Job Profiles - Dragoon

[Fiofio]

Drgs were designed to make sense in every incarnation save for this one. They've always worn the heaviest of armor (until the very end, which has armor that separates the pld-war from the rest), used high-damage lances WITH shields, and have always jumped for more damage than a normal hit (with the use of a spear/lance). It was a fine time to screw up the job, in a game that is community-based, wherein only the strongest of jobs are the socially accepted jobs. Take Kain, Cid, Drgs from FFT, Freya, or hell, even Ricard and place those drg builds into this game, and things would be much different.

But yes, Seraphus, Ninja can do anything. Remember the broken ninja from FF and FFIII -- Edge and Yuffie were probably the only two ninja in FF games that weren't completely broken. Its only natural that stealthy jobs such as ninja should stalk around in loud, heavy, and movement-restrictive chainmail. Mesh is one thing, as it can interlock so as to reduce sound while increasing mobility, but not fucking heavy iron chains, lol.

You know, I've always wondered why ninjas can wear chainmail and stuff when they were supposed to be stealthy. But I did a little searching on google and found this:

http://www.japanese-ninja-armor.com/

So apparently this chainmail was woven inside cloth so that it was concealed and wouldn't jingle about. Also, it seems that these real life ninjas weren't always sneaking around in black suits that shout "OMG I'm a Ninja and I'm about to do something sneaky". I gathered that most of them wore disguises so they would blend in with the peasants, craftsmen, merchants and even samurai. Then they'd take to wearing light coats of chainmail under their disguises, for added protection.

Fun bits of history

[Lucavi]

Well that settles that -- I have no choice but to accept the ninja part, but that still doesn't explain the rationale behind making drg completely different than what it used to be. Maybe SE was thinking that the standard drg of yonderyears wouldn't have enough job abilities or something.. I don't know.

[Dian]

Well that settles that -- I have no choice but to accept the ninja part, but that still doesn't explain the rationale behind making drg completely different than what it used to be. Maybe SE was thinking that the standard drg of yonderyears wouldn't have enough job abilities or something.. I don't know.

It's probably because they gave you guys a swiss army wyvern.

[Lucavi]

It's probably because they gave you guys a swiss army wyvern.

Yeah, they always say that, but c'mon, what REAL drg is going to tell you that they'd rather have the wyvern over the full power and potential of the Dragon Knight? Give me a fusion of Kain and the FFT Lancers and I'm golden. High attack, high defense, solid hp, double damage on jumps with a lance (with a lance that gives X4, and chances to crit on jumps), a high base damage one-handed lance with a shield, OR a 2-handed lance with a shield tacked onto the arm (shield blocks still usable), and dragon spirit, the self-RR job ability, with an enhanced range on jump JT that contains 4 levels, each level granting 7-10 extra meters of jump range.

Mmm.. I'd be a happy boy again. :D

[Kkel]

I wrote this up for someone who asked a few years ago about various AF quests. It's not a guide, but a condensed account of the quests involved.

DRG AF1: A Craftsman’s Work. Relic recovered: Peregrine.

Maiux wishes to repair the breastplate of her father's armor, but is afraid to approach the Blacksmith guild by herself so she asks for your help. The guild refuses to repair such a relic, but as you leave the guild, you are approached by Ranchuriome, a sort of outcast blacksmith who doesn't associate with the guild. He asks for an Altepa Polishing Stone, which you receive after defeating the Antican Paladin Decurio I-III. Maiux gives you Peregrine as a reward for your assistance, but you never learn the relationship or the reason behind her having the lance. Her father may have possibly been a Dragoon.

DRG AF2: Chasing Quotas. Relic recovered: The Drachen Brais.

Arminibit and Ceraulian are having issues making their weekly quotas. Their boss Brugaire is a real hardass. Arminibit makes his quota, but Ceraulian comes up short and needs a Gold Hairpin to keep his numbers on par. After agreeing to help and seeing to it that Cera makes his quota, you learn that Brugaire's father has died. Brug hated his father, but agrees to at least give him a decent funeral.

At the end of "A Craftsman's Work" Ranchuriome states that he hasn't been feeling well. At the start of "Chasing Quotas" you learn that he has died; he was Brugaire's father. Maiux, the girl from "A Craftsman's Work", attended his funeral. At the funeral a strange woman was seen about and Maiux tries to follow her. Instead she finds Ranchuriome's son laying unconscious, near him is a Shiny Earring, a clue to what happened.

Maiux helps him recover and you learn that after his father's funeral he was leaving with his inheritance. The person who attacked him stole it, "it" being an "old piece of armor". Braugaire doesn't care about the significance of the armor, just that a rich merchant was interested in buying it. He offers you 20% of the buying price if you can recover the armor.

Using the earring as a clue, you head to the Goldsmiths Guild in Bastok to learn more about it. In Bastok you learn from Ardea that the earring belongs to a Tenshodo member, the fashion obsessed thief Esca. You track Esca to West Ronfaure. There you discover that she stole the armor because it's rumored to have belonged to the legendary Last Dragoon. She was paid to hide it, but agrees to tell you where it's hidden if you leave her identity secret. Turns out she buried it on a small island off Battilla Downs. The only way to get there is through the ancient Eldieme Necropolis, and even then it's guarded by a trained monster, the Sturmtiger. You of course defeat the Sturmtiger, recover the artifact, and return to Braugaire.

You discover that the armor had been left with Ranchuriome to be repaired, but the customer never returned to collect it. He had many offers to buy the piece, but he never sold it. As Brugaire is stating that he doesn't care and just wants to sell it, Rahal shows up and confronts Brugaire about an order he had placed. (Rahal was instrumental in "The Holy Crest", the quest to become a Dragoon.) Rahal states that Brugaire is nothing like his father, a statement that shocks Brugaire. It turns out that Ranchuriome used to be the master armor maker for the Royal Knights of San d'Oria and on account of that, Rahal lets Brug off the hook for his shoddy workmanship and business practices. You also learn that the Tenshodo is infiltrating San d'Oria and it's alluded that Brug may be dealing with them. As Felippe, the buyer for Ranchuriome's artifact, arrives Brugaire is having a change of heart. He breaks the deal to sell the artifact as he remembers his father, and that he has been unjust, and disrespectful. The scene ends with Brugaire handing the artifact armor, The Drachen Brais, over to you, and leaving to visit his now dead father, to apologize and attempt to reconcile his past.

At this point, the identity of the original owner, aside from the rumor of the Last Dragoon, of the Drachen Brais remains a mystery.

DRG AF4: Boghertz Dragon Hands. Relic recovered: The Drachen Finger Gauntlets.

Guslam, an armor maker at Durable Shields in Upper Jeuno, was hired to craft armor for the shop, but all he ever does is watch over inventory. He's outraged that armor isn't ever repaired anymore, it's just replaced. It wasn't like that in the past, and Guslam recounts the tale of Boghertz, the legendary craftsman who once created series of amazing gauntlets, one for each job. The gauntlets however we lost after The Great War. Guslam has heard stories that one pair was hidden away inside The Boyhada Tree. It's off to the Li'Telor region in that case, through the Sanctuary of Zi'Tah to the great Boyhada Tree, home of the great Thunder Lord, Ramuh, and at the top of which dwell legendary Dragons in their Aery. With determination, you'll find the pair of old gauntlets hidden in a treasure coffer in The Boyhada Tree. It's never revealed how they got there, but after you return them to Guslam, he sends you on a small errand, at the end of which you uncover the ghost of the famous armor maker Boghertz. Using the Shadow Flames recovered from the monster Dark Spark at the Beastman stronghold Castle Zvahl Balieys in Xarcabard; Boghertz restores the old gauntlets to their former glory as the Drachen Finger Gauntlets. Whether these are the same gauntlets worn by the Last Dragoon is unknown.

DRG AF5: Ifrits Cauldron. Relic recovered: The Drachen Mail.

Although there is no real quest assigned, navigating and discovering the coffer hidden deep within the Ifrits Cauldron is the most dangerous of all the recovery of the Dragoon Artifact Armor. It seems as though the Last Dragoon went to great lengths to bury his past and legacy, and only those most devoted to restoring the legacy of The Holy Crest would dare seek out the Drachen Mails final resting place in an environment so hostile.

DRG AF6: The Quicksand Caves. Relic recovered: The Drachen Greaves.

The final resting place of the Drachen Greaves takes you back to the familiar, desolate, sands of the Altepa Desert (DRG AF1: A Craftsman's Work). This time though you have to venture deep below the sands into the ancient home of the Galka, now ruled by the Antica, The Quicksand Caves. Buried within the Caves a coffer is discovered, the coffer contains the Dragoon artifact boots, The Drachen Greaves. Once again you're left with the feeling that the Last Dragoon went to great lengths to bury his legend, but you're still left with the question of "why?" and "who was he?". For these answers we have to travel back to San d'Oria and speak with the one person who we know actually knew the Last Dragoon; the San d'Orian Royal Knight, Rahal.

DRG AF3: Knight Stalker. Relic recovered: The Drachen Armet.

So now we've recovered 5 of 6 pieces of armor of the legendary Last Dragoon. But who was he and why did he go to such great lengths to bury his legacy? For this we travel to Northern San d'Oria, to the home of the San d'Orian royal family, Chateau d'Oraguille. Within its walls we find the leader of the Royal Knights of San d'Oria, Rahal. Rahal was a key player in the events leading to birth a new generation of Wyverns and the re-discovery of the thought lost Holy Crest of the Dragoon (DRG Flag Quest: The Holy Crest).

After a brief inquiry about Hien (my Wyvern), Rahal mentions that the Royal Knights have come under a series of attacks by an unknown assailant. It is here that we learn the name of the last Dragoon, Erpalacion. The rumor suggests that he is behind the attacks. It can't be true! We learn that Erpalacion was the General of the Royal Knights of San d'Oria during the rule of King Ranperre, and the only Dragoon in existence at the time. He has been long dead, so Rahal refutes any possible involvement, but there is a tale told about Erpalacion...

Immediately after the great King Ranperre had quelled the strife within the Kingdom, Erpalacion was sent by the King's orders on an expedition to the outlands. It was said that the expedition served no strategic purpose and that King Ranperre merely feared the power of Erpalacion. He was never heard from again. King Ranperre apparently nodded in satisfaction when hearing the report from the returning soldiers.

Rahal confides that he does not believe the story and even though there is no evidence to support his views, even if there is some truth to the tale, it's unlikely that the attacks are the reappearance of the Last Dragoon. He asks you to gather information about the true identity of the attacker, if only to dispel the rumors that to sully the honor of Dragoons of legend. But even as you agree to this task, you, Rahal, and the Royal Knights are attacked. The attackers seem to be nothing more than empty suits of armor and Rahal strikes them down with ease. His men, though, fear that the ghost of the Last Dragoon is stalking them, out for revenge. Rahal questions you on the events of the past few days and you reveal to him the plot to steal the Drachen Brais (DRG AF2: Chasing Quotas). From here the search begins; it's off to question the Brugaire Consortium, a name we're already familiar with (DRG AF2: Chasing Quotas).

We head back and find Brugaire, the son of Ranchuriome, who we now know must have met with Erpalacion to leave behind the Drachen Brais. Before we can ask anything, Brug has a question for us; Who was it that stole the Drachen Brais? Well, we told Esca we wouldn't turn her in, so she'll remain a mystery, but we can say that there's someone pulling Esca's strings and that the plot is deeper than just a random mugging. Brugaire decides to get involved, realizing that the puppet master must be after the relics of the last Dragoon. Using the armor as bait, Brugaire plans to draw out the mystery. Bragaire gives us our first hint to the location of the legendary Drachen Armet, the Helm of Erpalacion. He mentions that his father knew it to be hidden deep within the Kuftal Tunnel. This is it! The last piece! It's a rush back to the Altepa Desert, this time to the Kuftal Tunnel that connects the desert to the Valley of Sorrows. Hidden within the tunnel is a coffer, but upon opening it we discover not the Armet inside, but a note, a challenge to the Royal Knights! When we return to Rahal in San d'Oria he's taken aback by the challenge. Not knowing what to do next, he sends us to Balasiel, a one time hero of San d'Oria and now the keeper of the ways of Truth and Honor for all who would be Knights of the Kingdom. He instantly recognizes the handwriting of the challenge to be that of Ancolain B Feulart, former 2nd in command of the Royal Knights. Balasiel was the one who relieved Ancolain of his position many years ago, giving it to Rahal. Ancolain was arrogant, and as explained by Balasiel, Ancolain's blade lacked sorrow. Ancolain, enraged, left San d'Oria and vowed revenge. It seems he has returned now, to carry out his plan. Hien can sense the shadow of thoughts that still cling to the letter, and with his help we begin the search for Ancolain before he can wreak any more havoc upon the Royal Knights and to clear the rumors that surround the legend of Dragoon.

Our search will take us far from home, all the way to the Elshimo Uplands, through the Yhotor and Yuhtunga jungles to the ancient Temple of Uggalepih, the home of the wrath and hate driven race of creatures known as Tonberries. It is here we will have our final showdown with those responsible for the attacks on the Royal Knights of San d'Oria, it is here we will face the final challenge, and recover the Drachen Armet. It is here we will discover the truth of Erpalacion and why he has gone to such length to bury the legacy of the Last Dragoon.

The Holy Crest guides us to a small room hidden within the Temple. It is here Hien knows Ancolain is hiding, his hatred his like a beckon and the shadow of his anger flows outward from it. Even as we realize this, we are attacked by the very shadows that drew us here. Cleuvarion M. Resoaix and Rompaulion S. Citalle attack with little warning. Powerful shades, but they fall before the might of San d'Orian steel. Only after they are defeated do we learn the truth.

Ancolain comes forward, not very surprised that his trap failed. He has become a Dark Knight, claimed to have conquered not only the art of the sword, but of necromancy as well. He reveals his plan to resurrect the spirit of Erpalacion with the Armet. Ancolain feels that because both he and Erpalacion were betrayed by San d'Oria, that the Last Dragoon with understand him, and help him extract revenge. With his powers, Ancolain succeeds and calls forth Erpalacion! The Last Dragoon walks Vana'diel once again! Instead of Ancolain though, Erpalacion is drawn to Hien, exclaiming that he never dreamed of the day when he would once again see a Wyvern fly free. Ancolain, stressing his kinship with Erpalacion, commands that the time for revenge is at hand, at that I will be the first to fall. Erpalacion instead marches the Dark Knight back, stating that he has nothing but gratitude for San d'Oria and that he has nothing in common with "the plight of a spiteful child". Ancolain B. Feulart turns to flee, but is cut off by the appearance of Rahal and the Royal Knights. Rahal reveals that he did not accept Ancolains position, and that it had been held open, in hopes that Ancolain would come to his senses and return. Regretfully, Rahal takes Ancolain into custody, arrested for treason against the Kingdom of San d'Oria. As Ancolain is being taken away, Rahal notices Erpalacion and is shocked to see the Last Dragoon. Erpalacion also knows of Rahal, The Dragonslayer (DRG Flag Quest, The Holy Crest). Rahal asks, if the vision of Erpalacion is truly what it seems, why did King Ranperre send him away?

Erpalacion tells the story of that night, the grand homecoming, and the true reason he left his beloved Kingdom. King Ranperre had pleaded with Erpalacion to stay, to help rebuild San d'Oria. King Ranperre knew that Erpalacions strength was vital to returning glory to San d'Oria, but Erpalacion revealed that during the fighting, his Wyvern had changed, and bore the mark of an Unholy Sign. In the heat of the battle, both Erpalacion and his Wyvern slew those with no sins to answer for, and that he was exiling himself as punishment for his crimes. King Ranperre, even as a Dragonslayer, had failed to notice this, such was the power of Erpalacion. The Last Dragoon explained to the King that in order to restore the Holy Crest, he must go beyond the dwellings of people, and spend the rest of his life in quiet solitude. All Erpalacion asked is that King Ranperre tell others that he had died. That the only way to truly cast aside his bloodstained Lance was to be dead in the eyes of the world.

It pained King Ranperre greatly to lose his closest friend, but he also understood what Erpalacion needed to do. Together they agreed that the King would send the Last Dragoon on an expedition, as an opportunity to disappear from the world. That last night the Dragon King and the Last Dragoon spent their time talking of times past, and the adventures they had undertaken together for the final time. Erpalacion vanished into the northlands, and in time, the unholy mark that blighted his Wyvern faded, but by that time he was too old to leave the mountains he called home. He spent his last days raising a new Wyvern. He left life with his dream unrealized, but now sees, in me, that there is another who has carried out his final wish. Before Erpalacion leaves this world for the last time, he asks for a moment with this young Wyvern. He asks that Hien grow strong, and that the life that pulses within is not his alone, but the spark of all the Wyverns that had been denied life in this world.

As Erpalacion fades, Rahal thanks you for all you have done and agrees to meet you back in San d'Oria. As you turn to your Wyvern, you see what the Last Dragoon has left you. On the cold stone of the temple erected in hate, in a place surrounded by anger, and rancor, lays the Drachen Armet. The final piece, and a symbol for new hope. The Drachen Armor has a new owner now, one who, with his Wyvern and with the power of the Holy Crest, will continue the legacy of the Dragoon and the honor and pride that it represents. Complete, you can now return to the mighty Kingdom of San d'Oria, for even now, greater adventure awaits.

[Xanthe]

That was an awesome writeup! I've always thought the DRG AF storyline was the best-written of them all. Good job!

[Dian]

It's probably because they gave you guys a swiss army wyvern.

Yeah, they always say that, but c'mon, what REAL drg is going to tell you that they'd rather have the wyvern over the full power and potential of the Dragon Knight? Give me a fusion of Kain and the FFT Lancers and I'm golden. High attack, high defense, solid hp, double damage on jumps with a lance (with a lance that gives X4, and chances to crit on jumps), a high base damage one-handed lance with a shield, OR a 2-handed lance with a shield tacked onto the arm (shield blocks still usable), and dragon spirit, the self-RR job ability, with an enhanced range on jump JT that contains 4 levels, each level granting 7-10 extra meters of jump range.

Mmm.. I'd be a happy boy again. :D

Dude, you can sub blu and heal youserlf for 400-500hp at a time for only 5mp, and with an ethereal earring your mp is pretty much unlimited. So you can solo just about anything, sounds more like you want god mode more than a little boost.

[Lucavi]

I don't need blu to be a soloing God, but then again, if I want to solo, I'd kill off everyone but Kain in FFIV and solo just as well there, and NOT through healing, but through sheer firepower and jumps. I don't want solo power. Solo power does not translate into respect in the FFXI society. To be respected, you must be useful to the group. How in the hell can you be respected as useful to the group when your only real power outside of angon is the ability to solo well?

If this was WoW, the current drg would be a flat-out monster, because the game is far more solo-based, and the abilities that drgs have cater heavily to that style of MMO. The wyvern would be stronger, the drg would have more control over the wyvern, and drgs would be literal monsters in PVP. But this is FFXI: this is the "happy happy fun-time BEST FOR FAMMIRY team-oriented MMO", where everything important must be done as a team, and thus, only the jobs that provide suitable utility in a team setting are appreciated. Being the underdog gets old after awhile, especially when its never been this way with any other drg in any other game.

I'd gladly give up the wyvern, storyline, and solo capabilities if it meant a return of strong hits with a lance, big numbers with jumps, long range, heavy armor, shields, and a second-to-plds-only approach to being a front-line fighter.

Its foolish to comprise a storyline about the bond between a Dragoon and Wyvern, only to then proclaim that "the wyvern's bond with the drg is so strong, the drg needs not to command the wyvern", IE. "the drg's potential is split with a wyvern, making it inherently weak compared to single jobs, and as an added bonus, can't control his little pet at all, making it ultimately useless in team settings".

Hopefully this next MMO will focus a bit less on overused Japanese-community stories when designing jobs. Next thing you know, you'll be seeing Warriors as a pet job with a dog like in Fable II, or Ninjas with a pet dog like in Samurai Spirits.

[SeraphusRagnarok]

Furthermore Dragoons never protected Dragoons, we simply imitated flying Dragons with our Jumping techniqes, we were simply Warriors without less HP, slightly less defense but higher hit rate%, Speed and Agility. We could wear every endgame armor except for crystal gear.


(Although in Legend of Dragoon we protected as well as fought dragons, man what a badass RPG...)

Dragoons new 2hour in WoTG:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNNlvGtVnMs
DIVINE DRAGON CANNON!!! WAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

[Dian]

I don't need blu to be a soloing God, but then again, if I want to solo, I'd kill off everyone but Kain in FFIV and solo just as well there, and NOT through healing, but through sheer firepower and jumps. I don't want solo power. Solo power does not translate into respect in the FFXI society. To be respected, you must be useful to the group. How in the hell can you be respected as useful to the group when your only real power outside of angon is the ability to solo well?

If this was WoW, the current drg would be a flat-out monster, because the game is far more solo-based, and the abilities that drgs have cater heavily to that style of MMO. The wyvern would be stronger, the drg would have more control over the wyvern, and drgs would be literal monsters in PVP. But this is FFXI: this is the "happy happy fun-time BEST FOR FAMMIRY team-oriented MMO", where everything important must be done as a team, and thus, only the jobs that provide suitable utility in a team setting are appreciated. Being the underdog gets old after awhile, especially when its never been this way with any other drg in any other game.

I'd gladly give up the wyvern, storyline, and solo capabilities if it meant a return of strong hits with a lance, big numbers with jumps, long range, heavy armor, shields, and a second-to-plds-only approach to being a front-line fighter.

Its foolish to comprise a storyline about the bond between a Dragoon and Wyvern, only to then proclaim that "the wyvern's bond with the drg is so strong, the drg needs not to command the wyvern", IE. "the drg's potential is split with a wyvern, making it inherently weak compared to single jobs, and as an added bonus, can't control his little pet at all, making it ultimately useless in team settings".

Hopefully this next MMO will focus a bit less on overused Japanese-community stories when designing jobs. Next thing you know, you'll be seeing Warriors as a pet job with a dog like in Fable II, or Ninjas with a pet dog like in Samurai Spirits.

DRG already puts up some nice numbers and does a ton of overall dmg, most LSes aren't likely to use them though because of the stigma that tends to surround pet-jobs. A DRG in my LS parses pretty much equal to most of the heavy DDs in the same LS, maybe the problems with your setup and not the job?

[Lucavi]

DRG already puts up some nice numbers and does a ton of overall dmg, most LSes aren't likely to use them though because of the stigma that tends to surround pet-jobs. A DRG in my LS parses pretty much equal to most of the heavy DDs in the same LS, maybe the problems with your setup and not the job?

No disrespect to you, but please. I'm one of the most well-known, respected, and strongest drgs on Hades. I've out-damaged, out-parsed, out-soloed and out-classed dozens of players on every DD job out there, in a myriad of situations. The job can run toe-to-toe with other jobs when fully geared and fully merited (when stacked up against equally geared and merited opponents). My personal reputation has nothing to do with it, however. The job is a pet job -- pet jobs are viewed as weak in the eyes of the community.

Pet jobs are given less opportunities as a result of this view. That's the bottom line -- it has nothing to do with builds, parsers, or even statistics. The stigma is everything -- its a bias in the same way as a bias can affect job positions and promotions in the real world. Just as how a everything from a person's name, to a person's viewpoints can skew their percentages for success in the real world, without the personal merits or ability of the person is even considered, so too does this stigma exist in this game world. The same people that play this game are out in the real world, using the same methods to divide jobs, and on some occasions, the people that play those jobs.

Its a well-known fact that if the drg was built around its traditional schematics, it would not be a pet job, and would not have this foolish stigma associated with it; a stigma that has forced drgs and other pet jobs to work twice as hard as the next guy for half the recognition (and twice the insults/jokes/jibes/ribs/ect.). Anyone who fails to understand this painfully obvious fact seriously needs to open their eyes, as well as go back and play as a drg in other FF titles.

:Edit: Ding in the name of Kain Highwind.

[SeraphusRagnarok]

Spirit Surge= For 59 seconds, what Dragoon would be like if it wasnt a pet job.

[Dian]

Pet jobs are given less opportunities as a result of this view. That's the bottom line -- it has nothing to do with builds, parsers, or even statistics. The stigma is everything

I agree completely. Ranger used to be my main job (I play PLD more often now.) and it was highly desired until the nerf way back when. RNG can still parse close to other DDs (falling behind only because hastedoes not effect ranged attacks) but the invites are few and far between, even more so now that two-handers are owning everything in the face.

[Lucavi]

Spirit Surge= For 59 seconds, what Dragoon would be like if it wasnt a pet job.

Hahaha, that's SO true! With the absurd speed of my hasso, SS, haste, march, and my haste build, it really does feel like that's how things "should be", but at least SE actually gave us a 59 second taste of what they could give us all the time. All I can do is keep going and wish for some balance when their next MMO hits the market.

[SeraphusRagnarok]

SE has always made the Lance weilding job very vanilla, meh DD without any niche.

Final Fantasy 4: Kain did great damage but was overshadowed by Rhydia and Cecil in endgame, Jump did slightly more damage (did double in FF4A with that item) Did less damage than Cecil, but had no magic, and was slower.

Final Fantasy 5: Dragoon was only good for like one boss battle, the job sucked but !DragonSwrd was awsome for mages.

Final Fantasy 7: Cid was good but Cloud and Tifa were a lot better.

Seiken Densetsu 3(Secret of Mana 2): Riesz was the balanced, red mage-esque character. Her magic was purely enhancing/enfeebling and her Lance was decent damage but only attacked once per round.

Final Fantasy 9- Freya was a decent damage dealer but was like 4th behind Zidane,Steiner and Amarant. Her abilities were very indirect/support in terms of damage and healing.

Final Fantasy X- Khimari was a Dragoon/Blue Mage, he started in the dead center of the sphere grid and had no specialty really. Every other character specialized in one stat and gained their own job skills(Auron's Breaks, Tidus's steal and time magic, Lulu's +Magic and black magic skills, Khimari was very meh)

Final Fantasy Tactics: Lancer was a solid melee but it was a novelty job and wasn't as useful as some of the special jobs(although JAvelin II was the best weapon in the game)

SE just can never find a good niche for spear using jobs...

[Charismatic]

Final Fantasy 9- Freya was a decent damage dealer but was like 4th behind Zidane,Steiner and Amarant. Her abilities were very indirect/support in terms of damage and healing.

Freya is the BEST DD if you don't level up all that much.
I couldn't imagine not having Freya in my Level 1 game. Freya can do 9999 dmg with Dragon Crest at LEVEL 1!

[Dian]

Final Fantasy Tactics: Lancer was a solid melee but it was a novelty job and wasn't as useful as some of the special jobs(although JAvelin II was the best weapon in the game)

I'm playing through this now and my Lancers are pretty much pwning every battle, rarely taaking any damage even because of jump.

[Lucavi]

Lancers in FFT slaughter everything. A lancer with blade grasp (well, any DD job with blade grasp), high Brave, jav II, level 8 horizontal and vertical, and whatever sub ability you want to dump on them owns pretty much anything. They can run toe-to-toe with any DD job that isn't a ranged, 100% chance-to-hit broken job like Rune, Dark, Holy, or Blast Knights. If you want them to run with mages, just pop a reflect mail on.

That was a poor example, Seraphus -- every non-Orlandu or non-calculator job can be considered "meh" onc.e you have Orlandu. Some of the others I'll give you credit for, like Khimari, but the only reason I didn't use him was because getting his final weapon was such a pain in the ass. He can be just as strong as anyone else, but again, SE holds back the job through mechanics (IE. placing him in a stupid spot on the grid, because they didn't design a part of the grid for dragoons, where they designed one for war/sam (auron), thf, blm, whm/smn, rng (wakka) and tim/war (tidus). Khimari got the random/blu section, which had very little melee stats, instead focusing on a little bit of everything, and as we all know, any game that focuses heavily on stats will result in a shitty player if that player takes a bit of everything, instead of first mastering one section, then moving on, which is exactly what the sphere grid was all about. My maxed str/atk magic atk/int summoner yuna that hit for 18k a swing was a testament to that.

Cid was the third strongest in FFVII, which ain't that bad, and Kain was only "meh" because the base damage of his lances post-Gugnir were absolute crap, which is why, in the remake, they compensated by giving him the most retardedly broken weapon in the game, with a 5% chance to cast an unresistable whirlwind (reduce hp to 1-10) on ANY mob in the game, including bosses. Besides, if you didn't like Kain's attributes, just give him adamant armor and he wtfpwns anyway.

You forgot to mention Ricard in FFII, who was stronger than just about all other NPC charas outside of the last dude, and that was only because he was the brother of one of the main charas. I never really played FFIX, because I hated the idea of a 9-year old saving the world again (grandia made me sick of it). In FFXII, lances were freakishly strong if you built correctly around them, and once again, the strongest weapon in the game was a lance.

SE simply has a habit of making most ordinarily-found lances/spears weak. They design the damage mechanics FOR the weapon strong, yet make the actual damage OF the weapon weak. Its like giving lance properties 50% enhanced damage on every type of damage, yet giving the actual lance 50% of the damage of a sword, which results in the lance being average. If SE actually grew up, stopped acting so cowardly, and gave lances the high base damage comparable to other two-handed weapons (in all FF titles), instead of making lances "meh", and then including a super-secret lance that wtfpwns everything else, we wouldn't be having this conversation.

The funny part is that they did the opposite of what they usually do when designing the mezraq. It has a very high base damage, but the shitty stats of the actual drg are what holds it back. I mean, do we even have anything over a B rating when it comes to attributes OUTSIDE of chr?

[Fiofio]

I have a question.... they call the DRG's pet a 'Wyvern', but it looks nothing like the wyverns that you fight (ie. Skoffin, Guivre and friends). Does that mean that the DRG's wyvern is like a baby Fafnir, or something?

[VZX]

It's a baby Skoffin/Guivre/Voivre/etc