Colored gear with specific classes.

[Arcell]

So, for the sake of your argument, "Gear" is going to a dumpster now? Even though many did express their dissatisfaction with the fact there was no such thing as class-specific AF in this game to make them stand out from each other... aesthetically. It is one factor among the umbrella of factors that lead the classes to lack uniqueness, but you are not doing yourself any favors by outright denying a significant factor in the issue as a whole.

Fine, to further refine what I was saying: Weapon type + Gear type + Skill set = Class. By weapon type I mean type of weapon (Sword, spear, axe, etc...). By gear type I mean type of gear (Haubergeon, Cuirass, Bliaud, Scale Mail, etc...). By skill set I mean set of skills from a class (Archer skills, Gladiator Skills, Conjurer Skills). Whether my gear is red or blue should have no bearing on how well I can fulfill my role. It should be a choice of which color I personally prefer.

You are not even defining the word "gear" in the context you are using it, simply denying that "gear color" has anything to do with it (even though it is a irreplaceable part of "gear").

By gear I mean equipment, as in what fills the head, body, hands, feet, legs, waist, weapon and accessory slots in the GEAR menu. The color of a piece of equipment is part of it yes but it should simply be an aesthetic part of it. It should not define me as a tank, it should define me as someone who likes the color red.

If it distinguishes classes from one another, yes it should.
It's a fantasy game dude. Those are magical dyes. But if they made them look like runes then suddenly, it all makes sense! Even though runes are just black paint on a piece of gear. That shouldn't make it functionally better! But it's a fantasy game, so it does.

But these aren't runes, it's just dying the piece of equipment a color. And actually one could argue that the stat bonus comes from the addition of an item to the piece of equipment, as is done in the dying recipe. Lore-wise there's nothing to suggest that dye is magical. Previously when an item was dyed it was functionally the same as the same item of a different color. Now we're supposed to just excuse it as magical and let the lore be destroyed?