Monk rework thoughts

[Shurrikhan]

However, there is an idea which I'm fond of that came across my mind when thinking of a bonus to the FoW instead of the current haste or critical hit bonuses that could attract the player to activate it:

-This bonus requires a trait. I will call it "Like the Wind." Like the Wind: while moving, build stacks up to 100 (2 stacks per 1y).
It activates during combat regardless of the current Fists. While FoW is active, spend 10 stacks of "Like the Wind" to increase next GCD potency by 20 (meaning that 10 GCDs will get the bonus if stacks are at 100). That is in addition to the increase of the movement speed ofc. Hence, the player may stay in FoF while "Like the Wind" is building. Once stacks reaches 100, the player can change for the extra damage and then back to FoF.

Sorry, I won't be able to respond to everything right now; I may do more on edit later.

One could argue that in such a case there is little point in having an FoF, and that we should instead instead add a compromise component to FoW/FoE or have them consume gauge while FoF be just... no stance at all. Of course, we could say the same for the present situation. Nonetheless, I'm glad you're considering them in new ways.

You can kind of consider what you're moving towards as what's called "back-loaded" or "back-end(ed)" effect, whereas immediate Damage and Mitigation bonuses would be called "fully dynamic", and Haste "to-GCD dynamic". (For comparison, the current FoW, in the form of GL4, is a "to-GCD dynamic" effect with "windowed/limited access" since one can only enter it on a Coeurl skill.)

You could, for instance, go entirely back-ended, generating something over time, from attacks dealt, potency dealt, relative potency dealt, or any combination thereof, such as by having Fire generate Attack Power (affects all sources of potency, including even Second Wind), Wind generate Skill Speed (AAs, GCDs, and DoTs a bit further), and Earth generate (Magic) Defense, each of which fades over time. The problem is two-fold: (1) an back-ended Defense buff is going to feel useless or entrapping until one has a fight fully memorized AND somehow needs the added mitigation AND can get more out of sacrificing damage during the time prior to proximity AoE than by moving that little bit further away (unless of course there's a damage component to FoE as well), and (2) it's just far less intuitive and harder to track.

A logical alternative, then, would be to build something generalistic, and then have them spend from that same resource pool for their (additional) effects. In that way there's no sense of entrapment. Swapping to FoE before a big hit will consume just enough resource to keep you alive -- no more, no less -- while FoF may consume resource based on potency dealt (its damage bonus refunding an increasing part of that resource cost as not to make its value even across all GCDs), FoW per strike, etc.

I feel like FoF, FoW and FoE should become temporary buffs that interact with MP like they used to in 1.2. I don't like how melee have a resource that isn't interacted with it at all, especially when lore-wise we are using our aether in some fashion on every job.

This is another way to go, and my personal preference if ever we returned all jobs to using MP in some way. I despise wasted UI components, so I'd like to see that shift regardless.