Drk: worst designed class

[Megguido]

Sure, they're not free, but both WAR and PLD can recover a large amount of MP is a small window if something goes really bad. It's not optimal but having the option to spam 2 or 3 IB and Equilibrium just after Holmgang or spending your whole MP bar on Clemencies in 10 seconds max can save your life.

I agree on that. DRK's mitigation is good in raids, but it lacks the "independance" that both WAR and PLD have, with self-sustain.

But let's stay realistic, how would they tune DRK's defensive kit if they had a reliable life leech ? Dark Mind and TBN are already on a very short recast. Combine those two with Living Dead and the ability to self sustain up to full HP and you get an unkillable tank.

So,it's the same as WAR.

My point was, current Souleater restores about 80% of the damage as HP which is not that bad actually, and pretty much like WAR they have to switch to tank stance to benefit from it. Currently, all tanks have to sacrifice damage to self heal, and DRK's the least efficient at it.

[Reynhart]

But let's stay realistic, how would they tune DRK's defensive kit if they had a reliable life leech ? Dark Mind and TBN are already on a very short recast. Combine those two with Living Dead and the ability to self sustain up to full HP and you get an unkillable tank.

I personally wouldn't mind losing Dark Mind in exchange for a life leech on Sole Survivor. But even as it is now, WAR and PLD already have some short CD, pretty strong self-healing and a better ultimate mitigation move, so I'm not even sure DRK should have to sacrifice anything.

To be fair, I don't think DRK should be able to leech its max HP amount, but it point another "flaw". Right now, whenever you have to do something solo as a PLD or a WAR, you can recover on your own if you're ever in need of using your "I won't die button". On its own, DRK using Living Dead is either useless or a death sentence. So, maybe the mechanic of Living Dead needs to change.

I had an idea a long time ago that Living Dead should create a zombie/clone/shadow/grim_reaper/whatever_you_want_to_call_it if you reach 1 HP (With the same HP as your max HP), and that you needed to kill it before the WD timer reaches 0. So, a solo DRK with a Sole Survivor HP leech could recover some HP (I'd say about half with the effect alone for its full duration) and kill the target on its own to survive Living Dead and keep fighting.

Since WAR and PLD can recover much more than half of their max HP every 2 minutes, I don't think it would be overpowered.

[DaulBan]

I personally wouldn't mind losing Dark Mind in exchange for a life leech on Sole Survivor.

[Lyth]

If you go back and actually look at the context of that post that you've cherry-picked out from about a month ago (I didn't know that PLDs could raise dead this expansion), it's not an unreasonable point.

Viewed in isolation, Dark Mind is probably a bit too strong. But that's also a reflection of the fact that tank mitigation, on the whole, is much too strong. I think that even if every tank was limited to Rampart, a 30%/120s cooldown, a 5+ min recast invincibility move, and Sheltron/IB/TBN, you'd still power through most of the encounters we've seen designed this expansion.

Right now, tanks are simplified melee dps who pop mitigation cooldowns on a set, fight-specific rotation. The devs, in their infinite wisdom, seem to think that we do too much dps. So if you take that element away, at least the mitigation end of things needs to be more challenging.

I think that the entire suite of tank defensive abilities needs to be re-evaluated. Dark Mind should be removed. So, too, should Thrill of Battle and Raw Intuition, with Holmgang increased to at least a 5 minute recast. Inner Beast should be stance independent so that you actually have to use it to clear content. Sentinel should be dropped down to a 2 minute recast. Cover should be merged with Intervention and incorporated into the underutilised PLD gauge system. Bulwark should be a traited form of Anticipation.

So yeah, Dark Mind is a problem, but it's also part of a much, much bigger problem across all tanks.

As for lifesteal - well, probably the number one thing that people have been asking for is a clear cut identity for jobs like DRK, WHM, and MCH. I'm fully behind the idea of making DRK into a lifesteal-themed tank. WAR can go do something else, as far as I'm concerned, unless they want to give up having the best burst dps and the best burst enmity as their schtick. You can't be everything at once.

[Shurrikhan]

As for lifesteal - well, probably the number one thing that people have been asking for is a clear cut identity for jobs like DRK, WHM, and MCH. I'm fully behind the idea of making DRK into a lifesteal-themed tank. WAR can go do something else, as far as I'm concerned, unless they want to give up having the best burst dps and the best burst enmity as their schtick. You can't be everything at once.

Is Lifesteal really a sufficient mechanic by which to differentiate oneself, though? It's at best a mechanic of heightened sustain without eMHP bonuses. That's no better than differentiating oneself off HoTs or sustained DPS. They're things that can help make more vivid identities work cohesively, aesthetically and functionally, but not nearly enough unto themselves.

[ManuelBravo]

I miss FFXI DRK more power O.o/ while I main tank DRK it shoudl be a tad bit more powerful. That or give us a stance that sacrifices defense for offense. Besides dark side -.-