Y'all are whack. I'm a triple legend, orange parser too, but I don't think there's any reason to make the game harder.

Difficulty does not equal fun. A complex class with all kinds of cool tricks optimizations is fun, yes, but making those tricks difficult to access just makes the class frustrating and "clunky". This is what QoL changes target.

For example the Thundercloud on BLM is the same as always: You save it for movement, or use it as close to the end of the DoT timer as possible. But now that gameplay is more accessible because the timers are longer.

I'm not saying BLM is better overall, just that this specific change was good for QoL, without removing any gameplay.

I'm also not saying SQEX gets everything right. SMN lost way too much of everything (buttons, complexity, optimization). MNK losing positionals was... controversial at the very least.

But y'all are missing the point of a lot of the good QoL changes, and thereby diluting your complaints about the real problems. If it helps more people have fun with a class, you will never get SQEX to revert it, no matter how much you shout "braindead". These changes help more people enjoy the class in a smoothly-flowing, satisfying way, without having to do unintuitive shit like watching both buff and debuff timers for Thundercloud, or adding Hagakure filler to align Tsubame, or clip GCDs to fit in all your oGCDs on MNK.

If these streamlining changes make a class too easy for you, then I implore you to try optimizing beyond the standard rotation. Pay attention to phase and kill timings, save resources for add phase padding, alter your burst windows to align better with screwed up raid buffs (due to a weird encounter or shitty PUGs). Or learn a new class. Or try harder content. Or aim for higher parses. Or help scrubs learn the fights you've already mastered. There's enough challenge in the game if you look for it.

Not everything has to be difficult. More than that. Most stuff shouldn't be difficult, so that more players have access to it. Low skill floor, high skill ceiling. Easy to learn, hard to master. This is a game design monolith, that every veteran in the gaming sphere should be aware of. SQEX won't throw it out the window, just so 1000-hour veterans can feel challenged in dungeons.