Healers need an overhaul

[Kacho_Nacho]

I wish content would be designed where spamming heal is a necessity.

I feel the same. I miss how I used to heal as a holy priest in WoW.

Knowing how to triage was the most important skill you had because you couldn't just spam spells all the time. You'd run out of mana.

The whole healing game centered around the player using the best heal/damage/support spell for the situation and knowing when and when not to cast it.

Sometimes, you had to heal like crazy. Other times, you had to hold back because you knew the next part would need big heals. Mana was a precious resource.

Not casting a spell was as meaningful a choice as casting one. Because, if you didn't cast for five seconds, your mana would start regenerating.

In short, you had to make choices. This kept you engaged and that's what is missing from healing in FFXIV.

[Raven2014]

I feel the same. I miss how I used to heal as a holy priest in WoW.

Knowing how to triage was the most important skill you had because you couldn't just spam spells all the time. You'd run out of mana.

The whole healing game centered around the player using the best heal/damage/support spell for the situation and knowing when and when not to cast it.

Sometimes, you had to heal like crazy. Other times, you had to hold back because you knew the next part would need big heals. Mana was a precious resource.

Not casting a spell was as meaningful a choice as casting one. Because, if you didn't cast for five seconds, your mana would start regenerating.

In short, you had to make choices. This kept you engaged and that's what is missing from healing in FFXIV.

You don't even need to use WoW as example ('cause it gonna trigger some people here), like I said FF14 itself at one point have some of that. Like, whenever I hear someone mock "yada yada Medica 2 yada yada" I already know they're no interested in a discussion in good faith. Because Medica 2 spam have never been a thing in raid, at least not up until the last 2 expansions.

- First: it's expensive, Medica 2 Spamming = run out of MP by mid fight even if you bring a mana battery.

- Second: more important, it's a massive aggro generator. I remember in Neo-Exdeath there were a set of mech that requires intensive healing that you need a regen going and raw AOE on top of that. But that sequence of mech also have a double tank buster mechs that careless healing will see the WHM rip hate off the tank and eat one of the buster instead, but heal conservatively and someone gonna die on the next hit. I remember during prog that part requires a coordinate plan: tanks have to do their stance dance correctly, the healers have to time their heal and lucid at the right time, and the ninja needs to do his job. It may be even easier to do that set of mech that let the WHM go nut with heal and take the buster with a PLD cover.

In fact, aggro management used to be a big part of healing that some considered the built-in aggro reduction on the AST's sect was a cheat code, so talk about mindlessly spamming heal is just non-sense. Ironically, healing spam is something that would only be viable NOW if someone care to do it, because MP management has been neft to a point some question "why do we still have MP at all?", and aggro management has all but disappeared.

Again, were all of that well thought out and perfect? No, not really. That system could still have used a lot of improvement and refinement, but I feel just trashed the whole thing was NOT the right decision.