Shield changes

[Alhanelem]

Every class that can use a shield will get its own class-specific shield skills.

You don't know that, and it definitely doesn't apply to the current classes that can use a shield.

They're not removing shields from CON/THM being able to equip them, but they're not getting their own class-specific shield skills. The'yre simply forcing us to level up gladiator if we want to use any of them, just like everyone's already forced to do it for Sentinel

I don't see how out of place it is for a mage to be using those skills.

there is nothing "out of place" about it. It's not like we could use tower shields and heavy armor- we are limited to bucklers, which are small and non-cumbersome. Even a peasant could use one.

but they were purely tanking skills.

Shield bash is not a "tanking skill", and is one of the most useful skills you gain from using a shield. It can stop many dangerous actions that you would have no other way of stopping. And frankly, when you're soloing, you ARE "tanking." and "tanking" skills are valuable.

No one expects a CON/THM to be able to use those skills in a serious setting, but they are there for convenience and greatly help two classes that otherwise often have a difficult time soloing.

but that's not what they're supposed to be fore.

Who are you to decide what stuff is and isn't supposed to be for? If you don't like it, you don't have to use it. It is in no way game breaking for a THM to solo with a shield. I'm not going to be up in Ifrit's face trying to block his attacks- Every situation is different and the good players are the ones who use all the tools at their disposal in the appropriate places and times.

All I see here are closed-minded comments about how "mages" "should" be. Final Fantasy has always been the creative one, doing things with "mages" that the average person doesn't expect. Why does every 'mage' have to be a weak old man with a cane, staying as far away from danger as possible? Give us our spellblades, our fencing red mages, and all that good stuff, instead of shying away from it and anyone who wants to play like that.

Keep in mind you can only use 10 cross class abilities as well... and block rate currently is trash (which hopefully gets some love). Casters will probably be using most of there cross class for the opposite caster.

That's how it's going to be for me; the only skills i'd be using would be shield bash and maybe aegis boon (but with the crap blockrates we have right now, it's not as good as it used to be)