Redmage specific merits

[Osede]

convert: too situational. if you kind of subbing drk and blm all the time then it is good to do. But like my rdm mule is rdm/whm 90% of time, convert merit then will messed with the seal timer.

my rdm is 5 ice/wind

g2
1 phalanx 2
2 slow2
3 para2

but, still need to remember to pump up your MND. some rdm claims slow2 suck because they use af2 body, elemental staff to cast it lol.. para2 is nice when the chat log keep showing the mobs got being paraed >.>

[Tulun]

Couple of questions, if anyone can answer definintively ^^

Dia 3: What is the DoT with 1/2/3 points?

Paralyze: What is the potency of this spell?

Slow: from what I read, initial bonus is 32% slow with 1, 34% with 2, 36% with 3?

[Isiolia]

Couple of questions, if anyone can answer definintively ^^

Dia 3: What is the DoT with 1/2/3 points?

http://www.bluegartr.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=18427

3HP/tick.

Paralyze: What is the potency of this spell?

Hard to quantify. More potent Paralyze = procs more. Paralyze II, however, tends to be just as random as Paralyze in terms of whether you get nothing, or get it procing a bunch in a row.

Slow: from what I read, initial bonus is 32% slow with 1, 34% with 2, 36% with 3?

Not exactly either, no. Slow is not a fixed effect. It depends on the amount of MND the caster has over the target.
What Slow II nets you is essentially a head start.

Testing here:
http://releenaseraph.livejournal.com/97427.html

You can see that at a 0 MND difference:
Slow: 12% Slow
Slow II lv 2: ~22%
Slow II lv 3: ~25%

Doesn't really show to be completely absolute in terms of X amount of Slow% more at any MND difference (for example, in the -MND test, Slow II lv2 has less of a lead than it does at 0 MND difference). However, what's clear is that Slow II is much better than Slow. It has far better performance from realistic numbers to see against endgame mobs than Slow does.

The 37% you give is more the highest Slow II Lv3 has been tested to go.
Carnage Elegy still wins at 52% with instrument if you stick it at all >_>

[Tulun]

From those values, it looks like Bio III is basically worthless, as Bio II is cheaper, lasts way longer, and requires no merits. And the /tick is basically the same? that's silly....

Dia III seems better, as it gives a -5% defence bonus, but Dia II is again no merits....

That's really good info. Seems like the big winners are Slow 2, with Paralyze and Phalanx mixed, if those values in that thread are accurate.

[Nagamaki]

Dia III at any level is pretty short and obviously not a strong DoT, but the extra 5% defense reduction is very significant for bursts of physical damage (WS/SC for weaker mobs, or for HF/RNG going all out kill rush).

Of course other RDM group 2 are also great so you have to make sacrifices, but I would definitely invest in lv1 Dia III if I levelled RDM. Beyond level 1 is fairly pointless though.

[Wizerd]

Couple of questions, if anyone can answer definintively ^^

Dia 3: What is the DoT with 1/2/3 points?

Paralyze: What is the potency of this spell?

Slow: from what I read, initial bonus is 32% slow with 1, 34% with 2, 36% with 3?

Paralyze II owns. =X

[Amastacia]

convert: too situational. if you kind of subbing drk and blm all the time then it is good to do. But like my rdm mule is rdm/whm 90% of time, convert merit then will messed with the seal timer.

Since when was it a requirement to stack DSeal with Convert? Convenient, definitely, but there are plenty of times it's better to use DSeal for other things.

[Vyloan]

Personally I went 1 Dia III, 3 Slow II, and 2 Phalanx II.

Group 1 merits were 5 vert, 3 wind, 2 ice.

[rrynn]

personally i did:
4 convert merits - bc i'm a merit whore and i like to solo, basically. my convert merits wind up being useful for me endgame wise (like getting through a dynamis never having to rest unless i'm weakened) but i merited it for my soloing and to have less moments in merit parties where i'm out of mp but convert is only *almost* up.
3 wind - because silence not sticking just pisses me off, and grav not sticking tends to get me dead when soloing.
2 ice - para is one of my favorite spells in the game, saved me so many times soloing as a lowbie ("the mob is paralyzed" when i had like 8hp left on several ocations) and bind has an annoyingly long recast if it doesnt stick. i am contemplating dropping 1 wind for 1 more ice, but not sure atm.
1 lightning - which i really shoult take out. did this when farming marid hairs was my main source of income, to lessen resists on the stupid grand marid with thunder III.

category 2:
1 phalanx II - for salvage. i dont use it otherwise except for very few situations duoing. if i was a tank party rdm often i would get more use out of this i guess.
3 paralyze II - 1 lv was a bit meh, stuck a bit better then para I, but not as good as ice spikes. 2 lvs was as good of a para as ice spikes, but still a bit meh. 3 levels and i can cast para II in pure mind gear, no feeb gear what so ever except my elite beret (and that only bc i dont have a good mnd hat rly) and my aquilos staff, and it sticks, and it procs very very often. even in situations where i have to put some skill gear back on it works well for me - i've had proto ultima para locked for up to 8 attack rounds in a row. BUT, if you arent going to max,or at least get 2 lvs, of para II i dont think it's worthwile.
2 slow II - this is very useful, and very noticable in the mob's attack speed. i've pulled a few solos off with it that i couldnt manage before (or at least not easily) because often lets me tank ichi > ichi so i can save ni for emergencies.

[Cauac]

People tend to overlook the increase in accuracy with the ugrades in slow/para.
I had a noticable increase when i upgraded slow to lvl 3. I now cast reliably in MND gears for max potency (122 MND), and only switch to enf skill if its on severely resistant hNM's.

Imho, if you're not doing para lvl 3 its basically not worth to upgrade it. I upgraded to lvl 2 but was resisted so often that i've since dropped them and gotten phalanx to lvl 2.

Phalanx lvl 2 duration is great, because you can add it into your refresh cycle, and with enhancing at 301 it gives a -20 dmg reduction.

I dropped 1 into diaIII for solo melee stuff & merit parties, which is sufficient to get the job done.

TierI i did convert lvl 4, and 2 each in ice/wind/earth.

Really though, it just irks me to see people casting slow/paraII in anything else then MND gears lol. Especially if its just laziness. >.<


Imho, its best to maximize one or two choices instead of going "all-round" if you are doing endgame, because that would mean you will always be sub-par to other RDM's who have something maxed and are geared towards that specific function.

[yrpaine]

I haven't had luck with af2 hat, and I usually go /whm, so i went 5/5 ice/wind, and I have 3xSlowII, 2xPara2, 1xDiaIII. I mainly use rdm for small group stuff, like duo limbus and trio assaults. Other rdm in my ls has the phalanx2 merrits, I personally wouldn't get enough uses for it, cuz at large events I'm usually on another job.

[Osede]

hm... after the dicussion of lvl 3 group 2. I think I need to rethinking of whether taking off my phalanx 2 to max slow 2. Since usually stuff like proto ultima, salvage will got other rdm that using phalanx2.

[aru]

http://www.forsakenhearts.net/ffxicalc/
this calculator says that you need 325 enhancing to get phalanx2 to -20dmg (the cap apparently), not 301. i macro in af2hands, af1legs, enhancing torque and augmenting earring and put 2 merits in enhancing and that gets me to 300 skill. level2 with 300 skill is -19 damage, so for me going up to lvl3 would be wasteful (in terms of damage reduction per merit, not duration) and the merit point would be better spent somewhere else.

for the rest of my tier2 merits, right now i have 2 slow2, 2 phalanx2 and one para2 and i'm toying with what to do with my last merit (leaning towards one more in para2 atm). i find bio3 to not be useful outside of solo (and even argueable when soloing) and another rdm in my shell has dia3.
as for my tier1's, i have 3 convert, 3 ice and 4 wind for reasons earier posters have already pointed out.

[Bxbaby]

I have a question. I'm a BLM main, merited for BLM main (full INT, full elemental magic merits). I haven't started meriting my RDM, but I know I'm going to go 3 Slow II, 3 Paralyze II... Any advice on RDM specific merits? Mind you I'm not going to get rid of any of my merits towards BLM. I do plan on using my RDM for merit parties and for HNM/sky/sea when another RDM is needed or we are short.

[Celebrindor]

sounds like your primary desire will be a focus on a meripo RDM. In that case, you can't do better than 5/5 in convert recast when it comes to category I merits.

Since you don't plan on adjusting your magic skill merits nor your INT merits, you'll never fully be able to enfeeble as effectively at endgame events as well as a more RDM focused meriter. So honestly, you're going to best serve your shell at endgame events if you come RDM as being the full time support RDM in a tank party, refreshing/hasting/curing and letting those more dedicated to the job handle attempts at enfeebling.

Related to this would be your tier II merits. If you're unwilling to split up your elemental magic skill merits into a mix of enfeebling/elemental, and maybe rethink that INT into a split of INT/MND (and there's nothing wrong with that, just pointing out what would need to happen to be an effective enfeebler at endgame, or to be the best you can be), then you may consider dumping 2 or 3 upgrades into Phalanx II. None of the tier II enfeebles are really that effective for solo play or merit parties, so you won't be missing them at all. But if you're in the support role for a RDM in a tank party, that phalanx II can't be resisted and will show real benefit. Also Dia III if you plan on being a meripo RDM primarily. Honestly I'd go 2 phalanx II, 2 dia III (for more duration value for your MP cost) and 2 slow II if I were desiring what you desire for your RDM.

And lastly, the remainder of your category I merits. Max convert, but that leaves you with 5. Honestly I'd go with a wind/ice mix still, maybe 3 wind 2 ice. This means when you need to help with gravity you stand a shot, even without enfeebling merits.

Again, its not the end of the world, but really look at what you desire your RDM for rather than being halfassed at a multitude of things. Look at what your RDM without enfeebling merits, Taru's naturally low MND, and a refusal to merit MND or enfeebling. Not trying to speak negatively of you- BLM is your main and you've done what is best for your main. Just saying, let's be realistic on what your endgame role for your RDM will be.

No different than when I level up WAR I'll focus more on SWD merits than Axe or Gaxe simply because I'll only meripo with it with ME/Joyeuse or Woody/Joyeuse. I won't be the best WAR at endgame, but I'll be what I wanted WAR to be for me.

[Vail]

http://www.forsakenhearts.net/ffxicalc/
this calculator says that you need 325 enhancing to get phalanx2 to -20dmg (the cap apparently), not 301. i macro in af2hands, af1legs, enhancing torque and augmenting earring and put 2 merits in enhancing and that gets me to 300 skill. level2 with 300 skill is -19 damage, so for me going up to lvl3 would be wasteful (in terms of damage reduction per merit, not duration) and the merit point would be better spent somewhere else.

my phalanx II grants -21 damage, it's lv3 with 275-299 skill, it's not capped at 20 (I doubt it has a cap on effect potency based on something besides limitations of +enhancing equip)

Lv2 with 300 skill giving -19 damage fits perfectly in the formula I have come up with:
[(enhancing magic/25) +1 + (3 x MeritLv)]

if that calculator is giving you a number that doesn't fit in that formula above, then that calculator is wrong.

[Tulun]

More

Silence and Gravity should primarily be done in Enfeebling gear or +stat gear?

If potency isn't as relevant on silence / gravity, wouldn't full mnd + earth/ice merits be a good path, since you could more easily drop +enfeeb gear for slow 2 and paralyze 2?

[Celebrindor]

More

Silence and Gravity should primarily be done in Enfeebling gear or +stat gear?

enfeebling gear. I think of enfeebles in two forms- yes/no enfeebles, and graduated enfeebles. Silence, Gravity, Bind, Poison are the yes/no enfeebles- either they land or they don't. Slow/Paralyze/Blind are the graduated enfeebles- potency is just as important as landing them.

If potency isn't as relevant on silence / gravity, wouldn't full mnd + earth/ice merits be a good path, since you could more easily drop +enfeeb gear for slow 2 and paralyze 2?

Interestingly enough, you actually prove why putting more merits into wind accuracy is important. Potency isn't relevant on the wind based enfeebles, so accuracy becomes all you have to hang your hat on. While yes, having more accuracy in the elements of slow and paralyze in theory gives you more ability to stack on MND for potency, your lack of attention in the wind category will severely hamper your ability to land them in the first place. And again, your lack of enfeebling merits mean that you'll ALWAYS need to be casting slow/paralyze in full enfeebling/macc gear on anything of note.

Glad to see you're head on into planning for an effective RDM without expense to your BLM though, and as I pointed out above, there's a very specified niche that you can fill at endgame and be very effective at.

***EDIT****

sorry, answered you like you were bxbaby ^^

General consensus for a merited RDM who's a RDM main in terms of the accuracy merits is going to remain Wind and Ice, because they effect two spells, plus your best nuke, whereas earth only really effect slow. And consindering that the tier II version of slow gets an element of accuracy with each upgrade to it and its the best tier II spell......it shouldn't be too much of an issue.

[aru]

hmm, it seems you are right vail. looking at the ffxiwiki it says: "Max damage resisted with 3 merits (in Phalanx II, none in enhancing magic and no equipment): 20". it seems that the creator of the calculator may have misinterperated this entry as saying that you couldnt go over 20 at all when, in fact, it is merely saying that naked and with no magic merits phalanx2 will grant up to -20 when fully merited on its own.

in this light, maybe i'll max both slow and phalanx. (damn, hate erasing merits)

[Tulun]

Interesting.

So, assuming they max Slow at 3 points, you'd recommend wind/ice overall? As, with extra merits, it should hopefully make up for resist rates.

Perhaps I'll recommend he test out slow II resist rates on his own before meriting wind/earth elements (and test out wind resist rates with enfeeb gear). Maybe with extreme enfeeb gear (such as Relic hat) he may be able to erase wind if his earth is being resisted in the end.