Dancer (76) Advices ?

[Drakeos]

So tried SMN at 90 and not my playstyle too much for me so wondering if Dancer's will be good since want to support my group/party/team and do dps ?

[ty_taurus]

Personally, I love Dancer. It's one of my favorite Final Fantasy jobs, and I find it to be really fun and satisfying in XIV. Not everyone agrees, though. Here's a breakdown from my own perspective:

Dancer is a support-heavy ranged DPS that focuses on busy burst phases spaced apart with a somewhat relaxed rotation outside of those phases. On top of this lies a fair amount of RNG proc-based tools. You have a 1-2 combo where each action has a 50% chance to proc a different GCD action. Those actions then have their own 50% chance to grant you a feather that can be spent on an OGCD attack that also has a 50% chance to proc a final OGCD action. In other words:

1-2 Combo >50%> Enhanced 1-2 Combo >50%> Fan Dance I/II >50%> Fan Dance III

On top of this, you also have a small toolbelt of OGCD healing and mitigation to assist your healers, and the main selling point of the Dancer, your buffs. Dancer offers a functionally permanent 5% damage boost for both themselves and a designated party member of your choosing, a 5% damage on top of that for the whole party every 2 minutes, and a 20% buff to your critical hit and direct hit stats that also applies to that designated party member.

A common argument against Dancer's gameplay has been its simplicity. Outside of its burst windows, Dancer is often not doing much outside of a 1-2 combo as even when you're earning feathers and Esprit--your resources--you're often saving up for burst phases and only really spending any surplus you generate. Additionally, its procs on procs on procs nature means that you can go through RNG droughts, and not everyone likes RNG in their gameplay, though I'd argue this isn't a fault but rather a preference. I enjoy having some unknown factors influencing my gameplay.

My biggest gripe with the job is how back-loaded it is in terms of actions. You only start learning many of the tools that help spice up Dancer's otherwise relaxed rotation at level 76 and above now that Flourish has been simplified until Fan Dance IV is learned, and I'd say the burst phase now only really starts getting fun at level 82-86.

Overall Pros:
- Great support tools to enhance your party members
- Modest back-pocket healing can also help you with self-sustain if you're about to take a nasty hit
- Lots of mobility with En Avant
- Relatively easy and quick to learn
- Satisfying burst phase

Overall Cons
- Lowest personal damage amongst DPS jobs
- Potentially too simple in contrast to other jobs
- Back-loaded skill learning means synched content can feel more boring to play
- RNG is not everyone's cup of tea

As I stated, I really enjoy the job and think it's overall a very solid experience, though depending on why you left SMN, some of the same issues might still be present if you're looking for something that's more complex to play as. But if you want to play something with a lot of support and utility, DNC the poster child for that role.