Next Job/Jobs Speculation

[MoroMurasaki]

Sorry I forgot to edit my post the second time, after it messed up originally.

But the GEO job is in the game, and is playable, its just now spelled "Astrologian".
(This is legit, GEO and AST essentially become one and the same job.)

Admittedly I have not leveled AST to 70 but AST=stars and GEO=earth, no?

[Brightshadow]

That mail actually said they hope we forget about Blue Mage - meaning it's not being added. Geomancer is all but confirmed, as it's also mentioned in one of the sightseeing logs in Yanxia.
My hope is that in 5.0 we get 1 tank and 1 healer (no dps). Healer = Geomancer, and tank = Shogun (a tank version of Samurai).

The mail sounded sarcastic. I doubt it's them saying to truly forget about BLU it's probably that they were considered but haven't found a way to add them.

[dynus]

If we aren't going to get BLU as a tank, or at all, then I would like to see a mage tank still.

There are Green Mages in the FF series, but they've only been in two games (FFTA2 and Knights of the Crystal which ... it's related but not an FF game) so it could give the Dev Team something to get creative on. They use hammers and maces in FFTA2, which have been tanks weapons in other games. And it's not like heavy armor mages aren't a thing. Time Mages in FFXII's Zodiac Version/Zodiac Age and in Bravely series it looks like heavy armor, or at least, heavier armor than other mages.

Though, that does bring in the question. How best to classify them/gear them up. They'd have to be like DRGs and NIN and have their own special gear despite sharing a main stat with other classes. Gear of Warding maybe? Oh, I actually like that.

[Kazrah]

Though, that does bring in the question. How best to classify them/gear them up. They'd have to be like DRGs and NIN and have their own special gear despite sharing a main stat with other classes. Gear of Warding maybe? Oh, I actually like that.

Might be easier just to have them using Caster armor and Fending accessories. That way, they won't need to make another set of items on loot tables.

As for the armor, they technically wouldn't have to be in heavy armor either. Just give them a trait or something that would increase defenses to make them match those from current tanks and it should be fine. If health is under par compared to other tanks, then passive health boost and problem solved.

[dynus]

Might be easier just to have them using Caster armor and Fending accessories. That way, they won't need to make another set of items on loot tables.

As for the armor, they technically wouldn't have to be in heavy armor either. Just give them a trait or something that would increase defenses to make them match those from current tanks and it should be fine. If health is under par compared to other tanks, then passive health boost and problem solved.

I was thinking about that before heading off to bed. They do seem unwilling to make new gear for that- see throwing RMD as Casting and SAM as Striking/Slaying, even though it might have made more sense for other things. It might be better to have Fending gear as body and the Casting Gear as accessories, though. Or do what they did in the patches before HW and throw a stat on the gear they want them to have; like how they threw the dexterity stat on Striking gear.

But they added the Scouting gear for NIN in Heavensward, so it's possible. This expansion saw a major battle overhaul so they might have overlooked that this time around.

[Kazrah]

It might be better to have Fending gear as body and the Casting Gear as accessories, though.

Then it would be severely lacking in health compared to the other way around since Casting accessories don't have Vitality on them.

As for the Scouting gear argument, it's possible, but the sole reason why Scouting gear exists is because of stylistic components (a.k.a. make them not look like bards) since the longer-standing implementation of Aiming gear makes Scouting gear statistically redundant. Yes, they could have "Warding" gear, but it would mostly be a glamour thing unless they were REALLY desperate to make it statistically unique to current Casting armor.

The other thing to factor in for another armor type is that it's one more armor type on the loot tables. Ever get annoyed when you down an awesome boss with great loot that no one can use because no one there's playing a job that the loot's for? Yeah, Warding gear would just expand that issue.

[dynus]

Then it would be severely lacking in health compared to the other way around since Casting accessories don't have Vitality on them.

...

The other thing to factor in for another armor type is that it's one more armor type on the loot tables. Ever get annoyed when you down an awesome boss with great loot that no one can use because no one there's playing a job that the loot's for? Yeah, Warding gear would just expand that issue.

You make a good point.

I was thinking of the style of casters and tanks; that even though they're magic based, their job would be defense so armor might suit them more. But perhaps the issue can be solved even more simply; have their weapons a substantial amount of VIT attached to it. And have them share shields with PLD even, except for Relic/Zodiac/Anima and the like.

[Jonnycbad]

Geomancers don't have to use Axes. I think they only used them in FFT. FF5, FFXI, Geomancers used Handbells and Staves. In FF5 they were mostly casters that dealt magic damage. In FFXI, while they had high tier elemental magic spells, they were mostly a support class that buffed players with Luopans. Luopans are exactly like what Earthly Star is. Basically in FFXI, GEO would place a Luopan on the floor and everyone within the radius of the Luopan's circle gained a large buff (or debuff, depending on the spell casted). Rather than a 10s duration like Earthly Star, the Luopan was like a pet that couldn't attack or move but had an HP bar that decayed. When it hit 0 from its own decay or from damage, it vanished along with the buff/debuff it provided. GEO eventually got abilities to heal/regen the Luopan to make it last a bit longer before having to recast it (which was expensive and had a long cast time), or to make it detonate for damage or heal (like Earthly Star).

I can see GEO being a healer, honestly. It could have fit like a caster DPS but they literally just added RDM, so I doubt it.

[Kazrah]

I can see GEO being a healer, honestly. It could have fit like a caster DPS but they literally just added RDM, so I doubt it.

Making Geomancer a healer though might make it conflict a bit too much with White Mage in terms of identity given that both of them bear themes around the earth and power of the elements.

When I look at Geomancer, I actually think more of Earth tanks from DC Universe Online summoning totems that intercepted a portion of damage taken by them while tanking, and the character in turn had abilities that interacted with the totem like a heal and maybe one or two attack abilities that came from the totem. These Luopan could work much like those totems if Geomancer was made as a tank.

[Kikoten]

I know one of the bigger possibilities is Blue Mage, because of the tease on Eighteenth Floor. I know I'd like to see a Dancer, which was kind-of-sort-of hinted at (depending on how you interpret it) during the level 15(?) Ball Dance quest.