DT Benchmark Action Analysis

[GTK0HLK]

Dk if it was mentioned.

The "Wind" Green Bard Aoe kinda reminded me of Oschon.

And then I began thinking, what do we have. That rain from the sky.

Ah that's right, The Bards Blood Series of Skills.
Bloodletter, and The other one I forgot its nane.(dk why for a sec I thought whetting.)

<Checks Actions>

Rain of Death

So unless someone's already mentioned it.
Maybe they are finally upgrading?
That series of Bard Skills.

[Arkdra]

Excuse me but they've drawn in players that liked the original iteration. Wow let's hope they don't do the same type of rework to your favorite job.

If they cocked up my current main job, I would pick one of the 3 other jobs I like about as much and play that instead and be more mad about probably having to farm up a bunch of different glam items than I am about the actual job change. I'd probably spend a patch cycle complaining bitterly on the forums but if they didn't revert it by around then, the writing is obviously on the wall.

Edit: Or alternatively, I'd learn Japanese so I can complain somewhere someone might actually read it! Because if that 300 page dark knight thread that's sat around since shb didn't move the needle then nothing on this forum will.

[Zaytex]

As for the healers:

Best case scenario: AST/WHM get an animation update to their medica 2/aspected helios and this isn't an upgrade to a medica 3/aspect hel 2, which is plausible as this expansion is focusing on updating the graphics. Asp.Helios is fine, but medica 2 is pretty outdated atm. Sage gets a completely new dps button that's essentially like phlegma. Scholar gets a dot with maybe some chain strategem debuff.

Worst case, and what most likely will happen: AST/WHM get a medica 3 + aspected helios 2, Sage's new ''dps button'' is just toxikon upgrade, Scholar will just get an aoe strategem equivalent that will be useless outside dungeon trash mobs.

Considering how SE and the developers have been very ignorant and stubborn towards healer design, stripping away more and more of their dps buttons and complexity over the years, I'd be shocked if these new skills are the best case scenario, and not what is probably going to happen. The healer role desperately needs more complexity and dps buttons for them to use as no matter how pretty you make a gcd heal look, good healers will make it their mission to never use them.

And obviously, healers have bloated kits at the moment, I don't understand how adding a medica 3 / aspected helios 2 gcd heal button is even required lol

[Lieri]

They all contain e.x.p.l.o.s.i.o.n

[EusisLandale]

It starts with both hands in the air, just like both previous Toxikons, though you can only just barely see the left hand's fingers pop up over the Lala's hair. It does not start with one hand like E. Diagnosis. The only new addition to the animation is the ground pound at the end, similar to but less exaggerated than Kerachole.
The first Toxikon is an orbital attack, the second is a slightly explosive cross blast from above. Upgrading to an attack that takes the orbital motion and the high point above that now draws an elaborate magic circle that then explodes isn't all that outrageous.

Just adding to my previous observation, we can see that same Lala Sage popping Phlegma III, just before whatever the Gunbreaker and Dragoon are doing, and firing Dosis III while the Dragoon is doing its thing. They move immediately from the Dosis III animation into the new attack, so unless they're just firing things off in ways that can't work in game that skill is not something tied to Eukrasia at all, as that ability is never used, which further helps to assume it is Toxikon III.

[Supersnow845]

Just adding to my previous observation, we can see that same Lala Sage popping Phlegma III, just before whatever the Gunbreaker and Dragoon are doing, and firing Dosis III while the Dragoon is doing its thing. They move immediately from the Dosis III animation into the new attack, so unless they're just firing things off in ways that can't work in game that skill is not something tied to Eukrasia at all, as that ability is never used, which further helps to assume it is Toxikon III.

Just a note the benchmark doesn’t have to make any of the actions make sense in the context of the game

[EusisLandale]

Just a note the benchmark doesn’t have to make any of the actions make sense in the context of the game

I addressed that.

so unless they're just firing things off in ways that can't work in game

[Turtledeluxe]

I think with the change to DRG MNK and SCH now share the crown for most dated average animation

I mean have you seen whispering dawn, probably not because the VFX of that attack is damn near non existent

Whispering Dawn is dated though. You unlock it at 20. I'm just saying some jobs got shown off way more here than others. I watched it again in higher fidelity and the BLM one isn't quite as bad as i thought...I guess it's just not what I was expecting and I found many of the other animations far more effective in delivering that "devastating blow" effect, especially DRG, which you mentioned. The Nidhogg Thrust isn't appropriate and cool enough?

The lighting AOE is also super short and the sound effect sounds very "stock lighting sound". Like is Foul our new barometer for how long the visual effect will last? Pretty flashes that you can blink and miss? BLM is supposed to be an explosive and flashy spellcaster...maybe I'm just not the target audience and/or the trailer isn't showing it off well idk.

[Daralii]

Dk if it was mentioned.

The "Wind" Green Bard Aoe kinda reminded me of Oschon.

And then I began thinking, what do we have. That rain from the sky.

Ah that's right, The Bards Blood Series of Skills.
Bloodletter, and The other one I forgot its nane.(dk why for a sec I thought whetting.)

<Checks Actions>

Rain of Death

So unless someone's already mentioned it.
Maybe they are finally upgrading?
That series of Bard Skills.

Rain of Death still looks alright for how old it is, but Bloodletter is just Heavy Shot/Straight Shot with some red light on the arrowhead. It getting an upgrade would be very welcome.

[ty_taurus]

Given how much more prominent upgraded actions are seemingly becoming, (something we already started seeing these last couple expansions outside of just the obligatory healer basic attack spell upgrade every expansion), I think it's time we start talking about have the ability to "glamour" your actions. By "glamour" I mean choose between which animation of an action you would like to use. If this new Sage attack is Toxikon III, for example, being able to choose between the icon and animation of Toxikon, Toxikon II, or Toxikon III while retaining whatever changes come from the upgraded action at level 92.

There are already several actions that players have not liked the upgraded animation to. White mage players wanting to keep Stone IV and Aero II, Machinist players not liking how acrobatic the 1-2-3 combo became, or even things like players finding the sound effects of Broil IV to be really unpleasant to the ear (a problem especially frustrating given how Broil IV is cast more often than every other action on Scholar's hotbar combined). With so many actions with multiple tiers of animation, and seemingly even more on the way, giving players the choice between them is something that could be done with very little effort and would be a good quality of life change for a lot of people. And the system also would allow the designers to explore the idea of adding animations that don't already exist to be used as a form of customization, even if that's something that would end up on the cash shop. Like in Bozja, there's an NPC named Atori who is a dragoon mechanically, but because she's from Doma and not Ishgard, she has completely original ability effects that replace animations referencing dragons or Nidhogg specifically with cherry blossoms. I am sure there are plenty of dragoon players who would love something like that.