Rework to AST card mechanics (Idea)

[Shurrikhan]

What are you talking about? At least 50% of AST skills are borrowed version of existing healing spells/ abilities. Don't want to be similar to WHM or SCH? Then stop casting any spell with regen or shield effect. Essential dignity is somewhat similar to Lustrate with longer cooldown. Lightspeed = weaker version of presence of mind. Synastry is the only truly unique healing ability which breathes some fresh air into the job.

The card system is supposed to make us special but fail horribly due to its clanky mechanism and lackluster effect.

If the other parts are all painfully borrowed, wouldn't that make Yhisa's not wanting to borrow additional other-job mechanics to slap onto AST's only unique portion, cards, all the more understandable??? These suggestions are all aimed at making the card system powerful enough to be less clanky and/or less lackluster.

I see your point and don't get me wrong I am 100% for remake of card system.

ASTs who embrace borrowed (weaker) version of healing spells/abilities and reject copied mechanics with pontential benifits to the card system just sound hypocritical to me.

I think that's only because there are plenty of much more (1) unique or (2) straightforward ways to buff them. And in the end, a borrowed cure/shield is... kind of hard to avoid. And even if we give AST so more unique design to play with on its more obvious (healing) benefits, we run the risk of being "too complicated".

For instance, here are some concepts that I felt could play into AST (and in a couple cases WHM or SCH):

• Variable Shield: Any shield that absorbs only a portion of incoming damage, instead of as much as it can. It can be a set amount (e.g. 10%) or conditional (based on % health that would be taken). It is more akin to a buff than an increase in maximum health. (The majority of AST shielding)
• Regenerating Shield: Any shield that regenerates its health or coverage (% absorption) over time. May or may not be removed upon reaching zero effect or health. (As below)
• Living Shield: Any shield that regenerates its health and/or coverage (% absorption) over time. Will be removed or at least change states if it loses all its health. (Bole, Collective Unconscious - Nocturne, etc.)
• Shared Shield: Any shield with a maximum health shared across multiple party members. (Collective Unconscious, Helios - Nocturne)
• Group Buff: Any buff that gains stacks or some other form of power increase per party member who shares or otherwise contributes to the buff. (Starry Sky, Orion, Sagittarius)

Playing around with some job revision ideas, I used these primarily to make the Sects, (Aspected) Helios, Aspected Benefic, and especially abilities like Collective Unconsciousness more unique, while changing Combust and Combust II (renamed Pulsar) to make use of the 'theoretical sun' concept, adding an actual draw-in effect to Gravity, and putting light/dark attachments to the Sects' effect on Helios (for obvious reasons I would have liked to have renamed Noctural Sect Helios to his sister Selene but cannot...). But even with all that, making AST more of a tactical, support... curasa seems an apt description... healer who tends towards either keeping everyone at a sort of level status quo or creating centers of activity (of gravity, even, if you forgive the pun-like word-y-thing) around which to act -- a true niche of its own -- I can't honestly say that it will necessarily be more fun to play.