Area of Effect: Display Markers

[ShivenCasull]

I hate to jump to Valmonte's defense, especially given his post was entirely negative and not in the least constructive; but there is a bit of personal preference to be noted here. Pride is a strong motivator, and being able to just barely clip that group when a less experienced BLM could not have is extremely satisfying. On the other hand, having to just guess how wounded you are is purely frustrating.

A better comparison would be between this and the Enmity meter. Both are replacements for the player's judgment ability when accomplishing their job, while not strictly being associated with life or death. Personally, I prefer leaving it up to the player to learn by experience, rather than explicitly shown to them. On the other hand, as I have noted previously, I don't think having these helping hands is a game breaking utility.

This is getting a little into the darker side of MMO psychology, but the more attached to a character players are, the more likely they are to continue playing. Collecting valuable items is one part, but pride in skills learned is an equally strong component, and should not be so easily dismissed.

I agree to a point. We should avoid addons which tell you "when" to do something, that's pretty much telling you how to play.

Having a targeting assist for AOE spells opens up lots of other benefits, such as ground cast AOE (pre-casting an AOE to hit a moving target) or putting magic effects down (barriers, setting an area on fire etc.)

Edit: And fluff wise, wouldn't a mage capable of summoning giant fireballs be able to control how large of an effect he/she wants? :P