Are role actions a nerf?

[Hamada]

... I am confused by your response.

You begin by stating that it doesn't result in creating builds for different team compositions or encounters. Then you follow it up bylisting examples of using different builds in different encounters.

I think there will be a few skills that are pretty much an always take (i.e. Swiftcast + Lucid Dream). That said, even those could be debatable. You could not take swiftcast if say you have it assigned in your raid team that only the Off Heals / SMN does raises (how my static works currently) and maybe MP isn't an issue, because of Mana Shift from the BLM or Ballad from the BRD.

You could look at an encounter and be like, for this, I don't need to debuff, so let's not bring Esuna and I'll bring Cleric Stance for the added DPS burst on adds. Maybe you plan to use Rescue on your BLM to help them get an extra nuke off on the boss to help hit a DPS check and you then rescue them into position for a mechanic. Maybe you don't need rescue and you don't slot it.

I can just see every single one of the skills as situational, and could be planned to use differently with your team.

I can also see a default set of skills to use for the average DF party: Protect, Swiftcast, Lucid Dream, Esuna and Eye for an Eye.

Personally, this is some of the best news for me. I have wanted a system that supports builds/customization for years, and I am glad to see they've added it - even if it's not quite as much as I'd like.

You are not looking at things from the protective I am! You are asking too much for majority of the playrbase! OF COURSE! this is good for the upper skilled:

I underlined this for A REASON! Take a look at this:

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...=1#post3354919

Read every post in that thread. There is NO WAY you can sit here and tell me requiring the switching abilities in the middle of runs is not a skill roadblock for most.

It is not going to be fun to enter in a new expansion with new adjustments to jobs when 80% of the population will be unable to figure out how to use the job changes, let alone figure out what abilities to use. There is a 969 page thread for proof on this. Even gearing correctly is too difficult for most, and why they are changing the right side to be based on main stat to begin with. However I am still worried about ilevel dodging weapons and the left like we seen as well.

Personally I think this whole change is going to backfire hilariously.

I mean, think about it: SE has stated they want to (a) reduce button bloat, and (b) make the system more accessible / usable for casual players. Laudable goals, both, assuming they can be effectively achieved. But, it is arguable the nature of the role-based system might worsen both. Consider:

1.) Role-based skills are broad enough that it appears frequent swapping between skill combinations is encouraged. This means that users must integrate most or all of the Role-based skills onto their hotbars, rather than just the five I'd use now, all of which are relatively static.

2.) Role-based skills being flexible and guaranteed means the floodgates will be opened for players being told how to play. Think that situation is bad now? Wait until tanks start bitching at healers for not having Esuna selected. Wait until people wipe because the tank forgot to respec from a damage-oriented setup they were using for solo'ing. This isn't going to lead to a friendlier environment for casual or forgetful players.

Don't get me wrong, I think the role-based skill system is potentially a good idea - but it doesn't fix the problem. They've essentially removed the need to level other jobs, but shifted even MORE crucial abilities into optional skills. Healers in 3.x need to have Swiftcast, but now they need to make damned sure they've selected Esuna, too - and heaven help them if they don't. This would have worked a hell of a lot better if the role-based skills were optional things that gave non-crucial, but nonetheless useful, abilities. They should have behaved like Merit Point abilities in FFXI. Hell, they could have even allowed for the selection of a role-based Trait or two, something powerful, so people could really customize how their class felt. Instead, they've worsened almost all the problems of the cross-class system; the only thing they fixed (and it's debatable if this is a good thing or not) is the fact that players no longer have to level separate jobs they might not be interested in.

Truly a missed opportunity.

With what we are told, it is not a good system, at all You are missing the point and only reflecting what you can do with it. It is a skill roadblock for most, and they will not enjoy being told what to do by those that do, again this is repeated over and over that thread as well, and pointed out as a concern in that quote.