I complained about this the day the patch came out but I wana refine my argument and see how others feel now that time has passed.
As a mage, I've simply have felt not comfortable in my own class since 1.19. It has to do with one major thing, my "balanced" stats makes my HP far surpass my MP. So much so that I feel like a warrior in mage clothing.
First, I want to explain the problem with MP/HP Ratio. Here's my example and I know FFXI is a bad word for some, but remember it's the closest example of what FFXIV is in the series and while I do agree that developers should have freedom of expression, they should also try to stay true to the series at the same time.
Base HP/MP for Elvan 75BLM/37WHM In FFXI
1041HP / 618MP
So for every 1 MP there is roughly 1⅔ HP
Base HP/MP For "Elvan" 46 Conj with New Jade Crook equipped in FFXIV
1953HP / 885MP
So for Every 1 MP There is 2⅕ HP
So that's a difference of over half a point increase in the ratio for MP/HP From XI.
In the early Final Fantasy games, most black mages had nearly 1 MP to 1 HP. Meaning in XIV We get over Twice the hp gain opposed to early Final Fantasy.
Enough numbers. What all this means in English is that points are being sacrificed so you can have more hp and physical bonuses. Those points in a party are worthless because in a perfect world, mages don't hit or get hit. What could we do with those extra points being allotted to VIT, STR and DEX? Why allot them to INT, MND and PIE of course! And that will give us better nuking/curing and MP pool. You want to encourage me to party SE? Make my stats optimum to party with.
My next problem is Materia has been pushed as an ultimatum for success. With normal mage gear in XI I could easily push my skills and MP for mages way up. Without Materia, my CNJ Stats hardly increase at all, my MP only goes up about 60 points.
Why don't we go about Materia a different way. Instead of sucking without it or ruling with it, we can succeed without it but own with it. All that needs is to re allotment of the balanced skills so that each class is at least a little specialized.
Yes I realized jobs and point allotment rehash are on the way, but am I gona have to sit on my hands with this awkward mage while I wait 4 months for Black and White mage? At least humor specialization till the jobs come out SE.
Sorry for the long post I didn't think I'd rant that long XD..... oh almost forgot, </rant>