New Caster Role Actions?

[Archwizard]

With Shadowbringers, most roles will be reduced to only 6-7 role actions apiece. The odd man out here is Caster DPS, who are down to a mere 4 role actions (Addle, Lucid Dreaming, Swiftcast and Surecast).

Given the option to suggest new or the return of old role actions for Caster DPS to bring us up to the same number as other jobs, what actions would you suggest?

Just to start us off...

Dispel (2.5 sec cast): Removes a single beneficial status effect from target enemy.

Freecast (3 min CD): Allows the caster to continue moving without interrupting up to two spells with cast times. Spells may still be interrupted by jumping.
Duration: 8 sec

As an aside, I'd also like to propose that Drain be returned to the BLM kit, so as to give them a self-sustainability option outside grouped content. The trade of damage for self-healing would be more than enough to keep from overshadowing healers.

[Kurando]

General census seems to be returning Erase and Apocastasis if anything. The other suggested two would be seldom used as either they wouldn't be required (because target is immune) or current toolkits would find them a degree unnecessary (casters may already have mobility options to utilize).

[Seraph522]

General census seems to be returning Erase and Apocastasis if anything. The other suggested two would be seldom used as either they wouldn't be required (because target is immune) or current toolkits would find them a degree unnecessary (casters may already have mobility options to utilize).

Agreed; Erase and Apocatastasis would be far better options. As far as I'm aware, FFXIV hasn't had dispel-able buffs on enemies for a long time, so they'd need to go in and change current buffs for that purpose (which would be a lot of work just to add another role action), and all Caster DPS currently have plenty of mobility options in their toolkit, whether it's Swiftcast or job-specific abilities (Dreadwyrm Trance and Ruin II/IV for SMN, Triplecast for BLM, Dualcast for RDM). As for Drain, its self-sustain was nigh-on useless even in solo content, considering the pathetic amount of damage it dealt and the incredibly high MP cost. They'd need to buff its damage and self-heal output, which would require extensive balancing and really wouldn't be worth it. Not to mention I've never really felt the need for Drain in solo content so long as one is properly geared up and knows their rotation.

[Archwizard]

General census seems to be returning Erase and Apocastasis if anything. The other suggested two would be seldom used as either they wouldn't be required (because target is immune) or current toolkits would find them a degree unnecessary (casters may already have mobility options to utilize).

To be honest, I can understand the removal of Erase and Apocatastasis though.

Erase basically stepped on the toes of healers, making the group's caster DPS the priority at doing their job for them.
Meanwhile, Apocatastasis was really only used by min-maxers, particularly in the highest tiers of content. Some skills should be available to more casual players, given that they far outnumber Savage-tier Static raiders; if anything that's likely why it was one of the first skills on the chopping block.

I'd like to see casters get something on par with the stuns and interrupts available to physical DPS, and if we had Dispel then it would open up the encounter designers to be able to add mechanics that can be dispelled, much like I expect they'll be doing with Interrupts next expansion.

As for Drain, its self-sustain was nigh-on useless even in solo content, considering the pathetic amount of damage it dealt and the incredibly high MP cost. They'd need to buff its damage and self-heal output, which would require extensive balancing and really wouldn't be worth it.

I'm not saying it shouldn't be buffed to be a self-sustain option, much like I believe that Physick should also be usable on Int for SMN.

What's so "extensive" about increasing the healing percentage of a skill available to one job? They could literally do that in hotfixes. They wouldn't even need to touch the damage, just up the drain rate.

[Rongway]

Erase basically stepped on the toes of healers, making the group's caster DPS the priority at doing their job for them.

You say, "stepped on the toes of healers"; I say "saved healers from spending a GCD on Esuna".

The problem with Erase was never that it was a cleanse action on DD jobs. BRD has Paean, which is a cleanse action on a DD job. The problem with Erase was that it was specifically limited to DoTs. This made it useless in most fights. However, it is/was quite useful for things like covering people's mistakes in alliance raids (namely, mistakes that resulted in Bleed effects). Not only could it save a healer a GCD in such a case, but it is/was fast enough to prevent deaths.

[Valavaern]

Apocatastasis needs to come back, full stop.
If Erase came back, I'd want it to affect everything Esuna does, and preferably usable on ourselves.
Other than that, I'd like to see Manaward taken off of BLM and made in a Role action.

The Devs are going for heavier emphasis on self-management of MP, but if that winds up crashing and burning (which it will likely if they don't increase the amount of MP you have after being raised), then I can see casters getting Manashift back.

[Shurrikhan]

You say, "stepped on the toes of healers"; I say "saved healers from spending a GCD on Esuna".

The problem with Erase was never that it was a cleanse action on DD jobs. BRD has Paean, which is a cleanse action on a DD job. The problem with Erase was that it was specifically limited to DoTs. This made it useless in most fights. However, it is/was quite useful for things like covering people's mistakes in alliance raids (namely, mistakes that resulted in Bleed effects). Not only could it save a healer a GCD in such a case, but it is/was fast enough to prevent deaths.

Aren't those one and the same.

His DoT cleanse is free. Yours costs 250 potency. So...

Would you like to Cleanse?

No. Unless more DoTs need to be cleansed than your casters can take of, you absolutely should not touch your cleanse. It thus feels less like a healer duty than a caster/Bard duty.

For a healer to even compete with its reliability given by Erase's immediateness they'd need to then have an instant-cast, if not oGCD, Cleanse.

Personally, I don't think that would have been a huge issue. Give healers two charges each on a one-minute CD. When present, Esuna is an Ability, thus an instant-cast oGCD. When they're not, it's a 1-second cast Spell. But, as things stood, casters' Erase definitely did step on healers' toes in terms of role duty/identity when the cleanse-able in question was a DoT. I don't personally care much about that, but it does seem simple, objective fact to me.

And let's not pretend that Bard is "just another DD job". Its entire original identity was built around support.

I think the only Role Action ability I'd actually miss is Manashift, though I'd have been fine with that turning into a purely RDM utility.

We've already made enmity a non-issue, so why keep a two-minute CD to hit on CD to "manage" it? Just further affect enmity generation, such as by basing it on the position (front > flank > rear) and range of each attack (not fully stacking, so ranged can still kite if they wish).

The same could of course be done with Lucid Dreaming, just raising the MP gained per tick (or better yet, GCD) to provide an extra 45-50% of total MP per 2 minutes. Compensate Astrologian for the loss of Celestial Opposition impact and raise the amount of MP we resurrect with. Done.

Return Erase and buff it if there's actually stuff remaining to healers despite it. Return Mana Shift. Replace Drain with Necrogenesis (Bloodbath, but for magic damage; shorter and stronger). Add Lethargy (Ability-based Heavy). Kill the two-minute "hit on refresh" CDs.

Other than that, I'd like to see Manaward taken off of BLM and made in a Role action.

And then Verraise and Vercure off RDM and Devotion and Summon Titan Egi off SMN? No Role but tanks have maximum eHP-increasing actions. Leave that level of capacity, and BLM, alone, unless you're willing to take whatever balancing penalties that unique survivability advantage would cost you and would be as willing to see your own job lose ownership over its tools.

[CorbinDallas]

Apocatastasis needs to come back, full stop.
If Erase came back, I'd want it to affect everything Esuna does, and preferably usable on ourselves.
Other than that, I'd like to see Manaward taken off of BLM and made in a Role action.

The Devs are going for heavier emphasis on self-management of MP, but if that winds up crashing and burning (which it will likely if they don't increase the amount of MP you have after being raised), then I can see casters getting Manashift back.

BLMs already lost Apoc, leave Manaward alone, or give us Embolden/Verraise/insertcoreRDMability

[SaberMaxwell]

Would be nice if RDM had some survival utility they didn't have to sacrifice a gcd to use. But *shrug*

[Zyneste]

The only thing I want on RDM is to keep Apoc and erase. If they consider erase too weak to keep just buff it to 300~400 potency and able to be used on self to mirror Second Wind [all other jobs have unique defensive/healing utility, namely for their own survival, at no real dps cost on top of the role action second wind.] Could make it more powerful towards it intended use by simply making it 100% crit when it cleanses a DoT. [Copy paste from another thread]

Devs, can Casters please have 6 role skills like the other roles?

Made a thread similar to this too q.q

As casters we only have four role skills. It was an obvious place for cuts as Break is irrelevant with Lucid on a 60 second time, Drain having a dead potency/heal on SB arrival, Diversion is irrelevant because of the new Emnity focused stance, and Manashift as useful as it was, will have no real place with Lucid on a 60 second timer. This leaves Erase and Apocatastasis.

Erase, although weak provides a quirky dot cleanse with a small heal on the OGCD! A HEAL FOR CASTERS ON THE OGCD. AAAHHH. It's my favorite underdog of a skill. Even if its weak I still prefer it be accessible than to have just deleted it. In this way, when I see someone at an uncomfortable level of health with an AOE incoming, I can toss it onto them to give them a much better chance of living than if I had done nothing. When I get to cleanse a dot I'm like wooooo! I did the thingggg.

Apocatastasis is my second addle! I loooove popping it just before a magic tank buster on the tank or if I see a DPS with a vuln stack or in questionable health for an upcoming aoe. Its been a solid skill, really encompassing the defensive utility side of caster since it was just a BLM only skill!

Having the ability to raise is great for progression, but hitting that raise button never feels good for anyone. It really is much more satisfying to see a player survive something from your influence as a caster than to just raise them after they die.


I know not everyone jumps for joy when they think about these skills, but I really do. I am so bummed that they are going away without any sort of replacement. I don't need any modifications to the skills, but I'd take them so long as their original purpose stays in tact. I would love you forever SE. p-p <3

------------------------------ Role skills ------------------------------

Tanks (7):

Healers (6):

Melee (6):

Ranged (6):

Casters (4):