Fear of playing a DPS

[E4EO]

As the title says I have a fear of playing a DPS and would like to get over it, I’ll go over my reasons below and I’ll keep as it short and to the point as possible as I’m in a bit of a rush. I’ll also be coming from a dungeon perspective but other types of content are more than welcome in replies. Sorry if this comes off as rude or anything like that but I’m being completely serious and mean no ill will.

I’ve always shied away from playing DPS due to the lack of responsibility, see, when a DPS dies in a dungeon than the pull can easily be completed without that said DPS or that said DPS can be raised in a second or two and act as if nothing happened, if two DPS die than that same pull can be done by the healer and tank alone, albeit slower. Same can be said for dungeon bosses, DPS dies and the fight can be completed by the remaining three, if the two DPS die than the healer and tank could defeat the boss depending on their skill and the healers currant MP. Im saying I feel like deadweight whenever I play a DPS due to my lack of responsibility. That’s why I’m not taking into account raises because fights in dungeons can still be done without a DPS or two, and even if they get raised, what happens if they just get themselves killed a few seconds later? Healer will be outta MP and will eventually die along with the tank. Sometimes fights are lost without those two DPS due to the specific bossses health. I feel like deadweight/useless when I play a DPS in games and thats what scares me.

(don’t confuse this with me not resurrecting DPS’s in content, I raise anyone I see dead ASAP as I’d like to get the content done as quickly as smoothly as possible, also like to perform my job well too)

Meanwhile if a healer or tank dies it’s far more likely that the whole group will die with them. If the tank dies than it’s up to the healer to keep the group sustained while the healer raises the tank, and that depends on pull size, boss health, level, and healer skill. If the healer dies, than the only way the group has a chance of surviving is if a DPS with a raise or heal is present, that way they could raise the healer or spam heals on the tank to make up for missed heals. That’s what I like about playing tanks and healers, the whole groups survival is in those two types of jobs hands, and if they go there’s a high chance the party will go with them, but if a DPS goes the only thing that’ll happen is the run will be longer or be raised a few seconds later, and if two DPS go than sometimes the boss can be killed, sometimes not.

So I’d like to ask you guys, why should I play a DPS? Should I even play DPS or continue healing and tanking? I’m more than willing to hear people out and possibly pick up a DPS.

Bonus question, what DPS should I pick up? I picked up SAM and tried it on some practice dummies and squadron missions, but I don’t think I’m into DPS enough to continue with it.

[Kabooa]

People rarely say it in chat, but everyone grumbles at their monitor when mr Ice Mage shows up.

If you want a DPS job that can fit in everywhere and do everything, take Red Mage. In 98% of the content they are king.

[whiskeybravo]

Play a DPS because you want to be the one that excels at damage output which makes the groups runs go faster. While your characterization of DPS isn't completely wrong, you left out the other side which is that it's incredibly noticeable, and even commendable, when you run across a DPS player that does actually know what they're doing. At least for those of us who pay attention to such things.

As for which DPS to play, that's a harder question. You need to consider the aesthetic/playstyle, if it suits you or not, and further determine which sub-role you'd like to participate in. Samurai is a high damage dealer. Dancer is a low damage dealer but does a lot to support the groups damage. Other jobs are in between, so you need to decide if you'd rather be more of a support DPS or a strictly damage dealing DPS. From there do you prefer melee or ranged, ie do you move around a lot (melee or ranged physical can attack while moving/dodging) or can you manage to work around cast times which limit mobility (casters).

[Raldo]

Why DPS?
Most people don't like the responsibility of tanks/healers that you appear to enjoy. DPS do indeed have less responsibility, however nobody likes stuff to take inordinate amount of time either. Your job as a DPS is to make content faster, and there are also some situations where not meeting a DPS check will get the party killed just like losing a tank or healer. As a tank or healer, have you ever said to yourself "Dear god, this stuff is dying so slow." That right there is why people DPS.

For me personally
- I find tanks/healers to be boring (generally DPS rotations are more involved). Performing well at your DPS rotation while also not screwing up fight mechanics can be really satisfying.
- I like the competition aspect. Now that everyone has lost their enmity-control skills, I can now accurately judge my contribution versus other DPS based on where I am on the hate list (unless someone dies, dropping their enmity to zero).
- It's a lot easier to feel the impact of improving yourself as a DPS (stuff dies faster). I mean, stuff dies faster if you're good as a tank/healer too (optimization necessarily leads to more DPS), but since you're weaker it's harder to notice the impact.

Should you even try DPS?
The game lets you be good at everything. Feel free to give it a shot if you want. Don't if you don't want to or don't like it. Keep in mind that low-level anything is boring though, so don't judge a DPS based on the early levels. Whenever I have free time, I like to level everything. By year's end, I'll probably have everything to 80.

Which DPS?
That's really a personal question. I would suggest BLM, but ultimately it's up to you what you find fun (it's just unfortunate that you have to get to lv60~70 before you can really assess a jobs full kit to see whether or not you find it fun...). BLM seems to be the most-powerful non-melee class, and since I hate positionals, that's my pick. Despite that, I've been using MCH the most because I find it enjoyable. You do you. Unless you're trying to get into picky savage groups or something, you'll be fine on literally any DPS.

[Mhaeric]

DPS has more responsibility than players tend to give credit. Not as directly as a healer or tank, but it's there. If a DPS isn't pulling their weight in a large pull, for example by using single target rotations or spamming Blizzard 2, the tank and healer can run out of cooldowns mid-fight. A lot of mechanics in raids are also handles by the DPS, and I would venture to say most of them are. This is a shared responsibility, but a responsibility nonetheless.

[CrashofZenki]

Well, lets see. We have the Melees:
SAM: is nice for people who just want to see big numbers on the screen.
MNK: for those who like big damage and constantly have to move their character to hit appropreate positionals. (They are also faster paced than SAM)
DRG: A good all around melee class with a bit of growth potential involved. loads of jumps but be carefull! You might end up face down dead if you jump at the wrong time.

Casters:
BLM: self-reliant powerhouses with a taste of FLAREEE! but do mind, if you dont like to wait long to do another ability, then this might not be for you.
SMN: faster paced caster with pets! Ever wanted to control summons to do your bidding? do you enjoy button smashing? Then this caster is for you!

Ranged Physical:
MCH: Button smashing awesomeness? actually, I got no idea.. I hear its fun tho.
BRD: They sing? Or do they even do that anymore? Im pretty sure they lost most if not all their support effects xD Hey, at least you can move around without having to wait for casts.
DNC: Fun job to play, I suspect even more so if you are super cacual and mostly do dungeons. You can clear some pulls quite fast with their sweet AoE and they are good at buffing other classes too

Hybrids:
RDM: Melee caster mage. If you are familiar with healing, then this one got some quick saving powers when your party member dies! a near instant raise can be used to bring them up again in a fast cast. Their playstyle goes into casting spells to fill a gauge used to power up melee combos. So youll be going in and out of melee range quite often.

NIN: Melee Physical caster. Its a job that doesnt really know what it wants to be. It has a party utility that raises everyones damage for 10 seconds on a 60 second cooldown. This ability has been overvalued by many for a long time and finally in this expansion the utility it brings doesnt hold up to their weak damage. They also have casts in form of ninjutsu and at times will have to stand completely still like a caster, if they break this they lose a good chunk of their damage... oops But dont be fooled, even if they are a hybrid of melee and caster they cannot actually be out of melee range and still be effective in dealing damage. Also, if you thought button smashing on SMN was hard or MNK was fast? Think again! This Sonic of a hedgehog job will make you develop carpal tunnel syndrome and blister up your fingers in no time with their insane fast opener exeeding 101-116-ish Buttons a minute! (though you will only have that crazy number the first 21-23 seconds of a boss fight.) Averages at 47-49 casts/ability/weapon skills per minute.

[E4EO]

DNC: Fun job to play, I suspect even more so if you are super cacual and mostly do dungeons. You can clear some pulls quite fast with their sweet AoE and they are good at buffing other classes too

It’s not necessarily that I’m super casual, it’s that losing a party member is felt the hardest in dungeons.

Lose a tank in a trail/raid? Other tank picks up the boss/mobs in a second while the other tank gets raised almost as quick. Lose a healer in a trial/raid? Other healer raises the downed one, both use lucid dreaming to get back to normal MP levels. Lose a DPS in a trail/raid? Nothing much will change unless you lose 2, 3, or god forbid all 4 DPS, same goes with the tanks and healers.

Lose the healer in a dungeon? Kiss your ass goodbye unless the pull or boss is almost dead/you have a DPS with a raise. Lose the tank? better hope the healer can sustain the group while the tank comes back, but that can depend on pull size, healer MP, healer skill, so it won’t always be possible in every dungeon. Lose a DPS? Lots of damage just got thrown out the window.

Also sorry if a messed up the quote, im still new to the forums. Probably gonna look like a mishmash of commands that I didn’t type right LOL

[Darkstride]

DPS has responsibility. It's mowing through enemies as efficiently as possible to relieve the stress of the tank and healer.

You're only dead weight if you're terrible at DPS, don't understand your job, or don't care that you aren't actively contributing to your party. Playing DPS properly has a noticeable impact on how well a party performs.

[JohnnyDevo]

In the higher levels of content, at the younger ages of said content, good dps are arguably some of the most important components of the party.

Where tanks and healers have to work together and share the responsibility of keeping the party alive, their rotations tend to be more simple. Paladin swaps between fight or flight/requiesqat rotations over every 60 seconds. Gunbreaker reliably goes into a frenzy every 30 seconds, with a personal buff every other go.

But dps are typically more complicated. Some of them have exacting rotations that you can lose a hell of a lot of damage by getting it wrong. Some have very inflexible flow to their rotation. The ability to execute your rotation isn't even enough, because no rotation survives contact with the enemy. Mechanics, downtime, forced movement or positioning, all are factors that contribute chaos to your base rotation. The best dps players don't just learn their rotation, they *know* their rotation, and they know their class. Your responsibility is a personal one, to deal as much damage as you can without dying. Because in end-game content, you really have to be on top of your game in order to have your party able to clear. E3S this tier, for example, has a pretty tight dps check. Week 2, before any of our party had weapons, we beat enrage by a matter of seconds in a pull where the only death was a tank death shortly before some downtime.

Yes, dps are less important in more casual content, but in any late game encounter, they are as integral to the party's success as the tanks and healers.

[Drayos]

People rarely say it in chat, but everyone grumbles at their monitor when mr Ice Mage shows up.

If you want a DPS job that can fit in everywhere and do everything, take Red Mage. In 98% of the content they are king.

They really aren’t in SHB it’s aoe isn’t much better then a white mage at 99 percentile.

Also. It’s st is one of the worst in the game. Embolden doesn’t line up with your own burst. So u tend to not favour, and it’s much easier to end up in a magical group where it’s effect isn’t amazing either.

RDM is one of the weakest jobs currently.

Dragoon / monk / BLM are the kings of dps currently.

And before we say who dies how regularly do u honestly see deaths in DF content it’s not nessercary outside the initial day of content release for most