Is it okay to not DPS?

[Shivavishnu]

Hi, I'm fairly new to this game but am fairly old to healing/support in other MMORPGs. I was just wondering if PUGs look poorly at a healer who doesn't DPS? I've tried stance dancing and DPSing in between heals, but I seem to fudge things up. That usually ends up with a death or a wipe.

[Bhuni]

I err don't know how to respond after looking at your sig...

[NorthernLadMSP]

If you're not into actual DPS as a healer, go Astrologian and just provide buffs to your party. It will give you something to do in your healing downtime without having to stance dance.

[Tranquil]

Don't stress about it. You can always practice it little by little, but it's okay to not DPS if you're not comfortable with it. It's always good to try to push your boundaries and try to be as efficient as possible (IMHO), but if you're new to the game etc., just try to get a general feel for the game first.

By the way, there're frequent wars around these parts about whether or not healers are supposed to DPS, so perhaps take a look at some of those vitriolic threads.

[416to305]

I don't think anyone looks poorly at a healer that doesn't DPS, I mean your main purpose is to heal so that has to come first. I always DPS just because you don't need to heal 100% of the time so gets boring otherwise, but I've done WoD or others where sometimes I'm just tired or out of it so I just get a bit lazy and only heal. I've never had anyone say to stop DPSing or to start. I find it's easier in a 4 person dungeon though to stick to healing for the most part, because if you mess up and you wipe or the tank wipes, everyone goes back to the start. At least in a raid or 8 person you have the other healer to cover you a bit. On the flip side though, there's no greater satisfaction in one of those dungeons when you can pop a Regen on the tank and pretty much take out the group of mobs yourself spamming Holy. Get comfortable with healing first and then you'll find DPSing comes easily when you are good at quickly hitting your skills, like Benediction if things go south.

[Ghishlain]

No content in this game is ever designed to have healer DPS in mind when clearing content - if anyone openly treats you poorly because of it, they need to be slapped.

With that being said, the best healers in the current meta are those who can perform their healing capacities while providing additional functionality in the form of DPS when the opportunity presents itself. This requires experience and practice however, so if you're uncomfortable at this juncture, I'd say to stick with what you know until you understand the game dynamics better. Note that this game is very scripted so it's possible to tell when big attacks will be coming once you've experienced any content enough and makes it easier to gauge when to stance dance.

This may change in Heavensward depending on how the dungeons and raids are designed, but for now this is what the current healer meta is like.

Good luck and don't get discouraged

I err don't know how to respond after looking at your sig...

I find it cute in a very eccentric kinda way

>>;

<<;

*Hides*

[Kaizencorr]

I'll say this. Any down time should be filled with dps. If you believe in being the best, dps is the answer. If you believe in efficiency time-wise, dps is the answer. If you believe in having fun, while incredibly subjective, I still think dps is the answer. Because standing around doing nothing with a good to great tank, is very boring and not fun.

If you are struggling with it, start with just the dots.

[Seryl199]

I'll say this. Any down time should be filled with dps. If you believe in being the best, dps is the answer. If you believe in efficiency time-wise, dps is the answer. If you believe in having fun, while incredibly subjective, I still think dps is the answer. Because standing around doing nothing with a good to great tank, is very boring and not fun.

If you are struggling with it, start with just the dots.

I agree! Cleric Stance isn't necessary when you're starting out, just put in damage where you can, until you learn when it's safe to DPS for extended periods. However, you should by no means feel obligated to DPS, if you're making yourself uncomfortable, you're putting yourself in a position where you are more likely to make mistakes and wipe the party. People prefer being alive to seeing healers DPS.

That said, push yourself from time to time and cut it close, you won't know your limits until you reach them. It's still ok to make mistakes, and once you learn your boundaries, it's great to put out decent damage and pull off some finessed healing to impress your fellow adventurers.

[Atoli]

If your are struggling to keep the party alive, don't do it.
Healers DPSing is meant to be a bonus on top of great healing. If it results in your partymembers dying, you didn't give heals enough priority.

For example: If I see that one heal only gets the tank up by a small portion of HP and every hit he takes is a lot more than I can heal with one heal, even when his HP are full I won't switch to dpsing with cleric stance, because I won't be able to get his HP back up fast again and he'll keep taking dmg and eventually dying before I can even turn off cleric stance again. This mainly happens with low gear levels or when the tank is either badly equipped, doesn't know his cooldowns or overestimates himself by pulling too many mobs.
But when I know I have big heals available, and even something like 1 heal is enough to fill over 50% of the tank's HP up, I'll dps away instead of standing around staring at walls and others doing stuff.

So yeah, just keep in mind that even if people want you to dps, your first and foremost job is to keep everyone alive and well. Only dps when you are sure you can afford it.
Also, yes, there are quite a few people who expect healers to dps. But if you don't feel safe doing it (for example because your DPS always stand in AoEs and stuff, nearly dying and you have to stay ready to heal them) just be honest and tell them it's their own fault you can't dps >:3

[416to305]

Get used to where the Benediction button is, it will save you many times when DPSing! Can let the tank get pretty low and then pop that and back up they go. For me I was worried about MP management initially thinking I'd run out all the time and then not have enough to heal, but that is extremely rare unless you are spamming Holy, but you're only going to spam Holy in certain situations, mainly where you know you'll have time after to get that MP back up. I like that there's a cool down to remove CS as it forces you to strategize on when to best use it.