Should Dark Knight get a Rework?

[Renalt]

I feel bad for the PLD players after 6.3 drop.

I don't really keep track of patch notes. What happens to PLDs?

[OdinelStarrei]

I really like these too, both more so than using a lazy rook as a resting stance/point (resting the cross-guard on top curve of the pec / near shoulder) or resting the flat atop one's pauldron (especially since, unlike GNB blades, most greatswords are double-edged and therefore offer additional issues there... not that we're otherwise concerned about not wrecking our blades' edges).

(Granted, Balthier's stance looks a bit awkward from that angle, as he's sacrificing so much reach by tucking the left hand so near his lower right ribs and is keeping the point so skewed far right(?) instead of significantly crossing center [hard to tell, honestly, at that angle and in that flat lighting], but I'm assuming that's just a trick of the photo's timing?)

I guess I just feel like they're a bit less... edgy? They seem more Soldier/Templar/Ark Knight to me. (Admittedly, they overlap in the magically self-empowering, vaguely Jedi-like aspect, but... pretty opposite in vibe despite that.)

That said, I would love a Warden/Dervish/Watcher/Templar/(Witcher-like) Bastard sword class as a maiming dps -- ideally in such a way that it has multiple idle animations based on one's last action. (I know, I know; there are too many sword jobs as is for now, but... eventually.)

This is why you're always my favorite, Shurrikhan.

You can't see a lot of benefits to the way a DRK holds the exaggerated stance on the surface, but take a look at the animations for auto attacks and parries specifically, not the GCDs, and it's really evident there's a deliberate intention behind holding it that way. Really, the hugeness of the sword is the biggest conflict, but I wouldn't have my Beserk analogue if it was a more traditional weapon.
Aesthetic wise, I also like to mention how surprisingly consistent the rune-magic on DRK is. And not just for the runic language, the red sword lines or the theme of hexagons, but also how many spells and effects share a similar design language when summoned. I particularly point out similarities in the out-reaching thorns of Grit, Oblation, Dark Missionary and TBN on a level plane under the player pointing outwards, with Living Dead having two sets of thorns rotating around the player, something that doesn't happen on the other skills, with ground sigils from Salted Earth, Shadow Wall, and a more intense effect of OG Darkside. Even the light that appears when you grasp a Blood Weapon is similar to the lights that appear on the activation at the tip of the blade for Oblation and TBN. And even further, despite Dark Knight being a chaos themed job by nature, almost every one of the skills, whether on the sigil itself or the effect are perfectly symmetrical, and some cases, perfect spheres. Dark Force is the perfect capstone as an LB3, because you are creating complete, total order out of what is traditionally a "very unsettling" skill, per the Encyclopedia V1, and even has sigils that imply it's drawing from similar, aetheric roots as Ishgard's magic wards, or the Heavensward/clergy, altered in appearance, but noticeably, not corrupted. I guess Oblation's naming makes more sense from that angle. Take a look. I like little things like that, even if it's rambling headcanon, and dressing up asset reuse at best. Really reinforces the job identity and internal logic.

I don't really keep track of patch notes. What happens to PLDs?

Allow me.



When you combine this with the information and confirmation from recent live letters, it means PLD is primed for a 6.3 rework.

PLD needs to have it's skeleton broken to fit into the 2 minutes.
Based on current job design, and previous rework incidents on support roles in particular, that's probably not going to turn out too well for the PLDs already playing the game. We'll get more details soon, but a lot of PLD's I know are either living in fear or have already given up. Like, it hasn't worked out for almost anyone else, why would they be any different?

[Shurrikhan]

PLD needs to have it's skeleton broken to fit into the 2 minutes.
Based on current job design, and previous rework incidents on support roles in particular, that's probably not going to turn out too well for the PLDs already playing the game. We'll get more details soon, but a lot of PLD's I know are either living in fear or have already given up. Like, it hasn't worked out for almost anyone else, why would they be any different?

I realize that what we mean by "skeleton" boils down to semantics, but if meant here as sort of the fundamentals "bones" of the job --which I think we could agree are that it [A] roughly alternates between physical and magic damage-amped phases, [B] has physical combos (alternating 3-parters), [C] occasionally spams (final "combo" is Atonement spam, and pre-Conf has HS spam), [D] has a capitalizing burst attack (Conf), and [E] has a physical DoT (once 24s, now 21s, which would indicate a degree of flexibility in its identity)-- I'm not sure it'd require changing anything fundamental.

To fit the 2-minute meta without being overtuned elsewhere, PLD needs only condense its damage towards one side or the other of its burst, or the maximal damage that can be had in the bridge between either. For QoL, any revamp would also probably take the opportunity then to allow Paladin less perceived waste (aka "ugh") in dropping its rewards (e.g., a single Atonement or Holy Shock) that presently allow Paladin additional flexibility in its rotation.

Honestly, that seems like something manageable with relatively small changes that would likely even allow PLD to still be capable of its fine optimizations and flexibility (honestly kind of an 'EW special' anyways).

I'll try to theory-craft some less devastating solutions and will edit this after, but in the meantime, if anyone happens to have a summary of sync issues beyond what would be solved by merging SkS and SpS (most important for the HS spam) or mitigating the cost of stack or duration waste (allowing for faster Confs and less painful Atonement drops or wasted DoT duration), I would appreciate it.


:: Also, I love the close analysis on the DRK VFX there, Odinel!