Magic Damage Reduction for Black mage

[Tanish]

I've searched for an answer and can not seem to find one. I'm looking for equipment that can help a black mage survive say Citadel Buster during a Ultima fight. I can not find that many equipment items that black mage can wear for magic reduction. Any suggestions would be helpful.

[The Stig]

that MDB staff, Kebbie
A.body (+5 MDB) or Shadow Coat (-4% NQ)
Merman rings and earrings (HQ)
Gramary Cape (+2 MDB)
Mahant Sandals (+2 MDB)
Lieutanent's Sash/Resolute Belt (I think I spelt Lieutanent wrong)
Storm Turban (+2 MDB)
Merman's Bangles (-2%), I can't fi

You'll probably need to squeeze in HP as well, might make A.Body less likely an option. I forgot but doesn't a PLD hover at near 1000 damage with all the possible/best gear + Aegis? I'm not sure if BLM can achieve that and squeeze in more HP to match, just a thought.

Alternatively, full Goliard for +10 MDB

[Okan]

To be honest, your best bet is to store up HP gear and keep up Blink and Stoneskin. Still not guaranteed, but it'll drastically improve your odds. As a Tarutaru WHM, I try to avoid any item that converts HP to MP or removes HP and adds MP. Sometimes it's unavoidable, but I'd rather lose 100MP and gain 200HP for a heavy AoE boss fight then lose 300 HP from that point and be one shot every time he does and AoE.

[Cloudius]

help a black mage survive say Citadel Buster during a Ultima fight.

Run out of the room when the countdown starts, or at least make sure you can make it out before it goes off.

[The Stig]

My bad, I honestly forgot to work Stoneskin into consideration. That's a pretty big increase and will be slightly under the total amount of reduced damage taken from buster.

EDIT: Or as Cloudius suggested, run like hell lol

[Byrthnoth]

When looking to survive Citadel Buster, you have to balance HP gear against Damage Down. For instance, Resentment Cape (Magical Damage Taken -5%) is worse than Gigant Mantle until you have 1600HP. Hexerei (3%) is worse until you have 2.6k HP, etc. <,<

Toss on a capped Stoneskin, cure yourself up with max HP gear, toss Magic Damage Down gear in places where you can't find or don't have HP gear, and hope for the best.

Specifically--
Main: Kebbie
Sub: Axe Grip (HP+20)
Ammo: HP+10 Throwing item

Head: W-turban (HP+30)
Neck: Ritter Gorget (HP+25)
Ear1: Merman's Earring (assuming you can break 1250HP)
Ear2: Cassie Earring

Body: Not A.body
Hands: Oracle's? (HP+15)
Ring1: BQ Ring (HP+75)
Ring2: Bloodbead Ring (HP+50), alternatively Merman's

Back: Gigant Mantle (HP+80)
Waist: RSE belt if appropriate, otherwise Lieutenant's Sash works
Legs: Yigit Seraweels (HP+25)
Feet: Ataractic Solea (MDB+4, HP+22)


Or you could do what I do and just die and reraise because surviving it is too much of a pain in the ass. Seriously, carrying around a whole gearset for CB? Screw that! Generally by that point in the fight I'm glad for a hate reset anyway.

PS. Or you could stun it!

[Shirahime]

Sorcerer's Earring???

[Valyana]

nvm

[Seraph]

When looking to survive Citadel Buster, you have to balance HP gear against Damage Down. For instance, Resentment Cape (Magical Damage Taken -5%) is worse than Gigant Mantle until you have 1600HP.

Using easy math, assuming CB does an even 2000 damage unresisted (it's actually a little higher) that means a resentment cape will knock off ~100 damage from CB, assuming you wern't stupid and forgot to get signet before the fight.

How is taking ~100 damage off of the attack ever worse than gaining 80 more HP? The only way a Gigant Mantle would ever be better is if you have already gone past 45% magic damage reduced before you put the cape on...

[Valyana]

Well, BLM can't wear Resentment. Hexerei will knock off 60 damage.

[The Stig]

Sorcerer's Earring???

Red HP only I believe, but assuming max HP gear and stoneskin I don't think you'll be able to reduce Citadel Buster to under 400 damage? (Assuming 400-500 HP is red HP in max HP gear).

And that Hex. Cape, I forgot about that too -_-

[Shirahime]

Red HP only I believe, but assuming max HP gear and stoneskin I don't think you'll be able to reduce Citadel Buster to under 400 damage? (Assuming 400-500 HP is red HP in max HP gear).

And that Hex. Cape, I forgot about that too -_-

It functions like Uggalepih pendant no? Damage that would take you into the <= 25% threshold still gets cut by 30%? At least it seems like when I get hit with a strong AoE and am left standing when many others die. Perhaps it's just placebo.

[astura]

Actually its not that hard if you wanted to survive CB.
Shell 4 (21.9% round up to 22%)
HQ merman ears/rings -12%
herelexi cap -3%
Lieutenant's Sash -2%
SS gorget 380 hp SS
phalanx -18 dmg (@200 enhancing magic)

SS+phalanx=398 HP
shell+gear=-39% dmg damger
2000*0.39=780 reduced dmg
740+398= 1178 dmg reduction total
2000-1178=822 hp needed to live

at that point even a taru could live and easily get 822 hp.
with a base of 799 hp for taru blm/rdm you just need 24 more hp to live
easy to get 30 walahara turban
(mind you this doesnt include using other hp gear or MDB at this point)

[pchan]

A cheap way is to pile on mnd, if i'm not mistaken the damage from CB depends on mnd. Should be easy with errant crap and your SS gear.

[The Stig]

It functions like Uggalepih pendant no? Damage that would take you into the <= 25% threshold still gets cut by 30%? At least it seems like when I get hit with a strong AoE and am left standing when many others die. Perhaps it's just placebo.

Really? Wow I might have to reconsider some of these items

[Kaeko]

Sorc. Earring only works if you're already at latent HP prior to the attack. It doesn't work like Ugg. Pendant.

[clef]

As a taru BLM, with equipment, 4 HP merits, and Nero di Sippia +1, I was able to his 1399 HP and 850ish MP. Semi-affordable for BLM to obtain. I had the same idea the OP had with trying to survive CB. At that time the tanks said they noticed a hate reset or severe reduction if they survived CB, so I thought that would be awesome for a BLM to get reduced hate while keeping CB targeting off of tanks. However I'm still inconclusive about the hate reduction.

The only flaw with having more HP is that it has to be cured up. When CB started to countdown, I usually casted Thunder IV to grab hate and become the target, switched to CB suit, and cured myself as much as possible before the counter hit zero.

Equipment used:

Tutelary| Patriarch Protector's Shield | Empty | Phantom Tathlum (Didn't bother to get Fenrir's Stone)
Goliard Chapeau | Shield Pendant | Cassie Earring | Intruder Earring
Goliard Saio | Goliard Cuffs | Bomb Queen Ring | Merman's Ring
Gigant's Mantle | Steppe Sash | Goliard Trews | Goliard Clogs

The first two times I got hit I had Shell V (capped I believe), capped Stoneskin, Phalanx, and Dream Shroud:
http://i481.photobucket.com/albums/r...ererclef/1.jpg
http://i481.photobucket.com/albums/r...ererclef/2.jpg
Since I was still getting pounded in the second round, I can't be sure there was any sort of severe hate reduction.

Without Dream Shroud:
http://i481.photobucket.com/albums/r...ererclef/3.jpg

I forgot to cast Stoneskin and got cocky so I didn't cure myself to full (Had 1399 HP :\):
http://i481.photobucket.com/albums/r...ererclef/4.jpg

The only expensive parts about this setup would probably be the Cassie and Steppe Sash. But even then there are other alternatives that should meet your needs. The rest can easily be obtained cheaply or with a small group. I've only tried this once a long time ago, but since then Kebbie came out so that with a HP grip would go a long way too I suppose.

[Kaeko]

If you got a SCH, he can TP wing and use the Nyzul WS. It gives like -10 MAB to the mob too. (obviously not super useful but just saying)

[Weeks]

Or you could do what I do and just die and reraise because surviving it is too much of a pain in the ass. Seriously, carrying around a whole gearset for CB? Screw that! Generally by that point in the fight I'm glad for a hate reset anyway.

PS. Or you could stun it!

At that point in the fight, hate is reset constantly, and every death means at least five minutes totally out of commission. It's not worthwhile for most people, but if you're low-manning Ultima it's definitely going to be incredibly beneficial for everyone to be able to survive CB.

[Vail]

PS. Or you could stun it!

I've done it once, ever, so hard, I can stun Dissipation with no trouble, but buster requires spot on timing and luck (since latency isn't perfect)

clef's screenshots are pretty impressive, my rdm would take like 1200 damage(stoneskin/phalanx on) with 1300hp with some gear that I just had from other jobs so seeing but that's just from me stuning cure bombing people for hate, so I don't carry around a real MDB build when I'm not tanking stuff. but 759-850 from CB is impressive no matter how you cut it.