Roleplay, question and advice request.

[CaptainCoral]

Now that I think about if...if you want one Tank, one DPS, and one healer to fit the Pirate theme...perhaps Astrologian? Ships needed people to read the stars to navigate so it KINDA fits the theme.

Oh thats perfect, Thank you for that thought.

[SendohJin]

The best class from the ones you can select at the beginning is marauder (axe wielder) which starts in the somewhat-reformed pirate city.

Once you can pick up additional classes at level 10, you'll also get access to the dagger-wielding rogue class. (Unfortunately from a pirate-RP perspective, rogue shifts away from the theme later and morphs into ninja, but you can still dress like a pirate if you want.)

Meanwhile, machinist isn't a really piratey job beyond the basic "has a gun". It's more steampunky and they do a lot of flus and spins while fighting.

Another option once you're further into the game is red mage, which fights with a rapier, though also a lot of spellcasting.

i agree with this, Machinist animations are very much not pirate-like. Red Mage is the better themed Pirate DPS class.

[Frizze]

Yeah, the red mage being the rapier wielding "duelist" archtype(who just happens to be capable of casting spells should the need arise) would fit well into a pirate theme. With that said, dont let anyone else stifle your creativity. Are you a black mage pirate who sailed the seas in search of new means of power? Are you a disgraced samurai who took to the seas to avoid the repercussions of your failure to your lord? Its your character, so do with it what you will.

[Rein_eon_Osborne]

• MRD/WAR seems like the closest, if not the best of all picks.
• MCH is an okay pick (since there are known musketeers in Limsa) although their animations are not so pirate’ish.
• ROG also starts in Limsa & would’ve been perfect until they drop that for NIN.
• SCH/SMN would only fit as probably Pirate Captain’s Right hand, or 2nd in command. Maelstorm’s exclusive head glamour via Allied Seal is imho a perfect piece for this purpose.
• RDM. Some rapiers resembles cutlass which is commonly known naval weaponry, and they have melee combo phase to satisfy this fantasy.

[TheMightyMollusk]

If it's just for appearances while standing around town, gladiator/paladin have some swords that could pass for a cutlass. You could either not equip a shield or use the Emperor's New Shield (or the GARO shield, which is functionally the same thing) to hide it. Needless to say, paladin is not at all piratical, of course.

[MistakeNot]

If you want to RP a pirate then do so. It doesn't really matter much what class/job your character has in the game.
The only time class/job matters for RP is by deciding what kind of gear (weapons/armor/clothes) you can equip cosmetically.

[Misplaced_Marbles]

How about roleplaying an actual pirate rather than the fun-loving rascals they're always portrayed as, someone who goes places and does things instead of standing around in cities talking and emoting to other unimaginative wankers? That would most likely make you the first in the games history to put effort into it.