Defending monks

[Garlyle]

players of equal skill the goon should win in dps

This is the concerning bit. Dragoon and Ninja have the effect of increasing the damage dealt by the rest of the party as well; which actually means the DPS contribution of a Dragoon or Ninja is greater than their personal number. While Monk can reduce the outgoing damage a party has to face and help defend against it, it does not have that impact of enhancing other allies as well.

So the fact that Monk's potential is slightly lower than that of other DPS is actually a tiny bit concerning because that's also not factoring in the DPS that Dragoons and Ninjas add through others. Though this is not to underestimate Dragon Kick and Mantra's more subtle impact, generally speaking DPS are valued for their, well, DPS.

That said if there ends up being a significant distaste for Monks in group content, SE wouldn't let it linger for long. They've proven themselves pretty stable about jumping to address balance and perception issues.

[Sen_Terrechant]

snip

DK has a more then subtle impact, it was basically required to have a MNK for a long time in T13. If there are any other turns with large amounts of magic damage MNK will again be a must pick just for DK.

[Garlyle]

DK has a more then subtle impact, it was basically required to have a MNK for a long time in T13. If there are any other turns with large amounts of magic damage MNK will again be a must pick just for DK.

Or you can bring a Dark Knight. To my understanding, Delirium is basically Dragon Kick without the defense effect (it in fact doesn't stack with or overwrite Dragon Kick).

Though yes, that is one thing to note; there are always questions of what a specific fight calls for and the requirements attached that can hurt or harm a class.

And with regards to Dragon Kick's impact, it all depends on if it's the difference between survival or not. Dragon Kick or Delirium may indeed be mandatory for bleeding edge progression but that advantage will fade out fast as gear gets better and it's no longer the difference between life and death.