Thread: Please reconsider 7.0 BLM changes

It actually feels bad seeing posts like that upvoted. Though it is kind of funny too - A big excuse for the rampant homogenization from SE is "reducing friction" between players, but here's the end result, people cheering for the last few jobs people actually enjoy to be destroyed too.

You have fun playing your job? Fuck you, fall in line.

Originally Posted by ThorneDynasty

A big excuse for the rampant homogenization from SE is "reducing friction" between players, but here's the end result

It feels like SE have got to a point where the only tool they have is a hammer and the remaing unique elements of gameplay increasingly look like nails. To a large extent, friction is GOOD! It keeps the game interesting, it means that you have to meaningfully engage with what the encounter and your job are asking of you. It is ok for some jobs to be harder than others, or perform better or worse in specific areas of play. It seems like there is a growing portion of the playerbase that is unable to accept that something is not to their preference, and being ok with that!

Though I really love the aesthetic and the lore of the job, I don't like how Dark Knight plays a lot of the time, so I simply don't play it. I don't expect the job to be completely changed to cater to me, because a lot of people like it as it is and it would be totally unreasonable. If I want to tank, I just play one of the jobs that I do like?

Or it comes across that job design wasn’t the major focus in 7.0 where they’ve confirmed changes to fight design, confirmed massive graphics overall, announced a lot of new content, and already confirmed they are working on mass job overhauls to showcase individuality and reintroduce complicated play in 8.0 (said through multiple interviews) and rather than celebrating though it is kinda funny to finally see something anything happen to the precious baby black mage.

I’m more cackling at the grossly inept over reaction to a 22 second trailer clip? And 2 lines of text… without seeing a single tool tip, without touching it at all? To understand what’s feasible and what’s not.

Do have any idea of how many times the job changes live letter have wound people in this game only for their baseless fears to be disproven through media tour info or through actual gameplay.

Sch’s were horrified and furious over EW changes, they’re the best healer in the game.

And you want us to worry about one of the most popular jobs in the game. Who’s never been nerfed, never been treated badly at all, been the pinnacle of “stay the course” for ten years. The job that has never had a bad iteration. The producer’s main job. Off of your baseless speculation of a once again 20 second heavily edited trailer clip, and two lines of vague text.

So forgive us our snarky comments. I watched this dev team destroy everything i love about mch, destroy summoner, destroy dark knight, destroy ast. You doomposting about black mage.. is just hilarious to me.

Originally Posted by Darkpaw

Sch’s were horrified and furious over EW changes, they’re the best healer in the game.

Absolute hogswash. it was viewed as a visually underwhelming button (especially when sandwiched between verfinisher and shadowbringer and contrasted with the flashier ast/sage pewpewlasers/primal rend) with possible niche use until it was shown to be a full 20s sprint and mit in the media tour.

Originally Posted by fulminating

Absolute hogswash. it was viewed as a visually underwhelming button (especially when sandwiched between verfinisher and shadowbringer and contrasted with the flashier ast/sage pewpewlasers/primal rend) with possible niche use until it was shown to be a full 20s sprint and mit in the media tour.

To my recollection, SCH mains were, in fact, livid about SCH changes. Ironic that aoe sprint for 20s was so overpowered it had to be nerfed. Really underscores one of the biggest problems of EW fight design. If sprint makes the fight substantially easier, then you're making movement a core mechanic of difficulty, and classes that don't like or have trouble moving are at a severe disadvantage. Partially underscores why BLM specifically really needed to be updated, and also why RDM has been in the bottom 5 for least played jobs.

Originally Posted by Taranok

To my recollection, SCH mains were, in fact, livid about SCH changes. Ironic that aoe sprint for 20s was so overpowered it had to be nerfed. Really underscores one of the biggest problems of EW fight design. If sprint makes the fight substantially easier, then you're making movement a core mechanic of difficulty, and classes that don't like or have trouble moving are at a severe disadvantage. Partially underscores why BLM specifically really needed to be updated, and also why RDM has been in the bottom 5 for least played jobs.

You say this, yet non-standard BLM is kinda what you're asking for. The entire thing that makes non-standard BLM so appealing to us is the fact that with considerate and resourceful play, you can make the job not just work but excel in the situations you have described. Standard BLM is still completely sufficient in these situations (an average BLM who drops uptime several times in a fight to resolve mechanics will often perform comparably if not better than a SMN or RDM of similar skill), but non-standard allows players who want to squeeze more out of the job the opportunity to do so *if* they wish, and with considerable effort and planning on their part.

At the end of day, you seem to be decrying "homogenisation" of other jobs in the game, yet are adamantly against a playstyle of a job that has emerged in recent years without breaking game balance? Apologies, but your position is just not adding up to me.

Originally Posted by Darkpaw

Or it comes across that job design wasn’t the major focus in 7.0 where they’ve confirmed changes to fight design, confirmed massive graphics overall, announced a lot of new content, and already confirmed they are working on mass job overhauls to showcase individuality and reintroduce complicated play in 8.0 (said through multiple interviews) and rather than celebrating though it is kinda funny to finally see something anything happen to the precious baby black mage.

I’m more cackling at the grossly inept over reaction to a 22 second trailer clip? And 2 lines of text… without seeing a single tool tip, without touching it at all? To understand what’s feasible and what’s not.

Do have any idea of how many times the job changes live letter have wound people in this game only for their baseless fears to be disproven through media tour info or through actual gameplay.

Sch’s were horrified and furious over EW changes, they’re the best healer in the game.

And you want us to worry about one of the most popular jobs in the game. Who’s never been nerfed, never been treated badly at all, been the pinnacle of “stay the course” for ten years. The job that has never had a bad iteration. The producer’s main job. Off of your baseless speculation of a once again 20 second heavily edited trailer clip, and two lines of vague text.

So forgive us our snarky comments. I watched this dev team destroy everything i love about mch, destroy summoner, destroy dark knight, destroy ast. You doomposting about black mage.. is just hilarious to me.

I'm sorry but "wait 2 years for the gameplay to improve" is an objectively awful approach to a game we pay for monthly. Many of the concerns about the direction of job design and the trend towards homogenisation have been raised as far back as the overhaul coming into Shadowbringers. It is dishonest to suggest that SE would be unaware of this feedback for the last 4 years, and if it somehow conspires that they are (see MCH ping issues being brought up), then it reflects on their ability to look at *global* feedback very poorly.

I hope that you are also aware that the job design team has little to no connection or impact on the graphics and technical teams handling the visual update?

And finally, I prefaced much of my original post with "based on speculation"? If any of what I have said turns out not to be true, then there is no harm done. If it is however, then it (hopefully) raises the feedback as soon as possible, to give the development team as much time as possible to review it.

Said in another post I prefer the standard rotation, and had planned to delve into non standard when I got more time. Overall I don't care if nonstandard stays or goes, but I do want standard to be able to handle mechanics in fights such as TOP.

The idea that the tippy top of peak performance on BLM would need a tick timer 3rd party is just plain bad to me. I don't like that at all, I get that not every non standard line needed the timer but that it's needed at all is terrible. Same for how it was with MNK wanting a timer for anatman opener, they swiftly removed that. This should have been altered sooner. I do sympathise with those who enjoy the playstyle and again, not super fussed if it stays or goes. I was glad ley lines hasn't just turned into a buff like some others were wishing for. Ley Lines are too iconic to go away I think.

I understand your point about MP tick tracking, which is an unfortunate situation and I do think it should be rectified. It is still totally possible to play without it, and many do, but I am sure SE are unhappy that people turn to 3rd party tools for it.

Which is why I think the best situation is for all spells to regenerate MP at a roughly equivalent rate to what we have now (2 GCDs at low spell speed should be enough to completely refill MP or at least come very close). This way, it's very transparent to the player how much MP they will recover and when, preserves non-standard play, and curbs the unfortunately most degenerate side of high level optimisation (tick tracking, syncing pull timers with ticks etc).

Originally Posted by fulminating

Absolute hogswash. it was viewed as a visually underwhelming button (especially when sandwiched between verfinisher and shadowbringer and contrasted with the flashier ast/sage pewpewlasers/primal rend) with possible niche use until it was shown to be a full 20s sprint and mit in the media tour.

Let’s be honest I never had a fight in endwalker that would change massively with a 20 second sprint when u already have 1 every 60 seconds for every major mechanic. No clue why they thought nerfing that to 10 was needed. Atleast let the clunky shield healer have some fun stuff for how much you get cooked when fairy the platypus does ghost when you need that seraph shield or hot.