Red Mage idea

[Duelle]

Hybrids should be able to fill a role in a party (as a dedicated healer or dedicated DD) if they're going to have a purpose. It's a matter of resource management on the developers part.

This isn't WoW, class stacking and the problems that arose from "hybrids vs pure" won't be drastic since everyone can switch jobs.

Well, it causes one problem to not surface but creates another: class stacking and jobism.

The trade-off in the quantitative gains from having a RDM in place of a DRG or MNK has to be minimal, because if it isn't and players can figure a way to reduce the job to cure/buff-bitch again, you can bet they'll do it.

The WoW hybrid vs pure thing was more ego-driven than anything else, because the rogues, warlocks, mages and hunters that were guaranteed DPS spots in raids suddenly found their curebitches (AKA the hybrids) could suddenly measure up and compete with them for those spots.

[Ashenspire]

The WoW hybrid vs pure thing was more ego-driven than anything else, because the rogues, warlocks, mages and hunters that were guaranteed DPS spots in raids suddenly found their curebitches (AKA the hybrids) could suddenly measure up and compete with them for those spots.

Rogues, Warlocks, Mages and Hunters could ONLY fill those roles, whereas Paladins, Druids, Warriors, Death Knights and Shamans could fill 2-3 depending on class. Anyone worth talking to never said they wanted to absolutely stomp hybrid classes on the DPS meters, but that in equal gear/skill levels, the pure DPS would come out on top. For awhile, that wasn't the case.

[Duelle]

Rogues, Warlocks, Mages and Hunters could ONLY fill those roles, whereas Paladins, Druids, Warriors, Death Knights and Shamans could fill 2-3 depending on class.

And the guys that wanted to play as those other roles were effectively screwed out of them. I was there, so I remember pre-WotLK class dynamics. If you were a Paladin you were always healing. If you were a warrior you were always tanking.

Anyone worth talking to never said they wanted to absolutely stomp hybrid classes on the DPS meters, but that in equal gear/skill levels, the pure DPS would come out on top. For awhile, that wasn't the case.

Believe it or not, I am fine with minor discrepancies. I liked the idea of the mythical 5% from WotLK, because it prevented raid leaders and the community as a whole from making stupid assumptions like "the pure should always get the DPS spot because that hybrid deals less DPS". That alone was enough to "fool" the masses, even if the number crunchers could find the difference in performance.

Either way, we're restricted by the armoury system, so I expect the job to be built around the weapon, with the skills and spells complimenting the fact RDM is a melee mage. That, however, doesn't mean we shouldn't be wary of ideas that give birth to idiocy from the community.