Strongest class/job lore wise?

[Atoli]

I don't know, I'd probably put WHM/BLM before SMN any day.
Like others said already, WHMs brought a whole umbral era upon us, and now a mere handful of BLMs scare the current WHMs shitless because they fear these few BLMs could bring another umbral era again.
SMN's power ends at a part of the power a real primal has, and even all 3 primals summoned at once is nothing but a minor disturbance for the planet right now. Even Bahamut, in all his full power might (not the mere piece of his power a SMN has), was basically the softest umbral era Hydealyn ever saw, no wiped out civilizations and nearly full recovery after only 5 years.

The Jobquests of WHM/BLM highlight the fact that both their powers are limitless and our characters are basically only holding ourselves back all the time because of the great destruction it would bring otherwise.

Now for the melees:
I'd put DRG, WAR and MNK higher on the list than PLD, BRD and NIN. The latter are just normal fighters with normal bodies and basically no supernatural stuff going on. of course, that doesn't mean one can't win against another in a fight and I'd expect plenty of ninjas to be able to kill any mage before they could cast a spell, but if we talk raw maximum power here, it's something like:
1. WHM, BLM (potential for unlimited destruction)
2. SMN (primal power, still far above anything a normal human being could do)
3. DRG (consumed dragon's power, one of the stongest non-godly species)
4. WAR, MNK (normal humans but with a bit of a supernatural touch)
5. PLD, BRD, NIN (normal fighters who honed their bodies to the maximum)

I left out the new jobs because I haven't seen most of their Jobquests yet

[VisRalis]

*Looks at Louisoix*
hmm... >_> *Looks at Flames of Truth*

Yeah. I think his class (CNJ? THM?) kinda sets the standard Lore wise.
I mean, look at what he's done!!

[Nyalia]

*Looks at Louisoix*
hmm... >_> *Looks at Flames of Truth*

Yeah. I think his class (CNJ? THM?) kinda sets the standard Lore wise.
I mean, look at what he's done!!

Final Coil spoilers:

Actually, Louisoix's class at that point was literally Primal (specifically, Phoenix). Thousands of Eorzeans had channeled aether from the land into 12 stones, each bearing one of the symbols of the Twelve, and from there, Louisoix channeled that energy to the Carteau Flats. He told everyone to pray for a reborn Eorzea, one that was no longer facing the Garlean threat. When he failed to use that energy to contain Bahamut (the mini-Dalamud with the giant symbols of the Twelve surrounding it, which Bahamut broke apart like paper), he lost control of that energy. Since everyone on the battlefield had their attentions, hopes, and dreams focused tightly on their commander, Louisoix, they all unknowingly channeled all of that aether that was created by wishes for a realm reborn into Louisoix, causing him to completely transform into a Primal relating to rebirth. Then he tears Bahamut apart as seen in the cutscene, and it's Bahamut's death (and the crashing of what's left of Dalamud) that devastates the land and causes the Calamity, not Bahamut himself. And then Louisoix tries to release the aether that is now his body back into the land, but.......

So, yeah, his class before that cutscene is totally irrelevant.



When you say "strongest class," it depends on how you are measuring strength. Strongest in a 1v1 fight? In my opinion, it's probably the Warrior of Light as an Azure Dragoon (not just any old Ishgardian Dragoon). It doesn't matter what a WHM, BLM, or SMN can do, lore-wise, DRGs are fast.

Strongest in terms of destroying the world? DRG, NIN, PLD, WAR, DRK, MNK, and BRD would have a really slow time of it, given the limited scope of their powers. WHM, BLM, and SMN all have the tools at hand to devastate the world, as others have said. It's hard to qualify the scope of SMN due to the lack of information about past summoners. WHMs can destroy the world and heal themselves while they do it, but BLMs can draw upon the void and possibly summon voidsent (as far as lore is concerned). I'd think WHMs could cause permanent, long-term harm faster than BLMs by draining the land entirely of aether, but BLMs could cause more immediate, short-term harm by setting the world on fire.

And then there's MCHs. They can invent stuff. They have the power to make lasting permanent changes of a positive nature upon the world, something most of the other classes (even WHM) can't do on a worldwide scale, lorewise. Just look at how airships changed everything. They've also used inventions to pierce the defenses of Primals and dragons, something no one else could do. And then there's destructive power - I'd think Allagan engineers designed Ultima and Omega, and those are quite devastating creations. The potential for MCH, for creation and destruction, is definitely (in my opinion) the greatest, but their changes are the slowest to create (Invent has like, a cast time of two years, and don't get me started on the cooldown...). That doesn't mean they're any good in a fight though.


I don't know enough about ASTs to comment on them.

[AspectOfWinter]

The way I see it, either the Seedseers are worrying too much about how much damage a single WHM or BLM can cause to Hydealyn (which isn't necessarily out of character for their beliefs), or WHMs and BLMs really are basically demigods when it comes to power, meaning that in the War of the Magi there were entire armies of Mages who were on par with the Primals - which is pretty scary if you think about it.

Also, that would make Kan-E-Senna the most powerful person in all of Eorzea (unless the Archons really are the Twelve in human form).

As for the Disciples of War, I remember reading that IRL gunshot wounds are actually far more deadly than knife stabbings, which raises questions as to why Machinist doesn't have a 500 Potency attack like Ninja, especially with its use of heavy artillery and such. I'd put Ninja near the top of the DoW list too just because of their Ninjustu abilities (which are a lot like Dragoon's dragon magicks).

[PocketFreye]

After rewatching the HS intro, I would say Dragoons would be a real good contender. Those guys were extremely fast, and hit really fucking hard. I find it hard to imagine a BLM being able to stop a Dragoon lunging at them that fast, or a SMN's summon preventing that.

[CGMidlander]

After rewatching the HS intro, I would say Dragoons would be a real good contender. Those guys were extremely fast, and hit really fucking hard. I find it hard to imagine a BLM being able to stop a Dragoon lunging at them that fast, or a SMN's summon preventing that.

Alaimbert of the Spiked Butt: I may not even need my butt!

[TheCount]

I'd say Dark Knights are not to be understimated too when you think about it, really they are just combat mages using a brand of magic that is rather unknown to the high majority of people. Their attacks supported by magic can even go so far as to drain health from their opponent to keep them in the battle. Not to mention that if they call upon the shadow within their attacks get further amplified

[PocketFreye]

I'd say Dark Knights are not to be understimated too when you think about it, really they are just combat mages using a brand of magic that is rather unknown to the high majority of people. Their attacks supported by magic can even go so far as to drain health from their opponent to keep them in the battle. Not to mention that if they call upon the shadow within their attacks get further amplified

SPOILERS

Isn't how you got the soul crystal by picking it off a dead DRK who was bested by a single Knight? Not even a Paladin? I can't imagine their magick being that powerful, granted maybe the Knight was really fucking good, but it seems like he was just a regular temple knight.

[TheCount]

SPOILERS

Isn't how you got the soul crystal by picking it off a dead DRK who was bested by a single Knight? Not even a Paladin? I can't imagine their magick being that powerful, granted maybe the Knight was really fucking good, but it seems like he was just a regular temple knight.

well yeah but that goes for everyone that is not the Warrior of Light almost. In the Black Mage storyline for example they are all cowards and even when they improve on that front they still require your help. Every class has its weaklings

[WyrahFhurrst]

well yeah but that goes for everyone that is not the Warrior of Light almost. In the Black Mage storyline for example they are all cowards and even when they improve on that front they still require your help. Every class has its weaklings

Except Summoner, where you're still the only one and you kill a bunch of lower-rank Ascians with the help of Y'mhitra and an Immortal Flame (I forgot his name).