A summary of healer issues

[Kabooa]

Well I've been obnoxiously plastering theorycrafts in the Healer forums consistently over months and months and none of them have any sort of 123 filler combo. Just because other players have bad ideas doesn't mean that's what the bulk of us have been suggesting.

I don't see how what I said implies that.

That's all good and well, in theory, but in practice, a one-button DPS job satisfies everything you said just fine. After all, the only action a DPS job does is, "Deal damage."

What is the principle by which you let a DPS job get 20 buttons to "Deal damage", but somehow, a healer with 2 buttons to "Deal damage" has plenty?

None that I hold, personally.

I don't think Dragoon should have 9 gcds to have what is effectively two decision lines, nor do I think Gunbreaker should have stopped with the cartridge combo line, or that Warrior has some divine providence for Storm's Path to take 3 buttons, nor do I think Machinist is any richer for the Shot combo being 3 buttons. Monk would need to be more careful with how it does a consolidation, but that isn't because Monk abilities are special, it's because Monk progresses combos differently.

I've watched many potentially interesting abilities be removed over the years, yet these bog standard literal animation swapped skills get to be their own keys, and while some of them get trimmed, the fact is that none of them had to be removed to make room on the hot bar for the antiquated notion that Combos are special and need individual keys.

I don't think blasting zone is particularly interesting, and on a DPS it'd be one of the first actions up for removal, and I wouldn't care - On a DPS. On Gunbreaker, it routinely causes a conflict with what would be usual defensive timing. However, blasting zone isn't special - Quite literally any of the other offensive OGCDs exert the same pressure. Were it not for the rather iconic representation of a certain edgy boi's limit break, there'd be no reason for me to say it should stay. Continuation fulfills the same purpose, and you can expect that the level 92 skill for Gunbreaker is going to be Continuation for Fated Circle.

In practice, we create multiple damaging (RE: or of any type, really) actions in order to create what is effectively an in-game puzzle. We give them different cooldowns, different animation locks, different power, in order to create dynamic combat out of what is effectively just an auto-rolling turn based system. A caster will have long cast times for when it's safe to use them, fast cast times when looking for openings, and cool down instant casts in order to react to poor situations.

Healers are no different. They do deserve more damaging actions - And at the risk of being a meme, just "No, not like that."

I keep citing PVP because I think that's the best direction we should head in. We should minimize the bloat, we should ensure every button has a purpose, and for those who like hitting 6 different keys for their manual auto attacks, you give options that conserve key space for those who don't.

We stop taking things away in favor of systems that reduce the keybind pressure.

I don't think I'm being unfair in that perspective, nor do I think it's incompatible.

You want more damage buttons.

I want them to be meaningful.