Choosing a melee job.

[ichrius]

I've had problems choosing a class for a month+. I'd switch to a class, get maybe 1lvl, then resell all my equipment and wonder about a different class..it's hard for me to stick to one..I've done this many times. So, I ask all of you to choose a class for me! I want to be a melee damage dealer..I hate waiting for parties, and I hate making them >.< I want to be useful in HNMs and BCNM battles.. a class with things to do other than melee/weapon skill are what I like too. So, please, help me choose a class! I've spent much time reading each job forum at ffxi.allakhazam.com, ffxionline.com, and killingifrit.com. Still cannot choose. Please, please help me pick a class that you would think suits me well, and list reasons. Feel free to ask questions, as not being able to stick to a class really bugs me, and I really am into ffxi. Thank you so much for your time

[Darkedge]

RNG. You'll do better damage against HNMs than other melee, RNG are top tier DD, not only do they shoot and WS, but they pull in EXP parties.

[Lynsy]

Re: Choosing a melee job.

Originally posted by ichrius
I want to be a melee damage dealer..I hate waiting for parties, and I hate making them >.< I want to be useful in HNMs and BCNM battles.. a class with things to do other than melee/weapon skill are what I like too.

Welcome to the world of self conflicting goals....

[ichrius]

I was thinking along the lines of Warrior, Dark knight, samurai, monk, and dragoon..

[tdh]

Well, after a while, you're going to find that you're a dime a dozen.

At Lv.51, searching to build a party, I usually see 5-10 DRGs seeking, 3-6 DRKs, and a handfull of MNKs. A lot of them seem to stay there a very long time.

I don't know about SAM though. Not really sure if they get party invites so often, since I don't often see them seeking. Either way, there's going to be a point where you're going to spend a fair amount of time searching for a party.

I know DRKs are often prefered for BCNM40's, I don't know about any others. (Being able to Stun and stop Flood casts is a huge plus.)

[Omena]

Originally posted by ichrius
I was thinking along the lines of Warrior, Dark knight, samurai, monk, and dragoon..

None of those jobs are good in HNM or BCNM and they all have trouble getting parties. All the important stuff is done by mages and tanks.

[ZQM]

Originally posted by Omena
None of those jobs are good in HNM or BCNM and they all have trouble getting parties. All the important stuff is done by mages and tanks.

Except he said Warrior, and a Warrior is also a tank. Expecially good for BCNMs and some Gods/HNMs.

Getting party invite will be hard though.

[greysenn]

There isn't a single job he listed that outright "sucks" at BCNM's. You can win using every single one of them.

Tdh hit the nail right on the head though... The problem you run into with DD's, is that in general they're are a dime a dozen compared to the other job slots you need to fill.

[ichrius]

Thanks for the replys..I narrowed it down to dark knight, dragoon, or samurai.. and I would like to know; do these classes still get picked for some nms, hnms, bcnms, gods, and what not? Also how are pt invites for these classes, dmg, etc etc, anything to help me choose:p I would like to know about paladins dmg too...I know it's low but how are the #s compared to drk, sam, and drg?

[Kagerou]

Both samurai and dragoon have their ups+downs depending on their lvl range. Samurais shine around 50ish with med+Jinpu+double attack (assuming the person subs War). Dragoons do more base dmg with Jumps+wyverns and their WS penta thrust+wheeling thrust deals nice dmg. Darks deal heavy dmg (souleater, berserk(sub War), SATA (sub thf) ) and they also have handy magics like stun and absorb-____ spells.

PLDs dmg are quite low since sword dmg is a lot weaker than the other DD melees, sword WS is weak as well, PLDs don't eat meat mithkabobs, and they focuses raising their HP+VIT more than att+acc :sweat:

I don't have much experience with HNMs and BCNMs so I need more input from higher lvls :sweat:

[Kimakare]

Best meleeing job?

Red Mage!

[Laute]

I can't say I exactly have first-hand experience in HNMs, Gods, and the like. However, the general consensus I've seen is that melees have one role: You build up TP, and then use Spirits Within, the sword WS based on your HP value. Obviously, Samurai would have a slight edge in this, having Meditate and other abilities to help out TP gain. The only exception I've really heard, melee-wise, are MNK/WHMs Boosting and Chi Blasting for tons of damage. But that's about it.

So yeah, there are really two or three situations. There are HNM fights, there are BCNM fights, and there's the general exp party. Melee damage dealers shine in the exp parties, and have their uses in BCNMs if they're well-equipped and skilled at their jobs... And in HNM fights, RNG and BLM are more of a necessity. Yeah, you can help out, but noone's going to be all "OMG Get that drk! We need him to win!"

Ultimately, just learn your job. Early on, you shouldn't have much of a problem with invites. 40-50 you might find t hings slower, and 50-60 is when you start to build a reputation. So no matter what you choose, do well. But if you're not factoring in reputation... You said you narrowed it down to Dark Knight, Dragoon, and Samurai, right?

1) Dark Knights have the reputation of attracting the sort of people who j ust want to do the best damage. Basically, the teenage boy's wet dream. This isn't to say that all DRKs are like this... But it's a pleasant s urprise whenever I party iwth one who's skilled at what he does. As a class, Dark Knights are incredibly powerful, and not only have the ability to deal nice damage, but also help debuff the mob with their unique Absorb spells. In terms of damage, RNG, BLM, and even MNK and DRG can outdamage them... So don't fool yourself into thinking you're the best. It all depends on how you play. Just keep in mind that if you can party well, and know how your abilities work, you'll shine. DRK has some really nice abilities that many of its players ignore. Please don't be one of the DRKs who just turns on auto-attack and watches television.

2) Dragoons. They have that reputation of whining about how weak they are. The more they do this, the more other classes hear about it, and the less likely they are to get invites. That having been said, DRGs shine as damage dealers from 1-49. Your wyvern damage is top-notch, and combined with your own damage, you'll deal out some of the most consistent higher-end numbers of anyone around. From 50-60, you grow a little weaker due to your wyvern not really getting upgraded that much... And from 60-on, DRGs have some problems since their damage isn't as good, and many people level off of skeleton-type mobs. This is a problem, since lances have a penalty against these types... However, there are new weapons introduced that count as "blunt" weapons. So it's possible, but you still have to deal with the reputation the class has given itself. DRGs in general have started to realize how much they're hurting themselves, and have since stopped the angst... But it's still showing its effects. DRG also changes its role several times. DRG works well with a thief, having hate-shedding abilities like Super Jump. Now this won't make or break the class, but tehre's always the debatable subjobs of things like WHM to help out as backup healers. Take it as you will, but DRG isn't always strictly about damage. Oh well.

3) Samurai. If you don't know how to skillchain effectively, please, do not play this class. They seem to have less accuracy problems than others, from what I've noticed, but it's all a matter of perspective I guess. Their damage is okay, but nothing all that great. Where they really shine is in their ability to skillchain. More TP gain = More skillchains = More magic bursts. So in a sense, Samurai are like the melee equivalent of a bard. They reduce downtime by allowing other party members to deal more damage through the skillchains they're able to pull off. Fun, no? They also have a fairly high polearm and bow skill, so if you keep those up to date, you can solo incredibly well. Access to Penta Thrust, or Sidewinder if you sub RNG, are incredibly useful for farming... But a no-no for partying.

BCNMs are all about efficiency, so if you can efficiently deal out enough damage quickly to help take out the mobs, you've earned yourself a spot. Some people refuse to take anything other than a BLM or RNG, however, so keep that in mind.

Again, with HNMs, you'll largely be spamming Spirits Within...

And ultimately, expect on some occasions to get party invites once every 8 hours... Some people can go three weeks without parties. Static parties really help melee out in that respect. And yes, melee DD are a dime a dozen. They're necessary, but too many people want to be the guy with the huge greatsword who lops off the head of an enemy and saves the day. So expect a lot of competition.

[fuz]

To be honest all melees are useful in exp PTs 1-75, some may be better than others in level ranges or type of mob, but it's not terribly relevant for the most part.

The only melee I can't recommend taking to higher levels is drg. They loose almost all the advantages they enjoyed during the trek up as everyone hits lvl 70 and evolves into their final form. It stems from a lack of decent equipment, combined with very few job skills, abilities, a main weapon that is limited in WS, and mob compatibility. Not a problem if you don't go on big hunts... but if decide later that you want to, you'll not be welcomed easily. Everything else, it really doesn’t matter which job you pick.

Sam is a very well balance melee, drk is also--if a bit on the slow side.

[Izual]

Actually on most hnm, melee do not need to use spirits within...there are much better ways of fighting if you're well-equipped and know your job.

Of the 3 classes you said, drk and sam are more or less on par when it comes to hnm. Sam's meditate is great when you're in a fight where it's hard to get tp, and they can do some great damage with /thf on gods. Drk has stun, and the added benefit of having the most powerful weaponskills out there on hnm when using /thf (that includes sidewinder and slugshot by the way). Either one is a fine job choice, but bear in mind that you will still be pretty far down the hnm 'ladder of usefulness' no matter which one you choose.

I honestly can't recommend dragoon at all...perhaps this job will be changed in the future, but in it's current state, it has very little usefulness on hnm.

[Fire]

Originally posted by Omena
None of those jobs are good in HNM or BCNM and they all have trouble getting parties. All the important stuff is done by mages and tanks.

gg talk about stuff you know not what you think or hear heh

DRK's and SAM's are both very usefull in HNM heh if they were'nt then every one would be leveling RNG. These 2 jobs are the only ones I've seen do 700~1k dmg on WS vs Tiamat.