Just an FYI for New Black mages and the tips and tricks to your job.

[Marcux]

So, I just wanted to throw a few things out there I have noticed a lot of black mages did not know.

First off, after your fire phase, dont transpose!
you can go right from fire 3 to ice 3 for a full stack of ice.
while your mp is coming back, you can thunder and then back to fire 3 again for another full stack of astral fire. (Most BLM know this, but some still don't)
Second, you can move and cast.. if you have a proc up (fire or lightning), you do not have to stand in 1 position to cast it, it's instacast. You can be moving while pressing the button.

Fastcast>flare>convert can be done if your don't have enough for blizzard 3 after a fire phase, I believe you just need 250 mp

if you have a big group that just needs to die.

Fastcast>Flare>convert>Flare>transpose>Flare>Hi-Ether>Flare will kill it.

[HoroBoro]

Convert is free - it just costs HP.
Transpose puts you into umbral ice - I'm not sure sure why you want to flare after it. You shouldn't ever flare without 3 AF stacks. 2 ice 2s is better than flare in this case.
You can't flare off of a high ether -> it only gives you 120 will will not be enough to cast flare. However, it does let you cast Ice 3 to get back into fire cycle more quickly.

[Marcux]

sorry elixer, derp

[Ri_ri]

Questions:

Often I read the "You gain the effect of Thundercloud", I see the icon of the buff on my screen, but I don't actually get it. What happened? Is it because I'm Thundering too many things at once?
How many Thunders should I keep up at the same time?

[Dragonskin]

You can only have 1 thunder up at a time. Generally I will use Thunder II and when I get a Thundercloud proc I will cast Thunder III since it's free. You can do the same thing with Thunder I and then cast Thunder II if you don't have Thunder 3 yet. It just kinda helps to conserve mana, but it really depends on how much mana you have if saving that little bit is enough to warrant it. Meaning if you have enough mana to do a full rotation while using Thunder III... go for it.

[O-Deka-K]

First off, after your fire phase, dont transpose!
you can go right from fire 3 to ice 3 for a full stack of ice.
while your mp is coming back, you can thunder and then back to fire 3 again for another full stack of astral fire. (Most BLM know this, but some still don't)
Second, you can move and cast.. if you have a proc up (fire or lightning), you do not have to stand in 1 position to cast it, it's instacast. You can be moving while pressing the button.

Good tips, but there are a few things that should be mentioned:

• You get Fire III at level 34. This allows you to instantly go to Astral Fire 3 without Transpose (it will only go to AF2 until level 40, see below).
• You get Blizzard III at level 38. This allows you to instantly go to Umbral Ice 3 without Transpose (it will only go to UI2 until level 40, see below).
• You get Increased Aetherial Damage II at level 40. This allows you to get 3 stacks of Astral Fire or Umbral Ice.
• Transpose is still useful after a battle. If you are in Astral Fire at the end of battle, use Transpose and you should be at full mana for the next fight.

Also, a special tip: UI3 shortens the cast time of Fire spells and AF3 shortens the cast time of Ice spells. If you are in UI3 and cast Fire III, it will cast faster. ALSO, AF3 will be applied after the Fire III hits, so if you are quick enough, you can fast cast a SECOND Fire III. i.e.

Blizzard III -> Thunder II -> Fire III -> Fire III -> Fire

I find that I get the second fast cast most of the time, but sometimes it comes out normal (normal cast time is 3.5s).

As for Thundercloud/Firestarter procs, they allow you to cast a Fire/Thunder spell instantly and without mana cost, but you still have to wait for the 2.5s GCD afterwards. Since Fire III and Thunder III both have a cast time of 3.5s, this saves the casting time, allows you to move while casting it, and shaves off a total of 1s.

For dungeons, if you're being a good DD, then you should also be watching your enmity. Of course this depends on the difference between your gear and the tank's. However, as a general rule of thumb, watch the enmity especially close if you happen to get a lot of procs in a row. Since Thunder has low hate and is also a DoT, it can help to throw it on a target other than the main, especially when you get Thundercloud procs.

[NyneAlexander]

/ac "Aetherial Manipulation" <mo> is the greatest macro ever. (for pc) A mouseover macro for your mid-range teleport. Perfect for transfering Allagan Rot across the dungeon!

[Arasiel]

/ac "Aetherial Manipulation" <mo> is the greatest macro ever. (for pc) A mouseover macro for your mid-range teleport. Perfect for transfering Allagan Rot across the dungeon!

Any suggestion for controller on the teleport? Maybe <p1> (or whoever in party you wish to teleport to) instead of <mo>

[Arale]

Blizzard III -> Thunder II -> Fire III -> Fire III -> Firei

I stick to Fire for this rather then Fire III, but agreed otherwise. Fire III > Fire I spam has always worked for me.

[NyneAlexander]

Any suggestion for controller on the teleport? Maybe <p1> (or whoever in party you wish to teleport to) instead of <mo>

I'm not sure :/ I think the beauty in that macro is the mouse over part. Since you can visually see on screen who is and isn't in range, as well as where potential hazards may be. (No sense in teleporting into a row of titan bombs)

I imagine if you had to manually select a party member, then teleport, it would take too long and you'd probably end up eating an inferno or WoTL anyways. This ability is probably rough on controller users. Unless there is a macro that I don't know about (which is a good possibility.)