I guess it's time

[RiceisNice]

Just to clarify: What I calculated was full tome equip and then upgrading tome equip, because those are the endpoints of progression for a non-raider. I mean, sure, situationally, a mix will be better due to secondary stat weights, but it's IMO faulty to use that as blanket assumption.

Tome upgrades do not come until the catch up patch, though, nor are tomestone equipments exclusive to said catchup patch; you're already collecting them the patch prior. Assuming you don't do savage at all, then the highest you'd get to is the lore i230, although as you've mentioned , there are exceptions that proto midan would be a better alternative such as when it doesn't have SS or accuracy (the former not being needed if you're not doing savage). But just like you said, it's faulty to use a blanket assumption, for both ways, espesically when the consideration is trying to keep all types of players interested. For someone that is interested in min/maxing but doesn't hardcore, the gearing process would still take less than that for that reason, and likewise in the catchup patch in regards to EX weapons and weeping city drops.

Furthermore, you're taking my latter comment out of context. It was regarding the fact that ones gameplay does not change much when you equip new gear on the same class/job/role/duty, whereas it does drastically when you change your class/job/role/duty together with the gear, making the prior option more stale.

I'm not taking it out of context, but I'm saying that it's not applicable to everyone. I can't be bothered to level my other jobs because the process of it is the same as I've been doing since 2.2; dungeon roulettes, FATEs, beast tribe dailies. It's things I've been doing for a long, long time, and the difference in jobs (and it's mileage will vary, MCH and BRD share very similar base gameplay that it's not much of a change up for me, and likwise when looking at a lvl 50 ninja to a 60) doesn't do enough to give me that variety. It's also the reason why I've lost interest in aquapolis after 4 days of it, in the end it's just killing more of the same mobs we'd find in the open world (with the same mechanics and telegraphs no less), rewards be damned.

You don't want to make huge changes to existing content, but new additions should branch out that add to the game (Diadem in concept for example), rather than additions that are standalone and offer nothing else beyond it's implementation beyond updating rewards (gold saucer, aquapolis, hunts), or even leave it alone to rot (PvP is often guilty of this). Espesically the latter, it feels like wasted developemental time for something that's only going to be a novelty for that patch cycle alone.