Theory Craft BLM as Healer?

[Wolfegang]

So I know this is going to get alot of critisicm as it is an odd idea but please just hear me out.

My thought was this.
1. Blm gets physics (not sure if correct spelling) from ACN and also quelling strikes.
2. So with this and the ability to have Umbral Ice (infinite mana) they have unlimited curing potential.
3. Next Because of the unlimited MP and low cost of physics the blm would need only focus on Mind, Crit, and Determination allowing for possible cures of almost the same potential as the primary healer classes.

So I was just curious what actuall healers think of this as I myself only have cnj at 34 and thm at 7, and this idea just sounded good in theory. So how would just spamming the basic heal work out?

[Whippet]

gl healing in high hand fights with 400 physicks

BLM could throw random physicks but

1) Never main
2) Why would BLM throw Physicks anyway?

[Mhaeric]

So I know this is going to get alot of critisicm as it is an odd idea but please just hear me out.

My thought was this.
1. Blm gets physics (not sure if correct spelling) from ACN and also quelling strikes.
2. So with this and the ability to have Umbral Ice (infinite mana) they have unlimited curing potential.
3. Next Because of the unlimited MP and low cost of physics the blm would need only focus on Mind, Crit, and Determination allowing for possible cures of almost the same potential as the primary healer classes.

So I was just curious what actuall healers think of this as I myself only have cnj at 34 and thm at 7, and this idea just sounded good in theory. So how would just spamming the basic heal work out?

1. Sure they have Physick, but its only a single healing spell and at best about half the strength cast by a focused healer. Its not enough to keep up just on its own.
2. They can spam a low heal cure spell until the cow's come home, sure. But so can White Mages and Scholars since the mana cost is so low. Natural MP regeneration is enough to keep up with Cure/Physick spam.
3. This won't work for several reasons. First, a black mage's base Mind stat is horrible. At level 50 I have 150 mind. Compare that to a base of around 270 for a White Mage or Scholar. Second, Black Mages don't have access to Mind enhancing gear since high level gear, unlike leveling gear, does not have both Intelligence and Mind on the same piece. All high end gear is either the 'of Casting' variety with INT or the 'of Healing' variety with MND, and Black Mages can only equip the former. So a black mage ends up with about 150 healing potency and an actual healer has about 400 for an averagely geared healer all the way up to around 450 for a BiS geared healer. Even spending your 30 points on MND will bring you nowhere close to the necessary healing potency.

As others mentioned, its not possible to heal someone effectively with a single heal for 400 hp cured no matter how much you spam it. Even main healers can't keep up with healing needs just spamming their basic 800 hp cure which they are also able to do endlessly.

[Thaliss]

Just for the fun it could be an interesting experience, like full dps group or something like that.
Until Amdapor Keep magic gear is often int+mnd (not all the time )

Sure not all content could be done that way.

[Pentacus]

gl healing in high hand fights with 400 physicks

BLM could throw random physicks but

1) Never main
2) Why would BLM throw Physicks anyway?

as a summoner, the only time I throw physicks are:

keeping myself/someone else alive whilst the healers take care of someone more important (ie, themselves, then the tanks, then the DPS in order of who is more important/closest to dying)

frantically keeping the tank alive if one or both of the healers are dead and being rezzed or are otherwise occupied (note: being the sole thing between your group and a wipe as you wait for the real healers to rez/swiftcast to come off cooldown so you can rez a healer, is TERRIFYING)

keeping my pet alive if it's obvious my Sustain isn't going to do enough in time

having a BLM/SMN heal the tank isn't something that can work for long, it's like doing CPR whilst you wait for the ambulance to arrive, a desperate measure that only really works to fend off the inevitable until help arrives.

that's not even getting into other things that dedicated healers bring, if you're spamming physick to keep the tank from dying quite as fast, you can't heal the rest of the group either, a scholar can take a break from tank healing to succor the group, hopefully healing the DPS and keeping them from getting any worse (whilst also healing and shielding the tank), a white mage can medica2 the group, either to top everyone off with the regen or to preemptively heal everyone if they get hit later. a DPS healer can just physick, and if they try to heal anyone else, whoops, your tank's dead.

@OP don't bother, you'll never be as good as a real healer for healing tanks and you just don't have the tools to heal anything but the tank, our heals are pretty much for emergencies and little else, we help the healers best by murdering things ASAP and not letting the enemies live long enough to cause much damage. if you find yourself spamming physick on the tank, it's usually accompanied by a thought process similar to "ohgodohgodohgodohgod" whilst you pray for someone with battle-rez to salvage the situation

[Little_Lulu]

What are you going to do when AoE DMG hits everyone?

[Kayokane]

truth be told THM was once a good healer way back when... but back then they were also good tanks... and had good DPS... than the patch came

[Rbstr]

Yeah, the BLM healing for what 400 in the best case with the dual int/mind i70 rosegold/astral stuff? It just isn't going to cut it as anything but an emergency measure.

I have, if the healer went down, used it to keep a tank alive just long enough at the end of a boss fight or through some trash...but that's about the extent of things.

[Brises]

Physick is no better than cure I, and a whm could not keep a party alive with only cure I. Never mind the mana thing, cure I will not drain mana anyway. There is so much more to healing than just one cure spell.

[Rhindas]

Your theory actually works in lower levels. My brother has main healed as THM before because of rare, super-new, or just whiny and/or useless healers at those levels. But the thing is those dungeons up to Toto-rak (or maybe Haukke but that's pushing it) can actually be run without a dedicated healer at all if the party knows what they're doing. So because of this, yes, THM/BLM can absolutely be a main healer in those dungeons.

It's just that, once you get to the mid levels, BLM's heals really won't be able to keep up with the sheer damage. Even with a healer gear set, the potency just isn't there, and SCH and WHM have more than just Cure/Physick at their disposal. THM/BLM can definitely help with a few "emergency" heals, we'll say, but the main healer? It's just not going to work after awhile.