AST Artifact gear style direction. Good or Bad?

[LydiaF]

So.

Astrologian is going through what appears to be a shift in visual identity from its first showing in HW. Noticable with the SB and ShB sets having more in common thematically than the HW version.

1. We have the Witch like and celestial body (stars, moons and planets) theme from HW.
2. We then have the more middle eastern/Gypsy vibe that compliments the areas of Gyr Abania.
3. And then most recently the ShB set, which seems to be continuing the Gypsy theme, albeit in a more diluted way. The star globe however does favour the celestial body theme again.

My question to you all is this:
Do you like the shift from the original themes to the latest ones? Or do you feel like the earlier themes are stronger in identity?



My opinion:
At the point of the ShB set being revealed my heart sunk for multiple reasons.

• It's been simplified to a point where I feel it now has very little identity, and does not personify the AST class nearly as well as what I expect from artifact gear.
  
• The model resource issue the Devs have (mentioned in the art pannel at FanFest Paris) feels like it has notably slipped into the Artifact Gear space. The outfit feels like an edited version of the SB gear and also appears to share a similar headress with the ShB WHM. Not to mention this style of head piece is available on the Market Board. Which means it's class exclusivity is completely missing and whilst I can sympathise to some degree, I can't help but feel like the AF gear should always remain a unique looking set per Class.
  
• I absolutely adored the Western Witch vibe from HW. It's covered from head to to in elements that scream "Star Reader" and it has one of the best Magical hats in the game (it's my most glammed to head piece). And so I think it's a crying shame that the Dev's have moved away from this interpretation of an AST.

Ultimately, ignoring the fact that I prefer the HW version, I can at least applaud the devs for maintaining a unique Class outfit with SB, but I feel the the ShB AST gear is below average.
It lacks strong Astrologian identifiers and it is ridiculously plain. Whilst it could be argued that, that a plain look in itself is unique I would point out that plain is not what I typically think of when someone mentions artifact gear.
I rambled on a bit, but I wanted a platform to express my frustration with the latest AST gear and my dismay at the departure from the HW Astro themes.

Let me know your thoughts, are the devs pushing the AST look in a direction you like? Are they pleasing the majority of AST players with this push?

[KanameYuuki]

Yeah, I'm not feeling it at all, the first one is an instant classic, it tells you everything you want to know about the class at a glance, the hat is my favorite in game.

Then we got SB's, I wasn't a fan at first (and still not a fan of head piece) but the dress really grew on me, it looks lovely and specially that weapon with the ribbon, and then we have ShB, it is like that abstract meme, I can imagine the next one being a simple black robe with nothing at all like a low level one, the weapon looks great tho.

But I can say the same for every other new ShB gear I understand it is because that place is more grounded so gear is a more "real" version with fantasy but they still could have done a better job with AST.

[Cidel]

I agree with your thoughts of the "evolution" of AST's AF up until ShB; and diluted is actually exactly what I would call the latest AF. My heart sunk a little when the concept art of it was released, because it just looked like a less-busier version of SB's AF, right down to the headcloth and robe giving it a nearly identical silhouette. Though I know some people will be pleased with the latest set, as I guess you could also consider it more "conservative" (the arm accessories aren't puffed sleeves, the robe isn't overly detailed).

That said, playing a male character, I would ever-so-slightly prefer SB and ShB's "gypsy" theme's over their debut set in HW; it clearly had the stylized witch theme there and it's looked super-unflattering on male models IMO. And I will admit that the latest AF is probably the most neutral-looking set in regards to how it complements male and female models (which I assume is intentional, because Urianger would be represented by this outfit in ShB).

On a side note, these newer outfits seem designed similarly to Bravely Second's Astrologian's outfits (what with the sleeveless robes and headcloths/veils), so that might be their overall direction with the outfits now that AST has been represented in more than one of the franchises' games.

[Cled-cat]

It looks like we’re levelling down, not up. Really not a fan of the new gear, I wonder why they’re fine with letting the artistic standard drop so much with AST’s gear given it’s meant to be the most flashy healer? Give us flamboyance and detail!

[Len]

I will be instantly glamouring over the AF4 set. It's just a repeat of a bad design.

[Sanghelios]

I quite like the new AF gear. In my opinion the game lacks clothes that arent overall fancy and full of accessories. This one is simple and clean.

[AvenoMatt]

I like the set though it is plain looking compared to their past sets and think it could of benefitted from some embroidery and detailing mainly around the hem of the skirt. Also not a fan of their HW AF set since like mentioned before it's very unflattering on male characters and overall not a fan of dresses and robes.

[Iscah]

It's worth pointing out that the male Lv70 gear is quite different to the female version, and doesn't have the same "70 and 80 look the same" issue that the female version does.


The pants aren't great, but the Thavnairian Sarouel makes a good substitute.

(I want the male coat for my female character... the female dress misses out on a lot of the detailed embroidery.)

I think the Lv70 gear is supposed to be Ala Mhigan - it has some similar elements to Lyse's red dress - which is a bit odd when there's nothing in the lore to tie it to that part of the world.

I'm also a bit puzzled by the decision to make the Lv80 relic gear also be Urianger's new costume. At last he gets something new after missing out on a (permanent) costume change in Heavensward, and it's a generic outfit that doesn't seem like something he'd wear. I don't think it's been designed for him; it's relic gear first and they've used it rather than design something unique. Will have to wait and see how it looks in-game, but from the trailer it seems rather unflattering on him - particularly the heavy necklace and lack of collar. It's the opposite of what I'd normally pick for my Elezen character.

[dragoelete]

to be fair and i know this is off topic but thancred is basically just a recolor of the GNB artifact gear.

[Sathona]

I kind of adore the dress,however the head piece as i said with WHM is just not the kind of thing id want to see on an AF set since as u said its on MB and its common too :/