Starting the game as Arcanist is largely unplayable now

[HyperiusUltima]

Sounds like a player issue and not a content issue.If your friend quit the game that easily at lvl 15 i can already tell the kind of player they are and probably doing the community a favor by them not continuing to play.

I'd prefer if we don't make baseless assumptions about others and then say it's better that they don't play; everyone has a right to play, and if they have trouble? Then it's up to that player whether they decide to keep playing or not. Some people can get mad at the game and come back just because of the "sunk cost" effect some people have, and if not that then the game's story, aesthetics, you name it. There's more than enough reasons to come back but if they left over a job/class dispute? Then it requires investigation before considering it an issue that needs to be addressed.

[MerlinCross]

Isn't there a class quest that expected you to use your Tank Carbunckle? How's that handle now/how much gear do you need to surpass that now?

Related; do any SMN quests ask the same of Titan?

[DPZ2]

I agree with OP, New player souldn't start with ARC right now.

Can we start to use accurate nomenclature here? Please? Arcanist and Archer both start with 'arc', but only one of them (Archer) is ARC. Arcanist/Summoner is ACN/SMN. Arcanist/Scholar is ACN/SCH.

[RivinStormfang]

Isn't there a class quest that expected you to use your Tank Carbunckle? How's that handle now/how much gear do you need to surpass that now?

Related; do any SMN quests ask the same of Titan?

The only arcanist one I can remember that specifically asks you to use Topaz is the one on the ship with constant swarms of mobs (I think it's the level 15 one?), but as long as you stand inside the NPC's shield you can tank them yourself just fine with some Physicks/potions here and there to keep you and the NPC alive. Not sure about the later summoner quests, but none of the ones up to 54 ask you to use Titan, nor do they really require it (although I'm sure the level 50 one would be easier if Titan could've actually held aggro on the enemies).

[Violet_Galaxy]

I have a friend that was intersted in playing SMN end game. He achieved Lv15 and was looking forward to topaz carbuncle as tank. but we discovered that all the pets are now just DPS.

So, you have a physically weak class, unable to put out the damage the other starters can but without any way to mitigate the mob aggro/damage.

He quit last night: "This is unfun, boring and tedious"
I cannot fault him on this, I delierately used a fate to sync from Lv70 to Lv15 and got destroyed.

It appears that the arcanist was changed so much it's only playable if you are with a party now and no solo capability.

Kudos to your friend for quitting while he's ahead. Sad to say, but I wish more and more players had this mindset so SE wouldn't have to dumb down this game any further than it already is. People who play classes based solely on damage output are people that can take a hike in my opinion.

[WhimsicalPacifist]

If Summoner were intended to have to kite a single mob at distance you'd expect it to have kept Break (40% heavy), the knockback on Garuda, or the stuns on Ifrit/Titan to interrupt channels or give breathing room to cast.

Oh wait, those all got deleted. You'll be running around in a circle from the boss in A Book With Bite which technically could be done in the same manner with the starter ARC book and naked. Is the grand and powerful Summoner going to summon Bahamut? No Bahamut likes you to stand still. The Summoner starts running in circles around the target shouting "Tri-Disaster, Ruin, Ruin...Bio" echoing the iconic strains of "Lightning bolt, lightning bolt".

[Hasrat]

Y'know, it is kinda a fair point that it's a little odd to have ACN start with Emerald with the AoE attacks. This is sorta fine with the transition to SMN, Garuda kinda makes more sense as an AoE pet than Ifrit. But, starting out, would probably be more ideal to have more direct damage (slightly higher potency for single target attacks).

But, that was probably also sorta true since forever. Emerald has always upgraded to Garuda, so. Maybe I'm just making up problems here.

[KoalaAssassin]

You get a slow cast dot and the direct damage spell... the mobs just walk up and eat you; unplayable as you cannot DPS fast enough at the low levels.

[Samsta]

You get a slow cast dot and the direct damage spell... the mobs just walk up and eat you; unplayable as you cannot DPS fast enough at the low levels.

What game have you been playing? If you have gear even close to your level the low-level mobs die in seconds...

[RivinStormfang]

You get a slow cast dot and the direct damage spell... the mobs just walk up and eat you; unplayable as you cannot DPS fast enough at the low levels.

When I was leveling arcanist in Stormblood I could easily put Bio and Miasma on two or three enemies at a time, and by the time one was Ruined to death the other two would be close to death as well, then I could just cast a Physick and Ruin the other two to death. While the dots are a bit weaker now, Ruin 1's damage was almost doubled compared to Stormblood, and the Emerald Carbuncle can AoE them now too. There's no way it's that much harder now, at least at the low levels this thread is discussing. Saying it's "unplayable" is pure hyperbolic nonsense.