Is PLD actually weaker than before?

[Absurdity]

Looks like someone glanced at PLD skills and just threw something barebones together to come up with that. You can get 2 DM holy spirits into the FoF window after the opener if you set up properly and you can start FoF a GCD earlier than that opener since royal and atonement have the same potency.

If you just start the rotation and use whatever is available you could be missing out on almost an entire atonement’s worth of potency in your FoF window every rotation.

The first thing it tells you is to use DM Holy Spirit before your next Royal Authority, they basically just expect you to think for yourself and figure out that you can go into FoF with Holy Spirit and your combo on Royal, do your Confiteor combo and have 3 GCDs left to do HS -> RA -> HS under FoF.

As for why you use FoF after Royal Authority should be pretty obvious, to catch raid buffs. Battle Litany, Battle Voice, Embolden, Chain Stratagem, Divination and I believe Technical Step don't go out until after the 3rd GCD.