How to heal dungeon pulls

[Equitable_Remedy]

Coming from healing in a lot of other MMOs, healing in FFXIV is quite a different animal in a lot of ways. While I didn't play healer for my first job, I'm now exploring it and have a basic question about the basic idea behind healing dungeon pulls. (For the record, my WHM is now lvl 52, so he has access only to a limited kit.)

So, the tank starts the pull, picking up mobs along the way. Let's assume that the tank is going to pull until the wall—what should I be doing when? The tank is taking damage along the way and may (at least in my experience so far) be only getting proximity aggro on a couple of the mobs along the pull.

I think that the healing approach is meant to be quite different that, say, WoW, and I just want to be sure that I'm thinking about what to do when in the right way for FFXIV. Thanks!

(I've mained healer in MMOs since EQ, but I mained NIN in FFXIV and am having a hard time finding healing fun in this game, which is weird for me.)

[Risvertasashi]

I usually do something like this:
1. Put a shield on the tank, preferably before he has aggro on anything.
2. Put a regeneration effect up. Ideally towards the end of the pull sequence but some will need it earlier. A very squishy tank may also need an instant heal while on the move.
3. Put a regeneration ground-effect up as the tank stops. Refresh step 2's regeneration effect if needed/applicable (SCH, for example, obviously can't, but SCH could use Fey Union instead)
4. Go ham on DPS.

Extra credit: Put DOTs on the mobs while on the move.

[AnotherPerson]

At lv 52, you can apply a regen while applying your DoTs to the enemies the tank has tagged. This will lower the HP of the enemies in the long run as he goes to the next pull and reduce the amount of healing in the long run since enemies die faster once the tank stops pulling. Give the tank a heal if required on the move, but generally the regen would be enough if the tank has decent gear and is competent + your gear is decent since the tank should be able to outrun most of the enemies. Pop a sprint if the tank is sprinting too. Notable uses of instant cast healing are Afflatus Solace (700 upfront heal on the GCD), Tetragammaton (Lv 60 700 potency heal), Benediction (Full heal, used when tank is getting low), and Assize (400 pot heal + 400 pot damage, used on cd unless holding it for a couple of seconds can save a GCD heal).

Once the tank finishes the pulls and proceeds to AoE everything (you can generally tell by experience or the tank pulls to a wall), proceed to either swiftcast holy or manually cast holy. Holy is effectively an AoE stun with diminishing returns to its stun. Not only does it prevent most enemies from doing damage, it lets the tank heal up with their passive regen + applied regen. This will slow the amount of incoming damage to the team + helps DPS. For optimizing holy usage, you should only delaying using holy if you know you can save casting healing GCDs since holy's stun can interrupt a trash add's skill, but otherwise you should be using holy as much as possible since it also helps reduce the enemies' HP - and thereby helping you kill them faster + heal less as dead enemies can no longer do damage.

[Liam_Harper]

At 52 you do have a more limited toolkit, but generally:

-Whether you can Regen the tank or not while making a pull depends on the tank. Some are good at hitting each mob as they go, so Regen aggro isn't an issue (and if do you get a stray mob on you just Regen yourself too and follow the tank as usual). Other tanks pull by simply running past the mobs and are unsafe to Regen. You get a feel for it as you go. At 66 you can Divine Benison pre-pull.
-DoT any mob your tank has hit with Aero while running.
-As the tank approaches the wall, Swiftcast while running then Holy when the tank stops to catch everything in an instant 4 sec stun. Set up Regen if you like, weave in Asylum and commence the Holy spam, using Tetra/Bene as needed.
-If you need to GcD heal Solace>Cure II. Don't use Cure I unless you're absolutely dead on mana.
-Treat Benediction as a strong oGcd heal rather than a rare emergency button. It's a useful tool to save GCD's.

[Equitable_Remedy]

Thanks, those are helpful responses (though I don't yet have many of the abilities mentioned).

Some version of that you've all described is what I've been doing, but it feels very awkward. I know that a lot of classes don't really come together until 60, but I'm at a bit of a loss for why healing just doesn't hit me as enjoyable (and why ninja is so fun despite never having particularly liked DPS before).

Thanks for the quick replies!

[Rongway]

-Whether you can Regen the tank or not while making a pull depends on the tank. Some are good at hitting each mob as they go, so Regen aggro isn't an issue (and if do you get a stray mob on you just Regen yourself too and follow the tank as usual). Other tanks pull by simply running past the mobs and are unsafe to Regen.

Pop sprint and regen them anyway. Then regen yourself if things are hitting you. You won't die from a couple mobs hitting you on the run, and if you're hugging the tank the whole way then they can pick them back up easily with AoEs.

[Risvertasashi]

Thanks, those are helpful responses (though I don't yet have many of the abilities mentioned).

Some version of that you've all described is what I've been doing, but it feels very awkward. I know that a lot of classes don't really come together until 60, but I'm at a bit of a loss for why healing just doesn't hit me as enjoyable (and why ninja is so fun despite never having particularly liked DPS before).

Thanks for the quick replies!

Well. I just made a thread asking the devs to - for the next expansion - make the healer kits play better/feel less awkward. So I'm going to be honest. I feel like it's a problem all the way through.

But, I don't know, since you're still leveling you may feel it all works better once you hit max level. You do get some more instants, class mechanics flesh out, and so on. I do absolutely hate getting sync'd to 50 myself.

Perhaps check back in once you're further along, see if you can try to put your finger on exactly why you feel the way you do - and that may be valuable feedback to the devs.

[Jukebox12]

?

I don't think the devs are going to do this the job is supposed to feel complete on max level they even said this