I think people are forgetting how active FFXI became as more spells and JAs and as faster TP acquisition was made available. On my DRK I was almost never sitting there watching my Elvaan swing his slow scythe because I had a multitude of JAs and spells (Stun, Aspir, Drain, Drain II, Absorbs, etc.) to consider as well. Auto-attacks do not mean an inactive battle system. Some of the more interesting parts of FFXI involved everyone being attentive and active in their respective roles to take down an incredibly difficult beast, if one person lagged behind or slacked off, the machine that was the party/alliance would fall.

Anyway, if built correctly, auto-attack does not mean boring and inactive.