Cross-Class - System = Is it Cancer?

[LalaRu]

Why do we -need- Protect, anyway?

You mean, damage reduction is useless?
In a time where average ilevel is 250 and duties were done for the times i80 was something reserved to high raiders, you are right. In duties where it is easy to end up to 1% of your HP, maybe not.

Not to mention, when a duty starts, everyone is silent and -expecting- protect being cast, anyway. It is the way to tell party "hey, yes, I'm the healer, here is proof!"

Back to the OP, I guess now that we know the skill system will be revamped, we just have to sit and wait what happens next.

Edit: on the other side, I'll agree about it not have to be a spell but an healer's passive party buff. But the game haven't player passives so (imo) the reason for it being a spell.