes a big difference if you actually gear up for it. My nuking set vs my non-nuking set is around the realm of 100 magic attack and 50 INT difference, which is really significant. If you have any intention of playing BLM, you can have both BLM and WHM use the same armor pieces anyway.

Theres no reason t have a whm with a damage build though. they dont have third tier damage spells and their role is to heal. They can assist in damage when the time allows but the dont wanna to to much damage anyway because they dont wanna build more hate then needed. Theres really no good reason to have a DD whm. Like i said above, that's what cleric stance is for.

i can see having a DD gear set for cnj for soloing, but thats a different story.

[Estellios]

It's just useful to have when fighting trash enemies or during XP/spiritbond groups. In non-boss situations you can usually throw up stoneskin on everyone, Regen whoever takes dmg, then go to town nuking. It's better than just standing there at full MP. On older bosses like Deepvoid Slave and Ifrit you can get away with wearing nuking gear and speed up kills significantly/kill nails/cover dmg because your pickup members can't stay alive/etc.

[Sol_Aureus]

It's just useful to have when fighting trash enemies or during XP/spiritbond groups. In non-boss situations you can usually throw up stoneskin on everyone, Regen whoever takes dmg, then go to town nuking. It's better than just standing there at full MP. On older bosses like Deepvoid Slave and Ifrit you can get away with wearing nuking gear and speed up kills significantly/kill nails/cover dmg because your pickup members can't stay alive/etc.

See this is the problem I have with WHMs who focus on damage too much. While most of your sentiment is true, your last line "pick up damage because your pick up group members can't stay alive" is the problem. If your party members die, you failed your role. They're your responsibility as long as they're not getting one shot (and I mean one shot, if they have ANY HP after getting hit they're still your responsibility). While you can nuke, never forget that you're a healer first and foremost.

[homicidaltendancies]

Until new jobs are added, i'm going to take old jobs and put new twists on them. I know how to heal. Now I want to go against the grain and try to do damage with a healing class. Same as a DD gld. or a tank pug. Just something fun/different.

[Estellios]

See this is the problem I have with WHMs who focus on damage too much. While most of your sentiment is true, your last line "pick up damage because your pick up group members can't stay alive" is the problem. If your party members die, you failed your role. They're your responsibility as long as they're not getting one shot (and I mean one shot, if they have ANY HP after getting hit they're still your responsibility). While you can nuke, never forget that you're a healer first and foremost.

When I mention pickup members can't stay alive, i solely mean for Ifrit. There is a point you have to give up on people if they literally cannot avoid a single eruption an entire fight or they otherwise run over to other people and get them killed after you nag at them constantly not to do so. I'm one of the few WHMs apparently who do keep the melees up in Ifrit by tossing Regens/Curagas out, there is more than enough time to do. Ifrit requires everyone to do their part by helping you out by covering their own ass by avoiding Eruptions/Plumes. I'm sure you know when people are just atrocious at avoiding them it's just too far beyond anything you can do.

[Sol_Aureus]

When I mention pickup members can't stay alive, i solely mean for Ifrit. There is a point you have to give up on people if they literally cannot avoid a single eruption an entire fight or they otherwise run over to other people and get them killed after you nag at them constantly not to do so. I'm one of the few WHMs apparently who do keep the melees up in Ifrit by tossing Regens/Curagas out, there is more than enough time to do. Ifrit requires everyone to do their part by helping you out by covering their own ass by avoiding Eruptions/Plumes. I'm sure you know when people are just atrocious at avoiding them it's just too far beyond anything you can do.

While it's true that a lot of people are terribad like that, as far as I'm concerned until their HP hits 0 they're still my responsibility. For Ifrit specifically, if after glowing phase starts and he's doing 3 and they just stand there, yeah, they're dead. Nothing you can do about that. If they're running eruptions into your mages or tank, that's the dumb DD's problem, not yours. Your problem is keeping them (and they people they almost kill) alive. As dumb as they may be, no one can fault you for keeping your party members alive as a WHM.

Thing is, WHM's damage is bad compared to other DD classes. By a lot. Yes, we can do damage. But a DRG, MNK, WAR, MNK, BLM will do more. As dumb as they may be, keeping that dumb DD alive will end up being more beneficial than nuking 99% of the time.

My point is, even if someone is really dumb and constantly gets hit by stuff, as long as they have more than 0 HP it's much more beneficial for the party for you to cure them as opposed to nuking.