FFXIV is in a Prime Position to Make Some Drastic Changes

[Roth_Trailfinder]

I want to use an example of why I think this topic is important: Red Mage.

We all want it. Yoshida even teased us with the idea this past Rising. After thinking about it though, I wonder how it could even function in this current system...

Now, I've thought long and hard about how it *could* work, but I want to focus on one point, that Red Mage is really supposed to be a swiss-army knife class, say like Druid in WoW, and such like it. But such a class only works in a system with horizontal progression, where you can modify/self-personalize your job's path. We don't currently have that...how's that going to work?!

RDM could work, in terms of being a blend of WHM and BLM, able to use medium weight weapons and armor. Jack of all trades, yes - but MASTER OF NONE.

It would not be able to heal as well as a Healing job. It would not tank as well as a Tank job. ITs DPS output would be comparable to, but lower than, a Bard.

The thing that makes it generally unworkable, in my mind, is not a question of what abilities it has. Its not a question of how well a hybrid job works in vertical progression (it can work very well). Rather, it's a question of queues.

What would a RDM queue as? Healer? Who would want a RDM healer over a WHM, SCH, or AST, when those three are designed to be better healers? Tank? Similar question with PLD, DRK, WAR. DPS? Lol?

Vertical progression is a good thing. Horizontal, not so much. The main issue I see is the difference between acquisition rate and provision rate. How quickly is new power offered to the player base, compared to how quickly does the player base seize that new power?

FF14 is one of the fastest games I've ever played, in terms of gaining player power. That is both a blessing and a curse. It helps keep people interested (no one wants to grind for 10 hours only to gain 4% of a level) but it gets people to max, bored and gone, that much faster. The only real solution is to add more power at a higher rate, to try to keep people interested. This whole thing about "horizontal progression" (as far as I can tell) is less about providing options than it is about sneaking in more player power when SE is determined to adhere to its own schedule that gets people bored. A new ability is going to add to that job's power in some way shape or form - give people a choice of two such ways and they will invariably choose the one that offers the greatest vertical advantage.