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  1. #1

    White mage merits progression?

    Hi I am a newly leveled 75 whm now :3 My other jobs are BLU and RDM at 75, with hardly any merits, but I want to commit most of my meritting to WHM.

    So far, from what I see, that Devotion looks hot as in terms of usability, so when I had my 30k of merit points, I commited it to Devotion first.

    My question, what progression of merits, besides those that take away from other jobs such as MP, HP, combat, magic, etc, what would be the best progression?

    As taru, I want to commit more to HP so that is my goal to be helpful with Devotion and like it. However, I also like balancing out my character...

    Personally, I also see Protectra 5 is somewhat laughable, but unless it is useful (maybe more def+ with higher merits?) then I could consider it

  2. #2

    Cap Cure cast time reduction.
    Cap Shell V
    Cap Barspells

    Take your pick of everything else, after those 3 it doesn't make much difference.

  3. #3
    Melee Summoner
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    Quote Originally Posted by Obev
    Cap Cure cast time reduction.
    Cap Shell V
    Cap Barspells

    Take your pick of everything else, after those 3 it doesn't make much difference.
    He is smart I would highly agree.

  4. #4
    Relic Shield
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    regen 5
    cure cast 5
    devotion 3
    prot5 1
    shell5 2

  5. #5

    Quote Originally Posted by Mifaco
    regen 5
    cure cast 5
    devotion 3
    prot5 1
    shell5 2
    I ditched Prot5 (lol def) for martr

    Why? Because its a cure spell that will not draw magic agro.

  6. #6
    Ridill
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    I've been thinking about merits for Atum, and I am torn between Cure cast time, Regen potency, and Barspell potency.

    But I think I need to merit MP first since he is a Galka. Actually, I want to merit one Devotion first so I can make people explode from MP.

  7. #7

    Quote Originally Posted by Septimus
    I've been thinking about merits for Atum, and I am torn between Cure cast time, Regen potency, and Barspell potency.

    But I think I need to merit MP first since he is a Galka. Actually, I want to merit one Devotion first so I can make people explode from MP.
    I did Curecast/Barspells just because everyone did regen. I can always have someone else cast regen.

    Cure cast time cap + clogs makes whm Cure V on par with a rdm cure IV

  8. #8
    Sea Torques
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    ive gone through different thoughts on whm merits

    im not capped on whm merits for that reason... however the obvious merits are:

    cure cast time max'd + devotion max'd

    the rest is your play style... if you're the main whm in tank pt's in HNM fights all the time, you might wanna consider capping bar/shell 5

    if you xp most on whm, perhaps regen 3 is better for you, coupled with cleric's briault its fantastic

    +5 defence on protect 5 might be worth something to the blue mage in your linkshell for cannonball (not sure how much more damage that would increase, but they seem to like defence)

    i first laughed at martyr, but considering getting it cause who wouldnt want a free basic cure5 ?

    im gonna go with this setup myself
    5/5 cure cast time
    3/5 bar spell (have cleric's pantaloons)
    2/5 regen (have cleric's briault)

    3/3 devotion (*this is an amazing JA - cap this if not only for peoples reaction when they receive free mp out no where ;D *)
    1 in shell5 / protect 5 / martyr

    for me that gives me enough flexibility to do all types of events on my whm while still providing more benefits than the average whm with the same skill level as me

  9. #9

    I haven't bothered with Regen Merits.

    I know many other WHMs who swear by them. I'll admit: another 5 HP per tick is awesome. However, I've noticed that the back up healer in my party, 8 times out of 10, always caps off the hit points after I've cast Regen. It kind of irks me, but it's their MP, not mine. So my Regen has gone to waste.

    However, Bar-spells rule. In Dynamis, when the NIN mobs Mijin Gakure, my party usually remains relatively unhurt while other parties come close to wiping out. Why? Because my enhancing is capped. I can't wait to see what the Bar-spell merits do.

    However, while either one of these two are very debateable, Cure Casting Timer merits are a lock. Don't even debate that. Just get it.

    Otherwise, I have Devotion (1), but am torn on my other 5 tier 2 merits. I'll probably do Martyr (1), Protectra V (1) and Shellra V (3).

    As for other merits, the skills are not necessary, save those for RDM or BLM stuff. Same with abilities. I'm not a Taru, so I'm putting all 8 into MP rather than HP.

  10. #10
    New Merits
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    Put your first 3 merit points into unlocking Devotion. It's an extremely nice ability to have, even with the 20 minute recast timer.

    Merit Cure cast speed next. You'll notice a huge difference if you get this capped and use Cure Clogs. Faster cures = fewer dead tanks.

    After that, what you merit should depend on what you're planning on doing with your WHM in endgame. If you're in an LS that fights a lot of Wyrms, Cerberus, and the like, I'd go with max Shellra V followed by max Bar-spell potency. If you plan on using WHM more for merit parties, you'll probably get more out of Regen merits.

    Once you're finished with those, you can decide how you'd like to spend the rest of your category II job merits. Some WHM's like to at least unlock Protectra V because they think it makes them look less gimp and they don't like their Prot IV being overwritten by another WHM who has Prot V, although most agree that an extra 2 defense does next to nothing in practice. Martyr isn't as useful as Devotion but it might be worth unlocking for those emergency situations when you're out of mp. Putting more merits into Devotion recast timer is always a good option too.

  11. #11

    History on my current state, I have no fantastic gear for WHM, so no Cleric this or that. Plus I am in no HNM at the moment. I'd like to really get BLU gear in the future, but personally dislike camping ground kings that are extremely competitve (ie. Dragon's Aery), so when I rejoin HNM, I'd probably like to go for an LS that likes to try Sky/Sea/TAoU.

    So in general, it looks like I might go:

    Devotion (1) I have now
    Cure (1)
    Bar (1)
    Shellra (1)
    Shellra (2)
    Cure (2)
    Devotion (2)
    then maybe Martyr (1) and work on capping Cure, Bar, Regen and Shell and whatever spells for now

  12. #12
    Ridill
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    Honestly, I am not sure what I am going to do endgame-wise with Atum's WHM. I was thinking 5 Cure potency, 5 Regen, 3 Devotion, 3 Shell V.

    But since he is only level 64 I am probably over-thinking all of this...

    EDIT- And by "Cure potency", I mean "Cure cast time"... >_> Not proofreading is the devil.

  13. #13
    Sandworm Swallows
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    Quote Originally Posted by Septimus
    Honestly, I am not sure what I am going to do endgame-wise with Atum's WHM. I was thinking 5 Cure potency, 5 Regen, 3 Devotion, 3 Shell V.

    But since he is only level 64 I am probably over-thinking all of this...
    I would do this same thing if I ever decide to finish WHM.

  14. #14
    Sea Torques
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    My merit progression has been a split between shellra V and Devotion and now I am working on barspells

    Shellra V 3/3
    Devotion 3/3
    Barspells 8/8 (is that max? I am not there yet)

    Not sure what I will do the other two 1st tier merits, working on barspells atm.

    I am not a fan of regen merits over damage reduction of barspells, but the other WHM's in LS almost all have max regen and love it, so we split tasks.. they take regens I take haste. :D

    I rarely have a "in the middle of curing tank dies stuff" they usually die as I am getting up from /heal or just plain get one shotted so I am trying for the most magic def I can bring.

    I have AFv2 Pants + blessed briault + Tunic.. and sure I would be happy to get AFv2 Body, I would really like AFv2 head for the MP, -enimity and lolMND.

  15. #15
    Salvage Bans
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fng
    My merit progression has been a split between shellra V and Devotion and now I am working on barspells

    Shellra V 3/3
    Devotion 3/3
    Barspells 8/8 (is that max? I am not there yet)

    Not sure what I will do the other two 1st tier merits, working on barspells atm.

    I am not a fan of regen merits over damage reduction of barspells, but the other WHM's in LS almost all have max regen and love it, so we split tasks.. they take regens I take haste. :D

    I rarely have a "in the middle of curing tank dies stuff" they usually die as I am getting up from /heal or just plain get one shotted so I am trying for the most magic def I can bring.

    I have AFv2 Pants + blessed briault + Tunic.. and sure I would be happy to get AFv2 Body, I would really like AFv2 head for the MP, -enimity and lolMND.
    5 is max for barspells..
    And barspells do not = damage reduction...
    Barspells do inrease resist rate , which results in reduced damage there is a difference.
    Shell on the other hand directly reduces damage..no matter what its 100% of the time

  16. #16
    Sea Torques
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    i believe bar spells also add Magic Defence Bonus for magics of that element type (its in the description of what the merit increase does)

    Bar Spell +2 potency and +2 Magic Defense Bonus per WHM Merit Points upgrade
    as for head piece.. i never used my af2 hat.. imo walahra is better for the +30 hp and haste..

  17. #17

    Quote Originally Posted by Fng
    I would really like AFv2 head for the MP, -enimity and lolMND.
    #1; AF2 head doesn't give any MND.

    #2; Crow Beret gives more -enmity.

    #3; A gimp level 50 Gold Hairpin gives more MP.

    #4; MND isn't "lol". Y halo thar Cure V.

  18. #18
    Banned.

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    Quote Originally Posted by safer
    im gonna go with this setup myself
    5/5 cure cast time
    3/5 bar spell
    2/5 regen
    3/3 devotion (*this is an amazing JA - cap this if not only for peoples reaction when they receive free mp out no where ;D *)
    1 in shell5 / protect 5 / martyr

    for me that gives me enough flexibility to do all types of events on my whm while still providing more benefits than the average whm with the same skill level as me
    Yep i like this one, still dont know if i will merit P5 and Martyr.

    And i agree with some of the posters about backup healers curing over regen. But still, a couple ticks more of HP is nothing to lulz about.

  19. #19
    Sea Torques
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    Quote Originally Posted by Obev
    Quote Originally Posted by Fng
    I would really like AFv2 head for the MP, -enimity and lolMND.
    #1; AF2 head doesn't give any MND.

    #2; Crow Beret gives more -enmity.

    #3; A gimp level 50 Gold Hairpin gives more MP.

    #4; MND isn't "lol". Y halo thar Cure V.
    The combination of the 2 (enimity + MP) on AFv2 is more interesting to me then swapping the 2 around.. (I have A Head but dont see a reason to uncurse it either) I am a Taru.. my MP is fine....

    MND is LOL.. in comparison to the MP that could be there. Sure I could drive myself insane to swap out MP after using it, to full MND but for what another 50 on a cure V? (when everyone else is already over curing my tank.) I really don't think its worth the swap / inventory / aggrevation.

    Walmart Turbin is a thought. I am just not a fan of the way it looks. Chin straps for the short bus folks right?

  20. #20
    >The Implying
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    In my opinion, WHM Specific Merits should look something like this:

    5x Cure Cast time
    5x Barspell
    1x Martyr
    2x Shellra V
    2x Devotion

    And put the last upgrade into Shellra V or Devotion. This choice is largely a matter of preference, but if you ask me personally, I'd put it into Devotion. There are not a lot of situations where the extra 1 MDB would save someone's life, although I can think of plenty where having Martyr or the extra burst of MP from Devotion handy would.

    When it comes to Regen merits, you got two things going against it:
    1) The obvious co-healer situation, where your co-healer cures your tanks up wasting your Regen.
    2) The tank in question is a Paladin, where that damage would better be served having the Paladin put a big cure himself to generate hate.

    Overall, Regen is pretty much for an EXP situation, or for melees receiving spike damage or are already high on HP where you don't want to waste MP casting a Cure spell.

    Now for your other merits, I would say:

    - MP x8. You might disagree with me here because you're Tarutaru but hear me out. A WHM gets access to plenty of easy-to-get HP gear, like the Intensifying Cape or Walahra Turban (+30 HP and MP each). As a mage, your HP, no matter what race you are, is only ever a problem when you wear Convert HP to MP gear. You're better off avoiding dumb gear sets like Zenith and stocking up on Blessed stuff so you maintain a high HP value while still getting good MP increases through gear. Also, if you spend time in ToAU, meriting or what-have-you, Sanction Refresh will activate sooner because it activates according to your total MP value.

    - Stats. STR or MND. Depends how often you use BLU compared to your other two jobs. MND helps directly with Cure 5, Slow (II), Paralyze (II), Stoneskin, and Magic Hammer (BLU). But STR will give you higher physical spell numbers on BLU. Whichever you use more, basically.

    - Combat Skill Merits. Sword x8 for BLU mostly, RDM secondary. The rest in any thing else. Evasion x4 would probably be best, but don't expect anything groundbreaking.

    - Magic Skill Merits. The hardest choices you'll make considering your jobs. Enhancing, Enfeebling and Blue Magic skills are all good categories. I can't really offer much advice here, as I dunno your favorite of your three jobs, but you should merit the category which you use most often.

    - Others. Critical Hit Rate x4 for BLU.
    If you don't plan on leveling any tanking jobs, merit Enmity Decrease x4.
    If you do, merit Spell Interruption x4 (might be lol, but it works for me).

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