Let's redefine "damage taxes"

[Absurdity]

Regarding the statement that the MCH should be last, it makes me laugh.
When SAM is at the top of the chart in aDPS, and also top 3 in rDPS no one gives a flying F, but when we start talking about the MCH, hell no dude. People are gatekeeping the job, preventing him from being where he should be.

It's also funny because it presumes that this game didn't exist until ShB. Yeah yeah, Shadowbringers is probably when a majority of these people started playing but did everyone else get dementia? Not like Bard and Machinist weren't some of the top dps in Heavensward and Stormblood.

In Heavensward they were able to keep up with BLM and MNK despite rDPS not even existing, everything back then was basically just aDPS but with single target padding getting added to your dps as well.
The same goes for Stormblood where Bard and Machinist could still keep up with some of the top dps jobs, just not quite as well since Samurai and Black Mage were completely busted, and Machinist had one of the most convoluted and punishing rotations ever.

[MichiKyou]

In Heavensward they were able to keep up with BLM and MNK despite rDPS not even existing, everything back then was basically just aDPS but with single target padding getting added to your dps as well.
The same goes for Stormblood where Bard and Machinist could still keep up with some of the top dps jobs, just not quite as well since Samurai and Black Mage were completely busted, and Machinist had one of the most convoluted and punishing rotations ever.

Miss half a second off your cast of Drill/chain/saw?
Time to lose all your dps.

[Absurdity]

Miss half a second off your cast of Drill/chain/saw?
Time to lose all your dps.

I don't think current machinist is as easy as people claim either, atleast when you're trying to optimize it and not just press random buttons.

Your big hitters like Air Anchor, Chain Saw and Drill can easily start to drift when you mess up at specific points, but it still doesn't come close to the nonsense that was this

Where a single mistake or unfortunate phase change timings could cost you a ridiculous amount of dps.

[CKNovel]

I don't think current machinist is as easy as people claim either, atleast when you're trying to optimize it and not just press random buttons.

Your big hitters like Air Anchor, Chain Saw and Drill can easily start to drift when you mess up at specific points, but it still doesn't come close to the nonsense that was this
Where a single mistake or unfortunate phase change timings could cost you a ridiculous amount of dps.

MCH became incredibly rigid it's easily among the most rigid jobs as of now. Wildfire and Barrel Stabilizer are clogging the heat at the 2 minutes.
Flexibility allows skill expression and Rigidity just punishes you if you don't execute perfectly the rotation.

And MCH is designed with 2 gauges and short CD with a sustained DPS.
Everytime there's a downtime higher than 20s, you lose a drill, 20-30 battery and 30-40 heat while Air Anchor, Chain saw and Wildfire benefits from it.
Jobs like Dancer doesn't suffer from job gauge at all, in fact they most likely benefits from downtime. And jobs like Dancer are extremely flexible.