White Mage Overview

[sevenpointflaw]

White Mage Overview

Statement of Purpose
The purpose of this overview is to give people interested in White Mage a general idea of what to expect from the job, as well as a general guide to the job without spoon-feeding every last topic to those interested. There are a lot of points, counter points, pros, and cons to many of the things I say, but I have tried my best to give a balanced view and keep my opinions seperate from generally accepted "facts.". Think of this guide as awareness of the job, rather than "the way the job should be played." This guide isn't specificly geared to new players or veterans, but rather to anyone who is curious about White Mage at various stages in the job's progression.

I can't say enough that this is an "overview" and not a "guide" to playing the job. There are a large number of threads that can be found discussing all of the topics I address, and each of those threads is chalked full of more detail, and other points of view that are just as accurate as what I've worked up in this overview.

I have tried to go out of my way to avoid "X is better than Y" statements (such as Black Mage makes a better sub-job than Summoner), but at the same time I have tried to acknowledge that there are significantly prevailant views within the White Mage community and FFXI in general with regards to certain topics.

Finally, this overview is written from the perspective of someone who doesn't just play White Mage, but also enjoys it. It is my main job, the only one that I am extremely intersted in playing through end-game, and as such this overview focuses on White Mage as a main job, not a sub-job (or its applications as such.) Because White Mage is so enjoyable to me, I'm very opinionated, and couldn't entirely keep my opinions out though I have tried my best to do so. At the end of each section I've also include my personal views for those who care to read, but shouldn't be taken as gospel under any circumstances.

Is White Mage Right For Me?
White Mage is fairly straight forward for most people. The general understanding of most players who start this job is that they will be healing other characters first and foremost. This assumption is 100% correct, but there is - of course - more to White Mage than "just healing."

Even so, the majority of the game will be spent on the back line, as far away from actual combat as possible.

While it is true that there is always an exception to the rule (some of which are covered later in this overview), you can expect that in general you will never be anything but a support character. If you want to be involved in directly killing your enemies, White Mage is very probably not the best job for you.

One very common misconception about White Mage is that it is an "easy" job. On the contrary, mind numbing at worst and fast paced at best, White Mage is a very hectic job. There is always something to do, and 90% you are doing it.

In short, if you are willing to be a support character, and responsibile for keeping other people alive, then White Mage is very rewarding - and in most cases if that is what you are interested in, then you will likely find that White Mage can be just as demanding as any other job (and just as hectic, too!)

Time to Inject My Personal Opinion:

Of all the jobs I've played, I've found White Mage to be the most rewarding. I truely believe White Mage, along with Red Mage, is the most hectic, mind numbing, face paced, tear your hair out, heart thumping job out there. What else could you ask for in a job?

What Race Should I Play?
There are three answers you will get if you ask this question to most people. The first is, "Tarutaru of course!" The second is, "Not Galka. Anything but Galka." And the third is, "It doesn't matter." The catch is that all three answers are correct because it is a very subjective question.

So does race actually matter? If all else is equal then yes, race matters. If you stick a Tarutaru, a Hume, and a Galka side by side in the same equipment at the same level, fighting the same mob, you would notice a difference. The Galka would run out of MP first, but be more likely to survive a few direct hits. The Tarutaru may only be able to take three hits, but isn't as likely to run out of MP. Of course, the Hume will fall somewhere in between.

A simple fact of White Mage is that your survivability matters. If you die, chances are someone else will die as well. But if you run out of MP, the same is true. This is especially true during lower levels. Literally, Tarutaru can only take two or three hits in man cases (and can be easily one-shotted in some!); but in some cases even a Tarutaru is low on MP. Truely it becomes a matter of trying to achieve a balance that fits your play style, and is something you might have to play with for a bit to find what suits you best.

Regardless, if you choose Tarutaru, you will notice a significant decrease in survivablity compared to Galka White Mages. And if you pick Galka, you will notice a significat inability to keep up with Tarutaru in sheer curing power (again, all other things being equal). Hume is easily the most balanced and most likely better suited to new players who are entirely unfamiliar with FFXI while Elvaan's suprior Mind rating gives them an advantage early on when healing magics are lower levels or uncapped. Finally, Mithra have less brute strength than Galka or Elvaan, and not as much MP as Tarutaru or Hume, but they do have a higher agility and dexterity which can help with soloing, especially later in the game when there are so many equipment options its possible to find Galka with less HP and more MP than a Taru.

Of course this leaves the question, "What race should I play?" And the answer is that it depends on your play style and personal preference. You are White Mage. When push comes to shove, you will get parties because other players simply need you. And since the racial differences diminish more and more as you progress through the game, racial differences have less impact in the long run than they do during your initial levels.

In short, play what looks interesting and fun.

Matter of Personal Opinion:

I started FFXI as an Elvaan, took it through the first 1/4 of the game, and rather enjoyed it. When I got my own account, I made a Mithra and found I enjoyed it as well, but that I really felt limited by the lack of MP on both races. So I swtiched to Tarutaru and havn't looked back since. Without a doubt, Tarutaru is the hands down best race for White Mage for me - but I also absolutly adore the back-line magics. When it comes to survivability, I think Mithra have it best by the time they reach end-game.

Starting Out (Level 1-10)
[spoiler]Starting out as a White Mage can be a pain in the rear. For the first ten levels, you will be soloing, just like with any other job out there. It can be slow, it can be boring, but there are plenty of ways to speed it up.

For new players, and for players who have never played a mage job (regardless how high level you are on your melee job), I do not suggest getting a power leveler to help you out. Playing a mage in FFXI is vastly different than playing a melee character. There are very simply some things you cannot do, and the best way to learn how to handle those situations is doing it.

Also, as a mage, you need to get used to casting magic. The first ten levels are a good time to experiment with timing your casting so you are not interupted or hit while casting. It lets you start getting a feel for how long you can go without curing yourself. It also will teach you just how long it takes to cast your various spells - something that later in the game can be the difference between life and death. And most importantly, it will engrain your mind just how important it is to have MP.

If you solo these levels, you will likely die a lot more than a melee would at these levels. You are a White Mage - you can't take the hits like a Monk or Warrior can. But again, it will get you used to the idea of how tough you aren't. It is a very good way to get yourself in the proper mindset for playing a mage.

If you get a power level, they will take hate from you, and you will end up beating on the mob with your stick. You won't cast spells, you won't get used to the idea of casting spells, and ultimately you will be at a disadvantage when it comes time to party.

Choosing a sub-job for the first few levels is also a subject of much debate. Of course, if you are a new character, you don't have a choice. If you have never played a mage before then you might find it more benificial in the long run to sub another mage job so that you can get out of the melee mindset. If you have leveled other mage jobs and are already familiar with the soloability of mages in the first ten levels, then you might find subbing Monk or Warrior gives you just enough of an extra boost to speed things along.

Opinion Time:

I hate power leveling. The simple fact is that if you aren't used to playing a mage, and you go out and level White Mage for the first ten levels with a power leveler, you're going to suffer for it. You may not even notice it, and others may not say anything to your face, but it really is easy to tell who took the time to learn thier job, and who coasted through it. You are a main healer, and when you are power leveled, you don't get to main heal. Look at it this way: When you're level 40, fighting in the Crawlers Nest, would you want your White Mage to be main healing you for the first time? Resist the urge to get a power level, and take pride in knowing you did it yourself.

Your Days as a Noob (Level 10-20)
Everyone hates the Valkurm Dunes, but it is also where everyone levels from 10-20. The nice thing about being a White Mage is that you can make your time in the dunes a million times smoother by taking to heart a few simple topics.

First and foremost among them is MP conservation. A great way to learn MP conservation quickly is to make Ginger Cookies your food of choice, and take the time to learn when you can and cannot squeeze in that one tick of resting in the middle of battle. Remember, with the cookies you are getting an extra +4MP per tick while resting; just a few seconds is an entire cure.

The second biggest lesson to learn is hate management. It is a simple fact of life that hate is as much the responsibility of a White Mage as it is the tank's responsibility. Especially at low levels where the hate generating tools of tanks are as a few and far between as the hate mitigation tools of the White Mage.

The dunes are a time of experimentation, not so much because people like it when you experiment in parties, but rather because you have to learn through trial and error. Just remember, Cure through Cure IV generate hate based on how many hitpoints you cure as well as which level of cure you use. Curing 15 points of damage with Cure generates less hate than curing 30 points of damage. Likewise, using Cure II will generate more hate than using Cure to recover the same amount of points.

Take extra time to learn just how much each cure will recover. The easiest way to conserve MP is to not waist it in the first place. If you only need to cure for about 15 points, don't waist the MP for a Cure II; If you can, try saving Curaga (once you get it) for after battles. If you can manage, save it for later in the experience chain rather than earlier to save MP.

Another important lesson to learn is "Know your mobs." It is a favorite quote of mine, right next to "Know your zones." In this case, it applies to Lizzards, which you will fight in the dunes right off the bat. While it isn't typicly advisable to tell others how to play thier jobs, it is definitly advisable to make polite suggestions where your job is concerned. How does this relate to lizards and White Mages? Well, they will petrify your tank with a gaze attack, and as a White Mage it is your responsibility to remove that petrification. Unfortunatnately you are so low level you don't have Stona yet. A polite reminder that gaze attacks can be avoided by turning around, however, is definately within the realm of a White Mage's responsibility and can save the party in some cases.

A seldom appreciated tool that White Mages get during the dunes are Barfira and Barwatera. There cannot be enough emphasis placed on these and the other Bar-ra spells. Take the time to skillup your enhancing and and to learn the range of these spells. Remember, Bomb Toss is fire based, and Cursed Sphere (poison) is water based. Learning to use these spells will save more MP than it takes to use them; in fact, in later levels they can be the difference between a dead party and taking no damage at all.

Waiting for a party in the dunes is a great time to skill up your Enhancing Magic; its one of the slower magics to skill up but doing so is very much worth the effort - especially where Bar-ra spells are concerned.

I Sure Am Opinionated:

Ok, so I said I hated PL's and I do. But chances are you will be stuck with one. By that I mean you will at some point be in a party where someone says "I have a PL with me," and your choice will be to suffer through the PL, or to find another party. White Mages have an easy time finding parties in general so if you choose to go that route, I applaud you. However, I understand that sometimes its just not worth it make a fuss. So take the time to skillup your Enfeebling Magic. Most people will suggest Divine Magic, but Divine is far easier to skillup later on than Enfeebling - especially after Red Mages and Ninjas become a mainstay of party dynamics.

[sevenpointflaw]

Re: White Mage Overview

Rewind! What About Sub Jobs? (Level 18)
What About sub jobs? There are so many choices and they all have thier uses! No really, no matter what anyone tells you, they all have thier uses. The only thing that changes is when and where. Some people will tell you that X sub job is "only situational" but really, when push comes to shove, every sub job is situational. If you can remember this, then you are one step further than most White Mages ever get. Further more, rembering this will open a whole new world of possibilities to you - especially later in the game (did you know White Mage has access to some of the best melee gear in the game?).

For now, however, there is only one situation that needs to be addressed, and that is Experience Points Parties. For these parties, you will be expected to use Black Mage or Summoner as your sub job. As a general rule one is not better than the other, however, the biggest benifit to having Summoner as a sub job (Auto Refresh) is not gained until you reach White Mage 50.

Red Mage is also an extremely viable sub job for White Mage in the earlier levels, and though some people might question this choice more so than Black Mage or Summoner, for the most part no one will deny you an experience points party for using Red Mage.

If you sub another job during these parties you can expect to have people ask you to change sub jobs, and possibly even to be kicked from a party for refusing to change your sub job. At the very least you are likely to earn yourself a bad reputation.

And the other sub jobs? Those are the other so called "situational jobs" that people talk about that are rarely used in Experience Points Parties. PLD gives you additional uses for your shield skill as well as Auto Refresh later on. RDM gives you dispel along with fast cast, and DRK gives you stun. WAR gives you the coveted provoke (a wonderful thing while escorting lower level friends around) as well as a fast claim on NMs, though BST can do that as well. RNG's widescan is better than that of BST, while COR and BRD alike offer any number of buffs wonderful for soloing. SAM is great for TP gain and unlocking weapon skills and latents weapoens, and BLU gives you added survivability in earlier levels. Finally, MNK is a diamond in the rough were the first ten levels are concerned.

Just remember that Black Mage and Summoner are expected, and Red Mage is typically acceptable.

What Do I Think:

Black Mage, Ninja, and Thief. Why? Warp. Tractor is nice. Escape is nice. Choke and Burn and Bio are nice. But Warp makes Black Mage worth it. Even during eng-game activities I prefer Black Mage as a sub job and while I undersatnd why some people like Summoner, I certainly don't see it as the end-all-be-all that so many White Mages think it is. Ninja has special place in my heart, and has its own little section later on, so I'll leave it for that. Thief, however, is fairly self explanitory. Treasure Hunter does make drops more frequent, and even cases where it is a negligable amount (such as drops from some NMs), its still worth having when your survavability isn't an issue.

Where the Grass is Greener (Level 20-35)
So now you are moving out of the dunes, and on to bigger and better things. The next five levels are essentially more of the same. As you progress in White Mage more spells become available to you, but in most cases they are just more potent versions of the same spells. Protectra becomes Protectra II. Instead of Cure with the ocassional Cure II, you now use Cure II with the ocassional Cure or Cure III.

There is a new spell added to your arsenal as White Mage as well; Regen. Whether you are dealing with Regen or Regen III, this series of spells is single handedly the greatest hate management tool that White Mages get - especially when dealing with Ninja tanks. These spells generate next to no hate by spreading the effects of a cure over the course of about sixty seconds. When combined with the damage mitigation of Ninja and Paladin tanks, it becomes a very powerfrul tool indeed. Further more, it can be used to offset the poison effects of mobs that you encounter at these levels.

Learning your zones is still important, as well your mobs; it always is. In this case parties tend to deal heavily with "mandies" that poison and sleep party members. Just remember your Barspells, and to keep your skills maxed. They may not help much, but they will help you more than the other parties' White Mage can.

Another suite of spells that you gain access to in these levels are the Teleport spells. With Black Mage as a sub job, this opens up "Tele-taxi" as a posibily source of income. While some of the older players may bemoan the fact that teleport services cost more than 500g now, newer White Mages can make a decent living by simply answering teleport requests in Lower Jeuno. While most of the prices seem to range between 1000g - 3000g at the time this was written, it isn't unheard of to see offers for 10000g to teleport a party, or to rush-deliver someone on the spot.

By this time most White Mages (those that have avoided PL's especially) should have more than a firm grasp on hate management and MP conservation. If you still have issues with either, its time to really get these aspects down because from here on out, XP losses start to get heavy.

Of course, one spell that has hereto been left unmentioned is Raise, they trademark spell of White Mages, and the best way to recover XP lost after dying. This, in combination with the teleport spells give birth to frequent use of /anon. Learn to love it.

Also learn to love Reraise. Reraise and Stoneskin are something that every White Mage should learn to live with. Reraise should be up 24/7, 7 days a week, holidays included. Stoneskin should be up every single time things take a turn for the worse - preferably before then.

More Opinions:

Ok, so I'm giving a lot of pointers here, but trying not to spoon feed potential White Mages, cause it just ends up hurting in the long run. So here I'm going to give you 100% unadulterated opinion. I guess, call it a pet peve of mine. If you can't solo your teleport scroll quests, or duo them with someone that is the same level as you then you might want to consider another job. White Mage, along with Red Mage, is one of the best jobs for soloing quests. Get used to it, revel in it, enjoy it. There's not much we get to do without relying on other people.

Double Post Edited:
Beyond the Horizon (Level 35 - 70)
Ok, so by this time you had better have a good grasp on playing the job. If not, then you're falling behind other White Mages to the point where you will make a very bad reputation for yourself. This is also the level range where you will really start to shine compared to those White Mages that have been spoon fed, power leveled, and coddled like babes.

Everything from here out, with the possible exception of Haste, is more of the same. Everything becomes more potent, more powerful, and more interesting. If you have learned how to manage hate and MP conservation, however, then the same principals will apply and everything will come naturally.

With regards to Haste, this is a chance to make a lot of friends. Especially among Red Mages. Red Mages are among the most stressed out, busiest jobs in the game. Take it upon yourself to relieve the Red Mage from some of thier stress. Haste your tank. Make it your responsibility, not the Red Mages. If, and only if, you have enough spare MP between your regen cycles and cures, then learn try to add at least one DD into your haste cycle. You would be amazed at how much extra freedom one ore two spells can give a Red Mage, and in return you will make a friend. Seriously.

An important note about Cure V is that it doesn't generate hate like other spells do. Regardless of how much you cure with Cure V, it will always generate the same amount of hate. How much hate is still open for debate, but the general consensus is that it generates more hate than a maximum Cure III, but less then a maxiumum Cure IV. Either way, it is an awesome tool for both hate management and MP conservation.

Maat is an adventure of his own. You've dealt with him several times, and now you have to fight him. I'm not going to tell you winning tactics however. The purpose of this guide is to give you an overview, and if I've done that, then you should have an idea on how to handle Maat. The only pointer I will offer is this: It is very possible to do do this challenge too well, and run out of time because of it.

What About 70-75?:

By this point, honestly, you should have the job figured out. The only major issue to deal with are Merit Points, and I have not personally dealt with those yet, so I havn't included them in this overview. I suspect though, that they are highly a matter play style. Maybe I'll add information about them later.

[sevenpointflaw]

Re: White Mage Overview

P.S., There's More... (Food and Gear)
Ok, so I have more or less skipped over food and gear entirely. I can't speak for other jobs, but your selection of food as White Mage is limited in scope. That is, there are several foods to choose from, but not many types of food to choose from. Which you prefer depends entirely on your play style.

Cookies are good for +HMP (+MP While Healing), last only 3min, and stack to 99. Regardless of what other foods you use, these are a must-have for farming, soloing, or when you need +HMP but don't neccessarily need to spend large ammounts of gil (such as skillup parties).

Mushrooms, however, are likely to be the mainstay of your diet. Roast Mushroms, Witchkabobs, Mushroom Stew... all very good choices that give you various combinations of +MP, +MND, +HMP, and -Enmity. While HQ foods are not neccessary, it comes down to a matter of play style; Remember, every little bit does help, and little bits add up fast. If you can afford expensive foods, why not use them? Besides, many of them will last two, three, or even four hours.

Its common to see White Mages - especially at low levels - using pies. Pies are very similar to mushroom foods, except they give +INT instead of +MND. Usually this is because pies are more common and a higher supply means a lower price. White Mages however, will likely find the +MND offered by mushroom foods more benifitial - more so if your healing skill isn't capped.

Maron Glace, the "White Mage crack" as it is frequently called, is the largest +MP boost that you can get at a low price. At the writing of this guide, the glace goes for about 3k-6k, and it is a 3 hour food. Be cautious about jumping on the Maron Glace bandwagon though. +85 MP is very nice, but remember, you only benifit from a food like that if you continue to rest enough to gain more MP than your normal cap. In most XP parties this only happens two or three times if someone goes AFK, or a party member dies. +HMP food however, kicks in any time you rest for a tick. That's something that will be used several times every battle.

Gear is a lot like food. A lot of it depends on your play style, as well as what you are doing. Its those so called "situational" gears that can get interesting. There are some things to keep in mind while choosing your gear though.

Remember, before about level 40, Red Mages and Ninja's are not enfeebing as much. At level 40, Ninja's start enfeebling mobs a lot as part of hate management, and at 41 Red Mages become a mainstay of party dymanics because of Refresh, and they will be in charge of enfeebling the mob if there is no Ninja. So before you enter the 40's, you may find yourself enfeebling more than you will later in the game. This is where +MND and +INT gear will come in handy. Wands are good for this, and are relatively cheap.

After level 40 you will enfeeble less and less, making it a good time to switch to +HMP and/or +HP gear. Again, which and how much of each you use is entirely dependant on your play style. As a Tarutaru you might can expect to have enough leway to focus on +HMP and +MND, while Galka and Elvaan might consider focusing on +MP and +HMP. The others have a little more leway for balanced adjustments between the three attributes.

At level 51 two items become available to you - Light Staff and Dark Staff. The Cure +10% and the +10HMP of those staves make them the weapons that you will likely use in most situations for the rest of the game. Getting the HQ versions also adds potency to your Light and Darkness damage, which is good for soloing as well.

There is also a wonderful semi-recent addition to the game that White Mages have access. Crow gear. From about level 45-55, White Mages are often in a position where they must over-cure and risk getting hate, or under cure and risk loosing the tank. I'm speaking of course about Ninja tanks. There is just something about how hard they get hit and what spells you have that makes these levels particularly annoying. Substituting one or two peieces of Crow gear for your normal gear every time you cast Cure addes Cure IV back to the list of usable spells at that level. Tarutaru especially can benifit from Crow, as they have less of a need to fill thier equipment slots with +MP gear.

Once you get your AF, you are more or less using equipment that you can use for the rest of the game, though most White Mages will make a final purchase of Blessed gear at level 70. Blessed gear is what you most often see at end game from your average player, and is nothing to sneeze at.

Of course, there is "better" gear to be had, but they are definitly luxery items, and very much a matter of play style. Most of them also require large, long term comitments to obtain, and so aren't really within the scope of this overview. Even so, keep an eye out for items like Vermilion Cloak, Ethereal Earring, Nobles Tunic, Reverend Mail, Optical Hat, and Rostrum Pumps. Chances are you'll see at least a few White Mages wearing them.

The +1 Argument:

So does +1 really make a difference? Yes; yes, it does. Will having +1 gear make you a better player? No, it won't. If, however, you are just as good as the next White Mage but you have that +1 gear, then you have a tiny advantage over him.

Remember, as I've said before, the little things add up fast, and they tend to add up faster the higher level you are. Look at it this way, with normal quality gear you might get +50 MP total. With +1 gear you might get +65 MP total. +15mp may not be much, but you have enough extra MP for an extra Regen III. Thats one extra Cure IV that you might not need to cast, and consequently thats a second Regen III you get to cast because of the saved MP. Now you've used less MP, which means you have more MP for the same ammount of resting, and it cascades from battle to battle building on itself in this manner. All because of an additional +15mp.

When push comes to shove... no one will care if you have normal quality gear. They might not even notice if you have high quality gear. But you will likely notice the difference at some point.

{I'm sorry.} {I'm playing solo right now.} (WHM/NIN)
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Sub job choice is situational - and that includes your subjob choice while in an XP party. Of course, the when it comes to situations where out right survivability matters above and beyond all else, most jobs turn to Ninja as a subjob. White Mage has a wider range of suvivability options, but Ninja, as with the other jobs, offers something no other job can; Garunteed blink.

To top it off, White Mage gains access to some of the best melee items once they reach end game; the benifits of which are severely increased by using an evasion friendly sub job such as Ninja. I'm talking of course about Optical Hat, and Reverend Mail. When paired with two Elusive Earrings, you are looking at an Evasion bonus of +30. Toss in two Darksteel Maul +1's, Bellicose Mantle, and a Life Belt, and suddenly you are looking at Attack +30, Accuracy +30, Evasion +30, Utsusemi:Ichi, Utsusemi:Ni, Dual Wield II, and Haste.

Round out your main gear with Blessed or Blessed +1 if you are lucky enough to find it, and you are getting a wonderful boost to +MND (great for avoiding spell interuptions) as well ass aditional haste. The remainder of your gear filled out nicely with +MND and +STR gear suddenly makes White Mage a solo demon.

For those with higher strength like Elvaan and Galka, a combination of Seawolf Cudgel and Sea Robber Cudgel has the potential to be more benificial by offering - when paired together - +5 MND, +5 STR, +10 Attack and +10 Accuracy.

Once you have Hexa Strike, either of the above set ups will give a White Mage on average, 14% TP per attack round, and allow from Hexa Strike somewhere in the range every 10-20 seconds depending on how much haste you have stacked on.

Of course, the ultimate setup when subbing Ninja is to main hand an unlocked Morgenstern and off-hand Mjollnir. Using this with gear above and substituting +DEX instead of +STR for increased critical rates makes even a Tarutaru a force to be recconed with. Against bones with +Attack food, its possible for the White Mage to out-damage a Monk by spamming Hexa Strike every 6-10 seconds. As impressive this is, don't expect to be a DD in a party because that's not your job, and remember... Mjollnir takes a very long time to get - probably longer than any other single piece of equipment a White Mage gets.

Hope you have your Club Skill up...

Why always with the Ninja Sub?

Yeah, I hate it to. That is, I hate playing Ninja as a main job. Leveling it sucks. Why? I'm just not interested in playing it. Love the job. Hate to play it. But I do so very much love playing White Mage and so I leveled Ninja. I've not personally experienced it but several players with White Mage and Ninja at 75 have told me that WHM/NIN is the better soloing combo than NIN/Anything in terms of outright survivability. Whether or not its true... Its something to think about. It's fun to beat the snot out of stuff like a DD when you're a White Mage and there is the undeniable fact that it gives you the option to do things that normally require "lots" of people.

When to Say No (You Don't Always Main Heal)
You see a shout in Lower Jeuno offering a Skill Up Party. Do you need it? Of course you need it. You're a White Mage and your melee skills are going to be severely under leveled. You could wait until you can sub Ninja for Utsusemi, but that gets really expensive really fast.

You also should keep your Enfeeble, Divine, Enhancing, and Healing magics at cap, but it is very hard to do. The only problem is that when you take a party invite and are asked "What job?" you answer White Mage and end up main healing. So much for skill ups.

Don't be afraid to say no. Most players understand that everyone has a variety of skills they want to level up, and that if you're main healing you can't do that. As long as you are polite about saying you will not main heal, most skill up parties won't mind. This applies whether you are leveling magics or combat skills.

Another time you can say no is when you have an overzeloul backup healer. Many Red Mages are so used to being treated like dirt and expected to do everything, that they just naturally try and do everything for no reason other than to keep people from complaining.

If the Red Mage (or Summoner, or Black Mage, etc.) is out curing you say "no," and offer to pick up the slack. If you present in a manner of "Hey, I have extra MP and time to cast and you look really busy, do you want to slow down so you aren't so stressed?" then most won't mind at all. Sometimes they will take you up on the offer, sometimes they won't. If they won't, ask your party if they mind you skilling up on something like Divine.

Its also okay to say no to raise and teleport requests. The fastest, easiest way to get jaded to playing White Mages is to cater to everyone who wants to go somewhere or needs a raise. If you do, you will spend half of your time running around and doing things for other people. Of course as soon as you get out somewhere (especially Dunes and Qufim), you will get more requests for help, and before you know it you're not playing the game for yourself anymore. Some people will be jerks about it; I say let them be jerks.

Final Word
There really isn't much else to say. Expectations will remain the same all the way through the end of the game, with the few "no" exceptions. Your role will almost always be healer, and if you understand that then you will probably enjoy the job. From start to finish there is little change in White Mage as a job; the only thing that changes is how well you can do your job by learning to utalize the tools provided to you. Once you do that, you open yourself to aspects of the game that aren't otherwise possible and maybe even to things that havn't been done yet.

It's been pointed out that this overview is rather limited in scope, and its true. There's a world of options out there that I havn't discussed, and honestly you could probably an entire book about any single job and still run out of space. This overview should give the average player a place to start for most of the game, but that's about it. Honestly, think of it like that first introductory chapter in the "Big Hand Book of White Mage." It tells you what is to come without too much detail.

Check out these forums, especially the stickies "White Mage Hints and Tips" and the Sub-job discussion. There's pages of more detailed information there; the rest of the book as it were.

Have fun playing White Mage!

[Murphie]

Re: White Mage Overview

Without a doubt, Tarutaru is the hands down best race for White Mage - but I also absolutly adore the back-line magics. When it comes to survivability, I think Mithra have it best.

Not to nitpick, and I know you put this under "opinion", but this has been debated ad infinitum since the game started. I personally don't think Taru is the "best" WHM race. And I'll bet if you polled a bunch of folks you wouldn't find much of a consensus on this issue. It's really probably better to leave biased race descriptions out of a guide.

All in all, it's not a bad guide. It's just not as informative as it could be, and tends to talk down to the reader a bit.

[sevenpointflaw]

Re: White Mage Overview

I know its under heavy debate. Hense the opinion as you pointed out. Imma hide the opinions in spoiler tag things as soon as I remember how.

As for usefulness, its not supposed to be as informative as, say, a walk through. Its more intended to give people an idea of what to expect in general terms, point them in the right direction of what is "expected" of them, and then let them loose. Even so, this is only second draft. I'm sure I'll remember lots of things to add to it at later dates.

I wrote it mostly for my LS mates (and cross posted here since I had written anyhow) who often ask me questions like what type of food and I say "Mushroom Stew" thereby sparking a debate of stew v. kabobs v. glace. I was hoping to give enough info to arm people who don't know about the job to go into it able to make (more) edjucated decisions without necessarily having been told "you must do this."

[Murphie]

Re: White Mage Overview

That's pretty fair. I also kind of wish that so many guides out there weren't telling folks to start partying right at level 10, and that Valkurm is their only option, followed by Qufim and then the Jungles. We really need to start teaching people to break out of that pattern.

Also, WHM can solo pretty awesomely to 14-15 at least, which takes a lot of the drama out of going to those early dunes parties, plus enables them to earn more gil and beastmen seals and crystals. I think if more people didn't rush to party right at level 10, the dunes wouldn't be such a scary place. But again, that's just my POV.

More MP doesn't always automatically = best mage. Although it certainly can help. I prefer Elvaan for the higher surviveability (I don't quite understand why you listed Mithra), and higher MND. There comes a point, when you really do have enough MP to do the job. After that it's all about HMP and not wasting the MP you have. Any race can do that - not just Taru.

EDIT:

I'd like to add, that I think it's great that you're trying to help newer players. Your heart is obviously in the right place, and that's what matters. The guide isn't bad, it's just kind of limited in what options it provides for people. And while I agree with you on several of the points contained within, there are several more that I definitely don't. I hope you don't think I'm trying to attack you or anything.

[sevenpointflaw]

Re: White Mage Overview

Mithra is just personal preference as a survivability option. I just don't like Elvaan and Galka as characters, and really enjoyed my time as a mithra (almost as much as taru).

And you're right about the other options for dunes; but the overiew is meant to deal with expectactions to a large degree, and most people can expect to party in the dunes. I'll let the guide sit for a bit though, and rack up a few repsonses then go back and do some editing though, cause you're right about the dunes issue, IMO.

Double Post Edited:

I'd like to add, that I think it's great that you're trying to help newer players. Your heart is obviously in the right place, and that's what matters. The guide isn't bad, it's just kind of limited in what options it provides for people. And while I agree with you on several of the points contained within, there are several more that I definitely don't. I hope you don't think I'm trying to attack you or anything.

I look at it as constructive critisism. I'm trying to be as balanced as possible, but the more feedback I get the more balanced the guide can be. I guess when it comes down to it, it will end as a community project, even if it started as just me writing it.

[Murphie]

Re: White Mage Overview

Well, if it's a personal preference thing, then that's even more of a reason to keep that sort of thing out of a guide. History with this game has shown us that people don't always think about what they are reading. They just take it as the gospel and then repeat it to others. (Thanks Brady Guide). It's probably best to nip that sort of thing in the bud whenever we can.

Mithra aren't bad WHMs by any stretch of the imagination, but Elvaan and Galka definitely have a higher surviveability rate. Elvaan also have the highest MND in the game, meaning that in those earlier levels, they cap their cures much earlier than any other race. That's a huge benefit when you're having to keep everyone alive.

[Palom_FF]

Re: White Mage Overview

You also should keep your Enfeeble, Divine, Enhancing, and Healing magics at cap, but it is very hard to do.

From my experience, after Lv50-ish I never had any problems keeping Enfeebling, Divine, or Enhancing magic capped. Simply using Dia every fight kept my Enfeebling capped, Haste and Regen kept Enhancing capped, and Flash (one of the best spells in the game) kept my Divine capped. I only had trouble keeping Healing capped because I prefer to use Regen.

It's really probably better to leave biased race descriptions out of a guide.

I agree. Every race has their pros and cons. Yes, racial differences are very noticable at the low levels. But at upper levels, racial differences mean less and less, and how serious you play your job dictates how well you perform. As a hume WHM myself, I generally have more HP (~750) and MP (~1275) than most taru WHMs. Plus, I have higher MND than taru and can usually push bigger numbers with Cure V.

[Murphie]

Re: White Mage Overview

Yeah, I never had any problem keeping Enfeebling, Enhancing and Divine capped. It was a blue number next to Healing that often eluded me.

To make up for being such a grumpy gus, I added some rep to the first post.^^/

[sevenpointflaw]

Re: White Mage Overview

Hmm. The race thing is a little annoying for me to write. Its a simple truth that they -are- different, and like I said, all else being equal, they perform slightly differently. I don't want to generate a "bias" towards one race or another, but rather make it clear that are very distinct differences that should be taken into consideration depending on your play style. Just not sure how I can do that any way other than I already have.

[Murphie]

Re: White Mage Overview

Well, while it's true that they are different, the differences at 75 are negligible enough that it's not really that big a deal.

[sevenpointflaw]

Re: White Mage Overview

From a purely stat point of view, yeah, they are negligable. But race will often affect when you will buy what, and also affects you around RSE time. For example, Astral Rings are a huge purchase that are much more helpful to Galka early on, but less important to taru. For a first-time player especially that sort of purchase can be daunting if they play a Galka. Likewise I've found RSE for taru to be largely ineffectual for WHM's - at least the way I play it, and that's an entire set of armor that would otherwise be free.

I'll look over it again though and par it down some. See if I can't rework it so that it more clearly states that ultimately there is less difference than one might think, but still acknowledge that choosing a different race early on still might have more affect than people realize (which gets my point across and aknowledges the one you've just made, i think)

Double Post Edited:
Oh, also added another paragraph to the "Final" section, and I will go back later and re-write the bit about Divine/Enfeeble being hard to cap. That was an instance of my fingers not correctly saying what me brain was thinking.

[Murphie]

Re: White Mage Overview

Well, aren't stats the entire basis for determining "best" combinations on paper? So if the stat differences are negligible, than it doesn't matter.

I get what you mean about gear and stuff, but really a gear guide is an entirely different thing. Sure, a Galka or Elvaan could really benefit from Astrals, but those are luxury items, and shouldn't be factored in anyway. IMO at least.

[sevenpointflaw]

Re: White Mage Overview

Check out the race section now, tell me what you think. Made some changes.