New Class Speculations

[Mahri]

Though that was 3 years ago so things could have changed and my memory is a bit fuzzy on the details.

I doubt they've changed their plans here, especially if a gunblade class idea has been kicking around for years and they came right out and said so. It's just a matter of waiting for the right time to roll it out.

More general speculation...

I'd like to see a DoW Healer and a DoM Tank. Dancer and Red Mage, respectively, could do this.

Samurai would be awesome, in any form. On one hand, it seems that with Ninja as DPS, Samurai ought to be a natural counterpart as tank, but on the other, Dragoon could stand to have some company in it's currently unique "heavy" DPS role, regarding equipment selection. Back in FFXI, SAM and DRG had a bit of this going.

Class mechanics for Samurai could potentially revolve around quick-draw Iaijutsu-style moves, with damage coming in heavy bursts and high mobility, perhaps with a move similar to Doom Spike, only it propels the Samurai through the line of targets -- in fact, where ranged or AoE attacks would exist for other classes, all such SAM moves would actually propel them around like a wrecking ball (think Cammy in Street Fighter). For something different, maybe the could actually have frontal positionals and access to a strong counter that activates through a passive that allows them to absorb cleave attacks.

Oh, and cherry blossoms. Samurai needs to have cherry blossom effects in some form for everything.

[Mahri]

Personally hoping for a new ranged caster of some kind. If not that, then whatever uses INT gear. My desire is based heavily on the need to use rad caster glamours but BLM and SMN don't quite fit my character's image, RP-wise.

To speculate a bit further, I believe new classes will, for the most part, continue to have some origin in regions of Hydaelyn, past and present. Consider the origins of existing classes, like:

Ninja: Doma
Dragoon: Ishgard/Dravania
Monk: Ala Mhigo
Warrior: Abalathia's Spine
Scholar: Nym
Black Mage: Mhach
Paladin: Ul'dah
Summoner: Allag/Meracydia
White Mage: Amdapor
Bard: Gridania
Astrologian: Sharlayan
Machinist: Lominsa/Ishgard

The only outlying tradition, with no true "origin", is Dark Knight, which is all about self-aware adventurer trials and tribulations.

We're missing something from Thavnair, the Othardian Steppe, and Garlemald. I might be forgetting other places. I don't see a distinctly Garlean class happening until, at the earliest, we get an expansion into Ala Mhigo, so our next classes might come by way of Thavnair and Othard.

Thavnair seems to have an Arabian Nights vibe going, if the glamour sets are any indication, so Blue Mage (if it sticks to the aesthetic from FFXI) is an easy match there, as is possibly Dancer, though that one, like Red Mage, has had a more western "swashbuckler" aesthetic (frilly outfits with the poofy sleeves and whatnot) in prior FFs.

What could come from the Othardian Steppe, with the roaming Xaela tribes and hostile environments? Maybe a different look for Blue Mage, or something else like Geomancer.

[Kazrah]

We're missing something from Thavnair, the Othardian Steppe, and Garlemald. I might be forgetting other places. I don't see a distinctly Garlean class happening until, at the earliest, we get an expansion into Ala Mhigo, so our next classes might come by way of Thavnair and Othard.

You forgot Xelphatol. I wouldn't rule out the chance of a job from Dravania proper that may or may not relate to something predating the Dragonsong War.

For the Othardian Steppe, I'd hedge my bets on something along the lines of Geomancer for the aesthetic from XI.

[Mahri]

You forgot Xelphatol. I wouldn't rule out the chance of a job from Dravania proper that may or may not relate to something predating the Dragonsong War.

For the Othardian Steppe, I'd hedge my bets on something along the lines of Geomancer for the aesthetic from XI.

Oh yeah! So. I'm thinking since Xelphatol is Ixal-land, they might go for a Mesoamerican feel to it. Dancer hook, in a very physical, intense, tribal-ritual incarnation of the job. Maybe some Capoeira? That could be immensely cool.

I stopped playing XI long before Geomancer was introduced, but I like that general idea behind that look. Picturing a Geomancer AF now with those highly elaborate headdresses from traditional Mongolian dress, like so.

So there's my general hope for new jobs, revised:

Geomancer: Othardian Steppe origin, ranged DPS DoM. Mongolian aesthetic.
Dancer: Xelphatol origin, melee Healer DoW. Mesoamerican tribal aesthetic.
Blue Mage: Thavnairan origin, melee DPS DoM. Arabian Nights aesthetic.
Red Mage: Origin undetermined, Tank DoM. Full-blown swashbuckling duelist aesthetic, rapiers and bucklers.
Samurai: Doman origin, melee DPS DoW. Cherry blossoms everywhere.

[Kazrah]

Oh yeah! So. I'm thinking since Xelphatol is Ixal-land, they might go for a Mesoamerican feel to it. Dancer hook, in a very physical, intense, tribal-ritual incarnation of the job. Maybe some Capoeira? That could be immensely cool.

If they're doing Mesoamerican for Xelphatol, the FFT version of Geomancer would work there as well.

[RLofOBFL]

.....I want RDM, SAM, DCR DNC DNR w/e the abbreviation is plz ty

[Cipher_Zaabiz]

Geomancer would be awesome, pummeling opponents to death with a cute moogle bell and using terrain magic to terrorize the opponents.

Kill them with the dreadful whool bomb of a flower field. xD

A chemist as healer would be cool, we have enough casters already

[madolyn]

A chemist as healer would be cool, we have enough casters already

lol what? 8 non magic caster jobs and 5 magic casters....hmm

or really 2 caster dps, 3 healers, 3 tanks, 5 phys dps.

[Laerune]

I want something different, something that they failed to do with Heavensward classes. I want classes that play differently. An example is:

1. Beastmaster as a tank. this class works toghter with his/her pet to defend the group from being attacked. There should be a collect Beasts log aswell, so we can collect and store those beasts for use.
2. Dancer as a healer. All 3 healers that we have right now are mages that use mana, I want the next healer not be a gandalf archtype mage. The dancer will wear medium armor and uses mostly TP with a little MP to heal and buff the group. Seriously SE, we realy do not need another mage as a healer for 4.0.
3. Unlike healers and tanks, DPS classes are already pretty different, so I think we should give them something that they do not have. Samurai is a sword user, since there is no sword user with the dps role, I could see Samurai fitting in realy well. We also only have two casters, so maybe they could add a caster class like: Oracle from FF Tactics or the Arithmetician. The Arithmetician have support skills, they could be a dps caster with support skills.

What I do not want from SE is:

1. Tank: Knight class with a Sword or Axe, anything Knight type.
2. Healer: No mages, enough with them. Final Fantasy is known for the non mages healers, so please add those classes.

[Kazrah]

2. Dancer as a healer. All 3 healers that we have right now are mages that use mana, I want the next healer not be a gandalf archtype mage. The dancer will wear medium armor and uses mostly TP with a little MP to heal and buff the group. Seriously SE, we realy do not need another mage as a healer for 4.0.

As cool as it would be, the biggest problem is just how insanely hard it is to balance a non-mana healer because of one key element to healing: resource management. Part of the skill factor as a healer is knowing how to manage that prime resource and there's no real way of achieving that properly with TP, resulting in either a series of constant resource droughts or a state of not having to bother with TP management. It's a much finer line to balance on compared to MP management, which is why devs tend to stick with that. There's also other factors like skill speed, well known as the bane to Paladins until they had the TP costs of some of their abilities reduced by just 10 (some more, but mostly standard attacks), which is an example of just how small a number can lead from resource drought to resource ignorance.

I do agree that there should be breaking of molds when it comes to job concepts like a proper caster tank (no Dark Knights, no you're not) or a less spellcaster-like healer, but there is definitely a better reason why healers use MP instead of TP.