If green mage is the new caster job

[Mayhemmer]

I haven't really been brainstorming what the caster job could be, so I've decided to just wait it out and see, but I think an idea I spitballed in another thread for a potential healer could actually fit rather well for a potential version of Green Mage as a true support caster dps.

In this scenario, the concept would be having your 'Shell' ability be an instant-cast ability you can use on yourself, a party member, or an enemy, and would have maybe 2-3 charges.

• Placing it on yourself or party member would, for a brief duration, absorb a percentage of damage received (to a cap), as well as granting a small bit of mitigation or regen effect.

• Placing it on an enemy would, for a brief duration, absorb a percentage of damage that enemy receives (to a cap), as well as incurring a small amount of damage, and inflicting a DoT.

• Shell itself being on a recharge of 2-3 charges means it cannot be used constantly and must be distributed smartly, thus not overshadowing healers ability to dole out regens and shields at will, and to encourage alignment with bursts.

• Note that by "Absorb damage," I don't mean as a shield would (though the possibility of having that effect is always on the table when used on allies). The Shell would primarily work in a fashion to how MCH's Wildfire used to work, in that it "stored" a percentage of damage during it's duration

After the duration of Shell expires on the target, it "returns" to the Green Mage and grants a spendable resource. Some abilities may require this resource to use outright, while others may simply gain additional benefits from it. The gimmick is that the damage absorbed by a Shell would contribute to the potency of the ability that Shell is then spent on (to a cap).

These could be spent to "empower" any number of their abilities (including support spells), grant certain abilities different effects, and enable the use of more powerful spells through use of multiple stored stacks of resource. This, I think, would give the Green Mage a unique job identity among casters as a sort of "Hit me and see what happens" style job, while maintaining their old identity as a supportive role.

Overall the goal is twofold: Introduce a caster who's core mechanic both interacts meaningfully with the rest of their toolkit and at a more consistent pace than simply another job with another set of 30/60/90/120's buttons.

EDIT: Something else I hadn't even considered until afterwards, was the potential for 'chaining' Shells during bursts to maximize damage. If you had a burst window coming up, you would prep an empowered resource and 'Shell' a target during the burst. The empowered potency would further add to the second Shell's accumulated potency, and could be repeated for however many stocked charges of Shell you had for snowballing damage.

[Bonoki]

I'm struggling to see how the ninja turtles fit as a hint to green mage. I want an ffxiv green mage the same way I want an ffxiv geomancer job, but I'm just not seeing the connection.

Green Mage is Green. Turtles are Green.
I don't think there is much more to it than that.

[mallleable]

I hope the new caster is a shapeshifter, and 'green magic' has ties to blue magic. It can still reference green mages from previous games as a buffer/debuffer as well. The player can turn into an apex predator, and buff their allies with an invigorating roar or turn into a shelled creature, and provide defensive buffs. They could also turn into a venomous creature or a something with nasty claws, and apply poisons, and bleeds.

[Deslyxic]

There is a quest in the Four Lords story that's called "Tortoise in Time", obviously a play on "Turtles in Time" the TMNT arcade game, the quest is about getting a geomancy artifact to control time to age Soroban.
So the TMNT shirt could point to either Geomancer or Time mage as well, don't get too hang out on Green mage.

[SweetPete]

There is a quest in the Four Lords story that's called "Tortoise in Time", obviously a play on "Turtles in Time" the TMNT arcade game, the quest is about getting a geomancy artifact to control time to age Soroban.
So the TMNT shirt could point to either Geomancer or Time mage as well, don't get too hang out on Green mage.

Yeah I myself am hoping for Geomancer but again it can be anything at this point lol. Guess January 7th we will know! Fingers crossed for Geo though.

[george357]

just wait till the job goes live so you can play it and give proper feedback on it and not heresay.

[Mayhemmer]

just wait till the job goes live so you can play it and give proper feedback on it and not heresay.

Or people could just have fun discussing a thing. It's that easy.

[mallleable]

This is just pure fan fiction, but if 'green mage' has ties to blue mage then it would be fun if the antagonist for the green mage job quest were a disrespectful Eorzean Blue Mage, and the level 90 Masked Carnivale boss stage was an overzealous Green Mage.

[Raikai]

snip

Something like this is basically how I can envision 'Shell' being a GRM job staple mechanic: an oGCD barrier that fuels a resource to be spent on burst windows. Although I find the second option (of enemy application) unlikely, I can see it being used on any ally. There's enough scripted damage every 30s or so to make it work.

The only issue I see with this concept is the fact that, on the healer's side, healing checks (in favorable situations, eg group not messing up all the time) are already too easy to deal with... let alone with extra shields going on.

[Connor]

I still feel like whatever the new caster job it will have 0 thematic or conceptual ties to any classic ff job. I do think they’re doing to stick the ‘DoT fiend poisoner’ gameplay on it form Summoner though

Edit: it’s also worth mentioning that a buff/debuff oriented support caster isn’t really possible. Especially not one that can spend actual gcds on ally buffs. I’d absolutely love if it did exist, but it simply can’t because of balance. Bard and Dancer are the closest we’ll ever be allowed to get to a ‘support class’