Letter from the Producer LIVE XXXVI Set for May 22!

[Alkar]

A better idea than taking a job, shitting on it and making it unwanted in raids? Yeah, how about buffing the other two? Seriously if these rumors are true (and I still doubt it) they may as well remove SCH from the game right now, there's no need for a watered down AST. AST was competitive enough but the issue was with WHM being subpar. They were already going to nerf SCH's DPS output, is it necessary to also remove the fairy abilities?
Heck if you wanna compete with the fairy spamming Embrace there are other ways for WHM/AST like Regens getting buffed, adding new skills that heal over time with particular mechanics, anything really. Take away the fairy and SCH has 4 healing spells with very little on top.

The report is that fairies are "losing abilities in favor of auras" that can optionally be focused. We know that Eos has a HoT aura and Selene has a Haste aura. Even if we suppose that said report is 100% accurate and EVERY fairy ability is gone, what if Eos has a +MDef aura to replace Fey Covenant, or a +healpot aura to replace Fey Illumination? What if Selene has a +CRT aura?

We simply cannot assess whether jobs have been buffed or nerfed without seeing their full toolkit, including potencies.

You don't really need a description to figure out that a perpetual aura effect will not be as strong as an ability with a set duration. If all this is true and they have multiple auras they really need to make them different, most of those wouldn't help much if "focused" on one single target. I still don't like the idea of dumbing down pets to movable turrets, there are other ways to get around Embrace.

[Spider-Dan]

Do you know if 4.x BRD songs are better or worse than 3.x BRD songs? If so, how?

It doesn't hurt to simply wait and see before we declare our outrage. All that we know right now is that it will be different.

[Alkar]

Do you know if 4.x BRD songs are better or worse than 3.x BRD songs? If so, how?

It doesn't hurt to simply wait and see before we declare our outrage. All that we know right now is that it will be different.

BRD songs in 4.0 and 3.0 are limited in duration or by MP. A skill that is only active for 30 seconds or until your MPs run out is logically supposed to be stronger than a skill with no cost that simply stays up all the time.
To make a SCH example: Whispering Dawn is a 21s duration regen on a 60s colldown. If this is turned into an aura it has to be much weaker than what it currently is especially because I'm assuming an aura wouldn't generate enmity on the fairy.
Also no, assuming these auras are true they don't cost fairy gauge unless focused on a party member (see trailer). I'm not really concerned about a nerf, I was expecting it. I'm concerned about the dumbing down of an interesting job because some people can't handle issuing pet commands. Removing the fairy from SCH would be similar to removing cards from AST. Would that still be fun? If AST now becomes the next SCH in Stormblood should we expect that to happen in 5.0?

[Spider-Dan]

At the risk of stating the obvious: if BRD songs are no longer tied to MP, what prevents you from reactivating the same song immediately after it falls off, thereby maintaining ~100% uptime? Or even a different song, while still maintaining 100% song uptime (when in 3.x you would need to wait for MP to recover)?

Additionally, I don't see how this is the "dumbing down" of SCH. Instead of the fairy being an auto-targeting heal turret, you now either get a (weak?) aura on everyone, or need to micromanage your heals by manually selecting an individual target. That's literally the opposite of dumbing down.

It is pointless to speculate about buffs/nerfs with so little information. Save your keystrokes.

[haroldsaxon]

AST does not need any more buffs and is a cancer to the game in its current form.

[Obsidian]

A better idea than taking a job, shitting on it and making it unwanted in raids? Yeah, how about buffing the other two?

SCH is so much better at everything that there's no reasonable way to buff the other two. It's like WAR and Storm's Path; it's just too good, something has to give.

[Hioki]

At the risk of stating the obvious: if BRD songs are no longer tied to MP, what prevents you from reactivating the same song immediately after it falls off, thereby maintaining ~100% uptime? Or even a different song, while still maintaining 100% song uptime (when in 3.x you would need to wait for MP to recover)

A cooldown or a proc. Maybe have some ramp up required in the song before you get the full effect.

[Alkar]

SCH is so much better at everything that there's no reasonable way to buff the other two. It's like WAR and Storm's Path; it's just too good, something has to give.

This is so not true. AST is better than SCH at shielding and buffing the party. The advantage of SCH is the DPS really, everything else has been taken over by AST already and made better.
Honestly the only reason SCH is even in the current endgame meta is due to WHM being so weak. If WHM had a stronger presence you'd see WHM+AST as the perfect combo in everything. The only way SCH has to compete over a Nocturnal AST is a crit proc on Adlo and obviously its DPS. Guess what happens if you take away that?
I'm sure AST will be nerfed as well in SB, there's no way to keep it as it currently is unless the others receive some serious buffs.

[Obsidian]

I don't play healers, all I know is there's no video of AST soloing EX primals, but there are plenty of SCH vids. It doesn't have to be outright better at shielding to be better than AST, it just has to be good enough when combined with the rest of its kit.

WHM is in the worst spot though, I agree. The specialized jobs all got the shaft in Heavensward (PLD, WHM, MNK).

[Spider-Dan]

I don't play healers, all I know is there's no video of AST soloing EX primals, but there are plenty of SCH vids.

This is as irrelevant as someone showing a 3.1 AST dominating in PvP and declaring that AST is already OP and needs no buffs.

Soloing, like PvP, tells you nothing of value about group raid play. Titan is never a factor in determining SMN's endgame value.

[Alisha]

This is so not true. AST is better than SCH at shielding and buffing the party. The advantage of SCH is the DPS really, everything else has been taken over by AST already and made better.
Honestly the only reason SCH is even in the current endgame meta is due to WHM being so weak. If WHM had a stronger presence you'd see WHM+AST as the perfect combo in everything. The only way SCH has to compete over a Nocturnal AST is a crit proc on Adlo and obviously its DPS. Guess what happens if you take away that?
I'm sure AST will be nerfed as well in SB, there's no way to keep it as it currently is unless the others receive some serious buffs.

love how Sch don't understand just how OP indom is. it's the reason whm/ast feels like aids.

[Alkar]

I don't play healers, all I know is there's no video of AST soloing EX primals, but there are plenty of SCH vids. It doesn't have to be outright better at shielding to be better than AST, it just has to be good enough when combined with the rest of its kit.

WHM is in the worst spot though, I agree. The specialized jobs all got the shaft in Heavensward (PLD, WHM, MNK).

You don't need to play healers really, just read up on AST's set of skills. There's no way either SCH or WHM can compete with that. AST is currently the best healer in the game but SCH offers more in a party than WHM can ever hope to.
It all comes down to DPS though, you're better off replacing WHM with AST and letting a SCH DPS as off healer than doing the opposite.

[Obsidian]

This is as irrelevant as someone showing a 3.1 AST dominating in PvP and declaring that AST is already OP and needs no buffs.

Soloing, like PvP, tells you nothing of value about group raid play. Titan is never a factor in determining SMN's endgame value.

I dunno, I think solos can help to show the strength of a job's entire toolkit relative to its peers.

But like I said, I don't play healers so I'm gonna stay out of it.

Edit: I also now realize my original comment was poorly phrased. By "better at everything" what I really wanted to say was that much like WAR, SCH just brings too much utility to the party to NOT bring them. It has shields, big heals, party buffs, and DPS.

[Silenka]

Whew, lotta assumptions flying around in here.

[Prothescar]

The Famitsu scans are out there somewhere and being translated, supposedly. Should give some clearer ideas on some things. Also read a little more about the SCH stuff (more grains of salt, etc), but it seems like, from this possibly false info, fairies are basically being turned into totems. That gauge on the bottom left of the screen in the SCH part of the video is the Fairy's hp. It uses its HP to channel its aura and tether, and when it hits 0 it desummons itself as if it were killed normally.

[Alkar]

The Famitsu scans are out there somewhere and being translated, supposedly. Should give some clearer ideas on some things. Also read a little more about the SCH stuff (more grains of salt, etc), but it seems like, from this possibly false info, fairies are basically being turned into totems. That gauge on the bottom left of the screen in the SCH part of the video is the Fairy's hp. It uses its HP to channel its aura and tether, and when it hits 0 it desummons itself as if it were killed normally.

Sounds like they figured out people didn't like Dissipation enough to use it so they decided to force it on everyone. Kinda realized that the gauge was her HP but it seemed to deplete only with the tether... guess the aura wasn't on if this turns out to be true?

[Prothescar]

There's new gauss barrel and minuet info but idk what I'm allowed to post since this is an "official" leak

[Spider-Dan]

Sounds like they figured out people didn't like Dissipation enough to use it so they decided to force it on everyone. Kinda realized that the gauge was her HP but it seemed to deplete only with the tether... guess the aura wasn't on if this turns out to be true?

I read that as the fairy "uses its HP to channel its aura and tether'; i.e. when the aura is not being channeled to one target, fairy HP does not reduce.

Like Miasma2, Surecast, and Bliz2, Dissipation is essentially a PvP skill and it worked perfectly fine for that. I doubt it is related to the current changes.

[Alisha]

There's new gauss barrel and minuet info but idk what I'm allowed to post since this is an "official" leak

If its from a famirsu article it should be fine since thats not from media tour streamers no?

[Qeomash]

Isn't the embargo up on Wednesday (31)? Or is it the first?