[Newbie] AST stat priority and Meld questions

[Nagoto]

My appologies for asking a generic question. I\\'m still extremely new to AST in terms of endgame. Just hit 235 Ilv and working on Sophia ex.

Questions:

* Does our stat priority change for each stance? It seems like Spellspeed is weaker in the absorb sect for example. Should I focus on det/crit if I enjoy noct more?

* With det seeming to scale poorly should I try to focus on gear that has Spell speed and Crit when avaliable?

* Is piety worth looking at? I\\'ve yet to do relivent content so i\\'m unsure if I will have mana issues.

* For melding I see some people go straight acc. Others throw in Vit or other side stats. Is there a certain number I should be aiming for?

* Are there any situations where I should be going noct? Or is it pretty much not used outside of niche fights?(somthing like a pray mechanic or huge tank buster).

Thank you!

/bow

[Rennies]

Accuracy should be 592 if you're doing savage raids, otherwise your DPS will be garbage. Ignore Accuracy if you aren't doing Extreme/Savage.

Piety is good until you get to a point where you never run out of MP. It's also good if you accidentally die, since it'll scale your MPregen up and help you recover faster.

Determination is garbage, don't meld it. Critical Hit Rate is going to give the best returns overall on heals and DPS.

I'm not a fan of Spellspeed personally. Takes too much to have a relevant reduction in the GCD and it feels weird to have on a MP limited job, even though Astros have excellent MP.

[Mimilu]

I agree with Rennies with most of the stats.
Accuracy for Savage Raids
Get Piety to a good point
Crit. Hit is good (It is an RNG-based stat though, with a diminishing return the higher it gets)
Determination is meh (I think it's about 100 Det for around +15HP on 400 potency heals)

For where I differ:
With Spellspeed, I view it like Piety, get it to a point where you can cast comfortably (the HoT/DoT return isn't that amazing though)

As for Vit, Vit is only going to be useful in Savage Raiding and maybe new EX primals/Trials first come out. Once you are geared up, it isn't really needed unless you keep taking too much damage.

As for when you should be using Noct sect vs Diurnal, it really depends on the content and your other healer. If you have a SCH in the party, go Diurnal. With WHM, you can go either but Noct's shields complements it more. If it's double AST, you'll need to work it out with them.

I my opinion, Diurnal's +5% attack speed boost and place-and-leave HoT's (that can be extended) are better geared for a more offensive/off-healer play-style, while Noct's +10% healing boost and place when needed shields is better geared for a more defensive/main-healer style.

[Cynfael]

Personally I remain unimpressed by spell speed as a healer stat and get rid of it wherever possible. If you know the fights, you already know when and what you should be casting and are planning accordingly.

It may not be utter trash like it was before it helped with DoTs and HoTs, but even from a DPS perspective it's not as good for healers, who don't generally chain-cast nukes over extended periods and thus are less likely to get "extra" casts from additional spell speed.

[Rawrz]

I love SS. D: Better than Det at least. My only complaint is that Pets really need to benefit from it somehow, either as a weaker version of Det to Embrace or Embrace needs affected by the SS boost. (Whispering Dawn is affected, but embrace is not.)

SS is good for SCH DPS because we do actually have 4 Dots to be placing at one time (Shadowflare is a chunkier cast so it does benefit slightly as well.)

[imadbros]

SpS is nice as a Scholar but the OP is an AST where its not as great. Crit still scales the best with the Astrologian, especially with the change to Benefic II's proc.

The other replies hit the nail on the head. Accuracy to cap, Piety till your comfortable with MP, then Crit. If you want to do savage, then add vit as well.

[Rawrz]

SpS is nice as a Scholar but the OP is an AST where its not as great. Crit still scales the best with the Astrologian, especially with the change to Benefic II's proc.

The other replies hit the nail on the head. Accuracy to cap, Piety till your comfortable with MP, then Crit. If you want to do savage, then add vit as well.

I was replying to Cynfael. I was essentially saying that SS is better than Det. Crit will always be king.

[lulunami]

Get a comfortable amount of Piety for you and your team's play style. If you DPS a lot, you will need Piety to avoid running out of MP in long fights. For melds, your only choice is Accuracy if you want to damage-deal a lot in raids. Spell speed can be worth it if gives you more Malefic II's, but it is hard to say for sure in every situation. At the very least, speed benefits yours DoT and HoT spells.

Accuracy close to 593 > Piety > Crit >= Speed > Det imho for healing/dps.

[Cynfael]

I was replying to Cynfael. I was essentially saying that SS is better than Det. Crit will always be king.

I respect your opinion, I just disagree because I see SpS as being useful only for DoTs and HoTs while DET at least affects the potency of all spells. ACC and CRT are my primary choices, the latter specifically for SCH and AST shielding.

P.S. Are we sure that Shadowflare benefits from SpS? Seems like it could go either way as a persistent area damage.

[Rawrz]

I respect your opinion, I just disagree because I see SpS as being useful only for DoTs and HoTs while DET at least affects the potency of all spells. ACC and CRT are my primary choices, the latter specifically for SCH and AST shielding.

P.S. Are we sure that Shadowflare benefits from SpS? Seems like it could go either way as a persistent area damage.

I meant that it benefits in the same way that a Fire IV benefits: % reduced from a longer cast (3s vs 2.5) is going to be a larger amount of time saved. I don't really find myself waiting to cast something, even while having to precast. You just broil or ruin II up to the point that it's necessary to heal. O.O