We Want SAM... <make it happen>

[Claire_Pendragon]

The issue is the clear break of balance when you attempt to make this design choice. What I listed in response is not only the general desires of the DPS sides and its reprecussions, but what the possible issues that may arise and how it could tilt the balance of the game for the worse.

While I agree with that sentiment, it's not too much different from when you implement a new tank/healer/dps, and you want it to be "different" from the other classes of the same role, w/o just being a copy paste. There's always a way to balance it. (Granted older content will always be an issue, as they arent always built with new mechanics/classes in mind)

If you make the positionals only a difference of 10, why even bother? The reward for executing it would be so abysmal, why even implement it. Just for the flavour of "Ooooh we can hit the front"? Pointless. The cost of properly executing an action needs to be of a sufficient reward to incentivize the effort. But the punishment of not executing it needs not be as steep as pre-buffed Heavy Thrust.

While I absolutely agree, this example was exaggerated for 1 of 2 possible ideas. (The DA comparison being a different idea, not nessisarily meant to go with this one.) I'd have to fully make the class, then actually play it out, to see how much I could actually push, forcing frontal positionals, but also allowing a few combos through, where you dont hit your positional. (Just threw out the number for a generalized/simplified concept)

Yes, all DPS have something to mitigate the damage, but not TANK levels of damage in which you need the TANK level defensive CDs, especially for DPS levels of HP.

Those DPS also have sustained mitigation, and tanks even greater sustained mitigation. I was more so thinking "burst" mitigation, along the lines of Sheltron, with a single hit being taken in mind, and then wearing off, and having to wait till its back up. If issues arose, a balance of damage taken+ like blood for blood comes to mind as well, after the initial mitigation, you have increased dmg taken. Though ppl tend to mess this up, proper understanding of the fight is required, like a BLM prepping laylines.

When you give a DPS class Tank levels of mitigation, you give it an edge in cutting edge progression where it can survive AoE's the others can not which is again, imbalance. (See DRG T13 or MNK Dragon Kick pre 3.0)

DRGs were able to survive, but they needed VIT accessories/materia in coils. (The Devs clarified they beat all content with all combinations of PT builds, excluding overlapping classes.) This of course doesnt mean ppl wont have preference of classes. As for "Using its mitigation to avoid raid wide AoEs" this would come at the cost of its DPS if its mitigation was meant for avoiding frontal cones/AoEs. Though the survivability makes up for a possible dead DPS. Either way, this difference is roughly on par with a PLDs invincible, and a DRKs Living Dead. One is clearly better, but that doesnt make DRK useless/broken.

So if it has few and far between front positionals, and multiple ways to effectively null it, it really is just a positionless Melee with an unnecessary mechanic to juggle akin to BotD.

While I was only specifying a means to make frontals possible, I can derail a second to say if I were in charge of making the class, I'd add another mechanic to the class, similar to how NIN has Mudras on top of its limited positionals. But I dont disagree with DPS have too much "busy work" just to make them convoluted.

And if it doesn't even need to front positional, why suggest it? Negating front positioning essentially breaks the idea of it even being front positional.

I didnt mean negate it every time, just an occasional negate, like BLM having swift cast to negate cast times occasionally for emergencies.
(Honestly I was pretty much basing SAM on BLM, but as a melee, copying how BLMs have to soak hits sometimes while casting, and a melee doesnt get planted still for casts, so they had to soak a hit in another way. But frontals requires taking way more dmg than a BLM does, so stronger burst mitigation was needed, with less sustainability.)

(Protip: You cannot "live" without Dark Arts because of it's massive effect on all the skills it effects.)

Correct, the DA example being a secondary concept, where you can only mitigate every "other" cone or so. Or something along those lines. But of course you'd get more reward out of doing it, making you want to attempt it. (May even attempt it w/o the mitigation, if u know there's no frontal comming)

Putting forward ideas of front positionals and it's niche is one thing, vaguely hinting at it without the proper context of balance is another.

While I agree, I'm saying it's not automatically incorrect. If I were to suggest something with detail, that cant work, such as "Make a class that never takes dmg, and has no down sides, while able to solo 24 man content" then obviously its impossible.

I agree I was vague, but I didn't post anything to contradict its design (That Im aware of, other than the question of how would "Cover" effect this class?) which is why I say it shouldnt be automatically considered impossible. (Though you just clarified you were just pointing out possibilities, rather than saying its impossible.)